The Forestry Forum

Our just turned five-year-old granddaughter Alex is going to be the smart one of the litter.  No sooner than she could talk she could say her ABCs.  Better than a year ago she could write them both in caps and cursive.  Then she learned to spell her name and those of her sisters and other important words like MOM, DAD, DOG, etc.  Anytime she's not directly involved in being a typical five-year-old, she she is setting with a pencil and a notebook and is "practicing" her ABCs.  :P

The last few months she's really ramped up the number of words she can spell to somewhere up to 100 I'd say.  She was "practicing" the other morning and asking me new words to spell when she asked "How do you spell Disney DOT com?".  :D

(https://forestryforum.com/images/YaBBImages/userpics/MaryAlexHug2.jpg)

Cute girl Bibby....and so is your granddaughter.... :D

The one has a resemblance to Pro Sawyer Mary... :)

In 1984 I was working on restoring a Corvair. My buddy sonny and I had painted it on a Friday evening. A maroon Metal flake. Really came out good. To celebrate we decided to go fishing on Saturday, actually back in those days Sonny and I went fishing most every Saturday ;D, while Sonny's wife Linda and Tammy went off and did their thing. That Day they decided to just stick around our house.  

When we returned that evening Tammy met me at the front door. Her first words were "Promise me you won't kill him"   I said Huh??  

My Son Jeremy at the time was only 3 years old. He had asked his mom if he could go out in the garage where our dog was for a little bit. She said O.K.  I had a work bench with shelves above it. when Tammy wanted something off these shelves she would come get me. Well, somehow, this three year old piled stuff in front of the bench, clumbed up there, where he had already piled some old books and a wood box. Clumbed on up on the pile and was able to reach the new can of black spray enamel paint. He then was able to pry off the top with a screw driver from the bench (You all know how hard them dang tops come off.)

Well, the next part is Art History. He proceeded to paint everything in the garage. mower, my  waders, the dog, bikes, the fridge, my tools, and the corvair. All of this in about 10 minutes. When he came back in the house he gave no indication of what he had done for about an hour when his ma went to wash him up for dinner and saw he had black paint on his hands.  He said he had "helped Daddy paint again"

Tammy goes out to the garage to see what he had got into. To try to make it look not so bad, she got out the thinner and tried to wipe of the black paint off the new paint. Not good.

I never did kill him. I was to impressed with his accomplishments. ;D

As a post script, our garage was broken into later that year and several things taken. We were able to I.D. and recover my waders at the sherriffs department because one foot was glossy black.  :)

Hee Hee! I can just see you now, when you got home, Jeff. You just laughed and said, "Aww, isn't that cute?"  Right?

RIGHT!    :D :D :D

Bibby,

Watch this kid, for she may turn into something great :) :)

Kids like this seem rare, so encourage the developement of her writing skills.

JB

  Bib did know how to spell Dizanee     :) :)

This young'un was the pride of my life.  My first child and he was a boy to boot.  I couldn't have been any happier.  He loved wheels and tires, spending hours sitting and turning one on its axle.
(https://forestryforum.com/images/YaBBImages/userpics/tommyc1973.jpg)
(https://forestryforum.com/images/YaBBImages/userpics/tommyc2000.jpg)

Then he turned into this monster diesel mechanic that could pick logs up and put them on the mill and rebuild a auto engine or bulldozer in a flash. He's still my pride but he sure is an armful to hug. :D

Like father like son ;D

Pretty cool, Tom,Bib.
Kids can have a softening effect on the heart.(sometimes, can cause heartburn) :)

My now 52-year-old body won't let me have a good night's sleep for some roving ache or pain someplace.  I wake up in the night and then can't go back to sleep and lie there thinking about things.

Back half my life ago I couldn't sleep either.  But it wasn't my body's fault.  We had two small boys that shared the bedroom just across the landing of the stairs in our small house.  We kept the light in the stair well on and their door open for night light.  Our door would normally be cracked open so we could monitor the goings on next door.

Every stinking night was a fight to get two boys to go to bed and get to sleep.  Even if you could get one, the other one would be a pain.  Sure there was the nightly ritual of "Get a drink,  go to the bathroom before you go to bed."  Every night after a struggle there had to be another round of "I'm thirsty.",  then " I've got to go pee."  Followed by the other having to do the same thing.  Plus another hundred ways to prolong the process.

It was near midnight one night and the fight was still going on.  Gabe had went to sleep but by that time Chris the younger had awoken and started his shift.  Threats from our bedroom were not doing any good so I got up and went in to place him back into bed.  I had tucked him in and was using my sternest voice to threaten him while pinning his arms under the covers.  All the while I was doing my Marine Corps Drill Sargent routine,  he was snickering.  I finally demanded "WHAT'S SO FUNNY?"  His little three-year-old voice came back "I's jus thinkin about why alligators don't have ears."  It took me by such surprise I had to break out laughing.  He laughed too and I just went back to bed.

(https://forestryforum.com/images/YaBBImages/userpics/boys2.JPG)

Gabe (oldest), Snoots the dowg, and Chirs.

This thread got me to thinking about when my sons were little and how things we took for granted were not so for them.

When my oldest son was about 3 years old I took him squirrel hunting with me. We had a nice walk in the woods and even got a couple of squirrels which was amazing since he did'nt stop talking the whole time. When we got home I went in the garage and rounded up some old newspapers to butcher the squirrels on. He asked what I was going to do and I told him I was going to clean the squirrels I had shot. He didn't say a word and left to go inside. A couple of minutes later he showed back up in the garage with a scrub brush and washcloth. When my wife asked him he was doing me explained to her that he was going to help dad clean the squirrels we had shot.

My wife and I still laugh about it.

Until I was old enough to drive and pay for my own,  my haircuts were administered by Mom out in the front lawn when weather permitted or in the kitchen when it was too cold.  The instrument of torture was something right out of Inquisition era.  She use a pair of hand powered clippers that ripped and tore at the victim's hair until it had that "hand hewn" look.  After the Age of Enlightenment,  she used a pair of electric clippers.  These were faster but just as destructive.  And half way though the process they became hot enough to cause blisters.  In both cases, the style was the same - high white walls over the ears and around the back of the neck.

Fortunately,  we didn't get haircuts on a regular basis.  Before school started in the fall,  before the Christmas pageant,  Easter and start of summer for sure.  Then throw in a wedding or funeral that didn't fall shortly after one of the above events and that was about it.

But I'm not sure if I remember my first haircut or if I've recreated it in my mind from being told about it so many times.  It plays in black and white in my memory like a Little Rascal's episode.

I guess I was a little older than 2,  for sure I could talk,  Dad took me to the barbershop to get my first haircut.  They say my blond baby curls reached my shoulders. (https://forestryforum.com/smile/hair2.gif) I watched with fear as others got their hair cut then Dad.  Came my turn the barber put me in his chair.  It was then I folded my arms over my head and pulled my neck in.  I told the barber - "You don't want to cut my hair."  He asked why.  I said, "Cause I got ROWSES!"  (https://forestryforum.com/smile/scream.gif)


Dad was so embarrassed!  (https://forestryforum.com/smile/disappointed.gif) I did get my hair cut but that was the last time Dad took me to the barbershop.
 

The squirrel cleanin' story reminds me of Christmas a few years back.
The boy was four I think. He had gone with to my brother's inlaws and had helped herd the geese into a corner so we could select and grab one to take home. Now I should say here that I usually didn't clean any game at the house back then. So since we kept this goose in the garage during the week before Christmas, we weren't sure if the boy would get attached to it. The wife had already warned me that I was to find something for him to do so he wasn't around come butchering time.
All fears were relieved the night that he came into the kitchen through the door to the garage and loudly announced... Dad, that meat's hissin' at me again!.  :D :DChristmas eve morning he helped scald & pluck, watched me clean it, and that night enjoyed a fine Christmas goose.  ;D

It was the summer of 1973 and Donna came into the house and asked where the camera was because our son, Charles jr, was doing something real cute. I gave her our only camera, a Kodak Instamatic with the flash cubes. Out of curiousity I went outside to see what was so cute. There was Donna snapping a picture of our son with the garden hose jammed up the exhaust pipe of our 1969 Fury III.  Donna thought it was cute, son was having a grand time putting water into the exhaust, but I thought...."Oh DanG!!!".  I ran out there and shut off the water. Asked my son to pull the garden hose out and started up the engine to blow the water out. We then went for a long drive to dry the system out. I don't know how long my muffler and pipes lasted but I'm sure not as long as they should have. But...somewhere...we have a picture of a happy little 4 year old holding a hose stuck up the exhaust pipe...... ;D

The stories I could tell on this thread. Kids at times can get you steamed in one second and busting a gut the next second. Each child is so different in their actions but they all have one thing in common, they love to explore the unknown and also have marking, painting, drawing in their blood. Guess the good thing is they really don't care at that young age what they are drawing on, paper the wall, a car, the house siding and the list goes on.

Another thing that all little ones have in common is the invisible monsters under the bed. Some alot worse than others.

Gordon

Yep Gordon, I remember when I was a young'un in Florida trying to go to sleep in the summer and the windows were open....and....the wind was making the bushes scratch the screen....and I'd swear someone was standing at the window. The street light glowing behind the bushes looked just like a boogy man standing at the window scratching on the screen. Many a night I'd put on my catcher's mask and lay in bed with my baseball bat. Went to sleep like that too.

Afriend of mine who also milks was telling about his little one learning to make animal noises.

He was learning to go like a kitten, a dog, a cow,and a horse.

one particular night he was being very unco-operative.  When asked how does a dog go he said MOO.  When asked how a kitten goes he said MOO.  Same thing with horse.  Correcting and repeating didn't help.  

My friend became frustrated and left to do something more productive when he glanced out the window.

There were about 75 Holstines in the backyard!

Noble

One thing that I have learned as a parent when to worry and when not to worry. Well sometimes I get it right anyway.

Kids making a bunch of noise--no worry. Kids are all of the sudden very quiet--WORRY.

Kid falls first thing he or she does is look to see if you saw the fall. Ok after the fall--no worry. Can't turn your head fast enough after the fall--WORRY, cus the waterwerks are coming.

Kid needs glasses--No worry. Dog eats new glasses--WORRY

Kid finds snake and brings it in to show mom--no worry. Kid states I just sat it on the couch for a minute to go to the bathroom--WORRY.

Kid falls out of tree no worrry. Kid has bone protruding -- leg and or arm crooked in a very unusal position--WORRY

Kid thinks that all toys come from older brothers and sisters--no worry. Kid figures out that you can actually buy toys at a store--WORRY.

Kid wants to watch scary movie--no worry. Kid scares him/her self so bad that they can't get to sleep--WORRY, cuz your not going to get any sleep either.

Kid in shop or garage---ALWAYS WORRY

Bring all the kids out to dinner--no worry. One gets misplaced for a few minutes looking at the fountian in the foyer--WORRY.

Kid knocking on the door to come out of the womb--no worry. Kid forgets to knock and comes out on the way to the hospital--WORRY. The Mrs just informed me the second is no worry either, cuz I had training, don't believe her still WORRY

Aint kids great
Gordon

One of the guys I worked with had an old Jeep CJ he ran on the back road and for fishin' and huntin' and such.  

One evening he fired it up and it ran a little while and then died.  Come to find out,  his kid had used a garden hose to top off Dad's tank for him.  ;D

He took the tank off and drained it and blew out the gas line,  put on a new filter and such.  He picked up a five-gallon can of gas and dumped it in the tank.  After several hours of trying to get it to run,  he come to the realization that the little bugger had also topped off the five gallon can! :o

Last Tuesday was bitter cold.  I thought I'd just treat myself to a needed store-bought haircut.  I stepped into the barbershop to find both barbers setting in their chairs reading newspapers.  I didn't have to break stride to my way to a chair.  No one else came in while I was there.  The barber must have given me three haircuts and two beard trims while I was there.  He snip-sniped here and snip-snipped there for 45 minutes.  When he was done,  I was a changed man.

Got home and littlest granddaughter Brook noted my haircut.  I asked her how she liked it.  She bent my head down and rubbed it pretty much all over – give it a good look.  Fingering my receding hairline running well up my part line and on the other side. "But Gampa!  They left holes in your head!"   :D

(https://forestryforum.com/images/YaBBImages/userpics/wsbrookhat.jpg)

I often wonder how a barber (let alone two) can make any money cutting hair. Even if he gets $12 a head, and can cut 3 an hour, seems the pay is marginal when figuring in overhead, taxes, benefits, etc. But they keep enough of them around, so it must be exciting and profitable for them. Now add an empty chair and one head in 45 minutes, seems to cut into any profits pretty quick. Hmmm?
Cute kid sleeping under that hard-hat. Glad I had mine on in the woods couple days ago when a good sized limb fell and crunched it down on my head. Saw a few stars but no wounds to heal.

Mary and I were at the fair yesterday evening.  We were at kind of a pause in the action, deciding what to do next and just watching the people walk by.   A young mother with a swarm of kids strolled past.  One little toddler – maybe 3 years old -  was lagging behind a few steps.  Came to a puddle about 3' in diameter.  I knew what was going to happen but couldn't get my camera out of my bib pocket fast enough.  He squatted down at the edge of the puddle and gazed into it.  Then with a mighty leap,  he tried to jump it – getting only half way of course.  He was so happy with the results.  

Kids are just like that. (https://forestryforum.com/smile/bouncingsmilie.gif)

   Hey Bib,
    W hen jennie (now 15) was just toddlinc,my oldest brother and mom cane to visit. He and I were outside cooking,and watching Jennie.It had just come one of our famous summer thunde squals,and the sun had come back out,but there wer puddles everywhere.Jennie was playing in the driveway,and jabbering away in baby talk,and dad wasn't paying too close attention,when Chip,my olde brother busts out laughing.He's fit ta die ,I say what so funny ,he can't talk,only piont. Jennie in perfect nazi goosestep fashoin is happily going back and forth through a puddle,with mud and water fling,singing walkie walkie.I doubled up too,wife comes to back door to see what is all about,not happy.Diaper weighted more than the kid. I just let jher go till time to go in yanked diaper,hosed kid ,everybody happy except mom.

For the past couple of weeks a neighbor that runs his own escavating business has been hauling gravel out of the creek on our farm.  The road comes up the hill and makes a couple of easy bends and is not too bad until right at the top where it bends and has a short steep part.  

Well, today the gravel hauler had to take his backhoe to the job site and work some of the gravel around.  He had the backhoe on a lowboy trailer hooked behind his dump truck.  He made it to the steepest part and then ran out of power or more likely traction.  

After a couple of failed attempts to mount the hill,  observant four year old Brooke told Grandma Mary,  "He'll have to unload the backhoe and drive it up and then drive his truck up or back all the way back down the hill and go real fast.".  

He chose the back down the hill and "go really fast" option.  :D 

Does Mo. have an Engineering school?  Sounds like you might need one shortly. :D

I'm getting a whole second chance to live with kids.  This time around two granddaughters. Brooke soon to be five has always chattered like a monkey and we're either beginning to understand her language or she's improving a lot.  

She expresses time in some strange units like,  "Grandpa,  You remember yesterday before tomorrow's, tomorrow, next week when we are going to go to the park?"

Then some things take a bit of interpretation but she's right on...  The other day she came to me with a picture she'd colored..   I asked her what the thing was.  "Yea,  it's one of those spinney balls what has all the places where you are on it."  That's what it was – a globe.

When my boys were 8 and 4, the elder had a basketball game I needed to take him too.  For something different to do (along the way) was a small airport where parachuting hobbyists practiced.

I asked the boys if they would like to see "Parachutists". Of course they did.  We drove to the perimeter road as the plane took off .  15 impatient minutes later my 4 year old exclaimed: " Dad when are they going to shoot the parrots"  :D :D :D

Today, they are 20 and 16.........big brother still taunts his younger brother by asking him if he wants to go shoot parrots.

When stump jumper was a little boy he found a fresh can of black paint on the truck seat and decided to paint his wagon wheels black on his western flyer wagon.  He also thought he would his dad out by filling the gas tank on the lawn mower but he used sand instead of gas.  His parents turned gray real quick.

As for Miziz stump jumper she is innocent.  She only climbed out of her crib at  age 2 and walks across a semi-busy paved road early in the morning and the dog followed me.  Parents only found her because the dog barked when the called for her.

A guy I worked with had an old Jeep he used to knock around in.  When he went to use it,  it wouldn't run.  Turned out JR. took a garden hose and filled the tank.  He took the tank off and drained it.  Pulled the carburetor and pump and blew out the lines, etc.  Got it all back together and dumped gas back in it from a 5-gallon can.  

After quite a struggle trying to get it to run without success -   Yep,   JR had filled the 5-gallon can with water too.

Well Folks,
This thread is one of the many reasons I love this site. All family people sharing experience both good and bad. But who's to judge what is good or bad anyway. I thought I knew once and the older I get it seems the more obscure the line becomes. I mean the things that happen in our lives. They just happen in a never ending sequence of events.
 I've got 6 young'uns and some of the things that have happened around here are nothing less or more  than normal probably.
I've had to replace windows taken out by sling shots, rifles and rocks only to have supper laid before me on the sidewalk by a 9 yr. old boy that is so proud he could burst.

