You guessed it

Sadly, summer vacation has ended for Dalton and Trenton. We enjoyed a nice dinner out with Pat on Wednesday evening to celebrate the fun we had together. We all chatted about happenings, concerns about returning to school and the crazy weather as of late. The guys both grew so much over the summer. Trenton must be at least three inches taller and took off some of his love handles. Dalton has lost weight and hopefully will not loose any more as he looks a bit lanky.

How did they spend their time? Well, skateboarding, motorbiking, hanging with friends, playing with the dogs and cats, caught a few movies and gaming. Trenton ranks this summer as just a smig behind last year due to all of the wet weather.

Day one and two seemed to go well at school. I had treats waiting for them after their first day and they munched them right up. Praying for a year of positive endings and that they both give school serious attention. Getting back on the schedule is going good so far. No failed alarm clocks or shutting off the snooze. Yeah!

Becky

Cancer Support

September 12, 2009 is a special day to support awareness of cancer, particularly in regards to children. Recently a friend and a cousin were diagnosed with cancer and it would mean a great deal to me if you would include them in your prayers. My son, Dalton, lost a classmate in the fifth grade to cancer and this would be a way to help ensure other parents don't have to see their child wither away. Needless to say, after the boys and I lost Jeff last summer, cancer is something we would really like to see more research and hopefully a cure. I will send a photo of us in our shirts when they arrive.

http://www.beatcancertoday.org/index.php?merchant_return_link=Return+to+Beat+Cancer+Today&auth=MrnTroFG6QaWFnzS8mZcowpGo2VKFYTHL1RqK-Aj6bF4jjhrpfj0Ua5xiRYGDj8r4fTp4oRyDQZW9KzD&form_charset=UTF-8

Thank you!

Becky, Dalton and Trenton

Frying Fish

We decided to have a fish fry to celebrate the many summer birthdays in our family. Russ, my brother, is both an avid outdoors man as well as a good grease commander. We all had activities early in the day, so we called for a evening event. Mother Nature certainly held up her end of the bargain with some terrific sun and then a cool dusk. My little goat friend, Delila, helped with setting up the garage for the event. Not sure she understands she is a goat.

Russ started the cooking and it seemed like everyone popped in at just the right time. Mom was in charge of cooking the sweetcorn over a flame and she was super successful. The kids kept themselves entertained with the party horns, water balloons and running around. After eating ourselves to the near misery stage, we enjoyed the fireworks from our town's days. Nice ending to a fun event.

County Fair

Summer is not complete without a trip to the county fair. This past week we had the opportunity to enjoy both the Delaware and Buchanan County Fairs. Tuesday was the beginning of our adventure with a bike race at the Delaware County Fair. Trenton and nephew Kaden suited up and kicked it during the hot laps. Hot guys in cool outfits...wouldn't you agree?

Wednesday began the week for my Sister, Deb, and I as vendors at the Buchanan County Fair. Deb has a business with her homemade candles, wooden roses and body lotions. She was kind enough to let me use a table to put out some of the items from the long-gone Internet business. We had some long days with hours being from 11am until 9pm most days. We didn't sell much but did enjoy catching up with each other and observing human behaviour at its finest.

Thank goodness for visits from friends and family to give the days a bit more zest. Mackenzie and Reagan gulped down some carmel apples, Jimmy showed his dairy cow and gathered the Grand Reserve trophy, and several types of car events. No fair would be complete without a carnival ride and Sammi and Matthew had a blast at wristband night. The carnival even had some wild cats that put on quiet a show. A Bengal tiger named Sampson and his buddies Kiera and Sadie put on a fun show to watch and good news is not one member of the crowd was eaten.

As with all good things, fairs must end. We loaded up our goods today and said goodbye to our vendor buddies and headed for home. What a nice week!

Becky

Summer is heating up

Like many families, summer usually involves a fun get together or two. We did our annual 4th of July party on the 5th this year and we had a great day for everyone. Of course, lots of good food is a given with Peg in the kitchen, but the male force took to lighting up the evening sky with a few booms and a nice light show.

Dad is getting ready to put up the garage, so we had some really cool ravines and dirt piles. Big hit with the younger crowd. Check out the scary faces of the diggers. Yep, glad I have older kids and didn't have to encourage a bath of those proportions. Haley and I had a little fun before the party marking the way to the party and the potty. To the best of my knowledge, we did not have any falls into the holes.

