Around the farm stuff...

I must admit that although our garden and farm are still producing, by this time of year, my get-up-and-go kind of goes. I'm not checking on it like I should be. Granted, it's waning. But, we do have tomatoes, green beans, green peppers, and jalapenos that are coming in. I've put a few pints of beans by and some salsa as well. Last year I turned to freezing because of the ease and speed, but this year I am considering the benefits of the preserved food being able to sit on a shelf as opposed to spending money keeping it cold. We have two upright freezers that live in the basement and they stay pretty full with meat: farm-raised rabbit, pork, and chicken; venison and squirrel; and beef from down the road. Any space I could free up in the freezer would be good. Occasionally I get a little help in the garden. I call for my "eagle eyes" to find the green beans hiding in the depths of the plant. They come in night gowns or sometimes nothing at all to help me pick for a minute or two. Or, at least stand there with me while I pick.

My favorite tool for harvest is my apron. I find myself tying one on frequently in the kitchen or when I'm headed out to pick. Although, I have recently been designing one in my head that has a toggle for easy carrying. 

In other news, we took our goat Louisa, to the open goat show at the Harrison County Fair this year. Last year, Cam went just to observe and see what it was all about. This is not the 4H show for the kiddos, anyone can enter. So, we took a goat this year to see how she'd do and for the experience. Turns out, she WON! Grand Champion! She not only won her category of senior does (she's actually just a yearling milker), but she won overall! We were so pleased!

Showing goats has some rules to it, you see. Cam was really not familiar with the showmanship aspect of it. Luckily, the families that were there were very friendly and helpful. One loaned Cam their clippers to trip Louisa's tail in the required fashion (buzzed with a tuft on the end). They gave him pointers for the future about how to spruce her up a bit for the competition. It was great. They were even whispering pointers in the ring about where to stand. Now, that's sportsmanship.

We all went to cheer Cam and Louisa on. Lila told Cam afterward he'd done a "stupendous job!". We were very proud of both of them. 

 

Cam tried really hard to get a good pic of Louisa with her ribbons. She was none too cooperative. She's trying to flee the scene! We hope that next year Lila will take the reigns and show the goats in mini-4H.

Mollukah XXX

I turned 30 last weekend! It was a grand celebration with friends and family of all ages. 

 I used wrapping paper for a table runner. I was looking for something inexpensive and beautiful and came across this at Target. I was then able to scan the pattern in and use the flowers on the cards for the table.

 My dad brought beautiful flowers to put in vases.

These "fairy lights" were hung from the tree boughs.

Ezra and I chowed down on the cake and ice cream pops. I made ice cream balls, dipped them in homemade magic shell (2 parts chocolate, 1 part coconut oil melt and mix) and Maggie helped me sprinkle them with red sprinkles. They were delish and a very easy way for everyone to literally grab their ice cream instead of waiting to have it dipped out.

Jeremiah and his Momma, Kim

 After the kiddies enjoyed being kids, the music got started. My friend Susan was there and she did some contra dance calling. She called at our wedding, as well. It really was a lot of fun. The littles just squealed with glee and didn't want it to end! The musicians followed that by a couple waltzes and we all had a lovely time. At that point, the evil bedtime monster struck every last one of those littles and we all knew it was time to wrap up. However, the musicians played on late into the night with the candle lights flickering. What a fabulous way to celebrate my 30th year!

First day of Kindergarten

Lila and her buddy "Blue"

My girl started kindergarten last week. I did not think I would be that mom, my mom always called me "hard-hearted Hannah" because it was so hard to get me teary. Of course, that was when I was ten. Kindergarten really threw me for a loop. My brave little girl has never stayed with anyone but family or close friends and rarely for more than a few hours. But, she was ready! I distinctly remember thinking shortly after she was born, "Some day she'll start school. That feels like an eternity away. Five years." And now, the day has come and gone. Time really does fly when you're having fun.

Daddy made a special pancake breakfast on request. Including whipped cream hair (partially eaten in photo), a chocolatey face, and scrambled egg beard. She woke up happy and energetic, willingly ate her breakfast, and eagerly got dressed in the outfit she picked out the night before.

She was so eager, in fact, that we had time to kill before we had to leave for school. So the girls snuggled on the couch with their matching "snake tongue" hair-dos and watched Bob Ross paint some happy little trees. We don't have any reception for TV, so the girls have interesting viewing habits. Some of their favorite DVDs are "Primetime Bucks" "Whitetail Madness XI", "Strawberry Shortcake", and "Bob Ross". Typing this makes me laugh. The funnier part is, the only time they really watch these DVDs is when Cam is exercising. Most people exercise to an actual workout DVD, but not my husband. He burns some calories to Strawberry Shortcake and Bob Ross.

