9.24.21 Corn Harvest Begins

Ahh harvest time. Yet again pitting oneself again the elements and reality of time to secure payment for all the hours of work completed previously. It was indeed a good sight to see Mark in the tractor driving the beloved grain cart to fill trucks. It was great to remember msotly how to drive trucks and to get in the groove. Gradually. 

Bruce and Lia love to ride and ride. They are happy campers in the seat next to Greg. 

After a day of rolling through the corn, I had gone in for the night and Greg took the last load of the day. I'm so glad this was him and not me. I got a text a while later saying bring shovels, buckets, and kids the belt broke. Oh ominous words. The trucks are always very loaded and late at night you are naturally tired from the day. This is a huge project! I remembered from my own experience having to shovel off corn to get the belt to move last year on the last load.  I got the not excited boys moving, we found the requested items, and headed to the pit. 

John wondered if Greg was just talking waiting for us, I told him of course not that Greg was working the entire time he waited. He is strong. We got there and the boys jumped in and started making the corn fly. The truck was about half full at this point.

Some over the side some out the back. The feedlot owner had used the large bucket loader to swipe the top level off the side and then Greg had been shoveling until we got there. 

Merle does not like being left at home when mom is gone, so we took him along. He wasn't sure what was going on and mostly just wanted to be with his dad but it was quite a show to watch. 

How thankful we were to have a strong crew to come help shovel the corn. The project was compelte half an hour after we got there. We packed up and went home. Another day in the books. 20.5 loads later the first field is harvested. Now to build wire fences and prepare for the cows to come. The work never stops but at least we are in it together. We are truly blessed!

 

9.24.21 Nurturing

We have the older's and the youngers here. The kids who are out in public and busy living lives and the younger ones who stay home a lot and are just growing up. Anna and Mark join me for football games. John was super thrilled to be in pictures with us. They are all friends just not so huggy touchy etc. Addie was just returning from a long trip up in the mountains for her first cross country race., she was ready to go home.  Oh my big kids love them so, they are still clowns sometimes. 

The one that is away in his first zone conference. He is learning a lot, I am learning a lot and finding we didn't teach him enough. So we work on it now from a distance. Always so many lessons to teach. 

A quick photo before the first meet. I love that she is socializing. After the isolation and resultant challenges that came from that this is indeed medicine to the soul. 

We are blessed and busy. I would have it no other way. Here comes the corn harvest so we shift gears again and try to cover bases and needs. A mother's work is never done is sure ringing true right now. Life is good.  

9.23.21 Sharing Flowers

Life gets very tedious. Very much the same day after day. Sometimes we take a quick break and go do something different. A few Saturdays ago we ran away to a flower farm to pick some flowers and share some love with friends. The kids had a great time admiring the blossoms. 

We shared with single women who are divorced or widowed. It was delightful to make people smile and show them we care. The kids did so well with the flowers. Addie of course caught the experience. 

Addie with her bouquet she made at school earlier in the week. 

 I'm thankful for quick breaks from the norm. I'm thankful for my vibrant family and for their happiness. I am surrounded by people who need me and keep me on my toes mentally and physically. I'm thankful for kind friends who support our family and love my children. I'm thankful for the service they have given and for the friends they are. Life is good!

9.22.21 Days go by

Summer is winding down and we continue to feast. For dad that looks like an octupus his lap is full of hungry eaters when he is here. They love to be close to their dad. It's amazing they all get enough in the process. Merle is quite the eater and takes his fair share. 

For the first time ever my family dug beets in September. Anna is driving truck for my dad and brother. This pile is from my brothers field alone. That's a lot of beets delivered. 

These two get more and more interactive. Here they were pretending to go to bed. Why do kids like to pretend they are sleeping? They don't like to do it as a general rule. It's fun watching them play and get to know each other as friends. Although now I'm anxious for Man to speak instead of screaming his displeasure. He has a piercing screech that is particularly bothersome. 

We were blessed to get potatoes from a local farmer. They dig all night and we were fortunate to get some of the last potatoes they dug for the year. 

Afton has a lot of ground to cover in first grade this year. She is a diligent learner and likes to practice what she needs to know for school. 

His first time in jeans. He looked so grown up. He's sure changing a lot right now. 

We have been very thankful for Aunt Alena and Uncle Bryce sharing produce from their garden. Reed was very busy this year keeping the farm going and really missed the garden time. his eyes still light up when he brings the harvest home no matter the gardener. 

