Happy 4th of July!!!

I was going to post a video of fireworks from last year. But then I thought of an album my mother had and went looking. Mom is a huge John Wayne fan. John Wayne "sang" this and I liked it so here it is. I recommend watching the video via the link at the bottom.

AMERICA, WHY I LOVE HER
You ask me Why I Love Her?
Well, give me time and I'll explain.
Have you seen a Kansas sunset
Or an Arizona rain?
Have you drifted on a bayou
Down Louisiana way?
Have you watched a cold fog drifting
Over San Francisco Bay?
Have you heard a bobwhite calling
In the Carolina pines,
Or heard the bellow of a diesel
At the Appalachia mines?
Does the call of Niagara thrill you
When you hear her waters roar?
Do you look with awe and wonder
At her Massachusetts shore,
Where men who braved a hard new world
First stepped on Plymouth's rock?
And do you think of them when you stroll
Along a New York City dock?
Have you seen a snowflake drifting
In the Rockies, way up high?
Have you seen the sun come blazing down
From a bright Nevada sky?
Do you hail to the Columbia
As she rushes to the sea,
Or bow your head at Gettysburg
At our struggle to be free?
Have you seen the mighty Tetons?
Have you watched an eagle soar?
Have you seen the Mississippi
Roll along Missouri's shore?
Have you felt a chill at Michigan
When on a winter's day
Her waters rage along the shore
In thunderous display?
Does the word "Aloha" make you warm?
Do you stare in disbelief
When you see the surf
Come roaring in at Waimea Reef?
From Alaska's cold to the Everglades,
From the Rio Grande to Maine,
My heart cries out, my pulse runs fast
At the might of her domain.
You ask me Why I Love Her?
I've a million reasons why:
My Beautiful America,
Beneath God's wide, wide sky.
~ John Mitchum ~

Check out the video, they put pictures to the poem. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sekHkR5BKOY

As a nation we may not be perfect but I can't picture living any where else. Hope you all have a safe happy 4th of July.

Uncertainty & Expectation

Uncertainty and expectation are the joys of life. ~William Congreve

We had our plumbing/electrical inspection on the house yesterday. The inspector, thankfully, arrived early so we didn't have to sit on pins and needles. If we passed this inspection we would be able to put the insulation in over the long weekend...get that inspected on Monday....start drywalling on Monday night.

The plumbing passed...the electric did not. Very easily fixed, but he will not be able to come back to re-inspect until Monday so no insulation this weekend. In one respect it is disappointing but in another it is a huge pat on the back since we have never wired a complete house before and the fixes are very simple.

Here is why we failed...

they want two exterior outlets (one on the front of the house and one on the back )- I have two on the electric pole but they want it attached to the house not the pole

they want the 4 outlets in the kitchen on two seperate circuits

they want two more hardwired in fire/smoke detectors-we thought we could use battery

they want the GFI's in each bathroom on their own circuit.

So we are running to the store tonight and these will be fixed tomorrow. Drywalling will have to wait until next weekend which works out better as we have plans with #2 daughter and Sir T for a picnic and fishing day this weekend.

Garden news...In the large garden, 3/4 of the tomatoes are mulched, the beans replanted, the corn/potatoes hilled and two tomatoes are orange! In the greenhouse garden everything is starting to sprawl especially the squash. We started picking black raspberries the other day. Today we will pick the last currants and make jelly.

Fiber news...I am still spinning. And with nephews help picking the colors, I even kool-aid dyed some roving and then spun it.So far as knitting...I start something and find that is not what I want to be doing and rip it out...This too will pass. I was able to finish two things...another washcloth and a bath puff.Not very exciting but still an FO (finished object, sis).

Alternative Lifesyles

Dirty hands, iced tea, garden fragrances thick in the air anda blanket of color before me, who could ask for more?- Bev Adams, Mountain Gardening by the Gardening Gal

I had the cable TV downgraded to basic cable (four major networks only). Last week when it was raining a lot, #2 daughter asked me to watch a movie with her. The only thing on TV at that time of day were the soaps or shows giving prime examples of how not to live your life (tested 19 men to be the father). I told her to go pick a VHS/DVD out, she picked the Wilderness Family.
A quick synopsis is a family leaves the city hassle behind to go to the mountains and live off the land. It’s entertaining but not a very realistic set of movies - outrun a grizzly, tangle with a cougar and only get a scratch. But what I have liked about these movies is the idea that it can be done. I also like their enthusiasm, to awake each morning and find something new and amazing. Some people move to the country and try changing it to be what they left instead of trying to immerse themselves in their new enviroment.

