Fun weekend, long weekend, house hunting

Mama and Victoria will head out this morning for an appointment Victoria has in Denton. That done, they will head north on I-35 to Oklahoma City to meet Brittany and Andrew and the twins. I do not think the meeting will happen before 5 pm, so our crew will not be home until late in the evening. It will be a very long day for Mama but having Zoe and Sophia with her on the ride home will lighten the burden. The back of the Sequoia is completely empty to accommodate the paraphernalia that comes with an overnight stay for the twins. Brittany and Andrew will spend the weekend together somewhere other than at home; enjoying themselves while worrying if the girls are okay. That is the way of parenting.

For our part, we have no ambitious plans for the weekend. I know Mama and Victoria are planning a visit with Grandma and Grandpa while the girls are with us. Mama and I plan on shooting up to Lawton Monday on our way home from dropping the girls off with Brittany and Andrew in Altus, OK. Other than that, it will be a weekend of getting out toys. Picking up toys. Listening to toddler chatter. Following two little ones around the house as they invent things to do. Desperately trying to keep up with the volume of hair Kobe is shedding.  It is not as hot outside as it has been, but it is still uncomfortable, so there will not be a lot of outdoor activities for the girls. Maybe some grilling and fence building for me. Most of our time will be taken up with church on Sunday and travel on Monday, but we will do our best to enjoy our granddaughters in the time we are given this weekend.

Fortunately, this is a long weekend. Monday is the Labor Day Holiday. We celebrate al our hard-working citizens by giving everybody the day off…or paying Holiday pay to those not able to take off. Either way, it provides a benefit. For my company, it is a day off with pay. I will take it. Especially since we have such fun guests with us for the weekend.

Yesterday evening, after Seth and Gabriella had picked up the cake Mama decorated for Gabriella’s birthday, we set off across Wise County to look at properties that will be auctioned off Tuesday. Mama and Kimberlyn will be attending the auction. Their first. We are not in a position to buy, but it is always good to do the research. When the houses we investigated come up for bidding, she will have a frame of reference for the properties. We will attend as many of these county auctions as possible over the next few months to prepare ourselves to buy when the opportunity comes. Mama is excited about the auction. She is even more excited to have Kim with her.

As we looked at the listed properties, Mama and I were encouraged by several of those properties. One, in Lake Bridgeport, was a nice large home on a decent lot. If we were in the market, it would be at the top of our list. We are very interested to see if it is redeemed and if not, what the final bid will be. Since all these properties will need to be held for six months to one year before they can be sold, it would be a property well worth the wait.

Mama and I enjoyed driving to the lake and looking at some of the houses positioned to take full advantage of their proximity to the lake. We have always dreamed of having a place by a large body of water. To date we have not been able to pull that off. It looks like, at this point, we never will. Although we do have a lake in view of the house right now our vision was a bit grander than that. So, we enjoy it vicariously. We spent time just driving around the neighborhood catching views of the lake through the houses that sit right on the shore of the lake. The lake is down a bit right now, but it is closer to full than it has been in past summers. That leaves the floating docks at some houses laying on dry ground until the level rises. Regardless, it was beautiful. It would be wonderful to sit on one of those beautiful decks and sip a cup of coffee while watching the world wake up to a sunrise over the lake. Such is not our lot. Fortunately, neither are the requisite taxes of such a valuable location. For now, Mama and I will enjoy our seclusion – and our farm exemption.

Visiting the lake is free.

Trials, tests and training opportunities

One of the greatest conflicts in our world today is balancing information against understanding. Understanding against application. We are flooded with information on every side. A person can find a tutorial video about almost anything online. It is often very useful information, but if you have ever tried to apply that information in an instance where you sought out the instruction, you too often find that it is more difficult to apply than it initially appears. That is because we try to use the information without really understanding how to apply it. We assume since we “know”, that by default we can “do”. In many instances, people stop at getting some information – which they will never know to be accurate or not, because they do not need to apply that knowledge. They simply like to “know”. So it is in our walk of faith.

Mama and I have been going through a series of trials lately. Those without a Bible understanding of God’s intimate involvement in out daily lives will not understand the application. We can walk through life thinking what happens to us is a matter of circumstances. Life happens. Or we can walk though life with the faith that allows us to see God working in our lives. Believers, as a general rule, call these life happenings, trials or tests. I have come to view them as training opportunities. Each training opportunity, successfully applied, leads to a deeper understanding of God, a more pervasive faith. The Bible tells us that without faith it is impossible to please God. We are, after all, as the people of God to walk by faith and not by sight. However, we are people addicted to sight. Averse to faith. So, the only way God can build our faith is by exercising it. Otherwise we become hearers of the Word (Information) and not doers (understanding and applying).