Man was so excited to see that he too could look over the ledge to watch what I'm cooking. Oh these two are going to be such a handful for the next few years. 

Afton is really developing as well. The independence required to attend school has really made her grow! She was ready and eager. It's an exciting process and one that requires lots of energy, thankfully she has zest to spare. 

Loving recycling clothes on this cute guy. These were Harold's long long ago. 

Addie sure takes great pictures. We are thankful for her talents capturing the kids and family members at events. 

Addie continues to change the dynamic of our home. Here she is leading group calisthenics with the younger crew. They look forward to her time and direction. We are on a new trajectory right now. Less sugar more exercise. Not bad changes. They are doing crunches.

Leg lifts with arm extensions. 

Life is moving fast we are blessed!

9.21.21 Cross Country Lady

Addie decided to try something new this school year. She is running cross country. She loves to compete and to challenge herself in new and hard ways. This year it's the grueling sport of running all terrains in all kinds of weather. She excels at hard things. She is great at pushing herself and working hard, this has been a great fit for her. While we miss hearing her play the piano this is a new piece of her falling into place. Added bonus of sports is the team aspect. There's not a lot of teamwork in piano playing. 

A few years ago she earnestly told me she wanted to win something. I told her I wasn't sure how to make that happen but that eventually she would win somehow. Fast forward to last week and Addie won the meet in Nyssa. She was the lone runner in front for the entire race. Her teammate fought hard and was gaining ground in the last few steps but Addie was the overall victor. I was crying as I walked away from the race for all work she had put in to make this a reality. I was also crying for the kids who were just finishing who were so mentally defeated running is a hard gig. I may have been crying because my eye was pretty infected and inflamed as well. Anyway I was thankful to be there to witness the accomplishment of one of her goals. 

Always making life better is sharing with your sibling. Aliza is a great support and calming influence on all her siblings. She is the team manager. Love that they can share some of this experience. 

She was literally all alone in the front. I thought the race was over at this point but no they had another lap to go. Again mental challenge to complete the course then have to do it again. One thing about this course is it was all flat and hot! The other two she has ran were up in the mountains with the pine trees and mud. 

 Life is good! We are blessed with opportunities and abilities. The finish she has an amazing long stride, it was so fun to watch squinting through my infected eyes. For this race top three were from her team. Addie has been the top finisher from her team at all the races so far, and she's getting faster ten or 30 seconds at a time. 

9.8.21 Friday Night Lights again

 The beautiful fall weather, a crowd of fans, youthful energy on the field and the excitement of cheering my sons on, football season is upon us again. So I try to spruce up a bit find something black to wear and go to watch and hope my son does not get injured in the contest. Last week was Parma. They had a lively student section and lovely band. It was standing room only for the visitors side so I got a super great seat right by the endzone on the track about 10 feet away from the action. John is number 64. 

John had a really great game. He played all four quarters because 7 of the seniors were still in quarantine. I was impressed with the deep empathy he displayed for teammates. I was elated to see a single handed tackle right at my sideline. It was a shut out. Vale 25- Parma 0. 

Several of the moms watch the fame through the lense of their camera. I'm thankful for their talents and sharing the game. It's fun to look back at moments I probably missed, like this shot at the chin. 

At the end victorious and tired. It was a long haul and John played well even refusing to get in a fight with the opposing team at the end. It's great to watch him grow and gain confidence. The marked change that teamwork and proven ability has given him is heartwarming. Now on to the next contest. Bruises will be healed resolve will he sharpened and we hope another injury free experience will happen. 

The night before when JV played John did not come out of the locker room with the rest of the team. Then the paramedics I was sitting by received a call and several of them left the stands. I was still anxiously watching the locker room for John to emerge. The ambulance pulled up and I hurried from the stands to see what was going on. I was joined by another dad who's son had also not returned. His son has a history of concussions and his worry was real. John has not been injured to date but you never know. I entered the locker room and saw John getting dressed and getting his gear together. He told me his teammate was having trouble.  I was sad for that family but relieved. I returned to the stand and helped the grandma exit so she could be in place to give the support the family needed. I waved to the crying mom and said a prayer in my heart for them. Thankfully the problem resolved itself and the player was able to go home that night and the doctors got some good data to work with for diagnosis. After all the recovery with Mark I am thankful everyday for the healthy life we live. We are truly blessed.