Last Wednesday was a cold, rainy day, so we played pickleball at the Stake Center. We taped off the court a few months ago, and surprisingly, the tape is still there. Poor Hugh struggled throughout, but finally ate and took a nap during the second half. Playing pickleball inside is so different than outside, the lighting and no wind kind of changes the play.
Thursday evening was our volleyball night. Jay always keeps us on our toes, and this week there were over 20 people there to play we had to watch him even more carefully. I was grateful for Kirra stepping in to follow him around during one game when both M and I were playing. I appreciate when people jump in and help with our boys, no questions asked and help. It is a blessing!
Apples FINALLY went on sale for 99 cents a pound, meaning applesauce time! Katey got what she could at King Soopers, but they didn't have enough on hand so I went to our store. The produce guy remembered me from last year and said, "Applesauce, right?" when I asked him if he had 2 boxes of Opal and 2 boxes of Gala in the back. I'm happy to be the applesauce lady, and I was very grateful they had what we wanted in stock. Friday Katey came to my house with Abby, Kade, and Hope. I had early morning doctor appointments for the boys and she beat me home. She cleaned up breakfast, emptied my dishwasher, and cleaned up the array of items strewn throughout the house as we rushed out the door. I was incredibly grateful for her kindness to me. We spent about six hours doing applesauce, making a total of 41 pints and 3 quarts. I finally tried out the KitchenAid attachment for applesauce, and it was awesome! It made our two man show way faster. The kids did awesome helping us take stickers off and get the apples washed.
Saturday M took Jay to help set up chairs for Stake Conference and run a few errands. My friend Rachel Jones stopped by on her way to the craft show nearby, and we enjoyed catching up and having lunch. She brought Jay some "new to us" toys and finally held Hugh because he was big enough now. When she visited in February, Hugh was so small she didn't want to hold him. She let Jay rummage through her purse, she played bouncy balls with him, and embraced everything Jay wanted to do. That afternoon I had Stake leadership training and then we had the adult session. I enjoyed leadership training, and the time I had to simply sit, listen, and feel the Spirit. I don't get as many occasions to do that right now in my life, so it was a treat.
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| Jay and his recent schoolwork |
Sunday Jay was wild during Stake Conference and Hugh was pretty rowdy too. By the end, we were all done, but we had to load up the chairs to take them back to our church building. Jay was ready and eager to help. More, more, he kept signing as he grabbed one chair, dragging it out to the trailer. He'd lift it up onto the trailer and drag it back to whoever was loading. Many of the men helping, simply smiled, cheered him on, and worked around him as he ran back and forth. The Elders' Quorum president even let Jay load up the last chair. When we unloaded at the church, Jay was just as eager to help and loved crawling up and down the flatbed trailer. The motor oil that greased the wood soaked his pants and dirtied his white shirt, but he couldn't have been happier. Luckily with some Dawn dishsoap and some hot water everything came clean. Biggest news of the day though, was Hugh started to crawl! He's been rocking back and forth a lot, but he finally did it! And, in the same day, at the same time, he learned to sit up by himself. Seeing him learn to crawl has been a joy! He's been a little steamroller for a while now, and I think he'll be even happier as he crawls more and more.
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| This is just a picture of how much Jay LOVES helping, even with trash day! |
Monday was our final day of applesauce, we bottled 31 quarts and 1 pint. This time we took the mess to Katey's house. The twins had school and Jay had off, so it made the most sense to do the last load in Longmont. We had a great time! Katey and I know the system well enough, when one of us had to take a break to mother, the other kept things moving. We did another six hours and did even more apples than Friday. I love canning with Katey, it's time to chat and hang out, while putting up food for the coming months. We've also put up a lot of salsa from our garden tomatoes, the only picture I have of our work is here.
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| Salsa! |
Tuesday evening we all went to Kylee's band concert. As the students played, "Hot Cross Buns," I felt my muscle memory from playing the trumpet come back. It was one of the first songs I learned. Kylee did a great job on the flute, and seemed so tickled we were able to come...especially that Uncle Matthew was there. She has a special bond with him, she can talk to him about anything and I am so grateful for his love and support of her too!
Over the past week, I have been working on my mantel shelf. I did two rounds of putty and sanding, followed by finish sanding, staining, sanding, and staining. It's been so much fun to work on a wood project again and see something from design come to life. I tried to hang it today while M was at work, but I need his muscles to help me get these boards attached to the wall. I can't wait to see how it looks!
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| I made M bring it in so I could get a sneak peak of what it would look like. |
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| First round of sanding |
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| First round of Stain |
It's Fall time, and it's been mostly 60-70 degrees. I love it, and am trying to embrace everyday with good energy. I know the good weather days won't last, which makes it hard, but I am so grateful to have had a little extra warm fall. Pickleball this morning in the sunshine was healing for my soul, and I think for the boys too. We're fighting off colds, and hoping they work their way out of our systems soon. So far M has been well which is a great blessing. Jay loves to stop every day on the way home from school and play in the leaves. He hops out of the stroller by this particular house that hasn't raked anything, and plays. I love it!
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| Hugh is a fiercely independent eater, so we clean up messes every meal and he's usually very happy about it! |