The kids took turns riding on the 4-wheeler and the "most held" award was clearly taken by Stevie. Boy can that little fellow work the ladies. I bet he didn't walk a step unless he was playing tease. What a ham! The adults had a nice opportunity to chat and catch up on all the happenings.

All too soon, the fireworks faded, the parents rounded up the kids and we all headed to our abodes.

Freedom is wonderful! Thank you to the many men and women that provided us that freedom!

Summer antics

Summer is the golden time for kids. School is out and the guys enjoy sleeping in most days. They are hanging out with their friends and keeping Mom running with many errands. The warm days with ample humidity seem to run on with the sun putting it's pajamas too early most days. This week is a special treat with our niece staying while her Mother recovers from surgery. The boys and I are discovering that four-year-old little ladies are pretty busy. You can see them all bouncing around on the trampoline on a recent evening. Mia, the pooch, loves to be included in all play activities.

My parents know the strife of being unemployed and filling one's days, so they showed up with a couple of new kids to spoil a week back. Introducing Sampson and Delihla our little goat kids. We make milk for the kids at least three times a day and feed them with bottles. They love to romp and play and Sammi like to carry them around in her adventures. They are about three weeks old and are the milk goat variety. Surprisingly enough, the boys approve of the little kids and Jimmy, the llama, is looking forward to having company again soon.

Wednesday the baler arrived and finished up the first cutting of hay. We had a storm move through this morning that blew the oats around quite a bit. Hope they pop back up in time to be combined in a few weeks. The garden looks much better with the warmer weather. We are enjoying a few strawberries and some lettuce. More yummies soon.

What could be better? Fresh air, fresh berries, hugs from a cutie pie, handsome kids growing up all around. Summer is grand!

Becky

Over the firsts

June 2 marks the one-year anniversary of our dearly loved, Jeff, joined the "Big Fishing Team in the Sky". He fought the lung cancer that permeated his strong body with every bit of his being. The boys and I have experienced some great challenges in the last year. Shortly after Jeff's passing, we had wind damage that took the roof off of a building. No worries, building was repaired by some handy Amish craftsmen. Cedar Rapids suffered its worst flooding and continues with the many struggles to re-establish businesses and homes and like the raindrops the pain trickles to many areas of our community. The community is working to identify how it plans to rebuild going forward. Furthermore, my ethics caused me to step away from my job in August and I have been searching for work since then. Being without work has been a tremendous struggle for me personally having worked hard all my life. Sit and stare at the walls for nine months and you find a thing or two out about yourself. Family matters most; work just pays the bills. Co-workers from past employers have been the icing on my cake. Their wacky emails and phone calls have kept me going on some really trying days. I raise my glass to my many friends and cheers for keeping me going. The boys have been amazing in their journey. Kids do the grief thing a bit differently then us adults and a fishing trip hosted by Jeff's best friend, Craig, and cousin, "Jammer", put the smile back on our little guy's face. Learning to live without your Father at age 12- and 14 has been a challenge and I am very proud of the guys for hanging in there. Family has really come to rescue on many occasions. When the tornado this Spring took the roof off of the other building and did a bit of damage to the house, I just felt defeated. Not to worry, John S was right out and his sweet wife, Rebecca, was on the phone. We went and helped out the neighbors that had more significant damage. Parts for the building are on order and someday the building roof will be fixed. Kris and Rick have kept us in close range all year. Not sure what we would have done without them. Trenton eats more poptarts out of Kris' pantry and Dalton is a aeration dude for their lawn company, Irish Green. Good thing we only live a few minutes apart. My parents have been there for us time and time again. Running a 40-acre farm is getting easier, but there are moments. My parents have been through so much in the last few years that I just pray they are justly rewarded. My brothers and sister have helped so often. Jake helped Dalton fix the door he shut a little too hard and even gave him a little visit when Big D was practicing his teenagerness. Deb's kids are some of Trenton's favorite guys to hang with and Sammi is my little niece that keeps me on my toes. Certainly this is such a brief and incomplete list of supporters for our year of firsts.

Pardon my rambling, but it does take a village. What has been the hardest thing this year? We all agree, we miss Jeff's big strong hugs the most. Why would he be taken when he was only 44? Because we all need to remember we are only here for a while. Some minutes, some days and some live to be 100. What matters is what you share with others. Thank you to each and every one of you for helping us along the path this year.

Becky, Dalton and Trenton