Summers Bounty

We live very close to an old order Mennonite community. For a long time, I thought they were Amish, but they are in fact Mennonite. It was explained to Brandon {by a couple of Mennonite brothers who did some work for us}that the Amish or Mennonite label has to do with their religion. The community does not use any modern conveniences such as electricity or running water or phones. When I first started dating Brandon and he took me down the roads where they live, I was enamored. I considered running away to live with them. He said they would frown upon my cell phone and I'd have a hard time staying in touch with my mom so I changed my mind. I have decided that I like air conditioning and hot showers too much to live that way, but I continue to be very interested in that way of life and how such a large group of people are able to maintain such simplicity throughout the generations. I am also not completely convinced that they don't use generators and cell phones!
Anyway...each of these communities has a specialty. The community around us grows produce. They actually supply stores like Walmart and truck produce out. {I guess they aren't opposed to other people using motorized vehicles???} So Mason and I made our first trip down the road to see what yummy summer fruits and veggies were for sale. I guess since they are professional farmers, they have stuff way before the average Joe. I got squash, zucchini, corn, cantelope, tomatoes, garlic, blackberries and green beans all for $12! And it was yum! Ellie even tried corn! I made a delicious squash casserole. I think I am going to try to buy all my produce there this summer. I found out they are open 7a-6p so I could go straight there after I get off work. I guess a good blogger would have taken a picture of the bounty but I was doing to to get it cooked much less take pictures!
***
We had another regular weekend! Ellie went to Nana and Poppop's on Friday night. I felt like she was due some one on one "Nana" time. She had a wonderful time. Nana found a "Whale Pool" and Ellie had a grand time splashing around in it. Saturday, Me and Ellie joined my parents at my cousin's wedding. It was H-O-T but very beautiful. Brandon and Mason opted out and THANK GOODNESS. Mason would have been a wildcat and whoever had to chase him would have been drenched. Brandon and Mason picked Ellie and I up and we went to a cookout with some church friends Saturday evening. Sunday, we did church and then just hung around at home. I served as electrician's assistant which proved to be a much bigger job that the original job description {as provided by our electrician, Brandon} had indicated. It was so hot and the kids were playing in the garage and eventually got sick of playing nice and it just all fell apart! So lesson learned: If I am going to help Brandon, someone else will have to have the kids! We did complete the task we had set out to complete and we continue to move forward with house stuff. I think they are supposed to do the siding this week and work on figuring out how they are going to do my basement ceiling without it being tiled. I won't expound here but you can email and I will give you all the fun details. I need to write a book: The Novice's Guide to Building a House. {Not because Brandon is a novice...I AM!} I have learned a lot through this process. The plumbing is roughed in and the H/VAC is also roughed in. Once we finish with the electric, they will start drywalling. HOPEFULLY, Brandon's step-dad will be able to come down and we can do a one weekend PUSH and get it all done. Hopefully.
I am THRILLED for this short week. I am working my once every few weeks "late week" this week. Our office is supposed to be open from 7:30-5:30 and {for reasons I don't completely understand} I am one of the lucky suckers who is in the rotation for working late now and then. It usually works out to about once a month. The university hours change for summer so my normal hours are 8-4. On late weeks, I get to work 9:30-5:30. Coming in at 9:30 rocks. Not getting home until after 6 doesn't rock. It's really hard on the kids therefore hard on ME, but they will survive. WOOT WOOT for a holiday week!

Sorry Brandon!

Brandon doesn't like change. But I do. A. Lot. And I saw this cute blog background today and I just couldn't resist cuting my blog up a little. I got it at:

Deafening Silence

I am a spolied sleeper. I need a cool room. Preferably COLD. And I need some noise. I've used a white noise machine in the past but {reluctantly} gave it up to Ellie when she was a baby. Since we have window ACs now, we have that running all night in addition to a floor fan which gives ample noise. I don't think a cool niosy room is too much to ask. I didn't get that last night!

Around 7:45, it started storming and with a streak of lightening, our power went out. Great. I called the power company and waited entirely too long only to get a RUDE lady who told me that they had 14 outages and she really had no idea when they'd get to ours. SUPER GREAT! I have raised some noise addicted kids so my they are very light sleepers. But Mason was T I R E D. I put him in his bed and he went right to sleep. Around 8:45, we decided Ellie should really get to bed too and she was NOT excited. But she went. Brandon and I figured we'd better get on to bed because all signs pointed to a BAD night. I figured the kids wouldn't last much more than an hour or so if the power stayed off and the house stayed so so so quiet.

