I love...

...the creativity.

I asked the boys to strip sheets off the bed the other morning and bring them downstairs.  Joe invented a handy way to accomplish it.

And, of course, I enjoyed the giggles and laughter that were prompted by their creativity.

Where does time fly?

    I have to admit, I have been a bit of a scrooge to start this holiday season.  Lack of sleep and feeling the onset of stress of "all that has to be done in a small amount of time" will do that to a person. 
    But, task one...getting a tree...proved to allow a relaxing stroll up and down the hills of the great outdoors.  We basically saw a tree we liked, looked for 30 more minutes and came back to the initial tree!  It is still fun to see all the shapes and sizes...and anticipate the cutting of "the one"!  

 Jake collected things to make a "creation" when he got home!
 

 
   Joe just wanted to muscle up and help carry the tree to the tractor!

Later...task two...making Christmas cookies!   Jake made Jake Thumbprint Cookies...which have been the favorite so far! 

Well, that's all for now...I better get going...more tasks are calling my name!

Doe or Buck...

   Who cares?  He finally got one!

   After days of hunting, Josh finally got a shot off on what he thought was a doe (it was at dark as he was just packing up for the night).  Turns out it was this guy...

    The boys wanted "trophy pictures" with it before we stripped it!

    And, if you have never opened an animal...it is amazing how intact everything is.  What a science lesson of what our own body holds!

The Ride

   We spent an afternoon recently doing school work in the truck while the boys took turns riding with dad in the tractor and the combine.  Jake graciously let Joe have more time...since Joe loves farming stuff.    And Joe genuinely thanked Jake for allowing him extra time in the combine.  :)

On the go

    While Jake and Josh went hunting, Joe and I went to the skate park.  Joe started with this...

And soon we progressed a little to more of this...

 And then we got brave enough for this...

 

Pottery...with a spin

    Thanks to a contact through a friend, we were able to move to a whole new level with pottery.  Jake took a spin on the pottery wheel "throwing" the clay.  I guess he has watched enough (combined with his amazing attention to extreme detail)...because he did it like a pro. 

     Joe was unsure about "throwing" the clay and using the wheel prior to our arrival.  So, he planned to make some pinch pottery.  While he is anxious to make something on the wheel now that he has seen how it is done, he did a great job creating this piece.   He started with a bowl that he wasn't pleased with.  So, he re-worked the clay and created this bowl.  And he added a "spin" on it by rotating the bowl to add lines and holes on the outside.    I love the intensity on his face as he works!

    They will glaze the pottery soon!   Can you guess the colors they will each choose? :)

Harvest Time

Falling leaves around these parts means corn and beans being harvested.   That always gets the boys..especially Joe...excited.  As we drive, we are constantly passing tractors, combines, grain wagons, and the such.  It is not unusual for Joe to be pushing himself up from the armrests of his car seat so he can peer out the window to point out tractors and combines in the fields.

This year has had some fun moments.  With Josh working for Bill, Josh got instructions on how to drive the big red tractor that pulls the grain wagon.  This wagon has to be brought to and from the combine over to the grain cart where the auger is moved around to empty the grain from the wagon to the cart so another tractor/auger set up can send the grain to the grain bin.  The boys and I got to stand at a distance and watch the learning process...which held a lot of learning for each of us! The boys had a lot of interest and a lot of questions.  And Bill patiently answered each question...sometimes leaving their question with a math problem to solve for the answer! :)

Josh jokes that he is a big boy now.  He had a successful first day driving the tractor and emptying the grain from the bean field.  So much so that Bill quickly asked Josh to help him at his dad's farm...which meant a lesson in driving that combine.  It is an older, slightly smaller combine. Bill felt it was easier to learn on.  So, Josh learned to drive that combine and had a successful day with it as well. Then, that combine broke down later the same day and Bill had to get the other bigger combine to use before the 5 days of rain came.  Thus, Josh got to drive the big combine!  

Needless to say, Joe can't wait until Josh and Bill are harvesting down the road from us so he can ride next to Dad in the combine!  At this point, I'm not sure who would be enjoying it more!

What have we been doing?

   Adding a few things to this blog has been on my "to-do" list.  But apparently we have been too busy for too long for me to sit down long enough to do "it"!  
   So, here it is, a month later...all the highlights of this month.

   We enjoyed a trip south...well, once we got there (after 2 hrs in stopped traffic)...to Grammie and Grandpa's.  Here are some shots of some rides...

Grammie agreed to round 2 of the teacups.  Mom did not!

One of Joe's favorites!

     Grammie and Grandpa treated us to a show...which the boys enjoyed a lot.  In fact, this was the replica Joe built out of Lincoln Logs the next morning.

   Jake loves having Grandpa read war books to him. 

