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The Boy is back home!

We went to Camp Bell Saturday for 8:00 AM to pick him up. All the Scouts how participated in NYLT came down the mountain together,in their respective patrols.They formed a rather long line of three or four across. The leaders were yelling chants and the Scouts would yell back,a la the movie Stripes. It was quite impressive.We didn't see Zach at first. Each patrol would then line up,and they waited to be dismissed... "NYLT disssmissssed!!!"  It took a minute to find Zach,because there were 80+ boys there,plus the parents picking them up. I kept saying,"Where's The Boy? Where's My Boy?" and scanning the crowd for him. I was so anxious to see him. Finally,I spied him coming towards us,and I went up to him and gave him a huge hug,backpack and all. I admit that I cried a bit. I couldn't help it,I was just so happy and relieved all at once. 

I took this quick photo after Rick and I had hugged and kissed him. "My shoulders are killing me," he said before this photo was taken. "My backpack is heavy."

When we got home,we saw his wound.He still has a very faint spider web line on his left heel,and raw area where the blister was.He said it didn't bother him all week,he kept a Band Aid on it. Overall,he said he had a great week,and though it rained for most of the week and there were more thunderstorms,it didn't dispel anybody's spirits.He learned a

lot about leading patrols,how to deal with difficult Scouts/adults,how to plan meetings,etc. He seemed older and filled with more confidence.

When he arrived,they gave him a NYLT hat,three NYLT shirts,and a NYLT notebook that had certain exercises in it for the week.

At the end of the week,they gave him a certificate and a patch:

He does have project that he needs to complete. Each Scout had to come up with an idea to help better their respective Troops,and to create a step by step plan to implement it. Zach's is to have the Troop do more fun activities.He needs to complete the plan by Dec,and if he does,he received a completion pin.

I am so glad he's back!

Close Call

Zach was picked to attend the Boy Scouts National Youth Leadership Training program (NYLT). The boy applies,the Scoutmaster gives a recommendation,and then he is either chosen or not. The program is for 6 days,and the boys are taught various things such as how to run a patrol,leadership skills,etc. NH's NYLT takes place at Camp Bell,in Gilmanton  Iron Works (GIW,incidentally,is the setting for the famous novel Peyton Place. The author based it on people she knew).

We dropped Zach off on Sunday for noontime.Once everyone in his particular patrol arrived,they hiked two miles into woods,up a mountain for their week long training. The only buildings are the shower houses. They do have tents on platforms with cots for the boys to sleep in.

I had to take this photo of Zach when we dropped him off. I am so proud of him being chosen. You can tell how excited he was to have his Mumma take his photo in front of everyone. :)

The weather forecast for this week is thunderstorms off and on all week long. My Dear Friend Michelle and I were saying at yoga class Monday that we hoped they had some sort of shelter in case a bad storm came up. Her son Ethan,is at NYLT with Zach. They wound up being in the same patrol.

Monday night around 11:30 the phone rang,and it was the ER at Lakes Region Hospital in Laconia,NH. Zach was in the ER,and he had been in a lightning strike. He had a burn on his heel,but he was OK,and she told me to hold while she connected me to Zach.

When Zach got on the phone,he told me what happened. Apparently,a storm came up quickly,and it was a bad one. The only had time to get under a staging area. It looks like they may have used it for some classes or for meals. I got the photo from the WMUR (Channel 9) webpage:

Lightning hit a nearby tree,and the electric current traveled through the root system,coming out to where they boys were. There were approx. 30 boys and leaders under the tarp. Zach said everything was bright white,then a very loud clap of thunder followed. There was pandemonium,of course,with yelling and screaming. Zach says he yelled for everyone to "shut up" because "they were hurting my ears".

No one felt any effects until 30-40 minutes later. Some boys complained of tingling sensations in their arms,legs,or down their sides. One boy had blurry vision and his left side was numb. Some, like Zach,felt burning and spider web like markings started to show. Because the storm was still going on,they could not go down to the main building at the base of the mountain. Adults and older boys who had experience and training did first aid on the boys as best they could until the storm passed and they were able to go down to the main building,where most of the boys were put into buses. Six boys who had burns on their chests were driven by truck. They all went to the Belmont fire station (23 boys,3 adults) where they were assessed and then they were all sent to various local hospitals depending on their injuries. Some boys were just shaken up,but those like Zach who had burns, etc,were brought to Lakes Region. Zach had a burn on his heel,and a blister that popped. He said on a pain scale of 1-10,it was a 15,but when he spoke with us,it no longer hurt. His ears had rung for a brief period,but that,too,went away. Michelle's son has a burn on his back. 

