DAY 212

The Curse of the Cankers...

("An aphthous ulcer, also known as a canker sore, is a type of oral ulcer, which presents as a painful open sore inside the mouth or upper throat caused by a break in the mucous membrane.")

Over the last 16 plus years I've been with Haldan this has been a common theme in his mouth. The poor guy usually has at least one, often times more than one at a time. I don't know how he copes. I've only had a handful in my entire life and they are nothing like the ones he gets. Sometimes he modifies his food or chews on one side or the other, but there's been very few times that I've actually heard him complain. For those of you who have heard about Haldan's infamous cankers, I posted a picture so you could check one of them out. Pokey has also inherited the curse. She has had numerous canker sores. She just recently got rid of one. She's not as tolerant or quiet about it as Haldan.

While Haldan was in the Navy they used silver nitrate sticks on his canker sores to heal them. He said it hurt like the dickens, but cauterized it and helped it heal faster and hurt less. He's been out of the Navy almost 11 years now and he's been told everything from "they are not approved by the FDA" to "never heard of them". Well, two days ago he had a routine dermatologist appointment and he happened to mention it to his doctor. This young doctor knew exactly what he was talking about and wrote him a prescription. Target pharmacy ordered it in and today I picked them up with a $5 copay. His search is over and tonight he was finally able to use one again. For those of you out there who are also canker sore sufferers you know that there is very little relief available for these ulcer like lesions. Very little is know about their cause, except that they might be hereditary or due to stress or food allergies. Haldan's tried it all: l-lysine, anbesol and many other numbing agents, crushed up aspirin or benadryl to the lesion, etc. Nothing helps them or heals them, but time.

Well, today Little Man joins the "cursed" in this household. He came down with his first canker sore. Haldan says it's in one of the most painful spots, right under the tongue. It rubs against his teeth and makes it painful to speak or chew. If you look closely it's in the front part of his tongue in the first photo above.

I feel so bad that they have to go through this pain so often. Mouths are constantly moist, full of saliva and bacteria. This makes it difficult to not only medicate cankers, but also heal them. We've tried about everything available, but we're always open to new ideas.

DAY 211

“People rarely succeed unless they have fun in what they are doing.” -Dale Carnegie

Such was the case today. The kids got their $3.00 coupons for their birthdays from Toys R Us, so we went out tonight to pick out a toy. Pokey had to get an advance on her allowance (since she lost her $10 in her purse) and Little Man had just finished detailing the interior of the car (for his $2.50). He had a grand total of $15.00 (including his $3.00 coupon). After almost an hour of trying to decide what to spend their money on Pokey got a Littlest Pet Shop and Little Man a Webkinz.

Now to my point. While I was there I decided to buy them some hula hoops. They were on sale. We stopped at the school on the way home to try them out. Pokey loved it and was good right away and Little Man really never took to it. Pokey ended up with both of them. Maybe it's a physical limitation boys have? It does require a little skill to be able to move those hips like that, but Little Man really didn't give it much of a chance. At least one of them enjoyed it.

DAY 210

So, I was weeding under my pussy willow in the front yard this afternoon and I felt something in my hair. I looked down and there was a baby mouse on the ground. At that moment I realized that the mouse must have dropped from the tree and swept through my hair in his downward spiral. I was instantaneously grossed out! I froze for a brief moment until I managed a scream. All I could think to say is "help." I'm learning that I'm not that great in crisis mode.

Haldan and the kids came over to investigate and we heard other mice up in the tree. They were living in the existing bird's nest. Haldan tried to shake the tree and the mother came flying out of the tree directly at him whacking into his shin. He said he screamed like a girl in his mind. He is not one to easily get freaked out, but he was freaked out. I could tell. Haldan threw her into the woods. Then we tried to get the rest of the babies out. They were so tiny and innocent and the kids and I had a hard time letting them go. Haldan convinced us they carried all kinds of diseases and that we needed to dump them, so the kids put them on the compost pile. The rest of the day I kept finding them checking up on them. They were very alarmed when one of them went missing.

Another one of the joys of living near the woods.

