Just some stuff from the past week....

Last week Jay went to National FFA Convention with around 30 HS kids.  Lyle, his teaching partner, left a few days earlier with the boys competing in the national forestry competition.  Jay was the lucky one who got to ride a school bus to Indianapolis with the HS kids along with Jania, Lyle's wife. We didn't talk much while Jay was gone.  When they were at the hotel he was busy and when they were on the bus it was too loud.  But I did get a text Friday evening, along with half of Lawrence county I'm sure - Lyle's forestry team won 1st place!!!!  That is very exciting!  Lyle and Jay both work very hard and spend countless hours away from home with other people's kids.  I think some people don't realize exactly how much time they spend away from home (and their own children).  I love it when it pays off and others can see exactly how hard they do work.

While Jay was gone I had to go on an overnight work trip.  Thankfully my mom was able to go so I got to take Camryn.  I didn't want to wrestle the pack-n-play so Camryn slept with me in the big bed.  Actually, the pack-n-play wouldn't have fit in the car.  If anyone thinks that so many people have SUV's now because we are a spoiled gas guzzling society, they obviously don't have kids and can drive a Prius.  I put Camryn's stroller and mom's suitcase in the trunk.  That's all that would fit there.  In the back seat I had my suitcase on the floorboard behind my seat and my purse in the backseat.  On the other side of Camryn we had her diaper bag and another bag with extra bottles and formula.  Somehow we did manage to fit her in the car, but it was tight.  Oh for the days of those enormous 2 door cars in the 80's.  You know the kind where the backseat was the size of a small playground and shutting the door was like closing the hatch on a tank.  Those were the good old days....but my car is paid for so we are just going to have to keep squeezing in it, no matter how uncomfortable we all are....I digressed there - the size of my car is not what I had planned to write about.   Camryn and I shared a bed while we were gone.  I think I'm a million times more relaxed with her in every other way, except her bed time routine.  Somehow Cade got ruined at a young age and I am determined to not ruin Camryn.  I love my kids.  But I love them even more when they are in their beds and I'm in mine.  Nine years of waking up drenched in sweat, pushed up close to Jay with my body so twisted it feels like my kidney is in knots and it taking a moment for me to figure out why - Cade has once again got in our bed - will do that to anyone.  I thought things might still be ok because Camryn looked me up and down all Thursday night.  She had a look on her face that said "why are you in my bed".  When she woke up the next morning she looked almost irritated to find me still in her bed.  I figured we had lucked out and she wouldn't have issues going back to her own bed when we got home.  Prior to last week I think she's only gotten back out of bed once or twice after I put her down her whole life.  The last two nights she's cried after I've put her to bed.  This has required me to put her in our bed until she falls asleep then I transfer her to her bed.  It doesn't take long to ruin them does it? I really hope she grows out of this phase.  I'm not sure my kidney has another 9 years of being twisted left in it. 

Cade has decided he's going to pick up walnuts to earn some money.  Yesterday he filled up a feed sack.  Jay thought that was about 50 lbs of walnuts.  We were trying to take a little nap yesterday.  At least as much of a nap as you can get with a 4.5 month old.  I had to get up anyway so I went outside to check on Cade.  I caught him lugging the sack of walnuts through the yard.  He told me the story of what he was doing....he was in the field with the show heifer and bull picking up walnuts.  The new heifer was so friendly she walked right up to him and licked him.  Then he said he was using his pocketknife to cut the stems off of the walnuts.  I told him to be careful and then went back inside.  It dawned on me this morning, when I saw the pocketknife on the counter, that nothing  Cade told me actually registered with me.  Cade was in a pen with the cattle, by himself, using a knife.  He freely told me what he was doing.  I patted him on the head and went back inside.  Yeah, I'm up for mother of the year.  Jay's also up for father of the year.  He's the one who gave Cade the pocketknife.  I guess though I should be thankful.  At least the pocketknife was on the kitchen counter....not still in his pocket on it's way to school.