Guess what I got for Mother's Day?!?

Meet Jebediah Jerusalem, our newest sweet baby.

And actually, he wasn't a Mother's Day present.

And actually, he is going to be our dinner some day when the winter chills are upon us. And from where I come from, you don't do that to your babies.

But, shhhh! Don't tell him that. Because, all he is right now is a cutie patooti baby who loves me. And gives me the most horribly red, itchy eyes and itchy throat. (Did I mention I am allergic to cow dander!? Yes. I married a cow man. Yes. I am allergic to cows. Yes. I am a dork and so is my husband. BUT-we are dorks IN LOVE and that makes everything better, right?!)

The name really OUGHT to be something like meatloaf. London Broil. or RIBEYE. I mean, I am not too sure how I am going to get through the actual butchering of said animal when the time comes. I don't know if I have it in me. I am more of a Bambi-lover, animals-have-feelings kind of girl. Maybe if I am reminded of this poor little bull calf's fate every time I call him by name I might prepare myself for what is to come. But. I would rather just be in a state of denial and then, one day go to a HUGE neighborhood yardsale and come home and Matt says....

"Sugarbear. Jebidiah Jerusalem done got away. He ran off and I never could catch the dern thing. So---I reckon thar's gonna hafta be a bull on the loose but thanks to yer lovin', Jebidiah wuddint be hurtin' a fly."

And I would smile a happy soul-filling smile knowing that Jebidiah was free at last, to frolic and roam and maybe even flower sniff with Ferdinand, his kindred spirit. I wouldn't pay no mind to the blood stained grass.

Yeah. That sounds like a good plan, actually.

I won't think about tomorrow. I'll just think about this skirt-tuggin' baby bullcalf of today.

That's NOT all, folks!

Our chickies arrived this week. Friends kept them for us while they needed a heat lamp but they are doing really well, so we brought 'em on home. Said friends are housing over 90 chicks at this point, with no chicken house so the fewer they have the better.

Besides, I wanted to give these chickies the chance to become accustomed to being handled. They are much more fun that way.

My favorite is long-neck there in front. Her name is Cricket. She happens to sound like one, and is the friendliest of the bunch. The more I look at the lightish/whitish one, the more I am convinced that thar' is a rooster. And we don't want any roosters. So Sunshine might not make it at the Newman Farm.

Right now, we have six of our OWN chickens now, 14 on loan to us and a dozen eggs being babysat by Mrs. Broody hen on day 8-that means just 13 more days until egg babies get to see blue sky! I hope we get a few out of the bunch. We have eggs coming out of our ears at this point, but I realize that someday we'll have to give back all the layers. I want to have some replacements on hand...

Heart pictures

Climbing makes this boy tick. I know this because I know HIM.

