Not needed

My family and my brother's family are having a yard sale today. I took the children up about 9 and discovered they didn't need my help. This was fine with me. I drove back home and did some major clean up over at the house. I still need to sweep all the floors and make a trip to the dump. I had the joy of starting a lovely fire and proceeded burn many things. (I love playing with fire!) I will feed this afternoon before going up to help them pack up. Then I will be dropping tables off at various locations and doing other odd jobs. I told Rachel last night that it seems like I have not been able to do my share of wining and complaining this time around...

Finally

Well, I am proud to announce that we have finally finished the fall harvest. As of seven this evening we will be finished with the corn header and chopper for the season. Ah, what luxury... Now we move on to the next project. Hauling manure, working the land and planting small grain. Hopefully this will only take a couple of weeks. There are not near as many moving parts on a disk as on the chopper so their should be less break downs...
Tommorow we will be having another yard sale to help offset adoption costs. If you are traveling Wisecarver rd. stop in and see us. We may even cut you a good deal but I doubt it....

Aleya

Due to technical difficulties I was unable to post yesterday. Yesterday was Aleya's birthday. She is now three years old and proud of it. She was thrilled with her few little gifts. I think the thing that thrilled her the most was the phone calls she received from all three of her grandmothers. How cool is that?

Odd Man Out

I have been a member of VOP now for almost ten years. Over the past ten years members of the group have slowly attained modern forms of communication. First it was cell phones but more recently it has been the portable version of the PC, otherwise known as the laptop. This past weekend I discovered that I am now the only bloke that does not have one of these helpful devices. Maybe someday soon I will be able to find a really good reason for spending money on one.

Nascar

I will just say it right up front, I am a Nascar fan. Whew, got that out of the way. We were listening to the race while we were driving yesterday and we got to talking about things that would really irritate us if we were driving in a race. One fellow thought it would be better to wreck in the first ten laps then to wreck in the last ten laps. I disagreed, I think it would be so disappointing to wreck in the first ten laps. Here you are planning on driving four hundred miles and you end up only driving twenty and have last place money to show for it. Would you kindly help us settle this argument? By the way, Matt Kenseth ran out of gas with three laps to go. That would be very annoying. He was in second place at the time...

David

Last night at Snow Hill we met a fellow who had down-syndrom and his name was David. He was an interesting fellow who was very bright in certain areas. He seemed to have a very good sense of humour. He was continually informing us that we had dirt on our shirts and in our hair. The amazing thing was his ability to tell you a road name or number and tell you what states it goes through. He knew where I95, PA Turnpike, and 297 went. I don't know whether he is a veteran of travel or if he is a long lost relative of Mr. McNally.

Goat Island

Yes, their is a Goat Island. Their is also a Goat Island Rd. This road, however, is no where near the island. Apparently a fellow raised goats on this island years ago. I have no recollection of this but these are the facts that have been relayed to me. This island was farm land at one point in history. After the goats were removed from the island it slowly became a forrest. This summer the owner of the island cleared it and asked the neighbor, Dwayne, to farm it. He agreed and planted close to 18 acres of corn. It is some very fine corn, the best I have seen in a long time. Now, this all sounds well and good but you still need to get to island. Yesterday, Sonny and I made this trek in my 4X4 F250 pick up. I was a tad nervous about attempting such a thing but I steeled my nervous system and forward we went. To get to this Island you have to cross the Staunton River. I would say the river is at least 50 yards wide. The place where we crossed was solid rock and the water was sloshing around the floor boards. The rock was very rough also. In retrospect, it may have been the dumbest thing I have ever done, but I doubt it. I felt somewhat like an explorer but I don't think I will be fording this river on a regular basis...

Tour

VOP has a tour scheduled for this weekend. We will be in Snow Hill MD on Fri. eve. Harmony Sat. eve. Central Mennonite in Dover area on Sunday AM and in Catlett Sun. PM. We look forward to seeing you at one of these churchs.

Sweat

Sweating is something we all do. However some of us tend to sweat much more than others. When I sweat it will appear that I have been standing in the rain. I will literally be soaking wet. My face will have rivers of salty water tracking down my forehead before gleefully slinking into my eyes. When Sierra was two she was able to witness this amazing feat. She looked at my face and said; "Daddy what is wrong with you? Your head is leaking...

Stress

How do you combat stress? Do you go for walks, read, mow the lawn, ride bike, or play football? Maybe you read blogs to help you realize you are not the only person who is stressed out!

Employers

I am wondering who was, or is, the best employer you have ever had and why?

Silence

What is silence? Have you ever expierenced it? Is silence the total absence of sound? Or is silence the absence of noise? Is their a difference? When you are longing for peace and quite does that mean their is no sound?
I was lying on the couch this afternoon for slight siesta. The house was quiet except for the ticking of the clock. This reminded me of my grandaddy's house. The house is located in the middle of some huge oak trees. When the lights are off in the living room it tends to be rather dim. A nice quiet room, except for the ticking of the clock. If that clock wasn't ticking it would be a rather uncomfortable room. It would be to silent. Grandaddy's house would not be the same if that clock would be removed from the premises. So, when I am longing for peace and quiet I long for a room that makes me comfortable. A room with a ticking clock...

