A really great day

You must listen to the above song while reading this post, it'll complete the overall feel of our day that I'm trying to convey.  I apologize for not blogging for so long, but we thoroughly enjoyed every minute of a five week visit from my mother, she left Tuesday. Aunt Debbi arrived Wednesday (newly graduated from college), even Aunt Bekah visited Friday night.  Most days are just lovely, but some days are exceptional.  I never want to forget Saturday, May 26th 2012, so this is my record.

Coming off so many weeks and days of being loved by family, we are energized and generally pleased with life.  This sets the stage for yesterday.  Up early with Phoebe, I dived into bill paying and updating one of my favorite virtual tours yet:

Ben left early for work so he could bicycle there (14 miles round trip, he does this 3-4x a week in good weather) and I left the older kids with Debbi while I weeded and watered at the community garden and got some groceries with Phoebe.  While I was gone, Deb made the kids pancakes then made lemonade from lemons with the kids, which warms my heart.  I prepared Pad Thai noodles for the Memorial weekend party we were going to yesterday afternoon in Mansfield as Ezra and Juni went outside over and over ("In or out! Keep the door shut, it's hot out there!") to check on the new outdoor kitty we got the night before for mouse catching.  Butterscotch Lovin' is his name, and I'd say he's the newest member of the family, but the day isn't over yet.

 

While I was cooking and the kids were checking on Butterscotch, Phoebe slept and Aunt Debbi ran errands for me, including picking up these vintage glasses from our local antique store that was having a 40% off Memorial weekend sale.  I grew up with similar style glasses at my grandparent's house and I strongly believe that juice and milk taste better in vintage character glasses than in anything else.

Then we went to our friend's house an hour away and soaked up their love and warmth for several hours.  "She's getting so big!" they all said.  {sigh} I suppose she is too.  

Midway through our visit, Ben whispered to me that he didn't think it would be long before someone lost his first tooth. I kid you not, within a minute Ez wailed to us through panicked tears that his tooth fell out.  It took just a few moments of gentle reminders that it didn't hurt and a cool wash cloth to transform his initial concern to excitement.  He had worried all week that it might hurt coming out and faithfully avoided apples and hard foods to prevent premature fallout.

We shared the long drive home, everyone eager to check on Butterscotch Lovin' after so many hours away.    While the kids and I let him out of his cage to roam a bit, Ben went up the hill to get eggs and check on the chicken's food and water.  Suddenly, he yelled to us, "I FOUND A CHICK!!"  We all ran up the hill, Butterscotch at our heels, to see the great surprise.  For several weeks Mrs. Turkey and Shorty, our smallest hen, have been sharing the duty of laying on a clutch of twelve turkey eggs.  They didn't take turns, no, they sat on them at the same time, with one tiny dark chicken wing attempting to wrap itself around the white turkey's giant body to fit both broody ladies on the circle of eggs.  More were hatching as we watched the first one try to jump out of the wash basin we had it in.  (The  pic below will be their first album cover when it's released in 2013).

 The initial excitement over the chicks was just starting to subside when Ezra yelled with just as much enthusiasm as his Daddy did ten minutes prior, "THE STRAWBERRIES ARE RED!!!"  He and June raced to get their share of the booty and Ben and I, full of the moment laughed and said, "Look!  It's a rainbow!" only in jest, because there might as well have been at that moment.

At ten o'clock we finally got the older kids down to bed.  Exhausted, we stayed up another hour just to chat and smile about the day.  They both fell asleep before they could put their teeth under their pillows for the tooth fairy (Juni never did that with the front tooth she broke when she was one and wants to join in the fun).  So, the tooth fairy will have to work on a Sunday. 

I took this wee video of Phoebes while Ben was up the hill checking on the baby turkey chicks one last time last night.  Proof that rainbows come in many forms.