Carrots, Apples and My Cute Boys

Carrots...need I say more?

My kids are so stinkin' cute!!! I can't help but take pictures of them :) I don't give Asher much jarred food because the formula is more caloric and he NEEDS those calories but I figured I would give him some every now and then so he wouldn't be on a bottle for the rest of his life. He makes the cutest faces. I think he likes carrots.

Noah is so funny. He was going outside the other day and I asked him where he was going. He said, "Trocodile lake" (crocodile). It was so funny. I didn't even know he could say "trocodile". I guess it's off of the Dora cartoon. Now anytime he sees water he says "trocodile lake". The sunbean (sunbeam) song is coming along. Now he sings a few more words then just sunbean.

We picked apples Saturday morning at some friends house from church. They have a bunch of apple trees and said that anyone could come and pick them. Heidi and I are back to it. We will be making and canning apple sauce.

Well, it's true that my husband has bowed legs and that I think they're cute. Also true that I had a dream that I kissed Jim Halpert off The Office. (It was the night I fell asleep at 8:30 woke up at 11:30 to Heath watching an episode of the office and went back to sleep). What can you do?!?

Who's that handsome fellow?

Meet Eddie Max Puckett. He's my dad. Asher Max is named after him. It's his birthday. I have to be honest and say that I don't know exactly how old he is (fifty something). I was just thinking that there are those people who know a lot about one thing and then the people that know a little about a lot of things. Well, my dad knows a lot about a lot of things and he can probably beat up your dad. He's about 6'3. He's a good dad and I love him. So, Happy, Happy Birthday daddy dear. Happy days will come to you all year. If I had one wish then it would be...A Happy, Happy birthday to you from me. Happy Birthday from all of us here in PA. LOVE YOU DAD!!!

By small and simple means...

great things are brought to pass. Asher will be 8 months old soon. As I have mentioned earlier he is having a little trouble gaining weight. At his appointment last week he weighed 13 pounds 14 ounces. We just go week to week trying new things. Then he was sick and throwing up a lot with coughing and his sensitive gag reflex. I love that little boy so much and it hurt me thinking that he might be losing weight while he was sick. I do worry too much sometimes. I know this. My faith has grown a ton in the last little while but sometimes it's not sufficient for the trial. I guess that's when the growth occurs. The doctor gave me some stuff to put in Asher's bottles to increase the calories. Fortunately, he was already on this when he got sick and actually gained a few ounces. Another prayer answered. I cannot doubt that I have a Heavenly Father who loves me, who knows me, and who knows my needs and wants. I'm also grateful for my husband whose faith I need to lean on sometimes. Baby Asher is seriously a happy baby. He is almost always smiling and is really developing a little personality. Also, his arm is improving. It is getting stronger and developing more muscle tone. The orthopedic doctor seems to think he has a great chance of getting all the motion in it.

Heath's pots, canning, a rough day, and guess who

These are some of Heath's most recent pots. My picture taking skill are lacking a bit. The one of the top is a bowl and the botton is a vase.

Our friends the Nazelrods came over yesterday to can some food. We bought #10 cans from the cannery and borrowed the stake can sealer. We filled 42 cans for us and I'm not sure exactly how many the Nazelrods did.  We canned white flour, powdered milk, popcorn, crisco, rice, beans, and wheat.

 

Noah had a rough day Saturday. He was standing on a chair and slipped off and scratched his back up. Shortly after that he cut his finger. Poor baby.

Guess who this is!?!

Meet Poppy.

Meet Clarence Oliver Burris Jr.. By his family he is known as Poppy and his friends call him Boy.  He is my grandfather, my mom's dad. He was born in 1920 and lived through the depression. His mother died when he was just 12 but was blessed with a good family and friends that helped take care of him. He enlisted in World War II because he loved his country and wanted to serve his country. He is an artist and loved to paint, write poetry, and make neat things through welding. He loved to read his Bible.  He loves to sing and has fond memories of singing with his mother. He adored his sweet wife, Catherine Mae, who he called Kate and sometime Mud (I think short for Mother). I am proud to be named after her.  He thinks Kate was and is an angel and after she fell ill he did not leave her side. Even after a surgery he insisted he take care of her the day he came home. His memory does not serve him well currently. When I call my mom reminds him who I am by saying, "The one who you use to watch jump the hurdles." He is ready to be reunited with that sweet wife who has been gone for about 10 years now but it is seeming that his journey is not yet complete. Here is a poem he gave me a copy of a few years ago that has recently had more meaning for me.  I love you, Poppy!

