Spur of the Moment, Sunday Evening Photo Shoot

The two year old.



The boy who never smiles for pictures.




Three months old already!



Almost four years old.




Being silly.



Stair-step line-up.



Not quite the pose I was looking for.



This is harder than it looks!




The smiles!!


Real life.


If at first, you don't succeed...


Try, try...


Again! All Eight.

Preserving Summer (aka Nesting)

So this is a lot of what's been keeping us busy lately. There were also swimming lessons for almost half the kids and miscellaneous school prep for the older 5. And all but QB got to spend at least one Tuesday with Grandma C at the cousin's house across the border. But now pretty much all the canning I wanted to do is done (we probably should make more applesauce though) and the official due date is tomorrow, so we're down to the waiting for baby game.

What I love most about this picture though is how much time it represents that I was able to spend with various individual children.

Over 100lbs of butternuts (25lbs pictured here) were collected over five days of swimming lessons at the local park. While the kids in lessons were swimming most of the others played on the playground and one or two kids would help me collect shopping bags or feed pails of nuts off the ground at the park. This gave me time with just about all the kids individually. Later when we dried the nuts in the dryer, it was Dolly who spent hours washing out the walnut stain that was left behind each time we dried a batch of nuts. I'm sure she was happy to see the long range forecast with record temperatures and no cloud cover that prompted the nut drying process to be moved outdoors. Without the threat of rain, we spread the butternuts across the driveway and let the sun dry them for us.

This pail of apples came from the two trees we have, and I got to spend time with Hal and QB picking them up off the ground. Well, I carried the pail and they picked up the apples since they are already a lot closer to the ground and can bend over better than I can currently. :) These apples are the best of what we collected and have been reserved for school lunches. We collected other apples and pears from the neighborhood trees and Granny sent bags of windfall apples from her house to us via Grandpa and Grandma C. Butler was my one-on one applesauce maker - we made 6 quarts, but then ate one quart right away because everyone loved the samples from our canning leftovers. QB especially loved the 'app-sauce!' and in spite of his size, he probably got the lion's share of what we put out for dinner. The plan is to make more since we still have buckets of apples sitting outside the front door, but they can wait until after the baby comes.

The 4½qts of hazelnuts were Ricka and Dolly's specialty. They were my 'hazelnut hunters' and we had a lot of fun wandering the property identifying trees together. Ricka still brings me an odd hazelnut that she finds every once in a while.

PC nearly did all the work involved in making the 10 pints of peach salsa and he willingly helped me pit and chop a whole pail of plums that I needed for later. Emma worked with me to make one of the two batches of plum jam including picking the crab apples in the sheep field that we needed for making the jam pectin. We ended up with a total of 5 pints of plum jam and 4 more of plum jam/sauce (those didn't set up quite as nicely as the first batch).

Dolly worked in tandem with me to make the first two batches of peach jam which was a really fun project because she did all of her batch herself after watching me and copying what I did on my batch. She took a few minutes longer to get her batch off the stove, and ended up with a darker jam that set up better than my lighter colored batch. It was a rainbow after the thunderstorm type of thing and I was really thankful for that because she had worked so hard and thought she ruined everything by letting the jam cook longer than it was supposed to. For the other batches of peach jam I had random helpers that came and went, but we ended up with a total of 16 pints and the kids gobbled one up in sandwiches the first few days after we made the first batch.

The five older kids collected the one pail of pears that we let ripen in the living room for a week before I turned most of them into baby food. Any leftover peaches and plums were also turned into baby food and we ended up with a total of 18 half pints of baby food split between the three flavors. It works out to about 36 jars of store-bought baby food. Again, I had random helpers during the baby food batches, but they came and went and helped while there was something that kept them interested in the job at hand. One of my favorite quotes was from one of the older kids, "Don't worry Mommy, when I grow up, I'm going to do canning too!" And it was immediately followed by a sibling's enthusiastic, "Yeah! me too!".