How often have I sat and moped at the onset of a training opportunity? Why me? How could God let this happen if he really loved me? He does love us. Jesus died a cruel death to pay the penalty for our sins. God has proven his love for us. I liken a trial to a time when Walter was with us. He was getting dressed one morning and was extremely frustrated that his shirt was not turned properly. One sleeve was drawn through the neck which confused him as he tried to put it on. He tried several times before he threw himself onto the floor in the kitchen in abject frustration. The shirt half on, half off. I was sitting a few feet away at the kitchen table and offered several times to hep him. He was too mad to ask for help and I was not going to help unless he asked me. When he took the shirt off for the umpteenth time, he saw the problem, corrected the orientation of the errant sleeve and was able to put the shirt on. It was all a tiny lesson from God to me.

There are some circumstances or trials that I cannot handle on my own. For those, it is much easier to ask for help. For those circumstances or trials that seem manageable, it is much more difficult to humble myself and ask for help. Like Walter, a complication to getting dresses -something he did every day – caused him real frustration. He spent a lot of emotional energy figuring it out on his own. I could have saved him so much effort and anxiety if he had simply asked for help. He did not. Did solving the problem on his own help him? Possibly. If he understood what caused the issue and will see the solution easily the next time it happens. If he did not understand the resolution, it will happen again – and it will be even more frustrating. How like us?

If we believe God is omniscient – all knowing – and that He wants to help us. Why not ask? Sooner rather than later. James tells us that in our trails we should ask for wisdom., “If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.” Upbraideth means to scold or ridicule. God will not think the less of us when we ask for help. In fact, He will be pleased when we do so. As I would have been with Walter.

Perhaps Mama and I are close to the resolution of several of the trials or training opportunities we are in right now. Perhaps not. But I will tell you this, at this point I am earnestly seeking God’s solution rather than my own. God may not make it easier, but His solutions ALWAYS produce the best results. Regardless of the nature of the training opportunity, God will ultimately have to intervene on my behalf.

Why not start there?

Clean water, Spanish lessons, preparations

When I got home yesterday Mama asked me to check the screen on the washer – just to make sure. It is a good thing she asked. It was almost fully plugged. When I pulled and cleaned it, I left the hose disconnected from the washer. Using a short garden hose, I hooked into the washer cold water line and ran the hose out of the laundry room window. I ran water though that hose for about an hour. When I caught some of the water in a glass jar, there were still tiny bits of gravel in the stream, so I let it run for another half hour. Each test yielded less and less foreign contamination until, after a couple hours, the water looked clear. Whether or not that holds true remains to be seen, but at least Mama can wash a load of good clothes and get through the entire cycle.

While I was at it, I pulled the screens on all the other faucets throughout the house and cleaned them again. Maybe we are passed the silt and specs. Mama asked if we could leave the screen out on the washer and I explained that cleaning the screen is a whole lot easier and less costly than replacing the pumps that would be ruined by the bits of gravel getting into them. I have seen in the refining industry what very small pieces of debris can do to pumps with tight clearances. We may have a few more issues, but I think we are past the major contamination hurdles. At least for now.

Mama headed to Ladies Meeting while I was out doing a few odds and ends around the farm. She debated going. She always does. She always enjoys herself when she does go. Last night was no exception. She was happy she chose to eat some of the rice concoction I made for dinner. The only thing that was served at the meeting was cookies and ice cream. Mama should discover this morning that I trimmed back the asparagus to reveal several new stalks. I have let it all go to seed in the heat, but now that the temperatures are cooling a bit, we will harvest some of the stalks as they shoot up. Temperature wise, it has been a little crazy. Monday, the high was 104°. Yesterday, the high was 81°. Quite a difference. I suppose that qualifies as a cold front when the ambient temperature drops by more than twenty degrees. We will still have days in the ninety’s, but the triple digits are out of the forecast for the remainder of the year. One day made that much of a difference. Amazing!

Victoria got home just as I was getting back inside. She quickly set up for Spanish lessons. A lady who used to work with her at the Bowie Walmart pharmacy used to teach Spanish in High School. She is an excellent teacher. I participate from a distance. Victoria is doing quite well. She struggles where all of us do; with conjugation and vocabulary. But, overall, she is progressing quickly. I think she has her heart set on being more engaged in normal conversation when she goes back to Honduras in October. I believe she will meet that goal. In little bits, I am able to help her with the Spanish I have learned over the years, but neither of us speak it to each other the way we need to in order to be proficient. Doing so excludes Mama, so we are careful to speak Spanish only in limited conversations. Besides, that is all that Victoria has to offer right now anyway. It was a wise choice for her to get lessons. And she picked wisely in her instructor.

Tonight, and tomorrow we will set up the spare bedroom to house the twins. Mama and Victoria are heading to Oklahoma City Friday afternoon to get the girls. Brittany and Andrew are taking a long weekend together, so we get to keep Zoe and Sophia Friday night through Monday afternoon. Monday, Mama and I will meet Brittany and Andrew in Altus, OK to give the girls back. It should make for a fun weekend.  

I need the distraction.