I've come home and found every tool I have with a point on it driven into the driveway and had the carberator taken off the tractor and scattered all over the yard. Yet again came home and found that this same prankster has changed the belts on his mothers car at the age of 13 and done a fine job of it.

I've driven kids to the emergency room to get them sewed up, braced up and put back together.

I've hauled kids to the state fair with projects that they built and with animals they've nurtured.

I've hauled them to the mortuary and I've delivered them with my own hands in the very room they were concieved.

I've built doll houses and toy trucks out of wood.

I've replaced the points in a tractor 3 times in one summer cause some little imp has been pretending to drive it and left the key on and burned the points for me.

I wouldn't change a thing.

Gus

I haff ta tell ya'll, I've really enjoyed this thread.  I think I've told this already on one of the other threads, but that's ok, I want to hear it again.  :D  My wife will be giving birth to a boy in late February ( She says it's mine  :D).  (Don't tell her I said that) It's our first, and I know, I'm starting this a little late in life.  With all the thoughts of "How bad am I going to screw this up?" and "What will he tell his therapist about me later?" It's nice to read about the positives.  ;D

Yeh - but is she sure it's hers?

Congratulations Trey - those DanG kids are pretty special. We had 4 before we could figure out where they were coming from.

Mark

Good Question!!  I keep tellin her she's just getting fat.  I get hit when I say that in public.  :D

We where at the Small Farm Show this morning before it was open to the public and setting with Greg Bear,  and Will Baugh of Wood-Mizer and Tom Stout of Baker.   We'd taken granddaughter Brooke with us and were gotten around to talking about kids.  Mary brought a story up about our youngest son Chris when he was a toddler I don't remember ever hearing.

She said she found him one day with his face all painted up with her eye makeup.  She asked him why he did it and he explained ...

"To keep the rats from bightin' my face."   :o

WHAT??  ???

"Yea,  you know.  They call it mice scare-a." :D

My 9 year old is the "book smart, creative type".  You just never quite know what to expect.  When he was in first grade, I took him to see the first Star Wars "prequel".  He had wanted to see it really bad.  I told him it might be scary, but he assured me he was okay with it.

A few months later, he came home from school with his face colored black and red.  It was Halloween and he had decided he was going as Darth Maul instead of whatever else.  Now for you folks who haven't seen the movie, this Maul guy has a red and black face with numerous horns and other things going on with his face.  Turns out he had grabbed the teachers PERMANENT markers and commenced a coloring his face.  It didn't quite turn out as planned...especially with no mirror and very little artistic ability.  He wasn't too keen on the paint thinner I had to use to get it off either.

Mark

DanG, thats a good one Mark. :o

Oldsaw,

When I was a little kid,  we lived at an old abandoned town "Topaz"  which was way out in the country.  All the neighbors were nice and life was very peaceful.  If it weren't for my big sister,  I would say life was perfect.  Because of my sister,  I had to develop the ability of embellishment and fabrication of factual events -------out of self defense. ::)

Well we eventually moved to the metropolis of Springfield that I hated.  The school was really big and I didn't know anyone so as soon as the bus left me off at school I would walk right back home.  They finally got wise to me and I got in trouble.  I had never even heard of movies and right off,  my parents took me to this awful horror show :o  I never was so scared.  I cried and screamed until they finally took me home. :-/   You would have been scared too.  It was about this nice little fellow whose nose kept getting longer everytime he skipped school and told lies >:(.

We have four children.  As little kids they were the best looking around. ;D

When my wife was pregnant with our 3rd and 4th children, rude people would come up and ask if we beleived in birth control or did we know how this happened.

I had two answers.  If they were the ones who said you should only replace yourself and I knew they only had 1 child I would tell them I had to make up for them not doing their job.

For the others:  I would tell them with a straight face that my father had told me to find out what you do good and keep at it and that is what I was doing.

Loren

We've been at the Small Farm Show a couple of days hanging out at the Wood-Mizer booth.   Granddaughter Brooke has been with us most of the time.  One afternoon a Wood-Mizer owner came buy to say hello and to visit for a while.  As he talked he was rolling three well-worn marbles in his left hand.  They were right at Brooke's height so she noticed right away.  I could tell she was swelling up to ask something and when she had a chance she asked.  

"Hay Mister,  Why you have them marbles?"  

He said,

"Well,  I'll tell you.  My dad told me that my great granddad came over here on a boat with nothing in his pocket but a small rock.  He carried that rock with him the rest of his life.  Each morning he'd put that rock in his right pocket and when he did a good deed for someone he'd put it in his left pocket.  My dad carried two marbles and always did the same thing.  I carry three marbles.  At the end of the day I check to see if I've moved all three to the left pocket and done my three good deeds.  You can see I'm holding them in my left hand and got them out of my left pocket so I've done mine for today already."

At the supper table Mary was telling what Brooke had came out with some time during the day  -  "If the rooster makes too much noise in the morning and you can't sleep,  you just go to town and get some 'chicken tape' and tape it's mouth shut."  

As Mary was telling what Brooke had said,  Brooke was chiming in with her confirmation that that was the way to do it – explaining - "You take his lips like this and then take the tape like this."  

Gabe (Brooke's dad) asked her where she was going to find 'chicken tape'.   "Well,"  Brooke said, "They'se got 'duck tape'". ::)

I was having a good one on two conversation with my children one evening and my 8 year old daughter said she had dream that her 9 year old brother had a log cabin out in the pines and when he had finished it,  he put a glossy finish on it and it sparkled in the sunshine. He had a dually monster truck and it was red with orange flames and he had a motorcycle, a quad, and a dirt bike.  Her brother tore down his dad's pole barn  :'( and put up a very bigger one.  Dad proceded to tell her that they didn't need to tear down his pole barn but just add on to it. Then she proceded to tell me that 2 pieces of matter could not occupy the same space :-/ :P  I said yeah, but you can add on to the side of it and make it longer and she told me that I couldn't because my junk trucks are on that side of the barn.  :o  I told her that the trucks could go to the junk pretty soon.  All this explaining and I was ready for a nap.
\Then I asked her where she was going to live and she said here at home she wasn't moving out. :o :o  
We will enjoy them while we can. Sounds like my kids are ready to take over at 8 and 9 years old. :'(  Long as they have good ideas for their future.

Our granddaughters are eating us out of house and home.  Alex,  in the first grade,  is growing like a weed and eats like a field hand.  She can eat easily as much as any two grown ups at the table.  Brooke,  now five,  can pack it away for such skinny little thing.  You really wonder where she puts it all!

A week or so back,  Mary got a deal on a big roast of beef.  She intended to make a large pot of stew but decided to roast it for the "first" meal and then use the rest in a stew or hash.

Well, Alex had eaten two large plates of roast beef, squash, salad, and bread.  But it wasn't five minutes after getting up from the supper table she was begging Mary for something else to eat.  Mary tried to distract her for at least a while but it was a struggle.

This only emboldened Brooke to beg for food too.  Brooke was putting on her best begging face and made the claim. "But my tongue is starving off!"

A couple of evenings later Alex was making a run down the hall to the laundry room.  She's the one that's a little afraid of the dark and a lot of other things.  Well,  we don't know what happened but she came back in a fright. "There is something in the laundry room!  The light just came on and then went off again! All by itself!"   :o

We didn't have a clue as to what happened but Brooke did.  Her elbow tucked to her side and palm up,  she offered the following explanation:  "Well,   the light jus' had an infection in it."


Last weekend two brothers that farm full time where over making arrangements with Mary to saw out their next barn. (They put up about one new barn every year and do repairs to the old barns on their farms.)

Brooke was explaining to them that.. "Did you know that cows have these things on their head called thorns and they use them to stick you?"  

That was good info for the two young farmers as they probably have a couple hundred head of cattle.

Mary and Brooke had to go to town one day last week.  She told Brooke to go change her cloths.   She came back wearing a pajama top – one she was fond of because it had some cartoon character on it.  Mary explained that it was a pajama top and she had to go back and put on a regular shirt.  But Brooke still insisted it wasn't.  

Mary had to ask her why she didn't think it was a pajama top... Brooke's reply,  "Well,  I wore this shirt before and it didn't make me go to sleep." :D

The days are getting a little longer and the snow and ice is turning the ground to mud.  I've had time to get a walk in before dark the last couple of evenings.

I'd much rather go alone as that's one reason I like to take walks on the farm but I've been taking Alex or Brooke along with me.  There's no peace and quiet but it breaks up the girls – giving Mary time with one and me with the other.  That's a good thing. ;)

Last evening was Brooke's turn.  We walked down the hill to the east and up the other side into the woods.  We were following the old log road north on the "hog back" ridge.  

We'd just past out of the patch of red cedar into the woods when Brooke took note of a nice young white oak standing straight and tall.  She says. "Wow!  Look at the tree God made! It sure is a nice one."  She went up to it and petted it.  I said it sure was.  Grandma would have trouble getting a long log like that on the mill.  We agreed we'd have to cut it into shorter logs.  "We'll have to come back and get that tree." Brooke said.

A couple hundred yards up the ridge we came to an open spot where the trails forked.  Our dowg, Puddin',  had been enjoying the walk also,  running here and there.  I was watching her watching something when Brooke said. "Look Grandpa! Dogs!"  They weren't dogs but deer.  Five of them crossed over the trail just ahead of us.  Puddin' didn't even offer to chase them – even after we cut their trail.

Another hundred yards and we broke into the pasture behind my folk's house.  Brooke was totally confused as to why there would be a house hidden in the woods.  I asked her if she thought it looked like Granny's house.  She knew it didn't because Granny's car wasn't there. (She was looking for the carport on the wrong side) We got into the yard and she noted the old corn crib. "Look,  there is a thing just like at Granny's."  She said with wide eyes.   :o

When we came around into the front yard and she noted every concrete yard ornament was just the same as Granny's.  Even the tacky wood butterflies on the wall were the same.

We made it to the kitchen door and she pushed her way in to see who was in this house just like Granny's.   Sure enough,  there was Granny working in the kitchen.  Brooke marched right up to Granny and quizzed her on how come she had a house in the woods just like the house like she had on the road.  It wasn't sinking in that it was the same house.  She took her case to Grandpa George (my dad – the girls call him "Granny's Grandpa").  He got a kick out of her confusion.

After our visit with my folks,  we left by the road.  We turned to look back at Granny's house from the front.  We talked about Granny's house in the woods verses Granny's house on the road and I think she was still confused. ???

We got home and Mary and Alex had made biscuits for supper and had a pineapple upside down cake ready to go into the oven.  

Brooke was full of stories – including finding Granny's house in the woods.  Seeing the deer was about fifth on her list.

When she got to the story about the tree God made,  Mary asked her if she know what kind it was.  "It was gray."  She said.

I would have enjoyed taking the walk alone but I'd miss seeing it through the eyes of a child.

Well, Bibbster, there ain't no doubt you got a knack for tellin' a story. But you're giving us more than that in this thread. You seem able to see, and enable us to see, through the eyes of that precious youngster. I read these things, and usually don't say anything about it, but I appreciate and enjoy every one of them. Keep'em coming. :)

Bibbyman, I appreciate your story.  Somedays, today is one a story like that helps lighten my day and make me feel better.  Right now I'm wishing I were younger.  But, if that were so I wouldn't have my own kids and grandson.  I should be feeling good, RYAN, my new grandson got to come home today.  My problem, I didn't get to see him today.  I won't make that mistake tomorrow!   My enitire day today was spent running estimates, doing some light repair work here there and yonder, collecting money, and then when I called Jamie he said him and his wife were really tired and would I mind waiting until tomorrow to come over.  I respected his wishes cheerfully, even though I REALLY wanted to go over.  So when I finally got in I went out and worked on the DanG house a whiles.  Just wanted to let you know, your story made a real impact, and brought a smile to my face.   THANKS.!!!!!!!!

Ditto what they said Bibby.  :)

I was 3-4 years old and we lived way out  the country side. One morning my parents found a hen on a field. DEAD! Their assumption  was that a hawk had dropped it there. All small boys at a farm needs anything to hang their hands on so I took as my task that day to watch over the other hens and armed me self with an eight foot lath.
I didn´t have to wait very long before the cock covered a hen. As a flashlight through my head I had the whole happening clear. Pulled the lath through the net and punched the cock on his head so he turned around. The way he looked at me when he get the feets under him and had shaken his head clear told me that he´ll never do that again :D (But who knows?)



I ran to my parents working at the yard: It was the cock! It was the cock!! They looked at me very unsympathetic  ??? ??? It was the cock!!! When i told them what happend around the corner they LAUGHED at me!
It maked me embarassed, I could not understand why. :-[ They didn´t explane the mysteries of life. Just laughed at me when I had solved that big broblem fore them. :(

I growed up that way, learning all about what a young boy don´t need. But that can also be a way to learn how to be a decent parent.   I just did everything the other way. :)

Swede.

cktate

Don´t You belive that we can see Your smile this days? With or without our storys  :) :) :)

Go to bed early to night and go for lookig the baby early to morrow! 05:20 or so...... :D   As just become parents they for shure are sitting in the kitchen and boring at that time. ;D ;D ;D

Brooke's contribution this week to new terms.

Shootie Boots  

As in...  "Them look like shootie boots to me."  

Translation..  Cowboy boots.

Rubber foot

As in...  "I'm going to be a rubber foot when I grow up."

Translation...  She wants to massage people's feet when she grows up.

Today was the day for Mary and sidekick Brooke to make their run to town.  Mary gave me the long rundown of all the places they'd went and what they'd done.

One thing on their list was a stop at the salon for Mary to get her spring hair cut.  Brooke begged to get her hair cut too.  Mary bargained that if she was going to pay for a hair cut,  she was going to get it cut short.  Brooke timidly agreed.

As the lady was cutting Brooke's hair she was still 'selling' Brooke on the short haircut -  "It'll be cooler.  It won't tangle as much.", and on..  Brooke added,  "And it'll be easier to look for ticks.".

You can take the girl to town but you can't take the country out of the girl.

This is my little'un at 1½ years old. She loves the boat. She knows whats port side and starboard.

(https://forestryforum.com/images/03_21_04/Kaileydrivingboat_opt.jpg)

Brooke started kindergarten last Wednesday.   The day before she proclaimed she was going to play on the monkey bars ALL day.  When she and Alex (now in second grade) got home Wednesday evening,  we had a lot of questions about how the day went.   Brooke made it through the day just fine.  I remembered to ask her how she liked playing on the monkey bars - she replied with a smirk, "THAT was a joke.".  Ahh,  the bitter sweet reality of life.

Mary says there is no doubt that Brooke comes from MY side of the family because she's often worried about what we're going to have for the next meal before we've eaten the meal it's time for.  The other evening Brooke went with Mary to get groceries.  On the way home,  she was listing all the things she wanted for supper – ham and beans with fried potatoes and cornbread,  AND biscuits and gravy.   Last evening she was listing to my mom all the vegetables she liked.  Among the list was "corn on the HOB".  Just at bedtime this evening Brooke was listing out what she wanted for breakfast – watermelon, toast, and a little bit of egg.  Mary said, "Is that all?"  Brooke added,  "AND biscuits and gravy."

Brooke is now ¾ way through her kindergarten year.  The new has worn off.  Just this morning I heard her ask Mary..

"Grandma,  how comes babies ain't born with all theys needs to know?  How comes we always gots to go to school to learn stuff?"  ::)

 bibby thank you for bring this thead back to the top. i"ve missed this one someway and injoyed it to no end.  ;)

Yeah, Bibby.  I've been enjoying the "Brooke Chronicles" for a couple of years now.  Keep'em comin'! :) :) :) :)

Since you asked.

Mary took Brooke and Alex to see Robots last Friday evening.  They enjoyed it. 

On the way home Brooke asked Mary "When to you think that movie is comin' out?" 

"What movie?" Mary asks,

"The one with the Robots!" (Don't you know nothin' Grandma!). 

Mary.. "It came out hon'.  We just saw it". 

(Couple more rounds of confusing talk with no resolution.)

Brooke... "No!  I mean!... When is it comin' out IN A BOX!"

She wanted a DVD of the movie so she could watch it over and over at home.

............................................

The other evening my ear started to feel a little warm.  Thought I'd use some hydrogen peroxide on it.  Couldn't find any anywhere in the house.

A while later Mary announced she was going to town to get some groceries and did I need anything and who was going with her. 

As Mary was leaving the house,  Brooke decided she'd go too. But she had to find her coat and get it on.  About then I remember the hydrogen peroxide.  I caught Brooke and asked her to tell Grandma to get me some HYDROGEN PEROXIDE.  Her little eyes were big as and round and shinny as nickels.   

"Ok" she says.

I asked, "Can you say HYDROGEN PEROXIDE?"

She nodded her head yes.

"Say,  HYDROGEN PEROXIDE..."

Her little head just nodded again and she said.. "I can say it."

I repeated it again as she ran for the door.  20 feet is a long way to remember something when you're 6yr old.

