Brody is in the house!

My sister Shaun and b-i-l Neal made me an uncle again today. Brody Allen Harpstrite comes at us with 8.13 lbs and 20 1/4 in. Big Brother Aidan is happy to have someone to big brother to.

Oh yeah? Well you should have seen the other guy.

Dent. The car is gray, so stuff didn't show up in the pictures too well.

If you click on the pic you may be able to see it a little better.

There is a good gouge at the top of the dent, and you might be able to see one along the top of the pin stripe. It looks like a tire mark under the mirror on the door.

There is also a dent on the piece between the windshield and the door/mirror.


As much that mirror hurt, I kinda wanted it to have some visible damage. By the way, this is the only look I've really had at the car; I didn't look at closely that day.

This shows the initial impact at the corer of the bumper and then a different gouge at the front of the fender.

Thursday Update on Wooombpf

So it is an update for today, but I'll start with yesterday. Got a little worried yesterday. Physically and mentally I took some steps backwards, but I think (now) that it was due to a cumulative lack of sleep. It is hard to sleep when there is no good way to lie down.

I tried doubling up some sleeping meds, even with the pain killer and muscle relaxant. Nothing worked. Finally, yesterday afternoon, I finally just crashed. Even with the "wooombpf" sound playing every 15-20 minutes, and the increase in the gnawing feeling that when I ride I'm gonna have some issues, I finally just slept. It was only for an hour, since I had to pick up Noah from school, but it was a full-on, sweat through my clothes and the sheets, slobber on my pillow, hard sleep.

Awaking from that, I was somewhat refreshed. My left side ribs and left side guts, which are giving me the most trouble overall, were very sore, but it was the first time I've even FELT like getting up since the bump.

Noah and I drove the couple of miles over to where I was hit. I've mentioned several times how lucky I was, but it is even more evident now. I'm lucky for just missinig a drive way (instead I landed in a ditch). I just missed hitting a street sign ("Narrow Bridge Ahead') and the narrow bridge that was ahead. Where I fell was, in fact, right in front of the golf course. For those familiar with the area, it was next to the hole that runs parallel to the road.

I slept some more when we got home, and it was just as deep a sleep as earlier. Had to wake up to go get the POSS2's since Mama was held up in an important meeting, but we managed.

Noah watched the babies while I slept even more. It seems that I sleep for about an hour very deeply, then I wake up, go get a drink or something to eat, say "Hi" to everyone that lives here, and then I sleep again for another hour or so. This was one of the first days in a long time that we actually got everyone to bed on time, and I slept from then pretty much through the night, minus the POSS2's coming in to customarily make sure we are still there or something.

All that said, aside from my left side ribs and guts, I feel sore but lots, lots better. My elbow works, but I don't have much range of motion, and I absolutely can't bang it on anything. But I think we've for sure turned a corner here.

You couldn't tell that I just left to go to the doctor, but I did. Definite broken rib on the left side (just one, though?), so I feel less of a wuss knowing that something is indeed busted. Nothing is broken in my shoulder, but I didn't really expect there to be since it feels like tissue/ligament/tendon issues and not bone issues.


All things considered, I fell pretty ok. If I can talk Noah into bringing the trainer to the house from the barn, I might even get my track bike on there and spin for just a something small in the next couple of days.

Tuesday Update on Wooombpf

Busy day. Had lots of folks stop by. Scored well with Niles, because he brought by lots of venison. Andrew D stopped by on his ride, which was cool. My Mom made a brief stop on her way to Longview.

Lots of calls too. It has been pleasantly overwhelming.

I feel worse physically today, but my head is totally clear. Recieved a letter from the guy's insurance company telling me to call them when I'm off the pain meds and that I need to send them some tax stuff for the last three years. Now, that's getting into my business, but I think it is a good sign that we are getting somewhere, though.

My body did stiffen up quite a bit from yesterday. I think it is due to feeling better yesterday so I moved around too much. Or maybe it was the Pilates video. Who knows?