New things

Mama called me as I was on my lunch break yesterday to let me know that the well service company was on their way to the farm. So notified, I sent a quick email to my supervisor to let him know that I was going home to take care of some urgent business. I got to the farm only a few minutes before the crew did. I knew I would have to move the trailer and tractor out of their way in order to get their truck in position to pull the pump and since they were already there, I hurried too much. I used the fork attachment on the front of the tractor to lift and move the trailer and in the process ripped apart the wiring for the lights. That repair would have to wait until later.

Once the crew got their truck into position, we had to trim some limbs off the nearby trees so they could safely extend the boom they would use to pull the sections of pipe out of the well. They did not have a way to cut away the branches. They asked if I did. I did not have a powered pole saw but I do have a manual pole saw. We used that – fully extended – to get to the offending branches. It is a bit of a workout. I got most of the way through the first branch when the helper on the crew took over. He did the other two branches as well and we were in business. While the helper and I were cutting branches, the lead was checking wiring. As it turned out, it was the wiring that failed and not the pump. That would have to be replaced. Knowing they were on the right track, they began the pull.

Twenty-two twenty-foot sections of pipe later they had the pump out of the well. The date of manufacture on the pump was 2002. I had to decide if we would put new wire on the old pump and reinstall it or purchase and install a new pump. The cost of the new pump was $969. Mama and I decided on putting in a new pump. Since we were already at the point of having the pump out of the well, what would be the gain of putting the old pump back in the well with new wiring and hoping it worked properly. Total cost for the new items - $1,950. Once the new pump was in place and tested and the well was sealed, I put up the hoses and undid all the connections I had made to get water to use while the well was inoperable. Mama was excited to have water restored to the house. That excitement did not last long.

Since the well had been thoroughly stirred, the water coming to the house was cloudy with silt and small particles that clogged every faucet screen as we began to use the running water. The kitchen faucet and the washer were the biggest problems. It took me a few minutes to figure out how the clean to the screen on the kitchen faucet, but I did. We cleaned that screen out several times before we got past the gravel flecks in the water. With the washer, I disconnected the cold water line and cleaned the screen twice before finally taking the open line and running water through it until it ran clear. That took about ten buckets full of water to accomplish. Mama will run the washer today and see if I succeeded in getting the line cleaned sufficiently. By that time, it was almost 10 pm. I was thoroughly worn out.

Meanwhile, Victoria traveled back to Bowie with friends from church to play volleyball. I am not sure how often the offering is made for her to join, but it has been several weeks since she has participated. She left the house at about 6:15 and was back home about the time I was finishing cleaning the line to the washer.

I told Mama yesterday evening, with all the repairs and replacements we are doing at the farm and in the house, I get the impression that the Lord may want us to stay there for many years to come. Only time will tell.

Water woes

Saturday, after bus calling, I went to a coworker’s house to look at a tractor he had in a barn on his property. Actually, the property of his father-in-law. I had no idea what to expect, but when I saw the remains of the tractor – most of its engine parts missing – I knew it was not a project I wanted to take on. You never know, so it was worth the time to make the visit. He took the time to drive me around the property. It is a larger tract of land with a lot of nice features, bisected by a creek that runs through a deep gully. One day it will all be covered with houses. That is the way in this area, but it was nice to see it open and uncluttered. It was not a hurried visit, but I did not stay long. It was on the way home from that visit that my weekend got interesting.

Mama called as I was heading home from that visit to let me know that we had no water at the house. Oh, fun. I told her I would get on that as soon as I got home. With a well, it can only be one of two things; the power or the pump. Many times, if not most, it is a power issue. That was where I started. The pressure switch was operating fine. It was clean. It was trying to tell the well to kick on. The control box was another issue. It was very rusted. Corroded to the point that I was sure we had found the issue. Mama and I went to Lowe’s to get a replacement box and when we got home, I installed it on the well. Nothing. That was disappointing. I double checked my connections. Got it to try to make the pump operate. Nothing. That was that. The pump was not working. That is a much bigger issue.

Mama made a few phone calls and we talked to the man that had drilled our well in Bowie when we first started to set up the farm. He agreed with me that the issue was more that likely the pump. He was not available to pull the pump today until perhaps late in the day, so that may not happen until tomorrow. The cost - about $1500. Ouch! We’ll squeeze that money from somewhere. So, to get us by for the weekend, I ran hoses from a hydrant at the chicken coop that runs off the well in the barn lot. From there I connected hoses to reach the boy goats and a hose to fill buckets to be used for flushing the toilets. If the well is not back in service today, I will connect the house to the barn lot well temporarily so we can live a more-or-less normal life until the repair is made. A couple years ago, Mama wondered at the time, effort and money being spent to get the barn lot well operational. Not that she was opposed to the idea. But we were getting by on the one well and lots of hoses. Now, both of us are very glad we have access to water we can use in this type of emergency.