We went to bed and it was HOT. And quiet. So quiet it was loud. And Brandon went right to sleep and SNORED! I just laid there. I think I had just fallen asleep when Mason started crying. I think it was about 11 {See I'm not sure what time it was since the power was out!} Poor thing was coughing his head off. I think he was hot. He DID NOT want to be held. He did not want to be in his bed. AWESOME! I bounced, rocked, patted, walked, went on the front porch {it was NOT cooler out there FYI} and finally came back in and tried rocking some more. Then I prayed. "God PLEASE let the power come back on. We all need to sleep." POOF the power came on! {I am totally serious about this!}

Since the power went off when our household was in full swing EVERYTHING came on: TV, lamps, lights, everything. Brandon jumped up and ran around turning things off and turning all the glorious window AC's ON. It took Mason about 20 minutes to settle down and cool off and I was able to put him back in bed. I was so wound up from it all that I actually had trouble getting back to sleep. But that 5:45 alarm came very early. So thanks God! I really appreciate your help in getting the power back on!

Is it really Monday?

I need a vacation! At some point this morning I actually had to check my calendar when it crossed my mind that today is Monday. And yesterday was Sunday. And I had been off for two days. Things are just all running together. By things, I mean days, life, work, home, chores, kids, laundry, cleaning... AYE! But that feeling I had this morning of not even realizing what day it was, well that was WEIRD. I just feel like I am ALWAYS here!

We don't have a vacation planned until August. Brandon has a conference in Copen.hagen, Den.mark and I am planning to go along. We are leaving the kiddos behind. I have mixed feelings. I am excited about the trip and having all that time to just be ME and BRANDON. But I know when I went to Ire.land when Ellie was about Mason's age, by the end of the week, I missed her TERRIBLY. I think Biz/Tim and my parents will share the responsibility of kids care. I know the kids will have a wonderful time! And I need to start willing myself NOW to have a good time!

Ok, so I have been saying all along "I don't have a vacation planned." And now I realize I DO! YAY for me! The reason I have felt like we were not vacationing was A. We planned not to spend any money on a vacation because of building the house {the Copen.hangen trip will cost us very little so that works out well!}and B. We did not go on our annual beach trip.

I miss the beach. Seeing everyone's Face.book pics of their trips is making me pant! I am a girl who has had her feet in the sand at least annually my entire life. To be without it is tough. Maybe this afternoon I will dig my toes in the kids' sandbox. HA!

{PITY PARTY OVER}

We had a nice weekend. Brandon has told me "no presents" for every occasion lately. I stuck to it this weekend as well. I tried to compensate by making a peach pie. YUM! And then on my way out of the store, I noticed cherries were in and at a pretty good price so I got some of those too. YUM again! And I made a cherry pie too. {always the over-doer!!!}

Yesterday, we went to Biz and Tim's for a late afternoon lunch of fajitas, peach pie and homemade ice cream {Thanks to Tim, homemade ice cream has become a staple at all summer gatherings!}. After lunch, we went super redneck and filled up not one, but TWO baby pools {for the kids of course}. It was so stinking hot! Tim had set the pools up in the sun and we had to end up moving them to a shadier spot. The kids had a great time splashing around and I enjoyed dipping my toes in the water.

Mason is paci free except for sleeping. {Although my pediatrician SHAMED me for even that!}He's done very well with it and after the first week, he quit asking for it until bed time. In hindsight, we should have just gone all the way. I must admit that not going all the way has been pure laziness on my part because he is actually sleeping pretty well lately. And by pretty well, I mean he only wakes 2 or so nights a week. He is spoiled because if he starts crying, we have to go in there or we will end up with two kids awake. But I have just not been willing to deal with the repercussions of A. getting him to sleep without the paci and B. KEEPING him asleep without it. I guess him sleeping all night will be yet another joy of the new house!

Well, the clock says it's time to go home. Happy Monday!

Howya Looya!

Brandon left to go out of town Monday morning before I got up. This is our life. Brandon has traveled the entire time we have been together. It's what our family knows. The fact that this is our normal doesn't make his absence any easier. He would say I only miss him because I need his help. That is only partly true. While I do realize when he is gone how very much he helps me, I miss HIM. I don't sleep well when he's gone. I stay up much later and have to get up much earlier. All around, it just sucks.

Today, however, it reached a new high {or low?} of suckiness! Mason woke up around 12:08 am. I had seriously JUST fallen asleep {finally}. I got him all settled back down and Ellie arrived at my bedside at 4 am. I put her in bed with me and she proceeded to kick me in the head and back. I finally crept out of bed at 6 and went to shower. I figured I was safe to get completely ready before going to check on Mason because even if he woke up, he wouldn't wake Ellie and he would just play in his bed. I was mistaken.

