A Bit of Catch-up

Katie's Birthday Party!

Yes it is in November. I give the kids a choice of a store cake or to look through my book for a homemade cake. She loves the butterfly cakes. She wants me to make them for all the birthdays. Sadly, the rest of the kids are boys and never agree. She has always wondered why we have to keep them around. I give it less than a decade to find out.





Gramma Hazel's 90th Birthday

Yes this is also in November. We take the kids up the day before the big all family party. Our children are rather rowdy and aren't always appreiciated by the older members of the family. Gramma adores them and she can focus on them and we don't have to share her this way. The blonde kid on the far left is Travis' son Keith. We had taken all the nice pictures and went for the fun ones. When she saw all of them making faces, I thought she would fall off the couch!








This is my newest apron. I created this for my requirements for my MaryJane's Farmgirl Badge. I still have to email the paperwork. It is a clothespin apron for hanging out the laundry. I use it everyday. Some people look twice at me in the yard hanging out my laundry with seven kids running around like they are crazy. I laugh.

The Day Off..."Sigh"

Not me! I couldn't be so lucky. Ghel Company has the rest of the week off. This is how Mike is spending the day.

Katie is modeling the lovely Kingdom dress I made for Breanna. As you can see I made it two sizes too big. I would just keep it for Katie but she doesn't like the print, it isn't pink. The print is of a kingdom with a castle and Rainbows all over it. She let me know for the duration of the picture taking she wasn't going to wear it for the day. I think I can alter it quick for Breanna to grow into. I am going to hem it up a few inches and add a sash to tie in the back. Wowzer what a day.

The haul!!

What you see before you is the largest container of strawberries to ever enter my kitchen at one time. If I had to guess, its about 30 pounds. The bowl is 6 gallons. It took me an hour and a half to pick them. I have used 4cups for a double batch of strawberry rhubarb crisp. I am sending one of them to Dr. Joe's parents in the Cities. I will eat the other, maybe even before Mike gets home from work.

The couple pictured with the Beasties are John and JoLynn Goeman. They have been building and maintaining a reserve for wood ducks on their land at Lake Madison. He was kind enough to give us a tour on a day off of school. They do this for the love of the wildlife and support it solely on their own. To thank him for the tour the kids and I got a wood duck house and I burned a thank you into the side of it along with a picture of a wood duck. I did my best with the drawing. Katie wasn't so happy for the picture. It takes a good man to put up with the Beasties for a whole morning.

Here are the Beasties at the lake. They needed a beach day. It may look over cast. Its 85 degrees. Thats South Dakota for you.

Rummage!

Here are a few of my recent rummages. The eggs are paper mache easter eggs. I have enough fall decor items to do my whole house. Its my favorite time of year, I can't help it.The fabric is a curtain I am going to repurpose. The wood tray and the pasta cutter were spur of the moment. And I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE the vintage Halloween bucket. Can you believe I only spent $2.75 on the whole load? I love to rummage.

Mad Dash...

I always feel like I am in a mad dash to get somewhere. Run to the store, kids here, and there. Here is the perfect place to sit and relax. My front porch.

I have been cleaning it up for the summer. Whew, lots of windows...

I am back!!!

Do you ever feel like you have nothing to say? All winter, I have been tired, cranky and just not in the mood for anything. The second I got into the garden, I feel great! Now I have to lose the weight and clean my house and I will be right as rain. Spring is the best time of year.

Here is a picture of an apron I made in the fall. I love it. Sadly, it was lost in a bad swap with the peeps. On the bright side, one of the girls needs some fabric similar to what I used. So she can have all the scraps I saved and I can help maybe make someone's day. Don't you just love making someone's day?