Becky brought some books by yesterday. I read some stuff by Sedaris, which is laugh out loud funny, but once I started the second book of his, I felt like it was too much. Now reading Pico Iyer's Video Night in Kathmandu and diggin' it. And I ate all of the shortbread cookies she brought by too.

It is worth noting here that Noah has really stepped up in the last week. He's helping out tons, and he was already good about helping out before. I think he's a keeper.

When my Mom stopped by, she left behind a big plastic tub that has all kinds of stuff from my growing up years. There's my cub scout shirt, some pictures of when I was a baby, a few books, a baby tooth, my first BMX jersey, some stories that I wrote in second grade, etc. A childhood in a box. Pretty neat.

Update on Wooombpf

Feeling LOTS better, so long as I sit still. I took the halfcast off of my elbow and am keeping a folded up bathtowel around it for protection. The cast and sling were to help keep it propped and protected, but it feels better if I keep it up anyway, so that's what I do naturally. Using the towel as protection is a little more user friendly in most ways as it allows me to at least type on the computer somewhat normally. I still can only peck out a few lines before having to rest since my right shoulder doesn't like my right arm to be elevated as high as the keyboard very long.

My teeth still hurt as does my jaw, but I ate quite a bit yesterday so I was probably just doing too much too soon.

I went most of yesterday without pain meds, but I had a rough time from mid-afternoon on and had to get some in me. NOt sure where it came from, but I lost my stomach a few times yesterday as well. That said, I was more active yesterday morning than I had been all days combined since being hit.

Ribs sill hurt just as much, but that is to be expected. My upper back is stove up pretty bad, but the great news is that my lower back (which had been giving me fits before the accident) hasn't been an issue at all. Can't turn my head too quickly or my neck barks, but moving slowly gives me about 75% 5ange of motion.

Knees are tweaked as well as hips, but not so much that I dread it when getting up like I do my neck, back, ribs and shoulder.

Mama sent me a link to get the police report form so I can get that assignment done. Finding it online is a huge bonus because I can't really drive so well at the moment to get to the police station.


Becky, one of my LSWorkers, just stopped by with all sorts of goodies. I've got fresh DVD's and loads of reading stuff. The kitchen is now flowered and there are even some things to eat that don't take any effort.

I'm gonna try to read it all, because Becky is one of those folks who, when she sends me an email, I have to open a dictionary and a browser to google so I don't go all public school on her.

Thank you so much, Becky!


That's about it for now.

Wooombpf

Howdy,

Hard o be entertaining because it is difficult to type, me head hurts, and it is about time for some more of these fine, fine meds. But here’s what I’ve managed to peck out…

While out for a mid-afternoon one hour spin, I was hit from behind by a motorist. It was straight up, plain and simple, an accident. I wasn’t the target of an angry driver or someone who was trying to brush me back or whatever. Not sure how fast he was going, but this is a 50-60 mph road.

I was heading southwest on Country Club Road in Argyle at about 1:45-2pm. I was very near the right edge of the road with my tires on or very near the white line, which is customarily where I ride. My habit is not to take up much of the lane, as I prefer to give motorist as much room to pass as possible. I understand some folks may feel they should take p more of their lane for safety, visibility, and to force motorists to pass in the other lane only when safe. But I prescribe to the idea that I want to be the least nuisance possible, since I live in the area and these are essentially my neighbors.

I was caught by the front fender and mirror of the car. My body took the blow. I spent a little time on the windshield and top of the car before dismounting into the nicely groomed ditch. Fortunately I missed the pavement.

The initial hit was sudden and unexpected. My best recollection (and so far, very much recurring) is the sound of “wooompb” as I was being hit, and my vision growing quickly black with a light growing rapidly smaller and smaller to the size of a pin hole while spinning, sort of like what I remember seeing in the Batman shows as a kid. That sound was the same sound you hear when cars hit each other.

