County Fair

I actually remembered to bring my camera along to our county fair this year.

I am finally getting around to posting these pictures.

Elijah showed this little Holstein-Jersey crossbred calf.

 Ruby was so excited about showing this little Milking Shorthorn this year;

it was all she could talk about for weeks.

Then, the morning of the dairy show, all her confidence dissolved in a puddle 

of uncertainty and we were left with this face.

The picture didn't focus correctly, but you can still see what I mean.

She settled in after just a bit of time in the ring.

At her age, 4Hers are required to have an adult with them in the ring.

I have several to choose from, haha.

Nathaniel was Ruby's adult.

(It does sometimes feel weird to me that I have "adult" children...)

 Mr. Christopher had a round of anxiety to begin with as well,

and it was my fault.

His white show pants somehow got left home; I still don't know how it happened

though if I were a betting woman, I'd say it had something to do

with the number of 4Hers I have showing, the number of cows to milk at home before the show,

the number of children I have who are not yet old enough for 4H,

and the number of miles we live from the fair grounds.

It seems likely, anyhow.

 Isaiah has a special affinity for colored breeds of dairy cattle.

This little shorthorn earned him a trip to the state fair.

 Elizabeth 

 Ivy 

 Abram

 Isaiah and Linnea each showed a Jersey

 These two little boys were too stinkin' CUTE.

Abram is in the gray shirt and Colby is in green.

Colby's mama used to show in our county, too.

Full circle...

 Monkey see, monkey do.

 One of my favorite pictures.

Andrew with his dry cow, Ingaborg.

 Monkey see, monkey do. :)

 4H friends!

 Linnea showed Grandpa Wayne's horse Princess.

Between the dairy show, the horse show and the sheep show, 

she kept me moving.

 Cece likes to do "SO BIG".

 baby teeth...

 Christopher and Elijah enjoyed watching the horse games.

Isaiah and Linnea each went to the state fair,

Isaiah with his heifer and Linnea with her sheep.

Only eight months until we do it all over again!

Easter 2015

To start this post, I mean, really, 

who could resist this face?!

This is how Abram "smiles" for pictures.

See?

 And I need to work on proper etiquette with Elizabeth while wearing a dress.

 We went to my mom & dad's for dinner Easter Sunday.

My mom has this cute little flower in her windowsill

and it moves back and forth via a small solar panel.

Abram was mesmerized!

 This little mister turns 2 at the end of this month.

He is growing up so much!

But I think sweater vests have a way of doing that to little misters...

We had been at my grandma's house the day before 

and Abram took a bad tumble on her pavement

earning him a owie lip

but it didn't slow him down for long.

 Miss 'Lizabeth was so excited to wear this "park-ly" dress

that is a hand-me-down from Ruby & Ivy.

 Ivy Joy

 Ruby Kathryn

Cece's first Easter :)

CecePie and Ruby

I didn't get any individual pictures of anyone older than 6

but we actually managed to get a group shot! 

 the back row is Andrew (12), Nathaniel (19), Linnea (14), Cece (6 mos) and Isaiah (17)

in front is Abram (almost 2), Ivy (5), Elizabeth (3), Elijah (8), Ruby (6), and Christopher (9).

*whoa--I had to stop and think on the ages there...they didn't stand in chronological order!*

I can't recall the last time I got a picture of my parents and the children.

I include this one because Abram is smiling so hard it makes me laugh!

And doesn't the back of Cece's head look great?!

Ooh, and look at Elijah's face....awesome.

This one is better...except Abram is chewing on a 

grape that we used as bait to get him to stay within the frame

so he looks like Joey Tribbiani.

"How you doin'?"

 And, because we hadn't all been dressed up and in one place since Cece's baptism,

a picture of all of us.

Again--the back of Cece's head looks great, along with my awkward stance 

to try to get her to look forward.

Also included for your viewing pleasure

is this one of Ivy's muscles and two of my teenagers blinking.

But look--Cece's face!

Mothering eleven children is no small feat, my friends.

Plenty of small feet, yes--

but the rest of this life = no small feat.

Graduation

Wasn't that funny?

That one time?

When I said I'd post pictures of Nathaniel's graduation?

Hahahaha!

Back in JUNE?

I'm the only one laughing?

And it's the fake "heh, heh" kind of laugh?

And I should quit ending all these sentences with question marks?

Done.

So our oldest son graduated from our homeschool

this spring.

We hosted an open house at our church in June to celebrate.

