Day at the Orchard

On Saturday, Heather and Z drove out and we all went to a local orchard. I used to work there in the summers during high school, picking strawberries and again about 5 years ago helping them sell apples. I hadn't been there since before I had the boys, and a lot has changed. They've expanded it to make it more of a place for kids, with a hayrack ride tour, teepee and flower garden. I brought a bucket and we picked raspberries.

They also have a pull wagon in the front and the kids hopped in. Lk was leery of the whole thing as he usually is to new places. Here, Z is as cool as a cucumber while he isn't so sure...

All 3 of them...

Big helpers! I think some of the berries were eaten rather than going in the bucket though...

Lm loved running around!

Lm wanted to guard the bucket and examine some of the berries so he stood watch.

Lk kept saying "I help!" He picked several berries (some not ripe yet though) and put them into the bucket one by one.

Heather took this one of Lm and a lot of the ones here of me and the boys. She now has a new camera after her last one got ruined in our swimming pool when she saved Lk. I was putting swim pants on Lm at the time so she was on lifeguard duty when he slipped and fell fully into the pool; she had the camera around her wrist and well, it went in with her. In short, Lk was saved but the camera was not.

This flower garden is fairly new. Gorgeous flowers!

A squash tunnel for the kids to walk through.

They also have a teepee. Here Lk and Z had an earnest discussion...

Lastly we went on a hayrack ride tour. So much damage was done by June's tornado that over 160 apple trees were wrecked, and the berries we brought home were tough to find, not nearly as plentiful as in prior years. In all, it was a gorgeous day and nice to get my mind off the stress of the accident for a couple of hours.

Why Some Men Don't Belong Behind the Wheel...

Well, I was almost killed on the way to work Wednesday. It was really foggy (maybe 3 ft of visibility on the 2-lane highway I was traveling). A negligent semi driver darted out from a driveway into my lane and it looked like it was going to be a head-on collision. He was making a left hand turn right in front of me! I slammed on the breaks and swerved off the road--he was in BOTH lanes--but caught the trailer part of the semi and it shaved off the front of my car. One foot over and I would've been a goner. It was only because I veered off the road at the last second that I was saved.

Then, the dipshit kept going! I'm not sure how he thought he could get away with it since he was turning out of the residence of his boss, Jerry Newsham. I was just stunned by the whole thing. Jerry's wife was really sweet, I went in and laid on their couch till the ambulance arrived and she CB'd her dumbass husband. I just really feel for the woman married to a guy like this. He was about 15 minutes away and came home. His driver was still nowhere to be found. And he had the gall to come up to me as I'm laying there, and said that no way will he take any responsibility for this, that he'll do whatever it takes to protect his business and his driver, that I was probably speeding. (Umm...I was going 10mph UNDER the limit.)

It's just sad that people like this exist in the world. I'm far more bitter about this than about the accident itself. His driver I think was either drunk or on something, as he claimed later he didn't know he was in an accident at all--oh, and he disconnected his phone numbers that he gave to the police so that my adjustor cannot reach him! Jerry, his boss, has taken all of his rigs off the property and hidden them at some unknown location. The cop who arrived at the scene to record the report is friends with him, too. Oh, and my insurance adjustor, though he's on my side, sounds like a surfer-dude. He had me go out and take the photos of the scene this morning as he never got around to it!

Do I have anything positive to say? Only that I am grateful that my car will be saved and not totalled. My adjustor wanted to but I protested hotly. It fortunately is only cosmetic damage other than the front alignment. I was ready to pop a spare tire on and drive it out of the lot--the bottom line is that I don't want to deal with the financial wizardry involved in buying another vehicle right now.

Pieces of my car were still out there this morning...

Here you can see my tire tracks going off the road and how close a call it was. This is where the semi was turning from--he just pulled right out in front of me. Notice all the semis gone from where they normally sit in the lot.

The driver was facing this way, probably thinking, Well I've got the bigger vehicle, let her deal with it, I'll just force her off the road...