 

Anyway, back to the kindergarten girl. She wrote her own name on the board. I'm interested to see how her "signature" of sorts changes this year. They have already started writing in "the kindergarten way". She was so proud to go to school. 

Sisterly love. A rare moment caught on film.

We have been wondering how all this would go in regards to Lila and Maggie being apart and Maggie being at home alone. Let me tell you, Maggie does not mind one bit. She is in hog heaven getting never-before-seen-one-on-one-time with grandparents and parents! She thinks it's the greatest thing ever. When Lila gets in the car after school, they are so sweet to each other for like two minutes. It's a joy to behold. Maggie is starting dance class with Miss Sally this fall. As luck would have it, Miss Sally (or Miss Hally to Maggie) had a drop-in class on Lila's first day of school, so Maggie got to go to dance class while Lila went to school. Worked out beautifully.

Lila had her heart set on an Ariel backpack, so we found one on Amazon and ordered it. It claimed that it came with an attached "lunch box". The zipper compartment that is attached is no more a lunch box than a paper sack is. It is made from the same fabric as the backpack, has no insulation, and is rather small. So, I set out to work making her one.

I followed the pattern in One Yard Wonders except that I added a strap for her to carry it with. You can't tell, but the pink side is "quilted" with a little wave pattern. Awww... She loved it and told me it was perfect. After my heart melted, I gave her a big hug. This big kindergartener of mine. When we picked her up, we were so nervous about how her day had gone. We were relieved to see a big smile on her face. When asked what her favorite part was, she simply replied, "The whole day".

Messy Party!

We started off so clean...

My first messy party transpired last week. It was really fun and, as expected, messy. I admit it, I don't like my kids to do messy things in the house. Normally, requests for messy things are usually met with a "Not right now" response which is Mommy code "I do not want paint on my curtains, so not in your lifetime". Okay, maybe that's a stretch, but I really have to be in a good place to get out the messy. I have been known to send the finger paints to Nana and Mimi's house because everyone knows Grandmas love messy. So, a messy party seemed like the least I could do for my poor, clean children. I actually did very little of the planning. All I had to do was host. My awesome friends planned, helped with set up, and clean up. I mean, really, they kick butt.

We started off with messy Twister. I squirted paint on the circles and let the havoc begin. The ages of the participants varied widely, most of them not knowing their right from left. So, it quickly became "Put on foot on red. Put your other foot on blue. Now, put a hand on your neighbor." I was making it up as I went along. Most of the kids had a fun time getting very painty.

We went straight from that activity into finger painting canvases. The mommies used masking tape to "write" names, initials, etc on the canvas so that when they dry, you peel the tape off and what is under the tape is white. Cool effect and the kids had fun. What we may do differently if we do it again is only give one or two colors. Several of the pictures turned out kind of brown from all the mixed colors.

Post finger painting silly pose. I didn't (but should have) anticipate that fingers would go in mouths for silly poses. Ewww.

We next filled up squeezie bottles with diluted paint and let the kids go at it. I was so impressed that they were all really good sports about keeping it away from faces and such. They really enjoyed squirting the moms.

Next up- lunch. Spaghetti without utensils followed by cupcake decorating. One child quipped, "I wish mom would let us eat spaghetti with our hands at home!" Some kids totally got into it, going all primal on that pasta. Other kids (like Lila) opted for plain noodles. Boring.

We followed lunch with a shaving cream fight. The kids took this one to the top. They decided to "shave" (as they put it) their own bodies more than throw it on other people. But, it was all for fun. We also did some gooey glue which didn't turn out so great. (I'm reading now we should have used some boiling water. Ooops) But, the kids thought it was very cool to mix in the food coloring. You should have heard the "ooooooh!" and "Ahhhhhh!".

After a hose off, the kids slipped and slid to clean up for the drive home. If they went down once, they must have gone down 25 times. It was a big hit. They tried every position: face first, upside down, sideways, on their bum, and feet first. It was a good way to end the day.

And then, we were all ready to join Breaker for a nap.

Ice Cream Social

Bernie showing off her yummy bowl.

 We held our annual Midsummer Night's Ice Cream Dream this year. As always, it was so much fun. I made five plus gallons of goat milk ice cream that was delicious. We provide the ice cream and each family brings a topping or mix-in to share. This year was especially fun with the variety of toppings brought. We had crushed oreos, no-bake cookies, sprinkles, mini Reese cups, whip cream, and jelly beans, just to name a few. The hardest part was choosing which ones to put on!

Beautiful Ezra.

There *may* have been some pee on the slide. I'm not naming names.

