A Kitten

I'm not sure what has happened to me.

Do we mellow as we age?

I was always so strict about certain things.

Especially the notion of 'animals in the house'.

I don't want animals in my house.  But it seems to happen...and it seems to be happening more often.

When Johanna was young, she would spend hours in the barn with the kittens.  Then she would come in and beg me to let her bring a kitten into the house.  The answer would always be NO.  I had enough to clean up after without cleaning up after an animal.

I even remember Johanna saying, "When you die Mom, I'm bringing kittens into the house."

I think I answered with "fine by me.  sounds good."

But this picture was taken on the weekend....by Sophie.

Yes.  There is a kitten in my house.

How this happened I don't know.  I don't understand it.

But it certainly isn't going to be staying in the house.

And of course Johanna has decided that these little girls get away with everything.  And I need to lay down the law.  And they aren't being raised with all the rules that she was raised with.

Because there is a kitten in my house.

There is a kitten....and we are using the fine china.

Things are out of control.

Brenda

Grandma Rosie!

Rosie became a grandmother on Saturday morning!  Patricia gave birth to a beautiful big girl.

It's very hard to take good, clear pictures of lambs....they are continuously moving and jumping...

This sweet black lamb was born early Friday morning.

And this lamb was born on Thursday evening while we were away at a 4-H Sheep meeting.

The maternity ward is filling back up....and the alarm clock is going off at 1 a.m. again.

Brenda

Getting out the China

Sophie and Lydia have been asking for 'glass' plates at suppertime.  The plastic princess plates are just not cuttin' it anymore.

And at breakfast Sophie needs a glass bowl for her cereal.  Plastic will not do.

The trouble was that the glass bowls and plates were all out of their reach.  I had them all in a higher cupboard above the counter.  All the plastic bowls and plates and cups were in a big drawer below the counter...perfect for their reach.

But this wasn't working anymore.

So I rearranged the big drawer...and got rid of the plastic plates....and I moved all the glass plates and bowls into the drawer.  Problem solved....they can get what they need.

But then I had an empty space in the cupboard above....what was I going to put in there?

I did something totally outrageous.

I got out the good china that I received as wedding gifts and put it in the cupboard.

For us to use.  Everyday.

When the older kids had their turn opening the cupboard, I loved the reactions.

"WHERE did these plates come from?"

"Are you going to let US use these?"

"I have never seen these plates before."

When we were married....nearly 17 years ago....I registered.  I went to Eganville.  I went into Star Set Jewellers and I picked out a china pattern and a silverware pattern for cutlery and a crystal pattern for glasses/stemware.  That's where everyone 'registered'.  I wasn't going to register because I figured what would I do with all that stuff anyway....but then people encouraged me to register....so I did.  It was a few years later that everyone started registering at Sears or the Bay...for all the regular household things that they needed....and to me that just makes much more sense.  But I didn't have that option at the time.

So we ended up with this beautiful set of china plates and I had no idea what to do with them.  I decided that they must only be used for special occasions.

That's a little bit anal.

I got them out for Johanna's baptism and then I hid them away again.

And they have been hidden away.....for nearly 17 years.

Until now.

Why did I not use them?....I have no idea.  But I just realized that if I don't use them someone else is eventually going to use them....and it won't end up being me....and that's just ridiculous because they are my plates!

AND I bought a box of assorted drinking glasses at an auction sale a few years ago.  I hadn't really looked in the box before I bought it but I was really pleased when I saw that a few of them were the cornflower pattern that my Grandma Helferty had.

So I sort of put those up where no one would really use them....because they were like my Grandma's.  But they weren't actually my Grandma's.  But they were being kept 'safe'.

That's a little bit anal.

Guess what?

I'm using those cornflower drinking glasses.

I don't what's gotten into me.....but I'm just walking on the wild side.

And I'm turning 40 this year....that might have something to do with it.

Brenda

A Cake with a Clothesline for a Baby Shower

I made a cake on the weekend.

It was for a baby shower.

The only request was that it be half chocolate and half white.....enough to feed 30 people.

"Put whatever you want on it."......I LOVE it when people say that!

Here is a little video from start to finish...

And here is the finished cake.

I had so much fun putting this all together.  So many little details.

Brenda

Easter

Easter weekend.

My favourite part?  The Easter Vigil Mass on Saturday night.  The dark church with an alter adorned in Easter lilies....the fire burning outside and then the procession of light.  The Helferty's singing in their angelic voices.  The blessing of the holy water and then the renewal of our baptismal promises.  This Mass is so very powerful.  Alleluia!  Jack served.  Johanna read.  Grady and Terry were ushers.  The girls and I took up the gifts at the last minute...because I noticed that no one else was going to do it.

Then it was home to bed with visions of chocolate eggs in our heads.

All alarms went off at 4 a.m.  It was Johanna and Grady's morning to milk.  They started a part time job back in November at a dairy barn.  They milk cows a couple of times a week after school and then once on the weekend.

I'm not sure who was the first down the stairs....it might have been Sophie.  She came bounding into my room all excited.  The Easter Bunny had come!  I asked her to get in bed with me and try and go back to sleep.  I think she might of....for a few minutes.  But I think she got in and out of the bed a few times....and back downstairs.

