80% Redneck

 A few weekends ago we went to Richfield to help pick corn.  Or, as Addie calls it, torn.  The morning of the Great Pick (I'll just call it that to add a little more adventure to this post...although it sounds kind of Hunger Games-ish, huh?) I woke up to see my kiddos snuggling together.  Awww, how sweet!  So, naturally, I snapped a dozen photos of the moment.

Jason went on numerous dove hunts throughout the weekend.  Those of you in a hunting family will be familiar with this type of photo:  the weapon, the victim(s), and the kids.  I'm not sure why every hunt needs to be documented this way, but I theorize that is has to do with gathering together a man's accomplishments into one proud moment. 

Now, picking corn may sound like a fun, enjoyable way to spend a lovely fall morning, and in many ways it is.  However, in your daydreaming about corn-picking, I'm sure there isn't an overabundance of mosquitoes or bloody fingers or sweaty filth.  Your daydream is a lie.  That being said, I do like to get dirty and put in a good day of farm work every now and then, and there's no better people to do it with than family.  Plus, one bite of fresh, sweet corn makes it all completely worth it.

Some people set goals to exercise, do family history, or organize closets.  We should set those goals, but we don't. We just make one goal every year: attend at least one rodeo.  This year we accomplished it with Mitch and Lindie, our dear friends that don't live close enough.  It happened to be on a stormy Saturday night, so we sat through some rain, lightening, and thunder, making the rodeo events seem even more dangerous.  This was Jack's first, and I think he was only slightly amused.  In time, my boy, in time.

Addie started preschool!  We're doing a sort of neighborhood joy school.  I'll be honest, after having only one turn teaching, I'm thinking we'll send Jack to a real preschool.  As it turns out, I'm not tough enough to handle six 3-4 year olds and a baby on my own for two hours and still feel happy afterward.  Everyone survived, but it was touch and go towards the end.  Addie sure loves it though, and she does have some fun classmates.

 Here's a random photo of Jason and Addie catching night crawlers in our garden one night.  Yes, Addie is in her pajamas.  We intended to go fishing with them the next day, but unfortunately ( or fortunately, in their case) didn't get around to it.  The worms remained in captivity for two days and then were set free.  It was a fun family activity nonetheless.  I'm sure that if you were to ask the worms about it today, they would have no recollection of ever spending time in a tupperware container, especially since Addie had provided them with dirt and leaves. 

The weekend before last we all went out shooting.  I was skeptical about the wisdom in having children and guns together in one place, but figured we'd give it a shot.  (Funny joke, no?) Anyway, Jack had discovered his feet only the day before, and so couldn't be bothered by the sounds of any gunshots or explosions.  Heck, it was like finding a whole new set of fingers to suck on!  He stayed in the car most of the time anyway, and got out only during cease fire.  The above photo is of Addie and Jack hanging out in the car during shooting time.  Jack is sucking on an empty fruit snacks package, which makes a lovely sound and tastes fruity.  Don't worry, he was under close supervision.

Addie was in and out, but was very careful about where she went and kept headphones on.  She was searching for rocks and bullet shells when she brought me a handful of small rounds things and asked, "What are these?"  I took one glance and identified them as poop.  Good lesson learned.  Jason even helped her shoot a .22.  That's right potential burglars, don't try to bust into our house!  Even our children are trained to handle a gun!  I  got to shoot some rounds out of my .22 pistol, which is admittedly therapeutic.  If you happen to be a Gatorade bottle reading this, I'd take warning and stay out of my way.  In conclusion, it turned out to be a good family outing and no one got hurt, just a bit dirty.