My super amazing friend Monica made the cakes.

One "silly" 

(Nathaniel loves Batman movies.)

And one "serious".

I was busy with food and hostessing

so I asked Linnea to "take a bunch of pictures throughout the afternoon."

She said, "Of what?"

I told her, "Of people, of Nathaniel, of the grandparents, the guests,

just...random pictures of the day."

We decorated the tables with pictures of Nathaniel

The pictures I asked Linnea to take?

These are it.

I have no picture of our oldest son with us, his parents.

No photo of our whole family.

No grandparents.

I shouldn't say these are it.

I also have about four selfies of Linnea and Abram.

note to self:  you get what you pay for.

Monday's Child

I need to update an old post since three more children have been born since then.

Do you remember that poem called "Monday's Child" ?

Three of our kids have been born on a Sunday: Isaiah, Christopher and Abram
Three have been born on a Monday: Andrew, Ruby, and Elizabeth
One on a Tuesday: Nathaniel
Two were born on a Thursday: Linnea and Elijah
and Ivy was born on a Friday.

I'm up in the middle of the night wondering what this baby will be?

Monday's child is fair of face,

Tuesday's child is full of grace;

Wednesday's child is full of woe,

Thursday's child has far to go;

Friday's child is loving and giving,

Saturday's child works hard for its living;

But the child that is born on the Sabbath day

Is bonny and blithe, and good and gay.

Can It Really Be August Already?

Whoa.  Where did June and July go?
I no longer bemoan the swift passing of summer as I used to do when our kids went to public school.  Every passing day of summer was one more closer to them being gone all the time and that made me sad.

August should slow down a bit for our family when compared with July.  With Bible camp, our county fair, and VBS, each week was FULL.  Which leaves little time for the work that needs to be done on a farm and in a house, not to mention the stress of "running" here and there and trying to keep enough in the gas tank to get there and back.
Linnea and Isaiah will both have a few days gone at the State Fair toward the end of the month; the older three kids all have off-the-farm jobs that they are gone for but at least I don't have to run them there.  Days that I can stay home all day---consecutive days---are the most productive and the least stressful for all of us.

Abram has started walking!  Finally.  He is, at 15 months, my latest walker.  In all fairness, there were many obstacles to him learning to walk.  Namely, all of his siblings who pick him up and carry him wherever his little heart desires.  Also, our floor space is limited and often strewn with toys that either a) trip him or b) catch his attention and he decides to play with them.
Add to that the fact that Elizabeth thinks she needs to intercept his every move, and well, you get a 15 month old just beginning to walk.
He has gone from 1-2 steps to the entire hallway and getting back up on his own when he falls in just a matter of days!  I'm bummed to have no pictures of it as my camera is still not working.  The last picture I was able to take was at the end of June.  Bummer.

That camera was a once-in-a-farmer's wife-lifetime for me.  We've not ever spent as much at one time as we did when we bought that $450 camera at the end of a particularly good bean harvest four years ago.  My brother-in-law, a photographer, says that all electronics are just plastic and they wear out so very quickly; that I take a lot of pictures and it's just time for a new one.  *Sigh*  Ain'tgonnahappen.

Today was a different sort of day.
To back up a bit, Linnea and Isaiah were at camp all this past week (Sunday through Thursday) thanks to a generous anonymous gift to the camp for our family.  It was also the week of our church's Vacation Bible School.  Our church also has a Baseball Clinic prior to the evening VBS to which I sent Andrew, Christopher, and Elijah.  Nathaniel was out of town for work Weds-Friday late, so thankfully, Dennis' parents generously helped with rides.
I'll admit, getting Ruby, Ivy, Elizabeth, Abram and me out the door on time fed, in clean clothes and with hair done was a challenge by myself.  I was a mess most days.  I've been very tired lately and my legs have been swelling more (just normal pregnancy stuff--no worries, just uncomfortable) that I wear out very quickly.
Linnea worked all day Friday and today and is spending the night at a friend's house tonight.

My brother came from ND today and cut down some trees for us. (THANK YOU, AARON!!!!!!)  The younger boys pulled branches and hauled them away.  Dennis was haying and Isaiah was fencing.  The three little girls and I cleaned house; I couldn't let them go outside with the tree cutting going on.  We got a lot done and made a big dinner and then the girls rode with my brother to my parents' house this afternoon.  They'll sleep over tonight and go visit my grandma tomorrow for church and the afternoon.  She lives an hour away so I don't see her much, but my parents will usually check if they are making the drive to see if anyone wants to ride along.

