Just some fun pics of the boys with their calves…
Michael and “Nanner” (or Princess, as he calls her, lol)…
And Paul with “Fiskars” (or The Bubba, as he calls her!)
Banana & Fiskars showing off their winter coats
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Category Archives: The Boys
Hunting for…?
Just curious… Any guesses as to what is hiding in the grass, lol?
I’ll update this post in a few hours with the answer… 🙂
[imagine Jeopardy music playing now]
AND THE ANSWER IS….
AIRSOFT BULLETS, lol!
(Apparently the purple ones are the heaviest weighted bb’s, so they are a VERY precious find…)
I absolutely love that The Lord has blessed me with two very different boys! I have one who can’t sit still and is rarely seen without a ball, mitt, or bat in his hand. And then I have one who will crawl on his hands and knees and search for bb’s for HOURS after an airsoft war to retrieve the “best” ones, lol! 🙂
Ross Family Hike 2012
A couple weekends ago was our annual “Ross Family Hike”. This hike has been happening since before I married in to the family. Mike’s Mom’s maiden name is Ross, and we are the 7th generation to farm here. (I’ll put a pic of a genealogy paper at the bottom of this post. Our cousin, Ernie Ross, created it for us before he died in 2011.) For me it seems, the older I get, the more interesting history is becoming… Sure wish I would have paid more attention to the stories from my grandparents before they passed…
Every year, the four of us talk about blazing a new trail for the Ross Family Hike during the summer months so we can use it & enjoy it all year. And every year we are scrambling at the last minute to cut one right before the hike, lol. Why spend the time to cut a trail you may ask?? Well, ever since I got a group lost in briars and spider nests five years ago or so, it was decided we needed a defined path for “non-natural hikers”, like myself… 🙂
We all look forward to this hike – and this year was no exception! We begin with a family prayer and share a potluck meal in Mike’s parents’ garage. Then we take a hike through the woods, and the guys usually end with “shooting” – clay pigeons, squirrel targets, etc…
This first pic shows the yellow ribbons that mark this year’s path. I’m happy to report I was “allowed” to be the “ribbon girl” again this year! 🙂
I briefly lost my “title” last year because of using too much ribbon…we ran out before we were done with the trail, lol! I went a little more conservative this year, and won back the approval of all three of my boys… 🙂 ;
Michael is our “extreme adventur-er” – can normally find him doing ANYTHING other than cutting briars, lol…
Found this cool squirrel-table-stump…
Love finding old fenceposts in the woods & trying to imagine how the old pasturefields used to look…
Now the pics change to the actual day of the hike. We went on a “trial run” hike in the morning because there was a steep part we needed to add a rope to. We tied a rope to a tree on the top of the dry creek bed so that we could use it to climb up the bank. Felt like Indiana Jones, lol! 🙂
FINALLY – these next pics are the “actual” hike… 🙂
Not kidding: ROPE WAS FUN!! Brought lots of smiles & laughs…
Uncle Bill, on the other hand, didn’t need any rope! 🙂
Every year we take this same pic… 🙂
Yes, Michael’s holding half of a dead rat – long story – crazy boys… 🙂
It was a wonderful day for all – “Blake” (our oldest cat) says it all right here… 🙂
Algonquin Mill 2012
Thought I’d share some pics from this year’s Algonquin Mill Festival. Every year, we look forward to this festival. The autumn setting is just beautiful, and the air is full of the scent of steam engine smoke! 🙂
Mike’s mom quilts in the farm house on Thursdays during the year. During the festival, the ladies dress in costume and enjoy demonstrating what they do to the families who come through the house. Recently, Mike and the boys have been joining Grandma on Thursdays to work with the men where needed. Mike has always wanted to learn how to work the steam engine powered flour mill, and he is getting to do that. Hopefully, the boys will follow suit as the next year progresses. It’s such a wonderful learning experience for all – the passing on of knowledge from generation to generation.
The festival lasts for 3 days. Today, Mike worked in the flouring mill, and the boys & I worked in the Apple Butter house. We had a steady stream of sales, and enjoyed talking with the other volunteers and customers. 🙂
Packing lunches…
Since we are all together most of the time, it is not very often I get to pack lunches…so when I DO get to pack them, it’s a pretty big deal, lol. 🙂
Today, Mike & Michael are attending an all day workshop in Zoar about the basics of blacksmithing.
They needed to bring a sack lunch, which translates to: cooler full of food, in “my” vernacular, lol…
It was fun filling up the cooler! Fried (in coconut oil) meatloaf sandwiches (on sourdough bread w/ lots of butter), some of our home canned pickles + dilly beans, fresh-baked chocolate chip cookies (made from doughballs I made & froze), one raw cookie doughball for Michael (of the 4 of us, Mike is the only one who prefers the “baked” cookie, lol), and 2 glasses of sorghum milk (I just added a spoonful of sorghum to each cup & mixed it up – a healthy, energy drink – an idea we learned from one of our customers…thanks, Collette!) Topped the cooler off with some Scripture, napkins, & ice packs and ta-da… Lunches complete! 🙂
Lord, I pray today will be a day full of growth for each one of us. For Mike & Michael as they begin to learn the basics of blacksmithing together, and for Paul and I as we hold down the fort here. May the physical food we eat give us the energy we need to focus our efforts on the tasks before us. And may the Spiritual food we “eat” keep us keenly aware of who You are, and that ultimately, we are working for You IN EVERYTHING WE DO. Amen
Colossians 3:17 And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.
