Double Digits for the baby

Today my little boy turned 10. He's no longer the little baby with chubby thighs, or the toddler with a crazy menagerie of imaginary friends.  He's not even a little kid anymore.  He's entered the world of tweendom, and every moment I see the changes.  I've always watched the aging of my children with a combination of glee, excitement and dread.  I love them as their little selves, all cute and cuddly and innocent, but I've learned that I love them as their older selves as well.  I love see the lovely young adults they turn into, and enjoy having more grown up conversations with them.  But today I enjoyed the simple joy of a boy turning 10, and being showered with love by his whole family.  Because he is love and light and joy, and he deserves the best of days.  I thank the Universe, God, and whomever else I can think of for giving me this unexpected present every single day.

Tightropes

My boy is nine.  It seems like just yesterday he was a mischievous little imp with a quick smile.  Now he's a messy boy, although still a bit mischievous.  In the past week, I've had numerous people comment on how big he has gotten, how much he has physically grown.  It's scary to be honest.  He's my baby.

He has discovered boy humor, and is constantly trying to insult his sisters (even though his insults are usually made up of nonsense.)  He is mostly loving, but prone to moments of grumpiness that I can no longer cajole him out of.  Luckily, he still loves his mama best, and he understands that no matter what, I'm there for him.

We had a young boy die in our school district last week, an apparent suicide at 10.  We've had a rash of suicides at the high school level in the last year and each one has shaken me, but this one, this one almost crushed me.  I don't believe that we knew the boy in any of our small groups, but it still is so upsetting.  How does a 10 year old even begin to think about their own death?  How sad must you be, what bad things have happened in your life?  All I could do was grab up my boy and love him, talking to him and making sure he knew how much I love him, how adored he is.

I work hard to maintain a relationship with my kids.  I try to walk that line...the line where your kids respect that you are the adult and are trying to do what is best for them, and them still wanting to be around you and talk to you.  It's like a tightrope, and I sometimes wobble.  Hopefully I haven't fallen completely off without knowing.

The President Speaks

I am not a very political person. The state of politics in our country these days makes me sad and anxious, and there are too many other things in my life to deal with day to day to worry any more.

But I feel compelled to write about the President speaking to our school children next week. This came up on my radar earlier this week, and after reading the "lesson plan" that the DOE suggested, I was against it. Questions like these:

What specific job is he asking me to do?
Is he asking anything of anyone else?

make me wonder what his intent is going to be. But I am not content with just one side of the story, so I did some research. And I still had concerns.

The next day, the questions/lesson plans had been updated, and a transcript was offered so parents could read and speak to their children about the speech. People are still warring, calling for schools to ban the video, blaming teachers for promoting "Obama's socialists ideals." Hello over-dramatics.

And this whole incident demonstrates the low levels that we as a country have sunk. When I was in school, if the President of the United States was willing to speak to all students, we would have been in awe. My mom and I would have spoken about it, and we would have moved on. If there was name calling and such going on, I was blissfully unaware of it. But now, my children know. They know that some people think he is trying to turn us into a socialist state, and they know that some people hate him because he's black. They know that Sarah Palin was attacked about clothing choices, and that she's cute. They understand that people oppose the war, and that many Americans thought Obama would save us all.

But a lot of that information comes in the form of sensationalism. Name calling, finger pointing, mudslinging. These are the things my children see in politics. It's hard to teach your children to live the Golden Rule (do unto others...) when the people they see and hear on television aren't following that rule, especially the people we've elected to lead our country, state and city.

I struggle to truly understand what anyone is proposing these days.  We spend so much time trying to filter what all the talking heads spew out, trying to unspin the truth from the web.  You know how to convince me your plan works?  Use the KISS method.  Keep It Simple Stupid.  Bullet points, summary paragraphs, plain words, etc.  Provide me the basics.  Provide me places to go to ask questions, find answers, etc.  Get rid of the yelling, sensationalism, etc, and just let the plans speak for themselves.