Mary came home from the store and pitched a bottle in my lap.  Grinned and said,   "Here's your POXEHIGE." :D

25 years ago, our 3 year old daughter came to visit me in the hospital after my hernia operation.  Naturally she asked what was wrong and when told I had my hernia operated on, her face clouded.  Daddy, you're a man mit must have been a HIMea, Cute Eh?

Ernie

 :D :D  Reminds me of the time, when my daughter was about 4 or 5.  We came across one of those dogs that lies down and rolls on his/her back when you approach.  Amy said, "That's a girl dog, Daddy."  Well, it was pretty obvious, but I asked, "How do you know?"  She gave me that look like I must have been totally stupid.  "Cause it has a pink tummy!" :D :D

 :D :D :D :D I have had a blast reading this thread. Never had kids which I now regret but have had a lot of fun with other peoples. My godsons mother phoned me one evening and sounded ready to throw in the towel. Seems 4 year old Stephen had been told several times to leave the garden hose alone. She got busy upstairs and realized things were too quiet (all parents know this sign). Went downstairs to find he had stuck the hose in the kitchen entrance. The kitchen and living room were flooded and water was pouring in the basement.
I asked him why he had done it and he mumbled something unintelligable. "Did you get in trouble?" "YEAH, BIG TIME". "You are not going o do that again are you?" "NO WAY" He is now 13 and has pulled a few more memorable stunts but dang it I love him anyway.

I also have had a blast reading this thread.   :D

Reminds me of being in the sandpit with Joe(4 years old) the other day at work.  He was digging a huge hole and I asked him if he was digging to China.  Thought no more of it.  Next day mum arrives at work baffled cos Joe arrived home and told her he had been digging his way to China - she didnt know where he'd got it from.  So we got him out a globe of the world to show him where China is in relation to New Zealand.  He told mum - see thats where im going.  He then proceeded to take the globe to the sandpit to resume digging his hole.  Mum had to go too - so she could hold the "map" so they knew where they were going and so they would know they were there when they got there! ;D

Bibbyman,
If Brooke is 3/4 through kindergarten, then her teachers and aids already  know almost everything about you, Mary and her parents. :o My wife works as a kindergarten aid at our local school. She comes home almost every night laughing about what some of the children have said. smiley_blush The funny stuff she tells me, but a lot of other stuff she won't repeat, something about pupil teacher privileges.  :-X She says it is similar to the lawyer client privilege law. If parents had any idea how much their young children tell their teachers they would be a little more careful of what they say in their presence. ::)

Last night I couldn't sleep for dwelling on unpleasant things I could not change.   I got up and checked the fire and the FF.   I read the added posts onto this tread and then decided to re-read it from the start.  Glad I did.  I hadn't remembered many of them – even some I wrote!

I always enjoyed the old Art Linkletter show "Kids Say the Darndest Things".    Bill Cosby did some shows where he interviewed kids, as did Allen Funt.

I love talking to little kids.  In many ways they are very honest, as they've not learned how to lie or twist their words.  They speak their minds and Lord knows what goes on in there some times.

I try to talk WITH the girls every morning before school and in the evening.  Mary too.   I won't let other kids that stop in go without a little conversation too.

Somewhere on the "Old-er Folks" thread I wrote a little about my Uncle Elmer and how he always talked WITH me when I was a kid.   It was only later I realized how much that meant to me.

I've gotten a good laugh out of this, I just LOVE kids, as long as they are someone else's!!! :D :D :D :D

I take give them chocalate highs spoile them rotten and give them back. Have had lots of practice too.
12 nices and nephews, and 18 great nieces and nephews.

My great niece Ali who is 3 loves to agitate her 16 year old brother. My nephew and his wife stopped in last nite for a bit and the whole time Ali sat on my lap and sing songed to her Brother, yamaha bad, yamaha bad ;D Ben has a yamaha 4 wheeler, so being the wise sage that I am I whispered in her ear, Honda rules, yamaha drools. She picked right up on it!!!!  :D :D :D :D :D :D

I love kids :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :)

Our eldest daughter, Natacha, mother of our first grandchild, Danielle,  when she was 4 came up with two memorable moments which I think you might enjoy.

Our neighbour across the road, Spence and I were yarning over the gate for half an hour or so and it came time to get back to work.  Spence hollered and whistled for his dog and there was no sign of him.  It turned out that our bithch was on heat and his dog was all knotted up.  Natacha came up to Spence and said, excuse me Mr Radford but I think your dog will be a bit busy for a while.  Needless to say, we broke up laughing  when we realised the situation.

The second time, a few weeks later, we had the local stock agent in our yards sorting out sheep for the next sale, his dog was not working as he would have liked and the air turned rather blue.  Suddenly the agent noticed Natacha standing nearby, blushed and apologised.  Natacha's reply, "That's OK MR Sutton, I've heard all  those words before, I've just never heard them put together that way.

Natacha has turned out to be a great Christian lady, She lives in Brisbane Australia and organises the Youth forums on faith and values in leadership where youngsters from Aussie and some of the Pacifac islands get together with politicans in parliament to promote Faith and Values.  She also represented NZ at Clinton's prayer breakfast a few years ago.

PROUD DAD

Ernie

This is my grandson showing he is 'soooo big' :D
Do you think this is how Bibbyman started out?   :D

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/11566/roxienathansobig.jpg)

If'n that was a Woodmizer hat, I'da thunk it WUZ Bibbyman!  :)  Cute little guy. (unlike Bibbyman) ;D

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/archives/people3/Me%20and%20Uncle%20Elmer2.jpg)

You don't EVEN want to see Bibbyman without his bibs! :o

That's my Uncle Elmer.  I cast a pretty big shadow.! ;D

Quartlow, I am good at that too. Sure is fun listening to the parents complain  isn't it.  I reply' but that is my job"   :D

Although I am MUCH too young for it, I have six grandkids under the age of five, and one more on the way.  I see one bunch or the other about every day.  You just never know where the conversation is heading when they are around.  I like to watch PBR bull riding on TV with them.  One pair of grandsons saw mutton bustin (young kids riding a sheep like a bull, more or less) on tv. They were interested, especially after their mother told them it is an event at a nearby rodeo.  The four year old, a stocky little character, announced he wanted to try MUFFIN bustin  :)next summer.  "Well," his mother said, "You have lots of experience at that!"

Brandon, CEO of Timberpro and Noah, CEO of LogRite have become fast friends.  Here they are discussing the future of the two companies while sitting in Captain's old firetruck at the Peterson Demo Day in Norton, MA. ;)

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/11165/Brandennoahff.jpg)

Now that's a couple of kids having a very large time! :) :) :) :)

We were visiting with "Granny" (my mom) and Alex (in second grade) had a joke for her...

Q..What do you call a baby dear eating grass?
Granny didn't know...
A..A "fawn-mower"...Alex replied.

Brooke (in kindergarten) had a joke too..

Q.. What do you call a 'possum eating an acorn?

Granny didn't know that one either.

A..."A 'possum-acorn-mower!"   Of course.  Brooke says with eyes shinin'.  :)

My turn to brag about my grandson who is 6.I was cutting down trees,he stays on the tractor and waits for me.I turn off the saw and tell him to come on down when I'm done.I always park the tractor at least 3 trees lenght away.Was only cutting down small hardwood trees,getting ready to cut the pine out.I told him when he gets older I will buy him a saw.When we go into the house he tells his Grandmother when he's 8 I'm going to buy him a chainsaw. :D :D :D :D  Eight is older in his eyes.

holy crow! i called my cousin who used to live with us bibby! you brought back some real interesting memories because he was a character! thanks

well i finally beat my son on the head till he brought the disc over. :D :D :D
this is my granddaughter carrie almost 2 and wondering what to do to get back at nana for taking
her pencil away for marking on the wall.
                                     (https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/12246/carrie%20116.jpg)



big brothers love eric 7 and the only thing he love more then hunting his little sis.

                                   (https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/12246/carrie%20139.jpg)

Those are real cute grandkids you've got there TN.   You are a lucky man!

Brooke came home from kindergarten today and, as always, we asked her how her day went.

She announced, "I'm the leader this week."

Mary asked,  "Well, Where did you lead?"

Brooke says,  "In front."  ;D

patty that i am that i am  ;) i've got three more by my daughter to it's a madhouse when their all here  :)

Bibbyman and Mary

You two sure have been blessed. :)

Ernie

Sometimes I don't know if "blessing" is the right word...

This evening Brooke was out on the front porch writing on the concrete with big colored chock.  She opened the door and asked.

"What sound does "Kkeeeks" makes? 

I didn't know if she meant a bird or insect or some machine or what.  Mary had and idea..

"Do you mean, What letter makes the sound "Kkeeeks"?  She asked.

"Yea,  "Kkeeeks".. Brooke replies.

Mary asks, "What word are you trying to write?"

"Box", Brooke says.

Mary says, "That's a tricky one.  It's an "X".... B O X."

"Ok",  Says Brooke and back out to write it down.

She's soon back with... "Do I put a "Sis" on the end of it now."


Last Saturday evening we took the girls over to visit with my mother in the hospital.  She is recovering from hip surgery.  "Granny" hadn't seen the girls in a week so they had a lot of hugs and kisses to exchange plus some home-made get well cards to show.

After the greetings were over,  Alex advised, "Granny,  you know you shouldn't be climbing up on a chair to change a light bulb.  You should let the grownups do that."

My oldest daughter was in kindergarden in 1981.  Once my wife sent an undated note to school that Amy was to get on the bus with her best friend and go home with her.  A substitute teacher read the note and gave it back to my daughter.  The kindergardeners promptly saved the note, and a week or two later again presented it , this time to the regular teacher.  Needless to say, there was consternation at our home when our kindergardener failed to get off the bus.  After calling the school, grandparents,  neighbors, and friends, we located her at her friend's house about two miles away. (The other mother thought it odd when Amy showed up, but figured some emergency had come up, so didn't call.)  Adequate punishment was dealt out, and the story was told and retold within our family. 


Yesterday Amy took her daughter to kindergarden roundup.  During orientation for the parents, The point was made by the school nurse that all notes to the school must be dated because " Once we had a little girl who kept her note and........"   :D :D :D  Amy had to hold up her hand and confess to being that little girl.  ( The nurse had forgotten who the little girl was, but not the event.)   Later, the school receptionist, who had not heard the conversation with the nurse, met the pair in the hall, and asked "Do you suppose she (my granddaughter) will pulll the same stunt you did?" Amy said, "Well, I guess it is good that I am still having an effect  at this school 24 years later!"   ;D

Grandpa was really proud of Helper Brooke this evening. 

See.  My mom is in nursing home recovering from a hip surgery, fractured wrist and twisted ankle.  She has been there for three weeks now.  Mary drops in on her when she makes trips to town and we try to get by there in-between some too.  But about every other evening I take one of the two girls in to visit with "Granny", as everyone calls her. 

This evening was Brooke's turn.  We got in there and got our "Hello's" in and "What'ch been doin'?" "How was school?" done with.  And Mom started in with her list of doctor's appointments and why she figures she's ready to come home.... I distract her with what's going on and what we've been doing.  Brooke sang her a song she learned in school.

The nurse comes in with pills and examines Mom's feet.  Both in kind of strap-on booty things – one to support her twisted ankle and the other to protect her heel that had developed a blister that had got infected.   Brooke was at the foot of the bed sandwiched between the nurse and Granny's feet with her little hands darting in to help with the Velcro straps. 

I suggested maybe Granny would like a foot rub.  Sure,  Brooke would take up that job.  (About every evening she rubs lotion on Grandma Mary's feet.).  The nurse found the lotion and Brooke worked on rubbing in lotion and massaging Granny's feet and legs for about 15 minutes.  Her little hands are very strong.

When she got done,  she worked at re-installing the boots.  I let her work at figuring out how the Velcro straps went.  She enjoyed the puzzle of getting everything back where they belonged.

I'm sure Mom got more out of her foot rub than all the pills and therapy she'd received today.

What a great little girl. 8)

I heard a story from a friend of mine today, about her daughter.  She'll often make silly requests, which is not surprising at age five.  Apparently, the other day, she kept telling her dad that she wanted to get an alligator.  The dad kept saying no, and then finally told her, "you can get one when you're eighteen," which is his standard answer. 

His daughter then said: "Well, when I do finally get my alligator, I'm going to have to get some Viagra."

The dad was surprised at this, and asked her why.

To this, the little girl replied, "Well, to help the alligator with reptile dysfunction." 

The dad had to pull off the side of the road, he was laughing so hard.   :D

I was voted "Number 1 Grandpa" this evening.  Brooke was very pleased with me.

For  over two years now Brooke has been wearing the wheels off'n a all-terrain tricycle we have here on the farm. That is until about a week ago when she came in and announced, "Grandpa,  my bicycle (as she's always called it) won't go.  The peddles turn but the wheel don't. Can you fix it?"  I told her, "That sound like a Dad job to me.".   

She told her dad and he looked at it but nothing happened.  I latter asked him what was wrong with the trike and he said the bearings were out and it couldn't be fixed.  That didn't sound right to me but I didn't get around to looking at it a couple of evenings later.  It looked to me like a pin or key between the axle shaft and the wheel was stripped.  There was an empty hole where a pen or something had been.

Well,  this morning it was setting right in front of the patio door so I decided I'd try to fix it.  We have a small collection of tools right there in the house and happened to have a small open-end wrench that just fit the peddle bolt perfect.  Got the peddle off'n one side and slid out the axle.  The hole in the wheel aligned with a threaded hole in the axle.  I figured it was probably metric but I took it to the shed and dug through my bolt collection.  It was standard old 5/16.  I dug some more and came up with a bolt just the right length. A few minutes later and I had it re-assembled.

I told Mary I may as well call it a day and go back to bed.  She asked why.  I told her how lucky I was in having the one right size open-end wrench,  finding a bolt, and getting the trike fixed with out any major problems. 

I left the trike on the porch where it was and hoped to see Brook's reaction when she jumped on it to ride it. (She'd peddle it and all it her exercise bike.)  We had a lot of things going on and she didn't get around to it until about 7:30. 

I was back in the back bedroom reading the Forum when she ran up to me all excited and gave me a big hug.  "Thank you for fixin' my bicycle."  She said.  I asked her who her favorite Grandpa was..  She said, "You are."  With her finger pointing at me with thumb cocked and a wink. She gave me another big hug and ran off to ride it.

I had a pretty good day. 8)

Ain't life wonderful?   

Can you believe there are places with signs that read "no children allowed'?

Yeah, I know.  There are places where they don't belong.  I just generally don't go in those places. :)

Way to go Bibbyman!  Another stunt that will be remembered after you're gone. 8)

Bibbyman
Those are real joys in having the youngsters around to be able to do those things.

Equally as enjoyable is talking them through a repair like that, and see them react when they have fixed it themselves.  Alas, now I have to compete with my wife teaching the grand daughters to sew. Sometimes they run back and forth between the wood splitter work and the sewing room or the kitchen. Never have enough time, but make the best of what we get. Looking forward to Sunday when two of them will be here for Mothers Day.

A few years back I was privelaged to be handing out Wood Awards to 4-H youth national winners. There were about 20 in the group at this convention in Chicago, and each was asked to tell a bit about how they became interested in doing a wood project.
Almost to the last one, they told of how they became interested in wood through their grandfathers, taking time to do a wood project with them. That tells a lot.

Mary baked up some cookies the other evening and then scooped us up each a bowl of ice-cream.  Brooke just loves ice-cream so she dug right in.  Wasn't a minute until she had her palms pressed tight to her forehead and was moaning.  I asked, "What's the matter hun, got and ice-cream headache?"  She says, "Nah...Brain freeze.", like it was a common occurrence.

She got up and went to the kitchen a got a drink of tap water and returned to her ice-cream eating – still putting her hands on her forehead now and again.  I figured she knew what she was doing and if she wanted to eat her ice-cream with the pain,  it wouldn't hurt her none.

About a week back Brooke pointed out a couple of nails in the board walk in front of the sawmill office had worked up about an 1/8 of an inch.  She didn't really know way but she thought they needed fixed.  I told her if she wanted them fixed,  she'd have to get the hammer and fix them herself.  She was shocked at the idea that SHE could use the hammer but shortly asked for help finding it. 

I reached around into the sawshed and found our light finish hammer and pitched it on the ground at her feet with a "There.".   She got down on her knees and by using both hands on the handle,  peck, peck, pecked about 20 licks until that nail head was flush again.  She looked up at me with a satisfied grin and said, "That one's hammered down.".  I said, "Well, do the other one.", and went off to do something else. 

Latter on, Mary told me that Brooke had went around the boardwalk and sawshed and examined every nail -  looking for any that may require tightening up and pecked on them.  When she couldn't find any more she could reach she brought the hammer back to Mary and said,  "Boy!  I always wanted to hammer nails."

