Since Last Weekend...

Life has been so busy; so busy that I never got to blog my last weekend post. Last weekend, we went on a spending spree - it certainly didn't appear that we are Dave Ramsey fans. The truth is that we had delayed certain purchases until it was just time and had to be done. The good news is that there were no credit cards involved! The biggest purchase was the lawn mower that JD has sighed and walked past all summer long at Lowes. The grass had gotten to the point that I really couldn't keep saying, "we don't need a mower, we barely have grass," so JD got his mower. (See the grass?) He took Elijah on the trip to buy it and Elijah couldn't be more thrilled to have a new, orange tractor!

The next purchase was a car for Alei to drive. Before you are too impressed, let me state that the mower cost considerably more than the car! Alei isn't to impressed with it's station "wagony" appearance, but it came from a friend and was a great price. Of course, it needs work, but JD has proven himself in that department over and over.

We also purchased four picnic tables from the Boy Scout jamboree. Once they use the things, they sell them at great prices. So, we got two tables for the front area and two for the backyard. It will be nice when we have group functions, which we love to host!

(We also bought a new grill and some over-priced knives, but that would be just embarrassing to admit, so I'll stop now!)

We actually completed our first week of school this week. It went pretty well, although I still need to order some curriculum. Somehow, the day is full even when we only do 1/2 of the work, that always concerns me. It overall is just going to be so much easier this year with Elijah and Julia two and four instead of one and three or zero and two!

The weather is lovely outside, warm but not sweltering. JD and most of the kids have been working outside all day. He is paying them each $1 per tractor bucket load to pick up the stray big rocks. They have really needed to be gathered and the bonus is that they are forming the drive-way up to the barn that we have been planning for several years. Even Elijah was working for a while.

I think that the farm work is so good for boys! James and Ben have more knowledge now of things like gardening than I did a few years ago when we moved here.

My garden has been the high-light of my summer. I'm just so thrilled that it's grown so well and can't wait to double its size next year. We have lots of cantaloupe ripening and they are so good.

I want to expand my cherry tomato numbers next year too. I only planted three plants, but we get a cereal bowl full every day. I never thought it would happen, but Julia actually turns them down sometimes now - I didn't have any idea that she could reach that point! At first, she just hosed them and ate them straight off the plant everyday, but now James and I get some too.

The new chickens I got each faithfully lay an egg everyday, so we are getting at least a dozen a day. Since Alyssa gathered early yesterday and Julia and I gathered late today, we had 26! (Like Julia's flip-flops?)

Julia asked if I could make her some eggs out of the eggs.

Lastly, two of our thirty baby guineas died this week. I have no idea why, but moved the other 28 this week in case it had something to do with the old rabbit hutch that they were living in. They are now inside the coop, separated from the big chickens. They are loud little guys, and really not very attractive, but that's all OK as long as they eat lots of ticks when they get big!

Have a great weekend!