Well, Iowa certainly has lived up to it's reputation concerning changing weather. Wednesday, Ottumwa reported 79 degrees, in February no less. Alex and Kurt are both tiling in tee shirts.
Just 48 hours later was quite an adjustment with a 12 degree windchill and blowing snow.
Last Sunday was a beautiful day for Hazel's baptism. After lunch while everyone was enjoying the outdoors, we decided to take a family picture. The Bible says God owns the cattle on a thousand hills. Acres and equipment are also from Him on loan for us to use. God created family for His glory and our blessing and even the folks we love and claim are His. Even though many of us see each other and work together on a daily basis, I feel it's a blessing to get together with the gals and all the kids.
At the school bazaar auction last week we bought this painting to support the artist's hard work and the school. The artist is Greg and Patti's son, Phillip who I think is a pastor. Since it's been hanging in my office, I have fallen in love with it. Notice the details including the reflections in the ice. Thanks Phillip for sharing your wonderful talent.
Last Tuesday Cassia came into the shop and mentioned she noticed the sides were starting to thaw in one of Jan's freezers. I expected the worst and even told the kids that if things were bad it was going straight to the pile, food and all. When I checked inside I noticed everything was still froze however it wasn't running. After closer examination I found the thermostat on the bottom right had been adjusted to off! Apparently on Monday when Jan takes care of kidos, the three little amigos had played in the garage and found a dial.
Last Wednesday evening was the Cadets and Gems Pine Derby car race at our church. Thanks to the counselors for their time and talents in working with the kids on Bible lessons and projects.
Currently it's a sprayer and tender week in the shop. A tender is the trailer that picks up hot loads and hauls to the sprayer in the field. Hot loads mean the herbicides are premixed with water or fertilizer at the load out at which ever CPS facility we are spraying near. Karl mounted 4 new LED light bars on the sprayer. Lots of times we end up spraying for others during the day and ourselves at night.
Speaking of lights, we made good use of the warmer weather earlier in the week by starting early.
Mark cleaned a fence row of ours. Sometimes a honey locust (that's the tree full of thorns) will reach out into the field some 30 feet. A track hoe can remove trees much more efficiently than a dozer. I later came with our dozer and put the trees in a pile.
Since Ezra and Elliot had Presidents Day off of school they helped us, and in the picture below they are helping Uncle Mark clean the dirt out from in-between his tracks so the machine won't freeze down on a colder day. Growing up is a process and part of that process as a child is feeling needed. Many times we adjust during a job in order to include the younger kids.
Then as children become older they know how to work and are actually good help. John and Elijah, cousins, got up early to help Uncle Karl sell hogs. Focus on the Family talks about buddies and boundaries. You need both.
Gideon is a 9th grader and is stringing tile for his dad, BJ. By the time kids hit high school they are starting to sail on their own as far as friends and ideas. Helping and working along side parents creates affirmation and love with mothers and fathers. I don't talk enough about the all-important role of a mother probably because I'm not a Mom. However children need earthly fathers more than folks realize. Grandparents can help by being an example in attitude, generosity, by being real (what you see is what you get), by caring, by listening, by praying, and by being willing to help. I am blessed to be a friend and to have a relationship with my grandkids as a grandfather. The fact that works gets done is a benefit however our ultimate goal is that our whole family including our grandkids have a loving relationship with their Heavenly Father.
We told Joe and Diana we could do some volunteer work on their property at Lake View Camp if the weather would cooperate before the first of April. After that we would be busy. Wow. Did God ever provide great weather. They had a couple marshy bottom fields that needed drained.
On the second day Ben came and helped with set-ins (hooking up tile). In just 24 hours we had water running in the 6 inch main. A main is the bigger tile that the littler 4 inch tile runs into.
Irvin and his helper Chance provided help and equipment. A special thanks to Bob and Dort who help out at the camp and fixed lunch for us. Also thanks to the buildings and grounds crew, Bert, Carol, Bob, and John.
Later that afternoon we walked the tile plow to another job in the area and tiled out a food plot. We often tile through our own crops in the summer however I think this was the first time we have tiled through mature soybeans.
Friday we worked at Kurt and Emily's house getting ready for cement tomorrow. Stay tuned.
In life, as things change, the pessimist complains about the winds. The optimist expects the winds to change. The realist adjust his sails. Our helper Andy and I had a good talk this week about how life is 10% what happens and 90% how you handle what happens. Go out and make this coming week a good one.
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