Tales From the Waiting Room (and other stories)

Our Chickens Have come Home to Roost

And apparently that is all they're doing.

When one thinks of chickens, the word "industrious" doesn't automatically spring to the front lobe of the brain. But is it too much to ask that when we faithfully pour chicken feed into their feeding bin and make sure they have plenty of water, and most of them are females--that we get some eggs in return? Have I mentioned the heat lamps and light timers so that they think it's still summer? Since there are no chicken labor laws (yet) limiting their production, this has always worked in the past. 

So the other day I actually had to bu..purcha... Words cannot describe my pain as only a picture can.

 

Soon our newer chicks should be old enough to start laying, so we shall not be put in this position again. Only then will shame be erased and self-worth restored.

Nate, who is in charge of the chickens, got in an unspecified accident while doing chores the other day. After making a couple of inquiries, I suddenly remembered that trying to obtain accurate stories about injuries from boys who were horsing around makes me reach for the Advil. So instead, I decided to photo-document it as any self-respecting blogger would. Since this fortuitously happened on a Thursday morning, which is when Abigail's physical therapist comes to the house (she's also an RN), I figured we'd butterfly it and ask her opinion. 

Plus one's doggie to comfort one in time of distress doesn't hurt. Our nurse friend Jeanne pronounced the butterfly bandage well-done, and no stitches necessary. Then Nate and I discussed what was really important: What story to tell girls in the future when they asked about the scar. My suggestions ranged from shark attack to tiger brawl. Nate said "What if I just explain that I was horsing around with my brothers and got a piece of metal to the face?"

Apparently, my son never wants to date. 

But back to the weather. I got this update yesterday because I subscribed to text updates from the local station. That's right, I'm a happenin' 21st century mom. 

"Persons traveling early this morning should be prepared for icy road conditions. Black ice is nearly impossible to see. Avoid sudden turns and hard braking, and maintain a safe distance between other vehicles. In case of an accident, pull far off the roadway if possible and remain in your vehicle."

Some people never listen. 

We found this guy when we were on our way home, nearly to our driveway. By that time, the guy's buddy had been summoned and was waiting at the bottom of our drive to take him home. Mind you, when I drive the 15-passenger Eggplant, I need a certain amount of traction to make it up our icy driveway when coming in from the highway. But the buddy was parked at the end of our drive. When I slowed and motioned that I had to get in, he kept making waving motions and shouting "We're okay! He just has to get some medication for his children out of the truck."  I said "I live here, and need to get in my driveway." He finally said sorry and backed up, but by then I had a line of motorists behind me that were Not Happy at being stopped on a highway. It was a process, but I finally got backed up enough to get the traction needed to get up our award-winning driveway. 

As I later relegated the tale to our children, 15-year-old Josh said "Hah! Yeah right, had to get 'medication for his children' out before the authorities arrived." 

I hadn't thought about it like that. He's probably right, it might have indeed been -medication-, but probably not something he'd want anyone else to get dibs on. 

But enough about family problems and weather-related incidences. What really matters is that, apparently, the show Two and a Half Men has been canceled. As many times as I could say that I'd seen it coming due to the mildly-put substance abuse by the show's main character, I had hoped that those involved would continue to work around him. Apparently, this came to its inevitable end. A friend of mine--Olive's Pearls (who remains humble despite being a part of BlogHer)-- and I have been on death watch for Charlie Sheen for a few weeks now. Here was our exchange today:

Jen: "That horrific scream you just heard was Jon Cryer and Conchata acknowledging their unemployment. Hey, in an unprecedented turnabout, perhaps they should replace Sheen with Michael J. Fox. I'm pretty sure Fox could play drunk."

Me: "They could re-name it 'Spin City.'

Jen: "It's just so freakin' sad. Such a good show, and such talent all around. It hadn't even jumped the shark yet, and he has to blow it all to pieces. Carlitos, you have let me down!"