Goats for sale…
The boys have decided to sell their goats. Turns out, we are just not “goat people”, lol. They do a really good job of eating weeds + poison ivy IF we can keep them in our fences. They are professional escape artists, and like to bully the calves around, too. They have given us much entertainment over the years, but it’s time for them to mooove on, lol.
The black one is a pygmy – her name is Dunn. The white one is a Nigerian dwarf wether – his name is Butterscotch. They are both about 5 years old (Dunn is a little older.), and they are a package deal…boys don’t wanna split ’em up. 🙂
Here’s a link to our Craig’s List ad: Craig’s List
WOW – THAT DIDN’T TAKE LONG…SOLD THEM (10-7-12)
Grand Prize Winner = a Cleveland Indians game!
We love Wednesdays… That’s the evening we head to the Stark County Library‘s Bookmobile at a local parking lot in Waynesburg. We enjoy requesting books & dvd’s online on their website, and picking up + browsing the items they have on the bus each week. When it comes to additional reading to compliment our homeschooling curriculum, they have been SO helpful!
At the end of August, we learned that Mike won the “grand prize drawing” of the summer reading program: a bag of fun baseball themed trinkets/snacks + tickets to a Cleveland Indians baseball game!! Wahoo, lol! 🙂
I know, I know – not such a great season for “our” team this year… But we are no fair-weathered-fans around here… a game’s a game! 🙂
Just like a couple weeks ago, we planned for a “super rushed” day on Monday, so we could make the hour and a half drive to arrive in time for the first pitch at 7:05pm.
The last time we went to an Indians game (several years ago), we were caught off-guard with the expense of parking. THIS TIME, we did a bit of research, and are happy to report it was a complete SUCCESS! Stumbled on ParkWhiz.com during an internet search, and decided to give it a try – paid only $5 for a RESERVED parking spot! It was a couple blocks from the stadium, but we “country bumpkins” didn’t mind the city walk at all – so different than the country scenery, lol.. 🙂
Our seats were behind home plate, all the way at the TIPPY TOP of the stadium – section 556. It was fun to turn around and peer through the fence to see the view of Cleveland at night. Praise God, all our legs & joints are functioning properly – can’t tell you how many steps we climbed up! 🙂
After about the 6th inning, the cold breeze on our faces prompted us to check out the stand-up area behind left field. We were able to stand right at the fence for the rest of the game…even got to see a GRAND SLAM…too bad it wasn’t for OUR team, lol!! The boys were pretty excited about seeing it, though – the ball landed not too far from where we were.
Sadly, the Indians lost IN A BIG WAY, but it was a fun family outing, just the same. Lots of laughter had and memories made! 🙂
THANK YOU STARK COUNTY LIBRARY!!! 🙂
Here are some pics:
“Thorn” removal…
Whew. What a week. Yes, the picture in the poem is actually Mike’s thumb. Part of the reason this poem was inspired was because of watching him deal with this nasty splinter. Another reason was watching Michael deal with food poisoning the past couple of days. As a parent, there’s nothing worse than watching your child suffer. Another thorn, another thorn…
Mike’s thorn is dissipating, but not removed. Michael’s on the road to recovery – but may be gun-shy of a certain restaurant’s sandwiches, lol! 🙂
Musical chairs…
We were gifted 2 very nice recliner chairs last week. 🙂
This was completely unexpected, so that made it really exciting! It also created a little game of musical chairs… 🙂
Right after Mike & I were married (almost 16 years ago) we purchased an overstuffed chair and couch. Over the years, they have racked up many hours of use, but the older Mike & I get, the less comfy an overstuffed couch feels to sit in. Actually, it’s the getting IN & OUT of that’s been trickier, lol… It’s also been very difficult to move things around for a change of scenery once-in-awhile, because they are just soooo large, and we have just a tiny space. We had often daydreamed about replacing the couch with some-type-of chairs, but that thought never went beyond a thought – until last week. 🙂
So, we removed the couch, re-arranged the room, and added the new chairs. We have really been enjoying it! 🙂
What to do with this ginormous couch now that doesn’t fit ANYWHERE else in our home…?
Well…
As of yesterday, Mike’s sister & her husband are the proud owners of an unfinished rental house! Isn’t that fun? Today, Mike & the boys are taking our well-loved couch over to this new house. What a blessing that because we were given a gift, we can also give a gift! 🙂
Lord, I thank You for the gift of our two new chairs. I also thank You for the many years of activity this couch has endured in our home. I pray for the new home it is now joining. May it serve as a haven of rest for many, and may this couch be a comfort for each person who uses it. As they sink down into those overstuffed cushions, may it remind them of the enveloping love You are always willing to surround us with. Bless Jenny & Matt, Lord, as they begin this new chapter in their lives. AMEN
Paul & Fiskars
NORMALLY, a calf so much younger than the rest, we would sell. Fiskars automatically fell into that category for Mike & I… HOWEVER, when your son asks if the calf can be HIS, and you’ve already allowed his big brother to have one of his own, you do what you gotta do, lol.
It’s official – Fiskars is Paul’s calf! 🙂
Roberts' Farm Blog 