How about we all take a deep breath. Let your child watch the President's speech. Then sit down with them that night, and discuss it with them. Share your views and thoughts about the comments. Tell them why you agree or disagree. Ask them for their opinions. They might suprise you with how insightful they are. After all, they are the future of our country, and I'm hoping that they find a way to stop the system of politics we have now, and learn to work together to make us the great Country we used to be, instead of the laughing stock we've become in the last 20 years, under both Democrat and Republican leaders.

It's official, I will be losing my mind this school year

Today was the first day of school for PB and Monster, and tomorrow Bug begins.  What you, dear reader, may not realize right away, is the fact that I will now have a child in all three levels of school.  I have a first grader, sixth grader, and 11th grader.  My supply list runs the gamut from crayons and glue sticks, to binders and dividers, all the way through a drivers permit!

Monster has been so excited about first grade.  Mostly because of his lunch box, which we purchased last year.  This morning, he asked me how long it was until lunch.  When I asked what his favorite part of the day was, his answer was lunch, then recess, then music class.  He definitely has his priorities set.  Tomorrow is Art.  That will blow his mind, I'm sure.  It's amazing to me to see his sense of style evolving as well.

Because my little Monster was so resistant to learning how to read last year, he has been placed in the Literacy First class this year.  I choose to see this as a blessing.  He is smart, and I know that once the right key is turned, reading will become a fun and exciting subject for him.  And this class has the potential to do this for him.  It is a smaller class (only around 16 students) and they focus more attention on reading, writing and such.  However, I am unhappy with how the school year began.  In years past, the day before school you could go and meet your child's teacher during lunch time. This year, state employees (this would be me as well) had our pay cut by 2.5%.  To soften the blow, the Legislator gave us all 5 paid furlough days.  In order to reduce the cost burden, teachers lost in-service days to cover these days.  This means that teachers only had the day before to arrange their rooms and prepare for the first day, unless they wanted to do it on their own time.  That morning was spent in meetings, leaving them only a few hours to set up their rooms.  When we were invited in to find classrooms at 4 pm, most teachers had already gone home.  While I understand why, it's still frustrating.  I don't try to use that time as more than a few minutes of introduction, but a few minutes of understanding what this classroom entails would have been very helpful.  Instead, I will be emailing his teacher tomorrow to ask some questions.  This means she has to find the time to answer me during the school day, instead of having a few minutes the day before.

I'm also upset as I don't feel that he was given the Speech Therapy that he required last year, and this year I will be fighting early for this.  He pronounces his leading L's as Y's, and it's impeding his spelling/reading abilities.

PB began Middle School.  Yesterday we did get our time to travel her schedule and work her locker (a bunch of times.)  She briefly met her teacher, ad her classes are grouped together well.  One of her best friends has all but one class with her, she's getting gym out of the way first semester and it's the last class of the day, and she's excited. Basically, that is pretty much all we can ask.  She asked her sister about her outfit yesterday a bunch of times.  Bug told her that it was a lot of patterns, but she could pull it off.  And I think she did.

Come back tomorrow for an exciting announcement :) (no, I'm not pregnant.)

Season of change

Back to school season always stirs up the winds of change, and this year it seems to be even stronger.  One child moves from half day K to all day 1st grade, another begins Middle School, and the third driver's ed.  Milestones beginning for each of my babies.

This past year has definitely been a year of change as well.  Of course my kids have grown up some, that is inevitable.  But I think that they have also grown stronger.  We were all forced to really look at ourselves, to see our lives through a different filter.  We had to re-evaluate our roles and our relationships.  We could break free of the patterns of the past and move forward without those shackles pulling us back. 

I see so many changes in my girls.  Bug has matured, has realized what so many people have been trying to tell her for so long.  She is a beautiful girl, with so much potential.  There is no need to be defensive, loud, brash, mean.  There is no reason for anger, at yourself or others, any longer. It is time to close that chapter and walk into the bright sunlight.  It is time to live a positive life, embracing the future and allowing the past to remain just that.  I see a child that has turned into a beautiful and smart young lady, with a great future ahead of her.