So after having watched these movies, I was on the internet and saw on a blog “what ten things you would not be able to give up to go green.” And with my mind still thinking about the Wilderness Family, I wondered what I would not give up to go live off the land…indoor plumbing, computer, digital camera, Tylenol, possibly a washing machine of some sort, maybe the

greenhouse and then I couldn’t think of anything else. Now the man could not downgrade more than we already have, take away his power tools and remotes and he would be lost.

The Wilderness Family makes it look so easy. In reality, there are days now with all the modern conveniences and tools that it gets discouraging looking at the to do list to survive. The price of grain and hay has skyrocketed. Sometimes I think it would be easier to just get rid of all the animals/gardens, move to the city and buy from the store-sort of doing a reverse Wilderness Family. It would give us hours of extra time-no barns to be cleaned, fence repairs, feed runs, hay baling, weeds to pull, canning/freezing, public transportation instead of a garage/gas bill. The kids could go to museums, plays and go to the zoo for an animal fix. The downside being, I would be on drugs or in therapy to deal with all the people and noise, the kids would be afraid to leave the apartment, and the man would be a couch potato. We would not be happy.

So after a week of playing chauffer with a gas bill to match Trailways, I awoke yesterday to eat a breakfast of wild black raspberries picked on the way to the garden. I may end up giving the paycheck to the animals and garage/gas station but those raspberries go hand in hand with this lifestyle and I think it even tips the scale in its favor. I may not give up things to live off the land but I can’t give up the land to go live in the city.

Summer

Then followed that beautiful season... Summer....

Filled was the air with a dreamy and magical light; and the landscape

Lay as if new created in all the freshness of childhood.

~Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Temperature-wise it feels more like Spring (71 degrees) but I am not complaining as it is much better than the 90's we had a short time ago. So much more gets done when you are able to work the whole day thru in the garden.

I got most of the greenhouse garden weeded on Wednesday before the downpours and pea size hail came. It quickly turned the driveway into a streambed.

Since I was unable to go into the garden yesterday after such a drenching. I worked around the yard. Unfortunately I worked in the yard when it was getting dark. I had weeded the beds on the outside of the garden fence early in the day. I decided to weedwack around the rock border. I was using my left arm as my right couldn't handle it anymore. I went to wack one weed with roots to China that I was unable to pull out earlier and it grabbed it and pulled the weed wacker into my Nanking Cherries. I stopped the machine and walked away. In the light of day it looks as bad as I thought it was.

This morning I was able to go into the garden. I finished all the weeding and mulched everything. I finally planted the sweet potato slips and put some turnip seeds in. While I was moving some pots to mulch under them I found a snake. I hate snakes! My rule is the snakes can be in my garden when I am not. I took a 3 foot row marker and flicked him over the garden fence so I could continue working and not worry about where he was. I didn't realize the rooster was outside the fence. He quickly grabbed the snake and shook him. I thought he was a goner as he just layed there but when I went to flick him up into the woods he rolled over and made his way on his own. #2 Daughter came inside to find that he was a Red Bellied Racer.

Maybe the temps are what made him slow today.

Entering back into the garden I found that my garden huckleberries have flower buds on them.I can not wait to try these so it was a great find on the first day of summer. I have to go check the large garden because I think I might even have a head of broccoli down there! Actually I now that the greenhouse garden is completely planted and under control, I have to turn my attention to the large garden, weeding, mulching and hilling.

And tomorrow seems like it will be a good day to start as right now I am going to go spin some more. Actually I am going to let Spin-Off know that I still did not get my magazine, then I am going to spin. And I offer up proof that I have actually been spinning. The most adorable puppy ate the tip off one of my needles....the same set that the children broke two of ...so I have no spare to finish the second sock hence my knitting time has become my spinning time. I may even take the wheel outside and enjoy the day.

Anticipation

“When things mean a very great deal to you, exciting anticipation just isn't safe.” ~ Dodie Smith

On June 6th, I went to our local spinning group and everyone had their newest edition of Spin-Off magazine. I had already received my mail for that day so assumed I would get it on Saturday. I waited and nothing. I was certain I would get it on Monday since our mail usually runs a day or two behind, the price of living where I live.

Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday....nothing! Everyday I expected today would be the day. Everyone else had theirs, it was being discussed on Yahoo groups I belong to but it was not to be.

