Happy Days

Poppins bought the boys a 4-wheeler at an auction. They have really had a good time so far. We played the handbells as a family for the first time. What fun! "Jingle Bells" certainly was an appropriate beginner tune.

Josiah and Branch played with their Sunday teacher. They're quite the musicians. Josiah's part was played pizzicato, which is why he isn't using the bow in the photo below.

And then just because he could, he switched to guitar for the final song. Must be nice...

Preaching has been a bit different the past few Sundays, but it's always good.

The boys also have new-to-them compound bows. ChubChub is quite the shot, and he enjoys hitting the target.

Mean Ol' Mama was surprised to find these 4-pack tomato soups on clearance for 75 cents a pack! Guess what we're going to be eating when the weather cools down some.

Josiah hatched out 27 cute quail. He's doing well with his incubator.

ChubChub always asks if he can be sous chef when it's time to cook. Kind of hard to say "No" to a 4-year-old who knows what a sous chef is...

The Girl tried her hand at braiding challah for supper. Over and under, flip, and again...

She cooked some tasty carrots, too.

Branch has a new enterprise: playing trombone in the Tallahassee Home School Band. Stennes will be a big help to him.

The kids wanted to play a quick game of Monopoly after baths. Is there such a thing as a quick game of Monopoly? Not hardly.

ChubChub cajoled Stennes into playing a game of checkers with him.

We had our monthly homeschool meeting, and the kids really enjoyed a class on Water in Our Environment.

They especially enjoyed a game about water.

Wouldn't it be lovely to have extra hands?

Pop made these three rascals some cute "glasses" by twisting wire into silly shapes.

The Girl was pleased at how well they worked in helping her to read. Silly girl!

ChubChub has been learning to fold towels. They're larger than he is, so it's quite an art for him.

Branch camped out in the back yard and was happy with the cooler weather.

Josiah caught this largemouth bass while he and Anders camped down at the pond. Tasty breakfast, coming right up!

Levi brought down some cornmeal to share for bread, so the roasted fish wasn't alone on their plates.

More busy days coming up. Hopefully more happy days, too...

Where does the time go?

Anders is trying his hand at accordion. This was a gift from Uncle Bob (from Bangladesh). We think he'll do well.

The boys really worked hard preparing for 4H Forestry Judging competition. They didn't want their pictures taken. Too bad...

The Junior Team placed first. Anders won 1st in individual. Stennes placed 2nd in Senior Individual. He will be competing at state level on Saturday for the first time.

Teresa was kind enough to paint "parking spaces" for all of our cups.

Mean Ol' Mama made this luscious Onion Basil Cheddar bread. But can she remember how to do it again? Hmmm...

Poppins brought home a goose for lunch.

Stennes brought home sweet potatoes from the U-Pick.

We had 2 good meetings in Blakely this past Sunday.

A lovely restaurant for a hot date: Poppins brought MO'M here as a ....treat????

Not quite curried lentils and brown rice, folks...

Flash, who works there, stopped in for a visit to let MO'M know how much he likes her husband. She kind of likes him, too...

The kids sang at the Homeschool Presentation night. Mean Ol' Mama had to work, but they did a fine job without her. They sang an English/Spanish/Creole chorus.

The bluegrass band wrapped up the evening in toe-tapping style...

Speaking of style, this 1968 ad was a delightful find for MO'M. See the misspelled word in the center? OLEO, folks. Branch and The Girl finished up 3rd grade math. Now, on to 4th grade...

And they all strive daily to live happily ever after...

Another week flies by!

We enjoyed opening an MRE that was a gift from one of Mean Ol' Mama's college students. What's inside? Wow! Look at all of this food and extras packed in such a small container!

The taste? Well, it's a good thing that a small hot sauce was included for the vegetarian burger...

Branch showed us his [not-too-pretty] baby pigeon. He's really excited about possibly racing this new generation.

Mean Ol' Mama's friend came for a visit. She follows a macrobiotic diet and thought to share her "wealth" with M.O.M. She's a gutsy, brave, beautiful lady.

She brought a gift of split pea, real corn bread from freshly grated corn and tofu, and seaweed (that's now half gone! Yummy!), and a pressed salad of collards with butternut squash.

Three young friends joined us for prayer time next door last Friday night. We really enjoyed the music together.

The Senior 4H Team placed third in Land Judging. This was the first time the three members competed in this category, so we're really proud of them.

Poppins took the boys to a firing range to try out their big guns. It was loud out there!

Josiah enjoyed his 13th birthday and received many special gifts, including this .22 to add to his collection. He's really looking forward to hunting this year.

Another gift? Who's M.O.M.'s favorite kid now? Is that a bag of chocolates?

Sunday evening we cooked hot dogs in a migrant camp. It was sooooo hot! The boys found a convenient place to rest and eat.

Another busy week a'coming...