At one time or another, my husband and I have discussed her future.  We were both concerned with the rude awakening we saw heading her way.  "Someday, someone is going to break through that barrier...I pray that it isn't a catastrophe."  We talked, we shared, we prayed and we loved.  Finally, some of that good has seeped through, and that barrier is safely falling away.

PB has really grown this year as well.  The whines, the temper tantrums, they are still there, but I'm seeing them less often.  I see a witty girl, who is sweet and caring, and it's reflected in the way other children want to be her friend.  People flock to PB, they see her and smile and call her name.

Part of her charm is the way she completely lives in her own world.  She doesn't worry so much about what others think...if she is happy, that's all that matters to her.  She doesn't hear you when you say "that doesn't match," she puts it on and suddenly, it matches.  She is one of the few people I have ever met that can pull off a polka dotted shirt and plaid shorts and make it look cute.  For so many years, she has lived in the shadow of her sister.  She has been the younger sister, always trying to do what Bug did, have what Bug had.  No matter how many times and how many ways we tried to show them that life wasn't a competition between them, it was still there.  But this year, she wasn't so much the little sister every day.  She was the oldest.  She was allowed a little more freedom, and a little more responsibility.  There wasn't someone there to constantly compare herself to, and she blossomed.  Now I see a more mature relationship, a sharing of common interests as well as a protectiveness of each other.  There is still a competitive slant, but it is hushed now, toned down.

I hope this year has also taught my children how blessed our life is.  We may not live in a mansion with maid service and butlers, but we have a good life.  And even without the nice stuff, we have each other.  I'm going to try and remember those blessings every day, and count them, and hold them tight to me.

Road Trip to Washington, Part II (Easter Egg Roll on the White House Lawn)

Our second trip to Washington, DC brought us to the Eisenhower Executive Office Building. We were invited to meet Vice President and Dr. Biden before attending the Egg Roll on the White House Lawn.  For those who don't know, this is the Eisenhower Executive Office Building...

A big behomoth of a building that sits right next to the White House...see?

We had a chance to meet with the Vice President and his family.

I really like Dr. Biden.  She seems like a genuinely nice woman. And I admire that prior to her husband becoming Vice-President, she maintained her own professional life. 

The rest of our visit wasn't so pleasant, and didn't go exactly as planned.  But eventually, after standing in various lines for almost 2 more hours, we finally made it into the Egg Roll...

Unfortunately, in trying to create access for many, the whole thing was ruined for all.  There were too many people, and the lines were so long to do any of the activities.  There were at least 75 people in line just for the egg roll activity.  After spending so long just waiting to get in, and a morning that had to start at 7 am, we were all done.  So we took some pictures, got our posters, and headed out to the egg station.  The wooden souvenir eggs are cute.

Photo taken from the White House official Site.

Then we went to the US History Museum.  Another post of that part of the trip soon.

  

Road Trip to Washington, DC (Part 1)

We actually went to Washington, DC twice during my husbands two weeks leave. The first trip was literally the day after he came home. It was a bus trip arranged by the military 4H club to celebrate Month of the Military Child. It was Cherry Blossom Festival time, and we were dropped off just a block or so from the parade. Unfortunately, it took a little longer to get there than planned, and the parade was about to start, so the parade route was completely blocked by onlookers. We are nothing if not creative, and we quickly decided the steps of the FTC building would make a good vantage point.

See those people up on the high part? That's the rest of the family. It was so windy, and it was pretty high up, and the Monster refused to sit still, so the two of us climbed back down and went exploring on our own. DDS was able to take some nice shots of the parade, and maybe he'll upload them to Flickr at some point. But really, a parade is a parade, and unless I know people in it, I don't get excited. Monster apparently gets that from me, and we had a much better time searching for dandelions, climbing on statues, and just enjoying the day.

Finally, everyone was tired of the parade, and our group adventures began.

We wandered towards the Capital, since that was our next scheduled stop. We had to stop along the way and enjoy the Cherry Blossoms and some large rocks.