My next glimpse of memory is being in the air in a “flying” position over the car and looking down into the windshield and seeing the driver’s hands on the wheel. At that point I don’t remember much except for thinking “I got hit and I’m probably dead.”

My next memory is hitting the ground, then a blank time, and then landing on my back and hitting the back of my head. I went out for a spell (I don’t know how long). I do remember thinking as the lights went out again that I hoped I wasn’t in the middle of a multi-car accident and that I could just end up where I ended up without having to deal with cars on me.

I couldn’t feel anything when I came to from that,. My thoughts were that I was either dead or that I was in such shock that I wasn’t feeling anything. I tried to do an inventory of body parts, but I couldn’t feel anything. I could hear my middle child saying names of the parts of the body as I checked to see if they were still attached.

Everything was very fuzzy and moving in a haze. Sort of like what the Young Guns were seeing when they took the peyote. But I wasn’t taking peyote.

The motorist stopped and tried to help me up as I was trying to get up. I wasn’t altogether with it, but came to very quickly when he grabbed my left elbow to help me up. Alarm clocks don’t seem so bad now.

He asked if he could take me to the hospital, and he was extremely apologetic. Looking back now, I can say that he was in shock himself. Another motorist then stopped and asked whose fault it was. The man who hit me said, “Unfortunately, it was mine (meaning himself).”

I looked at my phone to see what time it was, and I realized that I needed to get home quickly since I had to pick up Kid #1 from school. I asked the man to take me home instead. Mind you, I wasn’t entirely with it, and neither was he, which is why we didn’t call police. He asked me several times if he shouldn’t just take me to the hospital.

So, we piled my bike into his trunk, I called Chloe on the way home and asked her to meet me there, and the guy drove me home in what was the most harrowing 10 miles I’ve ever been in a car. He was a mess just out of being scared. Wrong side of the road, driving 15 mph, pulling out into traffic, etc.

While sitting in his car, the list of damage to me was being rung up. My shoulder and ribs were giving me the most pain, but my hips, back, jaw and elbow were close behind.

I asked the driver to stay with me at the house until Chloe arrived, which he did without hesitation.

Once Chloe arrived, she got his name, license number and all that. It occurred to me that we should have a picture of his car showing the damage, and she took that. Once certain she had enough information from him, she sent him on his way, and then we went to pick up Noah (kid #1) and then went to the emergency room.

With nothing poking out of me, it took awhile to be tended at the emergency, but I was seen. Was x-rayed (not kidding) about 40 times, and I had a CT scan done to check for internal damage.

Damage to me-
Dislocated right shoulder
Broken left elbow
Rib “damage” primarily on the left side, but the right got some too.
Concussion
General pain in teeth (all), jaw, back, neck, hips, left knee, and right ankle


Damage to bike-
Broken right seat stay
Trashed Powertap rear
Broken saddle
Don’t know if anything else yet.


I’ve pretty much stayed in bed since getting home Tuesday night. I can’t roll over on my own, and I need assistance sitting up. However, as of last night, I could get up the stairs if I took my time. All that said, with the pain meds and muscle relaxants, I don’t feel much like getting up anyway. There’s a nice supply of DVD’s being played on my laptop. Typing notes is a painful process since I can only one-hand it, and that hand is connected to a shoulder that isn’t working so well.

Anyway, as I told my teammates, y’all don’t know anyone luckier than me. I want to thank everyone for the thoughts, prayers and vibes. Mostly I want to thank my wife, Chloe, who has had to really pick up the slack. With three kids here (10yr, 3yr, and almost 2yr), she’s had her hands full. Noah has been a huge help in taking care of the little ones, getting stuff for me, and making sure he was cared for himself. I want to thank Andrew and Stephanie Hassan for watching and feeding kids #2 and 3 while I was in the hospital. I want to thank David for kicking butt at the last Tuesday Nighter in Plano. I’d like to thank the athletes I work with for understanding. I also want to thank all of those who have sent notes and “get well” wishes and offers to help. And I’d like to thank my teammates who knew just how much to joke and how much to care.