All of that to say, I only had Abram in the house this afternoon.  Nathaniel had left for work and the other boys were all outside doing stuff.  I don't know if it's ever been "just me an' Abram"....he played very nicely, and wanted to show me everything.  I was very tired by this point and so I sat in the chair and made a grocery list/menu plan and folded some laundry.  Not too long after, he crawled up in my lap and we both fell asleep.
Yes, I took a nap. 
And it was a good one.
n hour long.
This simply does not happen.
I woke up on my own--not because some came to ask me something.
Not because someone screamed because of something someone did to them.
Not because I could hear nothing and "nothing" in a house full of little kids is usually not good.
I woke up rested, and thought to myself, "Is that what a nap feels like?"
I'd forgotten how lovely sleep is.

My brother headed back home to ND after delivering the girls to Grandma & Grandpa's house for me, but he posted on fb quick that he had reminded Ivy that she needed to share with Ruby.
Ivy said, "But I just wanna share by myself."
Ivy is four and is stuck in that strange land between toddler and big girl....she typically over-reacts to anything Elizabeth does to her (and Elizabeth is quite pleased with the reaction she gets--she can tell, she's makin' her mad!).  If I'm there and can remind Ivy to use words and not scream, I can usually head off a melt-down.  But it takes near-constant diligence on my part and I often fall short there.
Anyway, I thought his post was funny and wanted to put it on my blog so I'll remember it.

Ruby is counting down the days now until her birthday because it's now less than a month until September 1st.  She is SO excited that she will be SIX before the baby arrives.
Christopher and Linnea both have September birthdays and our anniversary is at the end of September.  We'll see if Baby gets his/her own day or doubles up on one of these!

Isaiah and Dennis went fishing tonight a caught a very nice string of bass; it was good for the two of them to have some downtime.

Nathaniel has been working a lot so we are beginning to understand what it's like when adult children are spreading their wings.  The younger ones get very excited when he comes home; Elizabeth and Abram in particular.  He's always been very good with little people so that's no surprise.

It will be very different in the morning, getting only boys ready for church.  As Elijah pointed out to me earlier, I AM THE ONLY GIRL IN THE HOUSE TONIGHT.  This is weird.  On the big plus-side, I should have to hurry in the bathroom much. :)  And all of the boys' hair can be done with a sweep of a comb--and they can do it themselves!

I Can't Think of a Title for This Post

Today we celebrated Nathaniel's graduation with an open house lunch at our church.  It went really well.  See?  Worrying and stressing works!  Just kidding.  I worried too much about how I would pull it off but my mom and my sister helped me in BIG ways and I'm forever grateful.
I will post pictures soon.

Only one guest took a pot-shot to my face about this, my eleventh pregnancy.  An elderly aunt pointed to my stomach and said loudly, "You just don't know the word STOP, do you?!"
Caught off guard, I smiled and stammered something like "I really like having children, thanks."
My uncle said I should have said, "Neither do you!" (know when to stop)

Elijah spent last week with his bestest pal, Gideon, in the big city about 3 hours away.  A week was a very long time, but with texts and calls, it was fun to check-in with him and the time was made bearable.  Having one child "missing" was so weird!

The week before that, Andrew and Christopher were both at Bible camp.  Our family received a gift that provided for the older kids to all go to camp.  Inspiration Point is an aMAZing place.  They both had a super time.  Christopher told me that there was a lot of tooting that happened in their cabin.  He learned other things, too, though.  One day, I wanna go there myself.

Elizabeth started some bangs for herself last week.  So now she has bangs.  I wasn't really planning on bangs, but they actually look really cute.

I found a dead frog in Christopher's barn pants pocket the other day so that was fun.  Or not.  Either way, it happened.

Dennis and Isaiah are gone until tomorrow sometime; they drove back with my brother after the open house because Isaiah and Aaron worked out a deal for Isaiah to buy Aaron's old car.  Aaron lives 5 hours away so it's a trip that takes a little planning for a dairy farmer.

Baby is growing nicely; I am 26 weeks now.  I have my coffee shelf back and have knock things over with my belly.  Elizabeth talks often about the baby in Mommy's "hummy" and thinks we'll be naming this baby Abram, too.  (We're not.)

We were given three tickets to the circus this past week so Nathaniel took Ruby and Christopher.  They had a great time.  Ruby's favorite were the acrobats and Christopher's was the trick bike rider.