In order to get ready for Sunday, we took showers at Grandma and Grandpa’s house in Bowie. Grandma was so excited to have us there that she talked non-stop. Repeating stories we had heard multiple times. Playing songs we had also heard multiple times. Showing pictures on her phone that we had seen multiple times. Grandpa tried a couple times to shut her down. To slow her down. Invariably, Mama would start a conversation with Grandpa and Grandma would try to start up a competing conversation with me while is was trying to participate in the discussion with Grandpa and Mama. We were there about an hour and a half getting showers, visiting and finally saying our long goodbyes. All of us tried not to get too sweaty during the rest of the evening and the following morning; the animals still had to be tended to as normal. Tonight, we may have to repeat that process.

In the meantime, we are using bottled water for everything except flushing the toilets. It is inconvenient, but it could definitely be worse.

Number 15, crafts

One item of particular note that happened while I was traveling was that Chase let Mama know that grandchild number 15 is on the way. I was driving from Springfield to the airport in St Louis when I missed calls from both Chase and Mama. Of course, I called Mama first once I stopped for a break and she told me the news. I figured if Chase called me – which rarely happens – there was baby news involved. I tried to return the call but got a full mailbox notice and could not even leave a message. If I understand correctly Makaila and Brittany are due within days of each other late in February or early March next year.

As far as Mama’s and my availability to be there for the births, we are not even sure at this point we are struggling to determine whether or not I will still be working fulltime in my current role or if we will be fulltime in our business by then. I certainly know which I would prefer, but at this moment in time I am not sure what to expect that many months out. Mama and I are somewhat disappointed, but we are committed to the project – heavily committed. To be so hands off on such a costly and valuable enterprise is a frustrating lesson in humility, trust and patience. When we get through this, we will have story to tell about the abundant grace of God.

Mama and Kim Cantrell have been working together to make some crafty stuff to sell. So far, their focus has been on earrings. Kim Cantrell is quite the artist and between her and Mama they have been able to make some very cute earrings. They have not been able to get together very often, but they are enjoying the times they do work together on their little business.

For little girls

This weekend should be our last hot weekend of the year. If the forecasts are accurate, the temperatures are going to start falling over the next several weeks. I looked ahead and was surprised by the pace at which the nighttime temps are predicted to fall. One of my coworkers was remarking that they just got their pool set up. My advice was to enjoy it as much as possible for the next two to three weeks. By the end of September, we should have nights in the low sixties. At that point, the pool will be too cold to swim in.

I, personally, am looking forward to it.

Travel trials, scammers, home again

Traveling has benefits, but mostly it has its trails. Some of the rewards are accumulating miles and rental car rewards. For me that ‘s about it. On the trails side, I do not ever keep up with my bank accounts while I am on the road. Too much possibility of someone gaining access I would not want them to have to those accounts. As such, I have to plan very carefully for Mama’s spending while I am gone. I do not enjoy eating out – especially by myself. Some people consider it a perk that the company picks up the tab for meals while we are traveling. Me, not so much. If Mama were willing, I would not eat out more that once or twice per month. So, traveling and eating alone is not a benefit for me. During the last trip I took, I had to drive three plus hours from one class location to the second class location. A long day after teaching for seven hours. To make the return flight home, I had to reverse course and drive the little over four hours (due to a couple traffic issues late in the drive) back to the airport. Fortunately, the rental car return shuttle was waiting on me as I arrived. That put me at the airport less than an hour before the flight boarded. Security lines were light but horribly slow. I was at my gate fourty minutes out from my turn to board the flight. Plenty of time but closer than I like to cut it in case of last-minute gate changes. Maybe that was for the best.

Having been on the road since Sunday afternoon, it was good to find all the bank accounts in solid shape especially since Mama fell prey to a phone scam Monday morning. Someone pretending to be with the Social Security Administration called her just in time to help her resolve an account situation that could have put her in prison if she did not verify all the information they requested to straighten out the error. They were aggressive and convincing. Confirming her full name, current address and Social Security Number – all of which they already had. When they began to solicit information about her living situation – renting or owning a home – that she began to question to the point of hanging up on the caller. She called a couple people to confirm her suspicions. All the while the caller tried to reconnect with Mama at least six times. When Mama finally felt ready, she answered the call and was aggressively questioned as to why they had been cut off. Mama’s answer, “Because you are scammer.” Whereupon, they hung up on Mama. Late that afternoon, Grandpa read to Mama a public announcement about that very scam and what to do if called. A little late but reassuring of her actions nonetheless. For the next couple days Mama called each of our banks to make sure our accounts had not been touched. So far, we are good.

It is good to be home. My flight landed around 4 pm Wednesday afternoon. After getting off from the back of the plane, waiting on and then collecting my luggage, waiting on the shuttle to take me to the parking lot where I had left the truck and driving in typical rush hour traffic as I headed home, I finally got home about 6 pm. I did stop at Buck-ee’s on the way home to get a drink and a sandwich.  The traffic would be far less congested from that point on and I needed to walk around for a minute. When I did get home, I was worn out, Mama was hurting badly. Victoria was feeling ill. Because of that, none of us went to church last night. In fact, I did not do much at all after getting the suitcases emptied and rearranged so I had all the work-related documentation in the suitcase I would return to work.