Friday I decided to check and see if something was wrong with my account....there wasn't. So I emailed them to ask if they had sent it and if there was a problem. Being optimistic I figured I would get the magazine before I heard from them in "two business days". But Saturday and Monday did not bring the new edition to me. I did however receive an email yesterday afternoon and I quote..."The Summer 08 issue has a deadline of June 20th. If you do not receive it by then, please contact us again and we will be happy to resend that issue to you as soon as possible."

Now I admit I was slightly pissed. They started sending the magazines out on June 2. It is available on newstands by June 17 but I have to wait until the 20th before they will do anything. Also the "as soon as possible" phrase pissed me off, what happened to customer service "immediately". I realize I am one in a million but I want to live in the fantasy land that I matter as a customer. I have never complained so I don't expect to be treated like I am robbing them by asking for my magazine. They could have believed I didn't receive it and mailed me one out immediately. It would have cost them a couple of bucks but they would have had a happy customer. But they are the only spinning mag in town so....

As fate would have it I did receive something from Spin-Off in the mail today but it wasn't my magazine. To say the timing of this was a little off is an understatement! It was an Early Renewal Certificate....now here is the good part and plays right into my fantasy of being a customer whose business matters. It states "Want to know a secret?...this offer is just for our loyal subscribers." That makes my heart go pitter patter I am loyal to them but I have to wait. But it goes on to say how renewing now will save me money for more fiber! I feel so much better I am gonna let them know a little secret too. I am not renewing. Why would I pay for delivery when I get it later than I can get it in the store where I have the option of viewing it to see if it is even worth paying for? Am I being unreasonable and asking too much? Maybe... but I won't be waiting at the mailbox and I will be a happy ex-customer with even more money to spend on fiber.

Explore. Dream. Discover.

Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover. ~ Mark Twain

Who am I not to listen to Mark Twain? Exactly, nobody. So we have been very busy exploring, dreaming and discovering.

Friday, the kids had their last day of school. They came home and helped weed the garden and then we all went swimming. We spent a couple of hours each day this weekend swimming. It takes me a couple of minutes to work up the nerve to get in as it is still cold but then I don't want to get out.

#2 son spent even more time in the water. He went on a raft trip with his Boy Scout troop....6 miles/4hours. He had a blast but even with sunblock on received a sunburn from his shorts to his knee. This did not deter him from fishing Saturday evening. #1 Daughter and her boyfriend (for blog purposes we will call him Sir T ) came to visit and wish the man a Happy Father's Day. Sir T is a fisherman like the man so we had a picnic by the river while they fished. The man showed Sir T how to do some hookup with a hellgramite and Sir T caught one of the first cast! #2 daughters friends were put to work locating hellgramites! Isn't that what you would want to do when you go to a sleepover?! Well they did it because they thought Sir T was cute. So far as Sir T, the man has lots of fishing holes to show him, if he can keep up!

It was not all play and no work. I was trying to finish getting the last of the seeds and plants in. I am happy to report it has been done! I may plant some things closer to the fall but for right now, it is weeding and harvesting. I did get one bonus while working in the garden. I saw a movement in the field between the garden and the woods. At first I thought it was a neighbors dog but it turned out to be a fawn. A much better companion to have watching you than say this...

The white-tailed hornet lives in a balloon

That floats against the ceiling of the woodshed. ~ Robert Frost

And indeed it does look like a hotair balloon. If it had been on the ceiling of the woodshed it could have stayed but it was on the garage door. We thought it best to get rid of it now before anyone got stung. We waited until the hornet left and then the man knocked it down. I wish getting rid of another insect was just as easy. I am talking about the gypsy moth.

DCNR says it "completed aerial spraying to suppress gypsy moth, targeting 221,221 acres in 27 counties." Our county was one of them but I don't think it did much good. This is my apple tree. The sound of cicadias and crickets are welcome. The sound of gypsy mothes munching away at the woods around you is not. It has been years since we have had them this bad....they were not missed.

We are hoping that this week will be slow paced as June 23-27 is going to be hectic. There are no appointments planned, the garden is planted and most of the weeding is done. It looks like it might happen!

In the RED

Frosty: Is there a thermometer around here?

Karen: Over there in the wall.

Frosty: I was afraid of that. The thermometer is turning reddish. I hate red thermometers.

Karen: Why is that?

Frosty: Because when the thermometer gets red, the temperature goes up, and when the temperature goes up, I start to melt, and when I melt, I get all wishy-washy.