Me:  "It's not over until Conchata sings."

Jen: (about her 11 year old daughter): "It involved a long and carefully edited explanation of what Charlie Sheen's been up to, a description of the wacky truisms of Yogi Berra and a few very basic facts about opera, but it was worth it to Agatha share in the LOL." 

Me: "I am now burdened with the task of trying to make the phrase 'wacky truisms of Yogi Berra' work seamlessly into a conversation."

Jen: "We're too erudite and renaissance for own good."

-----

Since Jen's IQ is slightly (okay, a lot) more than mine, I had to stop there. Just know that I mourn the loss of this show. It got me through some difficult times in my life. As they say, "Laughter is the best medicine that won't get you taken to court after your pickup ends up in the ditch."

Safe travels, everyone. 

 

"They got some Saki, and Sashimi...

and some clean sheets, Oh, kimono, oh, kimono!"

A prize for the first person who posts which t.v. show featured these lyrics on a semi-regular basis PLUS the name of the song. Prize is a $25 GC to Omaha Steaks. Don't worry, you don't have to live in Omaha--they have great mail-order (ask me how I know) and the vegans among us (are there any?) may take heart, there are also plenty of veggie side dishes to order. Although how you can bear to listen to a carrot scream is beyond my ken. 

I prefer to think of this as promoting blog traffic instead of how indelicately *someone* in my household suggested it sounded like I was whoring out my blog. Sweet, innocent blog, I would never do that to you.

The reason for the Japanese theme is that recently, we went to a New Year's Eve celebration with some friends. You'd know this if you read my blog. Yes, that was recent, because we don't get out much. Not because we don't want to, but because Getting Out takes a Lot of Effort. And there's always so much to do around here, not all of it chores (ignore what my children might say about this). 

At this party, there was a guy making homemade sushi. Who does that?  Well, apparently we do now. Brett ordered a Sushi-making kit, assembled from several purchases on Amazon. 

Since I prefer to educate people in what seems to be a playful manner yet if you spend any time thinking about it (and I'm not suggesting you should), it connotes snobbishness. I learned that you can't call something "sushi" just because of the ingredients or how it looks. If you prefer, learn more here. It's quite possible that when you think you're eating sushi, you're really eating chirashizushi or narezushi.

How embarrassing for you.

The final kit of Brett's sushi making items arrived this morning. Apparently, he then had No Choice but to take all of the children except Susannah to the store. The reason for that is, Susannah is finishing up one of those poster tri-fold projects for school. Parents are "encouraged" to help. So that is what my day was spent doing, and I almost certainly do *not* resent it in the least. 

Back to the sushi. Here's Isaiah cutting up a bell pepper. Yes that's a stuffed camel in the background. The explanation would only frustrate you so I shan't divulge.

Josh works on the carrots. I had to put on earmuffs.

Mercy helps with the peppers too. Just because you're missing a couple of limbs doesn't mean you shouldn't use sharp objects and risk losing more, I always say. 

Abigail agrees.

Susannah wanted to try the wasabi--on a spoon, plain. I tried to caution her but she was quite sure she could handle it.

Then Gideon was coerced by his brothers to try it also. They convinced him it was "really good." Gideon ended up in tears and could only be comforted by a kinder egg. These are illegal in the U.S. and since we are good, law-abiding citizens, we order them from Canada. 

These eggs are chocolate on the outside, with a cute toy on the inside. You never know what type of toy you will get. Today, Gideon got a bunch of puzzle pieces which needed to be assembled. His horse-loving sisters were quite envious.

But back to the sushi. 

Nate took care of chopping up the avocado...

Judson handles the cukes quite well.

Now for the series of the Finishing of the Sushi:

The final product. It didn't last long.

Oh and the school project? Here's what we have so far. Susannah was assigned the country of Saudi Arabia. Each student received a different country. What's fun is, we did go on vacation to the United Arab Emirates a little over a year ago and that is next door to Saudi Arabia. So, we have a lot of things that we can use for the project. While in the UAE, I simply could not pass up the Barbie in a burqa. Who could? Her sign reads "Welcome to Saudi Arabia!" in both English and Arabic.

