In need of a haircut

The other morning, Cash was complaining about his "hair being too long to eat his cereal." Being the loving mommy that I am, I took care of the problem. :)

River folk

We truly enjoy living right on the river. We attribute our large amount of "critters" to the nearby water supply, it makes for a beautiful view off the back porch, and of course, on hot days, it's the perfect place to play. We did just that last Saturday afternoon, the 25th.

The boys grabbed their swim shorts and I loaded up some random toys, and off we went. 

These plastic boats that we played with in the pool were also getting some "river time."

The favorite was a ping pong ball. The boys would throw it up the river and watch it float back towards them. They would take turns scooping it up in their net.

Got it!

Here's a view looking up the river - pretty shallow.

And here it is looking down the river - a bit deeper and not as grown up.

This boy was having a blast!

It was about waist dip in most places. We tried to stay away from the edge because there was lots of ooey gooey moss. 

Here they are in the deepest part, holding tight to daddy's hands. It was a perfect afternoon to be at the river. 

Did I mention we brought the kayak down to the river? We paddled around for a bit, traveling up the river to the back of our property. It was hard paddling against the current and in shallow water, but we made it.

"Moss man" also made an appearance. Hilarious!

The boys didn't seem scared, right? Oh, my! What a fun day to be "river folk."

Their Sunday best

When it comes to clothes around here, we are pretty plain and simple kind of dressers. You'll usually find me in shorts and a t-shirt, jeans in the cooler months. Heath wears rugged khakis or jeans to work with a polo shirt, and the boys beat around the house, inside and out, in play clothes 99% of the time. So on Sunday mornings, I just love seeing my boys in their "Sunday best." Our Sunday best still isn't as fancy as some, but it makes me smile to see my two little handsome boys all cleaned up, hair brushed and something other than Lightning McQueen or a tractor on their shirts.

 

 

Still playing though, B wore these short overalls today. This was actually Cash's Easter outfit, bought at consignment, when he was 22 months old. B was three weeks old when Cash wore this for that special Sunday. Now that little baby is wearing big brother's spiffy outfit.

 

Cash was busy riding his bike before we left, so he didn't let me get too many pictures. Love that smile though!

 

I love it when they hold still for a picture, together, at the same time. :)

 

I know I'll blink and Baylen will be wearing this navy polo with the plaid shorts. But right now I'm just going admiring and "eat up" the cuteness of my boys in their "Sunday best."

Eighty-three

Growing up, we got together with my mom's side of the family very often. Holidays, Sunday afternoon lunches, birthdays - you name it. We were there together, and if one of us wasn't there for some reason, it just wasn't the same. There were ten of us then, and my sister and I were pretty close to our two cousins.

There's sixteen of us now, and like I said, when even one is missing from a get-together, it's just not the same. So for all of us to meet on a Saturday night to enjoy a meal together, it must have been for a very special reason, and it was. Gran-Granny was turning 83!

I don't think she would mind me announcing her age on my blog. Honestly, she's probably uncertain was a blog is or that I try to keep up with one. Besides, at eighty-three, she's strong, healthy, and the "head" of this family. She's beautiful inside and out, and her four great-grandbabies love her. It's not easy getting a perfect picture with these four, but we always try.

Happy birthday, Gran-Granny!

Plum jelly

I think I've mentioned before on this blog that my family (just my mom's side, actually) cans vegetables fresh from the garden and freezes other vegetables like corn and beans. My sister and I grew up knowing that the "green bean" room and the two deep freezes downstairs were always filled with "fresh" food. We also grew up with my mom and Granny making things like grape jelly and preserves. It's only been a few years now that my Granny has been making plum jelly. She sent some to Bowling Green last year, and immediately, Heath was hooked.

We had been asking around to see if anyone had plum trees. You just don't see a lot of them anymore. My sister has one on her lot that was ready earlier in the summer, but recently, Cash had been asking for plum jelly on his sandwiches, so mom started hunting around for more plum trees. And thankfully, a high school friend of her's has about a half dozen trees on his farm that he reported, "No one ever did anything with."

So Wednesday morning, I loaded the boys up and we headed to Roseville to meet mom and Granny. We were going plum hunting, and the boys were excited!

One of their absolute favorite things to do is ride in the back of pick-up trucks. Country boys? I think so.

It was sunny and warm, but the boys were ready to be put to work.

There they were -a whole grove of plum trees!

Mom, Granny and I took a look and decided that the work was more for us than for the boys. They helped pick up a few, and they got a kick out of us shaking the trees, but we let them sit in the truck because a lot of the plums were either covered with wasps and bees, or they were swarming around. We didn't want the boys to grab hold of a plum and get stung.

Wow! Lots and lots of plums. We ate a few on the way back to Granny's, but it didn't make a dent in the "treasure" that we had found.

Before we could get busy on the plum jelly, I helped Granny wring out some grapes that she had been working on earlier in the morning. See the cheesecloth? She poured the cooked grapes in that, and  then we...

twisted all the juice out of it to use for the jelly.

Here's some of the grapes that we got. My aunt's actually all froze during the spring, but her neighbor brought over some bunches that were on her vine. Thank you!

