People Watching . . . Farm Style

"Hey ya'll, gather around.  Look what the humans are doing!"

"Silly man, doncha know we would love to do that job for you!"

"Why is she taking our picture again? Crazy humans!"

A Week At the Castle Farm

It has been a busy week at the Castle Farm.  Lots of playing, weeding, fruit preserving, schooling, soccer ball dribbling and so on.  Fall must be on her way . . . Here is our week by the numbers.

One nectarine tree picked.

Two soccer practices.

Three batches of nectarine freezer jam.

Four front yard garden beds weeded.

Five days of schooling.

Six rows done on my mystery shawl. *sniff*

(Curse you, weeding!!)

Seven stints of mopping.

(Curse you, muddy dogs!!)

Eight (at least) loads of weeds hauled down to the "edge".

Nine wedges knit for my Spectra shawl.

(Love you soccer practice knitting!!)

Ten dehydrator trays of nectarine fruit leather. 

And now it is time to rest, and look forward to the fun next week will bring.  More soccer.  Applesauce making.  Friends to visit from far away.  Friends to visit from close by.  More school.  More knitting.  More weeding, ugh.  More knitting (a girl can dream right??).

Random picture from this summer.
I know when *I* think of SD,
camels always come to mind!!

Overheard At Dinner

Queen:  Okay, how about you eat half of your chicken and we will call it good?

Princess #3:  I can't.

Queen:  quizzical pause

Princess #3: (in all non-sarcastic seriousness) There are three and you can't divide three in half, Mama.

Queen: (between giggles) That is correct . . . glad someone is paying attention during math!!  Now eat these pieces, my dear Miss Literal!!

Castle Randomness

We here at the Castle, just enjoyed a wonderful visit with my next youngest sister and her family! What a treat! Now, however, I am tired, a good, happy tired, so here are so random bits for you from the Castle Farm:

1. The wild blackberries are ripe. Super yum!

2. Four pies, one cobbler, one custard, and 5 gallon ziplocs worth of yumminess.

3. Lots of beautiful webs were seen in the bushes, the spiders on said webs, not so much.

4. Princess #1 and I did the best we could, but after a while we were pretty sure, that every rustle we heard was going to be Shelob (a little LOTR reference for you), so we hightailed it out of there with our berries.

5. The rustling was most likely the cows, but who could rightly say? {grin}

6. Speaking of the cows, we had our first fence go down today because of the bovines.

7. Fixing fence=not fun. I plan to reward the fixers with one of the previously mentioned blackberry pies and fresh whipped cream.

8. I am in the midst of another mystery knit. So far, the jury is out, but I will say this, super interesting knit! Pictures to come.

9. I am working on a giveaway here on the blog, it will of course, be knitting related, so stay tuned.

10. I ate a lot of mama humble pie this past week.

11. I despise that bitter taste it leaves in my mouth.

12. However, through the servings, I was reminded of an important parenting lesson. One that I was failing at, which is, simply, when you give instructions to your wee ones, it is important to explain how to do the task. For instance, if I tell my daughter to clean up her room, it may not get completed, because I didn't explain what my definition of a clean room is: put your clothes away, put your toys in the box, etc.

13. Laundry is calling my name.

14. Why does he have to be so blinking insistent?

15. Yes, my laundry is a he.

16. The goldfinches love the feeder on the deck, so do the house finches and the sparrows. And one little hummingbird keeps trying.

17. Guess, we need to make her some food too, and find a feeder.

18. Looks like the fencing crew is making their way home, better quick fold some laundry and slice the berry goodness. Thanks for putting up with the random, dear readers.

Happiness Can Be . . .

. . . having a friend say that they can't relate to what you are going through.

Let me explain.  I think that sometimes when I listen to a friend pour out her heart about whatever is going on in her life (kids, marriage, just plain life sucking), that I can have this tendency to be to quick to run a quick comparison of my own life (while listening, of course (ha!)), and as a result, too easily relate to the problems that she may be dealing with my own life experiences.

Granted as women, we tend to be helpers, it is how God wired us to be.  We want our friends to know that we have been there and that we "get" what they are going through, which don't get me wrong, is much needed, most of the time.  That being said, I have had friends share things that I don't get.  Horrible life experiences, that I have been spared thus far in my journey, things like miscarriage, marriages on the rocks, children with severe handicaps, and so on.  To them, I think beyond a listening ear, the best words I can give them are,

"I cannot relate to

what is going on in your life right now.

Tell me how to better understand." 

