My Helper

Kaitlyn helped skin peaches for canning the other night.

5K

Kenton, Jamison, and Megan ran a 5K yesterday.

Turns out Jamison is no longer following in his Dad's footsteps. As Jamison hit the finish line someone asked him where he left his dad. His response was...

"In the dust!"



It will be a while till Kenton lives that one down. :-P

Jamison ran the 5K in 27:15. That's pretty good for a ten-year-old. It took Kenton (with Megan) 31:34. Kenton says he could have done it faster...but not faster than Jamison.

Milk Dud Report: We bought a large square baler. Now he's going to fix the large square baler. The trial run proves it needs some work. (For Dennis: a picture will follow soon. The knotter needs some adjustment.) The farmer in the dell is getting ready to spend big money...it's time to update. He's busy pricing structures, equipment, etc. (So sorry, robots! You're not cost effective for us.) Milk prices are great; keep drinking!

D DAY !!!

Dossier Done Day!!!


Obviously Duane wasn't as excited about a finished dossier as I was...however, he was a VERY good sport. :-) That particular envelope represents plenty of blood, sweat, tears, and tons of STRESS! Naturally my tendency to procrastinate only aggravates this situation. BUT...

It's DONE!

It's Hard to Believe...

That once upon a time these TWO families had infertility troubles.

Yep, that's how this friendship started.

It's always a treat when Paul and Saralee bring their crew our direction so we can catch up. Ou girls loved games, card tricks, and nail polish with Rebekah, Grace, and Abby and the boys had fun hanging out with Benjamin. It's fun to hear from couples whose children are approaching adulthood: What did you do right? What would you do differently? Any advice?

If anybody else would like to add, we'd LOVE to hear it!

Update

We started school today. One day down. One Hundred Seventy-nine days to go.

Turns out the decision to homeschool based on adoption travel was maybe not a necessary choice. Things are not going as planned. Looks like it may be next summer before we travel. Although, depending on the season that WE may become I. Now there's a short-term money saving proposition that could wind up with mom in a straight jacket and padded room.

Two words sum up my feelings on today and its news:

Bummer, Dude!

Fun at the Lake

When we're in Minnesota we like to spend lots of time in the water...of course, part of this is because Mosquitoes don't bite underwater.

The kids were having a wonderful time catching frogs and minnows one cool day. Dad and Kenton gave them a thrill by seining a catch to add to their collection.
Waiting on the catch
Racing to get the most minnows
To the delight of the kids, some fish wound up in the catch. Megan grabbed this northern.

Megan, armed with a noodle, taking on the boys.

Preparing a minnow/frog habitat


Frogs in a bucket


Jaycie and Mandy


Dad and Jeff like a fire.


Jamison loved this little boat. It didn't take him long to get it figured out.


This is it. You are now safe from the dreaded "vacation slides".

Lake Superior Zoo

If you're expecting animal pics...sorry, the Lake Superior Zoo was not superior. Frankly, it was pretty lame. It had an impressive set of lions, a tiger, and fun sea lions...but unless you love turtles, lizards, birds, etc. it was disappointing.

Fortunately we brought our own fun zoo with us. Our animals were much more entertaining.


Grandma treated them to a train ride...and was the only adult willing to accompany them. Is she a good sport or what?


Her dad is saying, "DON'T GET ANY IDEAS!"


Guess who is the biggest drama queen in our family!


Short on animals but large on scenery was Lake Superior Zoo. If they'd just get their animals up to their landscaping it would be terrific. Did I mention they might want to shoot those fowl fowl known as geese?

Maryland is beautiful...but I'm not sure it tops Minnesota.


This is the let's get a cousin picture...pre-Dairy Queen promise. Cooperative bunch, eh?

It's amazing how a trip to DQ sweetens kids up.

I saved the best for last.

Do you think Kaitlyn is rushing the whole Prince Charming thing?


Okay, I lied. One more day of vacation pics coming. Sorry.

Lucas came home today. He'll probably be waking my sister up a lot from now on. That ought to be fun, eh?