Here were are cooking the plum juice.



And here it is after we had poured it into the jars. Beautiful! (and yummy!)

After we finished with the jellies, Cash helped Grammy shell some butter beans.

Right after lunch, we decided to call it a day. We had filled lots and lots of jars, and had even canned some of the juice to make more jelly later. Shew!



Artist

Here's Cash's portrait he drew of me.

I'm thinking he's going to be an artist. :)

Cash's first day

All spring, Cash informed me that he didn't want to turn four years-old because he didn't want to go to school. After he turned four (because we knew it was going to happen), he insisted that he still didn't want to go to school. I dreaded the fall because I had just knew that at some point some sweet, non-deserving lady was going to be pulling him from my leg asking him to come play with cardboard bricks. *sigh*

After a summer full of prayer and lots of pep talks (and changing to a preschool where he had two friends attending), he began to have brighter thoughts about the start of preschool. By the time it came around, he told Heath and I that he was going to be a "big boy."

The day came for us to see how it went:

Oh, my. So big! Where is my lil' man?

Big smile, not a bit worried, ready for his first day!

Little brother wanted his picture taken, too! (Not such a little baby anymore, either.)

I tried to look for some sign of anxiety or worry, but he seriously acted cool as a cucumber.

Heath worked from home that morning so he could be there as Cash went for his first day.

I was so proud!

So how did it go? Wonderfully! We got to his school, and as soon as Ms. Patterson opened the door, he walked right in. Not a "Bye, Mommy!" or a hug or anything! But I was okay with that. He was happy, excited, and ready to be set free (so to speak). I also knew that if I had insisted on a hug, tears would have flown from this mama.

B and I left, hand in hand, on our way to Musikgarten across town. It was the beginning of a new chapter for us. Cash was at school, independent and big, and I was getting my chance to spend one-on-one time with my little B. Looking forward to this season and thanking God for choosing me to be these boys' mommy.

Shall we gather at the river?

On August 12th, our church held its annual Baptisms at the Creek. Throughout the year, when believers want to be baptized, they can choose to be baptized in the baptistry at church, or they can wait until these special Sunday and be baptized in Drakes Creek. Our good friend, Jordan, was being baptized this afternoon, so we were excited about the event, the fellowship and the potluck that followed.

Heath and the boys decided to check out the water before it all started. Jordan was down there, too, saying hi. Mr. Jim, our music director, came over to shake Heath's hand, too.

Not sure what they were talking about here. It could be something about the boys, the temperature of the water, the latest pictures they've captured on their trail cameras, or it could have been something about the awesomeness of our Lord and Savior. These two, Heath and Jordan, have a lot in common. We've surely been blessed by his and his wife, Brooke's, friendship.

Pastor Steve spoke about the importance of baptism and the body of Christ, and then invited Jordan into the water with him.

Heath and I are so thankful for our church and the faithfulness of our church family and the passion that Pastor Steve has to teach the Word. It is all so truly amazing.

Ag night

After the race, we all took naps (including me), and then we were ready for our annual trip to Chaney's for Ag night. It's something that we look forward to every year. There's hamburgers, ice cream, a movie, farm animals to pet, a hayride to the dairy barn, and we always run into lots of friends. The boys' favorite part is always the machines. They usually have old tractors, new tractors, and even some crazy big machines. This year, they were light on machines, but the boys still had fun climbing up in them and smiling for the camera.

I think they felt right at home in the cab of this one.

Don't you think he makes a cute co-captain?

Of course, Cash had to sit in the skid-steer. He wanted to close the door, but we thought it was probably a good idea to keep it open. Bummer!

Even Heath climbed up in this one to check it out. It was a pretty big machine...

And, of course, they felt right at home on his John Deere, too. This one, especially, loves tractors!

Hospice 4 mile race

On August 11th, Karalee, Amy and I ran the Hospice 4 mile race here in Bowling Green. (Daniel, Amy's husband, also ran the race, but he was so far ahead of us I wouldn't say he ran it "with us.") It was a perfect morning for a race, not too hot, and we all felt prepared and ready for a good run. We were not expecting the gravel track, though. In most places it was a comfortable run, but in other, especially the slopes, it was hard to run on.

However, we made it to the finish line, Amy and I together and then Karalee a bit ahead of us. The boys were there with the kiddos when we finished, which made it fun. We celebrated with a breakfast at the Waffle House (real healthy, heh?).

Here's Cash and B waiting at the finish line. It was sunny, and B hates the sun in his eyes. :)

Karalee came across the finish line with a smile.

Amy and I decided to sprint to the end. I'm not even sure the time on this race. I think it was around 43 minutes. 

The boys were cheering us on to the end. Ha! Not quite. They were busy playing in the gravel.

They did stop awhile to smile with mommy.

Getting ready to rest and enjoy our snacks.

Aren't we beautiful sporting some nice pastels? 

Daniel ended up placing second in his age division. Yay! As for us girls, we were just happy to be running on a beautiful morning. Next up? The Run for the Fight 5 miler at the end of September! :)