A warm welcome. Lots of hugs and kisses. Home.

A brother offended, teaching schedule, extra prep

Proverbs 18:91 says, “A brother offended is harder to win than a strong city; and their contentions are like the bars of a castle.” That is proving true in the lives of several people around me. For me personally, my youngest brother was a case in point. Though I never knew what offence I committed, he was loathing of me for many years. In the recent past he has softened to both me and the Lord – which is where I believe the conflict originated. However, in the lives of my children, there are those offended who are not to be easily won over. I have advised my children that in cases where an offence is taken against them, there is little they can do to right the wrong. Any attempt to discover the origins of the wounding, to discuss the infraction, to work to a solution will only serve to deepen the wound in many cases. We can only pray that the Lord will work in our hearts and lives to make the persons He needs us to be for those we can reach. Those offended will not be won over. They must surrender the offence to the Lord if there is to be reconciliation.

There are still individuals in Hot Springs, AR that were told things about me and Mama (all of which were blatantly untrue) that we will never reconcile with as long as they continue to believe what they were told. For my part, I cannot waste the emotional energy to worry over those wrongs. God will have to take care of that. But for my children, I do spend a good deal of time praying for those who have cut them off. Partly for the sake of my children but mostly for the sake of those offended. For those individuals, we must wait on the Lord and be ready to make the most of every opportunity offered us to mend the hurts. Whether the change is needed in us or them, that must still come from the Lord. Always remember that an offence does not have to be justified, it just has to be taken – and our wicked hearts will always allow us to be offended should we choose that path.

Starting tomorrow, I will be teaching or traveling every day through next Wednesday. The only exception is Saturday. I will be in class locally for the next three days. Teaching classes on all three days. Sunday, I will fly to St Louis to do a class in that metroplex. After that class I will be driving to Springfield, MO. About a three-hour drive, to do a class there. Flying home Wednesday. It is a busy schedule, but it will fly by. Then I have two weeks of lag time – if that schedule does not change – before I have a week of classes in Athens, AL. With all that in mind, I am trying to get Mama set up for my absence.

Yesterday afternoon, I made a simple guard on the cage where we will house the chicks. Mama already moved one group to that cage. She will move the other group today. Even though we have not seen any snakes for several days, I wanted to be sure the cage was strengthened against any snakes that might show up while I was gone. For now, Mama will only put the extra guard on the cage doors overnight.  During the day, there is less of a chance of the snakes coming to feed. Hopefully, I made the device easy enough to use that Mama will actually use it. Whether or not my guard will be enough to keep the snakes out of the cage, only time will tell. If it works for two to three weeks we should be in the clear.

Mama is watching the Echevarria kids this afternoon. With Erin’s pregnancy, that may happen more often than in the recent past. They are always welcome. There are not many people willing to watch the kids because Luke can be a handful. He has always done well for Mama in short timeframes, so we never turn Erin down when she asks. It is fun to have the noise and business of children in the house; which is almost too quiet when they leave.

I worked some on our business last night. I combed through an after-auction list for Garner County AR. We found a few items worth looking at. They may turn out to be nothing, but Mama and I need to make a trip to Hot Springs to visit with Becky and Bridgette and to pick up a mattress for Victoria. There is a certain manufacturer there who’s mattresses Victoria really likes. She needs one for the twin bed she is currently sleeping on. She bought a double sized mattress which is on the bed in the spare room, but she does not like to sleep in that room. So, we need to make the trip to get her a twin mattress – and to look at available houses and properties. When we will make that trip is still up in the air. Right now, we have neither the time nor the money.

Hopefully, that will change soon.

Inside cleaning, the heat, chicks

Since the ambient temperature was 104°F on Saturday, Mama and I decided it was time to do some inside cleaning. I have been bothered by the mess in our chef’s pantry for a long time so, we started there. I got into all the cabinets and drawers, pulling out every item to see whether or not we would throw it away, give it away, pack it away or keep it available for use. In so doing we managed to get rid of a lot of clutter. Most of the items we divested ourselves from were given away. Some were thrown away. We put back in the cabinets, drawers, countertop and shelves less than half of what we started out with. The room looks positively useful right now. It does not look like a storage unit anymore. The entire project took Mama and me about three hours to complete. I filled up the back of the Sequoia with the items we were giving away – most of which went to church folks.

Meanwhile, the animals are enduring the heat. The goats do not seem the least bit bothered by the heat. I know it affects them, but they do not show any outward signs of it. Not like the chickens, which spend the day in the shade panting heavily. Sam and Sasha spend most of the day in the garage. On the weekends, when I have the doors on the shop opened, Sam will rest in there. The concrete keeps them cooler than anywhere they would normally sleep during the day. Both of them are using the passage I created for them between the shop and the repositioned fence. There they can quickly access the back of the property. Last night, for instance, they responded to nearby coyotes by racing through the alley I made for them. During the day, nobody moves much which makes the nights all the more active.