DAY 209

“There are basically two types of people. People who accomplish things, and people who claim to have accomplished things. The first group is less crowded.” -Mark Twain

Today Pokey must have gone down the blue slide at least 5 times. She's come a long way since last summer. Once she makes up her mind there's no stopping her. Now if she would only decide to go down the yellow slide.

In other news:

Our tenants have decided they do not want to purchase the home in October and if we won't extend the lease another year they are moving. We are not sure we can afford to lose another $10,000 to keep them in the home, but if we can't sell it we are in even more trouble. I'm almost positive they never intended to finish the backyard or buy the house. Our contract states that if they don't finish the backyard by Oct 1 they owe us $3,000. Any thoughts?

The kids started swim lessons yesterday and so far so good. Little Man has decided to take the Guppy class over even though he passed it last year. He's not a super confident swimmer and I think it's a good choice. We'll see. Pokey seems to be excelling at a faster pace, but I'm proud of Little Man's improvements and determination. He's finally doing bobs. Not great ones, but they're bobs none the less.

The weather has cooperated and allowed us to have two consecutive pool days, but it looks like cooler weather is in the forcast the next week or so. What's up with this weather?

DAY 208

"A friend is one who knows us, but loves us anyway."

-Fr. Jerome Cummings

DAY 207

"The only thing we have to fear is fear itself."

-Franklin D. Roosevelt

We went to Grant's Farm today in St Louis. Pokey exhibited a phobia that doesn't even have a known name, at least one I can find... goats! In Pokey's defense these were some very aggressive goats that actually tried to eat my hair and my pants. When Haldan wouldn't lower the bottles down they untied his shoes to try to trick him into bending down.

You wouldn't be able to tell from this picture, but Pokey did manage to overcome her phobia after about 45 minutes. She screamed so loud that we let her go back outside the fenced area. After watching for a while she finally got up the nerve to feed them through the fence. Then we convinced her to come back in. She was still scared and made daddy hold her for some time. It was gradual baby steps, but by the end of our goat visit she brushed them and fed them by herself inside the enclosure. She definitely keeps us on our toes. Never would have seen this one coming. Sure wish I'd captured it on video. This is definitely not the best quality photo, but the memory is priceless. I actually had my camera on the wrong setting when I started shooting, so they turned out very dark.

DAY 206

The St Louis Gateway Arch is a structure known as a catenary curve, the shape a free-hanging chain takes when held at both ends, and considered the most structurally-sound arch shape. The span of the Arch legs at ground level is 630 feet, the same as its height.

We decided to have a quick weekend getaway to St Louis. It's been a very long, fun filled day, but I must admit going up in the arch was my least favorite part. We waited in a line in the heat for at least 30 minutes to get through security. Then we had to get in a long line for tickets. There was an hour and a half wait until the next tickets were available, so we opted to get them for later at 8PM and have dinner first. We had to go back through security and then wait in another line. To make a long story shorter, we were totally deceived. Part of the 8PM decision making process was based on the fact that the ticket attendant told us there would be no wait. We waited for almost an hour before we finally made it to the top. By that time it was dark outside and all of my pictures turned out blurry. I was hoping for some daylight with a nice sunset. While waiting some little girl stepped on my ankle and I snapped at her out of pain. Haldan thought I had overreacted, but I was thinking about the mile walk home with an injured ankle. When we got to the top there were so many people that it was difficult to even move, let alone get a picture. The good news was that we made it out in time to at least get the fireworks finale that was going on tonight.

During dinner I talked to my children about putting things in perspective because there has been so much whining over such trivial matters lately. I told them that the next time they bugged each other or got upset about something they needed to rate it on a scale of 1 to 10 and think about the importance it had in an eternal perspective. Well, tonight on the way home Haldan tried to remind me of this very thing I had talked about.

Life is hard. Things don't always work out as planned and then we get frustrated. I was excited about the prospect of getting an amazing St Louis picture at sunset from the arch. It didn't happen, I had an unexpected, extremely long wait, feeling claustropobic all the while, but... the children had fun. I guess if I rated it on a scale it wouldn't be above a 5, but it felt like a 10 at the time. So, I guess the moral of this story is that I'm a hypocrite and need to practice what I preach as hard as it may be at times. Oh, and we need to get tickets online next time.