I think it was rewarding to all of the kids when we collected everything we put up during the month to take a picture and they could see all their hard work in collecting and preparing the bit we did all in one place. And it's rewarding to me to see all my children learning and appreciating the value of projects like these while they're still young.

"Go to the ant.... consider her ways, and be wise: which having no guide, overseer, or ruler, provideth her meat in the summer, and gathereth her food in the harvest."
Proverbs 6:6-8

You're Invited To The....

Please come and be encouraged with us!

"Jesus called a little child unto Him..."
Matthew 18:2

It's time for the...

Because even the little people need to be refreshed and encouraged!

A Party!

At the beginning of April every single one of my kids recieved a letter invitation to a Co-op party to be held at the middle of the month. See, way back in September when we got our first chickens, we had to do some scouting for a feed/farm supply store that we were hoping was decently priced. All the local feed stores seemed to be ordering their feeds from the Co-op half an hour's drive to the east, so we thought that maybe we should just check the co-op out and order from them. What we learned was that the feed stores somehow managed to sell at a lower price than we could buy at the co-op, but we decided to join it anyway since we'd probably need other farm stuff besides feed. Part of joining up included free admission to the 'kid's club' for all of our children. Basically this just meant that they got a little card that says they can have a free cookie whenever we pop in for a visit, but it also put all the kids on the mailing list for seasonal events like a Christmas party in December and the Easter party in April.

Along with the invitation that listed all sorts of fun stuff like: face painting, bouncy castle, popcorn, carriage rides, petting zoo, fishing pond, lollipop tree, egg toss, ring toss and plinko games, balloons, cupcake decorating, nail painting, and concession stand, there was a coloring sheet that could be colored and returned to enter a draw for a new bicyle! The kids were beyond excited to even get the invitation, but the thought of possibly winning a bike, was more than they could contain. I told them we'd see how things went, and decide whether or not we went later, but they could still color the pictures and we'd figure out a way to submit them. It turned out that the party was on a day that the kids had off of school, and instead of the predicted rain, we woke up to dazziling blue skies and sunshine. Sir had things to get done at home, but if I wanted to take my chances on a outing with 6 kids by myself, I was more than welcome to do so.

(the check-in line up)

So, we got up, had breakfast, did our chores, grabbed the coloring sheets and headed off to the party. We got there just before lunch time and the first thing we had to figure out was where to even start. There were lines EVERYWHERE! Finally we asked enough people the right questions, and got pointed to the starting line that took a whole half hour to navigate. At the end of the line, we checked in, and each kid got a booklet of tickets to use at the different stations set up all over the roped-off part of the parking lot. And we were off!

(Butler waiting for the next batch of popcorn)

First we decided to take advantage of the all-you-could-eat popcorn. It was lunchtime, and I had not thought far enough ahead to pack a lunch. The party was supposed to be over by 2pm and I had valiantly thought beforehand, that we could be there by 10, see all there was to see and be home for lunch maybe a little on the late side. HA! But we were saved by the popcorn and it was delicious. It also provided enough steam to make it from station to station throughout the day without too much fuss.

(Hal and Ricka enjoying every bite!)


(Dolly bounce-posing)

Some things didn't need a ticket to experience, which meant that you could do them over and over if you wanted. The bouncy castle was one of those things, and a few of my gang really got their miles in on it. Ricka left her sweatshirt in the shoe pile (I was able to track that down before too long) and Emma must have been planning on saving time on a return trip to the castle because I found her in another line without her shoes on once. I made her go put her shoes back on unless she was INSIDE the bouncy castle. Butler didn't have a lot of patience for waiting in the lines to the various stations and more than once I found him back in the castle after making it about halfway through a line somewhere else before giving up. And PC's only regret for the whole day was that he only got to bounce in the castle ONE time! I later learned that this was to be treated as a serious misfortune because of the tragedy that it really was.