Cri

Wheels

This is Collina. She's not even 1 yr old yet.

This is Mama's car, Agatha. She's of legal age.

This is Ingrid. She's 13 yrs old (but she's had a heart transplant).







This set of "wheels" has had a face lift. This is Bollacilli. (www.semcustompaint.com)

Steamboats, Fried Chicken, Anti-freeze, Taking out a loan for gas, Pine Cones, And Our Visit to TN to See Apple Granny

Mama did a great job getting us packed into one bag. Kaner would be proud. All five of us were packed into one duffel bag. This is without cycling stuff, but still, diapers and clothes for five people for a long weekend in one bag is cat 2 packing, at least.

We made a trip out to Eagle's Nest to see Apple Granny and to try to talk her into leaving the farm there and moving in with us. With the babies and such, we couldn't afford to fly out there, so we packed into my "new" wagon and made the 12 hr haul on the road.

Before leaving on Friday, however, (my b-i-l) Lonnie and his clan stopped by for a quick visit on their way to CO. In the big picture it is kinda funny that they were plowing up I35 on their way to CO while we were loading up to plow I30 and I40 to TN, yet we somehow still had a Chloe-style dinner here at Stella.

I didn't get to eat with them, as I was at the shop getting new tires on the "new" car. Pretty much a leap of faith that the 13yr old car would make the 1400 mile trip, especially considering the only driving I'd done with it at that point was the test drive. And to think that I'm not much of a gambler.

We hit the road at about 10pm. The kids slept for the most part, which made for a pretty dang easy trip. Now that I think about it, it wasn't until Tuesday morning, when I took Noah to school, that he'd actually sat in a seat in the car. For the 12.5 hr trip there and the 13.5 hr trip back, he was packed into the back of the wagon with our bag, a blanket, a couple of pillows, and his PSP thing.

Anyway, we went up to see Apple Granny and enjoy a quiet weekend in rural TN. Now that Mama has a real job, we can't get away for a week at a time like we used to do, so we had to squeeze in our RnR qucikly. After driving through the night, I had a world class nap on Saturday...windows open, hearing the critters in the woods, and even the sounds of a tug boat in the far distance on the TN river.

There was visiting and some being made useful for Aunt Betty and Apple Granny. A trip up to the church to take some bottled water, carrying a few things out to the barn and up from the basement. Had to be careful, though, because I didn't want Mama to think I was all hip on doing chores.

Somewhere in there was some real good banana pudding that Granny said was for my birthday.

The little ones played with the dogs and sticks and stuff. Noah and I hiked (a pretty tough hike, actually) through the woods, across a couple of pastures and down to the river where we climbed on fallen trees, watched a steamboat go by, and got up close with a cottonmouth. It was pretty much a Tom Sawyer/Norman Rockwell-type weekend.

The visit was short, but it was a good one. The land up there is postcard beautiful, and the roads (though I didn't bring my bike) beg to be ridden. The rolling hills, 2-mile climbs, the forests, the perfect pavement, the country-quiet...

We hit the road for the return leg on Monday morning. The wagon ("Ingrid") was holding up with a minimal of coolant and oil leakage, and the spedometer and tachometer freeze was only temporary. Overall, as travelling goes, Ingrid is a solid vehicle for us, and after driving the Bessie and Moby for so long, we were glad to have something that got gas mileage in the 20's instead of the pre-teens, especially since we were paying anywheres from $2.99 to $3.69 (fugg!) per gallon.

It is one thing to travel through the night with babies in the car, but it is quite another to travel during the middle part of the day. But all things considered, I think they did a fine job of it. There was a short bit of cabin fever from all of us, but we're also rolling in a spot that is half the size in which we are accustomed. 13+ is a long time for a grown up to sit in one spot, so for the babies to be strapped into those seats was a significant chunk of their time alive.