I'm taking deep breaths and going to try to lower my expectations for tomorrow.

DAY 205

"It takes seventeen muscles to smile and forty-three to frown." Author Unknown

DAY 204

"A child can always teach an adult three things: to be happy for no reason, to always be busy with something, and to know how to demand with all his might that which he desires." -Paulo Coelho, The Fifth Mountain

This picture is very fitting as the sum of our fishing excursion. I myself got out 2 snags and must have cleaned up at least 5 or 6 tangles. The one above took me nearly 15 minutes. Haldan barely had time to fish and still remained very patient with the children. They caught a grand total of 3 bass. Seems like a lot of work for 3 small fish that weren't even big enough to keep, but I think everyone had a good time. It was the first day it has felt like summer, at least for me. Yesterday it almost got up to 80 and today hit somewhere in the mid 80s. With the humidity it is finally feeling like summer. Hope it's here to stay. We definitely took advantage of the warmer day. We fished for a few hours in Palo, went to the splash pad at Cleveland Park, and then hit the Cherry Hill Pool until they closed at 5PM. It was a full day in the sun!

This picture was in the running for the pic of the day, so I thought I should share it too. She did a wonderful job with her pop-Rs. She's a natural.

This isn't the greatest picture, but I liked it because I was able to get all four of us in the picture through the rear view mirror.

Little Man got the biggest fish of the day. He's becoming a seasoned fisherman.

DAY 203

"Love the moment, and the energy of that moment will spread beyond all boundaries." -Corita Kent

Baptism Invitation

Pokey's baptism is open to all who would like to come. Due to the cost I only printed 20 copies, so if you don't get an invite in the mail know that we would love to have you come. It will be August 9th at 7:00PM at the stake center. I will also post the invitation at the church.

DAY 202

“One thing a mother must always save for a rainy day is patience.” -Unknown

It was a long, dreary day here today. It rained all day long. We actually slept in past 9AM and didn't leave the house once. Kinda nice in that way, but the children can think of naughty things to do when they're bored. They never say it (the B-O-R-E-D word) in our house or they are fined a quarter, but they don't have to say it for me to recognize the signs... tormenting, acting like a 3 year old, being whiny, etc. So, I tried to find things that would fill large gaps of time. The game "life" took up a huge chunk. We even finished it this time. Usually one of the kids will lose interest or get upset before it's over. Little Man won as usual. Is it just a coincidence that he's always the banker?

We also watched, "Are We Done Yet" on demand. I got a little caught up on laundry (even though there's no such thing) and the kids and I worked more on their b-day and baptism invites.

This is the children's friend party year, so I've opted to try to keep things simple. They are both going to do the parties away from home where cake, decorations, and entertainment is provided. The draw back is that there is a limit on the number of children who can attend, so both of the kids were able to invite 8 friends of their choosing.

DAY 201

I know, not my conventional picture of the day. I do actually have one pic in there from today, but it's with my point and shoot. It's the photo in the middle with Little Man inside the yellow tube. We went over to Noelridge Pool late in the day because I had an errand on that side of town. It's not the pool we normally go to and when we arrived we ran into the Callisters. Totally weird, they were just getting there as well. Pokey was thrilled.

I guess there's two reasons for this picture of the day. One, I'm getting bored with one picture a day so I wanted to mix it up. Two, I've been trying to convince myself that it really is summer. I gathered random pictures from the last two weeks that didn't make the POTD cut. We have done lots of fun things, it's just been unusually cool and hasn't always felt like summer. Today was the high of 76 degrees. The pool was cool, but doable.

Other highlights include: Little Man & friends making a bottle rocket, puzzles on rainy days, ice cream with cousins, pioneer day games with friends, yummy burgers, scootering, hangin with neighbor kids, making sand castles at playgroup, running, blowing bubbles, trying new goggles, playing on the slip n slide, getting more brave in the water, and baking with Dad. Definitely fun summer things.

