Big Girl Eats an Apple

Cadence Octavia Gets Some Caffeine

John fell for a shrewd marketing ploy, and Cadence Octavia rose to the occasion.

 She carried the bottle around for a while.

She used Peapod as a handy carrying case.

And then, finally, she shared.

What Slippers?!

I was supposed to take a few pictures of these wee slippers for Millie's Ravelry page, but Lark kept distracting me.

I've decided to keep her.

Tree Nook

One of the men who's been working on our kitchen noticed Zeke manfully trying to nail scraps of lumber to a crooked pallet in the cherry tree.

As I looked out the upstairs window, he straightened the pallet, screwed it in, and made their day.

This same kind fellow just recently delivered the hind quarters of a deer he'd shot, too! How's that for going above and beyond the call of duty? As he told me, "I'm home-grown and farm-raised, too, so I get it."  Phew. I think that means our dirty house didn't scare him off.

Giving Thanks

We had a small gathering of family and friends this year. The day was cozy and low-key, and we made too many pies.

A crafty friend from church gave the family turkey-pops, and we saved them for Thanksgiving favors. Sneaky. Labor-free.

As all the girls grow older and more capable, I have many helping holiday hands. This resulted in a good night's sleep for me AND little children who had spare minutes to watch Little House on the Prairie while we finished up before guests came. It's best viewed three inches from the screen.

Molly! My mom thinks Texas pecans make her pies the best. I tend to agree. :)

This girl was the belle of the ball.

...or, rather, the Turkey of the Forest.

Debbie's peaches and cream pies this year were the loveliest I've ever seen.

For you, Molly, per your request. Eleven pies all in a row. Too many? Not enough?
Could be either, I suppose. :)

When the time came, this tame turkey was ready to dig in.

With thanks.

Winter Hair is the Best Hair

Mostly, because we get our little Dandelion Puff back for a season!

Ready for Battle

Zeke made himself and Aidan some swords.

Aidan trounced him, but only because Ezekiel thinks he fights better with his eyes shut.

Like a Gorilla in a Trampoline Park: A Post For Grandma O.

...which is a lot more fun than a bull in a china shop.

Trust me, because I was the gorilla. I told the girls that the way I felt at the trampoline park-- effortlessly athletic, graceful, and fluid-- was not at all the reality.

The reality was an Abigorilla having the time of her life.

Background: Grandma Owen bought the children passes on Groupon for a local trampoline park. We'd never heard of such a thing and didn't know what to expect, but when we showed up early afternoon on a Monday, we found we had nearly an entire trampoline fantasy land to ourselves. It was awesome. Thank goodness there were enough passes for me to play! It would honestly have been painful to watch them all have fun and not be able to join in.** There was even an extra pass for a  Diedre Pal!

**Note: the three other parents that I saw there during our two hours must have been in serious trampoline-longing-pain. They were just walking around or sitting down in comfy chairs.

I don't know if it's because there were only 2 small children and one father at the park when we arrived, or if it's because the teenaged employees just don't care, but we did pretty much anything we wanted on the equipment for 2 straight hours. It was exhilarating and exhausting.

Annika left the park with her hands bleeding from the obstacle course! It was worth every last penny we did not pay.

Running along the trampoline runway felt like running in dreams-- one could take enormous, bounding, graceful leaps. It felt graceful, at least. Ulp. (Thanks a lot, Mildred, for taking these behind my back.)

John took Skylark on her birthday date while we all (gracefully/fluidly) leapt about. All the children from Cadence on up to Abigail enjoyed every minute. Thank you, Grandma Owen!

We didn't get pictures of the dodgeball court or the diving board, but you can still see that it was a day for the books...er...or blog, if you'd rather, and just the thing to stave off the cabin fever crazies.