Well, I got all those sweet rolls done and baked and delivered. I found out this morning, I made a few too many, they had some left over. Better too much than too little! It’s been a busy weekend, I’ve had teenagers galore over here for two days and now they’ve all gone home and taken two of mine with them! Just Jake and Sarah are left here. Tomorrow we’ll watch Luke in another 3 on 3 tournament and JW will march in the parade with the high school band. I think we might try to get some dehorning in too….who knows. These holiday weekends kill me, I can’t wait to get back to the mundaneness of the week days! Is mundaneness even a word?

It’s cloudy here on the Knolltop. I guess we’re supposed to get some rain today, none yet. Chores are done, the boys had to help the last couple of mornings because Big Daddy is indisposed. It’s fun to have them help in the mornings…I get more time to chat with them. Today is baking day for me. I volunteered to bake sweet rolls for a friend who’s daughter is graduating and her open house is tomorrow. I thought I would get it done a little at a time, but now I’ve got 7 batches to make today, the open house is tomorrow! Why do I always wait until the last minute? But that’s not a big deal, I enjoy baking… time in the kitchen is really my favorite time. Jake has his second game tonight, his uniform was in the washer this morning, he got up early and put it in the dryer and before school had it folded and put in a special spot so he wouldn’t forget it! I never knew he was so good at folding clothes! Better get to the kitchen.

The county fair has to be one of the best weeks of the year for any youngster involved in exhibiting livestock. It’s a place where relationships are developed and hopes and dreams are realized. But in some places the county fair doesn’t include livestock. My friend Trent Loos has been talking about this for a few weeks now concerning a fair in California that is eliminating livestock from it’s fair. What is a county fair without the livestock? There’s lots to be said for what our urban friends can learn from agricultural producers in a public venue like our fairs and exhibitions, but not if we’re not there to teach them.

Well, Jake has his big start last night and I know you most likely missed it on the ESPN highlights, so I’ll report it for you. Jake started out catching for 5 innings and then pitched for another 20 innings, or what seemed like 20 innings. You know at that 8-10 age group, baseball is kind of like watching paint dry, so a game that should’ve taken about an hour and a half, took two and a half hours to complete and that was only because the ump got tired and asked if the game could be done. They ended up losing by 10 runs, so it wasn’t a nailbiter to say the least. But Jake had a single and a double, grounded out and was walked. So all in all, it was a good night as far as mom is concerned, but not for Jake…he wanted to win. More later, I’m being summoned!

Well, Jake has his first game tonight in Pittsford. This morning he gave us the team report….”We aren’t ready for this game” were his words. And then he hoped that the other team wasn’t ready yet either. Let’s hope so. Either way, it’s 87 and sunny with a nice breeze, the cows are out on pasture, enjoying the warm weather without a care in the world and it’s a great day for a baseball game. I will have to miss this first outing…yes those cows haven’t figured out how to milk themselves yet!

Last night JW had a double header with Camden and they swept the Redskins winning the first game 15-2 and the second game 3-2. While they were playing down south, Jake had practice and I got to watch a little bit of his pitching after I got done milking. He’s terribly discouraged with his team. A couple of the boys just moved up from Tee ball and they still have a tendency to play in the dirt when their bored. Jake treats each practice like he’s in Spring Training with the Braves so there’s just a bit of difference in the intensity level on the team. But that’s how life is sometimes. Some of us chuckle our way through while others treat each day like it’s the only day that matters. Somewhere in the middle would be an approprite place to live.

Yes, today is my older brother’s birthday. Rex is two years older than me today. He is credited with teaching me more wrestling moves than I ever wanted to learn. But they’ve come in handy with my own boys. Everytime I start putting a move on my boys, they are always surprised that old mom can be that tough. In fact, I took my 14 year old down the other day and both of us were equally surprised! Anyway, my brother has a beautiful wife and two great boys. Happy Birthday Rex!

This morning the milk tester came. He comes once a month and weighs the milk that each cow is giving and then takes a sample to see how much butterfat and protein each cow is giving. They also test for how clean the milk is by testing the somatic cell count. It’s always fun to have the milk tester come, he delivers the news from other farms around the area. Some would call this gossip, we chose to call it “sharing information.” Gossip sounds better by another name. 🙂 I’m kidding about that, really we do talk about other farmers, how many cows they’re milking, who lost hired help, who’s expanding… etc. Well, I’d better get breakfast on the table and get these kids moving…and get my coffee perking!

It’s been a boy kind of sunday with four extra boys at the dinner table. They are so full of life with lots of stories of their adventures with each other. Ranging in age from 9-16, they all get along and have a great time when they get together for a pick up game of basketball in the barn or whiffle ball in the backyard. They are such a hoot. But this morning in church I was reminded of something I thought was impossible that became possible this week, but only by the grace of God. I sent a story out to a paper in Kansas called Grass and Grain. I had never sent anything to this paper before and they had no idea who I was. After bugging the editor for a couple of weeks, I figured there was no way she would buy my story. When I sent my final email to her, she said she would take the story! I was so excited. But like I said, only by the Grace of God.

Bobby took off for Springport for JW’s baseball tournament, Sarah went to Coldwater with a friend to a volleyball tournament and Luke, Jake and I went out to breakfast. Then we went froggin’ around for awhile. We walked down the streets of Jonesville, they were having a festival this weekend. Then we went picked up Brad and went to the store. Because the boys wanted to warm up before their basketball tournament, we went to an elemetary school and they played while I talked on my cell phone! For the rest of the afternoon, I sat in a chair watching six games of basketball while getting baseball updates on the hour. At chore time everyone arrived back home with lots to tell about their day. Luke’s team won 4 games, and lost 2. JW’s team won their first game and lost the second. The team Sarah went to support won the whole tournament. Jake…well, he was Luke’s manager. It was a fun day, but it was nice to get back home and the cows were glad to see us, I only had to go get two cows from the pasture…that’s pretty good odds. After chores the boys had to go work for the neighbor and Jake helped another neighbor unload hay. These farmboys go and go and go….