We've even gotten a little lazy as of late. This is the first summer I can remember that the kids have slept til at least 8AM. I've been sleeping as long as they allow and lovin it!

Today we went running as a family again down at Donnelly Park in Marion and we only ran about 1.5 miles. I haven't run in a good couple weeks now and it was hard. Little Man ran with me and was giving me breathing pointers and kept saying, "This is such an easy run." He of course blew right by me at the end and left me in the dust. I wish I had that kind of effortless energy. I feel a little embarrassed that my 9 year old son is giving me running pointers and making me look bad. Maybe that's just the incentive I need to get my butt in gear though.

DAY 200

"The sacred lamp of day Now dipt in western clouds his parting day." -William Falconer

I made it 200 days. Can you believe it? Tonight we visited with Haldan's friend Mike at his lovely home. He shared his salsa and his beautiful sunset from the back deck. Breathtaking views. Thanks Mike.

DAY 199

Pioneer Day is an official Utah state holiday celebrated on July 24th. It commemorates the entry of Brigham Young and the first group of Pioneers into the Salt Lake Valley on July 24, 1847, where the Latter-Day Saints settled after being forced from Nauvoo, Illinois.

Every year our stake, along with most in the country, celebrates pioneer day on or near this date. Today the Cedar Rapids stake had their annual picnic at Thomas Park. It was another cool day in the low 60s and breezy. I knew I should have brought a jacket half way there. I stayed two hours all the while enduring goosebumps and when I couldn't feel 3 of my fingers I decided to it was time to leave, but Little Man went missing. I frantically called Haldan who suggested he might be by the creek. After searching for some time I located him down by the creek, just as Haldan had predicted.

One of my friends forgot her camera and asked if I could photograph her daughter in her pioneer clothes. I didn't ask, but assumed that she had sewn it herself. That's one of her gifts.

I thought it would be a neat effect to age the photo, but I learned that it's pretty tricky business. I've been working for years to master perfecting photos and fixing aged ones and now I'm trying to age them myself. Seems ironic, but I like the result.

In other news, Haldan participated in his 2nd bass fishing tournament today. He caught a 2 lb, 16 in small mouth bass. He got home in time for Pokey's meltdown at dinner. She was late, complained about what we were eating, and then whined. The short version- "love and logic" has failed us with this one. She cried for several hours before finally crying herself to sleep.

DAY 198

"The family that plays together stays together."

Today was the first Friday Haldan's had off in some time. It was a cool day, so we had to think of indoor activities. It was supposed to be a high of 68 degrees, but I don't think it even made that today. It was breezy and it felt more like fall than a summer day in mid July. So, for those of you out there who still believe in global warming, come visit Iowa. We've had record low temps through the winter, particularly February and now tonight we're supposed to see record lows as well. I'm still patiently waiting for the warming part to happen. I'm not sure what to blame this on, perhaps weather trends/patterns, but global warming seems idiotic, at least to me.

They have dollar games every Friday morning til noon at Westdale Bowl, so we decided to take advantage of it. The kids were fun to watch. They both have their own unique style that is undeniably their own. The way Pokey threw the ball always resulted with a strange hook that caused one or two pins to fall down, usually to the right. Little Man had a little more form, but he too would drop the ball at the end which would cause unpredicatable outcomes. Neither of them wanted us to show them differently. Kids can be funny that way. We played two games and they improved a little with the second. The important thing is that we all had some good laughs and we enjoyed our time together, even if we're not pro bowlers.

Lemon Bars

Crust:
1 cup butter
1 3/4 cup flour
2/3 cup confectioner's sugar (plus more for dusting)

Topping:
1 1/2 cup plain sugar
1/4 cup flour
1 tsp baking powder
4 eggs, slightly beaten
1/2 cup lemon juice

Preheat oven to 350 degrees
Grease and flour a 9 X 13 pan

To make crust:
In a medium bowl, whisk together flour and confectioner's sugar
Cut in butter until combined and crumbly.
Press mixture into bottom of pan.
Bake for 20 minutes or until golden.