I got all ready and I heard him crying for me so I rushed through the house to his room. When I walked in he was bawling and said "I dirty Mama!" Um, yeah. He had stuck his hand in his dirty diaper. He was very upset so I of course consoled him and rushed to get him changed. He really just wanted me to hold him but I had a hard time making him understand I didn't want to hug his poopie hands. Ok, Mason is cleaned up so I say "Wanna see what the dogs are doing?" Again, I was mistaken. I did not want to know what the dogs had been doing.

Now, remember, Brandon is out of town. Life on a farm is not easy as a single parent! {I really don't think Brandon "gets" this since it's all he's ever known, but I digress} One {seemingly very minor} issue is that our big outside trashcan stays at the road. When we take trash out, if we can't take it right up, we have to set it on the porch. MOST of the time, the dogs don't even pay attention. But, OF COURSE when Brandon is out of town, they notice the trash. Have you guessed what the dogs had been doing? DING DING DING! There was trash strewn all over my front yard. All. Over.

Ok, don't panic. Now I am realizing I am seriously late. I have trash to pick up. I am not dressed. Ellie woke up like a BEAR. Mason is only half dressed with a shirt on and two different crocs. AYE DE MI! Ok, deep breathe. We will get ready and get out the door.

And we did. On the way out, I picked up trash. I flipped on the DVD player in the truck and had {almost complete} peace and quiet on the way to school. Ellie threw one minor fit over being "really really hungry" and we had to straighten that out.

On the way home last night, Ellie said "Howya Looya Mama!" I said "Praise the Lord, Ellie." Mason repeated all of this. I have funny kids! At the end of the day {even a day like today}, I have a great husband, precious kids and a good life. Brandon will be home this evening. I learned my lesson about leaving Mason to his own devices for very long. And I will be going to bed at 8! HOWYA LOOYA and PRAISE THE LORD!

Pimping my wares

I am just really digging sewing lately. I love being able to make a plain outfit really cute by adding an applique. The kids were so cute when they got dressed this morning so I needed a picture. Obviously, it is HARD to get a picture in which everyone is looking at the camera!

So if I photoshopped a couple of pics and put them together, I'd have one good shot. OH WELL!

Just the news...

I can't think of any adorable stories (although I know there are some!) so I guess I'll just get to it.

Friday, we met up with Biz and Tim and my parents at the Bowling Green Hot Rods game. We had fun. I am easily impressed because honestly, we do not get out much. You laugh. I am married to a HOME BODY. I am thrilled when he agrees to a social event! The kids had a blast mostly just because it was different and they ran and romped all night. Ellie has already asked when we are going to a ballgame again. I will say I think the Hot Rods need to step it up in the area of fan involvement. They need cheerleaders! (I am not voluteering!) They need to get the crowd more involved. I mean, who goes to a ballgame to watch the game???

Saturday night, Brandon and I went to Zanie's comedy club in Nashville to see Bob Zany. Brandon was on the Bob and Tom show last week in some weekly thing they do called "fix the joke" and he won tickets. We had a very good time. I am in hopes we will do it again soon.

The kids stayed with my parents Saturday night so Sunday, we slept in a little and then got to work on electric stuff for the house. We hung all of the recessed lighting fixtures and all of the regular light fixture boxes on the main floor. We are almost ready to pull wire and have the big part of the electric done. The HVAC guys are supposed to get everything done this week and then once the electric is roughed in, they will start drywall! Our siding has been ordered so hopefully that will be here soon. Oh and once it stops raining, they will finish the concrete.

Mason is a little poorly. (I will not he is note nearly as poorly as my grandmother thinks he is) I took him to the dr and he has thrush AGAIN and also is having bad allergy problems. He has that horrible cough again but no infection. He gave him some meds and took him off breathing treatments and added an allergy med so hopefully he will be good as new soon!

I have to share some of my handy work. I really really love monogramming and appliqueing. I don't have nearly enough time to do it, but I try to squeeze in a couple of projects for the kids each weekend. Here are a couple of shirts I did this weekend. I think Mason's surfboard shirt might be the cutest thing I've done! (And I tried 90 million different ways but it would only upload sideways!)

Monday Musings

Ready for bed last night. Mason seems like such a big boy!

I'm starting to look at life in terms of what is good "blog material". As in, something will happen with the kids and I will think "Hmm, I should blog about that." However, most of the time, life gets in the way! So ya'll will get a smathering of everything I can remember!