    During one non-rainy stretch of time, Grammie, the boys and mom went out for a walk in the neighborhood.  Joe happily pulled (read as..."yanked") the wagon around while Jake collected creatures from the wet ground.  Once home, Jake made habitats for each...the slug, the snail, and the grubs.  Don't worry, though.  Grammie and Grandpa were spared the responsibility of keeping them alive until our next visit!

   Although it pretty much rained the entire time we were there, we did enjoy our trip...Joe especially liked the 2 rounds of birthday cake and ice cream.


  And, speaking of Joe, he lost tooth number two...as soon as he woke up in the morning. Mom was out on a run...so Jake helped get a bag and put the tooth and a note in the bag. Joe was glad to get it out!!!!

   And I had to take a picture of these peppers...the last harvest from Joe's 10 cent plants!  They have been quite the bounty for 10 cents!!!! 

Last weekend, Jake swam in a meet that our team hosted.  He hasn't practiced (except for 15 minutes the day before) since July.  So, we weren't expecting much.  But...we expected wrong!!! 

He went from 28.20 to 24.02 in the 25 fly.

He went from 26.82 to 21.13 in the 25 back.

He went from 29.93 to 28.28 in the 25 breast.

And he went from 44.13 to 40.49 in the 50 free.

  Josh and I think the "few inches" he has grown has already shown its advantage!  Jake was excited!

  I'll end with a funny Joe story. It's not unusual for Joe to state things matter of factly...yet in a wondering way.  Well, a couple weeks ago, I woke up around 11 pm and realized the bathroom light and the boy's bedroom light was on.  I jumped out of bed and checked the bathroom...only to find it empty.  So, I headed to the bedroom...both boys were in bed, sound asleep.  So, I headed back to bed in wonder.  

   Well, I asked the boys about it the next morning, but nobody seemed to know how or why the lights were on.  Until...later...when Joe was in the bathroom and suddenly stated..."I don't know why or how, but I have 2 pair of undies on!"    So...we aren't really sure what went on, but he definitely had on 2 pair of underwear...and didn't remember how in the world that happened!  What a laugh!!!!

An array of activities...

 You guessed it.  We went to an apple orchard.  This one was a "u-pick".  So, we picked...a lot! (This picture was after the first round of picking!)  Now we are enjoying fresh apples!!!!!!!!


Our swim team participated in the local parade!  It was fun to hang out on a perfect Fall morning with these kids and their families! 

And this is how the day started....

New Challenges

     This month held new challenges for the boys...not just in school. Although Joe learning to read and do addition...and Jake learning to multiply and divide IS a challenge each day!!!

     Both boys set goals for the swim team lapapalooza.  They set their goals high and they worked hard to accomplish them.  And seeing the delight of accomplishment in their faces was a huge reward for me!

     The other new challenge was going out for the first hunt.  We took advantage of the youth hunt weekend last weekend.  Jake was ready to shoot if something came.  Well, several deer came near.
On Saturday, when Josh and Jake went hunting, they saw a fawn that passed about 10 yds in front of their blind. I believe Jake's response was, "Dad, that deer is so close I could kill it with throwing knives!"   Later, a doe came near, but never turned enough for a good shot.   And, then, just as they were starting to pack up in the blind, Jake spotted a mature buck.  So, they waited to see if it would meander close enough, but just as it was about to make a turn for a good shot...something spooked it and it darted off. 
     On Sunday, we all went out for the hunt.  Josh was in a tree stand near us and the boys and I were in the blind.  We didn't see any deer until about 6:30 pm.   The boys remained still and quiet for the next hour as we saw 3 deer come in front of us. One of the three meandered fairly close, but still not close enough for Jake to make a good shot.   Then, a buck came into the area and scared off the other 3 deer...only to quickly move through the area as well.  With dark approaching quickly, we had to call it a night.  But overall, it was considered a successful hunt...having seen 7 deer in 2 days of hunting!

    Jake loved it.  He did state that his favorite part was the face paint! :)
    Joe did a great job spotting and keeping an eye on the deer from the blind!  He whispered a couple times..."When will Jake shoot?"  :)

 

   Joe and I went and played putt putt while Jake and Josh hunted on Saturday!

Field trip

  We were invited to go to the zoo...so we went!   It was a beautiful day. And we were able to see all kinds of animals and learn all kinds of new things. 

 The owl we got to pet.

 The lions...after we watched them get fed!

 The rope contraption the boys want dad to build in the backyard! (You walk across on a rope and hold the hanging ropes as you work your way across!)

 Lucy, the alligator...being fed!

They also got to pet a yellow rat snake (named Mello Yellow).

Since it was Addie's birthday, we unanimously decided we should stop for ice cream on the way home! And it was delicious!