A 15 minute catch up post!

It's the time of year where too much happens in a short amount of time for me to keep up with and the time to blog about our full days is non-existent. So the canner is about to boil with one load of dilly beans and when it is done it's time for bed! So we'll do what I can in that time and then call it good enough! I will lay my perfectionist tendencies to rest on this one!

We had a night recently where I was showered, Alida's hair was clean and dry and it was not yet 9 p.m. I floated the idea of a hair cut and she pondered it for a bit and was ready to chop it all off. A quick measure showed that she'd have enough to donate 10 inches again and still have a little left!

Terah was pretty interested in what was going on and climbed on the chair when Alida was done. I didn't cut hers! But once again it was clear that a short cut suits Alida great! She was extra bouncy for the hour after it was cut and our relationship has been bearing the fruits of not suffering through hair brushing sessions!

She's pretty cute! She is getting lots of compliments and I'm feeling grateful for her curls which made my very elementary level hair cutting skills shine!

Thankfully she didn't change her mind and happily took it into the post office with me to mail it off!

This week we enjoyed a last gathering with our neighbors before they move. While we don't get together regularly, they have been amazing neighbors and very helpful to us at some pretty crucial points in our time on Fruit Farm Lane - a place for Kali during our time with Nora and more recently helping out with counsel and assistance with Terah's various injuries. 

We treated them to one of our favorite new discoveries - chocolate mousse made with just homemade ricotta, cocoa powder and maple syrup (a little cream if you want it even smoother!). Jason says it's like chocolate ice cream only better because it's not very cold.

We are in a hot spell right now and very much enjoyed a family night at a friend's pool recently. We took a picnic to eat at the pool side and enjoyed cooling off and playing together in the water!

Towards the end of the evening Jason went with N to look over her fruit trees and came back to report that there was a tree with ripe apples that they didn't plan to use. So we came home with bags and bags of apples - the next day was planned!

Mom chopped and chopped and chopped apples while I monitored the canner, cranked sauce, took care of kids and monitored them helping with the sauce project, feeding hungry people, getting loads in and out of the canner, etc... We did over 70 quarts of sauce by night fall!

Here's one of my helpers!

Another duo of helpers - sometimes staying out of mommy's hair is the most helpful thing to be done!

Aunt K joined for game playing and applesauce testing.

Only one of us got a pick me up nap midday!

And then she was ready to help (a quick update on her - if she is without a diaper she will run to her little potty when she needs to go, do her thing and then we'll hear her shout "wipe me." It's adorable!). 

Every other day right now processing a mess of green beans!

Onions are now out of the ground and the nicest we have ever grown. 

We finally took to heart that more is not always better. Cut our onion growing space to about a 1/3 last year's patch and were able to tend it better. It worked!

The other evening in our home. What a sweet sight!

Last night we met a new little friend! A third baby for good friends of ours - they welcomed a baby daughter and she has two proud big brothers. Our girls enjoyed adoring her!

It's always hard to remember how tiny they are to start - but she looks like she will have a good appetite as soon as she gets out of her sleepy newborn state!

This picture says so much - Terah getting her cues from Kali. Kali is worried so much these days about Buttercup. Her pet chicken is probably 6 plus years old - very old for a chicken. She seems to be showing some signs of illness..

Ok, timer just rang, cans of beans out cooling on the porch, baby falling apart in my arms. I won't even proof read this. Sigh...