And the thermometer was red again today and although I didn't melt, I was all wishy-washy. After the chores I went down into the large garden, hoed around the peppers and some tomatoes, planted more cucumbers and got weed block down around most of the broccoli. Then I had to stop, it was 11 am and 92 degrees. So the thermometer was red, my face was red and even some of my shoulders were red.

I came up and took a shower and sat down to finish the socks... Red socks for my daughters friend. When they were done, I washed them and took them outside to dry. I look up and there is my rose bush blooming.

The high temps were good for one thing...drying laundry. I was able to get everything done. I got them in just in time because the storms came fast. After the thunderstorm I took the puppy out to check on everything. Isn't he cute? I have to keep reminding myself that he is just a cute puppy. Why, you ask. Because after getting bored when the chicks wouldn't play with him, he decided to leave. And by leave I mean take off. I was back in the red because when I called him he stopped, looked at me and when I called him second time he went running away. I got the leash and went after him. He either didn't remember how to walk on a leash or decided he didn't want to because it was a fight every inch of the way back home.... He starts obedience classes next week. It better be a quick week because he needs to start listening before he grows into those paws.

Family

Family life is full of major and minor crises -- the ups and downs of health, success and failure in career, marriage, and divorce -- and all kinds of characters. It is tied to places and events and histories. With all of these felt details, life etches itself into memory and personality. It's difficult to imagine anything more nourishing to the soul.~Thomas Moore

My mom is one of nine children, of which only three still survive. One uncle lives local but the other lives in Florida. Various health problems have kept the brothers and sister apart for years. This past week my uncle from Florida came to visit. For my mom it was an awesome week, tiring but definitely nourishing to her soul. All the old stories were told, fingers were still pointed at who did what to who and even after having heard them many times before you still learn new things.

Florida uncle stayed several days with mom, went fishing a couple of times with local uncle and then went to NJ to visit his daughter, her husband and his grandkids. Early yesterday morning they all came back for a BBQ. The kids all went swimming in the river between thunderstorms and the adults talked and moved food in and out of the house between the same thunderstorms. It was an exhilerating, exhausting, and HOT day. They left about 8 PM so the kids would all have time to take showers and get ready for school tomorrow. NJ cousins have school until the 20th whereas we get out this week so there was some ribbing going on there!

Saturday had been a pretty good day also. We went to get feed, put a/c units in for a friend and stopped at the farmers market. We picked up some really great goat cheese, a Jaune Flamme tomato plant and a Black Futsu squash plant. I hope they end up as good as they sounded.And Friday after having gone to Grace's for spinning (I knit) I came home, took out the wheel and spun! Definitely needed that. Then as we were going to get the pizza we saw a great wheel. The man told me to buy it but I maintained. I will however keep an eye on it as Idon't think she will get what she wants for it and will be more receptive to bargaining later! So yesterday was a great day, a perfect end to really good weekend. Nothing got accomplished but sometimes you need those down days especially when it is tapping 100 degrees.

Miracle inside the seed

When I see that first, minuscule, curled, pale green wisp of a sprout poking up between a couple of grains of vermiculite, I hear God speaking.

- June Santon, "Miracle in a Dixie Cup," Greenprints #44

Planting seeds in the greenhouse and having them grow is one thing. Usually there is still snow and you are enthralled by any sign of green. But in the greenhouse, everything is controlled for the best results from these seeds. Planting a seed directly into the garden has a whole other appeal. There is this poor little seed fighting for it’s life against the elements, the birds and the gardener who thinks she knows best.

Of all the wonderful things in the wonderful universe of God, nothing seems to me more surprising that the planting of a seedin the blank earth and the result thereof.
- Celia Thaxter

These are Hidatsa Red Beans.
Spaghetti squash
Burgess Butternut squash

It is such a simple thing but something I find infinetly enjoyable.

First the farmer sows the seed,

Then he stands and takes his ease,

Stamps his foot and claps his hands

And turns him round to view the land.

- 15th Century Song

And what is in this farmer's view at this time of year? Well the beauty bush is blooming,
the Mollis azaela, clematis, and the blackberries are just starting to bloom. We will be making jam from those in no time. There is one thing growing that I am not happy about and that would be the gypsy moths. Look at my poor apple tree. Last year we didn't have a big problem with them but I think this year is going to be bad.
And inside that is what this farmer would be seeing. Two more batches of strawberry rhubarb jamand a batch of strawberry jam because #1 daughter's BF wanted some and we aim to please. By the time we finished that we needed a break so we cut up the rest of the rhubarb and froze it. If sister is lucky there might be some left when she visits in August...if not she can take back a jar of jam! Maybe we can bribe some weeding out of her!!!!

