Cropduster and Combines

Life in the country continues to be full of wonderful experiences for the children. The last several weeks have been filled with endless days of watching the plane "dust the crops". It has been so cool...almost like having your own air show right in your front yard. Several weeks ago we had our dear friends, The Adams Family come out for dinner and the kids had a blast running out in the yard trying to get the attention of the pilot. Despite their attempts, he was all business but he did get awfully low and fly right over their heads...I swear he was skimming the tops of the plants! So, after all the excitement over the cropdusting, we now have combines all around us as this year's corn crop is being harvested. I took David and Grant out to watch as they cut the field right next to the house and poured the corn into the 18wheeler...they were so excited! It makes me so proud to share the farming way of life with them. I just hate that they never got to see Papa as a farmer but they learn so much from him just as he works in the yard or toils in the garden. I hope they will also develop the love that I have always had for taking care of the earth and being responsible for it. Now, after all of those nice thoughts...I can't help but worry about all of the chemicals our friend "Mr Cropduster" has been spraying all around us. Let's just hope we don't start sprouting cauliflower from our ears! Yikes!

Oliver's 1st solid food

Well, it was time...I knew it but was in denial. My little caboose is growing so fast! Words can't even describe the joy I experience every day with Oliver. All of my children were miracles and all were surprise blessings...I try to remind myself of that daily. What a joy Oliver has been! Many of my posts are centered around the activities of David and Grant because frankly, they are just "doing" more. However, Oliver is doing momentous things too and I'm going to try to do better to document them. Oliver has been showing signs of interest while we were all eating so I finally decided to set him up in the highchair and feed him rice cereal. He did really well and was leaning in for more. I started the experience, followed by Daddy, and then David and Grant each had a turn feeding him. Oliver is also now rolling over, in both directions and is now enjoying his exersaucer. My how time flies! I feel like his infancy is zooming by! We are so blessed by these small but huge moments in his life!

1st Day of School

I can hardly believe David is a 1st grader! David and Grant both started school on Monday at Emmanuel Christian School in Hartsville. Grant is a proud 2ker and she seems to love school! She has literally walked around wearing her backpack everyday for weeks. She is only going 3 days a week but she wants to go everyday. David was so ready for 1st grade and he told me he wasn't even nervous. He recognized several of his classmates from his kindergarten class. It was so bittersweet to watch him walk in to his classroom and sit at his own desk. I can't believe how grown and independent he is! I'm so proud of my big kids!

Visit with Mana and Papa

I decided to take the kids on a last summer hurrah up to Spartanburg to see my grandparents. We had a wonderful time! Mana and Papa took us to Chuck E. Cheese and swimming at Uncle David's pool and lots of other fun things. It was great to spend a few days with them and great to see Sarah, Uncle David and Aunt Karen. We have all agreed that Oliver looks so much like Uncle David!

1st trip to the Dentist

David is an old pro at going to the Dentist but we had Grant's 1st trip to the Dentist a few weeks ago. We are so fortunate to have "Uncle Lindy" as our dentist and we got the royal treatment! It was a real family affair! Aunt C was on hand to help out and everyone held Oliver...we actually just took over the office! Grant did so well and sat like a princess and let Mrs Daphne clean her teeth like a big girl! I was so proud of them both! They were excited to pick out treats from the treasure box and left with lolipops...sugar free of course! It was a really fun and positive experience and Grant is already asking to go back! Thanks to our favorite Denist and staff! We love you guys!

Peach preserves

I recently decided to embrace my inner pioneer woman and do my first canning project. We had a bunch of wonderful peaches from McLeod Farms so I tackled peach preserves. It was an all day endeavor but when it was all done...I had super yummy peach jam. I was bummed after all that work, that I only had 5 cans! Next time, I will triple the recipe so I can give away more jars. David and Grant loved helping me and I remember doing the same thing with my mom when I was a child.

Carrie and Aiden visit from Texas

My very dear friend from Texas, Carrie and her son Aiden, came to SC to visit a few weeks ago. We were so thrilled! Our children (Carrie has another son and daughter as well) are also so close and Carrie and I were just like Peas and Carrots from the moment we met. We couldn't wait to show them around our area and share our South Carolina pride! We spent the first day around the house and the kids had a blast playing on the waterslide. The next day, we were off to the beach! We found an amazing last minute deal at Litchfield Beach and decided it was only right for them to see the coast. Our first afternoon was spent settling in and spending a little time by the pool. The next day we took a day excursion into Charleston and met up with Daddy. We got the full tour of the Citadel...sorry Carrie....I know David gave you the history of every rock on campus...he's so proud. :) Daddy even gave the kids the celebrity treatment by letting them run the football field. We followed that up with a quick visit with Kelsey and the girls and Nana and Aunt Margaret- then off to the market. Carrie was fascinated with market and loved the Gullah culture. She was introduced to lots of Southern things and became very familiar with Southern heat and humidity. It was so hot at the market but the kids did great and we had to reward them with ice cream. Our last and final day at the beach, we awoke to rain. :( The kids were devastated and so were the adults. We couldn't be at the beach and not get to go to the beach! We waited out the rain and decided to stay another night so we could get some actual time at the beach. Daddy decided to make our wait interesting by making the kids have a race in their flippers in the rain. It was hilarious! The rain finally passed and we squeezed in a few hours at the pool and the beach. Even little Oliver loved his first trip to the beach....he was just chillin out under the tent. We had a wonderful few days with Carrie and Aiden and we look forward to annual visits with our families like this. What a blessing to have such wonderful friends!