We did stop for coffee, a lot. We also stopped for a family fried chicken dinner at a fast-food joint called Mrs. Winner's. The whole time we were there I had a voice in the back of my head that sounded like crOzzy saying, "Winner, winner, chicken dinner." Another de-car wasa at a rest stop in Arkansas where the babies ran around while me and Noah chucked rocks and a water bottle up into a pine tree to knock down cones. Mama has been collecting pine cones lately, so we were speeding up the process. Knocking pine cones out of trees is fun. Should try it sometime.

It was pretty late when we got back, but the adventure was a good one. The quality time with Apple Granny was still too short but worth the trip. The nap I had on Saturday, however, was certainly worth it too.

Odd

Listening to the public classical station in the kid's room this morning as I got the herd ready. In the mornings the "dj" has a british accent and speaks the perfect english that you'd expect to hear on the airwaves of such a station.

But it was still weird to hear him talking about Dallas Cowboys' news.


I suppose it isn't any weirder than Bob Roll talking about euro dawg peloton happenings.

Still, it sounded odd, but it also made me listen, and I don't normally listen to anything about the Cowboys.

Play Ball

Last night was the first game of the restart to my cat 5 softball career. Scott (Noah's step-Dad) and I play on a team made up of Scott's neighbor and his coworkers. So, I got on this team as the step-third cousin twice removed or something.

I hadn't thrown a ball or swung a bat in years (since 2000 to be be precise), but I was itching to do something active. Somehow I ended up playing softball. Oh, I take that back...I did swing a bat at Gameworks when Burke, Jodith and Keegs came up, but that was a video game. I also played air hockey, so I'm quite the Bo Jackson.

Since I'm the new guy, I got to play catcher. Catcher in softball is where they put the people so they will hurt them the least. But I got to play, so I don't mind. Honestly, I probably would have been a liability in the field since I'm gimped and all.

Had a good time though. Batted three times. Grounded out, flew out, and got on (probably an error). Didn't miss any pitches, which isn't anything to brag about, but I was surprised at how many strikeouts there were in this slow-pitch game.

But the cool thing is that I didn't get hurt. This might not be a big thing to the reader, but considering the last two softball games I played netted me a torn quad and a pulled hamstring. That I didn't get hurt is a big deal.

The sad thing is that I'm sore from running 300 feet on the night.

We won though, by coming back in the bottom of the last inning, and I helped push the guy from first to third who ended up scoring. Which sort of made up for the error I made (that everybody else would have made too) during a play at the plate. When you are catcher you only get one or two real plays per game.

It was fun, and I look forward to our next game. Our team name is "Those Guys."


Oh, I went to the last doctor (I hope) I'll see about my back. Since I've been doing exercises on my own and making some adjustments to how I sit and such, there has been some improvement. With that in mind, the doc says we can hit PT more aggressively. Worst case is that I'll get surgery later. Best case is that things continue to improve. The nerve damage is there and there's not much that can be done, but strengthening my back will supposedly minimalize the issue. I like this doc, so I'm fired up about what we are doing. Should be back to racing (got approval on the homefront) in 2006. The bottom third of the field is in trouble.

Scam

My Lovely almost fell for a scam. I wasn't going to write about it, but she insisted because she wanted to make sure nobody else fell for it.

The scam is called a "Nigerian Scam," I believe. It came into our lives when we put the Expedition up for sale.

Seems the scammers of this sort look for something being sold, and if they determine that there is some sort of desperation, they start in with the emails that involve out-of-country buyers, agents picking up the car, agents receiving payment, an overpayment with a cashier's check and so forth.

Nobody would actually pick up the car. No agent would actually show up. The scam is in the casheier's check. It is a counterfeit.

What they do is send a cashier's check for over the amount. The reason can vary to whatever their creativity affords. In this case, they told Mama that it had to do with reimbursement. The idea was that they would pay twice the amount for the car, and we'd send the over 1/2 to the agent, who then applies it to something and ultimately it all comes out in the wash. Mama read the emails closely, so she was believing the story. I didn't, however, since I'd read something about such a scam recently.