The Sixth Insatiable Sense

or

The Plague of 2001

'Tis a most obvious fact,

That vanity rules mankind.

Keeping up with the Joneses,

Shows modesty in decline.

We toy with moderation,

Cutting cost, we emphasize.

When we're moved by what folks think,

Vanity is sure to rise.

While fueling our Land Rover,

Panicky thoughts come o'er me!

Should I burn the credit cards,

Or crawl and claw, awkwardly?

Could an upgrade mark our fall,

While guarding appearances?

Or what would the neighbors say,

Of our strained circumstances?

Facing a downsizing shame,

Should we move back to the farm?

Could a lesser car suffice?

Would purse proudness lose its charm?

So, back to the farm we go.

Extravagance left behind.

The Jones factor is no more!

Besides, we've found peace of mind!

We're doing quite well, thank you!

Our mode is an open door!

Gone is a yen to swagger.

Our itch to strut is no more!

We've no Jones here to stir us.

Wealth of yore does not beckon.

We bought a forty Ford truck.

Chains that once bound, are broken!

Gone are all puffed up notions.

Airs no longer dash pell mell!

All unrestrained whims have fled.

We've learned our lesson WELL!

-O. Sodal Thrice (His pen name)

 O. (old)  Sodal (South Dallas) Thrice (The Father, The Son, and The Holy Ghost)

PEACHES, SPIDERS, AND BABY BOY

 

Ok, we have the peaches done. Heidi and I bought two bushels of peaches. See the picture below to see how many peaches are in a bushel. We have 60 quarts, yes 60, of peaches. We split 'em 50/50. 

 

This is ONE bushel

So there I was weeding in the front of the house two days ago and I saw something moving. I really, really don't like spiders so I stepped on it. The ground below was pretty soft so it didn't squish his guts out. How did he get on the leaf? I put him there with a stick.

  

My little Asher is 7 months I can't believe it. He's been a little sick. Sad! Noah is looking like such a big boy and is soooo funny. He loves to sing. He sings sunbeam (just the word not the song) over and over again. He also sings the Bob the builder theme song and yesterday when we were in the grocery store he started singing the song playing overhead. I can't remember what it was but it had a line in it that was repeated a few times that he got down pretty well. He can count to 8 and when I'm sad he hugs me and says "ah ite mommy?" He likes to go without a shirt and doesn't like to go to bed. I love my little boys. Also, it's true that when you drive to my house you have to watch for Amish buggies and that I like the new tool bar on blogger for posting except where the heck did spell check go? Please bring it back!

Make your own laundry soap ($.03 a load)

Here's how to make your own laundry soap for as little as $.03 per load (depending on how much you pay for soap). Don't forget to use coupons.

RECIPE

***************************************
2 Cups finely shredded bar soap (about one 4.5oz bar) I use Ivory
1 Cup Arm & Hammer Super washing soda
1 Cup 20 Mule Team Borax

Each batch makes 4 cups laundry detergent and cost approx. $.95 to $1.00 to make. Use 2 Tablespoons per load and you'll get 32 loads per batch. I just made 6 batches so I won't have to do it for a while. Works great, try it! The time is worth the savings.

Sweet corn and meet Heidi

So, Donna and Gary invited us to go pick corn on Monday night. We picked 6 gunny (is that how you spell that?) sacks full. We kept three. Monday night we worked until 12:30. Heath was shucking the corn and I was blanching and cutting the corn off the cob to freeze. We only got through one sack. Last night we invited Deric and Heidi over to help us out and to take some of the corn home. We were up until midnight but all the corn is in the freezer. It was a TON.

Meet Heidi. She is Deric's wife. She works at Home Depot and is the seminary teacher in our ward. She loves country living and long walks on the beach. OK, I don't really know about the long walks but she is now an expert corn off the cob cutter.

Blanching the corn.

Lots of corn.

Heath taking a break eating the corn.

Tickens, our home, Deric, and #1

Here's Noah chasing the tickens as he calls them.

A side view of our home and the "barn" in the back. Pictures of the inside to come if I ever get things organized. It's taking FOREVER!

Our side yard.

Our little home.

Meet Deric. I have no idea how this got on my camera but he's the guy that helped us with getting the house ready. He's our friend from Utah and Heath's new studio mate. His wife is Heidi who I don't have a picture of but you can check out their blog on my blog list.

Asher

I bet you're wondering about this picture. Asher a lot of the time has his pointer finger up. The first time I ever saw it was in an ultrasound picture one week before I was going to be induced. I thought he was telling me "one more week mom". It's hard to get a good picture of it so this will have to do for now.