1. I hate dinner time. Hate. It. I decided this Saturday night. Can kids really live in Easy Mac? My kids would like to! I can add in fruit for Mason and cottage cheese and cold green beans for Ellie and VOILA! I have a complete meal. But it makes me feel like an inferior mom so I try to throw in some variation now and then. Saturday night, I made {delicious} barbecue, boneless, skinless chicken thighs, broccoli cheese rice, broccoli and I cooked some corn thinking Mason would like that. So both kids left the table with barely having eaten anything! After bath and mass chaos, Brandon and I fixed our plates and Mason of course decided the rice looked better on our plates. AYE! Last night, I went with the old stand-by: fish sticks and tater tots. I did not have to say even one time: "Ellie, come on and just eat so you can get down." Or the ever popular: "Two more bites, ok???" So I pose the question: Can they live on fish sticks and tater tots or should I just continue to lose my mind at dinner time and beg them to eat?

2. Mason is pacifier free except when he sleeps. We probably should have just gone all the way and taken it away completely, but I don't remember Ellie being so attached to that thing! Everyone has been saying for months "Mason likes his paci more than Ellie did" and I argued. But now I see it. When I took her paci away at just about the same age, she went the entire weekend without ever even asking for it. She didn't even think about it until we got to school that Monday and she saw another kid with a paci.

Mason has been a different story. He has asked {in a really pitiful way most time} "My paci?" I tell him "Oh pacis are for babies, we don't need it." Ellie has been a little more wishy washy. At times she will announce "Pacis are only for sleeping!" but yesterday morning she got pretty upset when he asked for it and I told him no. She said "There are three behind his bed and he NEEDS IT!" So how do you explain tough love to an almost four year old?

All in all, Paci free living has been successful. He seems pretty satisfied to only have it when he sleeps. Although last night after bath he really really wanted it and got pretty upset and finally said "I get in bed!" Poor guy.

3. We have a new baby. I guess being a relative newcomer to farm life, new babies just never get old. Even the birth of a cow is really fascinating and miraculous!

Ollie and his mama Tellulah {yes we name all our cows}

4. I did some sewing this weekend. I have so many projects that I want to do for the kids and I just never seem to find time. I really didn't have time yesterday either, but I neglected some other things and decided to take some time to do something I like! I made two cute shirts for the kids and I am hoping to make some more this week!

5. I went swimming yesterday. OY VE! I have been frequenting the YMCA in Scottsvegas to get some physical fitness in my life. I do kickboxing on Tuesdays and I {try to} go do the treadmill and weight machines a couple more times each week. So yesterday I decided to try swimming laps in the indoor pool. Now I am a good swimmer. I love to swim. My mom still thinks I should have joined the Barracudas swim team when I was about 14. All of that is to say OH. MY. GOODNESS. I am so out of shape. One lap had me huffing and puffing. Maybe I tried that first lap at a pace that was a bit too eager?

Tim went with me and he has been at the fitness swimming thing for a while. He does 32 laps. HELLO? I probably got in 15-16 laps. I tried to just keep moving. When I got out of the pool, my legs were like jello!

I do think the kids and I will got to the outdoor pool {they call it a water park, I'm not on board with that}. They have a little slide and a "beach" {concrete beach if that makes sense}. Both kids will love it and maybe I can get some sun.

6. I found my fourth four leaf clover yesterday afternoon. Now I must tell you, four leaf clovers are not the kind of thing you can look for and find. It is really luck because every time I have found one, I just look down and there it is. I found my first one the week before Brandon and I got married. Then I found TWO while I was pregnant with Ellie. I don't feel like there is anything significant that finding this clover represents. Maybe I just needed a little general good luck. I picked it before I thought to take a picture, but I actually had my camera in my hand because I had just taken the pics of Ollie.

7. For those who do not know, our house sits about 1/4 mile off of a gravel road. Traffic is not a concern. A lot of times, I will let the kids play in the front yard while I am inside doing something. {MOM- rest assured I do check on them frequently} Ellie serves as the alarm because she knocks on the door every 2minutes to ask me something or tell me something, etc. Saturday afternoon, they were playing outside and I had literally JUST come inside when Ellie started fervently knocking, actually, hammering on the door. This was the scene when I started towards to door:

Yes, that is Mason. He was at the top of the gate yelling "COW!" Pray that while he will be fearless, he will have at least a little common sense to go with it!

So I'm a blog follower...