Good stroke, Bibbster! 8) 8)  What you did there was to give that child the opportunity to EARN a little chunk of "self-esteem."  Most folks these days just go to the mall and try to buy it for their kids.  I guess its kinda like tomatoes....the storebought ones are never as good as the ones you planted and grew for yourself. :) :)

My Daughter was cooking & while cooking  burn her finger &
Yell OH [I have typed a profane word that is automatically changed by the forum censored words program I should know better] !!! My 4 year old grandson Look at his Mother & say
that's a bad word, you shouldn't say that !!  My Daughter told him
that he was right & that she was Sorry for saying it !!
My Grandson look at his Mother & say Your not Sorry !!! Your just
sorry you got caught !!!!!!!!!  I just had to laugh when she told me that !!  :D  :D

 :D :D :D  Good'un MuleMan!  The kid got the goods on Mama that time. ;D

Kids miss out on learning lots of stuff because it's easier to do things for them than teach them how to 'hammer their own nails'

Once when I was a school teacher,  I was asked to fill in for the woodshop teacher during my free hour.
The eighth grade class was making some simple wooden project and right off a girl brought me a board and told me to cut it on the line.  I asked her why she didn't cut it herself.  She informed me that they weren't allowed to use the radial arm saw.  I taught her how to start a cut with a handsaw,  make the cut square and finish it without splintering the final corner.  As she was walking away another student came up asking me to cut his board on the line.  The first girl told him he would have to do it himself because I didn't know how to use the radial arm saw either :D

One of the unfortunate things about my lovely wife and I deciding to live in Tokyo most of the time is that we miss out on so much of what our six grandbabies are doing while they grow up.  :'(  However, we are blessed with a daughter who is a good writer and who has a knack for well describing her babies' antics.  We get regular email updates.

One of my favorites goes something like this.  Our daughter was driving home from somewhere with her four yunguns strapped into their car seats.  Her oldest daughter and the smart one of the brood, then about 5, is being pestered in the backseat by the boy and the ornery one of the brood, then about 3 1/2.  Things start to get noisy in the back, so my daughter asks what is wrong.  The girl speaks up complaining about her brother.  Our daughter encourages them to love each other.  The young lady then speaks up and says,  "Well, you birthed him.....make him go away!!" ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D

I love it!! :D :D

Of the 6 grand children, 2 are quite close and we get to see them often. At ages 8 and 9 now, they are absolutely a joy to have around. Bibbyman's stories of Brooke's growing up are very similar, especially the 'hammer' story.
Last evening the younger one, Becca, was riding in the car and I said something and her comment was "Well technically, it is .........".  It was when I commented that she was now a third grader, but she replied "Technically, I'm not a third grader yet". I asked when that would happen. She said "When I put my foot in the school door this fall."

I asked my wife if when we were getting out of third grade, if any of our schoolmates made a comment about the technical correctness of the situation. NOT. As a Grandpa, I could go on endlessly telling stories of 'growing up' situations, but will save you all from that. But I do enjoy hearing of your special stories, knowing that you also have countless ones you could also tell.   

But one more: my second oldest grand daughter was on a field trip with her second grade class and her teacher asked if the children knew what kind of a tree they were looking at. My Megan answered it was a pine tree, and added that it was a white pine. The teacher surprised, asked how she could tell it was a white pine tree, and she replied because it has 5 needles together. More surprised, she asked how she knew that?  My grandpa told me!  I didn't imagine she was even listening the time I pointed that out several months before this.   Makes one feel good all over.  :)

You'll never bore me with stories of children!   :)
Last Sunday, I was making dinner for my son, daughter-in-law, grandson, and Cowboy Bob.  My grandson, Nathan (18 months), stayed in the kitchen helping me while the others were in the living room.  When I was real close to being ready, I put Nathan in his highchair where I could keep an eye on him.  The oven timer went off and Nathan started looking around for something, and not finding anything on his tray, placed his little hand up to the side of his face and said, "Hello?"   :D 
Nathan has several toy cell phones and he just loves them.  His very first sentence occured while playing with his cellphone, and was "Hello? Ummmm, Dad?  Just a minute."   :D

That is cute Roxie. I can just see the little tyke pretending to answer the phone.  :D

Grand kids are a blast !!!! Fill them up with Cookie & sweets & send them home to their parents

:D :D :D  ;D  8)

Great stories guys keep em coming...

Bro Noble, when I took shop we had to pass using a hand saw and bit brace before we could use any of the power saws and drills...  Maybe we did it backwards...   :)

 Kelsey learning the fine art of smelling the flowers.
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10257/smelling%20the%20flowers.jpg)
They grow up so fast.

eric he hasn't made up his mind yet fisherman or hunter :D

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/12246/the%20fisherman.jpg)

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/12246/the%20hunter%20.jpg)

although his dad did help with that there gobbler ;D

Ed K and Gene......what great pictures!   :)

At our new finca we have a couple - he is 53 and she is 46 (my age) and they are from up North - Nicaragua. They have two of their grandchildren staying with them, age 8 and 5. 

It is interesting down here, I buy a finca and it comes with people - I am not kidding. When I was walking the farm, the man's question was would he be able to stay and work, I was happy to do so, in fact we doubled his salary and are fixing up the home he stays in. He is a very good worker and very intelligent - he can even understand my Spanish. :D

Anyway, they all are very nice people. The two daugthers are are sharp as anything. The 8 year old was showing me her school work and she is getting 90s on everything but English. I think we can help her there... ;-) I spent the first day with the family helping her for about an hour with her English.

Not only the kids are working at English, but the grandparents and parents are too. They of course are helping me with my Spanish.

What is amazing to me is the respect that these little girls are taught to show and how happy the girls are.  Wait till they see the horses we are bring in....

This thread sure brings memories of my nephew and godson. The latter, Stephen had been bugging his dad to fix the bike tire. Nothing was happening, he was frustrated, so I had a look at it. I saw the bald patch right through the tube and said "so, I think I know what happened here"  Him (wide eyed) "You do?" :D :D I wrecked a few bike tires in my time.
We went to the bike store, bought a tire and tube, and he helped me install it. Well, about as much help as a four year old can be. I think his dad got a little tired of hearing about it afterwards.

I write about Brooke a lot.  She's a little clown and enjoys being a kid.

Older sister Alex is much more complex.  She is doing great in school and loves to read and write (at just 8, she's keeping a daily journal).  She seldom comes up with the twisted logic things Brooke does.

But,  that does not mean I ignore her.  I try to keep her from taking herself so seriously and let her know it's ok to try and fail or fall short of profection.

You're bike tire story reminded me of a two yearlong saga of Alex and her bike. 

We got her a bike for her 6th birthday.   She tried to ride it but wasn't able to jump right on and take off on it like she though she could.  We were not able to run along beside her to help her keep her balance.  Her dad stepped in to help her learn but it soon turned into shouting and crying and a complete disaster. 

The bike lay around the yard and porch for a year.  She'd sometimes get on it and let it coast down the hill in the front yard – when nobody was looking.  She learned how to fall real well.  I'd work with her but as soon as she seen that it wasn't easy and she was not going to just take off and ride like an expert,  she'd quit.  But she got to where she could start off and pedal a little and then crash when she wanted to stop – always down hill.

Last summer she got good enough to coast all the way down the hill in front of our house.  The hill fell away about 100 feet in 100 yards and it was strewn with rocks, stobs and sticker bushes.  But she'd ride down and push the bike back.  She'd refuse any urging to ride on the level or even around the yard on a slight incline. 

The rear tire got to where it'd go flat.  That was all the better for her as it slowed it down.  I'd air it up and she'd coast a little more but in a day it'd be flat again.

For her birthday this year,  among other things, I got her a new tube for her bike.  After she'd opened her gifts and things were breaking up,  I overheard Brooke ask her,  "Did you want this thing?" She just shrugged and made a face.

I explained what it was and told her to take it to her dad and have him fix her bike.  Weeks past and nothing happened.

Two weeks ago we were working at the mill and the girls were playing in their playhouse just below it.  We came to a break point and shut down for while.  I called to Alex to bring me her bike.  She did.  "Now go into the house and bring me that tube."  She was puzzled but did.  "Now find a wrench to take this nut off.". She did and I broke it loose. "Here, take it off.",  That's the way it went and we put in the new tube and she aired it up.

She coasted/pedaled it out of the sawshed and down the incline.  I told her now I wanted to see her ride it on the flat.  She was not ready. I didn't push.

I got home from the office one day last week and Mary told Alex to show Grandpa what she could do.  She went and got her bike and rode it up the drive, turned (without stopping) and rode back.  She wobbled and covered the whole road but she did it.  She still does not use the brakes but just puts her feet down to stop.

Last weekend she rode the bike up to Granny's place (about a half mile) and back.  She's teaching Brooke to ride now.

 :D :D :D Stephen was just the opposite. The training wheels on his bike got in the way on the rough pavement around the house so he talked his dad into taking them off. He got on, wobbled a bit and away he went. Wish I had seen him.
Sounds like you, Mary, Alex and Brooke are having a great time together. Those girls are very fortunate and will treasure the memories. The grandmother I knew well passed away when I was seven and I only saw the other grandparents about a dozen times.

Brooke is having a little problem with her ears – little too much swimming and summer heat most likely.  She went to see the doctor the other day to get it checked out.  Yesterday afternoon she and I were cooling down there in the sawshed so I asked here about her doctor visit.  She didn't have too much to tell so I asked a couple of questions.  That got some response.  She said the first doctor was a woman.  "She wanted to hear my heart beeps."

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10034/wsbrookejune05.JPG)

Brooke lost her first front top tooth the other day.  The new one pushed it out. It wiggled for days but she wasn't ready to pull it.  Finally,  sister Alex pulled it when she fell asleep next to her.

Here is my Grandson Austin enjoying his pool.
He will be two next Friday.
He can say Grandpa and a few other words.   ;D
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10092/Austin%20pool%20%28Custom%29.jpg)

HT now that is a very happy child  and good looking too  8)

tnlogger,

Yeah, he takes after me.......... :D

He really likes water. Last time I was at his house I taught him to say "yee haw" just before he galloped his imaginary horse through the sprinkler.

Quote from: Haytrader on June 26, 2005, 03:46:36 PM

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10092/Austin%20pool%20%28Custom%29.jpg)

On my PC the water looks awful yellow.  Could that be why he's so happy!

Whata ya thinkin there Bibbyman?
Lime Kool-Aid?

;)

Ashually, the bottom of the pool is yellow.
Maybe I need to kindly ask one of you guys to "redo" the color of the water to light blue.

:D

Haytrader

Where millions wouldn't, we'll believe you, sure the bottom of the pool is yellow

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10034/wsbrookejune0501.JPG)

I knew this day was going to come soon.  Today was the day.  Alex had got to where she could ride her bike pretty good.  It only took her two years.  Brooke inherited a bike from her cousin.  It was a little used and had a flat tire.  But it had training wheels.  Training wheels may be fine where you've got concrete or asphalt but they won't work in grass and gravel.  She was ready to try riding it.  She'd get on it on the porch and set and peddle it like mad but not go an inch because the back tire was flat.  I told her to bug her dad and have him air it up and take the training wheels off.  She had the same success as Alex – none. 

So this morning the bike was near the sawshed so I asked Alex to bring it to me.  I removed the training wheels and aired up the tire.  I called Brooke over and told her to get on and ride it.  She got on and I held on to the handle bars a little ways but she was too fast.  I told Alex to go with her and the bike up behind the log pile where there is soft dirt and its level and run beside her.  Mary went along. 

I went back to sawing and I heard Mary hollered "LOOK GRANDPA!".  I looked up to see Brooke wobbling toward the sawshed. She was on her own!  The only way she knew how to keep going was to turn into the way she was falling.  So she made a wobbly arc and banged into some lumber on the other side of the road.  That was no setback,  she just pulled the bike out and started off again.   Time and again she'd start off and go in one wobbly arc or another until she ran into some obstacle.  Once she ended up in the tomatoes.   But she kept at it and kept improving.  She never really crashed or fell with it – always being able to put her feet down and keep from falling. 

Tomorrow we'll talk to her about breaks! :D

On July 5th my seventh grandchild, Brodyn James, was born.   8) 8) 8)  My wife and I consider ourselves exceptionally blessed.

 8) 8) 8)  Congrats, Faron!! 8) 8) 8)

You are indeed blessed.  We got 13 of the little rascals.  They are a constant source of joy!

Well, mostly joy.  One of them lays in the hospital tonight with a bad concussion from a bike accident.  She's gonna be ok, thank The Lord, but she gave us a good little scare.  Bibbyman, get some little helmets for those youngsters!!

On this same subject, I remember when I was about 12 or 9. ???  My uncle came home from his stint in the Army.  He had come across a helmet liner that was all painted up real nice, like a parade piece, and he gave it to me.  I was the big wheel in all our little neighborhood wars, after that! ;D  One day, I had been over to Jimmy Pettigrew's house, and was coming home on my ol' bike.  Our driveway was about a quarter-mile long, and consisted of a pair of deep, sandy ruts that ran along the fenceline between our place and Mr. Hancock's driveway.  Anyway, my wheel got all hung up in that sand and I lost control and went head-first into that fence.  The top of that helmet rattled along the fence wire for a couple or three feet until it met one of them old heart pine posts, where we stopped, right away!  I immediately realized that the helmet had saved me from a really painful, and probably serious injury.  I got back on my bike and rode on up to the house, no worse for the wear.

Now I didn't set out to throw no cold water on this delightful thread, 'cause it is one of my favorites.  But, Bibbster, you stop by Walmart tomorrow and pick up a couple of them little helmets, would ya?  Don't matter that they are made in China, just get something between them lumber piles and them precious little noggins, ok?

Thanks, DanG, and I hope your granddaughter is OK.  That helmet thing is good advice.

One thing with walmart never buy a child life jacket.  I checked them out wouldnt work.  After seeing a couple looking at the different ones there children right there and not trying them on or not knowing how to test them.   Well here is my bug.  Sorry to hear about the accident dan.  In my young life i have died a few times and a few broken bones and serious accidents.  I remeber when i was five my mom using a hose and spraying me when i was 40 feet up a cedar tree.  I went further up.  And was kind of slippery on the way down.
[http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/goober077/detail?.dir=663c&.dnm=81e0.jpg&.src=ph]

Quote from: DanG on July 10, 2005, 11:58:08 PM
. But, Bibbster, you stop by Walmart tomorrow and pick up a couple of them little helmets, would ya?  Don't matter that they are made in China, just get something between them lumber piles and them precious little noggins, ok?

We got one plus all the knee/elbow pads when we got the first bike for Alex.  It's around the yard someplace.  I see them wear it from time to time - but not when they are riding the bike.  They're on and off the bikes a 100 times in a day.

I must admit that if I had known just how fun and precious grandkids would turn out to be that I'd have had them first. ;D  As the proud grandfather of six, I would like to share them with you.  My Lord Jesus sent these precious ones to me to remind me that love still exists.
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/12519/Copy%20%281%29%20of%20DVC00005.jpg)
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/12519/Copy%20%281%29%20of%20DVC00014.jpg)
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/12519/Copy%20%281%29%20of%20DVC00030.jpg)

8) 8) 8) 8) 8)

Cute bunch, Jim  8) 8)

This is Morgan, who just turned 4. One day, out of the blue, she decided she wanted to write her kitty's name. Mommy told her the letters one at a time, and they all happened to be ones she knew how to make. Boy was she proud of herself! Us too. :)

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10352/lumpy.jpg)

Oh my gosh....she's adorable!!   :)

Do I want to know how the kitty got the name Lumpy   ???

no       :D

My nephew,Matt was 8 yearsold and learning to read.He was in the bathroom one day and yelled out  MOM WHERE IS OUR PANTRY ?"?? My sister said,Matt we don't have a pantry......Matt yells back..THEN HOW COME THERES A WHOLE CASE OF PANTRY LINERS IN THE BATHROOM CABINET????????

 :D :D :D :D :D :D It will be a few years before he needs to be clued in, thank goodness. Kids are a hoot.

When two of my nephews were small they were visiting their grandmother one day.  They were playing on a short step ladder on the carport when the youngest, about 4, fell and bumped his head on the concrete.  This set him to wailing rather loudly.  People gathered to check him out and to comfort him.   :'(

His older brother, about 6,  says, "Ah! He'll be all right.  All he needs is an earff control pill!"

:D

Quote from: Bibbyman on March 14, 2005, 09:33:24 PM
Since you asked.

Mary took Brooke and Alex to see Robots last Friday evening.  They enjoyed it. 

On the way home Brooke asked Mary "When to you think that movie is comin' out?" 

"What movie?" Mary asks,

"The one with the Robots!" (Don't you know nothin' Grandma!). 

Mary.. "It came out hon'.  We just saw it". 

(Couple more rounds of confusing talk with no resolution.)

Brooke... "No!  I mean!... When is it comin' out IN A BOX!"

She wanted a DVD of the movie so she could watch it over and over at home.

Well Robots is out in a box now and we have it.  We just got it in the DVD player and I was looking for the remote to start the movie.

Brooke was anxious to get the movie started. Mary, helping to fill up the time laps, suggested we watch it in Spanish.   The girls protested. 

Brooke said, "The only Spanish I knows is.  A-D-Os A-B-goes!"   smiley_sombrero

 :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D. I can't stop laughing. Brooke is a hoot.