Then a visit to the Capital Building.

We gave Monster daddy's point and shoot camera to use while we were in DC and he took some nice photos. But my favorite was when he handed me the camera and asked me to take a picture of him.

After that, we had lunch in the Capital Cafeteria. Then we headed to the Air and Space Museum, since that was our bus pick up site. We explored a few of the rooms, did a few of the hands on activities,

then happily boarded the bus or home, exhausted.

Getting my mojo back

I didn't really make any resolutions for this year.  I just vowed to go back to what I was doing before.  Doing what worked.  Sort of.  And so far, I'm doing pretty good at that.

I've never been a big TV watcher, but over the last few months I started getting sucked in...even when I was bored by what I watched. 

I used to make a list of things I wanted to get done and then tackle them in a timely fashion. 

I used to remember important things, like that my car needs an oil change, PB has band on Friday, and what day the trash went out.

I used to try and eat healthy and move a little and drink water.

But the last year?  Not so much.  Since October?  Very little.

This it the toll deployment has taken on me.  We spent the year prior to his D date preparing for this year.  Finding people to care for our yard, spending as much time as possible as a family doing fun things, getting a few important things done around the house.  The rest of it, we just let it go.  And I'm not saying that what we did is wrong (or right), it's just what we did.  And then he left.  And I lived on the computer so I could chat with him, and the television was good background to (maybe) entertain me.

But I have at least 7 months left, and I've found that old me a little again. I'm still forgetting things, and I'll still procrastinate (like that will change after 35 years...lol), but I'm accomplishing things.  I'm taking my lunch, and cooking a healthy dinner more than 2 nights a week.  The laundry is staying done, and I'm tackling projects.  Last weekend I painted my powder room, and this weekend I tied up some loose sewing ends and played in the park with my kids and nephew.

I've stepped away from my blog a bit, and I'm trying to actually live that life that I need to give me blog fodder.  So look for pics of my powder room, and stories of days of park play.  And more about the ache I feel missing my husband, and how I'm working through it. 

Kids say, edition 2?

My kids crack me up on a daily basis. Here are a few things they've said/done recently that made me chuckle out loud.


PB to Monster - How can you forget Valentine's Day? It's such a pink, lovable holiday.

Whenever my husband finds some disaster the Monster has wrought, he calls him by yelling "BOY!". Last night, we were discussing how Monster wanted to use daddy's tools to make our car be able to change form, like a transformer. I mentioned that if he tried to get near the cars with daddy's tools, he would come over from Iraq to beat his butt. Monster thought on this for a bit, then commented "we couldn't transform when daddy was with us, cause then he would know that I used his tools, and he would say "BOOOOOYYYY!!"

This morning, I got out of the shower to find the boy standing there. "Mama, I set out your clothes for you, including the necklace I made for you when I was just a baby." He had chosen a pair of olive Khakis, a flannel plaid Tigger nightgown, a bra and a pair of underwear. I have to give him credit for remembering everything, and for trying to take care of his mama.

busy, busy, so dreadfully busy

So how was your Black Friday? Did you hit the sales? This is the first year in 6 that I didn't go out and get the majority of the shopping done. 6 years ago, I was pregnant with the Monster, and knew he was coming in the next 2 weeks. We had a place for the other two kidlins to hang while we shopped, so off we went. Not at 4 am, more like 8 am...I am not a glutton for punishment.

This year, I am broke. Deployment is exepensive..all that extra money? It doesn't come until next month, and the hubs has been spending it already. So I have to go get a few things for Monsters birthday next weekend, but Christmas shopping is going to have to wait until closer to Christmas.

However, I did hit Joann Fabrics for their sale this morning. I bought over $400 worth of material and supplies for $120 and I have presents for more than 10 people...good presents. So that's what I've been doing all day. Sewing. I'm getting kind of tired of looking at material now. Luckily my mom has been around helping me out.

There are two sweet little kidlins in my bed, sound asleep. I think I'm about to go join them.

Shots! and a movie.