Meanwhile, I was to be checking the mailbox regularly for the cashier's check. If the scam holds true to form, the scammers won't send it for awhile to create desperation on the part of the seller. Eventually they expect that the seller will pester the scammer with "Where's the check" and so forth. At that point, they have you.

In this case, they were going to send a cashier's check, we would deposit it, and the bank would show that the money (in this case, $18,000) was in the account. Then we'd cut a check to the agent to speed up the process, since "the agent can't pick up the car until..." (or something like that).

But the thing is (here's the lesson), just because the bank shows the money in your account and says it has "cleared" doesn't mean it really has. It takes 10 days or so for a cashier's check to actually clear, but since your account shows the money deposited, you feel safe in writing the check. Meanwhile, the bank would learn that it was a counterfeit, but we would have already paid "the agent" the overage. Nobody would have picked up the car, but since it was a counterfeit check, the bank deducts the "deposit." But now you are out the money you paid to the agent.

When this whole "deal" stressed me out too much to sleep, I started looking for information online about the scams. At that point, Mama sent me the email dialogue with these folks, and we were able to sort out that this indeed was such a scam.

I want to thank Mama for listening to me on this one.


This scam is pulled not just on cars, but on anything. It is most often seen on eBay and the like. It can be for small items or big ones. When I went looking for information, I found that most of the time the scammed won't say anything out of embarassment for falling for such a thing. But it turns out that the scam has been pulled for "items" as small as a $10 DVD and as big as $60K Mercedes and $300K houses.

Thought for the day

No matter how much The Assassin encourages you to keep going, you really should stop after your second serving of zabaglione

Pope Budicus I 

circa 1977 in Longview. From l-to-r: Cami, me, Mimi holding Shaun, cousin Johnny, cousin Sheri. 

Doping

Photographic evidence that I do endorse performance enhancing supplements to my athletes. This is a shot of the head LSW soigneur helping one of my junior athletes in the bouncy slide competition. If you look closely, you can see that other juniors are forced to also use performance enhancing supplements to remain competitive. It is a vicious cycle. Do you remember when kids used to slide on the bouncy slides just for fun? 

#3's Terrors, Stuff We've Planted, and a Sleepover

Not sure what Mama was thinking, but I just scored an iPod mini. She was entered in some raffle at work and won...a Playstation. She made way to Best Buy and exited sans Playtation and con iPod.

A few years ago I was in the throes of music downloading mania. Originally this was to have a library of tunes for the regular spin classes I was holding up at Bluebonnet Bikes and in our garage. But a crashed hard drive took out not only my bidness, but also my library (I think it was around 1500 songs) of music that I'd handpicked.

I guess I'm still bummed. Probably because this was before DSL, or at least before I had it, so downloading music wasn't as quick as point and click.

But I've got the thing now. My library of CD's has made it back to the computer, but this was just a small bit of all the music I'd Napster'd. We'll see if I get back to that ripping music again. I think the going rate is a buck a song, so I'll have to be more selective.

Uncle Lonnie and Uncle Pickle have incredible music collections. They have something for every mood, party and situation. Me, I have a collection of The Racing Post cycling socks. Uncles win.

Just wish I was riding to use the iPod. Noah and I have been completely off the bike for more than two weeks now. My back has gotten to the point that I can't ride at all, even with Noah, and besides, he tweaked his knee practicing soccer, so we've been keeping ice on things. Or eating ice cream. One of the two.

Reanie has been riding, though. In fact, we're going to have to figure something out, because she's moving so fast and hard on the tricycle that she's usually only on two wheels. If she's on Budisimo's "bike," when she takes off she spins the front wheel while it struggles to get traction. Don't need no powermeter to know she's cranking out the watts there! Might be time to pull the little bike out of the barn...

^ ^ ^ ^ ^

Noah had a buddy over to play and spend the night. They "swam" with the bouncy slide, and they were both very, very cool about letting Reanie and Budisimo play with them.