To make topping:
While crust is baking, prepare topping.
In a larger bowl, add sugar, flour, and baking powder.
Then add slightly beaten eggs and lemon juice.
Mix well and pour on top of warm baked crust.
Bake for 20-25 minutes.
When cool, dust with confectioner's sugar and refrigerate.
Cut into bars and enjoy them cold!

This recipe comes from the kitchen of Sarah Blamires. Haven't tried it yet, but thought I'd pass it along. It sure looks yummy!

DAY 197

Grant Wood was an American painter born in Anamosa, IA. He is best known for his paintings depicting the rural American Midwest, particularly the painting American Gothic, an iconic image of the 20th century. -wikipedia

DAY 196

"The essential joy of being with horses is that it brings us in contact with the rare elements of grace, beauty, spirit, and fire." -Sharon Ralls Lemon

I'm too tired to decide which picture. I like the one with the flowers, but my husband likes the one without. I'm still mulling this one over. Feel free to share your thoughts. We saw these horses on the way to the pool today. Luckily we stopped when we did because they were gone on the way home.

We finally had a lovely day at the pool today. It was in the low 80s and it was the first day that it was sunny and I wasn't covered in goosebumps shivering. The kids both made amazing progress. They both did front flips in the water. This is a huge feat for Little Man. His fears are slowly fading.

On another note, today I'm putting the love and logic book to practice. I've been reading it again, desperate to find answers to help me be a better parent. Tonight my husband called the children to dinner, twice. Then I called them. They were watching something on the disney channel. We decided not to wait. We had given them three calls. We had a prayer and had eaten half of our dinner when they mosied up. We told them that they missed the window and that they were too late. Hard core. I was struggling. I've never made the children go without dinner before, but I had just read a chapter about this very thing and it is a constant problem at our home. Whether it's time to go or time to eat... they are never ready. After dinner we were going to watch "Inkheart" with movie snacks. They were able to watch, however no treats were given. We don't let them have treats if they don't eat dinner. Surprisingly there was very little squabbling about it. There was no yelling and it actually seemed more peaceful. We were not punishing them, rather this was a consequence of their doing. Now we wait and see if these extreme consequences measure up.

DAY 195

“The few wonders of the world only exist while there are those with the sight to see them.” -Charles de Lint

Where is July? I've been waiting for those warm, muggy days since back in December. I hear they had a few here the week I was away in TN, but since I've been home I have yet to see them. It's been cool and not very good pool weather. So, I've been resorting to other forms of entertainment. It's exhausting.

DAY 194

"A boy is a piece of skin stretched over an appetite." -Herbert Hoover

Today we ate at Subway and Little Man insisted on the foot long. Luckily they cut it in half for him and that kid ate every last bite. He's either about to go through a growth spurt or is developing quite an appetite. He's my kid that forgets to eat and that I have to bribe for after school snacks. But sit him down with food and he will chow.

It's kinda hard to tell from this photo, but the blackberry picking has led to an unpleasant case of poison ivy on his face. You can see it a little better in the photo below. The picture was taken early this morning before it spread more.

It started on his neck. We thought it was bug bites Sunday morning, but by this morning it was evident we were wrong. It had spread to his eye. This afternoon it had spread further under his eye and down his nose. By this evening he was calling me a freak because I was so overly concerned about him touching it. He's had it before, but never near his eye. He touches his eyes often, most likely due to allergies, hence the concerns. Right before bed we learned that it had spread to his arm. All efforts seemed futile. The doctor's office told me to not put any more hydrocortisone near his eye, so we gave him a dose of benadryl and sent him to bed. We have an appointment scheduled for 8:30AM tomorrow, so I'd better get to bed. I'm not sure the blackberry crumble was worth it.

The winners are...

June 1st Place Nature/Scenery Category is:

June 2nd Place Nature/Scenery Category is:

June 1st Place tie for People/Other Category is:

June 1st Place tie for People/Other Category is:

June 2nd Place People/Other Category is:

Thanks to all who voted. I know summer is a busy time and I appreciate you taking time out to participate.