I'm actually a blog lurker. I just love reading about other people's lives. Even people I don't really know! And all that lurking is what makes me want to put my thoughts on screen here. AND it's not just futile perusing. I do actually learn stuff. So today I will share something that really touched me. I hope you love it! While lurking/ reading/ perusing a few blogs, I came across this devotional from the Proverbs 31 Ministry:
***
My amazing husband can do anything. He's a fix-it man. There isn't anything he can't repair or create. He rebuilds damaged computers for family and friends, repairs weed eaters and garage door openers for neighbors, and rescues broken furniture from trash heaps. Recently he brought a chair home from a dinner party. It wasn't a gift and we didn't steal it. Someone sat in it and broke it!

After two days of taking the chair apart - performing what looked like orthopedic surgery to me, you know when pins and screws are inserted to keep bones and joints from further damage – followed by a little gluing, sanding, and staining, the chair looked brand new.

"Wow!" I said, impressed."Sit in it and rock back," he encouraged."Rock back? I don't think so! What if I break it?""Oh, believe me. You won't.""How do you know?" I asked, not convinced."I know how I designed it. I know the pressure points and how much stress it can take" he responded with a smile of confidence. "Go on. Sit in it and rock back."I sat down and rocked back.The chair was solid. I don't care who sits in it, or how they land in it now, it will not break.

I think about the times we don't believe we can handle any more stress. The pressure seems overwhelming and we cry, "Time out! I can't take any more!"God responds, "Trust me. You will not be destroyed. I know your pressure points. I know how much stress you can take. I know how I designed you."

I cannot describe the peace I felt when I related the work of my husband's hands to the work of God's hand.Of course He knows how much I can take. After all He is my Creator, the one who bent down by the river and fashioned me with His hands. He's the one who knit me together in the depths of my mother's womb, the one who is called the Potter.

He knows the exact temperature needed in the kiln to create the perfect clay vessel. He knows how hot the fire must be to separate the dross from the silver and gold. He knows how much pressure a diamond or emerald must withstand in order for it to come forth solid and brilliant. He knows how long the irritant must sit in an oyster before it becomes a pearl. My Father knows exactly how much I can take. He knows because He designed me. With that realization I am able to trust Him and smile at the future, no matter how hard life is today.

Lord Jesus, You are the Carpenter. You know exactly how to build a piece that will withstand pressure and stress, a work of art that will not easily crumble. You created me the same way.
***
I have been wanting to find some sort of daily devotional. I NEED a daily devotional. You can sign up here: Proverbs 31 to receive the devotional by email.

"I put all of it in..."

So my mom always tells me "keep a journal!" any time some new something happens with the kids. Here's hoping this website will still be around when they can appreciate these stories.

My parents took the kids to a graduation party for my cousin yesterday afternoon. As soon as they got back home, Ellie needed to go to the bathroom so off she went. She was in there for quite a while and mom and dad had to leave so mom went to check on her/ say good-bye. Again, mom was gone longer than I thought she should be so I went to check. Only to find a little "issue." Ellie had stopped up the potty. Bad. So a flood and several beach towels later, I remedied the problem. THANKFULLY all I found was toilet paper. I asked Ellie "HOW MUCH DID YOU USE???" Her response: "I used all of it." Ok, so we once again had the "it only takes a little to wipe your bottom. DO. NOT. EVER. use that much again." As Biz said" my bathroom floor was in need of a good mopping anyway so it was a win-win. Always looking on the bright side, that Biz.

Also, Ellie had her first black eye last week. She had a little run-in with a serving bowl that someone was holding:

This picture is pretty funny! She was not as mad as she looks. I wanted to take a picture but every time I'd take it, she'd smile and you couldn't see her eye so I told her not to smile and this is what we got.

Our weekend was pretty nice. Saturday, we stopped by another cousin's graduation party and then went to a cookout with some *new* church friends. Our church is doing a special little thing this summer. They gave the opportunity to sign up for small group cookouts. Five (or 6 in our case) couples/ families sign up and all get together once in May, June and July for fellowship and a good meal at someone's house. We had our first cookout on Saturday evening. The other families were all wonderful and I really love the opportunity to get to know everyone better outside of church. So far, I have volunteered in the nursery, but for the most part, we go to chruch, speak to a couple of people and that's it. I haven't gotten to know anyone at all, really. This was a BIG thing for Brandon as anyone who knows him at all will surely understand. I really appreciate him going along.

The weather has been absolutely gorgeous. Last night we moved the new calf and his mama

over to the other field and while I was standing out in the driveway being a human cow barrier, I actually got cold! So for all the bad rap that Kentucky weather gets, I appreciate it most at this time of year. People in Kentucky do not know humidity! I can remember in Montgomery being outside in the evenings and sweating!

Here's a link to the house pics. I don't think I've posted an updated link lately.