We had homemade pizzas and an apple pie thing that Mama concocted. So good that I ate three pieces of pizza past full and still went for it on dessert.

The boys played computer games well into the night. Though I was trying to sleep, it was neat to hear them really into it.

The plan was for them to sleep outside, but after tending to #3 at 4am, Mama saw that the boys were "camping" in the living room instead. I just got through checking on them, and as I look at the clock, I'm chuckling because the babies will be up soon, and those boys will be hard pressed to get back the sleep they missed by going to bed so late. 10 years old is fun, though.

But so is 35.

By the way, Happy Birthday, Lisa! (it was yesterday)


* * * * *

Something is going on with Buddy at night. It has happened twice in the last four or five days. He wakes up in the middle of the night in a terror or extremely pissed off. He's screaming and hollering and running around in full sprint. He runs faster than he can see and plows into and through things. He can't stop moving and hollering/screaming. On one hand, it is the middle of the night, so Mama and I are doing what we can to make this a brief interuption, but on the other hand, he's darn near inconsolable. If it weren't the middle of the night and I hadn't just been startled awake, part of me would like to see what he's doing or trying to do in an effort to figure it out.

Tonight he "came to" in about 15 minutes. The other night it took 45 minutes or so. Since I'm such a light sleeper that I wake up when a cow takes a leak, I'm up for good once Buddy does this thing. Mama tries to help him though it awhile, then me, then Mama, then me again...and so forth. Meanwhile, whoever isn't with Buddy directly is having to soothe Reanie back to sleep. It is quite a production.

Not to discount what Buddy is feeling, but it is painful on our end to see him in such a state. Sure, he's not even two, but to see him struck so breaks your heart. You just want to hold him and hug it away, but holding him increases an already unbeliavable outburst (not the right word, but didn't feel like looking for it).

* * * * * * *

-We planted some pumpkin seeds yesterday. It is about a month too late, though. They'll still grow, but the pumpkins won't look like much by halloween. Took me forever to find pumpkin seeds to plant. We'll have to save some from the pumpkins. But what will probably happen is that when it is time to plant next year, I'll be thinking either, "I meant to save seeds from last year," or, "Where did I put those seeds"...

-We've had a couple spaghetti squash from the garden in the last week. Better than what you can get at the store (of course), and strangely, bigger too.

-The tomato plants are about done. Next year I'll plant more of those. I didn't count on that the kids would pick and eat so much.

-Mama is about to make another batch of pesto as well as jalapeno jelly. Put your orders in now.

-The fig tree stopped producing for the year. Darn. I'm going to have to learn about the different kinds of figs and see if we can't get a June producer and something the will produce later in August.

-Noah's pear tree...last year it produced one pear. No big deal since we only planted it last year. This year, however, at one time there were 20 pears. But gradually they disappeared. It is normal to lose a few to bugs or whatever, but this was different. These weren't partially eaten or even on the ground. They would totally disappear. A pear isn't that small, so it isn't like a bug can take it away. Best we can figure is that someone has been picking them or that there is a bird that is strong enough to take the entire pear away.

As the tree went down to ten, then four pears (which weren't quite ready to pick), we became more attached to the remaining fruit. When we were down to one, I told Mama that it was for Noah to pick (he would be with us the next day). And wouldn't you know it, that ONE last pear was gone before Noah got here. Darn.

-I was about to pull out the eggplant yesterday. We got one good one off of it, but it hasn't done anything in a few weeks. On the day that I decided to pull it to make room for something else, sure enough, there's one brewing!

-The watermelon is about the size of a grocery store canteloupe, but it is ready anyway. We'll get into that today. I think we planted the watermelon too late, so I don't expect that we'll get anymore off of this plant.

* * * * * * *

You read all of this?

From the mouth of a babe

First thing Reanie said when she woke up yesterday--
"Excuse me, Daddy. I tooted."

First thing Reanie said when she woke up today--
"I like food, Daddy."

Buon Compleanno

This is what Noah looks like on his 10th birthday (and first day of school)!