Interesting costume ideas

My 5-year-old daughter Mae has come up with some really interesting ideas for her Halloween costume next year.

Idea #1: "Mom, next year, I'd like to be invisible".

I had to tell her that while this was a really CLEVER costume idea, it was beyond my meager costume-making ability. But isn't the confidence that she has in me awe-inspiring? Heck, maybe I can give it some more thought...

Idea #2: "OK, then, I'd like to be a baby calf, just being born."

I had to tell her that I didn't think the other kids were ready for that yet.

And I'll leave you with THAT pretty picture in your head!

Moo Moo feeding

Every afternoon from about June through the next March, the cattle need to be fed. We usually make this into a hayride-- a festive occasion complete with frisbees, footballs, and an ice chest full of cold beverages.





Mick, my Dad's trusty dog, usually drives the truck up to the pasture.



OK, actually, he rides shotgun, and lets the guy with opposable thumbs drive the truck.


We check on the cattle, like our new little cutie:



After a good round of pass and frisbee, we meander back down to the homestead...



so we can get in a couple of hours of "American Idol".

Just kidding, but I think you knew that.

Two down, two to go

The second wall is finished! From this angle, it looks so...DONE, doesn't it? Like we should move in next week! I think we'll wait for the running water and flushing toilets though.

And then we go over here, to what Mark calls "the ugly side".



Not because that side is less beautiful, but because siding it is going to be more difficult due to the height. Check out our tallest ladder leaning against it! Mark really wanted to put "the ugly side" off until last, but our front door is not ready yet, so now by default, we'll do the front side last.

Here we are standing around on a Friday afternoon, admiring the progress.



But wait...who is that man standing there in front of Mark?



It's our nephew Zack! He is back to help out through December. His first semester at Chico didn't go well, so he's taking some time to regroup before taking another run at it in the spring semester. Some tough lessons learned under his belt, but there certainly is a huge silver lining in it (for us)...he is a great help to Mark! And he doesn't whine and cuss at Mark like his other help.

The scoop on the poop

I'm getting insight like I never expected on what happens AFTER you flush the toilet. Being out in the country, we are on a septic system. I'm not sure what I pictured as a septic tank, but it wasn't this:



This big concrete box is our septic tank. And if you REALLY want to, you can access the inside through these port holes on top.



The sewage flows from the house into one side of the box. Here is what the inside looks like (um...this picture is sideways and I can't fix it, so cock your head to the right)



Although the far wall looks solid, it ends about 2/3 of the way up the wall of the tank. The sewage pours into the first side. As the first half fills, the solids sink, and the liquids flow over the divider. Once the liquids reach the level of the "out pipe" on the far side, they flow out to the leach field, a series of perforated pipes out in in our pasture.

In a perfect world, the solids break down and the system is self-sustaining. In reality, the solid side usually has to be pumped out every so often. And those portholes are how it's done!

So now you know the scoop on the poop. Tell your friends!

Boo!

We had a blast with Halloween this year. Abigail wanted to be a fairy, and Mae wanted to be a raccoon. And, just like last year (Abigail as a Hershey's Kiss, and Mae the colorful rainbow pony) everyone could tell what Abigail was, and Mae had to explain...her costumes are just tougher to execute! Plus she didn't want to wear any make-up, or her ears. She did insist that she wanted a fish to hold in her hand, which I thought was a clever detail. I'm not sure anyone could identify the stuffed sock as a fish, but it satisfied both Mae and me.



We carved jack-o-lanterns with the cousins.



We baked zucchini muffins for the school party. And they were a hit!



We went to the Halloween carnival at the high school, where the girls rode these itty bitty ponies.





They also rode the gigantic bouncehouse tiger slide countless times, which left them pretty tired, but we HAD to go out trick-or-treating, right????

So out we went, trick-or-treating country style: driving along the dark country roads, looking for houses with festive signs. We stop, get out of the booster seats, assemble our costumes, ring the doorbell, then return to the car, disassemble the costume, and strap back in. Needless to say, this is an arduous way to earn your candy! Fortunately, the girls and I both tired of this after an hour, so we returned home with just the right amount of loot to satisfy the girls.

Now...on to Thanksgiving!

The Birds and the Bees and the Cows

Earlier this week, a new calf was born, and my father, Mae, and I were there to witness the event. I even got it on videotape to share with the rest of the family! And while I'll spare you that little piece of eye candy, I'll just note that it was pretty interesting both to watch the process, and to see Mae's reaction. She was amazingly matter-of-fact, and not the least bit squeamish. The calf was halfway out, starting to breath, and making little calf noises when the mother struggled to her feet. THAT was quite a sight. After about 30 seconds, the desired effect occurred...the calf dropped out and onto the ground. We were a little worried about both the mother and the calf, since they didn't seem to be bonding initially, but things worked out, and now we have this pretty little one:



So now here is cousin Casey explaining to Abigail all about the afterbirth and its function:



Oh...my mistake. They're just getting ready to poke it with a stick! Endless entertainment.




Ah, that country livin'...isn't it beautiful?

One down, three to go

We had another crazy week with nothing going as planned. Abigail, Mae, and their cousin Scotty all came down with fevers last week. Abigail was sick from Saturday til Tuesday. Mae succumbed Tuesday night, and still had a fever last night (Sunday night). Scotty actually was confirmed with Influenza A mid-week, so of course the concern was whether we'd have any larger issues with H1N1, since 90% of Influenza A is H1N1 right now. Mae had a pretty high fever, so we ended up getting her checked out, but found that it was likely a good old fashioned virus, not H1N1. Here the girls are prior to the hammer coming down. Grandma Fran picked up these dresses for the girls to play dress up in, and dang it...that's what they're doing!



Meanwhile, Mark slogged away at the siding, and finally finished up the first wall. Quite an achievement, considering how much he did all by himself!



So you can see that work has started on on the south wall. This wall should go more quickly since it is much shorter than the gable end. The west wall, however, will be the worst...40 feet tall at the peak!



Fortunately, we've gone through the process once already, so maybe the big wrinkles are already ironed out. I hope to be more help on this wall, but we're not off to a very auspicious start: Mae home today, volunteering in the classroom tomorrow and Friday. Well, there's always the weekend.