I may be a bit biased but iasn't she a real cutie

I'm totally innocent

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/12167/t%20me%21%21%20%28Custom%29.JPG)

You mean this isn't lunch

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/12167/yummmm%20tissues%20tissues%20everywhere%21%20%28Custom%29.JPG)

But it's supposed to go in here

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/12167/DSC_0014%20%28Custom%29.JPG)

   :D :D :D :D :D  Good one, Ernie. She's a doll.  8) :D :D :D :D

Give her 15 years and she will be after you like a Banshee.

There are blank pages in my photo album where my sons discovered pictures I had taken of them when they were young. :D

Amazing what happens when "grandpa" is baby-sitting  ::) ;D :D

Ernie, they're what I call 21photos...

These are the photos ya keep under lock and key so as to blow them up to poster size for the child's 21st birthday!

My kids know now when I'm checking out photos I've taken, if I holler  WOO HOO, A 21PHOTO!!! They come running to see who's done what embarrassing thing!!!

My daughter's been known to bribe me to delete particularly embarassing ones...  Of course, I deleted them. (She didn't bribe me enough to delete the copies, though!)

asy :D

Those photos are fun at weddings too. ;D

And "40ths" - we went to one on the weekend - and they had a photo board with many of the same photos you guys are describing. :D

The girls came home from school today to face the ritual of "what'd ya learn today at school" question from Mary.  Well, today being Columbus Day,  Alex learned all about Columbus and discovery of the New World, etc.

She had all the facts right – including giving him credit for proving the world was round.  After concluding her report,  she asked, 

"Why didn't they just go up in a space ship and take a picture to prove the earth was round?"  smiley_scholar

 :D :D :D :D :DThanks for keeping this thread alive. I love it.

Brooke's birthday is coming up November 2.  She's just stated the first grade but we found this note she'd written yesterday..

QuoteI am six yers odd and goweng to be siven in 3 mor days.

Mary had read the note yesterday and showed it to me today.  But in the mean time,  Alex had marked up the misspelled words and punctuation.

Alex then added .. in "regular letters"

QuoteI am eight years old and, and going to be nine in 6 more months.

Then she wrote the same note in cursive.  ::)

We just got back from the land of OZ (Australia) after 6 days visiting our Grand daughter,Danielle, and Tach and Stu, her parents of course.  We took over some clothes for her and managed to get about 400 pics (love these digital cameras).

This is one of Danielle looking real COOL.

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/12167/DSC01467%20%28Custom%29.JPG)

Asy, Sorry I didn't get in touch, I left your phone number on my puter in NZ.

Cute.
I can see she is reaching for the TV remote, and may even know how to use it too.  :)

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10034/wstrainride20051101.JPG)

Mary boxed herself into a corner a couple of weeks back when she and Brooke were talking.  They were making a list of places they'd like to go on an adventure – the zoo, circus, movies, etc. when Mary added a ride on the train.  Well, this really stuck with Brooke and she told everyone that next weekend she and Grandma Mary were going on a train ride.

Well,  it wasn't out of the question.  Amtrak did run between St. Louis and Kansas City with stops at a few small towns in-between.   We talked about it and Saturday morning Mary got on the PC and looked up schedules and fares for trains leaving Jefferson City to Herrmann, MO. There was a train leaving at 10.55 and it would take 45 minutes to get to Herrmann.  The plan was for me to drop them off in Jefferson City and then pick them up in Herrmann then we'd have dinner and then come home.

We got there in plenty of time but the train was a half hour late.  It finally got there about an hour late.  This pushed our time table out a bit but it made time to visit the museums there at the train station.  Some of the earliest buildings in Jefferson City were right there – dating back to 1839.

Brooke had brought along a little Halloween figure of a skeleton and was fascinated by the different leafs that littered the area.  She'd picked up a plastic bag in one of the museums and had put some valuable "stuff" in it.

The train finally came and the girls got on and I took off.  Mary said everything was exciting at first but about 30 minutes into the 45 minute ride Brooke, hanging her chin on the window sill looking outside, remarked "Well,  just as I expected.  I'm about to get board.  Good thing I brought my man and my stick." 

I don't think I've ever seen Brooke board.  She's easily entertained and when there ain't something to entertain her, she'll entertain herself.     

There used to be a German resturant at the foot of the hill coming into Herman from the South.  I've entertained myself there a time or two ;D

So, whadya do?  Dance on the table?  Just tell some old jokes?  Enquiring minds want to know.

DanG,  you must be seeing commas where there ain't none :D :D

Maybe when I get bored,  I'll try that man and stick trick.  Then maybe I won't be so opulant ;D

I had a good laugh this morning. My friend John was talking about his wife who recently bought a FourRunner with a stick shift. Lorelei has driven standard before but this one is a challenge. She was out with their 10 year old grandson who was critiquing the driving. "No, grandma, you are supposed to shift up, not down." When they got home, Travis remarked "I guess you are not going offroading." :D :D :D :D

 Kelsey, after a day of playing in the snow.
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10257/tired%20little%20Kelsey.jpg)
Somedays I wonder where she gets all her energy  :D.

The school bus the girls ride picks them up first on the route on the morning run and drops them off last in the evening.  Today was the last day before Christmas break so it was a short day.  For some reason the bus driver ran the route backwards.

When Gabe got home, Grandma Mary told the girls to tell their dad how come they got home from school so early.

Alex said, "Mr. Huff dropped us off first. " Gabe said, "Oh, he ran the bus backwards."  Brooke chipped in, "No the bus went frontwards but he just came to our house first." smiley_dizzy

Mary took the girls over to our niece Jenny's house for an after Christmas get together with the families of her three other sisters.  There were five other little kids there for a total of 6 girls and one boy.  They ranged in age from 9 on down.

As the temperature was up in the lower 50's (in January) and the sun was out,  the kids played outside, whooping it up like wild indians all day.

At the end of the party Brooke came in and said to grandma,  "Grandma,  you didn't get to have any fun.  All you did was set and talk."

smiley_gossip

One of my wifes sisters was visiting for a few days while her husband was away on business, she brought her two boys and her dog too. The poor old dog was outside running around for hours with my pooches and the kids. The next morning the old girl was still tuckered out.  :D

When the littlest feller disappeared for a while and there was no noise either, we decided to investigate, quiet young boy is never a good omen.

This is how I found him.

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/11799/Stevie%20n%20Chesney.jpg)

When I asked him if he wanted to come into the family room and watch TV with his brother and the others (he was watching a little portablein the living room) his reply just broke me up.

He said "I gotta stay her an hold her head up or she's gonna get a crick in her neck. Besides if she has a bad dream and wakes up alone she might not know where she is and get afraid and cry."

Kinda hard to find fault with logic like that now isn't it.  ;)

Murf, that's so cool!

Gotta love a boy and his dog.

He'll treasure that story, and the photo.

asy :D

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10034/wsbrookelist200601.JPG)

Brooke, in the middle of the first grade, helped Grandma make a grocery list.

Grandma helped her with the first two but she did all the rest on her own!

STRAWBERRIES
WHIP CREAM
BISCUTS
SPUGETI
SOSAGO
TOMATOSOSE
HAM
BENSE
CORNBERAD
FRID POTATO
GORLIC BRAD
PORK
EVOO
ZICENY
BOTTOR
FLEWOR
EGGS

I haven't had the drive to make kids yet and I'm not sure its gonna happen. Miss moose wanted 1 for awhile but I'm so selfish, like my toys and sleep I just didn't want to make em. Besides I'm afraid my kids would put me through what I put my folks through.

Bibbyman, you did not have to print out the words. Brooke writes better than I can. 8)

Quote from: Modat22 on January 15, 2006, 09:33:10 PM
I haven't had the drive to make kids yet and I'm not sure its gonna happen. Miss moose wanted 1 for awhile but I'm so selfish, like my toys and sleep I just didn't want to make em. Besides I'm afraid my kids would put me through what I put my folks through.

:D :D :D :D :D My sister was going at it with her stepson. After mom and I left, I asked "Did any of that sound familiar?" "Yes it sure as h**l did. I feel for her, I know what she is going through but she is FINALLY getting a taste of her own medicine" First time I ever heard mom use profanity.

An old farmer we've known for years has us do some sawing for him from time to time.  One summer we sawed out a large barn for him.  It seemed like he was at our place at least once a week and every time there had to be a lengthy visit. 

The girls were off school for the summer and they were always around someplace.  He didn't miss a chance to visit with them and often brought them something – usually something like a watermelon.

We knew his son really well too.  He was the same age as our two sons – now in their mid-thirties.  Although his son had had a full-time "cohabitant" for a number of years, they were not married and had no kids.

Well, one day the old farmer got off on the subject of not having any grandchildren.  You could tell it was something he wanted.  As he went on,  the more he told how about the conversations he had with his son about his shortfall. He got down to being rather blunt about it.  By DanG,  he wanted grandchildren before he was too old to enjoy them.  Besides, his son and "cohabitant" were not getting any younger.  The clock was ticking there too.

That was a couple of years back and he's still not got any grandchildren.  His son has a new "cohabitant" now.  We'll have to see.

My Wife and I were married 10 years before having children.  I am up now at 3AM because of children :D
To each his own.  But, it is my opinion children make life more complete.
We have two boys one almost 3 the other 5 months.  I think I need to hang on it is going to be an interesting ride :D
Here is a couple of pics of the older one.  (Got two toy chainsaws for Christmas.)
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/12877/0013.JPG)
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/12877/2004%20063.jpg)

Oh my gosh!  He's adorable!! 

My Grandson, who just turned two came for a visit last Saturday.  I was talking to him on the phone just prior to them leaving to come up, and I said, "Are you coming to see me?"  He said, "I'll come see you."  Do you believe it?!!  The correct conversion of the pronoun, and he just turned two!  So, they finally arrive, and he walks into the house, and he looks at a picture I had in the dining room, and said, "Violin."  I told Cowboy Bob to call Guiness....the boy can recognize a VIOLIN!   :D :D

The only thing that is better than having children, is having Grandchildren!!

Quote from: Roxie on January 16, 2006, 06:20:42 AM
The only thing that is better than having children, is having Grandchildren!!

That's coz ya can give em BACK!

They go HOME at the end of the day!

asy :D

Quote from: Roxie on January 16, 2006, 06:20:42 AM
Oh my gosh!  He's adorable!! 

My Grandson, who just turned two came for a visit last Saturday.  I was talking to him on the phone just prior to them leaving to come up, and I said, "Are you coming to see me?"  He said, "I'll come see you."  Do you believe it?!!  The correct conversion of the pronoun, and he just turned two!  So, they finally arrive, and he walks into the house, and he looks at a picture I had in the dining room, and said, "Violin."  I told Cowboy Bob to call Guiness....the boy can recognize a VIOLIN!   :D :D

The only thing that is better than having children, is having Grandchildren!!

Thanks ;D
His new word is triceratops (Wrong spelling I am sure but you know the Dino..)
My brother and sister are 15+ years older than me so I was able to enjoy their kids and give them back ;D  I do look forward to grand kids some day for that very reason :D :D
Max

Last year my dad went to my nephews Pinewood Derby with the cub scouts (my brother is one of the leaders of the troop), and saw that their track was in sorry shape.  So he volunteered to build a new one.  He bought the sheet of plywood and told me where it was  ::)  I put a lot of work in to that track, and they finally came to pick it up on Saturday.  As I was explaining to my brother how it all goes together, my nephew was wandering around the garage with his usual string of "what's this?"  He decided to stack some pine boards on a dolly, and then he found the old cast iron damper from my stove pipe.  "What's this?"

"That's a damper" I told him.

"Where does the water come from?"

Everyone has "their" tools.  We've got probably a half dozen hammers around the place but when I ask for "my hammer", everyone knows the one I'm talking about.

A while back I came to realize that Brooke too had "her tools".   

Since a toddler she's been fascinated by the big nail clippers.    I've seen her use them for all kinds of crafts and cutting – from cutting string to making a start on a stubborn candy bar wrapper.  They are normally kept on the edge of the bookshelf in reach of my chair and she's pretty good about using them and bringing them back.  But if they're not there,  all you have to do is ask Brooke and she'll go hunt them up.  She knows where they went too.

It's the same for the pencil pointer.  After all,  the #2 lead pencil is the main tool of a practicing first grader.  But she is always quick to refurbish the points on any dull pencil she finds.  The pointer moves around the house a bit and sometimes gets under things.  But, again, if you ask Brooke, she'll know where it was used last.

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10034/wsbrookestools.JPG)

I got to thinking about it...  The nail clippers is the one cutting tool she is allowed to use and the pointer is the one power tool she is authorized to use.  Little wonder she keep track of them.  ;)

 :D :D :D Thanks for bringing this thread up again. It is a lot of fun.

Mary was helping the girls get ready for school the other day – (think Marine Corps Boot Camp) when Brooke got to questioning Mary about what time they had to leave to meet the bus and what time the bus got there, etc.  She's not studied time in school yet but she can do alright on the digital clocks but the ones with hour hands don't work too well for her.  She can get the hours is the fat hand is near a number but the minute hand defeats her.

After the question and answer session,  she asked,  "But Grandma,  when does the "tills" become "afters"?"

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10373/wiamrobertopt.jpg)

All his buddies keepin' him company 8) 8)

My addition to the younger folks generation can be seen to the left  :)

He is about 18 months, and into everything.  I didn't know how I'd do bein a father, but I definitely enjoy watchin him grow and learn. and learnin quit a bit myself  ::)

Since he was about a year old, he has had a pet peeve that he can't put his cup down on a table without havin a coaster under it. ::) He has about a 15 word vocabulary but what really amazes me is he out talks me  :D He loves typin and clickin the mouse too,   I'll try to keep him off FF   :D :D

That picture was taken last night.  That is my youngest Robert. He will be seven in a month. The bear is George.  I was not sure if the flash would wake him but we thought it would make a cool pic.

Will

Hector and his family are currently living with Harold (Harold lived with Geraldo for a couple of months) while Hector is rebuilding his house which is next door. It has taken a lot of pressure off Hector since he needed to get into the house before school started, but as all projects - it got bigger as time passed.

Hector's youngest is about 3 1/2 and because Chrissy is from California and Hector is Costa Rican, she is mixing her languages - big time. Sounds a lot like Harold except the accent is perfect in both languages. It is pretty funny.

She calls their house the "broken casa" and everyone else is using that phrase too.  :D

Everything's new again.

We've been running out of things for the kids to watch on the tube in the evenings.  We don't let them watch a bunch of that mindless cartoon dribble.  We've got DISH but in the early evening, there's not much on they can watch that we'd let them watch.

So the two evenings back I pulled out a DVD of the first 8 episodes of the Beverly Hillbillies TV show.  At first Alex kind of snarled up her nose at the old black and white TV show.  But it wasn't long before she started to get interested.  Brooke liked the crazy antics of Jethro and Elly May. They really got into it!  When their dad came home, he noted what was on TV and made a face.  ::) But then something funny happened and he laughed and started watching.

We watched until it was the girl's bedtime and they didn't want to stop.  After they went to bed I told Mary that tomorrow evening we're going to have to watch the movie that stared Jim Varney as it copied close the first couple of TV shows.

The next evening Alex was soon begging to start up the Beverly Hillbillies again.  I hunted for the DVD of the movie but couldn't find it.  I guess it's loaned out.  So we continued to watch more of the old TV shows.  There were parts where we had to explain things to Alex as she didn't get what the joke was.  Brooke didn't care if she got it or not as long as something funny happened.

This evening as soon as Rachel Ray was over we're starting on the second CD with 8 more show.

That's all we have so we're going to have to get the next set or find the movie or something.

Too bad there is not any good clean shows on TV any more.

When I was little just about all I was allowed to watch was PBS.  I used to BEG my mom to let me stay up late to watch 'Wild America'   :)

AH! Somebody else likes Rachel Ray too eh?  ;D 

Skid rides are very popular round our parts too!  Here is Cowboy Bob with our Grandson, Nathan.  I love this picture cause they both look like they're right where they wanna be.   :)
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/11566/skidride.jpg)

Our grand kids like the Beverly Hillbillies too.It was a cheap DVD too.We got 24 episodes for under $6.We buy these at Best Buy.We have the 3 Stoogers,John Wayne,and Bonaza.All that I can think of for now.These are probaly around $6 each.

My nephew who was about 7 at the time came for a visit while I was digging out a ditch with the excavator. He sat on the seat with me and followed on the controls while I ran it. Soon enough he was running it himself without me doing much more than reminding him where to grab the next bite. When we came up to the house he had a big smile while he told his mom how he had ran it all by himself. Not sure who was smiling more though, him or me.

The very first episodes of the Andy Griffith show are great watching. They were running them on satellite but I'll bet you can get copies of them on ebay or somewhere.

Quote from: Norm_F. on March 03, 2006, 07:33:16 AM
The very first episodes of the Andy Griffith show are great watching. They were running them on satellite but I'll bet you can get copies of them on ebay or somewhere.

Yea,  the early episodes where Andy told stories. 

I love the one where Andy was talking to Opie about giving to the collection at school and explaining to him about the one and one-half kids per square mile that needed help. Opie couldn't get over that half a kid.  Andy tells him to forget about the half a boy and Opie says "You just can't forget about something like that."  :D

Alex and Brooke love to play with all kinds of things around the mill and farm.  The last couple of evenings have been warm enough for them to play outside until dark.  They've been digging a hole in the sawdust pile. 

