"Boooo!"

This Boo is not to be taken as a spooky ghost boo. It is to be taken as a " BOOO! *fist shaking* Get of the field Ump you SUCK! BOOOO!" Got it? Good.

So it is Halloween, the favorite holiday of my husband and I, and a very close second favorite holiday of MAT's. RAT likes it too, but doesn't know why. Unfortunately we, like many others I know, are going to have an unholiday thanks to the yucky fever puke stuff that everyone has. Luckily the pukey stuff has passed us over for the moment. MAT came home with a fever yesterday, cried and felt junky all night. This morning he is putting on a very brave front, though he still has a fever and clearly does not feel his best. He keeps saying, "but I am all better, I can go trick or treating." *cough, cough, hack, hack.* " Really Momma, I feel find." Poor guy, he is all stuffy and coughy and generally felling like junk. And today baby brother is getting in on the action. RAT is also running a small fever today. Yay.

So trick or treating is out of the question as is visiting family today. Boo. But there is a silver lining, even though they are sick they are sill in the holiday spirit. Both boys dressed up, for a little while anyway and let me take pictures for a bit.

Here they are "the Brother Kings of Hated Vegetables!"

The King of Peas! (a.k.a. RAT)

The King of Brussel Sprouts (a.k.a. MAT)

Conversation with MAT over coffee this morning.

MAT, "Mommy?"
Me, "yes MAT".
MAT, "Can we have a girl baby?"
Me, "Well MAT we aren't going to have any new babies for a while yet, and even when we do I can't promise it will be a girl. We will get what we get. It could be a boy or a girl."
...long pause...
MAT, "Well...if we get rid of RAT, will it be a girl baby? Cause I'm kinda leaning that way."
...long pause as if I am considering it...
Me, "Hmmm, nope we keep RAT, and we take whatever baby we get when we get one, those are the rules."
...
MAT, " Well then I think I wanna play a new game."

He is so set on us having a new baby right now, and especially that it be a girl. I think when we do have another one and it is a boy, lets face it I will only have boys, he will be absolutely crushed and sullen. Hopefully we can work on this more before we decide to have another. Poor guy is just set on having a sister.

Brrrr-eautiful!

Everything is frosty frozen. The duck pools have 3 inches of ice in them, the dog bowl is almost frozen solid, there is a sheen to everything with its frosty blanket. I hope I picked and chose the right plants to cover and save.

Now if we can just figure out the fresh unfrozen water for the ducks problem it will be a successful day. Our barn spigot doesn't work, something we intended on fixing before the winter this year, but with the lay offs who can afford to rent a trencher. So we have been running a hose from the house spigot to the duck pen. Now this wont work in the winter, freezing temperatures make hoses and pipes explode you know, so I am slowly coming to the realization that I will be toting 5 gallon buckets or 2 gallon bottles to the duck yard several times a day to keep the ducks in wet unfrozen water. Hmm...We shall see if I truly have the gusto to be self sufficient after a winter of carrying water through 4 feet or so of snow everyday at least twice a day.

As least Mr. T bartered work for a snow blower, so I MIGHT not be walking through 4 feet of snow. He is a bartering genius. The pay was not going to be great for the job he got it from but he asked the guy if there was anything to trade.

He replied "well...I have an newer 2 phase snow blower. It worked two years ago but wouldn't start last year." Mr. T said "I'll take it!". It literally took him maybe two hours to figure out what was wrong and get it running again. We are in the Lake Michigan snow belt. Right where we live is where the most snow falls and accumulates in our state. Good thing I don't mind being snow bound too much and good thing we are slowly preparing for the many long winters ahead.

After we find a snow shovel, we will be set for winter, I think, aside from the water issue. We have a generator, and a snow blower, a working wood stove and chainsaw, Mr. T is working for a huge amount of seasoned fire wood next week and, for once, we all have winter coats that fit, before the snow falls. I think we are in pretty good shape, provided the propane tank will make it through the winter without being filled. I guess I will just have to watch my baking and use of the dryer.

"Clang!

Crash! Thump, thump, thump, skreeeee, bing!"

This is the sound I hear ringing through out the house radiating from the kitchen. Then a few seconds later it repeats and then relative quiet, just the incomprehensible murmurs of children in another room.

I get up from the couch, my coffee, and my morning NPR and run into the kitchen. Where I find my oldest child high fiveing my youngest child and telling him "great job baby!". Apparently the noise I heard was my oldest putting his oatmeal bowl, spoon, and empty juice cup in the sink, a very proud moment as a mom for me on a daily basis. If I could just get him to put his dirty laundry in the basket instead of strewn about the floor of his room, but I digress.

The second repeat ruckus I heard was my youngest child imitating his older brother. At 19 months old, RAT put his own oatmeal dish, spoon and juice cup in the sink after breakfast. I didn't even have to coerce him, I am sure MAT did that for me. He can barely reach the counter but apparently he can slide things over the ledge and into the sink. What a big boy task. What a couple of great kids. This totally makes up for the before 6 am wake up calls of this week. I could not be prouder of my boys today. Big stuff.