(Dolly at the Cupcake Decorating station)


(Dolly helping some of the other kids with their cupcakes)

The cupcake decorating station was a fun one. Each kid got to choose either a chocolate or vanilla cupcake, spread pink or yellow icing on it and top it with as many sprinkles and/or candy flowers as could be fit on top. And then they got to keep it! I wish I had taken pictures of the kids' finished products, but we were so hungry when we got home from skipping lunch that day, that I let them go right in and gobble up the cupcakes even before having a normal afternoon snack. The cupcake station was also where Dolly really shone as a helper. She's getting so big and independent and she's very capable and willing to help the younger kids. It was really nice because usually I'm so busy doing and redoing every step for different kids, that I never get a chance to step back and see the big picture. This time, I was able to juggle Hal and Ricka and take pictures while Dolly helped out where an extra hand was needed. She did that for a number of the things we did that day and it was a real refreshment to me.

(The Co-op mascot and PC)

PC is reaching an independent stage where he's able and good enough to do things on his own, but he struggles with being brave enough to actually use his independence. At first he sort of tread water at my elbow. Wanting to go do stuff, but being afraid to just GO and get started. However, by the end of the day, he had built up a good dose of confidence and was even brave enough to help Butler at some of the stations. The saying, "Still waters run deep." is very true with this young man. So much more than you think is going on inside his head and it's a real delight to see him venture out of his protective shells once in a while.

(Emma at the Nail Painting table)

This station was not really a station since you didn't need a ticket to participate, but it was definitely one of the highlights. All three of the girls got their fingernails painted, but where the other two did it because it was there to do, Emma savoured every second. Things like this make Emma sparkle and when she sparkles, it's dazzling! I think she literally glowed for 20 minutes after her nails were finished. It was beautiful.

(Butler and PC finally making it to the front of a line.)


(Emma at the Egg Toss station)


(PC at the Ring Toss station)


(Dolly at the Fishing Pond)

At each of the stations where a ticket was used to participate, each kid received a prize of some sort when they were finished. They got a plastic egg full of chocolates and jelly beans at the egg toss, a toy car or necklace at the ring toss game, and whatever the person behind the ocean picture clipped onto their fishing rod at the fishing station. The random prizes ranged from playing jax, bouncy balls, bubbles, pencils, playing cards, noise-clappers, window stickers and tiny stuffies. I didn't get a picture of the Plinko game or the lollipop tree, but by the time we were done, we had so much loot from all the stations, that when Hal was not in the umbrella stroller, the bags of prizes hanging on the handles kept tipping it over!

(5 of my 6 descending upon the baby animals)


(Ricka found the piglets)


(Emma found a lamb)

The petting zoo was another no-ticket-needed amusement, and it was very much enjoyed by my gang. There were baby goats, little lambs, a baby calf, ducklings, chicks, bunnies, and little pigs. We would have spent a lot more time with all the baby animals, but time was running out, and we still needed to work our way through the longest line of all. I spent half the time my kids were petting baby animals standing in line for the carriage ride so I didn't take as many pictures as I would have if there weren't time constraints.

(The carriage ride line - or rather, half of it)


(A full carriage heading out)

Each carriage ride took about 10 minutes and they could squeeze about 20 people in per trip. We finally made it to the front of the line after four trips, and just barely managed to squeeze all 7 of us in. While we waited in line, PC tried working his way through the balloon line, but each time the carriage came back, he'd ditch that line to join me in case we were finally able to go. He almost ended up missing out on the balloons altogether because everything was winding down. The same thing went for Emma and the face painting table. She even made it to the 'next in line' spot once, but gave up her spot to rush back to the carriage ride line because the horses were back. The carriage ride itself was pretty simple; a walk around the parking lot, down the side street to the first driveway where they turned around before heading back. But the kids enjoyed it. I tried to take a picture of the kids opposite me, but they were so excited and I was rushing too much to notice that my hasty shot didn't turn out at all. Dolly did much better when I asked her to take a picture of the rest of us though, so we do have one good picture from the carriage ride.