I had the day off today, as did the children, so I scheduled their well child visits for today. This visit included the flu shot and a TB test. Neither of my babies are very good about getting shots, but I had mentioned it to PB a couple of weeks ago. As I was tucking them in last night, I mentioned that after their appointment, we would go to the mall and have Chic-Fil-A for lunch and then go see HSM3 at the movie theater. This was met with much rejoicing.

So the doctor comes in, checks them out, chats with us, asks how PB has been doing after the earlier bout with Lyme's Disease, etc. Then she leaves, letting us know the nurse would be right back in. The nurse comes in, and PB hides in the corner. I have Monster sitting on the bed, and I hug him tight. The nurse has to struggle a little and he is crying so hard. She gets both needles done, and he just keeps sobbing. I haven't heard him cry this hard in a very long time. The nurse corners PB (literally...lol) and talks to her about being a big girl while I deal with Monster. I get him to sit down, load her up on the table, turn her head the other way, and a few tears later we are all done. I grab Monster back up (he's almost 50 pounds, and I can still carry him around. How do I not have arms of steel?) and try to sign the paper. I'm then informed we have to come back Friday morning to have their TB tests read. ARGHHH. Shouldn't you have mentioned that before, to make sure we could make it in? Since not going in means they have to get a needle again, I will make it work, but still.

Monster cried unil he was in the car, and then I was able to get him to laugh. He still whined a bit here and there, but then there was Chicken Nuggets and Fruit and Root beer, then popcorn and some chocolate. All was okay again, and I was his number one love again.

PB enjoyed the movie, and it was exactly what I thought it would be. Monster enjoyed the dance/music scenes, but mostly was bored (which is funny, because he loves the other two.) The time with my kids cuddling on either side of me? Priceless and worth the gold I had to sell to afford the movie.

Now they are spending the night with my mom, and I'm enjoying being totally alone. Ahhh.

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas

Today seemed to be designed to remind me that there are Holidays coming and soon. 

Last night it snowed.  It doesn't do that in Delaware in November. 

I went to the commissary for my every other week grocery shopping.  OMG.  I forgot it was Thanksgiving next week, and it was totally crazy.  I just wanted to cry and run screaming from the store, but unfortunately, we need food so we can eat.

After we managed to escape and get the groceries put away, we headed out to the Festival of Trees with my mom, stepdad and grandma.  It was okay...we did get a good picture of my kidlins with Santa.  We had lunch a the buffet there, which was a treat for my kidlins.  Then we headed to my grandma's place to decorate her tree.  She had asked for the kids to help her (translate into actually do all of) decorate her tree.  So we did that.  Then we came home, rested a bit, had a light dinner, and tucked them into bed.  It's been a long day, and I have a bit of cleaning to do now.  Yawn.

I'll Trade You

Do you have kids?  Have you been looking for ways to help them learn how wonderful the internet is?  How people you have never met in real life can become great friends?  Well, we have a swap for them.  Sign ups are going on now for the I'll Trade You Swap group over on Flickr.  It doesn't require a large amount of funds.  The suggested minimum is $10.  My kiddos participated in the Book Swap this summer, and they found it great fun.  It forced them to look at some genres they might not have otherwise.  Interested?  Let me know.  You have to be approved, to help maintain privacy for the kids.

Noodle Net...safeguarding your computer from the real threats!

Looking for a nice piece of software to help you manage your kids computer?  I've found and fell in love with Noodle Net. It's $40.00 for a year subscription, but you can get a 30 day trial for free. You log into it, and it locks your children out of everything except those sites and programs you approve. No more of them messing around on the desktop and diconnecting your wireless, or changing the font. You approve programs and websites and that's what they have access to.  There's also a timer feature that locks them out after a certain time limit is reached.  You just have to remember your password. My 5 year old loves it, because he doesn't need any help getting to the sites he's allowed to be on. It comes loaded with some kid friendly sites already, and it's very easy to add more to it.  You can have several accounts, and you assign each child a symbol as well as there name, so it's easy for the younger ones to use. 