A lot still needs to be done but we'll get there. With the upcoming weather report, I'm guessing there won't be any school for at least the first two days of this week anyway, giving us more time to work on the project. They take snow days seriously here. I rec'd this via text from the National Weather Center:

"Issued at: 3:22 PM CST 1/29/11, expires at: 2:00 AM CST 1/30/11

Winter storm watch in effect from late Sunday night through late Tuesday night, 
The NWS in Kansas city/pleasant hill has issued a winter storm watch for freezing drizzle, heavy snow and blowing snow, which is in effect from late Sunday night through late tuesday night. 
Location, eastern Kansas and western Missouri, including the cities of st. Joseph, Kansas city, butler, clinton, and warrensburg. 
Timing, light freezing drizzle or freezing rain will be possible early Monday morning through Monday night. Widespread snow will move into the area late Monday night and continue through Tuesday night. Snowfall will end by Wednesday morning. 
Snow and ice accumulations, a light glaze of ice up to a tenth of an inch will be possible on Monday and Monday night. Snow accumulations between 6 and 10 inches may be possible through Wednesday morning. 
Impacts, this long duration storm will arrive in multiple waves. Light freezing drizzle or freezing rain will lead to icy conditions on primary and secondary roads as early as the Monday morning commute. Once snow arrives Monday night, roads will rapidly become snow covered and travel will be difficult to extremely dangerous on Tuesday. 
Other impacts, strong winds between 20 and 30 mph Tuesday afternoon will create significant blowing and drifting snow along with highly reduced visibilities into Tuesday night. Additionally, falling temperatures will also be likely Tuesday night producing wind chill temperatures well below zero by Wednesday morning. 
Precautionary/preparedness actions, 
A winter storm watch means there is a potential for significant snow, sleet, or ice accumulations that may impact travel. Continue to monitor the latest forecasts during this still developing winter storm. 
Conditions can deteriorate rapidly in winter weather situations. Slow down and allow extra time when traveling. Practice your winter safety rules, keep a flashlight, food and water in your car in case of emergency."

--------

I prefer to "practice my winter safety rules" by simply staying indoors. But that's just me. 

On a seemingly unrelated note, I have received the highest of compliments. Yes, even better than the Driveway Award. My blog has been complimented on Olive's Pearls. 

Have a great weekend, all!

Residential Flatwork

Yeah I know. The Golden Globe Awards just gained national, if not international attention and acclaim. But Hollywood is fickle, and fame is fleeting. What matters most in this sad old world of ours  is that our driveway has won its first award. This is actually the first driveway we've ever had that has won an award. To be completely honest, I didn't realize this was a possibility. 

I asked our driveway what it thought about the honor. It was too verklempt to speak for quite some time, but I finally got him to say a few words, which he wanted to convey to you here, since the permanence of his residency ironically makes road travel impossible.

"I'd like to first of all thank The Concrete Promotional Group, a heretofore relatively unknown organization, without whom this honor would not have been possible. Second, the Easleys themselves, who have provided me with a strong foundation since my youth. They poured their heart and money into my very existence, and made sure I was never spoiled by my fame, yet used daily for the purpose for which I was made. The solid groundwork upon which I was laid is a testimony to their commitment--nay, their sincere dedication--that driveways everywhere should be treated with respect, whether they be a few feet long or half a mile, such as I am. But I am not here to brag, because I cannot take credit (and neither would the company that formed me) because all that I am brings me to the events of today, and has further cemented my belief that justice truly does exist in this world, and if you just lay there every day and let people walk all over you, you too may be the recipient of this award. But I wouldn't seal my pores."