DAY 193

“Each one of you has something no one else has, or has ever had: your fingerprints, your brain, your heart. Be an individual. Be unique. Stand out. Make noise. Make someone notice. That's the power of individuals.” -Jon Bon Jovi

Each of our children are so unique in their own right. Pokey has just been a little more vocal about it lately. She is a beautiful person, we just don't always see eye to eye. I admire her determination and her ability to know exactly what she wants. I'm sure these qualities will serve her well throughout her life.

The Shuleys took off early this morning. It was a very quick visit, but glad they could stop in. After church we had a nice nap and then we took an afternoon drive. We heard about a new BBQ place off of C St, so we started our drive in that direction. It's called Dry Heat BBQ. We didn't go far and we found ourselves surrounded by farmland. It was a beautiful day and the rolling hills covered in green were beautiful. I attempted some photos, but I couldn't seem to get high enough to capture the essence of it. I did manage to cause a stampede of cows though. I snapped a photo and for some reason the flash opened and they took off running. Haldan and the kids got a kick out of it. I've never seen anything quite like it. The picture definitely didn't do it justice. We also managed to finally used the blackberries that the kids have been picking off and on for the last couple weeks. We decided on a blackberry crumble because we didn't have enough for jam and we thought it would be easier than pie. Both the kids helped and it turned out yummy. Little Man decided that he liked my apple crisp better because there are no seeds.

DAY 192

"Life is a rough biography. Memories smooth out the edges." -Dante G. Roque

This POTD (pic of the day) is definitely more about the memory than the photo. My sister Tonya and her family stopped through on their way to Colorado. They made it around 2:30PM and we hung out for a while at the house, had dinner, and then decided to take the boat out on the river for a quick spin. Before we even got out on the water there was someone in need of a jump, so Dave stayed behind and helped for about 20 minutes trying to help. We made a quick loop and then there was a boat in distress. Haldan slammed on the brakes (or let off the gas) and about sent me and my camera overboard. That boat had run out of gas and so we gave him a tow back. We hadn't even made another full loop before we found another stranded boat out of gas. Haldan gave him a tow and before we finished the long, slow ride back in the kids had expired. There was hitting and pushing and all sorts of silliness (and naughtiness) going on. They were all ready to get off the boat. While towing the 2nd boat in we saw a 3rd boat rowing his way back to shore. He, too, had run out of gas. If we could have taken the short, fast spin as planned it would have gone over a lot better with the kids, as it was, it was too slow and too long. 3 mph just doesn't cut it with kids!! Haldan says we were paying it forward. I was in no mood to pay it forward today. I guess the moral of the story is: make sure you have plenty of gas.

DAY 191

“Good relationships get in big fights over big things and little fights over little things, but great relationships get in big fights over little things and little fights over big things.”

I thought a quote about fighting would be appropriate for this pic because the kids never made it to the end of this game. Pokey started whining when Little Man took two of her checkers in one turn. She thought that was unfair. Her whine turned into a cry and it lasted long enough to earn her an hour in her room. Maybe the evening swim time slot is too late for the kids. They totally have me miffed. This morning upon waking I found them playing together nicely in the playroom. I told them they needed to do their chores. They promptly told me they were already done. They earned 4 legos each for our "building a firm foundation" bucket for a wonderful morning. But in a split second it can all turn. They remind me of Dr Jeckyl and Mr. Hyde. Don't know if they are too much alike or too different, but nice moments are short lived around here lately. I'm not quite sure how else to encourage kindness. I'm hoping it's just a phase and that one day they can be friends for longer than moments. On a side note, Little Man is really good at checkers these days. He beat me twice earlier in the day. The 2nd time I gave it a little more thought and he still beat me. It's a little embarrassing.