This is not a paid review.  This is just a product that I found and liked.

The deployment, it is coming.

This weekend marked three weeks until my hubby begins his deployment to Iraq. Of course, he doesn't get to head straight there. He will spend some time State-side going through the necessary training, then several weeks away from the US, then finally they will actually begin their mission. We've known about this deployment since last summer. He will be gone for close to a year. He will miss all but one birthday (lucky PB!), our anniversary, Christmas, Easter, summer...and during that time he'll miss a lot of other smaller milestones. It sucks. I don't want anyone to ever think that I want my husband to be deployed, that I'm looking forward to this year.

But that said, this year represents an opportunity for us all. DDS will finally have an opportunity to really do what he has trained so many years to do. He may have a chance to teach courses, he will have the chance to contribute in a way that is meaningful for him. The children will have an opportunity to have their father involved in their life in a way he wouldn't be at home. And I have the opportunity to remind myself that I am a competent and capable woman.

I volunteered to be the FRG Leader for my husband's unit earlier this year. I think I shocked a lot of people, including my husband and myself, when I said yes. But in almost 11 years of being married to a soldier, I've learned a few things. And I want to help those spouses that don't already have that knowledge. Of course, there's also the benefits to myself. I've made friends I might not have made otherwise, I've learned more than I already knew, and I've made it so that I will have information early on. It's been frustrating at times, but overall, it's already been very rewarding.

We all know that the year will seem like forever, bu we are working out ways to make it go quickly. DDS has plans to read books that the girls will be reading, so that they can discuss them over email. Teachers are sending emails to him regarding classwork for them. Videocams have been purchased, set up, etc. and emails are being established.

It sucks, but we can't let that be the main focus for this year. We will remain positive (most of the time) and we will all be stronger from this experience.

Loving the fruits of my labor (or showing love through manual labor)

As I think I mentioned, I painted the kids bathroom last week while they were gone. I LOOOOOVVVVVEEEE the results.  I actually don't mind using it now.   

This is when I was painting the bottom of the shelf my hubby built.  I put this up so you can see a better representation of the colors.

Here you can see the whole shelving unit.  It's a sailboat.  Isn't it cute?

And this, this is one of my favorite parts. 

I'm very happy with the color selection.  I went to the store on a whim and picked a yellow.  Thank goodness it turned out.  The blue we had from Bug's room.  It all came together so nicely, and all the kidlins love it. 

Happy Love Thursday. (on Friday)

TGIF

I hate that cliche, but today, it fits.  It has been a long week, and I'm tired. 

Last night I began painting the kids bathroom.  I managed to get everything done except a second coat on the trim.  Tonight I finished that, painted some water for the duckies to float on, and realized I need a new shower curtain and a new cabinet above the toilet.  Sometime tomorrow I'll have to hunt for that.  I'm very happy with the results, but I can't wait until we have it all put together.

Hubby and I went out for a date night tonight.  We went to a little Italian restaurant and we were the only ones there.  I was very surprised, as they are normally busy.  I'm thinking the somewhat late hour (it was almost 9) account for this, and I have to say it was very nice.

Now hubby is sacked out on the couch, and I am about to send us both to bed.  We go get PB tomorrow, and tomorrow night all of our kidlins will be back under our roof.  I've enjoyed the "vacation" from mothering, but I'm ready for them to come home.

Creatively finding time for Creativity

Blogher is currently hosting a Creativity for Kids Giveaway.  In their words, they want to know:

What are you doing to inspire creativity in your kids? Have you successfully engaged your child in activities that don’t involve a plug, remote, or console? Would you like to?

BlogHer has joined with Creativity for Kids (www.creativityforkids.com) to explore the question and are mining the Parenting Blog community for inspiring ways that you have weaned your kids from TV, the computer, video games, and encouraged them to play—and create—in an unwired, offline world.

Creative time is very important to me.  Creating things provides me with the down time I need in this hectic life.  But with three busy kids, a hubby that is gone a lot, and a full time job, finding the time ad energy for me to be creative is hard.  Finding time, energy and patience to be creative with the kids?  It can be almost impossible. 