He said it all, really. I remain humbled and we will try not allow this to go to our heads. I'm not saying it will be easy. The award sets next to my high school arm-wrestling championship trophy and the children's Grand Prix awards. The Golden Spoon awards (spray painted wooden spoons) stand triumphantly behind them, earned by the children for creating delicious desserts. 

Let's get back to what was really important about today though. The snow started to melt and was at that perfect temperature for making snow folk. Also, it was Martin Luther King Jr. day, and homeschoolers know that there's never really such a thing as a day off. So the snow-folk were allowed after morning chores were done. 

Abigail and Mercy were annoyed at Isaiah's decision to put arms on the snowperson.

Susannah soon tired of rolling snow, and wanted to know if this looked like a realistic enough head to put on a snow-woman. Sure Susannah, it looks totally normal. Especially on Martin Luther King Jr. Day. At least the snowwoman should have been dyed black. We could have named her Rosa. 

Josh wasn't content with a mere snowman. So here is his snow throne. The children took turns being a royal something-or-other.

Finally Josh got a chance to relax on his throne.

Judson finished his featureless snowperson.

Nate used a little more artwork in his creation.

After a brief date with hot chocolate....

It was then time for school. Who better to learn about today, than the holiday bearing the name of who was being celebrated?

 ]

It took a couple hours, but they all finished their sheets, and a Q&A afterward. Good thing they (mostly) paid attention to their lessons! They were then released to play for the rest of their....holiday.

Apparently there may be another "snow day" tomorrow, as freezing ice is predicted for tonight. It matters not that much to us, but it somehow all seems more festive when the world decrees that it is too dangerous to venture out. 

Good thing I went to the grocery store today. 

 

Quarantined

Except we were allowed free to go to the dr. yesterday. We thought we'd beaten this...this "thing" that's had us in its clutches on and off for a couple of weeks, but yesterday morning when several of them woke up with fevers and sounding like a seal begging for its sardine, I realized it was Time. Time to call and talk the dr's office into fitting us all in. 

After a back and forth on the phone with the receptionist speaking with various nurses to see if they could fit in 8 children, and in between me making phonecalls to cancel Abigail's physical therapy session and all of their piano/voice lessons, we got it all straightened out. Believe it or not, Brett was actually able to accompany me to the dr, but we did drive separately because his flight left out and the dr's office is kind of by the airport. So that was a big help, because they were able to split up the children in different rooms and they like to have a parent in each room. Turns out we needed three rooms but they were all next to each other. 

The waiting room had toys. Toys for young children. But since everyone wasn't well, it's about all their brains could handle anyway. Nate and Jud played teacher. Abigail felt too sick to even join in. 

There was a man in the waiting room who kept wanting to give the children a toy that he'd found out in the parking lot (we saw it on the way in). Politeness didn't work, and when he actually came and sat right next to them and asked them to show him how to play the game, Brett told him to go back and sit where he had been before or he'd have to get security to help him leave. 

This kind of thing happens frequently and I'll never get used to it. Now that our non-ambulatory children have grown up we tend to be a little less noticeable so it doesn't happen nearly as often as it used to. The children take it in stride, but it never ceases to freak me out. We've had some odd stuff happen. Remind me to tell you the story about the woman in the Hobby Lobby parking lot who clawed at my window and screamed at me because I wouldn't let her buy things for my children. She followed me out from the checkout line, yelling the whole time about how she was just trying to be nice, then tried to grab the door as we were piling in and I was yelling to the kids "LOCK THE DOORS!  NOW!"  Oh, Amy would remember, she had just gotten her permit and was the driver so the woman was trying to get the driver's door open. 

Well, I guess I just did tell you the story. 

But, I digress.  

We spent the better part of 3 hours total, which included lots of breathing treatments for the children to test their lung capacity. I'm guessing.

