Peaches!

Before we moved to Kansas, I had visions of this being a wonderful place to get all kinds of great, local, fresh produce.  Well, if you're talking about wheat and corn, yes, this is a great place for it, but for a large variety of fresh produce, this is NOT the place to be.  I went to the farmers market one time and was so depressed about what I found (or shall I say did NOT find) that I haven't been back.  We have had a garden both summers we've been here now, so we do get some produce from there, but I really miss the incredible farmers market in California.  At least our local grocery store is pretty nice and there is a great store down in Wichita (half an hour away) at which we like to get produce.   We are all out of home canned peaches, so I really wanted to find a good resource to get a bunch to can.  I wasn't sure I'd find much locally, but I did find a peach farm not too far from us.  They ended up being too expensive to want to buy enough to can, but it was a nice family outing and the few peaches we did get were delicious (and not treated with pesticides!).  I froze a few to enjoy later.  It was great!  Here we are at the peach orchard:

They had an old tractor the kids could sit on.

Picking some peaches (and eating them too!) Don't worry, it was allowed.  The owner was right there with us and offered them to the kids.

Delicious!

The kids loved the play area.  You can see the orchard there in the background.

Grant was in heaven when he saw this massive sandbox complete with construction vehicles galore!

The girls trying out this merry-go-round

Kate loved it!  I was so nervous she would fall off and crack her head open on the cement!  She's so little!

Cool airplane teeter-totter.

Oh- I did find another place that orders bunk peaches from out-of-state.  I should be getting those in soon.  It will be nice to have that supply built up again.

Swimming Lessons!

The end of July, the 3 older kids took a 2 week long swimming course.  They all really improved in that time.  I was impressed!  Emma and Arianna were both in the same class, level 2, and Grant in the level 1 class.  Since the lessons were in Hesston, just down the street from where Kenneth works, he would stop by a couple of times to watch them swim.  Since I was taking care of Kate, I didn't take any pictures, but Kenneth took a few when he came by.  Thanks, Kenneth!  Kate actually did quite well staying right close to me eating snacks and reading books until the last day when she was interested in going right up to the pool and throwing balls in again and AGAIN.  Boy was I glad she didn't discover that until the last day of the classes!  During the middle of swimming lessons, we had a string of unseasonably cool weather: 60s and 70s.  I was in heaven!  (I definitely have some California girl in me!)  Our neighbors were cold.  They actually cancelled swimming lessons 3 days that week.  So, we had 2 make-up days the following week.

Arianna jumping in.

Emma full of gusto!

Grant-man taking the plunge!

Vegetables

Grant told me yesterday he likes vegetables better than treats.  I couldn't  tell whether he was being serious or not and so I asked him why and he said because he feels better after he eats vegetables.  Wow!  It's been worth trying over and over again to get him to eat them!  Hooray!

It's a wonder we accomplish anything!

Kenneth is trying to fix the faucet in the kitchen.  He became a jungle gym.

Can't get enough!

Of what, you ask?  Looks a little like chocolate mousse, maybe?  Chocolate pudding?

No, sir, can't get enough black bean hummus.  What kind of children am I raising?!

Animals should definitely not wear clothing.

I picked this book out from the library for the kids because I thought it looked funny.  It wasn't until I read it to them that I saw this page:

And I laughed out loud!

Ditty

Kate is really growing up!  She has learned to open the refrigerator all by herself this week, said please and thank you, now regularly successfully WALKS all the way down the stairs, and much more that I am sure I 'm not remembering as I write this.

She really wants to always have some electronic device in her hand- the home phone, my cell phone, or banging on the laptop keyboard.  She's wild!  This is how I found her yesterday when I came out of the laundry room where I had been ironing:

Emma had removed her clothes a little before this for some unknown reason

Then when we told her she needed to give us the phone and get down she looked like this:

She's in a screaming phase- it's lots of fun.
 

She really is a lot of fun, though.  And cute, to boot.  With her new mastery of the refrigerator door, she brought a zucchini into the family room to us during story time tonight.  She's hilarious!  I really can't get enough of her.  Except that I can.  You know, like I am glad when it's bedtime.  But, I'm also glad when I get to check on her and when it's time to get up in the morning, too.  If you are a parent you completely understand.