But I've began to worry about their developing maternal skills. Forgive me for stereotyping but little girls should be playing with their dolls.  They have dolls, playhouses, tea sets, and all the other little girl accessories.  But I don't see them mimicking any real motherly actions like holding, comforting, feeding, dressing, etc.  Mostly the dolls are treated more like crash dummies – always put to some peril.

This evening I went out to put the Terex away and do a little spot check on the sawdust diggers and there they were - each had an undressed doll and they were pitching them up in the air as far as they could and trying to catch them.  It was kind of a disturbing sight to see these naked dolls, about the size of newborns, being hurled in the air with their little arms and legs spinning out of control and then falling back to hands that would miss them half the time so they fell to the ground.

:-\

Don't let those precious little girls dig tunnels in the sawdust------I'm sure you know that,  but I couldn't help thinking about what can happen.

Bibby
May be some of the things they see on TV.   

Quote from: Bro.  Noble on March 08, 2006, 09:57:11 PM
Don't let those precious little girls dig tunnels in the sawdust------I'm sure you know that,  but I couldn't help thinking about what can happen.

Yes,  They're digging a hole straight down and only waist deep. 

That's a good safety point you bring up.  People have suffocated by being burried in a sawdust pile.    :'(

That's one reason I went out to "and do a little spot check on the sawdust diggers".

Beenthere,

I got to thinking,  Brooke and Alex are a little over a year apart so Alex does not remember Brooke when she was baby as she was just a toddler herself.  And they've not been around a mother with a small infant so maybe they've not had their maternal instincts "turned on", so to speak.

The girls are on spring break this week.  We decided we were going on a couple of "adventures".  As we didn't know how the weather was going to cooperate, we didn't clue them in until this morning we were going to Meramac Caverns until we were on our way.  Meramac Caverns is about 2 hours east and south of us.  It only got about 30 minutes into the trip when we got the first of many "How much farther?" from the backseat. 

We got there a little after 11:00 and made our way to the ticket stand.  The crowd was no problem.  It was the off season, middle of the week, and a miserable nasty day. There were more tour guides waiting at the desk then just us four.  The last tour "group" of one had just left 5 minutes before we walked up.  In fact we could see them at the end of the first great room of the cave.  We were invited to join that "group". 

One of the tour guides took us to catch up with the other tour guide and "group".  I guess out of boredom,  he tagged along.  I think he was taken by the girls.  Or maybe he didn't think the other guy could handle them.  They did have too much energy and wasn't timid at all in getting right into the tour. This guy directed most of the tour to the girls.  I think more in trying to keep the occupied. About half way through the tour, he'd loaned them both a flashlight.

On the back side of the tour,  this tour guide they'd given the name of "bologna" was pointing out some of the cave formations – "Injen Joe", the deer, etc.  He was telling them there was a dinosaur in the cave and did they want to see it.  Alex proclaimed there were no dinosaurs as they have been extinct for 50 million years.  He comes back with "How do you know that?" With a little sarcasm, Alex replies, "We go to school you know."  Mr. Bologna cracked up at that one.  :D

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10034/wsspringbreak0602.JPG)

The girls in front of some formation that took 75 million years to form..

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10034/wsspringbreak0601.JPG)

The one with the tie is Mr. Bologna man...

Thanks Bib, I enjoyed that.

My son, daughter-in-law and grandson went to Disney World this week, and had the time of their lives.  Here is a picture of my son and grandson:
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/11566/richandnathandisneyworld.jpg)

This was my favorite picture of all....the littlest one is my grandson and the other two boys are his cousins.  They were enjoying a portable DVD player back at the hotel before bed.  Apparently the DVD transcended age differences. 
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/11566/boysathotel.jpg)

Oh Roxie , your grandson is so cute. He looks just like you with his ears on top of his head . ;D

I'm not going there. Nope, not at all. :D :D

 8)  What a riot!  I didn't even think about that!   :D

I mentioned on post #175 that I was a little worried about the girl's maternal skills.

Well today Mary drew me over to look at something.  There on top of the sawdust pile was just the face and one hand of one of their baby dolls exposed.  If we hadn't had that hard wind, it'd probably would have staid buried.

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10034/wssawdustdoll200601.JPG)

Sunday evening...Time line..

8:00pm – Girls say goodnight and go to bed.

8:00pm-8:45pm – Girls are repeatedly warned to stop talking and get to sleep.

8:50pm – Mary gets up and goes to the bedroom.

8:51pm – 9:00pm – I keep hearing "Grandma!,  Grandma!,  GRANDMA!" from one or the other of them.  I keep warning them to be quiet and go to sleep but the "Grandma!,  Grandma!,  Grandma!" just keep coming.

9:05pm – Now I'm beginning to wonder what's going on.  Mary's in the bedroom next to the girls and she can't hear them calling her.  Maybe something happened to her. 

I go to check out what Mary's up to but as I past the girls room I get "Grandpa!ed".  I stop to tell them to be quiet and get to sleep one more time but Brooke asked me "Grandpa.  Is 351 a number?  Alex said it was.  She said she counted past 351 before."  I confirmed that yes 351 was a number.  Then Alex adds in "I told her it was and the 427 was a number too but she don't believe me."  We talk for a minute and I urge them to be quiet and got to sleep.

Mary's OK,  she was taking a shower.  I make one more check of the Forestry Forum.

9:15pm – All's quiet – except for Mary's snoring. 

9:20pm – I think I'll join her. ;D

'Nite..

G'nite Bib ;D Those girls are special alright.

My four year-old nephew "helping" his Dad and me split wood last fall..........
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/13111/splitting..........jpg)

Ahhh, to be young again ...

Now all I see, are possible pinched or severed fingers, high pressure oil lines, and no eye covering with the young fella. 
What is wrong with me.  ::)

I just hope the machine was shut off when that picture was taken. Little guys just love to help around machinery especially when there are levers to pull and buttons to push. ::)

The tractor wasn't running; we were taking a break when the picture was made.  He wasn't close while we were actually working.  This one was also posed;  he's not allowed to actually use an axe, although he does have his own hammer..........

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/13111/axing.jpg)

 :D :D :D I loved spending time with dad in his shop. One day he was busy then realized things were too quiet at my end. He found me sitting on the floor with the brace and bit busily boring holes in the shop floor ;D

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10034/wsdollswing200604.JPG)

The girls have a tire swing in a walnut tree about 40 yards from the sawmill.  It makes a nice play area in the summer as we can saw and keep an eye on them.  I've noticed lately Brooke has been storing her baby doll this way in the tire swing.  At least it's better than when she's had it hanging in the loop in the rope you see in the upper left. That had me a little worried.  ::)

I've got a brand new grandaughter.   Her name is Sarah and she was born June 23rd at 9:36 PM.  She weighs 5 lbs 5 oz and is 20" long. 
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/11566/sarah.jpg)

Life is good.   8)

Congrats, Roxie! 8) 8)  She's a beaut!  I know you're just plum tickled!

Congrats!!!

She's gorgeous!

asy :D

Congratulations! 

She looks like a keeper Roxie.  Most babies don't look that good right out of the oven.  ;)

 Way to go Roxie  ;). Hold her tight, she'll grow up quick. My grandaughter will be 3 in 24 more days. Time sure does fly.

congrats  Roxie  be sure to spoil her rotton  :D

Oh Roxie, she is a living doll.  :)

Be sure to give her a hug for me.   ;)

Congratulations on the new grand-daughter!  DanG, there must be a bunch of old folks that hang out around here...............grandchildren, already? :D

Quote from: tnlogger on June 26, 2006, 08:50:47 AM
congrats  Roxie  be sure to spoil her rotton  :D

And when you get her spoiled real good, give her back to her parents. ;D

Congratulations!!!!!

Oh Thank Y'all sooooo much! 
Has anyone else noticed that your children start to apologize for being so difficult when they start to have children of their own?  I've never heard so many confessions and "How'd ya do it Mom" in all my born days!   :D

Truthfully, if I would have known all that was going on, THEY wouldn't have made it this far!   :D :D

Congratulation Roxie she is really cute  :-*

Glad you can be there for her.We have 4 grandchildren 45 minutes away.That nice!!!! but the other one is about to get married lives 6 hours away.  :(  We will have to manage,some how. 

My Granddaughter, Alina, has been visiting here for the past week.  This morning, I smuggled a catch rope into the pasture and managed to sneak up on ol' Chief so she could get a little riding in. :)

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10074/a-c01.jpg)

She sits a horse pretty good!  Looks downright natural up there!

She's lovely!!   :)

Good looking girl, dad will need a shotgun just inside the door in a few years ;D

I don't know how the girls do it.   I have been on a horse, years ago, in a pair of shorts and  ended up with chaffed legs and thighs so bad that I couldn't walk.  .......everytime.   I was not too bright and didn't miss much of a chance to get on a horse.  It didn't enter my mind at the time that I should be wearing long trousers. 

The worst I got chaffed was in shorts, riding bareback and swimming canals.  Wet horse hair is like 80 Grit sandpaper. :P

What a cutie!

I'm not showing this thread to Stephanie, or she'll be packing up to go visit 'uncle Dang' within the hour.

hehe

asy :D

PS I'm getting a shotgun soon too, mine's the same age...

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/13842/Gracie1.jpg)

Here's my youngest last summer on her 3rd Birthday.  Insists on having her picture taken anytime she sees a camera.

She knows how cute she is :D :D :D :D

I just got back from delivering a load of lumber.   Brooke went with me to ride shotgun.  She's been trained to take the bill into the office.  She is also well qualified to help with the load straps.

There was a lot of talking on the ride over and a little singing.  We no more than got out on the road when she suggested we stop in at Sonic for another lunch – even though we just got done eating. 

It was question time on the way back.  I thin I got at least one "Grandpa,  Ummmm.." and then followed by a question per mile. 

One question dealt with the trailer break switch – and what it was for.  I explained that was there so IF we were pulling a trailer and I stepped on the break,  the breaks on the trailer would work too.  She thought and added,  "That's so the trailer won't push you." She shows a lot of potential in the engineering field.

"Grandpa .... Ummmm.... Did God create Earth?"  We talked about that.

"Grandpa .... Ummmm.... What is the earth made of?"  We talked about that.

"Grandpa....  Ummmm....  Why do they make so many different kinds of glues?"  (She had dropped a stool I'd made and cracked one side.  So while I was at the lumber yard I picked up some wood glue.) We had to get that all understood.

"Grandpa....  Ummmm...  What is cement made of?" We had to talk about that and then concrete. 

"Grandpa....  Ummmm...  How come every time I say Grandpa you start to laugh?"  ::)

She admitted she was always thinking of things. ???

We had one lull in the conversation.  I asked her if she ran out of things to ask.  She said, "No, Sometimes I get tired of talking but not very often."

Sounds like she takes after her Grandpa.... Ummmm.... Especially in that last line. :D

asy :D

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10068/Maddox%20Faron%20c.jpg)



I thought I'd introduce ya'll to my new grandson, Maddox Faron, born day before yesterday.   8) 8) 8)He is my eighth grandchild, and the fifth grandson.  I nicknamed him "Mad Dog" this evening.  That really steams his 2 year old big sister. :D

He sure is a handsome fella.....and I think the nickname, Mad Dog suits him!   :D

He's extremely cute!

Sure looks comfy in that spot, bet he spends a bit of time there!

asy :D

Brooke and I went up to visit with Dad this evening.  Dad and I were trying to carry on a conversation but Brooke was right between us buzzing around like a gnat.  I'd asked her to move back a couple of times but she'd be right back there again.  About the third time,  Dad asked her if she was writing all this down.  She moved back.  I told Dad that it'd be Alex that would be writing everything down.  Brooke added,  "She writes down recipes and stories and things.  Once she was going to write the story of her life but it was taking too long."  :D ::)

We got back home and told Mary that Brooke had said another one.  But I couldn't remember what she had said.  Then just a couple of minutes ago I walked by their bedroom to do a nose count and Alex was in her top bunk with her spiral bound notebook writing and it came back to me. 

I guess I'm to blame for Alex's writing habits.  Back when she could just hardly write her ABCs and a few words I'd have her write simple sentences.   Even as early as kindergarten,  she set on my lap and she would write stories.  The first thing she's say is she had nothing to write about.  Then I'd ask her what was the first thing she did that morning and then she'd write that down.  Then I'd ask, "And then...?" and she'd continue.  "And then...?"  We would continue until she had filled a page.

That's cool Bibby!

Don't ever let her throw them out, she'll look back on them fondly when she's older.

Another neat thing she could do, is, when/if she has a daughter, give her one each year as she grows up. It's a neat way for a child to realise the parent has really walked these steps before.

asy :D

Now this is funny _____ because it's not my house, and I don't own the kids.  ;D

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10180/KidsHavinFun_ff.JPG)

I wonder if the kids lived to tell the tale.

And if they did, I wonder if they can sit down yet...

asy :D

I'll have you all know, I have become another Grandpa all over again.  Mary-Elisabeth Grace Gwaltney, Daughter of my Son, was born yesterday at about 2:45 PM.  She has been assigned the number "GK14" as she is the fourteenth GrandKid for Linda and me.  Mama and Kneebiter are doing great. :)

I got a picture in e-mail, but it was a close-up and a really fat file.  When I reduced it to FF size, it was just a blob. :-\  We'll do better soon.

Another one to drag around to show the sights and sounds of the world.Or should I say she will drag you around.I know you will enjoy her.

Hey that's DanG good news!!!

Do you all get together at times?

Would be great to see a photo of ALL of you!

asy :D

That would be cool, Asy, but I don't know if it will ever happen.  They are scattered all over the Southeast and we never seem to all be in one spot.  It has happened before, but the GK population has more than doubled since then.

Sounds about time for a reunion then!

"Build it and they will come".

asy :D

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10034/wsbabytoss20060802.JPG)
It may be hard to spot from the picture above but maybe you can make out Brooke (left) in the end of an overhand pitching motion.  If you look between her and the window of the playhouse,  maybe you can make out her doll that is cart wheeling through the air. 

They were playing a game of sorts.   Alex was sliding the dolls down the wide board you see propped against the playhouse and Brooke was gathering them up and pitching them back into the playhouse through the window.  To make it more of a challenge, she had backed up about 20 feet.

I had the camera out at the sawshed and noted the "baby toss" event taking place.  I must have taken 20 pictures to capture a doll in mid-air.   The pictures were taken while I was sawing. 

It sure beats being at the office any day. 8)

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10034/wstreasure200060901.JPG)

It was pretty nice weather yesterday afternoon so I changed the batteries in the metal detector and led Brooke (a.k.a. The Colorbook Kid) and Alex (a.k.a. The Couch Potato) down the hill to the site where the house stood I was born in.

Have you ever seen two rat terriers digging in the same mole hole?   It was pretty frantic digging.  I'd taken a short pick-like digging tool and a big screwdriver.  The digging pick was the tool of choice but we managed to share.  I had to be in constant vigilance to prevent fingers from being chopped or scalp lacerations resulting from the two girls working in the same spot.

We hadn't been searching long before we found a cache of spoons and forks.  They were right outside where the east door had been and under several limestone rocks about 2" thick that had probably been stepping stones.

The detector went wild over one spot but it turned out to be the pinion gear to a rear differential or tail shaft of a transmission or something similar.

Alex dug up the best find of the hatchet head.  Brooke found the flatware and the trowel.

The old homestead probably dated back to the 1820's when the area was first settled.  I've hunted the area before and found lots of nails, horse shoes, wagon iron, harness metal parts, etc.   The best find I've made was a broadax head.

That looks like a lot of fun and a way I'd like to spend the day.  Good for you for taking the kids.  I'll bet you made up some good stories to tell them about the ax and the forks and stuff.  That might have been an Ax that Billy the Kid forgot when he camped there one evening. :D

Now you have less items to confuse you the next time you go over the spot.  :D 8)

I sure wish I were there to help.

OK Bibby,fess up.who had the most fun..you or the girls??? Me thinks me knows ;)
I think they now call this time well wasted.Good on ya Bibby!This is something they will tell their kids about the day they spent with you.
Sandmar

Well, we're real fortunate that we spend a LOT of time with Alex and Brooke. But I suspect we'll be spending more time "treasure hunting" for a while - at least until the new wears off.

BIBBYMAN, Brooke has a pretty good pitching stance there.  If she keeps throwing babies I bet she makes a good softball pitcher someday.

Our day changes at about 4:15 each afternoon when the girls get home from school. 

Yesterday they come busting through the front door and Brooke came straight to me to tell me Hi and give me a hug and tell me about her day. 

I asked where Alex went to and she explained.  "She went to change her shirt 'cause Johnny had this toy in his mouth and got it all wet then he dropped it on the floor that was dusty then he stuck it on Alex and made a dirty spot." She went on with a smirk on her face.. "He's always picking on her. I think he likes her.  If he don't stop,  I'm goin'a knock his tooth out."

I thought it funny this little sister was going to defend her older sister by knocking Johnny's "tooth" out. 

bike_rider

I'm not ready for the next ten years of raising girls.  smiley_dizzy

 should be fun Bibby :D

Not sure "fun" is the right word.