(My attempt at taking a picture)


(Dolly's photograph)

After the carriage ride, we had about 20 or 30 minutes left before the party would be over. Emma beelined it back to the face painting line, PC and Butler got back in the balloons line, and Dolly and Ricka went back to the petting zoo and then to the bouncy castle before joining Emma in the face painting line. I think there were two or three people that made it through the face painting line after my girls, so there was a general buzz of adrenaline emitting from my daughters for having just made it in time. All three girls were really happy with their paint jobs but Hal was getting tired of being locked up in the stroller There were still way too many people milling about to let him wander without getting lost, so by the time the girls were done, he was ready to go home. It was nap time.

(Bunny-face Emma!)


(Ricka getting a heart put on her cheek.)


(Flowers for Dolly)

When the girls were finished, we joined the boys in the line for balloons. It was 1:54 and the sign they'd taped to the garbage can in front of their table said, "Balloons closed at 2pm." and they were turning people away when we got there. I guess, they went through the line a few minutes before the girls and I showed up to watch, and put a felt mark on everyone in line, so they could tell if you had been in line before they closed. PC had a mark. Butler had gone back to the bouncy castle for a minute and didn't get one, but PC was trying to share his place in line in case the balloon people would allow it.

(The Balloon man)

I think I enjoyed the balloons the most out of the whole day... well, I enjoyed watching the balloon people. There was a man dressed up like a clown, and a woman with a beautiful butterfly painted on her face, both making balloon creations. But I think the woman was getting tired. At first she didn't realized that the girls and I were just there to wait for our boys to finally get through the line, so she told us they were closed, that they weren't doing any more balloons that day and she made shooing motions with her hands as if she was sending us on our way. Meanwhile the man probably wasn't watching the time and was causally and extravagantly building balloon things while keeping a quiet, but engaging conversation going with his customer. Every once in a while, he'd tune in to the woman sending more people away and would nod and agree that yes, they were closed. And they he'd look at another person (not in what was left in the line) and say, "And what can I make for YOU?" It was so much fun to watch.

(PC being fitted for a sword belt)

Anyway, PC finally made it to the woman and requested a balloon sword which she started working on quickly while the rest of my kids watched in fascination. Then the man said to Emma, "Why do you look so familiar? Do you have a twin? Have you been in my line today?" She just beamed at him, and mumbled the appropriate answers and then he said, "Well, I like your smile, what can I make for you?" We all glanced at the woman still telling people that they were closed and then Emma requested a sword, Like PC's. And the man said, "Can I make you a sword AND a hat?" Emma just beamed more. So he made her a sword AND a hat while the other kids watched and then he asked Ricka if he could give her a flower. She said yes, and he made a balloon flower for her. Then he said to her, "What do I get for making you a balloon? Are you going to pay me?" Ricka reached into her bag of popcorn and offered him the biggest handful of popcorn she could hold. He took it, and I expected him to toss it aside when she wasn't looking, but instead he ate the 10 or so popcorn pieces, thanked her and told her how good that popcorn was that day.

(A bouquet for Dolly)

When Dolly heard the balloon man comment on the popcorn, she went across to the popcorn lady, got a whole bag of popcorn and gave it to the balloon man as she thanked him for making balloon things for her siblings even though they were closed. And then, the man gave her his display bouquet of balloon flowers complete with a balloon basket that held them all. I'm pretty sure he was just cleaning up since they were closed, but it really made Dolly's day, as she didn't expect to get anything. All this took place while the woman made PC's sword and a sword belt to go with it, and then she made Butler a sword too.

(Flower vs. Sword balloon fight)

Finally we left them in peace, did a head count and headed home. Tired, a little bit hungry and very happy.
THE END

Checks and Chore Dollars

When there are many bodies in constant motion, it is easy to fly under the radar. A while back, I decided it was time to re-introduce CHORES to my children as we'd mostly gotten our feet back underneath us after moving. Anyway, I'd assign a job and get a lot of "But I did that yesterday!" or "How come I ALWAYS have to do this?!? or in some cases nothing said... and nothing done - you know, the 'make-yourself-scarce-and-hope-you're-forgotten' kind of thing. As a result, I came up with an Accountability Chart. I wanted the helpful kids to see that their efforts were noticed and I wanted the not so helpful kids to see their own lack of effort as well.