Zach sounded fine,but tired. He complained that he didn't get a chance to finish his dinner,because as soon as he started eating,that's when everyone was brought to the hospital. He joked that they all should get a "I Survived a Lightning Strike" merit badge. I knew he was fine. 

This is the tree that got hit. Again,the photo is from WMUR Channel 9 in Manchester,NH.

Zach is back at camp,and everything seems to be fine. I have been a bit of a wreck,just thinking about how close he came to getting either seriously hurt or killed. A lightning expert was on the news discussing this and he said that it is very rare that so many people  get hurt from one bolt,and that there must've been a very large charge of electricity.He was shocked that no one was killed. Usually someone is in that circumstance.

This week just happens to be Lightning Awareness Week.

Oh,the irony!

We are so very grateful that he is OK.

Goats,Chickens,and Leaves,Oh My!

Well,whatever the issue was that I had with Blogger,it's been fixed,and I can now download photos again :)

Here are some pics taken over the week:

First up,the adorable little Nigerian Dwarf Dairy Goats at Tiny Hill Farm!

All three of us fell in love with this sweet little beige guy. He was so cute,and had such a "please take me home look!" 

They were so very friendly,and enjoyed chomping on our sweatshirts. They especially liked Zach's. I was so glad that we were able to arrange our visit during his school vacation week.

I took this pic to show how small the babies are. Rick is 6'1". The little beige guy really liked him. Larissa,one of the owners of the farm,is on the right of the pic. She was wonderful and very helpful.

Friday our 30 broilers came in. Zach had to pick a few up because they are so cute...but he knows they are food,not pets.

I know...how could we think of eating such cute little things?

Spring has finally sprung in NH! We have leaves popping out on trees....

And the maples will soon follow suit. It seems like the green takes a long time to take over,but then,one day,we wake up and all the leaves are out.

The Girls have been enjoying some free range time,now that the weather is nice. They take care of the bugs and ticks...

....and some of the weeds that I haven't pulled out of my garden boxes yet.

Have a fabulous day on this Fabulous Planet!

Paper Can Weigh You Down

Our file cabinet was at the point where if I opened the top drawer to access some of Rick's paperwork,the cabinet would pitch forward. Guess that means it's time weed out some documents!

A good portion of what I pulled out were duplicates of Rick's TDRL ( Temporary Disability Retirement List) appointment reports.Anyone in the military who has been diagnosed with PTSD is automatically put on this list for up to 5 years.They have to see a Dr when the military asks to see if the PTSD is better or not. Well,at this point,going on 8 years of being wounded and things staying the same,I would hope that the military would see that Rick should be fully retired.He has had three appts over the last two years,which my regular readers probably remember. Each time he has an appt,we have to wait for the Dr's report to be sent to a specific company who is handling the TDRL,and they send the hard copy to us.Rick has to sign a paper saying he agrees with the findings,a release of info form,and send a copy of what medications he's taking from the VA. Each time they send a new report,they also send copies of the old ones. We had over 240 pages of reports total,including the duplicates. Today I went through those reports and threw out the extras,so we only have one copy of each. I also went through some other old paperwork that we no longer need. I think the pile of paper weighed at least 5 lbs. It certainly freed up some space! At least the file cabinet no longer wants fall on top me when I open the top drawer.

Rick had been having a hard time lately. He has kept busy,to a point,but his confusion keeps him frustrated and his speech has been dragging,which adds to his frustration.A couple of times he broke down and cried. I don't blame him. No one can hold all that in indefinitely. You have to release it. I myself had a bad day yesterday.

 We did begin making a pot rack out of an old ladder that My Dear Friend Michelle found for me ( Do I still owe you for that ladder,Michelle?). It only took two years,but hey, it's getting done. We do have to move it over slightly to the right,and we have to see if Rick can make the opening on one end of the "S" hooks we bought a bit bigger. I don't want to post a photo of it until it's completed,though.

 Zach just celebrated his 15th birthday on March 3. We are so very proud of him. Zach and I went down to Somersworth to visit my Mom on his birthday and it was nice. We finally ( I say finally because Zach has been asking since 4th grade) bought him a phone. He is involved in different activities,so it's good to have his own line of communication. It's a very basic pay as you go phone,and we told him that he will have to pay for the minutes. We did buy him a new IPOD as well. 

I went through my seeds and discovered that I have to get more corn seed. It's almost time to start some of my seedlings!

Have a fabulous day on this Fabulous Planet!

