ABC's of a Farmer

All Saints Day Party

The Saint Walk--we did this one and played When the Saints Go Marching In
Candy consumption in progress
Playing Red Rover--it was the Saints versus the devils
This is Mary Terese. She just tickles me everytime we see her.
What a fun time we had! There were 9 moms and 50 kids!!

WaterTreatment 101

Eeeeeeeewwwwwwwww........
Can you tell what Sarah and Amy are thinking?
But, no matter how baaaad it is, we must investigate.
And as a side note, wearing your winter boots makes everything nicer!?!

The owners of our house agreed to pump the septic tank last week. Good thing, too, since it was FULL. Of course, I used it as an opportunity to teach something. We learned how big septic tanks can be, where they dump the stuff they pump out, how many tank loads will fit in the man's truck, and exactly where our septic tank is. Very interesting, and, very smelly.

I think the guy was impressed with how much the kids already knew about water treatment. They were going on and on about how that stuff looks like the "chocolate milk tank at Papa's work" (aka--oh nevermind, you don't want to even know what the chocolate milk tank holds). Then they proceeded to tell the guy how "Papa does that, except he's the boss so he really doesn't do that stuff." Hey, we're nothin' if not honest.

Just reporting in...

Thought I'd update everyone on the hives. No hives or prednisone for 5 days--so far. I have been extremely careful about my food intake, and have reaped the benefits of doing so. Also, at the last Dr's visit, she worked with desensitizing me to the wheat and corn, so that has helped, too. I did discover that my shampoo has wheat in it, along with my mousse, so now I have very frizzy hair because I don't use anything except baby shampoo and conditioner. It is lovely!

Has been cooler here, and this week is predicted to have highs in the 50's*. But--the sun still shines everyday, it seems, and that is so nice. I would never have thought that I'd be wishing for the chilly winds of Iowa, but I really do miss the fall and all that it includes. Oh, OK, I don't miss the drafts and cold floors at the farm.......but you get my drift.

What else is new? Hmmm.....James is on my naughty list lately. He is so darn big, and has started jumping on the kids (and me) and knocking them down whenever they go outside. He's strong as a horse! Then, he'll lay in my lap like a wiener dog--he's funny. He's also a canine dust mop and brings in so much sand that I can sweep the kitchen floor 2-3 times a day and get a dustpan-full. I would guess the kids are helping with that, too.

Speaking of dogs, I have heard that Honey's puppies are eating solid food now, and getting bigger. Denise, if you're reading this, please send a photo-we'd love to see the second set of ten! I miss Honey a lot lately, probably because James is driving me to distraction. Sunnie the cat is now going outside daily and has lost all of his "post moving weight gain." That cat gained 7 pounds and weighed 20# in May! He was a tank.

This week is looking good. We have nothing on the calendar, except Tae Kwon Do on Wed. and piano on Thursday. I love it when that happens. I plan to bake a bit, and we will start work on our Thanksgiving unit. They kids are planning and rehearsing a play for Thanksgiving. As usual, they are obsessed with it, and I had to put the cabash on it this afternoon. I couldn't take the bickering anymore. I would imagine tomorrow they will be less fussy about it, since they know I'll can it if they fight about it. Gee, I'm so mean. I love that about me.

All Saints Day costumes

St. Michael, defend us!
St. Patrick looked very regal.
St. Matthew, the tax collector.
San Martin Cabellero
The crew, minus the horse, of course!

More pictures from the party to follow.

Naturally, I sewed these costumes, plus 4 more for a friend. The girls humbly stated that "ours and theirs were the best ones there today." It's so good to be appreciated!

Trip to the Pumpkin Patch

Yep, he'd scare you away! Oooh, she would too!
And how about him?
Sarah and our little friend, Jeffrey are pumpkin heads.
The race is on!! Jeffrey turned around and around watching them go. It was pretty cute.

The Communion of Saints

This is our visual aid for the communion of saints.

At the top is the Church Triumphant--the saints and angel who are already in Heaven. In the middle is the Church Suffering--those who are in purgatory being re-fined. We have the crucifix here because Jesus dies again everytime we sin. Then at the bottom is the Church Militant--those who are still here on earth, praying for those in purgatory and spreading the message of Christ's redemption as we live.

Of course, my brilliant children (Sarah gets the credit for thinking of this) interpreted the triangle as candy corn. I guess we'll never look at candy corn in the same way again, huh?

I remebered..

that weird picture of our hands was because I had looked at the one with the broken plate. Then (because my brain works in odd ways), we started talking about how ooooolllllldddd we are, which led to the picture--a re-creation of the ever-popular wedding ring photos. Hmmm.....
it really does look better with young hands. Go figure.