Abigail wore her sweater with the long arms (it's her favorite). Although when she was younger I'd always alter her clothes to prevent "sleeve flop" (I imagine things like getting her sleeve caught in a car door and the car driving away, or some other misfortune that only mothers imagine), now that she's older I let her choose if she wants her sleeves altered. Usually she does not. This can result in amusing incidents, such as after the nurse took her temperature (102.8) the nurse said "Now I have to take your blood pressure." Abigail pushed up one of her pant legs. The nurse said "Are you chilled?" Abbi said no. The nurse said "Can you just take one of your arms out of your sweater so I can take your blood pressure?" 

Abigail:  I don't have any.

Nurse (not really comprehending): I just need you to take one of your arms out for just a couple minutes.

Abigail: Can you just take it on my leg?

Nurse: We take blood pressures on arms.

Abigail: I don't have any.

Nurse: (looking at me) She doesn't?

Me: (having let the conversation go on this far for two reasons:  #1-- Abigail needs to learn to speak up for herself which she doesn't like to do but needs to. #2-- I find it amusing) No, she doesn't have any, she just needs the smaller pressure cuff and you can take it on her leg. 

Finally, all was said, done. Gideon needed breathing treatments at home twice a day, and since I'm still not feeling the greatest (yes, I'm that dull, and knew I'd never remember all the steps), and the nurse was trying to explain the machine and how to put the medicine in So I took a video of her demonstration with my iPhone. Handy things!  

 

Should I say, "Thank goodness for insurance"?  I think I will.

 And you can see how pleased Gideon is to do his treatments. At least he's cooperative.

Our goats don't vacation just because we're sick, and we had another kid born. We're keeping her in the house until it warms up a bit outside. Gideon feels much better this morning, so wanted to feed her. 

Yes, that's a diaper she's wearing. I've cleaned up enough animal (and human) excrement in my day. She's very sweet and makes a nice house pet for awhile. 

 

And Isaiah wanted to see "if it was still cold out" today. It is.

Stay warm, everyone!

Dropping Temps & All Hallow's Eve

For a family that doesn't formally celebrate Halloween, we seem to get our share of the All Hallow's Eve that trickles in through different channels. Nathanael carved a jack-o-lantern, that used to be a lovely unblemished pumpkin, which would have looked nice on my porch. Perhaps with a stalk of corn behind it. 

For some people, that's not good enough. Poor Jack, both crying and puking. As if one isn't bad enough.

I guess the top of his head is off, too. And he appears to have two mouths. 

So that means autumn is officially here. It's been mostly mild, so imagine my shock when I was driving the kids to their horseback riding lessons the other night, and saw this displayed on the bank's time & temperature sign. Although it had been cooling off, I knew they weren't dressed warmly enough for *this.*

Imagine my relief when I saw that it was a programming mistake.

But more about the riding lessons later. Some of our other children have been accepted into the program, which means more photos for you!

Last Saturday, Brett practiced shooting with the children who have passed their hunting certification class.

Nate sighted down his prey with a .22...

Which was unfortunately, inedible.

Judson's .22 firepower required hearing protection, however.

As did Josh's, with his .40

Mercy shows us how to cover your ears when you don't have hands.

Abigail figured things out for herself and was an amazing shot.

 

She had the targets swinging. For size comparison, the smallest target is the size of a quarter. Five yards away. 

And, put to rest that day were several bales of hay. RIP.

 

For Brett, the day was filled with teaching his children safety and control. For the children, they learned to wait patiently for their turn. For me, the day represented freedom, with a small break for photo-taking and delivering lunch. WORTH IT, all around.

Back to the riding lessons. Susannah qualified because of her IEP through the schools. They are working with her on an individual basis and have different things they do for someone with behavioral issues as opposed to physical issues. When I see them doing lessons with her, I am reminded all over again how they tailor the lessons to each individual child, and also ensure they work well in the group. When I wrote down all the issues that Susannah had and why she was getting special services at the school despite her intelligence, the woman who ran the program knew me well enough by then (because of working with my older girls and their physical disabilities) and put a hand on my arm and said "We can help her." It was all I could do not to sob, so I just said "That would be nice."