So that's a bit of catch-up from here.  I was soaking my oh-so-tired-and-achy feet in epsom salts but now the water is cold and I'm going to go to bed.  Since Dennis is gone, I feel like I really should stay up and take advantage of the opportunity to hold the remote or pick whatever I want on netflix--y'know, live on the wild side a bit.  Maybe I will.  Elizabeth took a looooooooong nap after the party; I don't think sleep is in her near future, so it's not likely in mine either.

Now....to figure out the remote.....

Eighteen

Our boy Nathaniel is 18 today. 

I feel like I should say, "Where has the time gone?" 

But I know where it has...it's been spent in the sleepless nights, the changing diapers, the toddling steps, the irrational fear of worms, the land of make-believe, the school of hard knocks, the growing-out of clothes, the growing in of facial hair, the learning how to drive, the frustration of algebra, the quick wit from years spent with nose in a book, the procurement of a job, the freedom of a paycheck, the adoration of younger siblings, and the love of family. 

Happy Birthday, Son.

Best Brothers

When Nathaniel was younger he helped me so much with the babies.

He is still very good with babies and little people, but he works outside a lot and also has a job off the farm so he's not nearly as available as he was when he was eight. :)

Christopher is kind of like another "oldest", serving in the same way Nathaniel did when he was younger.

He told me, "Mom, it's kinda like me and Abram are best brothers."

Yeah.  It is.

Wordless Wednesday: Fingers, Big & Little

We Might Watch Too Much Gilligan

Ruby was chattering about something. 

I told her, "Ruby, you speak like Mrs. Howell." She said, "I know! 'Cause I say things like 'Isn't it mahhhvelous, dahhhling?' 

And Mommy, do you know what I wish? I wish that I could have ALLL the clothes that Mrs. Howell wore on Gilligan's Island. OOOOH! We could be like all the people on Gilligan's Island!! But 'cept there's only seven people on The Island, and we've got more than seven in our fam'ly. But Christopher could wear the Skipper's things and--"

I interrupted her. "Really? You think Skipper's clothes would fit Christopher?"

"Ohhhhh, right. Okay..Nathaniel could be the Skipper and Isaiah could be [I'm sure she's going to say Gilligan, right? but no] Mr. Howell--because he's got lots of money!"

Elijah thought about this for a minute, then decided, "I think Isaiah could be Ginger, because he's tall and skinny."

(That is what guys notice about Ginger, right?  That she's tall and skinny?  Yeah, I thought so.)

I'd Forgotten

We no longer use "regular" baby powder; I haven't for a few years.

Instead, I sprinkle some of this clay on a baby's bottom if there's a bit of redness. 

I didn't throw away the couple bottles  of powder we had because we sometimes use them for whitening calves for show at the fair.

Consequently, I'd forgotten how fun it is when a little person gets into a bottle of baby powder and sprinkles it EVERYWHERE in a room.

The last time a child did this, it was a joint effort between Nathaniel and Isaiah.  They closed the door of the bathroom and enjoyed squeezing the sides of the container and watching it *puff*  into the air.

This time it was the girls' bedroom.

When I started thinking, "Why does it smell like baby powder in this house???"

I walked down the hall and was met by this.....girl.

It's a difficult thing when a parent is torn between needing to admonish the behavior while stifling laughter (and taking naughty child's picture to document the event for posterity).

Superhero

This guy really is pretty super.

This biggest brother has lived his whole life remembering to keep legos out of reach of little hands. 

He's been leaked on by diapers and handles spit up like a pro.

He has corralled early walkers and negotiated with terrorists toddlers.

He has taught the kids to love Buck Owens, Johnny Cash, and Roger Miller.

Because of him, they know the difference between Merle Haggard and Waylon Jennings.

He introduced them to the classic Batman, Spiderman, and Superman.

Because of him they know Captain America and IronMan.

Because of him *I* know.

He can laugh when the dinner table is chaotic.

He calls it "art" when Elizabeth writes on her arms & legs....or the wall.

He knows the importance of laughing at kids' jokes, admiring their projects, and complimenting their achievements, whether it be figuring out a rhyme or making it all the way across the monkey bars.

He has been working a couple jobs this summer and fall so it's been a little different having him gone.  Elizabeth is so excited when he comes home.

I'm proud of him, proud of who he is becoming.  

I'm excited to see the paths laid out before him and how he'll navigate them.

Because we all think he's pretty super.