I'm in the same boat.   ::)

asy :D

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10034/wsbrookecloths2006.JPG)

It's pretty common for people to lay out their cloths they plan to wear the next morning.  But when Mary went to get the girls up this morning and called me to see what looks like some of Brooke's handy work. :)

That's hillarious...

She must be supergirl, her undies are on the outside!!! :D

asy :D

Last evening Alex came through the door and walked swiftly to her room.  I could tell by the slamming of the door and the fall of her feet she wasn't happy.   When I went to investigate I found her seated on the floor in the corner of her room, arms folded and pouting.   I asked her what was her problem and she blurted out that she was mad at Brooke because Brooke was made at her.  Digging deeper I found out that the fight was about carrying home the "treasure" we'd found a couple of weeks ago.  Alex started out with it but talked Brooke into packing it then some kind of labor dispute took over and nobody was happy.

Brooke come into the house and stomped into the living room and set down.  I asked her way she made her sister made.  She told the same convoluted story about carrying the treasure and added in abandonment into the list of grievances against her sister.

What I wanted to know was – why were they carrying home the treasure in the first place.  It turned out that Alex had lugged it all to school to show the teacher and classmates.  I told her that wasn't a good idea and not to ever take anything to school without clearing it with her dad, grandma or me.  She came back with that I'd told her it'd be a good idea to take it to show her class.  What I did was ... I printed off a picture of the treasure so she could show Granny (my mother) and told her it'd be something to take to show her class – the picture - not 40 lbs of junk iron.  :)

Oh yea,  we'd went treasure hunting a couple of days after my post above and found about the same amount of junk.  Alex found a double bit axe head.

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10034/wsnaturewalk20061001.JPG)

Mary and I have been cutting some black oaks on our farm.  Dragging them out the logging road made such a nice but dusty path. This evening I decided to take the girls on a nature walk.

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10034/wsnaturewalk20061002.JPG)

Here is a 2' diameter stump of a large black oak tree. I wanted the girls to know how fast the tree had grown. The center circle about the size of a quarter is about when I was born in 1950. The circle a little over mid-way out is 1982 when we bought the farm from Dad.   I suspect that area was pasture ground when Dad bought the farm in 1947.

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10034/wsnaturewalk20061003.JPG)

Brooke has counted back 8 years (she'll be 8 next month) and marked around the size of the tree when she was born.  Alex is counting all the rings.  I think it was 58 years old.  I was showing them the leaves of the willow oak vs. black oak.

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10034/wsnaturewalk20061004.JPG)

Brooke and Alex with leaves from a tree I didn't know the name of.  The tree is right behind Brooke.  I thought it may be mulberry but Mary though mulberry had lobes on them.

 

Those leaves have gotta be red mulberry.  White mulberry is the leaf with all the fancy lobes.  Red will sometimes look like a mitten but is usually just like you see those.

I like mulberries.  ;D

It's a good thing those girls took after Mary or they might be living with you for the rest of their life.  :D :D :D

Does it make a difference in the shape of leaves if the mulberry is male or female?

I think the only way to know that is whether the plant bears fruit.  The trees look the same.

I read an article once that said that they can change from one to the other.   Most of the Mulberry I've seen in the woods don't bare.  The ones with berries always seem to be on the edge, in a fence or up against a building.

Those girls are lucky to have a Grampa that will do that sort of stuff with them. :) :)

Here is a 2' diameter stump of a large black oak tree. I wanted the girls to know how fast the tree had grown. The center circle about the size of a quarter is about when I was born in 1950.




 

Quote

Geez Bib, here I thought you was a wise old owl and yer younger than I am :D :D :D I am having a blast reading about those girls growing up and learning.

Brooke came home from school with a pocket full of kid jokes. 

Here is a couple I'd not heard.

---

Why did the spider like the computer? smiley_computer_monitor

Because he liked the web site. smiley_spider drop

---

Why didn't the skeleton cross the road?   smiley_skull

Because he didn't have any guts.   smiley_eek_dropjaw

It's Brooke's eighth birthday today.   smiley_bounce

One of the things she got was an alarm clock for her bedroom. Alex gave it a quick look and asked Brooke what it was.  Her replay,  "A time machine."  bike_rider

Happy Birthday, Brooke!

Happy birthday Brooke.  Here's a birthday joke just for you.
       What is HIGH in the middle and ROUND on both ends?

                           
                          OHIO

What's black and white and read (pronounced red) all over................newspaper

Due to some odd circumstances we drove the 94 Buick Roadmaster this evening.  I asked the girls in the back seat if they felt like princesses riding in Granpa's limo. (They'd probably not ridden in it in the past six months.)  Brooke piped up, "Y e a !  It's just like one of those long cars – only short.".  ::)

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/archives/vehicles/wsbibmobile.JPG)

Bibby
I remember the big straight 8 1949 Buick Roadmaster that my girlfriends father let me drive 'bout 1955. It would float over the bumps pretty DanG good.

This morning Mary made return trip from our bedroom and did the morning ritual of turning out all the lights the girls had left on from getting up and getting ready for school. 

As she passed the girl's bedroom she turned off that light too.  But she got a "HEY!" out of Brooke that was playing on the floor.  Mary asked, "What are you doing in there?" as she turned the light back on.

Brooke's reply,  "Well, nothing I should be doing in the dark!".

 :D :D :D :D :D :D :D

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10034/wsveteransday2006.JPG)

Being disappointed in the November 7'th 2006 election results were a bit relieved by a bright, sunny, warm fall day on the 8'th.  This meant we could work outside in comfort and get a lot done.  But Mary reminded me that Brooke had a Veteran's Day program at school at 1:30 and I was going to join her in watching it. 

I wasn't any to thrilled about getting cleaned up and spending two hours in a cafeteria with a hundred second graders but Mary often does these school events alone and so I didn't refuse or even put up a fuss.  I just went along with the program.

But I'm glad I took most of the afternoon off and attended.  It was an excellent and moving presentation.  I was most impressed that 100 second graders could be organized and disciplined enough to go through such a complex hour-long program without any kind of major flaw or mishap. 

The kids marched into the room carrying a flag over their left shoulder and did a fairly complicated drill – ending up arranged on the bleachers.  Then groups of kids would step up to the microphone and each recite part of a message about Veteran's Day.

Then the local VFW color guard did a presentation of the colors and the Pledge of Allegiance was recited. 

The kids then sang four or five patriotic songs.  A couple were the old standards and a couple were new ones appropriate for the occasion.

Veterans in the audience were then asked to come forward and asked to give their name, branch of service and when they served.  There was one old gentleman from WWII.  There were 22 in all.  Before they returned to the audience,  they asked the kids to join their dad, grandfather, uncle, etc. in the line in front of the room and a round of applause was given.

The VFW color guard then demonstrated the folding of the flag with and explanation of the colors and what each step in folding represented.

A member of the VFW blew Taps in remembrance of those fallen.  In all, an excellent and moving program.

Later in the early evening,  Mary and Alex were talking about the school board meeting night because Alex was to attend to receive metals for achievement.  Mary had it in her mind that it was the next night but found a paper that confirmed it was to take place in less than an hour.  The only way to pull it off was for Mary and Alex to make ready quickly and Brooke and I to stay home and complete the supper Mary had in the oven.

Alex was awarded two gold metals for achievement in science and in communication arts.   Mary took the camera but the batteries were dead.

I'm pretty proud of my granddaughters.  But maybe you knew that. ::)

They're a couple of great kids, Bibbyman.  You've got a right to be proud, and we all know that great kids don't happen by accident.   :)

I agree Roxie. They are great kids and I really enjoy Bib's stories about them.

I think beyond the pride in our granddaughters, I wanted to say how proud I was that we can still have a ceremony like this in our local public school.  I'd break my heart to think that there may be places where this kind of activity would not be allowed or somehow watered down. 

As it is,  we don't have a Thanksgiving program but a "Harvest Festival" and Christmas is a "Winter Program" where they can't sing the traditional Christmas songs or have Christian themes. 

bibby
       you've got some very pretty little blond girls there.  i've got one of them myself,  she's a pistol, she gets in more trouble than all four of her brothers combined. 

Welcome faronskid,

Your dad had told me that you had your hands full amd I see he's right of course ;)

Yeah, They keep me pretty busy, one "disaster" after another around here.  I'm pretty proud of them though, they're good kids.  Ethan SAWYER(grandpa's pretty proud of that middle name) is 6, Jaron is 4, Avery(my monkey in the middle) is 2, Brody is 1 and Maddox Faron is 4 months.  I'm very blessed.

Welcome!   Sure glad to see more beautiful women here on the forum.  :)

well it took me 2 weeks to read this thread, and i did not waste a minute of time. it was all well spent. thanks for the thread bibby, i have one daughter thats in her first year college and two sons 5&7. those boys make every step with me wether i am hunting fishing or sawmilling. i like to think they are very well rounded in the exposure to things in life. they can each build a fire in the woods without me telling them how but both also realize that they cannot play with matches in a house. they are getting very proficient with a hatchet about chopping sprouts. i love the look on folks faces when they get out of the truck at the sawmill and see those two chopping on a log. i never miss an opportunity to teach them things, just basic common sense type things. good post lets keep this going. i will attempt to get some pictures of the boys in action and attempt to learn the process to show them here.

Thanks ely, 

I've got to admit I'll come back to this tread about once a year and re-read it.  Same with A funny story and Old'(er) Folks. 

As the girls get older, they tend not to do the little funny things they did when they were little.  I guess that's good.

The girls have gotten pretty good about helping out.  But sometimes the old "Why do I have to ...?"question comes up.  Mary's reply..."You like to eat don't you?"  :-\

also reminds me what you just said, if you are able shoot some vidieo of the kids at various stages of childhood because that silly stuff they will stop doing and you will forget it. i got out my old tapes when the boy swere just toddlers and it was amazing the things i had forgot that they used to get a kick out of.

Here a few pics of my lil' one...Evan. He turned two on 9/11. 100% Boy and everyone tells me he is a spittn' image of his daddy!  :)

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10494/DSCN02841.JPG)
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10494/DSCN02852.JPG)
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10494/DSCN02863.JPG)

Gadget

Mary and the girls went to town the other day.  When they got back Mary told me that Brooke has nodded off to sleep on the way home.  Brooke said she was dreaming that she was reading.  Then she wanted to know how long she'd been asleep and if it counted towards the 15 minutes an evening she's suppose to be reading as a homework assignment.  :P

Yea, dream on Brooke.! smiley_sleeping

Yesterday evening Brooke and I were making a run to the parts store to get filters for the Terex.  The weather forecast came on the radio – rain today and tomorrow with falling temperatures on Thursday with high winds,  turning to ice and snow wintry mix with highs in the 20's.

I knew Brooke hadn't listened so I got her attention and repeated the forecast.

Her response,  "C O O L !"   8)

Kids.  :-\

Hey Gadget! Your little boy is a real cutey! :)  8) 8)

I like his chain saw. ;)

Thanks Patty  :)

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10034/wsholeintheground20061218.JPG)

I don't know who or how the great pyramids were built but I know how they came to be in such disrepair - kids!

A couple of years ago I pulled a corner post.  I covered the hole with this old wire spool.  When I'd find a rock that needed to be disposed of,  I'd drop it in this hole.  I had it almost full. Today I found that the girls had, with great labor, dug out all the rocks with a stacking stick.

What kids will do for fun.   bike_rider

Send'em over to my house.  I can't get my teenage son to do any work like that.

I haven't had much to write about the girls in quite a while.  They're growing up and losing that small child's prospective of the world. 

I still try to trick them but with little success.  They reason things out before committing to the answer I gave them.   Like the other day the farmers that rent our pasture came and got their year old bred heifers and replaced them with weaned heifer calves.  They look just the same only a year younger.  When the girls got home from school I waited until the calves were up near the house and made the observation, "Grandma,  I think those cows are shrinking.  Don't they look smaller to you?".  Both girls had to look but they quickly answered that the farmers had changed out the small herd and went back to whatever they were doing.

Both girls are doing great in school. Alex is in some accelerated classes and doing well with everything they can put in front of her.  Brooke is doing well too.  She's starting to do class work where they really get a quantifiable grade and not just a smiley face.  She is excelling in all her class work.  But it's easy to get overshadowed by a big sister that is also doing well.  A couple of weeks ago they had parent/teacher conference at school.  Mary went with Brooke to visit with her teacher.  She had only glowing reports about her progress.  Mary said on the way home Brooke finally came to the realization that she was smart.  Mary had been telling her all along she had a good brain and to use it for good, not evil.  Gabe took Alex to her meeting.  Her teacher was very pleased with her work and enjoyed having her in the class.

I miss not having all those little experiences with the girls like I've noted here on the Forum.  I still watch for them but they're few and far between.  The other day Alex and Brooke were under the walnut tree by the sawmill where they have their playhouse and swing.  Alex was setting there reading like she often does and Brooke was setting beside her with two of her ragged out dolls.  She was pretending some scene from the WWF with them and narrating the fight – clashing the two dolls together.  I would assume it annoyed Alex as she, without looking up from her reading, backhanded the dolls and said, "Kids, stop fighting!" and continued her reading.  Brooke took her dolls and went elsewhere.

Brooke tends to go and play by herself more.  She likes to adventure around and keep herself busy outside. Alex will more than likely have a book she is more interested in reading.  If the weather is nice I tend to encourage her to get outside and ride her bike or something.  I've given them more space to roam.  The woods just east of the sawshed is pretty open and clean and is pretty well bounded.  I've let them explore this area.  They came in the other evening and found an old cast iron pot and some other junk.

I don't know if we've just got better kids this time or that we're better at grand parenting than we were as parents.  Like the other day I had the girls do a little job for me.  I had a pot hole near the shed where I pull the Terex up to take out edging strips.  It had filled with water and getting deeper.  I asked them to drain it and shovel in the sides.  I left it up to them as to how they were going to do it.  I went about my business and kept an eye on them.  They found a couple of discarded fast-food drink cups and scooped out the water then took the shovels and broke down the sides and filled the hole.  Not a perfect repair but the improved the situation. 

I told them it was awful hot work out and they must be thirsty.  They agreed and so I told them to each get a soda out of the refrigerator.  They both got one and were setting in the shade of the sawshed enjoying them.  When I got done I noted that Brooke was sucking on the side of the can.  I asked her why she was drinking it that way instead of opening it. She explained that when she opened the new box of cans they spilled out on the gravel floor and this one got a hole in it – so that was the one she was drinking.

I thought, "how responsible", my sons at their age would have set the punctured one back in the refrigerator and got a different one.  I would later find a sticky mess in the refrigerator and there would be all kinds of repercussions. 

Different kids or different parenting?  smiley_headscratch

Yep, sometimes kids can amaze you on both sides of the spectrum. One day they make complete sense and the next you worry if they will reach adulthood.

 :D :D I am still chuckling at the doll incident. I had a lot of fun with my godson when he was young, curious and spontaneous. He is now 15, so serious, but with a dark sense of humour, and has grown more distant. I miss the old days. :(

Jeff, that's great!

He he eh!

Hmmm!

N

Only 2 children in our (immediate) family;  my brother's 6 and 13 years old.  Only their maternal grandmother is living, so my wife and I fill the grandparents role.  They......the kids.......live about an hour away, but we see them every week.  When the 6 yr old comes, he's not interested in playing; he wants to "work".  My wife's sister had 2 small (14-16 inch dbh) pecan trees she wanted removed from her front yard, so I recruited the crew 2 weeks ago

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/13111/lumberjacks%20003.jpg)

to go take 'em down.  Here's the sister and brother having a serious discussion

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/13111/lumberjacks%20066.jpg)

picking up firewood

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/13111/lumberjacks%20008.jpg)

and moving the tops

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/13111/lumberjacks%20069.jpg)

Those of us who have been granted the gift of bringing new life into this world have many memories. We have a tendency to remember the good times and forget the bad. Raiseing a child thru the teen years is a real test of ones parenting skills, to say the least! My children were all unique in their own way, as is natural. Funny thing is, the one that was the biggest handful in her teen years is now raiseing her own 3 little ones. She looks at me occationally with that grin and says,,,,dad, now i understand why lions eat their young! :D

 :D :D :D She fulfilled your greatest wish, she got kids just like her. ;)

 :D

My grandson, Nathan, who is three, went to the doctor's for his checkup.  His baby sister, Sarah, who is nine months, was taken into the exam room.  When the doctor brought in the needle for Nathan's booster shots, he tried to climb his Mom and said, "Noooooooo!  Give it to my sister!!"   :D

That's funny Roxie!  :D    Grand kids are sure special.  ;)

My wife and almost 7 year old grandson were shopping for a wide brimmed hat for me the other day.  While looking, Ethan spotted a do rag type hat thing like the inner city gangs wear. He insisted he wanted to buy it for me for Father's Day.  My wife gently explained to him, "Honey, grandpa doesn't wear those.  He won't like it at all."  He gave her a fiendish grin and replied, "I know!  Won't he have a fit!"  He bought it, and my wife said he chuckled all the way home thinking about me opening it.  I aim to brag it up and suggest that I should wear it to his baseball games. ;D  There are eight more about like him.  I think I may be in for a rough time for a few years. :D

You may have gotten the idea I'm pretty proud of my granddaughters.   

