The Little Red Hen

from

Golden Books definitely are all classics.  This one is another one of N's favorites, we read it several times a day.  He tries to say red hen and it comes out like, "He Hen," so funny.  I loved this story growing up and it has a good moral like many of the Golden Books do. 

This was a gift from one of N's showers...Books are always such a great gift.  It is also funny because many of the old ones we have were like 49 cents and now they are like $2.99 or more - inflation!
So, if it's been a while, find yourself a copy of The Little Red Hen and reminisce!

In His Shoes

Goal

I love to read, almost exclusively fiction, but I always cruise by the new books at the library and if a non-fiction title catches my eye, I will pick it up.  I have a high school facebook "friend" who recently finished The Modern Library's Top 100 Fiction Novels...I have decided that I am going to embark on this journey as well.  There are a handful I read in high school, but a majority are totally new.  I am going to follow the Board's list, so James Joyce's Ulysses is my first, as soon as I make it to the library.

Kicking the Habit...

from

We are on day three of absolutely no pacifier!!!!!

Nathan is doing great, he did not ask for it at all today - I am amazed at this kid.

I finally got around to reading the handbook for Nathan's new day care he will be starting in August and learned that paci's are banned...We had been talking about really cutting back or totally out for several weeks. His pediatrician said to get it done ASAP, especially before the new baby arrives, so I said on Wednesday that we would try napping without it. He did great, although he slept very little during the day. That night he went to bed later than usual was so tired he did not even ask for it. So we went with it. His babysitter said he asked for it once yesterday and she told him he was a big boy and that he did not need it, and he was fine.

Cold turkey is working for us! Of course, he is really into his blankie now - and we are okay with that (for now).

In Stitches

We are back in working order since our new camera lens arrived yesterday. This photo was snapped en route to get the stitches removed, so it is not the most flattering, but shows his three little sutures and the mild bruising.

Emergency

Usually come holiday weekends, we can count on many an emergency call from the clinic. This weekend, however, was full of emergencies with the little one.

• Friday, Nathan fell and required three stitches in his right eyebrow. Very traumatic experience having to hold your 19 month old down for the procedure. Thankfully Trace and I were both there.
• Saturday was uneventful, thank goodness.
• Sunday we had multiple falls but only ended up with a skinned knee.
• Today Nathan fell off the couch and hit his head on the coffee table, then the floor - no visible bruises yet...He also decided today was the day he was going to attempt (and succeed at) getting out of his crib - minor carpet burn on the forehead.

This child is going to give me a heart attack.

The Blackberry Diaries

from

Late June and early July are one of my favorite times because its blackberry picking time. We have a couple of wild patches in the pasture that are overgrown and out of control, but give some great fruit.

I have had some interesting experiences in picking years past. My first year here, before Trace and I were married I decided to walk to the back bush (probably 1/3 mi from the house). We had some overly friendly cows and a donkey at the time and they thought my picking bag was a treat for them, I do not think they would have hurt me, but I was so scared and remember calling Trace in Stillwater to tell him that I was about to get trampled by our herd of three...

The next few years were uneventful, there is always an open invitation to pick and my parents love to come. This year, the berries are amazing - huge, sweet, and plentiful. Last Saturday I decided to get up early before Nathan was up and Trace headed in to work. I got all ready to go, load up on the four wheeler and head to the closest bush. I am getting a bunch of berries, encountering minimal thorns, when all of a sudden I am literally attacked by some type of stinging insect. I would not quite classify it as a swarm, but there were a bunch of them, and I got stung at least three to four times. Thankfully, I did not drop my berries, but I quickly loaded up and headed back to the house with my stinging hand and arm.

Trace was sympathetic, but laughed at my description of the attack...I had majorly swollen

index, middle finger, and hand for the next two days, but obviously survived.

Monday, I decided to face my fears and head back out for more. I was afraid to go to the same bush, so I headed out farther and had a successful, injury free time of picking. Injury free time did not last long, that night, my mom and I went back out to the first bush. I was really scared to go back to the place, but had some back-up. I could not remember where exactly I encountered the insects, so we started picking. I was constantly scanning for signs of the "army". Thankfully, I was on my toes and, sure enough, they came for me. I ran as fast as I have in quite a while - and promptly fell, bruising my knees in the process. A 7-month pregnant lady has no business running in an uneven pasture. But I escaped further stings. Apparently there is a nest of yellow-jackets in the bush. This year will definitely be memorable both in terms of what happened while picking and for the glorious berries!