Last night, after church, after a stop at Wendy’s, after dropping the girls off at their house, after we got home, I changed and watered the trees and bushes on the east side of the house. Mama will water the garden and those plants in front of the house this morning. Without constant watering, they stand little chance of surviving. Fortunately, we are expecting a cool front to push in in a couple days driving the temperatures into the high 90’s.  I suppose that is better than hanging in the triple digits, but it is barely noticeable when you are out in the heat. The humidity, the real danger to our plants, is hovering at 30-35%. The ground will not hold much water when the air is that dry so we must water often and soak the ground as much as possible when we do water. So far, we seem to be doing a fair job. As long as I keep the soil loose at the base of the trees and bushes, the water can penetrate deep enough to do some good.

The chicks are growing very quickly. The totes that Mama is using to house them are quickly becoming too small to contain them. Even though I put pieces of wire fencing across the tops of the totes, some of the chicks still manage to get out. Fortunately, they do not go very far, And, fortunately, they are relatively easy to catch. However, we will have to move them into the cage in the coop this week. That puts the urgency on me to reinforce the doors on that cage to keep snakes out. And speaking of snakes, the moth balls Mama put out last week seem to be working to keep the snakes away. We have not seen any snakes in the coop for several days and nights. Of course, that could change today, but as of last night we have not seen our normal visitors for at least four days. The smell of the naphthalene is not too strong, but it is noticeable. Enough that the snakes are discouraged from visiting. I read that it will keep rats, mice and flies away from the area as well. That is a plus if we can figure out how much is enough in order not to overdo our use of the chemical. It will only be a matter of two weeks or so that the chicks will be too large for the snakes to be a threat to them. At that time, we may look at getting the moth balls out of the coop. But for now, they will stay.

It is better foe Mama that the coop smells like my Grandma and Grandpa’s closet than to constantly deal with the snakes.

La Madeleine’s, homemade yogurt, escapees

Yesterday at work was an unusually busy day. That was a good thing. It is always best to be busy – at least it is for me. Next week I have three back to back classes to teach. Those classes will all be local. The week after that I have two back to back classes to teach. Those two classes will be on the road. I have to drive from the first about three hours to get to the second class, so it will be a busy couple days. Following those two weeks I have a two-week break before I have three back to back classes to teach – all on the road. Fortunately, all those classes are part of a workshop offered at the same training facility. My plans to be fulltime in our other business have been set back significantly. It is a good thing I was not trying to live financially off that timetable. For now, I have a good job that supports us as we struggle to get our personal business started. I can live with that.

Mama and I went to an upscale café called, La Madeleine’s for dinner last night. It is good food. A little fancy for me, but still good. Mama really likes the place. You order at a counter, like any other fast food place, but the food is prepared as ordered to order. I got a chicken filled crepe with a pesto sauce. Mama got beef tips and gravy on a bed of mashed potatoes. Both dishes were excellent. As a bonus, the café offers a selection of sliced homemade breads, butter and their signature jellies. Strawberry rhubarb, my favorite and blueberry. I purposely limited myself to two slices of bread before our dinners come out. Last time I went there with Mama, I got too full on bread and jelly and regretted it later. This time I just ate the jelly without the bread. I did not want it to go to waste. Mama was uncomfortably full all evening. I had a bit of an upset stomach much later, but that is normal for me when I eat such rich food. As I get older, it is more and more difficult for me to eat outside of my “normal” boundaries. Which is not necessarily a bad thing. I really need to learn to eat to live.

We left for the café almost as soon as I got home. Mama wanted to get back to the house so she could put the yogurt she and Stacy O’Conner had made into jars. For the past several weeks the O’Conner’s have been bringing Mama yogurt they have made in their Instant Pot. Our model of the Instant Pot does not have the “Yogurt” setting like theirs does. Since Mama was very interested in making yogurt and we have the pressure cooker, I looked up recipes that would work in our Instant Pot. Sure enough there were several variations of the same recipe available. Mama and Stacy got together to try the recipe out. So, we “hurried” through Costco and Aldi after we finished dinner so we could get home near the time the incubation period expired on the yogurt. We were thirty minutes late, but Mama was pleased with the yogurt. I will not get to taste the final product until tonight, but I ate what she skimmed off the top before putting it into clean quart jars to chill. It was very good. The skimming’s were like what you would get when you cook pudding. That rubbery cap that forms on top when the pudding cools. I always liked that as well.