Growing Like A Weed

Yesterday,since Zach did not have school,we had a family outing day and went to see the latest James Bond movie,"Skyfall." We don't get to the movies very often,maybe once a year,because it's so expensive,and when we go,we go to the matinee because it's cheaper.  Many moons ago,it was the Pirates of the Caribbean .Then it was the Harry Potter movies. Rick rarely ever went with us,but he is now to the point where he can go to the movies,and we actually did not sit in the last row with our backs to the wall this time. (BTW,the movie was excellent--it held your attention throughout). I am willing to wait until "Lincoln" comes out On Demand,which I really want to see.The sacrifices we make for our children-LOL! I enjoy James Bond just as much,and Daniel Craig isn't too shabby to look at. Sean Connery will,of course, always be THE smooth, debonair Bond,but I must admit that Daniel Craig is the Bond who is the most bad ass. We also found out that it was 50 years ago that the first Bond movie came out,Nov 1962. Since Rick was born in August 1962,Zach took delight in telling him he was older than the movie franchise....so he was OLD!

Zach is growing so very fast. It's hard to believe that he was ever little sometimes.The other day he came to me and told me he only had two pairs of pants that fit-out of about 10 pairs. I just bought him three pairs this fall for school,and only one pair of those fit-which is strange,since they are all the same size-28/28,slim straights. However,he modeled them for me and yep,they are a bit too small. The other jeans were old ones he wear to "bang around",a term my Mom used when I was growing up.Not only were most of his pants too small in the waist,the length was too short,even for banging around. After the movie,we went Kohl's and picked up three new pairs of pants,30/30's. He made a pile of all the clothes that don't fit him and came up with roughly 8 pairs of pants,10 shirts,and a pair of hiking boots-that we just bought this past Spring! The clothes were donated to the local clothing drop off,and Uncle B now owns a new pair of hiking boots. Zach is getting to be tall,he's probably about 5 inches shorter that Rick (Rick is 6'1"). He loves reminding me that I am the shortest person in the house :)

It's hard to believe that this young man  posing with his hunting rifle..................

....is the same little boy who posed for this pic in April 2006. Rick had been back home for only a couple of weeks when we went to our Cub Scout Fish and Run. Zach won the trophy for smallest fish.

Time marches on....

Have a fabulous day on this Fabulous Planet!!!

Back In The Swing And Being Aware

Yesterday was a productive day for me. I cleaned the fridge,dusted,ironed clothes,picked herbs and hung them to dry,and finally hung up the assorted tea tins that Zach gave me for Christmas!

Oregano,basil,and rosemary are very fragrant-and did kick up my allergies a bit,but that stopped after a few minutes.

The various teas and their tins that Zach gave me for Christmas.... I had to wait until the kitchen was almost done before I knew exactly where I wanted to put it!

By late afternoon,I was wiped out,though I did pick Zach up at school at 5:00. He is in an after school program called "FAMEE" ( what the letters stand for escapes me at the moment).They have various programs for the kids-and,since he is interested in film making,he is in the TV club. They are rewriting "One Flew Over The Cuckoo's  Nest" and he is going to play the Jack Nicholson role. He has volunteered to help film the school's events for local cable access,so we have to bring him to the school tonight so he can help film a volleyball game. Thursday after school he has "Youth To Youth",which is a group of kids who educated other kids about drugs and tobacco. He is going to be a very busy little bee. I told him that as long as he keeps his grades up,it's fine.

Now when I do things around the house,I take the time to immerse myself in them. I'm not thinking about what's going to happen in a few hours,or worrying about tomorrow. I am in the moment. I pay attention to the sizzle of the steam coming out of the iron,and how smoothly it runs over the clothes. I take pleasure in the smell of the herbs as I cut them off their plant,even if they make eyes itch a bit and my throat scratch. I don't rush through things anymore to finish a list. I plan my day,and I don't go overboard. 

Part of my decluttering process in the home is that I try to really look at what is around me and be aware of it. We all wind up not seeing things after a while,don't we? I look at certain areas,and think,"Is this what I want? How can I make this better and more effective? Do I really need everything that here? What is the purpose of this item? Is it even used?" I find myself happily doing things around the house now,instead of just going through the motions.

Tomorrow we are off to Norwood MA,which is about 110 miles from here. Normally,I would be dreading it terribly,as I have never been there and driving in MA is not what I would consider fun.However,since I don't have to go through Boston (thank GOD! I still will never drive in Boston)I am actually looking forward to the trip. I haven't been thinking about it non stop,worrying and obsessing over it. I'm taking it as it comes.  I might wind up being a nervous mess,but at least I won't be one for days before it. I figure that's a step forward!

