Spring?

Yes, I, too, am wondering where all that wonderful spring weather is.  The snow has faded from the lawn, but there is still the remains of a 'snow beast' in the backyard and my daffodils are at a standstill after that last blast of winter.

Jonathan and Ian have been busy digging a pit in the garden.  Jonathan thought he'd dig a tunnel from the garden to the swing set, but then decided that he needed help.  Ian didn't agree to helping, but between the two of them they get enough mud caked onto their clothes that they are emptying the pit even if they don't use a shovel!

Dwalin the goat kid is growing like crazy.  He loves to run around the backyard following Marc as he does his chores.  Mavis (the mother goat) is doing better after a slight surface infection of the udder.  We had to give her antibiotic injections twice a day--I NEVER expected my medical training to be used on goats!

We're still looking for a new location for the Unadilla Artisan Guild.  Wayne is working on another cut glass design and I have 3 quilts in various stages of completion.  The other artisans are busy, too, and we all look forward to the day when we can open a shop again.

The quote of the moment...When discussing the importance of Palm Sunday at church, the question was asked what Palm Sunday was.  Jonathan quickly answered, "Jesus rode a donkey into Jerusalem."  Ian added, "The donkey's name was Eeyore."  (Now, I bet that's a bit of information you hadn't heard!)

A Taste of Spring

The thermometer was in the high 40's this afternoon and the sun was shining but the most exciting thing was the sound of a red-winged blackbird singing!  Spring can't be far away when we start hearing that beautiful song.

I was able to ply some yarn on my spinning wheel while sitting on the side porch enjoying the beautiful day.  Raven had a great time 'hunting' in the field (going from woodchuck hole to woodchuck hole trying to find the critters).  Marc let Dwalin (the baby goat) out of his pen and run around the backyard.  There is nothing as cute as a baby goat jumping and dancing around the yard.  Jonathan pulled out the baseball and bat.  I think we all have a bit of spring fever.

An Even Bigger Surprise...

This morning Katelyn went out to the barn to do her chores and came back in with a quizzical look on her face. "Dad, did we get another goat yesterday that I didn't know about?"

"No...why?"

"I think Mavis had a baby during the night." Wayne got his coat on and went to the barn.  Sure enough, we had a new kid in the barn cuddled up against 'Bit of Honey' the merino/cormo ram. 

The 2 youngest are discussing names, but from what I hear, Marc has decided on a movie character's name "Dwalin" (from the Hobbit). 

By all accounts (especially the blat!) this little guy is strong and healthy.

I think we better go check on those other goats to see if any other surprises may be arriving.

Surprises...

Each Monday Jonathan has adaptive aquatics (swimming lessons one on one for special needs children) with his instructor Sandy.  Ian wanted to have swimming lessons, too, but since he has always had an aversion to water in his face, we weren't ready to invest in swimming lessons until he could get his face wet without screaming.  Sandy told him to come with Jonathan each week and she'd let him spend time in the shallow end of the pool to 'get used to the water' while she worked with Jon.  Over the weeks Ian would get a little braver and try some of the suggestions Sandy made.  A couple of weeks ago Sandy had her underwater camera at the pool and took some pictures of the boys.  As you can see, Ian isn't having any problems with his face getting wet!  This last Monday while working with Jonathan, Sandy asked Ian if he'd like to try touching the bottom of the pool while using the 'fireman pole'.  Ian agreed and did his best, but his ears bothered him as he went down.  Sandy then suggested that he try swimming to the ladder (about 6 feet away) while staying along the edge of the pool so he could grab hold of the side if he needed to take a break.  He swam to the ladder and asked if it was okay for him to try to swim to the end of the pool (at the 11 foot deep end!).  She nodded and as I watched in amazement, Ian swam to the end of the pool with just a couple of stops to catch his breath.  He's now telling me that he thinks he's ready to try the diving board!  I guess we don't have any more excuses for him not to take 'official' swimming lessons.  (I can't seem to get the picture to load right but you can get the idea...)












On Valentine's Day we received another surprise.  Wayne had been talking to the salesman we have purchased our last few vehicles from about the possibility of finding a replacement for our van.  I have put a LOT of miles on the faithful van and we were beginning to see a need for more frequent garage 'visits'.  The salesman had a van that was a year newer than our current van with a LOT less miles and features that would make our many trips more comfortable and less 'worrisome' for Wayne when I was out transporting children here and there.  They had a perspective buyer for our current van.  By the end of the day, the decision had been made...we were getting the new van and by Friday evening the new van was in the driveway.  I asked Wayne how he was going to top this gift next Valentine's Day. 

January passed...and then February...

