Grandma's Visit

Grandma came up for the kid's primary program.  We all enjoyed her visit.  We went up to Town and Country's fall extravaganza for Mexican Crazy Corn.  The weather was beautiful and we fit in Reed's Dairy ice cream too.

I managed to turn a rather gooey mess over to her and the girls while Hudson and I gleaned potatoes from the neighbor's field.  The beginning process of carving and paper mache-ing styrofoam pumpkins.

 Once we got to the field, he was more interested in driving the four wheeler than picking up spuds.  He did an awesome job of bouncing out the potatoes I picked up.

Dad had to stay home and conduct at the single's ward, but we enjoyed Mom coming to spend the weekend.

Finishing up the pumpkin project.

2013 Watermelon Project

We started all of our melons from seeds at the beginning of May.  We just put them in our South-facing window and it did the trick.

A month later and it was time to get them in the ground.  We took a few days to harden them off outside before throwing them in the ground. 

But all the while, my kids (and I) would dream of the juicy watermelons from last year and get hungry.  I gave in a bought a few and they were a bit disappointing.

My silly help.

Here is the empty patch waiting for company.

It was not easy to find a time to go out since Delsie was going through a stage where she just wanted held.  No worries though. . .  my Snugli to the rescue!  She slept like a baby and didn't mind the process at all.

My back on the other hand was KILLING me.  But we finally filled all of our holes, and even made some new ones to accommodate the majority of our startes.

Once the little seedling were in the ground, they really took off.  And by the middle of July, we were seeing little babies growing everywhere.

And last I couldn't wait any longer and picked on to take with us to Lake Powell on the 4th of August.  It wasn't red, but it was still good.  By the middle of August we were picking quite a few and the watermelon stand was back in business.

 In addition to having watermelons, we raised sweet corn too like we have done occasionally in the past.

 The corn picking crew

 I love this next picture with Dalanie's flushed cheeks.  It was hot, but unlike the other kids, she kept with it and was our best picker.  Took me back to my childhood days when we would have to go out to the hot and humid corn patch and pick to fill orders.

 We set up shop in Travel Plaza's parking lot to peddle our goods.  Once people stopped for corn, the watermelon was an easy sale.  If only more were ready at the time.

 On our last big corn picking the water was on, so we put up the umbrella that was intended for shade and the girls hung out while I picked and had my "shower."

Taking care of the stand.

I let the kids determine the pricing.  If I saw something I thought was overpriced, I would point it out and they were always quick to make corrections.  I'd have to say, they got quite good.

Hudson was a little less motivated this year. . . until we started selling.  And then he wanted to be the CEO.  Pretty typical of that kid.  He enjoys the interaction with people.

We had our share of busted melons.  But there is only one thing to do when that happens.

No sense in crying over cracked watermelons.  We all enjoy a refreshing taste.

Delsie enjoyed getting in on the sampling too.

 We tried honeydew this year.  We're still learning when to pick it.  But when you judge it right, it's a tasty addition to our homegrown fruit salad.

 Of course, the chicken enjoy the fruits of our labor.

 If she isn't the cutest little saleswoman.

And then it's the moment that we've all been waiting for.  Time to deposit the money into savings!!  Don't let Ruby's $1 bill fool you.

The kids love to watch the balance in their accounts grow.  It seems like so much money to them, but compared to mission and college costs we've got a long way to go.

All the ladies at the bank know them, and they are getting more confident in handling the transaction by themselves.  The girls are still working on trying to see over the counter.

We're still learning about growing watermelons on a large scale.  This year they were not as gigantic, but overall I think that was a good thing, much more manageable in size.  They were as sweet and delicious as ever.  We did get a hail storm that stunted them.  It took several weeks for them to get over it and put on more blossoms.  Consequently, we didn't have as many melons this year either.  But the kids and I are thinking of expanding both our patch and markets for next year.

Checking Out the New Chopper

We had Tracy and NiCole's crew while they were tied up with the fair.  I was rather pleased by myself when we had homework completed, dinner finished, and everyone situated and in bed by 8:15 pm.  They are good kids and since Hudson and Hailey are in the same class and Jake and Dalanie are both in first grade, homework was streamlined and older kids got to help with the younger ones. 

Something rather exciting happened while they were staying with us.  Our new chopper was delivered.  We took a walk over to the shop to check it out.

Hudson was so excited, noting the differences between the different models.  Of course, his excitement was contagious and all the kids were climbing into the cab and wheel wells.  Brent was there to give them a 'tour' of the cab and they took turns turning the spout.

On the way back, Hudson and Hailey introduced me to the 'waterfall' method of sharing a drink, where one pours it into the others mouth.

Back Yard Fair

My kids are great at reminding me of our traditions, one of which is our backyard fair.  We have come to look forward to and anticipate this event.  We switched things up this year and offered different activities.  We filled the wading pool with fish and added 25 goldfish for the kids to catch (reminiscent of the Oakley pool's fish scramble when I was younger.)

Piper brought 2 of her adorable baby goats for a petting zoo.

The kids loved bottle feeding them, watching them play, and listening to their sweet bleats.

Our newest and most popular attraction was Dad's merry-go-round swing we brought back with us after the family reunion..

There was always a long line.

People are always so creative when it comes to the fair food treats they bring.  This year we had nachos and some yummy homemade donuts. 

Tastes like the fair!

We had some entries for our open class exhibits.

Ruby sporting her fancy face paint and showing off her goldfish.  Sadly, none of the fish fared well.  As Piper said "fish from WalMart are the best one day pets."

Even Delsie got in on the festivities.