Have a fabulous day on this Fabulous Planet!

A New Chapter...And Yes,More Deck Photos (The Last...I Promise!)

Today is a Big Day,a New Chapter,if you will.

Zach starts High School. Sigh. My child is growing up and I am torn! On one hand,I don't want him to grow up. I want him to be the adorable little child he was,cuddly and cute. On the other,I am anxious to see him grow and become the amazing adult I know he will be.I just don't want it to happen too fast.

Last night there was an ice cream social for Freshman and their parents. The principal spoke about a new Wiki School program on line to help keep parents in the loop,and they are continuing another on line program (the name escapes me) in which we can see assignments,grades,teacher comments,etc. Today is Freshman Orientation,and they will be the only ones in school.Tomorrow,all high school students begin their classes. Zach was a bit nervous,which is natural. 

We,of course,had to give him a hard time as he got on the bus. As Audrey ( our great bus driver who loves Zach) pulled up,we started pointing at Zach and yelling,"Freshman! Freshman!" until he got on the bus. Audrey laughed hysterically. In the past when she pulled up on the first day of school,we have poured champagne,or jumped up and down cheering wildly. It's all in good fun,of course,and Zach is not embarrassed by it. If he was,he would not have any qualms about letting us know. Whatever we decide to do,it's never a surprise.He's always well informed! As the bus pulled away,he smiled and waved out the window.

And finally...yes,MORE deck photos. These are the last ones, I promise. Rick and I enjoyed a lovely breakfast of bacon,eggs,and pancakes the other morning on the deck.It was fabulous chatting with the background of birds and squirrels having their own conversations. Very relaxing!

You remember the old deck....

Lovely,wasn't it? Not the kind of place I wanted to relax on.

Here it is now,in all it's hard built glory.........

One of the nice things about the deck is we have a natural tree screen that blocks us from the road. You can see it (sort of) in the last photo. I took it from where I now sit-in the corner. The lattice work blocks me from my neighbors view,and with the trees blocking the road,it makes a nice cozy corner to curl up with a cup of coffee and a book ( or my Kindle,depending on what I want to read). Even just sitting and enjoying the birds on the feeders is fabulous. It also gives Zach a bit of privacy,because one of his bedroom windows is right outside the deck ( see the second photo) so when anyone is sitting outside they can no longer look right into his room.

Have a fabulous day on this fabulous Planet!!!

Compost Bin Is Done...And So Is Our Tom

Rick finished up the compost bin on Friday afternoon. The area is now nice and clear,and the tractor can get in and out. We have three sections: soil on the left,and the breaking down areas in the middle and to the right:

Rick didn't want to put side walls up on the ends,because he wanted to be able to access the piles from either angle with the tractor to dump and turn compost,or to retrieve soil for the garden. Good plan. He just used old pallets,held them together with rope,and used some lumber to support the back.Finally! That area is cleaned up and all our composting and composted materials are where they should be!

Sunday evening it finally started to rain.I left the bedroom window open a bit,and it was fabulous to wake up during the night and hear the rain outside. Monday it rain all day,and though we desperately needed it,it would've been more beneficial to have a a few days of good,slow,leisurely rain than one day of downpours.At this point,however,we will take whatever we can get!!! The grass did start greening up,and we have seen more leaves on the trees.

Yesterday we had to take care of our Tom.One of the females (we had 2) died,because the Tom wouldn't let her eat,apparently.He was also getting very aggressive when anyone went near the cage,and jumped up towards the door of the cage with his talons front and center. Not good. It was long overdue,anyway. So Zach did the deed,and after Tom was dead we weighed him-he was 50 lbs! We had to cut him up to get the meat into the fridge,and we still didn't almost have enough space. He was a big'un!!!

Tuesday we went down to North Hampton to visit Rick's Dad Dick,and Brother Spencer. Dick was kind enought dig out the old Shaw family bible so I could double check some dates:

The bible was given to Rick's great x 3 grandmother for Christmas in 1873.It has beautiful illustrations in it that still have tissue paper over them. Marriages,births,and deaths all have their proper pages,in lovely handwritten script.(My dates were right,by the way)

Yesterday I brought Zach down to my Mom's for an overnight visit,and I stayed for lunch and chatted. She had just returned the previous day from VA. My great nephew had his christening,and Mom went down with my sister and her husband (they are the grandparents). Zach always likes visiting his Nana. She is going to bring him back today. We had an early morning as we had to be down in Manchester for an 8:00 AM eye appt for Rick. His double vision is starting to go away,which is good. This was just an annual checkup.