Sheesh, do I sound bitter?? Here's where everyone is probably going, Oh but you're so lucky that it wasn't worse! You're so lucky you weren't killed and that's all that matters. It somehow doesn't wash with me because 1) if I'd been killed at least then I wouldn't know the difference and at the very least would not have had to deal with paperwork, pain, and a million phone conversations with adjustors etc the past 3 days and 2) if I were lucky then this wouldn't have happened in the first place.

You read me? So, please, I beg you, don't remind me how lucky I am--think it if you want, but please don't say it.

A New Pill...

Thanks to y'all who have asked whether my headaches have subsided. It's been 6 months now and they are still going strong. Though I will say that for the past 2-3 days they have been so mild for the first time since they started, that I've not had to take any over the counter pain meds for the first time since March; I hope this trend continues. Otherwise I just take one pill at night to help them. Of course, if I didn't have my job or kids, I'm sure that would cure them altogether. In the meantime, this other cocktail is helping.

My coworkers recently suggested the pill in the above photo--why not try that? Here is something that helps with headaches, depression, job woes, and more! I think I shall suggest it to my doctor on the next visit. Several of my fellow cube mates are trying it and it really seems to work...

Hitching a Ride

Yesterday a neighbor suggested to my dad that instead of pulling the kids around in the wagon, why not hitch it to the back of his new lawn mower. What a great idea! My guys love anything with motors and wheels, and it's a lot easier on our backs now that they weigh about 28 lbs each.


Even Lm stayed in; he usually likes to somersault out.


My dad enjoyed it also. I got the camcorder out and plan to do a video of the kids with some hyper classical music playing. Got the idea from my sister who did a great video of my neices recently.

Once we pulled up to the pumpkin patch, Lm wanted to take the driver's seat...

One pumpkin was ready to be picked, so Lk helped lift it.

But Lm got to hold it and he kept it safely under his protective arm for the ride back. Maybe this year we will paint a pumpkin for Halloween (no carving yet!).

Grandpa dropped them off at the swingset area, but they had no interest in anything but the new mower-wagon setup.

...though Lk helped Grandpa water the grass seed that was planted where their summer pool killed all the grass...

And Lm was back in the driver's seat.

Lk got back in the wagon and said "Go!" to his brother. He wanted to ride around some more!

I said, in about 14 years, I will consider it.

Since Lm did not want to get out of his seat, Grandpa and Lk got in the wagon together.

When it was time to go in for the nighttime routine, Lk clung to the wagon and refused to get out. He had to be pried kicking and screaming into the house and kept it up until I turned on their new Elmo Potty Time DVD. They are just mesmerized by those songs and I now have every one of them running through my head: You'll Use the Potty Too, Accidents Happen, Those Dirty Diaper Blues, and Trying Again.

Then I put them to bed and turn on my mp3 player with Coldplay to drown it out.

Cars and the Art of Bubbles

This weekend my guys were able to get outside and run around. It's been cold and rainy ever since I came back from Boston; I can't take another winter like the last one so I hope it's a mild winter.

Lm had his miniature cars he loves to carry and zoom around.


He even brought them outside and kept losing them in the grass.

Off with Grandpa for some "guy time" to read the paper and set off the truck alarm and use Grandpa's CDs for frisbees.

Meanwhile, back at the ranch...

Lk wants to do everything himself now. He can climb up to his "treehouse" and slide down the slide all by himself, he doesn't even need to hold my hand while sliding down (sniff, sniff).

But he hasn't yet mastered the art of blowing bubbles. This has caused great frustration and many tears, as he can't stand to see me blowing bubbles for them--HE wants to be the one in command.

Thus far, despite my tutelage, he can only hold the wand and dip it into the bottle.

From there, it's all uphill. He gets really upset because all the soap is lost from the wand before he can blow any bubbles, and he won't let me help him. Last night he cried and fell to the ground weeping in frustration.

It took awhile for him to get over it, poor guy.