The phone rang at 6:30 a.m.....they were ready to be picked up from milking.  Terry went to pick them up....and then the real chocolate eating began.

While I was cooking brunch, Sophie asked me what one L B meant.  I told her that I had no idea...what did it mean?  And she said that she really didn't know....she was hoping that I knew.  I had no idea what she was talking about.  ONE L B?  Then Jack chimed in "It means one pound.  It's written on the package of her chocolate bunny.  Thanks Jack....I should have gotten that one....but I didn't get a chocolate bunny.

I served Easter brunch at 10:30 a.m. and no one was really in the mood to eat.  Lydia said that she thought she was going to puke....and I figured that she had chocolate fever.  I didn't feel so great myself.

By 1:00 p.m., I was thinking that maybe I was coming down with the flu......Terry and the boys were just recovering from it.

But it was a beautiful day and all my siblings and their families were at the camp.  They were boiling the last of the sap and I wanted to join them.

Snacks came out and Lydia ate...she was hungry because she hadn't eaten brunch....because she had eaten too much chocolate.....now she was eating chips!

By 4:00 p.m. both Lydia and I were back home asleep on the couch.

She had "I ate too much junk all day" sore stomach.

I had the flu.

We both missed Easter supper at my Mom and Dad's.

Brenda

Snow and some Prayers

Yesterday it froze rain with big ice pellets.

And then it snowed.  A LOT.

I wore my toque for the entire day.

Sophie asked if God was controlling this weather.  I told her that I wasn't sure but maybe she could talk to Him about it.  So she said that she would.  She was going to ask Him to bring Spring.

Hopefully He will answer her prayer.

The moon was full last night.  I looked like a January night when I looked out the window around 10 p.m.  The fields were all white with snow and the smoke was rolling out of the outdoor furnace.

This morning the sun came out and I heard the snow falling off of the roof.

It will melt.  And maybe the sap will run again!

I made this yesterday and put it up in the kitchen.

I just printed it out on a piece of scrapbooking paper and then laminated it with clear mack tac.

I went ahead and put it up even though I think it would look lovely framed in some barn board....but there are too many other things to do around here.

Brenda

Our Littlest Farmer

It was warm and windy today.

Lydia ate a steak sandwich for lunch.

Then she told Jack that SHE was going out to feed the lamb....and then they were going to work with his heifer.

She was planning his afternoon for him.

She has become Jack's side kick over the last few months.

I saw her come back to the house with the bottles and then she grabbed Jack's comb for the heifer.

He is teaching her everything he knows.

At first she was a little upset when her pink rubbers would become covered in 'crap'....but now she doesn't care.

She's getting things figured out.

She has also learned how to hit a ball....

AND she announced to me the other day that she knows WHO the REAL Easter bunny is!  I asked WHO?....and she said "It's Santa!...dressed in a bunny suit!"

Smart girl.

AND for some reason she has been given the nickname 'Jimmy'.

I'm not sure how that happened but it seems to suit.

Brenda

The Big Baby Cat

I took these photos last week....most of the snow is now melted.

But I wanted to share these because they are of this cat.

This cat was a kitten at the Farmhouse last summer.  He was loved all summer by many, many people that came to stay.

But look how much he grew!  He's so big now!

He likes to be held like a baby.

Lydia is a great photo bomber.

Lydia...you're going to drop the cat!

This cat has more patience than the average person.

Brenda

Rain....and Snow

I fell asleep with the sound of rain on our tin roof last night.

I haven't heard that sound in a very long time.

I thought.....woot woot rain!  the snow will be all washed away in the morning!

I was awakened a few times during the night and I heard the rain pouring down hard.

And I thought.....I hope there is no flooding.

Then I awoke again and I didn't hear anything.

And I thought....good.  the rain has stopped.

I was wrong.

The rain had turned to snow.

The snow was not all washed away.

The snow is still here.

 

It's not unusual for it to snow in April.

It's just not nice.

Brenda

Weekend Highlights

I made a cake.

It was for a gathering of 4-H leaders.

Terry let the cows and calves out onto the hill in the field...even though there is still snow. 

They needed to get out of the barnyard.

The girls received their medals for performing at the Irish Play in Pembroke.

I went out to the barn to see the lambs......and they have really grown!

And this happened.  I'm not sure how.

Ewe.

Brenda

Chirp and Cheep

Jack put some eggs in the incubator a few weeks ago and they hatched this week.

Of course the first thing that Sophie and Lydia asked was....Is it a boy or a girl?

And of course Jack answered...I don't know.

And the girls were very confused.  HOW do you not know?  HOW can that be?

They just wanted to name the chicks and they wanted to give them good names.

And they couldn't do that if they didn't know the sex of the chick.

One of life's mysteries....How to sex a chick?

I remember walking into the kitchen a couple of years ago and the boys were on the laptop.  I asked them what they were doing and they said  "Just finding out 'How to sex a chick."  WHAT.  My heart skipped a beat.

They didn't find the answer on google.  It's just not something that's easy to do.

But you can buy a whole flat of day old pullets (girls) at the feed store.....so someone out there actually sexes chicks for a living. 

He must have really good eyes.

Anyways....a couple of them have been named.

I think this one is Chirp.

And this one is Cheep.

Brenda