The Birds and the Bees...

So, now that I have your attention, I'll tell you about my day. It was one of those days when you have a plan, but one thing leads to another, to another, etc., etc. This morning I asked my neighbor if we could borrow his truck tomorrow to take some things to a friend's house for a yard sale (that's another whole blog topic). He had plans to leave town for the night so he told me just to take the key. We can use the truck, but it had grass in it. I offered to take it to the green waste dump. So, if you're going to the green waste dump, then you need to have a full truck, right? I thought I'd pull a few of the big weeds and maybe our zucchini plants. Well, upon looking at the zucchini plants, we discovered it must have frozen last night because all the garden plants were suddenly dead. So, we might as well remove them all. That was a job! It's a sure sign of Fall and the migration of the BIRDS (see, this is about birds) when you clean out the garden. We wrestled the multitude of entangled vines and packed them in the truck. I was a sweaty, scratched-up mess, but now it was time to go to the dump. So, in the truck with no air conditioning we had the windows down. Four or five minutes before arriving at the dump, Dale felt something on his neck. He went to swat it only to find it was a bee, which in its startled state stung him on the knuckle. Being so brave, he didn't want to pull over or anything, but you could see the stinger in his knuckle. Five minutes later, we stopped the truck and I went to pull it out. It was still attached to a tiny piece of the BEE's tailend and it was still moving!!!! It's like the chicken with its head cut off. The tiny piece of bee bum was wiggling back and forth as if to stick the stinger in further or maybe get it out so it could fly away (it didn't realize the rest of its body already did!) So, I found a place to store it undisturbed to look at later. We emptied the truck and came home, but I couldn't do the next thing on the list because now I needed to get out Daniel's microscope and look at it. Is there any question where he got his nerd genes? But, I didn't want my blog friends to feel left out, so then we had to take pictures to share. These are pictures of the stinger under the microscope. Go ahead, admit that it's cool! The long straight part of it was about 1/16" long then it widened to what looks like a little bulb. I won't bore you with all the details of the rest of the day, but I will add that Dale's finger is really swollen tonight, and his evening isn't going quite as planned either. And so it goes with birds, bees, the passing of the seasons, the "never quite as planned" story of my life, etc. etc. And to top it all off, I got my new driver's license in the mail today. That takes me back to the passing of the seasons, the "never quite as planned"..............and raises a new question about how can I make this newly-designed license into the traditional 16th birthday cake. Hmm, I'll put it on my "plan" for tomorrow!!

A dream come true

When we were young, didn't we all dream about a really cool clubhouse we could call our own? I remember building a little fort (really little) when I was 7 and Cathy was about 9. We used scrap wood we found in the alley. It had a Huckleberry Hound pillowcase for a door. Well, Daniel has not only dreamed of a clubhouse, but he's made various little hideouts over the years. Recently, he and Dale decided to really build him one. They designed it on paper, bought the materials, then constructed it - a 6'x8' home for adventure. The frame is pretty solid and made of 2x4s. They wanted a lightweight covering for the outside, instead of plywood, so it could be easily moved or changed. Well, after some shopping, we decided on tarp material for the outside. The stuff that comes in rolls, 6 feet wide, just happened to be orange. Before we knew it, the boys had constructed The Great Pumpkin. With orange tarp on the outside, green tarp on the roof, and a cloud shower curtain for a door, Daniel and his friends are set for adventure! They have stocked it with chairs and a table as well as a cart to hold things like snacks, pens, paper, games, etc. There is a broom and dustpan (we'll see if they get used) and space for many hours of fun. Yesterday, Daniel was in his own little world for two hours doing his homework. He's a happy man! And, so to our neighbors, I offer no real apologies, but I do say that the Great Pumpkin really can rise for those who truly believe!

And now to segue to the next event (or shall I say Segway?)

What a way to spend a beautiful fall evening. Last week, my parents came up to see my nephew off to the MTC. While they were here, we decided to try something new. We went to the gardens at Thanksgiving Point and rented Segways to cruise around the garden. It was really fun! Mom and Lucky weren't so sure at first, but it didn't take long for them to become real pros. We rented two of them for an hour so we just switched off combinations of people and enjoyed the ride. Mom and I rode to the highest point in the garden to look around. Dale and Lucky practiced the art of getting off and getting on again a few times. Dale and I tried to see how fast we could make them go (about 12 mph is the answer). Mom and Lucky tested their uphill driving skills as they returned the machines. The gardens were beautiful and the transportation was just a very fun adventure. And I give a big round of applause to my parents for being such great sports about it. Way to go!

Where did September go?

I looked at the calendar today and saw that September is more than half over! Egads, time is really going faster in my old age -- just like Mom always said it did. Then I looked at my blog and realized I haven't entered a thing in the month of September. That caused me to wonder what in the heck I've been doing. So, to spare you the details, I've decided to summarize my last few weeks with a few one liners. I figure you can get the gist of my life and you'll ask questions if needed.

2 of 3 computers at home died -- that made blogging tough
Both have been resurrected, though not in their previous glory!

Noah's - lots of proofreading

School - getting them ready, getting them there, keeping them there, paying for it in the afternoon with homework!

Harvesting, canning, freezing, pie-ing (that's a verb at our house), harvesting, canning, freezing, teaching my 24 year old neighbor how to harvest, can, freeze, pie, etc., etc., etc.