Anyway, she is quite happy and when she tries to demand things of her handlers, I am impressed with how easily and quietly they tell her no in a very nice sort of way. Here, they distract her with "picture exchange" in which she decides that the card they gave her goes in a pattern, to make a whole picture.

 If she gets it right, she gets to trot on her horse (which she loves). 

She got it right.

Sorry for the blur, but...the horse was trotting in very low light, and I didn't bring my tripod. 

Oh and the picture she had to complete in the right order?  Yes, another reminder of the Eve of the Hallows. Hey, maybe she'll be an orthopedist.

And then, they all had to learn to work together as a group. Yes, this group belongs to me. Isaiah was accepted into the program because of his ongoing vision problems (born with cataracts, several surgeries). Gideon, because at age 3, the dr. wanted to give him an autism spectrum diagnosis and send him for testing, but I knew my boys (him being the 7th birth boy) and knew that his non-speech was due to just not having anything to object to instead of not being able to. Sure enough, a few months later, he began speaking in sentences, never having made the transition from one word to two, etc. Even now, he won't speak to people he doesn't know. Only recently, much to the delight of his Sunday School teacher, did he start speaking to her. 

 

So while it's a little bit sobering to think that five of the 8 children still at home qualify for special services, I get beyond that quickly and am simply grateful that there are those who donate their time and abilities on behalf of special children everywhere. It's difficult work,pays little, but gives huge dividends to those who stick with it.

At least, I'm told.

Have a great weekend, everyone, and....Happy Halloween. 

It *is* the title of my blog, you know...

So what could be more interesting than a waiting room of the dentist office today? I've decided to split the groups up into just four each, therefore only spending half a day at the dentist each time. Here were today's Lucky Four, with their free treat bags in hand (mouth), ready to leave. Ahh, but not so quick. Two need to go back for sealants and Judson needs to go back for a little patch job from the Spool Incident of a few weeks ago. We actually had over a $200 credit on our account, which was rather other-worldly. Turns out our automatic bill-pay sent out a check the same day we got an actual bill, so Brett just paid it (forgetting that he'd added the dentist to auto-pay). 

I plan to blackmail Josh at some point with a photo of him with a bib on. 

It's a little discouraging though, because a year or more ago he would have been embarrassed by me taking any photo of him, much less this one. He's either maturing or doesn't care. Perhaps it's the same thing.

Oh, and that heat wave?  That for some reason is worse in KC than anywhere else in the midwest? Here's what it said on my dash when we got in after the dentist office visit.

 

Nonetheless, I must get me and everyone ready for VBS this evening (I have the preschool class) and needed the caffeine necessary to make that happen.  But I got home and sunk into a chair (upon retrospect, a mistake).

 It didn't exactly happen that way, but one of the kids took pity upon me and brought me a nice cuppa.

  
 

Now to stay awake until my little 3's and 4's year old class is all safely tucked into their parents' car at the end of the night. 9:00 p.m, thou wilt arrive soon enough. 

Shock and Awesome

Several people (okay, two) have pointed out that when they click over to my blog from Facebook, there are no videos and some punctuation is missing (I'm flattered that they don't assume it's my error).  I don't think FB will allow video links, so if you're reading this from FB, you can go directly to my blog--which in all honesty you should have bookmarked in the first place--

Tales From the Waiting Room (and other stories)

Then you'll be able to see the video I posted from Sunday (where Josh speaks). 

Oh, and this fab video of Mercy milking a goat. Susannah has a turn also. 

Here's the direct link if the vid doesn't play: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ts0nDRUrAwc

If you recall, last week several of our appliances committed hari-kari because they sensed Brett was out of town on business. Bless him, in the few hours he had home, he fixed every single issue. However, he's gone again, and the house found out. 