 It just so happened that the ice cream social coincided with milking time, which usually draws a crowd. It always fascinates me to see who is interested in trying their hand at it. Jane, for instance. Jane is my good friend Bon's mother-in-law. Bonnie now lives in California with her new hubby, Colin. They happened to be in town for the ice cream social (yay!). I then found out that Bon's in-laws would be in town, too and promptly invited them to be part of the fun. I don't know them very well, but I never would have expected that she would jump at the chance to milk a goat! Who knew!? I was so pleasantly surprised!

Bonnie and Me. She came all the way from Cali for my ice cream! 

 The thing I love about recent parties at our house is the kids. They run wild. They have free, safe reign of our huge yard. I love to feel so confident that nothing bad is going to happen to this wild group of kiddos. They are crawling through the corn rows, whooping, hollering, finding secret hideouts and being beautiful, happy children. I really love it.

Not quite whooping and hollering with the big kids yet.

My gal Melissa and sweet Cece or "Baby HeHe" to Maggie who doesn't say her "S"

 Here's one of my favorite pics of the evening. Bonnie, her sister Amanda, Melissa, and me. We all grew up together and I was glad to capture this fun moment with the four-of-us.

The most exciting part of the evening happened after most of the guests had gone. There was a missing set of keys. It was well after dark by this time, so we got out the flashlights and scoured the yard. Looking in every nook and cranny we could think of. Alas, no keys. I got up the next day and searched the yard in a grid-like-cop-show fashion. Alas, no keys. Luckily, the keys were found later that day in the belongings of one three-year-old boy who may or may not be the culprit of the slide pee. Can't wait to see what next year brings!

Father's Day

Father's Day has long since come and gone. I've been waiting to post because I wanted to get a picture of Cam in his gift. Alas, I'm still waiting, so I'll share what we made for Poppy and Opa.

First, Opa. 

Opa has been sharing Greek Mythology with the girls. He has several children's books on the subject and shares with them about Perseus, Medusa, Zeus, Poseidon and the like. One of their favorite stories is about the Cyclops. I really thought Opa needed a Cyclops hood to have on hand at his house for Greek story-telling. Of course, I couldn't find a pattern for a Cyclops hood, so I had to make one up. I used a ping pong ball for the eye and drew on it using permanent markers. I added big ears and some fake hair. I think he loved it.

Now Poppy. Poppy is my dad. He grew up in the mountains of West Virginia. His family ran a grocery store and his dad worked in the coal mines. He has a handful of stories from his childhood that he likes to tell. He used to tell them to me when I was little, and now he tells them to my girls. One of the most memorable is about his encounter with a rattlesnake. Or, "Poppy's Snake Story". It is only a matter of minutes from when Poppy climbs in our car that the girls, usually Maggie, ask for "The Nake Tory". The girls have the story basically memorized. So, I decided it would be cute if they retold the story in their own words and illustrated it for him. Then I created a Snapfish Photobook that I was able to pick up at Meijer in a matter of hours. It turned out really cute and personal. I loved hearing how they told the story and what they felt were important elements. 

If you're interested, here is their version:

Lila: Well, you know when Poppy told us the snake story? He always told it for Maggie.

Maggie: I always like the nake tories.

Lila: So, he started off as “you know where Poppy came from?” And, I forgot it right now.

Lila: So, once upon a time when poppy was little, Poppy and our cousin Norman heard about a peach orchard on top of the hill

Maggie: No when poppy was grown up.

Lila: So, they went on top of the mountain and they took Norman’s dog Buster.

Lila: It was a short time.

Maggie: No, a long time.

Lila: No, it was a very short time. They picked and picked and picked and picked and picked and picked and picked peaches from the hill. Well, actually it’s a mountain. Not a hill. So, when they were done picking peaches, they started down the mountain. But, suddenly…

Maggie: They heard a tss tss tsst

Lila: He heard a rattling noise and a “hiissssss”. Poppy said, “Stop, Norman! There’s a rattle snake ahead!” But Buster kept going. And he trampled right up on the snake and the snake bit him right in the neck. But not very hard and not very easily, too!

Lila: The bite swelled up for a couple days. Poppy came to check on Buster, Norman’s dog of course. He was better, but it was a little swollen.

Maggie: Poppy thought he was going to die any minute, but he didn’t! Them ran home as fast as they could. Them thought Mustard was going to die any minute, and he didn’t die! Their friend was there and they went on top of the mountain again to shoot it and there was no snake. It’d crawled into his hole. The hole was this wide.

The End

I had some extra pages, so I decided to do an "About the Author" for each of the girls. The book turned out so well and Poppy really seemed pleased.