Let Me Just Tell You . . .

Tuesday, I took the kids blackberry picking again.  We just really enjoy going out to that farm.  It is in the country and it is so peaceful.  We had a great time and brought home even more berries.  I canned 10 jars of jam today.  I loved every minute of it.  

This morning, part of Julian's homeschooling work was to build something with K'NEX.  Boy, did he.  This kid built a ferris wheel!  He is super at reading the directions to these creations he makes.  I made a little video so you can see how it works.  The video is at the bottom.  Before bed, Julian even made one for Maddie, as well.

Kalen showing off his creation.  

So, what do I do on a day that I have a million things to do, I put underwear on my two year old and try to encourage the whole potty training business.  Like I don't have enough going on!  He was totally into wearing underwear and pull-ups.  I don't know why I just decided to go for it with him, but I did.  This morning he had a lot of accidents and didn't use the potty at all.  BUT, this afternoon and this evening, he would run to me or the potty and say, "Poo-Poo Mama."  Needless to say, I am totally thrilled and totally up for staying home for next few days to help him get it.  This doesn't mean that he will, of course.  But hey, it is worth a try.  I am crazy about this little guy!  Everytime he used the potty, I would give him two chocolate chips.  By the end of the evening, he had a brown tipped smile.  :)  I am so proud of him.

Okay, so I have one word for you . . . FREECYCLE!!!!!  This morning, Scott was doing some work upstairs on the computer when all of a sudden I hear, "Anna!  Come here!"  I ran upstairs and he motioned for me to read what was on the screen.  He had gotten an email from freecycle.  He gets several of these a day.  This involved a trampoline.  Freecycle is, as stated on the website, "a grassroots and entirely nonprofit movement of people who are giving (& getting) stuff for free in their own towns."  It is free to join and you get to network within your own community.  I think it is truly clever.  Much of what is offered is totally random stuff.  It is a wonderful way to get stuff in the hands of people who actually want it and will use it.  Reuse people!!    

We immediately responded to this lady about her trampoline.  They had only had it for a year and the kids didn't use it.  We were totally up to checking it out.  We have talked about getting the kids one for years, but haven't because of the money.   

Julian, our builder, went with Scott to see it.  It turned out to be in excellent condition.  Scott told them that we could definitely take it off their hands.  The guys disassembled it and brought it home.  All afternoon, Scott worked so hard to get it put together.  We are so excited about this!  Yes, we are totally aware of the dangers of having trampolines.  We have heard many stories and we know what we are possibly getting into.  For now, we will enjoy it, consider it a gift, and teach our kids to play as safely as possible.