It just so happened when we moved in, that there was a giant white board already hanging on the wall of the barn. It was exactly the thing I needed so I moved it to the dining room, and the rest kindof worked itself out as I went.

I started by putting the weekly memory verse across the top of the board. Having it in the dining room makes a huge difference when it comes to remembering to practice the verse. Then I made a simple chart (list of chores on the left, days of the week across the top). The plan was simple. If you did a chore (assigned or not), you got a mark in the box for that chore on that day's column.

After more than two months, I HAD to fix the lines. They were starting to dive me crazy.

And since I had a rainbow assortment of white board markers, I assigned a different color to each kid so I could avoid having to use initials (that doesn't work very well at our house). Plus making a check mark is faster than writing most letters of the alphabet anyway. This idea has worked brilliantly, and to keep it from getting old, I switch up the colors every week.

Next, I divided the house up into 10 zones. And assigned a pair of zones to each child. All they had to do was tidy the zone. If they could get the top layer cleared, it would make the actual cleaning part a lot easier for me. Over time, I've assigned different levels of 'tidying'. For example, it's OK if Ricka just picks everything up off of the floor and makes a pile in the corner of the room. For the other kids, that's not an option - everything must be put away. When Butler gets a bathroom zone, I don't expect him to sweep the floor or scrub the toilet and tub, but I do ask that of Dolly or PC, and I expect Emma to sweep the floor and wipe the counters even if she doesn't have to scrub the toilet.

Some zones are fun or very easy - how messy can a hallway get? And who doesn't love playing with the in-house vacuum? And some zones are NOT easy or fun in the least bit - the playroom?!? But I DIDN'T make that mess! Cleaning toilets? Gross. But this variety is good too, because I can adjust the workloads weekly and give incentives for good attitudes and disciplined effort. If you shirk your zone all week, you may end up being assigned to it again or even be given a harder zone. On the other hand, if you work hard even though you had a more unpleasant zone, you may be rewarded with a fun or easy zone the next week.

The problem with all of the above was almost immediately obvious. What was to be done about the 'So? I don't care if I get a check mark. I don't want to do the work' responses? The solution was that we had to create an incentive program based on the number of check marks earned during the week. For every 2 check marks, I would pay a 'chore dollar', which is pretty much homemade monopoly money from $1 to $10 bills. Each chore dollar has a real value of 10 cents and can be exchanged for real money. This was special because we don't pay allowances, and it made a way for the children to earn their own spending money. But chore dollars can be exchanged for other privileges too. Computer time, candy, or even a one-on-one date with Mommy.

To encourage effort, I award 'bonus' checks. Bonus checks are different from regular checks in that they cannot be revoked for bad behaviour. For example, there are certain chores that are not an option, like brushing teeth, or setting out clothes for the next day. If those things have to be done for you, you get a negative check mark which means instead of earning a point, you lose one. Say, the entryway is ignored and it gets bad enough, that it's nearly dangerous to navigate through the room. If Mama has to tidy it to make it safe to travel, the kid who was assigned that zone would get a negative check mark.

But a bonus check mark is a guaranteed point that cannot be revoked. I award them for things like making the effort to be ready to leave so that we do not arrive at our destination late, for getting up and ready to go when the alarms go off - thus reducing the amount of Mama nagging/dragging/scolding kids out of bed in the mornings, going to bed on time and STAYING in bed at bedtime, for performing over and above expectations in a particular thing, and for making the greatest effort during the week, thus getting the highest number of check marks earned. I may start assigning bonus checks for a personal record too... we'll see.

The best part is that this system is really working for us. The kids are learning responsibility, discipline, thoroughness, initiative, and flexibility. The house is staying much tidier and I'm not constantly frustrated and exhausted from doing everything myself. And I love the busywork that makes it function... adjusting the daily totals, writing up new chore money, calculating weekly payrolls. It makes the general mundane normals... Fun.