Log Truck

Raising children in the country is like raising children anywhere: life requires a bit of creativity and mustered-up enthusiasm. For us, events like the garbage truck coming down our dirt road, a Blue Jay sitting outside our picture window, even thunder rumbling off in the distance, are things we take note of and often get very excited about.
So, when we had two family friends of H's come to cut some trees that were too close to our house, the enthusiasm was palpable. We were able to watch them cut the trees, drag the trees, lift the trees, even push the trees over with a tractor. It was lots of fun for these country kids and their mamas. This stick-to-the-routine-above-all-else mama even postponed naptime for a good half hour. The last photo is of Elliott riding with his Uncle Bubba in the log truck.

VBS

Yesterday the children attended our church's Vacation Bible School. Our church is small so we hold VBS on one Saturday during the summer. Last year I helped, but our little three stayed at home. This year they attended and enjoyed being a part of everything.

H with her Aunt Janie who came to help out.
Lu with Uncle Bubba.
They didn't like jumping in the inflatable bouncer. Though Elliott did like watching the big kids play on it.
There was singing and a little dancing.
One of the favorite activities were the crafts. The participants used lots of spongy stickers to create cross bookmarks.




Everyone had a good time. I am glad our three were able to participate this year.

Weight, Weight, Don't Tell Me

Our last Synagis shots were in April, thank goodness. The last few months of shots were really tough as the babies did Not like getting the shots. In addition to sticking their skin, the medicine also burns for about half a minute.

The last two months the babes' weights were pretty stable. I've listed them below so I won't forget (and so I can throw these scraps of paper away!). The first weight is for March, the second April, so these are their 18 and 19 month weights. We are not scheduled to see the doctor until September.

Lucia--21.9 lbs & 22.33 lbs
Elliott--25 lbs & 25.41 lbs
Mazie--18.56 lbs & 18.56 lbs

Milkshakes

To get out of the house one fussy morning, I took the babes on a drive and bought them their first milkshakes. They enjoyed them and I enjoyed the happy children.

Cooling Off

These days we do what ever it takes to cool off.

Artistic Endeavors

We occasionally pull out the crayons, paints, and, most recently, Play-Dough. Lucia really loves to color. She has sat for an hour in her high chair and colored pages from a coloring book. Whenever I mention crayons, she is always very excited. The other two enjoy coloring and painting, but not for as long as Lucia.

Usually after a certain amount of time Elliott starts eating the crayons or drinking the paint water. Often this frustrates me and I end the session, but each time we spend with an activity, though, allows for a little bit smoother run the next time.

Veggie Bounty

One of the best things about summertime is the bounty all around: flowers, fruits, trees,, vegetables.
Aunt Patti and I went back to the u-pik farm again this year--twice. I canned salsa, 76 pints of tomatoes, corn and zuccini salsa, raspberry jam, baked strawberry jam, pepper sauce. I also dried bunches of roma tomatoes and jalepeno peppers. I enjoyed putting up food for my family to eat over the coming months.
Elliott also enjoyed arranging and assembling the vegetables. He pushed them around in the strollers and pushed them out the doggy door.

He also thought our cat, St. Vincent, enjoyed partaking in the vegetables too.
We hope you are enjoying the prolific fruits of the season. Thanks for checking in on us.

Big Baby

Mazie is a mother. She loves her babies. She loves to nurture and care for her babies (and her siblings). Her current favorite child is Big Baby. She loves to feed, change, and care for her Big Baby.




The past week Mazie has been taking Big Baby to bed with her. One night we had put the babies to bed for the night and Lucia was having a hard time settling down. H was in the nursery rubbing Lucia's back when she heard something hit the floor behind her. Mazie softly said, "Uh Oh." Then a little louder from Mazie, "Uh Oh." She kept escalating with her "Uh Oh"s until H felt she had to leave Lucia to see what was upsetting Mazie. When she got to Mazie's crib, H discovered that Big Baby's leg had fallen off and was lying on the floor. After the appendage was reattached, the girls settled back down.



Big Baby is a faithful companion for our Mazie Bell.

Garbage Truck

There are a lot of things we love about our new house. There is, however, one thing at the top of our list that nothing else comes close to topping: our Friday morning visit from the garbage truck. Everyday we discuss the garbage truck. It allows us to talk about the days of the week.
While we are always sad to see the truck go, we look forward to next Friday when we can listen for the truck to come down the dirt road and run from window to window so we can get a as many good looks of the truck as possible.
See you next week, Mr. Garbage Truck.