Today I am going to start my cukes and pumpkins.

Spring Has Sprung!

Our warm weather continues! Temps are running 30-40 degrees above normal.Yesterday,it was 80 degrees here,which is practically unheard of for this time of year.Friday,the temps are going to start being in the 60's.

Yesterday,Rick mucked out the chicken coop,which The Girls highly appreciated. We should be seeing some eggs soon-we never did get electricity running out to the coop last year,so The Girls stopped laying in November. This year,come hell or high water,we will have electricity running to the coop by the Fall. I enjoyed the weather by doing a bit raking-until I developed a big old blister on the inside of my right thumb,where the thumb joins the hand. I even had gloves on! Well, at least I got a start on it. I also checked out my beds,and realized that I need to plot out what I am going to plant in what bed fairly soon.

When Rick was mucking out the coop,one of The Girls got out. We call her Rogue Chicken,since she isn't even ours.She is our next door neighbors. She somehow got out of the coop up there,and was wandering around for quite a while. She found her way into our yard,and we captured her by luring her under a box and dropping it over her. Kelly told us we could keep her if we wanted. Well,yesterday she got out again,and Rick couldn't grab her. After supper,Zach said he would try,thinking he could get close enough to her to drop a sweatshirt over her and then he would grab her.  About 15 minutes,he came back,looking very serious.
"I caught the chicken," he told us.
"You did? Good job,buddy! Did you put her back in the coop?" Rick asked.
A pinprick of silence.
"No. She's dead."
Naturally,Rick,Brother B  and myself were a bit confused. How does one kill a chicken with a sweatshirt? Rick asked him what happened.
"Well,you know the space between the coop and the wood lean to where we have the  ladders? She got in there and I was able to throw the sweatshirt over her,and I tried to pull her out,but the ladder moved and landed on her and now she's dead."
"I better go outside and check this out," Rick said. Both and he and Brother B went outside with Zach to see what he meant,and if,indeed,The Rogue Chicken was no more.
A few minutes later,they all came inside, laughing.
Apparently,Rogue Chicken was fine. The ladders lay horizontally side by side in between the two buildings (it's not a big space,just maybe a few feet) and when Zach tried to pull the chicken out,one of  ladders fell over a bit on top of the chicken,and she went limp. Zach thought she was dead because she didn't make any movements. No,she was just playing possum. So Rouge Chicken lives! Zach's deadpan comment,"No.She's dead," is still a source of humor this AM.

Today we are walking down to our lumber mill to check out counter top samples (they have a small home improvement area). We are finally getting back on the kitchen remodel track. After that,we are going to trim our apple tree. This week,we are also going to build three compost bins to get the area more organized. I told Rick it would behoove us to get that done,before all the leaves are dumped in the area.

One bit of sad news-our cat,Moxie,got out about 2 weeks ago and hasn't been seen since. He was our cat that we found in the woodpile last Spring. He's my little buddy and I am very sad. However,yesterday Rick found his red collar next to the deck,and it wasn't there the day before,so Rick's thinks that perhaps he comes around in the evenings to see if any of Molly Bruce's food (our outdoor cat)is available on the steps. I miss Moxie very much. He would lay on our bed and I would pat him at night and he would purr away.

Have a lovely day!

Glimpse of the Future

Today is a gorgeous day,the temps are going to be in the 50's. The snow is melting,the sun is warm,and I can hear some birds singing. Ahhhh...bliss.

Last night the parents of the Fall Freshman were invited to a meeting at the high school. Rick,Zach,and myself went. The principal,asst principal,guidance counselors and heads of the depts all spoke about school,the classes,etc. Zach received a book of offered courses,and a course registration form. (They will be going over these more at length in school today,as not everyone went to the meeting last night.) The teachers will check  off what level they feel the student should take in their respective course-general,college prep,or honors.Parents,of course,have the opportunity to disagree if they feel the teachers recommendation is too much or too little. Zach is planning on going to college,so naturally we want him to take all college prep courses,and I think he could even do the honors course in English (which is a bit harder than college prep).Freshman are required to take 6 credits. Graduation requires 21 credits. ( When I graduated,we were required 18 credits,but of course that's back in the Dark Ages of the 1980's!) After the speakers,we could take a map of the school and walk around a bit. Zach and his classmates will have a "Step Up" day where they go to the high school,and their first day of school is only open for Freshman,so the Freshman can get to their classes without all the other kids being there,which I think is a fabulous idea. So far,I like all the teachers that we listened to,and we did get to speak with the Physical Science teacher,who admitted that in her College Prep class that she is the toughest teacher in school. I immediately liked her. I also liked the fact that if the students have any questions that don't get answered in school,they have email and cell phone numbers to contact the teachers. They are all there to make sure the children succeed,but,as they say,if parents aren't involved,it makes their job harder. I heartily agree. My child's education is not just up to the teachers,it's up to Rick,myself,and Zach as well.

