Ready for Church

I took these before we left for church. Braeburn and Golden Delicious came later, so they missed the group picture. Very good future missionaries!

Decorating the Tree

The Milking Stool

Here's a picture of the milking stool that my endlessly creative brother, Winesap, made for us.

My Great Grandpa, Whit Pincock, used to milk cows with a little one legged stool like this. (He also named his cows after ladies in the Relief Society....!)

So, Winesap improved the design, added handles for easy carrying, and put a sturdy non-slip base on it. We decided that as soon as someone can milk Cindy completely by themselves, they can wood burn their name into the stool. So far, Prairie Spy is the only one worthy of the honor. Thanks, Winesap!

The Spy Twins Become Official Teenagers!

Happy Birthday to Prairie Spy and Nova Spy!

Here's Prairie Spy lighting the candles on his coconut cream pie.

And Nova Spy with his banana cream cake.

Happy Birthday boys! I hope your wishes come true!

Thanksgiving 2010

We had Thanksgiving Dinner here at Crabapple Farm this year.

Everything was delicious and it was lovely to see everyone. We also had our first ham from a milk fed crabapple farm pig - and it was fantastically wonderful. We were all happy that Prairie Spy's pig had not made weight for 4-H!

We had turkey too, just for traditionalists.... although I must say, orange rolls and ham are really the best possible food combination. Here's Miss Hannah, presiding over the kids table.

The weather was impossibly cold. We couldn't even go shooting or anything, but we managed to have fun anyway!

Christmas Update 2010

Mr. Bechtel's family asked for an update on our family and this is the write-up he gave:

Braeburn is 17. He's a senior in high school. He is very tall. We haven't measured him since last December, but he is more than 6'2". He started a lawn mowing business two summers ago and it has grown into quite a going concern. He says it's strange to have kids approach him at school and ask him for a job. He is very busy finishing senior projects, serving on Seminary Council, applying to college, practicing Krav Maga self-defense, taking and retaking the ACT, scoring a 5 on the AP History Exam, studying AP Economics and trying to figure out ways to earn money so he can visit England again (he has been to England twice now and believes that although it is nice that England is the homeland of his ancestors, it would be better if it were his own homeland) and travel the rest of the world. In the meantime, he blesses the sacrament every Sunday and often takes the sacrament to sick or older people in our ward.

Golden Delicious is 14 (she will be 15 in January). She is a sophomore in high school. She is also very tall - about 5"10". She and Braeburn ride to school together every morning in our little red jeep. She can't wait to get her own drivers license. She is a straight A student and regularly reminds me that I " owe her a dat" whenever she gats a perfect report card (every time). She loves exercising. She won grand champion at the county fair again this year with her Alpine Dairy Goat "Maggie". She made a video honoring soldiers and it so impressed her teacher and the principal that they showed it in their Veteran's Day assembly at the school. She and her friends go to the temple to do baptisms almost once a week.

Nova Spy will be 13 this month. He and Prairie spy and growing like crazy. They are both as tall as their mom. He and Prairie spy are home schooled this year. He has a small herd of Boer Goats that he bought with money he earned through 4-H. He builds boomerangs out of wood and other materials, and the actually "come back." He and Prairie spy have become very good horsemen this year. They also canoed the Green River in Utah for 4 or 5 days, hiked over 70 miles to earn their hiking merit badge (including a final 20 miler), built fences and pens to hold in our animals, camped in the back pasture for nights on end, and helped me wire the shop. They collect fast offerings and set up and put down chairs quite a bit. He and Prairie spy sing in the ward choir (as to Braeburn and Golden Delicious).

Prairie spy is the same age as Nova Spy, just 7 minutes younger. He and Nova spy do most things together, but Prairie spy has become chief milker of Cindy, our Jersey cow. He sings while he milks her and she thinks he's her best friend. At scout camp he hit a jug of water at 300 yards shooting a 25-06 rifle "off hand" (standing up). He hit it first shot. He and Marshall love their dog Jack. They also spend a lot of time fixing our old 4 wheeler and building various bobsleds and other devices for the 4-wheeler to pull. They have loaded many bales of hay, learned to irrigate our pasture, split and stacked cords of firewood and learned to fly fish. Prairie Spy has a lamb he wants to teach to pull a sled. He practices his guitar every day. He is secretary in the deacons quorum.

Granny Smith turned 8 this year, so he got baptized and started cub scouts. He loves to go flying with his grandpa Ricks. He is in charge of the chickens, so he collects the eggs and gives them feed and water. He is the best chicken catcher I have ever known. He is in 3rd grade and he loves to think about Science. He went on a couple of 10 mile hikes with the Spy twins this summer. He has grown like a weed this year. We can't wait to measure, but we're guessing he's grown about 3 inches. He loves to play family football in our back pasture and has lots of fun kicking a soccer ball with Braeburn. He has given several talks in Primary - off the cuff and doesn't need notes or memorization to deliver a spell binding speech. He is also a great singer. He performed a solo in a choral concert directed by his grandma Ricks last December.

Living Room Help

We've lived here at Crabapple Farm for more than 3 years now, and finally! the living room is looking "finished". Over Thanksgiving my family helped, inspired and painted away to create a much better place.

Gravenstein and Pink Lady gave me this fantastic clock, which Gravenstein and Winesap hung high up on the wall.

Pink Lady cleaned my windows and sills (for a long, long time). and took off stickers that had been on the windows since we moved in.

Gravenstein carefully measured everything so it was all centered.

He also had the great idea that we could just paint the wood around the hearth until we decided what to do with it. He brought over tape, plastic, and paintbrushes.

And Pink Lady went shopping with me and helped me get pillows for the window seat.

Yeah! It's wonderful to have such a great family. Thank you everyone.