Here's our pool, which I've tried everything available (and then went to buy more stuff) to shock into submission, yet the algae remains. For some reason, the girls want to play in the sprinkler this week :P  It'll take Brett being here again to frighten it into it's usual crystal-clear state. 

 

Sad looking, isn't it?  

Oh, and let's not forget the quail-watering system. I love my quail and the eggs are especially cute when cooked in a darling quail-egg pan:

 

For size comparison, on the left is a quail egg from a beginner, the next one is the beginner's egg size the next week and then the normal size quail egg--compared to a regular sized chicken egg. 
 

So I want my quail to be comfortable, but their watering system kept breaking. Thankfully though, Brett loves hearing my melodious voice anytime, especially when he's holding up a sheet of drywall in Oklahoma and I'm saying "TELL ME ONCE AND FOR ALL HOW TO FIX THIS OR I'LL DO MY OWN KEVORKIAN-ESQ FIX!"

So he walked me through it but it still didn't work. He said I needed wire clippers, which were were "in his shop." The Shop is a large and scary place to me, and his descriptions of where things are never fit what I can find in real life. So I hung up on him, mad at myself immediately for knowing that I'd have to apologize for hanging up on him. In my defense, he should have presciently realized that I'd be needing wire-clippers this week and put them on my desk with a large post-it marked "SUSAN, USE THESE WHEN THE QUAIL WATERING SYSTEM GOES OUT."  Maybe next time he'll learn. 

Lest you think I always complain, here's some things I'm thankful for:

My friend Michelle, who gave me nearly-rotten bananas, so I could make more blueberry-banana bread. I still had a few bananas left over (I'd mashed and frozen them to use them later) so the girls I and bit the proverbial bullet, octupuled the recipe, and went for it. Here's a few of the loaves. We didn't have quite enough at the end for another loaf so Mercy suggested muffins. Then declared that since she thought of it, she should be able to eat those. Fair enough. Seems like there's plenty of bread for the rest of us. 

   

Thank you, Michelle. Maybe I'll share some with you....

Oh and the pretty plaid blue dress that Susannah's worn in the past few photos? Yeah, it tore badly (and not on a seam of course) when she misstepped when climbing over the chicken coop (we do have a ladder but she slipped). She was upset, as the dress was brand new. It was so badly torn on the bottom half, it never would have looked good even with a decent stitching job. Time for an altering lesson. 

First cut the bottom of the dress off. Iron up the bottom of what is now a shirt, to make a hem. Then start to sew--with supervision.

Not bad at all! In fact, quite cute! And now, extra fabric to use for dolly blankets to match.

 
  
 I'd be remiss not to mention my Happy Property, now that our wonderful Hay Guy has visited. The grass has to get really high for him to be able to properly "hay" it, so it looks not-so-nice until he gets here. 

Have a great day, everyone!

Out Like a Lion

We've got a blizzard on its way, which is actually quite nice, as there hasn't been enough snow this year for my taste. See the pink stuff? Headed right toward us. It won't actually *be* pink when it gets here but wouldn't that be cool?  

Reminds me of listening to weather forecasts when I was a child. I thought the reporter would say something like "The temperature is 10 degrees but the windshield factor is -5. I thought "Well, I sure won't touch the windshield then! But how do they know how cold everyone's windshield is?" 

So it's a very good thing this arrived in today's mail, from Jen at Knitters-Knitters. Don't take it personally that Gideon hides behind his camel (real name: Camjerb). This photo only cost me a candy bar. I don't usually get off that cheap. 

Thank you, Jen! It's beautiful and wonderful and warm. The other kids are pretty sure theirs will arrive soon ;)  And before you panic, that bit of light blue knitting is Camjerb's blankie, made by Abbi. 

It's also a good thing that Brett hasn't removed this from his truck yet, which he was going to do the other day. One of those times that procrastination pays off. 

I'm not sure why the brand name always slays me. Every time he gets it out to use I say "More bad weather? 'sno Way!"  

I'm sure that comment is fresh and funny every time he hears it.