Zach has until March 19 to register for his classes on line. My,how times have changed! I remember when I was going into high school,we were given a course booklet,and one day we went to the high school and had to go and sign up at the tables for each  course. First come first served,which meant if you missed getting a course in the period slot you wanted,you had to rearrange your whole day. It was nerve wracking .Especially if you were trying to get a class with a friend or boyfriend!

The principal began by welcoming the parents of the "class of 2016." That hit home. 2016 is going to come quick,and though I am anxious for Zach to fly and take wing so I can see they kind of man he will become,I also dread it,because I won't have my little boy anymore.

Special Day

Saturday was Zach's 14th birthday. His request for his birthday dinner was lasagna (which I made gluten free) and he wanted devil's food cake with chocolate frosting (which Rick made non gluten free). Late morning Zach and I visited my Mom,who is doing great. We had some lunch and a nice chat. She was amazed at how much Zach has grown since she saw him last,which was Christmas time.

Rick and I wanted to get Zach something for his birthday that he would use for school,and we decided to get him his own laptop. We found a new line of Toshiba on sale at Staples and purchased Office for Students. More and more of his schoolwork involves using the computer-graphs for science class,reports,etc. He was quite excited and surprised!

Zach was officially 14 at 8:03 AM. He was a C-section baby,with a planned date of delivery. He was breech,and at my last regular appt,my Dr told me that they could either manually turn him which 1)would be very painful and 2)probably wouldn't work,since most first babies seem to turn right back to breech again,or they could just schedule a C-section. I opted for the C section. It was very strange the night of March 2 sitting at home knowing that it was the last evening where it would be just two of us-that the next time I came back into the house I would have a baby in tow,and our lives would be changed forever. Zach was gorgeous when he was born. The nurses wanted to give him a 10 on the newborn scale,but the Dr told them "we never give out 10's"-so they rated him an 8 and a 9. He stayed in the room with me,and everyone kept telling me to rest and take a nap,but I wasn't tired in the least. They were also amazed that I wasn't asking for more pain medication!

We also have a new member of the family,born on Zach's birthday. We have a new great niece,Farrah Marie Lussier-Shaw. Rick's nephew Dwight and his girlfriend Tiara are the proud parents. So now Zach and Farrah are bound not just by genetics,but by the same birth date! Welcome to the family,Farrah!

Summertime Is Here

I have been trying for several days to answer comments on my posts,but Blogger will not let me. I can't respond to posts on other blogs,either! I have tried resetting my password,but I keep coming up as anonymous,and then it goes right back to the password page. Go figure!

Things have been busy around here. Our garden is growing well,which I am happy to see since we had such a late start. I have two ripe strawberries,and I still need to trellis my peas and cukes. I did get my tomatoes staked. I will post pics of that tomorrow.

The boys have been working on levelling the yard and creating a swale in the back so the water doesn't drain from our next door neighbors yard through our garden area ,into the chicken pen and hopefully not in our basement so much. Today they are going to work on levelling the area for our set -it -up-yourself pool. Our grass seed is finally sprouting as well.

Yesterday we had an exciting morning. Rick and Brother B were on their way to go fishing when Rick almost stepped on a little kitten. It ran under our porch,but they were able to get to it:

We thought perhaps the neighbors cat had babies,but when we asked them about it,they said no. Apparently,though,they have seen kittens running around in the area,so a cat had a litter somewhere nearby. This poor little one is just a baby. It was very scared,and bit both Rick and I,but after a short while it calmed down and we were able to hold it. It's little spine is sticking out,so we gave it some soft food and tried to get it to drink a bit of milk. I have named it Smokey. I believe it's a male.He tried to snuggle with Moxie but neither Moxie or Little O were having any of it,at least,not yet.

