The Farm Report

  • Get out

    Get out

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    On cold days, it’s so easy to stay inside. It’s warm inside and it’s so much effort to bundle up in coats and hats and mittens.

    But sometimes I forget that kids love the outdoors regardless. They don’t care that it’s cold or windy. They just want to run and play. When I opened the door the let the dogs in, and the kids went lunging toward the door even though they were in bare feet and no pants, I got the hint.

    Even Shep went flying for his locker and gathered up boots and his coat at the mere mention of going outside. And I’m glad we went. I needed the fresh air, too.

  • Independence

    Independence

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    Shep hasn’t been too impressed with the whole idea of a high chair lately, but he’s been putting up with it. Today he fell asleep without eating lunch, so when he woke I had lunch all set up on his high chair. As I carried him to the chair, his eyes traveled to the small tables and chairs I had set up for our house project, and he started wailing. Pointing and grunting, it became clear that lunch was to be served at that table.

    He ate that whole meal proudly at the table. Stopping every now and then to get up, walk around the table, and sit back down. He was beaming through lunch.

    He’s the baby right now, and he looks so small in comparison to Neko. But I need to remind myself he needs to take these steps toward being a big kid, too.

  • Jo-Jo’s house

    Jo-Jo’s house

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    Today was one of those days where I had nothing planned. In this household, that’s not a good thing. After a morning outing to Target, Shep fell asleep in the car on the way home. A deadly occurance, as it was way too early, and I would never get Neko’s nap synched up with his, therefore giving me not one minute to breathe without children ALL DAY.

    So what is any good parent to resort to? Bribery. I told Neko if she went to quiet time now, we’d have a very special project when she got up. Filled with excitement, she trotted off to her bedroom.

    What special project did I have lined up? I had no idea.

    Of course, I spent what little quiet time I had wracking my brain for good ideas. Neko had recently become re-enamored of her Jo-Jo figures, and Kiddley had recently had project on mantle houses. That’s it! Jo-Jo needs a house!

    I prepped ahead of time by cutting doors and windows in shoeboxes. When the kids got up, we painted and decorated. Even Shep got into the project, although he was more excited about painting inside the boxes than the outside.

    An excellent project, but if I had it to do again, I would have sprayed the boxes with a quick primer as the paint is now chipping off due to the waxy surface. But then, I would probably have to come up with this idea more than 30 minutes in advance, eh?

  • Showtime

    Showtime

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    Ever since the creation of the Henry the Octopus hat, Neko has been on the hunt for the ultimate Henry costume. Today she hit upon one that made her extrememly happy. Her bathing suit, several tee shirts around her waist for extra arms, and boots on her feet and her sparkly shoes on her hands, Henry was born. Even though she more resembled some bizarrely dressed cabaret singer, she was delighted.

    Perhaps the funniest part were then her demands to see and be photographed with “her kids.” I then realized she was replaying the Disney experience of posing for the camera with various characters like Ariel and Buzz Lightyear. Shep, being the only kid around, was quickly pulled into service, a role which he he was none too thrilled to accept.

    So watch your calendar, Henry may be coming to a venue near you.

  • Sick

    I’m so sick. Sicker than I’ve been in ages. I think my sinuses are packed with concrete, and it’s possible I may never breathe out of both nostrils at the same time again.

    Someday I will organize and upload the Disney photos. I swear.

  • Outing

    Outing

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    Nancy and I braved the museum with all six kids, and, unbelieveably, we left with no blood shed and all kids fed, content, and accounted for.

    Of course, the only good picture I took was on the way out the door when four of the six were strapped into the strollers.

  • Anne and John get hitched

    Anne and John get hitched

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    Anne and John finally made it legal. We look forward to these events for the obvious reason—celebrating two people coming together—but we also love that it’s a great excuse to see all the people we don’t see anywhere near enough.

    Evrything worked out beautifully. Congrats you two.

    More photos for viewing here.

  • Quality time

    Quality time

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    Tom and I have meaning to spend more one-on-one time with the kids. It happened sort of by accident today. We desperately needed to take the recycling (which, of course, was at the far away location today) but Neko just really wanted to stay home. Shep and I set out to save the environment while Tom and Neko hunkered down to be creative.

    First, they made a Henry the Octopus hat out of an old pizza box (which turned out quite nicely), and then they moved into enthusiatic multiple brush painting on cardboard.

    My only complaint is that when these moments occur, Tom must start taking the 30 seconds required to install the bounce flash.

  • Profile

    Profile

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    Sometime in the near future, Neko will start hiding from the camera and wincing when she see photos of herself. She will refuse to let anyone shoot her profile (as I do) and point out every imagined flaw as she demands I delete each one. Which, of course, I won’t, if I can just stay one step ahead of her.

  • Lights, camera, action…Wiggles!

    Lights, camera, action…Wiggles!

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    Fresh on the heels of Disney, we scored box seats to the Wiggles. Brooke’s brother works for the newspaper, and it pays to have wiggly friends in high places. Neko had sort of moved past her Wiggles obsession, but was quickly sucked back in when the guys in colored shirts lept on the stage.

    She did however, take a moment to wonder, “Where’s Greg?” Sure enough, there was someone else in the yellow shirt tonight. Greg apparently had some major illness and headed back to Australia. Apendicitis or something like that which imakes you much less wiggly.

    The best part of the night was hanging out in the box afterwards. The kids bounced off sofas and chairs while the adults held ACTUAL CONVERSATIONS.