First Day of Summer Vacation!

School's out!  Summer vacation officially begins today.  We have lots of plans and much to accomplish before school resumes on August 22.  We'll be seeing many baseball games, as both boys play.  I'll be cruising Alaska, spending a week with family on the Lake of the Ozarks, and a trip to Wisconsin, plus a few special occasion dates and some spontaneous short trips.  Bobbie and I are considering another destination undetermined "Sib Trip".  I have several landscaping ideas in addition to the dry waterway project I've dreamed of for a few years. I figure mowing and weed control will be an option should I find myself with nothing to do. I'll be documenting my summer activities with photos here. Ready, set, GO!

Building Docks

We've made good progress.  Three sections are finished and on the water with one more to do probably tomorrow afternoon. 

Hey Diddle Diddle....

Did you know that rabbits swim?  Today, while mowing near the pond I saw baby rabbits swimming!  I suspect that they'd been hiding in the tall grass when startled by the mower and took to the water to escape.  I had never seen a rabbit swim and would never have expected to see such a sight.  In fact, I believe I'd have been no less surprised to see a cat with a fiddle, a cow jump over the moon, a little dog laugh, or a dish run off with a spoon.  Rabbits swimming!  What you see when you're not carrying a camera! 

Pond Fun

"If a picture paints a thousand words..."
Need I say more?
What a fun day!





Maybe I should mention that these pictures were taken on April Fool's Day. After a fine Sunday dinner at Mom and Dad's we all played in the water! Pretty unusual to have such warm weather so early.

Destination Wedding Site ... Reasonable!

 Polliwog Beach!

 Are you planning a wedding? Consider getting married on the beach!  Polliwog Beach has a nice sandy shoreline, lovely clear water, picnic tables and a dock.  With special arrangements, you could even have the wedding party paddle away in kayaks.  With the beach rental, you also get valet parking, an open campfire, hot dogs, buns, chips, marshmallows and cold pop.  Wedding cake is not included in the price, but we will provide wedding cake and mints for extra fees. Kayaks are available for rent.  No extra charge for the polliwogs in attendance. Call soon to book your reservations as we expect to fill our calendar very quickly!

Beyond the Sunset....

Such beauty! Every time I see the beauty of creation I consider our Creator! Praise Him!






Our ponds are at very low levels, but we have already enjoyed being on the water several times. We paddled on March 16 and several times since. April Fool's day was very warm and sunny and we spent the whole afternoon swimming and paddling around in the kayaks.
We purchased the supplies to start building the dock yesterday.
Just 30 days of school left, and then off for the summer!

Happy Birthday to Tyler...

Thirty eight years ago, we were full of joy and excitement about our new baby boy! He was the cutest baby ever, and we loved him so much! As a matter of fact, we still love him "so much"! Happy birthday, Tyler!

Eagles, Crows and Other Stuff

We celebrated birthdays yesterday. Both Mom and Dad were born on January 20 a few decades ago. We picked up pizza and partied at their house with plenty of food and played Tripoley. Lynn didn't make the birthday party, because he was in southern Missouri for a wedding. His wedding! He and Karen were married at 5 PM and called a little after 6PM to say happy birthday to Mom and Dad.



This morning I looked out the window and saw literally hundreds of crows walking all over the pasture just south of our barn. Along with all those crows was one bald eagle watching the crows from the top of the sycamore tree.


From the distance, he appeared to be rather like Zacheous, a wee little eagle, but only because he was so far away. I took pictures through the windows mostly because if I went out, they'd have all flown away, but also because I didn't really want to bundle up and go out just yet.

New News

Since early December, I've been working at school as a One on One Associate. I'm enjoying the experience and I'm learning (or relearning) some things that I probably should have remembered from my high school days. I still drive the bus route, which means I'm gone all day. Dennis is doing a good job of taking care of everything at home. He now does all his work as well as much of mine.
It's been a wonderfully mild winter so far. We've had very few really cold days, and very little snow. We've had none of the ice like the past two winters yet, and I hope we can skip that altogether!
Our preacher started a new sermon series at the beginning of the year which he's calling "Fresh Starts". I'm not sure it would be quite right to say we've enjoyed the sermons, but we're finding them quite convicting. In addition to the excellent preaching at church, I just finished reading a book by Kyle Idleman, "Not A Fan". I highly recommend it if you've not read it. Currently I'm reading Francis Chan's "Crazy Love".
This weekend begins the annual "Bald Eagle Appreciation Days" in Keokuk. They'll have a live bird show, Indian "Pow-Wow" events, lots of interesting displays and certainly many opportunities for eagle viewing. In the past, I've taken the third grade classes to Keokuk for the day and seen the bird shows. I've always enjoyed it, but this year will not be driving the bus since I am no longer available for day trips. Maybe we'll get there on Saturday.

Monday Morning

Wow! What a weekend! Friday night we helped celebrate Zach's birthday. Saturday morning, we were off to Ottumwa for a full day of science fair activities. Zach's team competed with the Lego robot they built, presented a skit and were interviewed by the judges. There were many schools represented and his team won the research award. Way to go, Central! Saturday night we played poker. Sunday afternoon was spent racing through the Quincy mall. Shopping is not really an activity I like to do, yet with Christmas just three weeks away, it must be done. Of course, going with the kids, I didn't really get any shopping done, but I did get some good ideas for when I go alone. The boys made out like bandits. Zach found a new coat, Wyatt new shoes, and numerous other things. Mostly, the boys and I raced up and down the escalators and played games.
Today will be my first "official" day on the job. I was offered the position at school and accepted.