I decided to try and make peppermint soap the other day. It's been curing now for about 5 days.I used the lye soap recipe and just added some finely chopped fresh mint when it was starting to trace. I  put in what I felt looked nice. We should be able to give it a whirl in a few days and see how it came out.It looks pink in the photo,but it's not. It's natural color:

When Zach got home from school yesterday he was very surprised to see little Smokey. He has such a soft heart for cats and dogs.Smokey is licking his face in this picture,tickling him and he couldn't stop laughing:

One of the other things I decided to try was homemade ice cream. We love ice cream,but usually have to watch the ingredients because of Rick.This way,we can make ice cream that everyone can enjoy. I bought an inexpensive electric ice cream maker and tried chocolate chip.It came out wonderful! Now I must go buy ingredients for chocolate today:

Today is Zach's last day of school. We went there this AM for the awards assembly. Zach was on 4th quarter Honor Roll,and made Honors All Year.Here he is this morning with his certificates and his autograph shirt:

He has had such a great year this year. Yesterday he won the 7th grade Poetry Slam. Earlier this year he won the 7th grade spelling bee. We are so proud of him!

Summertime is here,and we are ready for it!!!

Some Had Fun This Past Weekend,Some Did Not

Friday at 3:00 AM I woke up with the most horrible pain the back of my neck and head that I have had in a while.  I did fall back asleep,but when I woke back up at 8:00 AM,my eyes were sensitive,I still had a pain in the back of my head,and I felt sick to my stomach. I took some  Excedrine Migraine,and went back to bed. I hate when days like that happen,especially days when I have much planned. By the time 2:00 PM rolled around, I was feeling good enough to at least shower,and I went outside to gather eggs,then laid back down. I was wiped out.

Rick,on the other hand,had gone with a friend of ours to pick up what we consider our first farming purchase:

Yep. An Actual Tractor! Rick has been wanting one for awhile to help out around the yard.New ones are way too expensive,but he found this old Bolens on Craig's List,in Farmington,the next town over! He made arrangements to check it out and brought our next door neighbor,Kelly,who is very mechanically inclined and knows alot about tractors,and his friend,Joe. The tractor came with a mow deck,tow behind trailer,weights,and a rototiller. It was for an excellent price. Both Kelly and Joe were envious. Rick did not make any purchase without discussing it with me,mind you. :) Joe helped Rick bring it home and unload it. Then Rick spent the next hour getting used to how it runs,and how the bucket works. He played in the compost pile (which you can see behind him in the photo)moving the compost,then went to the remaining fire wood piles and tried to scoop up some wood to move them to the back of the garage.(he moved a few piles) He proclaimed it "perfect for what we want to use it for." This year, it will be regrading the back yard,redoing the driveway,moving the compost pile,filling the garden boxes,and moving wood.

Zach had a great weekend,at least until Sunday afternoon. He went to the Boy Scout Spring Camporee that was held in Farmington,which was very convenient for us,since it's not far. His patrol won first place in knot tying,and third in First Aid. When we picked him up Sunday AM,he said he had a nice time,and seemed tired,but that wasn't unusual. Lots of fresh air does it every time. He curled up on the couch and slept.By the time late afternoon rolled around,he was complaining that he head felt swimmy. I took his temperature and it was 101.5. I put him to bed,gave him some cold ginger ale,put a cold cloth on his forehead,and gave him some nighttime meds to help reduce the fever and help him sleep. He had no stomach complaints,or body aches. He is sniffly,so I guess he's fighting a head cold. I kept him home from school today,and we won't be going to Scouts tonight. Poor thing. We hate when he gets sick. His little body feels like a furnace,and he never complains,he just gets real quiet. Today I gave him some day time meds and will keep pouring the cold fluids to him.

In plant news, our strawberry plants are coming up nicely,my thyme and oregano have made a strong comeback,and my mint will need to be pulled. It's starting to take over the herb box. I should've planted that as a ground cover. I am going to see if there are any good peppermint soap recipes where I can use the leaves.

I need to go check on The Boy now. I hope you all had a great weekend!

Doings

Yesterday was an exciting day. Zach was a finalist in the Rochester Regional Spelling Bee.(There are several regionals throughout the state,and winners go on to the State Bee).He did well,making it to the second round and being in the top 12 out of 21 contestants. He was a bit upset,as the judges told the group that they would use some words that were not on the study list,but only towards the end.They used those words from the get go. Rick and I noticed it right away,since we have been going over the words with him for weeks. At any rate,he did a great job and we are very very proud of him!!!

This coming week is garden planning. I made a preliminary assessment of what seeds we have,and what we need to get. There are  a few new things we want to grow,broccoli being one. For the most part,we have plenty of seeds left over because our garden was on the smaller side. This year,we want to have enough to do some serious canning,so our garden is going to be close to,if not,doubled. We also need to rotate our crops,so we will have to figure what will go where. I am very excited to get this going.

