Summertime Update-- Yes we are Still in Business

 Hello from your non-dedicated blogger friend.  We have had a busy summer, like everyone else of course.  We will give a quick summary.  Truly, I didn't sign my kids up for a bunch of activities this summer-- and it has been so relaxing and fun.  They have all beet getting along really well and having fun playing together.  Here is SO picking the black currents which ripened VERY early this year.  It has been a strange growing season.  Many of our plants have been confused by the weather, and they aren't sure which hemisphere they were planted in.  Sometimes it is winter, and sometimes it is summer-- and I think for the last month it has finally settled on "Spummer" which is a mixture of Summer and Spring, of course.  It still isn't warm enough at night sometimes for my plants to really take off- and then we are really wanting some rain to come and drench the dry ground.  Anyway.....the black currents were yummy.  When you mix the juice with plum juice to make jelly (which is what I did because I didn't quite have enough juice for a batch) it tastes very similar to choke cherry jelly which is my all time favorite. 

 LL finished up orchestra and is still taking lessons over the summer.  She has progressed a lot this past year.  It has been so fun to hear her play and the new songs she learns.  Her teacher is wonderful.  We are really glad we found her.

 I was crazy enough to do the Wasatch Back again this year.  It was so much fun.  One of my friends loaned us an 11 passenger van to use-- and it was perfect!! We slept in that instead of outside.  I ran a different leg this year with more miles, and I had a great time.  The weather was super and the company was even better.  Both times I have ended thinking what great ladies I was able to run with and how much fun we had.  They are all so selfless and tough-- very tough.  When one  of our runners was hurt, everyone was arguing who would be able to go out and help her finish her leg (except me-- I was wimpy because I had just finished a 7 miler).  They were all willing to jump right in-- and then our runner was so dang tough-- she ran the rest of her leg in pain, but did NOT want to quit. 

 LL has taken to babysitting her corn patch.  Yes, those are weeds, but since this picture has been taken, the corn has grown a ton.  She is so proud of watering it.  All the kids have been pretty good about weeding our garden every day.  We have all been a little sick of it since the weather has warmed up quite a bit.  I just keep thinking that if the day ever comes that we have to survive on what we grow-- we're sunk.  I will just eat weeds.

 Rich has been working super hard on his family's old farm.  He keeps sheep there now and he has had the place fixed up by two boys that he hired for the summer.  He goes there to work after his job every day.  He will usually have the boys come and do some work with him.  SHO goes nuts when he gets to ride in the tractor.  He is in heaven.  LO still loves riding along in the tractor, too. 

 This is the old barn if you remember that place at all.  Here it is from behind, too. 

Hope you are all having a great summer.  We have also had lots of fun visiting with cousins on both sides.  I am really kind of sad that school is going to start in about 5 weeks.  I admit there are some days that the noise and the constant mess wear me out, and I feel like making them all sleep in the barn.  Hmmm.  I haven't tried that yet, and they might actually like sleeping with the goats.