Taking pictures makes me tick. My children know this of me because they know ME.

~~~~

When boychild shouts to me "Mama. Take a picture of me!" the words I hear are:

"Mama. Remember me this moment, this day. Remember what I love and what I look like, and what you hear when I talk. Remember my scowl brow and that I am never without my cowboy boots. Remember that my top button always needs to be buttoned and that while I am a brave, fearless boy who climbs tractors and runs off cliffs, maybe I still need to put sock "gloves" on when I touch a snake for the first time. Someday, these things will only be but memories. So take a picture of me this moment, a heart picture, and remember me just as I am this moment, forever."

More of the snake...

It's Friday and I have noticed that nobody ever checks my blog on Fridays so I think I am pretty safe to post these snake pictures without traumatizing anyone over the weekend. Personally, I think the little guy is cute! :-)



Andrew wanted to put gloves on to hold the snake so he got socks. First, I find this funny because Andrew is fearless. Just the fact that he didn't want to TOUCH the thing at first cracked me up. Then~SOCKS? Crazy kid.

Don't worry. He got over his "needing gloves" fettish. Since then he's been catching snakes like crazy. And you do NOT want to know what he did with one of them.

If I told you that it had something to do with his mouth-would that make you squeemish? Would it traumatize you? Would it cause you to cry like a baby and run for the hills?

I know it would me...so I don't want to talk about it anymore.

The end.

It all started with this little boy.

Samuel. My nephew. My childrens' friend. My sister's son. He turned four not so long ago.

And we celebrated, boy did we, at my sisters' house. Where there was cake. And a pinata. AND little bug catchers with gummy worms.

(We interrupt this prologue for a picture of my very own, cutie pie of a niece. Slathered in dirt and chowing down, as only a child could do. Thank you.)

I thought the little bug catcher party-favors were very clever.

UNTIL....

No more gummy worms

It took about five minutes to eat all the gummy worms and six minutes before the bug holder-thingy found its true calling.

There is no greater joy, these days, than going bug hunting. The hunt is even more special on those warm days they can head to the creek. It's been a while since those days...

Catching minnows was the focus for a very long time. They never did get one.

But Corynn scored when she caught a water-walker.

Or rather, TWO water-walkers. While MATING. How's THAT for a birds and bees talk? "Mama, why is that bug on top of the other one?"

Ummmm.....

And since that wonderful day my children received plastic bug homes, I have welcomed into my home millipedes, worms, and all manner of other icky creatures. (as you will soon see...)

Thanks Elizabeth. Thank you SO much.

(PS. Revenge is sweet.)

it's a thankless job

Miss Corynn stood perplexed for a bit before coming to me and pointing something out.

"See this speck here Mama?"



" It's a BUG, but it WANTS to be a stone."

LittleStoneWannabe had its' little beetle wings stuck to the plastic with water. His little legs were a'flailing. Trust me, he did NOT want to be a stone. He wanted to be long gone. We got him out of the catcher and still~he was stuck. Only this time, on my hand.

I'd say the poor guy was outta luck, had such a plight, was dealt an unfair hand, struggled with a terrible lot in life, and was burdened with a heavy load. ((Did I miss any?))

That is, until a compassionate little girl held her finger over him so his little legs could latch on. As soon as he was freed, he flew off without so much as a thank-you.

I feel no pity for the struggling if they are rude and thankless. Serves him RIGHT, I say.

It wasn't long, however....

...before the hunters found bigger game.



And they brought it IN the house. (Thank you, Elizabeth.)

I apologize in advance for you snake-haters out there---because, you KNOW you'll be seeing more of this little guy. I mean, he's sorta cute...in a reptilian sort of way. Dontcha think?

Four Looks at Pink Apples

Blah

The sickies have returned (if they ever left) with Andrew up again last night. It seems odd, the night time is a nightmare, but during the day~besides a lack of appetite the children both seem right as rain.



These photos are "morning after" photos, if you catch my drift. Pickin' up what I am laying down? Readin' between the lines? Know what I'm sayin'?



I was beginning to suspect food poisoning, the only possible culprit was ranch dressing so I rid our home of all Kraft Ranch Dressing bottles in hopes to get OVER this bit of yucks.

And then, Matt got it. It is just plain tragic and sad that he is sick during his vacation. Unfortunately for him, He is NOT right as rain during the daytime but has spent the whole day in bed.

I am starting to feel like putting the house under quarantine. Holstering a bleach bottle to my belt. Holding my breathe. Moving out until this all passes.

As I wait for the hugs, cuddles, rocking, kissing, and comforting sick people to catch up to me, I made some chicken soup. With Alphabet letters, how cool is that? I thought, and rightly so, it would brighten the childrens' day. Funny how it is the little things that are exciting! (They had never SEEN letter noodles before!)

I made a large batch, so I can have some too, when the inevitable strikes. waaaaahhhhhh

Vakay

The buds are just barely unfurling and yet I am already getting whiffs of lilac's sweet perfume. It isn't coincidence I asked that my clothesline be put up next to the lilacs...



Laundry, lots of it, after a week of sick children heaving in the night until our sheet supply was exhausted and towels had to suffice. A week of spring cleaning when all I really wanted to do was...well, NOT spring clean. (BTW, I haven't even gotten to the upstairs. ugh.)

The unpleasantness of the indoors only greatly magnified the splendor of the outdoors, and I escaped many a time to go walking, inhaling the freshness and spotting bits of beauty. I think I will give you a tour~maybe tomorrow.

After spending an entire week on posting single, solitary photos of sewing show and tells, my computer is fairly BURSTING with the abundance of photo snippets of life moving on~being lived and enjoyed to its fullest.

I'd like to get caught up on those this week but this week can go one of two ways:

1) I have absolutely no time at all to blog
2) I have an abundance of time to blog.

You see, my Hubs took his week of vacation this week. No exotic plans or destinations, just scribbled to-do lists and hard work. We've never had what most would consider vacations. Once we went to a hotel room over night and took the kids to the zoo. That was exciting.

Every penny is spoken for these days, and every moment could be spent working around the property. There is much that we have accomplished but much more yet to be done. Don't get me wrong: even though we've never taken a bonafide "family vacation", I don't miss it. I don't pine for beaches or camping, or theme parks. Because for us, it's the togetherness that makes it special.

This year especially, with Matt working so much and away from home so often, we cherish and value his home time all the more. To be together and have a seven days with him near, present, it hardly seems possible!

But those seven days are going to be fairly bursting with busyness, too. Pig fences to put up (did I mention our newest project?), lasagna gardens to build, floor to ceiling bookcases and well, Mattie's list might even surpass the big guy's naughty/nice list.


So, depending on how productive HE is, will determine how productive I am on this blog. His work might leave me all sorts of free time since the children are stuck like glue to him. On the other hand, any moment he ISN'T working, *I* am stuck like glue to him. We'll see how it works out. Seeing how much he has accomplished even just today has me thinking you'll be seeing me lots and lots.



We celebrated his first day home with homemade PA Dutch FUNNEL CAKES! Oh me, oh my. And since there is oil left in the pan, Fried Chicken is on the menu for tonight.


I know this for sure, every moment is going to be a celebration. Because, well, we just can't get enough of him.

Show and Tell Day 5: Baby Stripes

The end of the yellow has finally come. Today, it's all about robin's egg blue and brown.

For a recent baby shower, I made kimono pants and appliqued a mushroom on a coordinated onesie. I have never machine appliqued and feel like I need to do it some more for practice. But, for a first timer, it was fun.

I love kimono pants. While they look sort of silly just laying flat, they look pretty darn cute on-and VERY comfy. Ask me how I know:

See those pants Adele' is wearing? Well, they are the same teeny tiny size as the brown and blue ones---and she was SWIMMING in them. *sigh* ~Happy memories of scrawny babies. ~