Tutoring - I still get to do algebra (See, kids, there is a reason you need to learn this stuff 'cause someday you may need to know it when you're in your 40s.)

Building a clubhouse - this will get its own blog entry soon

Fighting the dreaded FALL COLD! Yuck!!

Those are the biggies. There are plenty of little things going on to fill in the gaps, but that gives a nice broad overview. I'll make a few new entries soon. Thanks for reading!

What my "Wildelife" is made of....

I'm including a picture with this post in an effort to share the moment, but truthfully, it'll never do it justice! I do recommend clicking on it to enlarge it and enjoy the detail just once. Dale and I went out tonight. Not coincidentally it's our 16th anniversary. That is, it's been 16 years since we started what has so far culminated in events like tonight. The kids called a couple of times wondering when we would return. The last time, Cheyenne called and just said, "Mom, we need you." We came home soon thereafter. It was after 10 when we arrived and they should have been in bed. Instead, Cheyenne met us at the door, dressed up in a skirt from the costume box. She led us to our room where she had us dress in bathrobes, jewelry, and even a small plastic tiara for me. Daniel was wearing a lab coat and had a makeshift sword. They told us we were the king and queen while they were the prince and princess. Then they led us to the throne room, watched over by two fierce guard dogs (look closely toward the bottom of the picture). There were chairs with candy and lots of lights. There were LED lights taped to the fan, smaller ones placed around, and even a strobe light (not on in this pic). For fun we had the plasma ball (the glass ball that seems to have lightning trapped inside). They brought us a drink and encouraged us to enjoy. And we did!

Most people's lives aren't like ours. Some other families never get these moments. Our kids are a constant source of creativity and invention. Last night we had an ugly night with crying and yelling between them. Tonight, memories of a castle with a throne room took center stage. Two nights ago the center of attention was a microscope and a slide. Daniel and I made the slide by taking a razor blade and scraping a mosquito (which he had earlier smashed with a shoe) from the inside of the car window. He wanted to see the bug parts and the human blood. It was fascinating! Like I said, most people's lives aren't like ours.

I'm so thankful for kids who show me so much. It must've killed them to wait for us tonight. They couldn't wait to share their creation. I'm so glad they were patient. I'm so glad I married a man who was willing to play along and then to take a picture with a 30 second exposure. I'm sorry you weren't here to enjoy the moment, but we'll savor it for you.

Sunrise, Sunset......

...swiftly fly the years. It's a little hard for me to believe that my little preemie Daniel just started junior high!!! That's not to say that I wasn't a little excited to have the kids return to school and give our lives a little more of a schedule. They both started their respective schools last week.

Daniel began 7th grade with a mixture of excitement and trepidation. That's fair. So far, so good. He hasn't been locked in a locker yet, and he seems to be gaining a better handle each day on the 8 different classes he has. I think he will too, but I know I'm going to enjoy the classes he has. He has lots of interesting teachers and subjects. Today he told us a detailed account of the story of Frankenstein. That was right after we read "The Tell-Tale Heart" by Edgar Allan Poe. Hmmm.....

Cheyenne is just happy to finally be back in school. She really never grasped the concept of summer vacation. She wanted to go back all summer. She is now in 2nd grade and is back in class with her same teacher and many of the same students. One of the biggest highlights, though, is the "baby" bus that comes to pick her up each day. She runs from our porch to the bus, climbs on, then high-fives her classmates as she walks to her seat. She really is growing up.

The bottom line is that the last week has brought about the annual mixture of emotions that I try to sort out and figure out. I'm happy to see them go back; I instantly feel too busy to enjoy the time. I'm thrilled to see them growing and progressing, but I shed a few tears occasionally when I think of the cute memories passing by. I'm glad for the changes, but I still know that if it's Fall already then I have to be prepared any day to get up and find it's Winter. Arghh! But, alas, there's nothing I can do about any of this beyond enjoying each day for what it is. I hope you enjoy yours!

I did it!

So, I did it, I successfully pulled off the wedding cake for Katie Bowser's wedding. I recognize that there are wedding cake makers who do this all the time so I'm sure it's not quite as exciting to them, but I was excited. It even looked like the picture of what she wanted! The best part of it was that it tasted good and people ate it.

This picture makes it look like a miniature little thing, but the bottom tier was 14" and the others were 12", 10", 8", and 6". Just to put it in perspective, I made a total of 16 batches of cake from scratch, 6 batches of raspberry filling, and 8 or 9 batches of buttercream frosting. Then I added 8 pounds of white chocolate fondant and a couple of pounds of white chocolate. It was an artery clogger! But just to make sure it wasn't too professional, I took the extra cakes (because we needed more than what was in the formal cake) in to the kitchen on a plate with a Tupperware bowl turned upside down over one and a piece of plywood covered with foil as a base for the other one. I guess I can't own all the cool equipment!

The excitement for me was in the thrill of the hunt. That is, I was very stressed throughout the process, but there is a thrill in taking on a task and doing it. I read a lot, I practiced, I bought some cool equipment, and I succeeded in the challenge. There's something fun about that!

Lastly, I want to use this forum to thank my sisters and all of my fabulous friends who helped me along the way. Thanks for helping in so many ways and for cheering for me at every stage. Thanks to all of you who called today to see how it went. Your support was such a treat!

Now, let's see, my next oldest niece is only 12 so maybe it'll be a while till I do this again. You'll just have to watch my Wildelife to see!