DAY 190

Toads are frogs, but not all frogs are toads. Frogs and toads all belong to the “frog” order, called Anura, which is divided into families. The “true frog” family is called “Ranidae,” and the “true toad” family is called Bufonidae. -suite101.com

Toads are different from frogs in six ways:
1. Squat bodies with short hind legs

2. Dry, bumpy skin

3. Glands that secrete toxins

4. Tiny teeth on the lower jaw

5. Structure of chest cartilage

6. Laying of eggs in long strings of jelly

In other news, we finally had a boring day. I would say boring summer day, but the temps have been so cool it hasn't felt much like summer. We all slept in and managed to make it to the tail end of playgroup at Jacolyn Park where Little Man spent an hour building sand castles, the kids weeded the yard to earn a little money, Pokey caught a much treasured toad while weeding (which became the coveted pet for the day), the kids swam in Emma's pool, and we watched "Heidi" on demand with root beer floats to close our day.

DAY 189

"Attitude is a little thing that makes a big difference." Winston Churchill

Connor's time with clowns is dwindling. He's not too old for the flying mouse balloon creations, but definitely too old for a photo op with the clown. This picture was the third attempt and somehow it's still that, "Mom, I can't believe you're making me do this" face. In other sad news, Grandma Pockets, the previous Applebee's clown, is "now in heaven" as Rainbow Annie so eloquently put it. We don't go too regularly, but when the kids were really small I remember going and Camille was extremely petrified to go near the clown. I can't pinpont the exact date, but it was on Grandma Pocket's watch that she overcame this fear. It makes me realize two things. One, the kids are growing up. Two, we've lived here a long time now.

I forgot to mention that the clown is only there on Wednesday nights, which is kid's night. It used to be kids eat free and now it's kids eat for 99 cents.

DAY 188

E15 Needs You

Ethanol needs your support! The Iowa Corn Growers Association is working with the National Corn Growers to help you submit comments to the Environmental Protection Agency encouraging the agency to approve the recent waiver application that would allow for an increase of ethanol blends of up to 15 percent. Please send comments using this form.

This is a much drastic change from the flooded crop of last year. The old saying is "knee high by the 4th of July". I'm pleased to report that the crop is well ahead of schedule, as you can see by the above pics.

DAY 187

"Children of a culture born in a water-rich environment, we have never really learned how important water is to us. We understand it, but we do not respect it." -William Ashworth

Today as the children were having fun on the slip n slide I couldn't help but think how blessed we are to have clean water at our disposal. One year ago June 13th when all but one of the pumps flooded in Cedar Rapids we had a shortage of water. The city has an underground well system that supplies water to it's residents. For the first time in my life I had a taste of what it would be like to not have water available to me and it was scary. Water was rationed for about 6 days. For two days each household was allowed a gallon of water, which isn't enough to flush a toilet. The city borrrowed water from surrounding small towns and then after a couple days they were able to get a pump restored. Subsequently we were on an alternating water schedule for 4 days. On even days we were able to do a load of dishes and laundry. Luckily the flood water didn't linger, but it was in that week that I gained a renewed repect for clean tap water. I realized just how important water is and how often we use it- laundry, dishes, handwashing, toilets, bathing, drinking, etc. It's amazing to me how quickly it could all be taken away and yet how much it's taken for granted. It sustains life. Without it we wouldn't last long. The flood is over, but the city still bares many scars. I'm thankful for the opportunity I've had to learn invaluable lessons in the face of this disaster to be better prepared should disaster strike again.

DAY 186

"Each day of our lives we make deposits in the memory banks of our children."
{Things that were hard to bear are sweet to remember.}

Haldan bought this bag of mammoth marshmallows before we got back from our trip. Don't know where he found them. The kids have been begging for smores ever since they saw them. Tonight Haldan finally made a fire and we had the much coveted smores. What I didn't realize is that they are not normal marshmallows. I don't know if it's because they're mixed with strawberry ones in the bag, but I was definitely not prepared for the surprise flavor and immediately spit it out into the fire, like a gag reflex. I didn't much think about it; it just happened. Pokey said it tasted like baby vomit. I think Little Man actually ate almost all of his, but doesn't look to be loving it in this picture. Pokey's picture tells a better story, but is a little out of focus, So Little Man takes the spot for the pic of the day. The overall consensus was unanimous- YUCK! So we threw the rest away. Thumbs down for mammoth marshmallows. Don't be tempted. Good memories though.