Dylan

Dylan climbed this ladder by himslef. Notice Papa's watchful gaze...

 

Uncle Rod

Uncle Rod frying up some Jimmy Deans...

 

The Tale Of The Serpent

Two days ago I noticed a nice long skin lying on top of the block wall of the other house. This made me a little uneasy but my soul was comforted when I remembered I had killed one earlier that was similar in length. However, deep in my trembling heart, I knew the length of the two was not a good match. Their must be another slippery critter in our midst. That same afternoon the young man who was framing in some basement windows glanced up at the floor joists. Wooptydodaday what did he see!? A serpent that was at least six foot long. This causes much distress and I was awake half the night, trying to figure out away to eliminate the snake from my future dwelling. Apparently I was not the only person who was thinking. The fellow working in the basement, Karlin, had a brilliant idea and we acted upon it. We took some old paper seed bags, tore them up and stuffed them into the block wall. Then we took cans of expandable foam insulation and filled the top of the blocks. This should seal the top of the walls and not allow them to sneak into our humble abode. The purpose of the paper was to hold the foam up until it hardened. I think we will have a very tight house by the time we are finished...

One Year Old

L-R Jayden, Dylan, Jackson

 

Elephant Ears

 

Headache

Last night I had the worst headache of my life. I was literally nauseated. I don't think I have ever had a headache that made me sick to my stomach. After lying in bed for an hour and a half I had recuperated enough to be a father for a few minuets before we sent the children to bed. Have you ever had a headache that made you queasy? Maybe all of yours are this way. If so, I pity you...

Another Ford

It was oldies weekend at the campground. So I have posted some pictures of these vehicles for your enjoyment. I don't know what year model this is but I do know it is a Ford.

 

Ford

I don't know the year on this either but I really like it...

 

Plymouth

I am assuming this is a Plymouth but I really do not know...

 

Fairlane

I don't know what year this is, do you?

 

57 Chevy

My Father-In-Law always wanted a 57 Chevy...

 

79 Firebird

I think that is what he said.

 

Lazy Days

We arrived home around 7 this evening. I must say I had more fun than I have ever had while camping. The only thing I didn't enjoy was the sleeping quarters. The cabin we were in was more like a hut. I would guess it was about 10x15. I am sure Laura Ingles had a larger wagon than this... Okay, enough complaining. We cooked over the fire, sat around, chewed the fat, spit it out, and chewed some more. Played shuffle board, mini golf, and wore ourselves out while paddling boats around the stagnant lake. We also wore ourselves out riding bike and watching the children roam the wild plains of Friendship Village. Okay, they were not that wild but it sounds good. In the evening we made Elephant Ears and Smoores while roasting more hotdogs and Cheddarworsts (sp?). Anyway, I believe everyone had an enjoyable time and I will post some pictures in the near future...

Question

Before I leave on this vacation I would like to ask you a question. Is happiness, joy, peace, etc. a choice? Do we choose to be this or have them?

Hopefully I will have lots of pictures to post upon my return...

Mini Vacation

We are leaving in the morning for a weekend with my wife's family. We will be camping near Bedford PA. I am planning on having a grand time even though camping isn't my first love. What would be your first choice for a family vacation?

Isralites

Can you learn anything from the Isralites? If so, what is it? I am thinking specifically about their trip from Egypt to Canaan.

Jack

After getting off of the phone I glanced down and this is what I saw. Jackson put this girly bow on his own head...
Funny stuff...

Living Room

This will be the new and improved living room.

 

Dogs & Cats

If you navigatet to this site very often you will know that we have in our possesion one cat and one dog. I had never thought about the difference bewteen the two species before but they have some major personality differences. Cupcake appears to enjoy social activities rarely and seems to be disinterested in human life in general. Blackie, however, jumps at every opportunity to make his presence known. He loves the children and adores anyone who takes the time to acknowledge his existence. The relationship between these two animals has become something of a spectacle. Cupcake endures all sorts of unwanted advances from Blackie. Blackie bowls Cupcake over every chance he gets. Blackie treats the cat like he is another puppy. Cupcake is a rather patient animal but there appear to limits to these types of activities. Cupcake has now taken to leaping on top of the picnic to table to avoid these acts of terror. This also gives the ability to swat Blackie on his tender black nose. These antics bring me much joy and anticipation. The strategy of the cat and the dumbness of the puppy...

Remodeling Update

This is the new and improved opening between the living room and the dining room.

 

School

As you know we are home schooling. We were using ACE (Accelerated Christian Education) however, we were not very impressed with Science and Social Studies. On a wim I mentioned to Rachel that she should check out AIG (Answers In Genesis) and see if they had any kind of science curriculum. So she went to their website and then ordered some information. We then ordered a book on the animal kingdom. It is very good and I would encourage every parent to check it out. Even if you are not home schooling it would be a very useful tool or aid in your childs education.