I heard those words last night from a friend, and it was a balm to my soul.  I am so glad that she can't relate, because I wouldn't wish what was discussed on anyone!!  But to hear those words was like a warm blanket of reassurance.  Even though she couldn't relate, she was invested enough in me, to want to hear about my journey.  And that was such a blessing.

Happiness Is . . .

. . . living in denial.

I am making pie when I should be packing and organizing for this road trip.  And yesterday we made homemade ice cream from strawberries freshly picked from the garden.  I wonder what food creation I can come up with for tomorrow. {grin}

Don't worry, the knitting has begun to be thoughtfully packed, I have a sweater I'm knitting for car knitting, a pair of socks to finish for when I need a little easy something, and a fun hat or two that I am bringing along, just in case.

Mmmm . . . pie . . .

In A Word

Several years ago, I was given a word.

Unbeknownst to the giver, 

this word changed my perspective on certain

aspects of my life that I had just

chalked up to "sometimes life sucks".

What word, you ask?

grief.

Grief has always meant to me sadness,

like over the loss of a loved one.
However, through the words of this wise woman,
I came to see it as a bigger word.
A more encompassing word.
It became my word.

She was talking about her son and his battle with cancer.
He was victorious, but she was grieving.
This caught my attention.
She said she mourned the loss of those years
of his young life that he spent getting well.
Instead of having a "normal" life,
they lived in and out of hospitals, waiting with bated breath
as to what the latest test results would bring.
And it broke her heart.

When she gave me these words I had
just begun feeding the Prince the supplemental bottles.

And I was angry. Well, heartbroken, really.

She told me that it was grief talking.
Grief that things didn't go as planned or pictured.

When she gave me these words I was just
entering the worst stretch of time
that I have ever had with my spirited child.

And I was frustrated and exhausted.
Already.
Little did I know . . .

This time, I knew it was grief talking.
Grief that this child has such huge hang-ups,
that I am still not sure will be overcome,
about such seemingly simple things, like getting dressed.
Grief that her siblings and I had to figure out how to graciously
deal with the temperament that God had given to this child,
rather than just sit back and enjoy the ride passively.

Her wise words gave me the understanding that I needed to be free to mourn.
And with that freedom has eventually come joy!

Psalm 30:11
You have turned my griefs into joy; you took off my sackcloth
and you clothed me with joy!

A Wee Bit of a Rant

I have a thing about parenting advice.

Unsolicited, that is.

I can usually handle it pretty well.

However, I do love to rant about it later.

{grin}

Today at the dentist's office,

the young dentist that is checking

Princess #3's teeth, tells me that

she is ready to have some

permanent teeth sealed as well as

a filling that is needed to fill a

"dimple" in one of her permanent teeth.

I ask him if she will need to be

numbed up for the procedure.

He says no, she shouldn't need to be.

It is purely preventative.

I say, okay, great, I like to prepare

her ahead of time for what is to come.

He replies with this little gem:

It is better to *not* tell your kids anything

and just let us handle it.

[Queen's side note:  Boy would I pay big money to see him handle 

a baby fit.  Big money, dear friends.]

Really??

Excuse me, but  that is *not* how I parent.

If any of my kids ask if something (like a shot) is gonna hurt.

I tell them yes, but you can handle it.

Not in a mean way, like, suck it up sister, 

but in an honest way, so they know what to expect.

I don't shrug and feign like I don't know.

This honesty is especially important for my spirited child.

She needs to know every single detail in order

to have success during her day.

I try to comply. {grin}

I am willing to admit that maybe my parenting style

could perhaps, maybe be, an oddity, but

I do feel strongly that giving my kids a "head's up"

about what to expect at a doctor or dentist appointment

gives them a chance to process and prepare

for what may be.

So, super sorry, Dr.
I'm telling.

Real Castle Life: Rest Time Today

So, the Prince is slowly growing out of needing a daily nap, but as you know, the Queen strictly observes a daily rest time here at the Castle.  Today was one of those non-napping days.  I tucked him into bed with lots of books, his tag reader, a magnet board to play with, well, you get the picture.  Boredom would be his choice.

Forty-five minutes later, he was released when his special clock turned yellow.

This is what the Queen spies:

One naked Prince.

One disheveled bed.

One empty dresser.

This is what the Queen smells:

Butt powder.

Vicks baby rub.

Missing from view:

The books.

The tag reader.

The magnet board.

When asked the eternal question WHY, for the love of Pete, WHY???

The Prince answered:  You can't put butt powder on your clothes mama. 

 Just on your butt.