We have lost quite a bit of snow this weekend.It has been in the 40's-balmy temperatures for us this time of year! It rained overnight,so the snow in the yard has gone down by about half. We still have snowdrifts ( such as outside our bedroom window) that are about 5 ft tall,but we can see grass in the paths that have been snowblowed (is that a word?) Little birds have come back,Brother B informed us yesterday. He saw a bunch out at the bird feeders,so now I need to get some seed to coax them into hanging around. I am anxious to see something else beside Blue Jays.And of course,the standard bearer of Spring,the Robin,is the most welcome sight of all. Once we see Robins,we know that Spring is not far behind.

Some folks have tapped their Maple trees already,but the weather has not been sap running weather. It needs to be above freezing during the day and below freezing at night for a portion of time to get the sap going. A couple of days of good sap weather followed by freezing temps stops any sap flow. From what I have read from the NH Maple Producers Association website,if you tap the trees too early,it's not good.So we have held off. Sap only runs for a few weeks out of the year,and here in NH it's usually not until mid March. Once the buds start coming out on the trees,the sap has turned bitter,so it's time to pull the buckets.

Like most folks around here,I am ready for Spring. I am ready for green grass,bright blue sky,the sound of birds singing,and digging in my garden. I am ready for warm sunshine soaking into my bones. Bring it on!!!!!!!!!!

Spelling Bee Champion!

Yesterday,Zachary was in his school spelling bee. He was up against 8 other 7th and 8th graders. There were about 5 rounds...and he won!!!

His winning word:feverishly. He  gets a one year on line subscription to learn a foreign language,and an on line subscription to Encyclopedia Britannica for a  year as well. Zach has decided to learn French.

His next step is going to the regional in early March.The state is divided into nine regions for the spelling bee. He is in the Rochester region,and will be spelling against 25 other students from 25 other schools. Each region will have 2 representatives (I believe I read that right) that will go to the state bee. The winner of the state bee goes to the national bee.

He is very excited,and we are very proud! Below are a couple of photos-for some reason they did not download in the order they should,so the end is first. Sorry!

Principal Mr. Woodward,Zach,and Zach's Language Arts teacher,Mrs.Manter

                                               The last three spellers...

Today Zach is having an early release because we are having a snowstorm. Today we are suppose to get 3"-6",but tomorrow is going to be the Big One. We are going to get hit with 12"-16". So we could get 2 feet of snow or more. Needless to say,I don't think that Zach will have school tomorrow-especially if  we get 1"-2" an hour like they are predicting. Tomorrow is Groundhog Day,so hopefully the Groundhog won't see his shadow so we will get an early Spring!

Proud Mumma

That's me. I am a Proud Mumma. Not Mom,Mommy,Ma,or Mama-Mumma. Zachary has never called me anything else. He says anything else sounds too weird.

Last night was the screening for "The Monsters Are Due on School Street." This short film was made by a few students from Mrs.Pomeroy's class. Mrs.Promeroy is Zachary's literature teacher. The students seem to all love Mrs.Pomeroy,and Rick and I like her very much. They took the Twilight Zone episode,"The Monsters Are Due on Maple Street," rewrote it,and acted it out. They did a great job!!! The bloopers were very funny. Each child got a copy of the movie,so when we got home last night,we re watched it,including the bloopers. Zach must've watched the bloopers 20 times. He says it was a blast making this film. All the kids got along great and had a great time.

After the screening (which included popcorn) the cast was called up to the front so folks could ask questions.

Here is Zach with his friend RJ. I was Den Leader of Zach's cub scout den,and RJ was in the den. I got to watch him grow up,and it still astounds me at how tall he has gotten and how deep is voice is!! I have a special place in my heart for "My Boys,"as I call the boys who were in my den.

Each child was given an award ( a certificate and a gold medal),which were funny awards. Zach's was "Best Laugh...Mmmmm'kay?" ( Zach likes to say "Mmmm'kay",coping the Mr Mackey character on South Park).

I am a very proud Mumma. Zachary has been on either the Honor Roll or High Honors since he was in the grade when it was implemented. He just made First Class in Boy Scouts,and now he begins work on his merit badges ( our troop likes the boys to get the basic ranks first before they let them work on merit badges). He loves to write stories and has several going on at the same time. Now he has taken his first foray into acting! Obviously I am bragging a bit,but what kind of Mumma would I be if I didn't every now and then??? :)

Today we have our mother -son time. Each time a new Harry Potter movie comes out,we go to see it,then go for pizza after. We started this tradition two movies ago,and in a little while we will enjoy this time together once again. We have asked Rick to join us,but he is not comfortable in movie theaters anymore. That's alright. He likes to see us spend this time together.

Yep, I am one Proud Mumma!!!!!!