When we purchased this house several years ago, a "craft area" was a necessity for me.  All I really needed was the space, and I knew I could transform it into something that would suit us.  Half of our finished basement serves as this area.  There were already cabinets and a countertop installed in one corner, remnants from the previous owners remodel of the kitchen.  These cabinets hold the craft kits that my kids receive for birthdays and holidays.  They are low to the ground, and I try to put things in so they can be found.  Up above is my area, with all my stamping and scrapbooking supplies. In various storage areas nearby, there are drawers with glue, glitter glue, markers, crayons, puff balls, chenille stems, construtction paper, stickers, and other items to encourage creativity.  My sewing area is here as well, and all of my children work on a sewing project with me several times a year.

When the older two have birthday parties to attend, we try to think of fun things we can create for the birthday child.  We've made journals and totes among other things. For Christmas, we choose something and create them for every member of the family.  Last year, Bug and I created snowman earrings, necklaces, and bracelets with a sewn pouch for all the females, and drawstring bags for the males.

The Monster has a wonderful imagination, and when he begins telling me stories, I go along with them.  I ask questions that challenge him to add details.  I only wish that I could remember them to write them all down later.  Usually, these stories take place when I'm driving.
All three know exactly where all the supplies are, and they know they can go and create anytime they feel the need.  When we are home for the day, I limit the screen time, and the rest of the time they are required to go outside, play games, craft, or otherwise entertain themselves. 

Ultimately, I hope that my kids grow up knowing that they can create anything they put their minds to creating, and that they find the joy in that process.

A peach of a day

Today, PB, Monster and I joined my mom and grandmom at our local Peach Festival. Well, technically we didn't actually go to the festival. The town has the Peach Festival, and it's all stupid booths selling fair food (which we are sick of after the fair two weeks ago) and stupid craft items that people have been selling since I was a kid (soda bottle art anyone). Basically, it's a festival of kids begging for crap that we don't need. But the local Orchard/Farm has it's own little Festival. It's called Peach Ice Cream Day. And they call it that, because you get....free peach ice cream. Seriously. They partner with a dairy farm from the state, which has it's own creamery. The orchard provides the peaches, and the creamery makes the ice cream. They give away thousands of ice cream cones from 9:oo am until 3:00 pm.

In addition to the free ice cream (which is soooo yummy. Did I mention fresh cream and peaches make it? I did? Oh.) they also have a little petting zoo and a DJ. There's a store there as well, and you can buy all sorts of fresh produce, local honey, etc. For a small fee ($1 a person, to a maximum of $5 per family) you can ride on trailer behind a tractor touring the farm/orchard, learning about the crops. We do this every year. Yes, it's pretty much the same speech, and we've had the same "guide" for the last three years. But it's fun to see what changes they've made each year. And during the ride, you get to stop in the orchard and pick your own peach. That alone is worth the price of the ride. Everyone searches the trees for the perfect peach...and they are soooo yummy.

After wandering through the store, we came home with some ice cream for daddy (we had to buy it, but that's okay. Have I mentioned it's really yummy? I have? Sorry.), fresh blueberries, corn on the cob and some Honey.

Did you know that honey purchased from local beekeepers helps allergy sufferers? Since the bees are only exposed to local pollen, eating the honey helos build your tolerance to those pollens. This helps to reduce your reactions to these pollens. It costs a little more, but I look at it as prevention as much as an ingredient. And really, it just tastes better.

We've come home, had a litle lunch, and now I will force my kidlins to nap. I know, I'm mean that way.

Home at last

My babies are home. YAY! They are tired, but they both had a great time. After dinner out with their mama and mammaw, they are showering and heading to bed. And may I add that those two things are being looked at with great glee. Hubby has to work, so they won't see him until either tomorrow or Sunday. That bites, but it is what it is. Tomorrow we are off to the local Peach Festival to enjoy Free Peach Ice Cream. YUM.