I had hoped to have new pictures of a freshly painted and cleaned shop by now, but that hasn't happened.  After a month of waiting and scurrying to get all the necessary paperwork to the insurance company, the landlord's insurance company contacted us Thursday and denied any coverage to any of the artisans displaying their wares in the shop. (It's a long, discouraging story that I won't bore you with.)  If you're in the market for insurance, we can tell you which company NOT to do business with!

Soooo that left us with a store full of very dirty inventory needing to be removed asap so the store can be cleaned.  Today several of the artisans and some friends converged on the store and removed more than half of the inventory.  Tomorrow afternoon there will be another group finishing the task.  Our garage is full of furnishings needing to be cleaned, the porch has merchandise to be sorted and considered for potential cleaning, the mudroom has boxes of office supplies and pottery to be sorted and cleaned, and the laundry room is busy washing fabrics used for displays and clothes dirtied from working in a sooty store all day.

It would be very easy to view all of this through 'soot-tinted glasses' but last night we met with the majority of the artisans and were blessed by their positive attitudes and encouragement to learn from our mistakes and move forward--together.  There have been tears and frustration, but the laughter and hugs of support have brightened the difficult days.   The masking tape sticking to the rubber gloves while trying to secure protection around a framed print had us all laughing as the poor victim couldn't get her hands apart.  Removing a dust mask to have a clearly delineated area of the soot from the protected area gives a source for many jokes.  Locking the keys to a borrowed neighbor's truck IN the truck...on the front seat...in clear view left me a bit chagrined. (the other set of keys were with our neighbor who was out of town for the day)
 Now at the end of the day, the neighbor's truck is back in its garage, the day is winding down, and after spending the afternoon with a great bunch of people, I can say, we are truly blessed.  More hard days are ahead, but as one of the other ladies stated today, "This is a blessing in disguise and we will see that blessing in the end."  Until then we'll keep pressing and finding the things to laugh about in the midst of the soot.

Bad News & Good News...

Yesterday we received a call from one of the women involved in the Artisan Guild.  She found the inside of the shop covered with soot.  The furnace had malfunctioned and we were the victims of a 'puff back'.  The bad news is that EVERYthing is covered with a thick oily smelling soot.  The good news is that it happened in January (our slowest time of the year) and our inventory wasn't as large as it was in November/December.

We're waiting to see what our landlord's insurance company decides about cleaning the inventory, but we know that they will clean the store.  We'll have a new paint job and probably a new furnace.  So-o-o spring cleaning will be done for us.  We're praying that the insurance company will also pay to have the inventory cleaned, but even then, those of us with fabric/fiber items have probably lost our inventory.  Wayne used to work for a company that cleaned after such incidents and he told me this is probably the worst one he's ever seen.  The cleaning company called in by the insurance company confirmed this.

I've decided that I will not dwell on the negatives, but try to focus on the positives...call me Pollyanna!
--Wayne has experience with this type of 'disaster' so he knows what to ask and how things need to be done.
--It wasn't in December when the store was packed with inventory.
--It's our slowest time of year so if we have to be closed, now is the best time.
--We're not having to pay for heat!
--I get to make all new items so I have an excuse to 'play' with fiber and fabric.
--Many of the other artisans' items can be cleaned effectively if done properly.
--The new furnace will probably be more efficient so we'll be saving money on oil.

Hmmm  I'm still thinking....

No,We Didn't Fall Off the Face of the Earth!

I can't believe that I haven't posted since November!  They say time flies faster as you get older...I must be aging rapidly!

December brought a trip out to Bath to see Matthew in the musical "Four Tickets to Christmas".  The dinner was delicious, the show was great, and it was so much fun meeting Matthew's co-workers, friends, and fellow performers.  We are so blessed that he is working in such a wonderful environment with such great people.

The following weekend brought snow and sickness to the household.  I don't often get sick, but the cold that hit me put me out of commission for several days.  Everyone in the family had the cold to some degree, but on Christmas day, the flu started making the rounds.  It's taken us this long to get healthy.  Rachael still has a bad cough, but the worst seems to be behind us.

Christmas was a nice, restful day (after getting up at 6 a.m. for the eager youngsters).  I didn't get any pictures because my camera is missing.  I'm assuming a certain 9 year old had it somewhere capturing moments, but he has no idea where the camera went.  I need to work up the courage to go into the attic (where he was creating with Matthew's Lego sets) and see if the camera is in that jumble. 

Since there's no camera there's no photos to post and since we've been sick there's no real news to share...that's why there have been no posts.

I did get the cross-country skis out last weekend and take advantage of  the snow.  It's great being able to ski out in our field when the roads are too messy to go walking. 

Raven LOVES the snow and has a great time plowing through the field. Her new favorite game is chasing field mice through their tunnels and throwing them up in the air when she catches them.  At least she's decreasing the population so we won't have as many trying to get into the house. 

Hopefully, pictures will be back soon and life will be full of things to write about.  Until then, stay healthy!