Time Living

Time is the most valuable thing a man can spend. ~Theophrastus

This weekend with the proverb "All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy" ringing in our head we took sometime to do things we enjoyed. The man went fishing and caught a tagged trout (4.5 lbs and 21.5 inches long). So he caught us dinner and won a $25 gift from a local company. #2 son walked in the Relay for Life on Saturday and nursed his blistered feet in front of the TV on Sunday. #2 Daughter had a friend stay over and I got some fiber work done. I ripped out the neck of the poncho and reknit it, then gifted it to my daughter's friend. I also started crocheting a doily pattern with worsted weight yarn for a small lapghan.

Time is always on my mind - time to do this, time to do that, not enough time or a waste of time. Yesterday, I checked on Cyndy’s blog and she was tagged with a meme. One of the questions she was asked was “What were you doing 10 years ago?” I commented that time seems to have flown by since #2 son was potty training then and now he is in 6th grade! There have been so many changes in my life in the past ten years yet so much has stayed the same. Things that seemed important then don’t even rate a blink of the eye now. Thankfully, things have gotten better with each passing year.

Oddly, I find it incredulous that I graduated 26 years ago but not that I have a 24 year old daughter. I know my younger brother is married with two kids but can’t believe he is going to be 40 this year. How can that be? I think of him as late teens, early 20’s, which is probably where he wants to be!

Time continued to be on my mind while working in the garden. The dates I started the cabbage were written on their tags. Audrey (huge Thank You) gave me lots of tomatoes plants which were bigger than what I had so I was wondering when she started them. I planted 20 lbs of potatoes, will there be enough time to harvest them since I got such a late start. Where is the time going to come from to weed, mulch and process all this if the garden grows well? Then it dawned on me, time seems to be like money at Christmas time. You don’t know where you find it but find it you do.

To live is so startling it leaves little time for anything else.- Emily Dickinson

Ducks on a pond...

Four ducks on a pond,

A grass-bank beyond,

A blue sky of spring,

White clouds on the wing:

What a little thing

To remember for years

To remember with tears!

~William Allingham

Well in my pond there are now five ducklings swimming! The three hens kept moving eggs back and forth between them and I was worried we wouldn't get any ducklings this year but on Friday, they slowly started to hatch. Then regardless of who hatched which ones, all three mothers decided they were theirs and if one hen goes outside the other two follow leaving the rest of the eggs alone.I have to remove those ticking time bombs today. I also now have three hens setting. And they are very protective of the eggs. Don't believe me? Take a look at this face....

She means business! In other fowl news, the broiler chicks are almost fully feathered and are hogs. They will be leaving the premises in early July and I am already counting the days.

In between the VFW BBQ, the VFW Memorial Day ceremony, the Girl Scouts trip to see Indian Jones and the usual chores, we helped a friend rip apart the kitchen in her house. The house has been in her family for four generations and was once a boarding house. The ceiling was plaster and lathe (what a mess!) But under that were these awesome beams. They had a name on it and I think I remember reading that it was the mills mark. These marks are all the same so that might be true but they look to be done in pencil. Another cute find (for me at least as I like looking at times gone by) was this wallpaper behind the upper cabinets we took down. She thought of leaving the beams exposed but decided to drywall the ceiling. The wallpaper is gone now too but will be replaced with an apple theme.

Huge strides have been made in the garden. The greenhouse garden has been tilled and planted and excess plants passed on to a neighbor. Also, Mom made an investment...a Honda mini tiller. The larger tiller is too much for us to handle and this one is small and able to go between rows. As my luck would have it, it started raining on the ride home so we have yet to play in the dirt with it! Now I have only to finish planting the large garden and then I will have a slight breather before the heavy weeding and canning seasons hit.

We have been canning some more. Today, we made two batches of strawberry-rhubarb jam. (Sis, just think a slice of homemade bread, toasted to perfection with butter spread from crust to crust and a big old glob of this jam. I didn't want you to go without so I ate a piece for you! Hope you enjoyed it as much as I did!!!)

Not much is happening in the fiber area. I finished the poncho but I bound off the neck to tight and I have to rip it out and re do it. Plenty of fibery idea's but no time or energy to follow thru. As fast as time is flying by it will soon be fall and I will be back in the knit/purl groove

7+ days of Rain

I'm singin' in the rain,

Just singin' in the rain,

What a glorious feelin,
I'm happy again!