Just as we were pulling into the garage, Mama noticed that we had an escapee. One of the chicks had managed to hop out of the tote Mama was housing them in. Our garage does not have a lot of stuff in it but it has enough that it can be challenging to catch a fleeing baby chick. They are a lot closer to the floor than my hands typically are, so any obstacle in getting bent to match that distance presents a challenge. However, last night the chick ran straight into my hand. Because that was not the first successful escape, I was immediately tasked with getting some wire to cover the totes in order to limit the chances of the chicks getting out of their assigned habitat. That was easily done. I have scraps of wire mesh I use for several projects around the farm. The real challenge is going to be when I devise something to keep the snakes from getting into the cage set up in the coop where we will soon be placing the chicks. The chicks will be too large to keep in the totes in another week. They grow very quickly. Even though Mama and I have done this multiple times, it still amazes me how quickly the chicks grow.

When I stop to marvel at how incredible this present sin-cursed world is, I cannot help but wonder what must Heaven be like?

While I was gone, anniversary

I flew back from Pensacola yesterday, getting to the office about 2 pm. I would have enjoyed Pensacola more if Mama had been with me. I am not much for the beach; especially alone, but I went to Pensacola beach Monday evening to see if there might be any shells I could collect for Mama. There were not. The tide was in so there was nothing on the beach itself. I did not go prepared to get into the water. It was my understanding that the beach had been closed for a period of time because of flesh-eating bacteria alerts. I am not sure when the beach reopened, but there were a lot of people there. Perhaps it was not as crowded as it might have been without the scare of malignancy in the water, but it seemed crowded to me. It was also very hot. I did not stay long. I did check out one of the shell shops to see if anything grabbed my attention, but I did not stay there long either.

While I was in Pensacola, Mama called me in a bit of a panic. Some of the panic was caused because a couple of persistent rat snakes keep showing up in the coop. She is learning to deal with that. She has resolved herself to the fact that the snakes will not hurt her full-grown chickens so, as long as they are concentrating on catching rats and mice and not eating eggs, they will be tolerated. That is, until we put the baby chicks out there. Then the snakes will have to go. Mostly she called to see if we were ready for a bottle baby calf. Kim at the stock sale called Mama early Monday morning to let her know that one was coming through the sale and she wanted Mama’s yes or no to buy the calf. I would have said yes, but Mama hesitated, and the little heifer calf was sold to someone other than Mama.

When Kim first called or texted, Mama said yes, but in a short while she hinted that we might not be ready yet to place a bottle baby on the farm. Kim went on the last sentiment. At an auction, things move very quickly, and Mama was not definite enough for Kim to buy the calf on Mama’s behalf. It sold for $140. That would have been a very cheap heifer for us to raise. Oh, well. It probably turned out for the best. Finances are always tight at the first of the month. Other than those couple items, Mama had a pretty routine time in my absence. As far as the two snakes are concerned, I could have caught them last night when I closed up the chickens, but that would have caused Mama more of an issue this morning than just letting them alone.

Today, however is not an ordinary day. It is Mama’s and my 37^th anniversary. When we had been married only a few years we talked about growing old together – and here we are. Not old yet, but today we are thirty-seven years older than when we started. And both of us feel the time that has passed and the miles we have covered since we started our walk together. I cannot imagine life without Mama. That is the way it should be.

What, you may ask are we doing to celebrate this anniversary? Not much really. Mama and I will go out to dinner this evening. We will do some shopping and we will go home. All after we care for the animals on the farm and water the plants that will die without our constant care. Later this year we will travel somewhere together and possibly count that as a late anniversary celebration. But at this point in our marriage just being there for each other is enough. When a couple understands that time with each other and attention given to each other is more important than things, whether given in the form of gifts or in specially arranged events, they have begun to understand what it takes to stay together. Mama and I do not try to out give each other. We just try to enjoy each other. All the peripheral things come as that one sacrifice is honored. The sacrifice of our whole being to each other.

That is our most important work. That is our most productive work. A task that affects every area of our lives as well as many lives around us. May God grant that we will live out the rest of our lives in that attitude of sacrifice and surrender to God and to each other.

VBS, Mr. Plumley, more snakes

VBS concluded last night. We will find out Sunday morning how many got saved during the four evenings of our Vacation Bible School, but I do feel like it had an impact on not only the children but also on the workers who helped Bro Zach make it happen. Especially on the teen workers I saw dealing with the children who raised their hands during the altar call each night. Our pastor has said time and again, only eternity will reveal the affect our church’s focus on children has made over these many years of running busses for Children’s Church and Vacation Bible School. Now that VBS is over the decorations will come down and the plane will be moved somewhere or dismantled. Mama offered to take it as a play toy for the goats. I am not sure if that will happen, but the yellow plane would add a significant flare to our yard ornaments.

Mama made several batches of cookies to be given out at snack time. When I got home, she was working on the third batch of cookies. All of which turned out well. Much to her great pleasure. She has had limited success with the older ovens we have, but with the new oven, she was able to see her success factor rise significantly. It was a great boost to her confidence. Hopefully, it will not be a big boost to our waistlines. She was hurting by the time we left for VBS, but we loaded everything up and headed out to get Mr. Plumley and then the girls.

