February 2016, Part 2

I turned 35 on the 18th of February.  As a present to myself I shut off my phone, loaded up the tractor, and headed down to a spot that we plan on submerging in water later this summer after we build a large dam. The current pond will be swallowed by the new one.

Alexe was at work, the kids at school.  My other kids kept me company.

I had a blast.  

A few large trees left to remove, but the valley is much cleaner now.



I came up to the house at the end of the day to be greeted by my amazing family, and a delicious spread.  

And then Alexe jetted off to DC for a weekend of wedding dress shopping with a.Eliza.  The kids and I did a little hotel prepping, or rather, they played outside while I knocked a few things out.

We went to the brewery that evening to listen to the band and see friends.  The kids' dancing may have been a bit wild, and a couple heads may have collided.  

Followed by a family movie, sans Alexe.  Not as good, but still pretty great.

The next morning the kids checked to see if their savings could support a bicycle purchase.  Annaliese just made it; Caspian, who will do anything for a quarter, had $50 more than he needed.

There were no bicycles for sale in Water Valley, so we went to Batesville, and found no stores carrying bicycles in February except for the Wally World.  We sacrificed our principles and went in to peruse the selection. 

Many bicycles were tested in the isles, (several times we were reprimanded for this,) and though there were bicycles with branding that the kids took to at first, when they started price comparing, they both went with the identical mini-mountain bike for under $50.  (How do they make a bicycle with 6 gears, hand brakes, kick stands, shock absorbers, etc., ship them across the globe, pay for the massive retail outlet, and still sell them for less than $50?  Something is very wrong about this.)

They each counted out their money and paid for their bikes.  

And we headed home with two proud little kids.  

They spent a time riding their new bikes up and down the driveway. I wandered into the woods and started lighting brush piles on fire.  

Coming back to check on the quiet kids, I found them with a jar full of bugs.

They joined me in the woods a little later, where we found the latest fox den.

They kept disappearing for long adventures in the woods, and then coming back to check on me.  Hearing them chatter to each other as they wandered off in a new direction tickled all the buttons that made us want to raise our kids on a farm.