I'm laughing at couds,

So dark, up above

The sun's in my heart

And I'm ready for love.

Let the stormy clouds chase

Ev'ryone form the place,

Come on with the rain,

I've a smile on my face.

I'll walk down the lane

With a happy refrain,

And singin', just singin'

In the rain

It's day seven of rain with more in the forecast, so I figured if you can't beat them join them! Instead of being mad because I can't get in the garden I have to think of what the rain is doing for the hay fields...maybe the price will go down! Instead of thinking of the lawn growing knee high already, I will think of how much free mulch I will have to put around the garden plants. And I am saving gas by not mowing! We had temps go down to 33.9 on Monday night but we did not get frost. And lest you think nothing is getting done let me tell you we work between the raindrops! On today's agenda is a trip to the feed store and making blackberry jam with berries that we froze last summer. We get to them eventually!

Starting this week the man had to report to work earlier, which leaves me doing the morning chores alone. At first I thought I would miss him mucking, feeding and haying the animals with me as that is when we discuss the upcoming day. However, because he did have to leave for work the morning chores were rushed. I quickly found doing the morning chores alone to be the equivalent of that cup of coffee after everyone leaves the house in the morning-very relaxing! With the animals being further out in the field now they don't hear when you first arrive. I am able to get most of the chores done before they realize I am there. Then while they are eating I take pictures or just observing and when they finish their feed they come over for their scratches and some loving. I have NOT told the man how much I enjoy this time as he would have me doing the evening chores alone also! Momma didn't raise no fools!

And yesterday we had a doctor appointment so I was able to knit for the first time in about a week! I took the front of the poncho with me, messed up the cable, ripped it all out and started over by excluding the cable. Tomorrow we have a PET scan appointment which usually takes a while so I will hopefully get it finished. As Martha would say -that's a good thing.

Home!

"Home! And this is my room - and you are all here! And I'm not going to leave here ever again, because I love you all! And --- Oh, Auntie Em ----- there's no place like home!"~Dorothy Wizard of Oz

Both kids were happy to be home after their weekend away. We will start with #2 son. He left Friday night to a Camp-O-Ree, his first boy scout camping trip. When we got to the camp to drop him off it was pouring down rain and if you got off the lawn you were in mud! Because of the rain they had them sleep in tents instead of the lean-to's. It went down to 39 degrees that night.

Saturday was an awesome day and for the most part rain free. During the day he cooked a meal on a campfire and earned his Fireman's chit after going through the smoke house and learning fire safety.

We picked him up Sunday and the rain held off until we were leaving the campground. He had a blast and will be going back next year. No pictures as the camera is still in the car and the man took the car to work.

#2 Daughter did not have fun at her formal Friday evening. It seems puberty hormones, first formal and it's preconceived expectations mingled together do not mix well. She came out crying in frustration that if they would have all shut up and stopped arguing over stupid stuff they all would have had fun. She said she would not be going next year, but I explained a year makes a big difference.

We got up Saturday and dropped her off at the meeting spot at 7:30. They drove to the train station and left for NYC. We picked her up at 9PM last night and she still has not stopped talking...she had a great time! She said she couldn't live there as there were too many people, too much noise and it was filthy but she had fun. They went to the MTV shop, a two level McDonald's, M&M shop, Hershey shop, Macy's, observation deck at Rockefeller Center http://www.topoftherocknyc.com/welcome/default.aspx , Times Square, NY Public Library, and took a bus into the Hudson River https://www.coachusa.com/newyorksightseeing/booking.asp?action=ProductDetail&SEE=1&productId=4019 . They saw the Twin Towers site, the Statue of Liberty, grandma's home town of Hoboken, NJ, and the play Curtains at Al Hirschfeld Theatre and stayed at a Hostel. Oh yeah they also saw (by accident) the Naked Cowboy of NYC! The poor man's ego must be crushed as she said they all got a case of the giggles!

And what would catch the eye of the daughter of a fiber person while touring NYC.... "a wool purse with a barn felted on it"...don't believe me? She took a picture! I bet her friends thought she was nuts but I love that she did that.

The man and I finished the fence, burnt a huge scrap pile, did a complete clean up of the barn and got the mower fixed! It was time to go in when the rain started again but we went back out to get a picture of the faintest rainbow over the tree. 1st one I have seen this year.It was an exhausting weekend for all and everyone was glad to be home. I am glad the kids have these opportunities to try new things and that they still think home is best!