Mr. Plumley likes to get out any chance he gets and special events at church are a good excuse for him to have us pick him up to attend. Since the bus was being used to pick up children, we offered Mr. Plumley a ride. He is not a problem. He can get about better than Mama and I can. He thinks clearly and can carry on a conversation at an elementary level. He is loud. Mama and I have to adjust to that every time we carry him around, but he means mothing by that, It is just how he talks. A big deal for him is for someone to swing by and take him out for a hamburger. He is easy to entertain, and he is quite entertaining himself.

Last night, because she was hurting from all the time on her feet baking, Mama swore to me that she was not going to hold any babies at VBS. I knew better. Within fifteen minutes of getting there she had Savannah in her arms. I just looked over at her and she gave me that “I know?” look. She was seated so I suppose that changed the dynamic sufficiently enough to keep her from hurting further. Her snuggling with Savannah did not last long. Savannah was displaced by Aubrey. For some reason, when there was not a game being played, Aubrey wanted to be on Mama’s lap. Not that Mama minded. The distraction probably helped Mama. I, on the other hand, was worn out last night. I almost begged of going in the first place but being tired is not an excuse to stay home from a church event. On the way home Mama asked me if there was something wrong. Nothing wrong. I was just very tired.

As soon as we got home, Mama and I changed and went to the coop. I caught another snake. Just barely. He was slithering out of one of the nesting boxes as I entered the coop. I caught the tip of his tail as he headed out the door the chickens use to access the yard behind the coop. He was a young one. Thin and fairly short. Only about three feet long. We put him in a feed sack and rolled down the open end. I have the sack sitting on the workbench in my shop. If he is still in the sack this evening, I will dispatch him as soon as I get home. We may have to resort to my old standby for keeping snakes. A pillowcase. In all my years of handling snakes, I never had one escape from a knotted pillowcase.

I will be gone Monday and Tuesday nights. Mama is hoping I can severely cut the snake population before I leave so she does not have to deal with them in my absence. I can make no promises on that front.

Changes, VBS, snakes

I was abruptly informed yesterday that from this point on my coworker and I would take on the responsibility for putting together all the classes our company has at client locations. In the past both the initial contacts and the recruiting of companies to send employees to fill the class has been handled by the account managers and the sales team. Since these client accounts are their responsibility. It made sense. Not anymore. It is something we have tried in the past with very limited success, but I suppose we will try again. I think the change stems from the new supervisor we have in our department, but there is no way to tell. With the amount of travel I have scheduled over the next several weeks, I am certain that the lot for making all the required contacts will eventually fall to my coworker, who has a very full plate already. Plus, we have little control over pricing, offering discounts or issuing refunds to those who paid but cannot attend as planned. My first question will be to those who have been actively involved in putting client employees into these classes to see if they are aware of the change and if it would affect their job duties and overall income potential. This should be fun.

Last night was our third night of VBS. It was very well attended. I counted roughly eighty children and at least thirty workers. Of course, since it was Wednesday night a fair amount of our regular Wednesday night crowd was there – sitting in the back observing. Tonight, will be the culmination of VBS and the story of Nate Saint, Jim Elliot and the men who were killed making contact with the tribe that was eventually won to Christ by their widows. Bro. Zach is doing a great job with VBS. For one game he had the boys and girls stand, and while they were holding hands, from a large circle around the chairs in their respective sections. Then he gave each of them a hula hoop and had them pass it from person to person without letting go of each other’s hands. Over the head. Step through. Move it along. It was very exciting for the kids as the hula hoop neared the final person in each circle. The boys won with only a few seconds to spare. That was a great game. Even Aubrey thought so. Even though all she had to do was step through since the hula hoop was taller than she was.

After VBS, Mama and I got dressed in our farm clothes to go out to the coop. We have seen a snake lurking in the coop, and I have not been outfitted with gloves to catch it. Last night seemed like a perfect night for them to be active so I went out prepared…mostly. It was a good thing I had come ready to catch a snake. There were three of them in the coop. Two juveniles and one large, mature rat snake. After I had all three of them in my hand, I was not sure how to dispose of them. Mama offered me a hoe to use on them but that did not seem practical since it required two hands to use. One of mine was full of snakes. Shooting them was not a good option either. In the end, we put them in a large trash can and closed the lid on them. Confident that they could not get out of the trash can. I put behind the shop so I could dispose of them at a later time. While I was out placing the trash can out of Mama’s view, she called Bro Burns to see if he would dispose of the snakes today. He agreed to do so. Just to be sure, I checked the trash can this morning to make sure all the snakes were still contained. It was empty.

Somehow, they had managed to stretch themselves out enough to reach a hole in the center of the lid that the rats had made long ago. I thought the can was too tall for them to reach that hole. I was wrong. I was impressed. Mama, not so much. I will just have to catch them all over again – and be ready to dispose of them when I do.