This morning when I went out to the mill I found that one or both of them had cleaned up the sawdust from under the edger.  They also swept up the area around it.  I hadn't asked them to and they didn't even come in telling me they did it or expect any reward for doing it.

This morning they helped Grandma Mary do a lot of heavy house cleaning.  They did a mountain of laundry and hung it out on the line to dry and brought it back in and folded and put it away.  Mary asked Brooke to scrub the kitchen floor but Alex wanted to do it.

After noon Mary had to make a run to town to get a few things and expected the girls to go along.  But they didn't want to.  Alex wanted to watch the old black and white movie "Anne of Green Gables".  Brooke lost interest so I had her load both washing machines with the last of the cloths.

It was the heat of the day by then so we kind of took the afternoon off.  I suggested we put in "To Kill a Mockingbird".  Both girls had seen only parts of it before and were very interested in watching it.  Brooke couldn't set still for the serious parts and went off elsewhere until the kid part of the story came back on but Alex watched and followed the whole thing.  Apparently Alex has read the book because she was telling us about things they left out of the movie.

This evening marked another failed attempt at camping out in their playhouse.  Sometime after the movies were off, they disappeared outside.  Turned out they were preparing their playhouse for a sleepover.  I told Mary I'd give them to 9:00 pm to be back inside.  I was wrong,  they came back in and slipped down the hall to their bedrooms about 9:15. Said they kept hearing strange noises.

Hmmmmmm, sweeping sawdust, folding clothes, fighting over who gets to scrub the floor, all without complaint,,,,,,,, do you hire'em out? ;D

Another thing kids are good for......... my co-worker's mother is undergoing chemotherapy for cancer.  She is  a big-boned, big woman, she's lost about 70 pounds so far. Also lost her hair.  The family wanted to go out somewhere last week, and of course his mother didn't want to go because of the way she lookd.  My co-worker's 9 year old daughter walked up to her, took both her hands and said, "aw Grandma, you're as pretty on the outside as you've always been on the inside."  Wasn't a dry eye in the house.

About 4:00am I heard a thump and then an "Uhaaa!" come from the girl's bedroom.  I waited from some sign of injury – like a squall or a cry but all I heard was the squeaking of the bed as one of girls got back in.

I normally wake Mary to go investigate any nighttime disturbances with the girls but she was really sawing them off.  So I got up and checked it out.  I guessed it was Brooke that had fallen out of bed as Alex sleeps on the top bunk and has a rail to keep her from rolling out.  Also,  if she'd fallen out, it'd  been a louder thud and for sure would not have been without some outcry.

I could see Brooke moving around.  I asked her, "Are you all right Hun?"  She said, "Yea."  I turned up the light a little and she set up in bed.  She was sleepy all over more than any other place.  I asked, "Did you fall out of bed?"  She said, "Yea."  "Does that happen often?"  I added.  She said,  "Yea.".  I said,  "Good night.", and turned down the light.  She fell back into bed as if whatever had propped her up had been yanked away.

We got up a couple of hours later.  She didn't remember at thing about falling out of bed or our conversation.

We were invaded by Oompa Loompas  last evening.  We have one customer, that comes around and gets slabs.  He's kind of short and has orange hair.  I never could remember his name so I just referred to him as the Oompa Loompa – when Mary and I are conversing about him. 

He came out last evening to get another PU load of slabs.  I was elected to go out and "deal with him".  He always wants to visit but he's not someone I really enjoy visiting with when it's the end of a hot day.

I just got out the drive where I could see up past the sawshed and the road was filled with Oompa Loompas of all ages.  One little one about 4 blew on past me heading for the house.  I made the greeting statement, "Boy! You brought the whole clan!".  The next Oompa Loompa, about 6, replied,  "No.  We're just brothers.". 

This guy wouldn't need a DNA test to verify these kids were his. They have the same compact structure and orange hair.

The Daddy Oompa Loompa managed to hale in the littlest one before he made it all the way to the house.  We met right at a little mini-garden Mary had built that contained a spaghetti squash and a few tomato plants.  With the inborn curiosity of a child,  the smallest Oompa Loompa picked up a rotten tomato and asked, "What happed to your pepper?".   I told him it was a tomato and that it'd got bad and he could throw it away and pointed to a spot out in the yard.  He was pleased to help.

Then he marveled at the spaghetti squash and wanted to pick one but his dad took over and distracted him from them.  He turned his attention to a green tomato about the size of a walnut with the husk on and with a, "What's this?" he plucked it off the vine.  His dad wasn't fast enough. I told him he could have that one.  OH. BOY!  He tried a couple of places to stuff it and ended up putting it in his pocket.  Daddy Oompa Loompa just rolled his eyes as I chuckled.

There is one cherry tomato plant in the box and it was loaded with ripe ones. I picked a clump of three and told the smallest Oompa Loompa he could eat these.  His eyes sparkled as I dropped them in his hands. 

Daddy Oompa Loompa rounded up his merry band the best he could and headed back up the drive to load up slabs.  I noted the littlest Oompa Loompa stuffing the cherry tomatoes in his pocket.  I was pleased to see that.

Quote from: Bibbyman on August 01, 2007, 05:45:59 PM
I noted the littlest Oompa Loompa stuffing the cherry tomatoes in his pocket.  I was pleased to see that.

I bet his mum won't be when wasin' time comes!

My son does that. Always something 'interesting' in his pockets, and do you think I can get him to empty them out prior to putting them in the wash?! nooooooooo...  It's always "SURPRISE MUM!" hmm...

asy :D

 :D :D :D I remember taking my (then) girlfriend's kids to the game farm. The older one was quite interested in the animals but the novelty wore off for six year old Amanda. By the time we got back to the truck she could hardly walk, her pockets were stuffed with stones from the path. ;D

People are reluctant to post pictures of their kids on the internet.  And I can see their point.  But I've taken a lot of pictures of Brooke and Alex and it's difficult not to share.

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10034/wsbrookesawdust20070801.JPG)

Here is one I shot of Brooke on the first of August of 2007.  The sun had been up for a couple of hours but had just got up high enough to clear the trees and light the top of the sawdust pile.  Brooke thought it would be a great place for her and her dolls to catch a few rays.

We have a good supply of old B57 belts around the mill.  We changed out a pair last weekend and I thought of pitching them in the dumpster.  But then I had another idea.  This morning I handed a pair of them to Alex and told her to follow me.  I pointed a stacking stick with the axe and drove it in the ground in the shade of the walnut tree holding up their tire swing.

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10034/wsb57toss2007080501.JPG)

I gave them some basic instructions and then went and got my camera.  Out of about 10 pictures I caught this one.  By the way,  Mary is sawing.  You can tell by the sawdust coming out of the pipe.

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10034/wsb57toss2007080501x.JPG)

Here it is again where you can see Brooke holding her tongue just right.

Looks like a new event for the Pig Roast, the sawmill belt toss! :D Winner of the longest toss wins a used belt off of Bibbymans mill. ;D Looks like they are having fun.


Dave

School starts tomorrow for Brooke and Alex.  I came into the house about 1:00 this afternoon to find both girls in the floor trying to stuff a bushel basket load of school supplies into each of their respective back packs.

I made the comment that I went all eight years of grade school and didn't use that much stuff.

The school sends out a list of stuff each student in each class.  Here is the list of stuff for Alex's 5 grade class.

•   Trapper Keeper w/zipper (Kind of a zip up ring binder and organizer with pockets.)
•   2 1-1/2" 3 ring binders (1 white w/slipcover & 1 black/navy w/slipcover)
•   2 packages of dividers w/tabs (for 3 ring binders)
•   2 packages of wide-ruled loose-leaf notebook paper
•   3 spiral notebooks (70 pages)
•   7 folders w/pockets & 3 fasteners (purple, blue, green, orange, red, yellow, 1 decorated)
•   # 2 pencils
•   2 black/blue pens
•   Markers
•   2 highlighters
•   Metric/standard ruler
•   2 fine point Dry Erase Markers
•   Eraser caps
•   Scissors
•   Colored pencils
•   2 glue sticks
•   2 boxes of Kleenex
•   2 large sheets of white poster board
•   1 box gallon size zipper storage bags

I was doing good to start school with a Big Chief tablet, # 2 Ticonderoga, a box of 8 Crayons, a pair of blunt nose scissors, and a bottle of glue.

I told Mary we were lucky they didn't have an I-pod or lap top on their lists.

Laptops are on the 7th grade list Bibby, you've got a bit to save up. ;)

At least one of the local school boards is giving a laptop to each of the grade sixes with periodic updates. :o Cripes,I wasn't allowed a slide rule until grade ten.

Our required supplies.........for the first 3 or 4 years...........were a lead pencil and a tablet.  I remember about half way through the first grade the teacher saying that we needed to bring a nickel for a work-book.  When I told my Dad, he went into a 5 minute tirade, saying that the books were supposed to be free.  I soon learned to ask my Mother for any additional needed supplies.............DanG, the things you remember.

Hey Bibby,

yer not alone.

My kids' lists look REMARKABLY similar to that, except add a couple of reams of copier paper each...

Well, that was their primary school lists, the high school ones seem even LONGER.

I budget around $100 per child per year for supplies, and I buy them from the warehouse and Big W. I can't see the sense in buying really good pencils and supplies for the kids when I know for a fact that the kid sitting next to them ;) will break them in no time...

Seriously, though, one of Stephie's 'friends' has a penchant for either 'borrowing' (permanently) or breaking things, I've caught her at it, then she swears black and blue that it's hers. Even though it's got Stephie's name on it! Amazing. I know she's been through some seriously hard times in her life (being a recently arrived refugee) but no fair! I'm not rich...

One thing I DO do, is, when my son turned 12, I bought him a REALLY good set of pencils, They are for HOME USE only, and are NOT to be taken out of the metal tin they came in. They are to be used on the table only (no colouring on the couch with these!) and are to be kept safe at all times. Stephanie is getting a set of 72 Derwent pencils for Christmas this year, I've already bought them (they were on a half price sale, and since the full price is DanG near $70, I was really pleased to pick them up at half).

There are two reasons I lash out on these pencils. Firstly to delineate between these and others, so this set instills a level of pride etc in the kids. And secondly, and I guess most importantly, I received a set of 72 Derwent pencils when I was about 14. I still have them. They are still in good condition. None lost, none broken. A couple fairly well used now, though. But I guess you get that after nearly 25 years...  ;)

When I gave my son his set, I showed him mine, and told him how proud I was to still have the same set of pencils 25 years later. They were used all through my high school days, lots of projects done with those! Stephanie's seen the pencils. Even got to use one or two ONCE. That's it. They don't even ASK to "use Mum's good pencils".

She'll be thrilled. I just know it. :D

asy :D

Hardly a month goes by we don't get some case of the girls sleep walking.  Sometimes it's just setting up in bed and saying something unintelligible and falling back to sleep. Sometimes we find them sleeping on the couch or one of our chairs in the living room.

But last evening I was doing my last checks of the Forestry Forum about 10:00pm and I heard the heavy falls of little footsteps down the hall.  I just figured one was going to the bathroom but whoever it was had past on by the bathroom and turned right up the hall to the front door.  I got up to investigate.  When I heard the front door open and shut I kicked up my pace and raced to the front door.  I opened it and turned on the front light. The upper hall light was off as well as the outside light. It had been pitch dark outside.  I spotted the little figure of Brooke in her night shirt going out the driveway.  I called for her and she stopped. She had made it 30 yards in the dark.  I asked her where she was going and she said something I couldn't understand.  I reasoned to her she should come back to the house.  She returned and we stood in the drive for a few moments while she woke up a bit.  She said she had to get some cloths. I told her to come back inside and go back to bed.  She did.

This morning I was telling her dad what she'd done last night.  She didn't remember any of it.

Good thing she does not know how to drive!   :o

Yesterday was Wednesday.  Also the day the local paper has all the grocery ads, etc.  Mary was having Brooke read the ads and give her ideas of what she should include on a grocery list.  One item Brooke wanted was "Hic" juice.  It turned out to be Hi-C drink.   :D

Last night I was visiting with friends down the street.  They have a 10 year old daughter.  She was listening while we were talking about a mutual friend of ours who is in his 60's and a bachelor. Their daughter asked what a bachelor was.  She was told it was a man who never got married.  She asked, "you mean he's like a virgin?"

Our grandson stops in for office visits now and then. Here we are at his 8 week birthday celebration.  :) (https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10568/IMG_0179%20%282%29.JPG)

Phorester, that is funny. :D :D :D :D :D

Patty, that's a great picture!  What a cutie!   8)

Idle hands are the devil's workshop – so I've been told.  So the girls are kept pretty busy.  They've got some chores to do and they get in some play time.  But I can always find some way they can help out.  One way is that when we have logs on the lot that need measuring and marking,  I get one or both of the girls involved.  Brooke has taken a real interest and can tell you the name of most ever log that comes in.  She can even identify some of the sub species of the red oak family. 

Anyway,  this evening was the first evening in quite some time when the temperature was actually pleasant outside.  I went up to the log lot and set there waiting for the girls to walk home from Granny's house where they get off the bus.  I had the tape measure and paint can ready to mark the 44 logs we'd got in that morning.

I waited and waited.  They were a little late but sometimes they just enjoy the walk.  Finally I saw them coming about 100 yards up the road.  They had made up a song and choreographed a dance routine.  I can't remember the words and I can't describe the dance but it was something like Lavern and Shirley did on the beginning of every show. They'd practice their lines and steps and then stop and discuss their performance and decide on modifications and then repeat the song and dance.  In this manner they progressed down the road about 20 feet at a time. 

I was in plain site, seated on the end of a 14' log that's other end reached the road edge.  I watched as the girls sang and danced right on by me.  I let them get to the end point and let of a great roar like a bear.  Both screamed.  Alex jumped three feet in the air and landed facing me – then quickly turned to run but then realized it was just me.

They helped me with the log marking and measuring and then went to the house to show Grandma and their dad the song and dance they made up.

It'd sure be fun to be a kid again.     ::)

Even grampa can get into some mischief when his hands are idle, eh? :D :D


Dave

How did you bribe talk them into helping you after that prank? :D :D

My daughter will be 33 on October 2 and we are going to Durango, Colorado for her birthday.
Her father ran off with another woman when she was only 14 months old so I raised her alone.
We had lots of ups and downs, being a single working mom was tough, but the greatest thing my daughter did for me happened only a couple of years ago.
I was single for over 20 years; things for me and men just never seemed to work out, but then, on my birthday in 1998, I met Tom.  A red haired gentle giant of a man with quiet ways.  After we got married, Christie came to visit us here in the Ozarks and we all went down to the Buffalo River to get in some float time.
Tom had gone to the tire place and explained his NEW step daughter was coming and we didn't have money for those fancy floats so could he get an old tire tube patched and aired so she could float on the Buffalo?  They fixed him up with a couple of old patched truck tubes that would work pretty well.
Christie was floating in her tube and having a grand time, when she suddenly came up behind Tom in the river, threw her arms around his neck and said " Thank you, Daddy, this is loads of fun!"
WELL.. he blushed completely red, but managed to say, " No problem, honey".
They are as close today as a Daddy and Daughter could be. 

You gonna ride the Choo-Choo?

What choochoo.??? I've never been to Durango.

The Silverton to Durango Steam Locomotive.  It's an old minimg train that goes over the original railway.  There's some fantastic scenery there whether you drive or take the train.  I'd sure ride it if I were going there.  I sure wish I'd ridden the train that used to run from your local to Calico Rock.  We'd always planned to and then they shut it down :(  I love train rides.  My favorite is the Georgetown Loop which is also in Colorado.  It's short,  but really nice. ;D

Ohh.. I'll have to ask my daughter about that.  We will be there a week, so we should have the time.  We had planned to "Pan" for gold and go see the Mesa Verde.  Mostly, I just want to visit her and her COOKING!... there goes my weight loss plan! I'll have to start over when I get back :D

KK, what a lovely story!

My daughter has elected not to go to her father's house any more, since they argue and she's not happy there. I kept trying to talk her into going, because whatever my problems with him, they aren't hers and I felt she should have a relationship with him. One day she sat me down and said "Look Mum, stop trying to talk me into going there. I don't want to. I have enough 'father's' in my life that I love and that make me feel safe and happy, I don't want him at the moment.". I told her that was fine, I'd stop pushing, but, I also told her the only thing I was putting my foot down about was that she wasn't allowed to 'burn her bridges' in case she did want a relationship with him one day... She's happy now, and much more settled. Even her school principal has noticed!

But, that said, She and Andrew, my partner, could NOT be closer if they were, in fact, Father and Daughter. Also, Andrew's cousin, Mark, is like a second alter-father-figure to the kids, he adores them, and they him.

It's a great thing when your kids are loved isn't it?

asy :D

KK and asy, that is great. 8) I do not have children but established very close relationships with my girlfriend's kids. Unfortunately, I have lost contact with them and miss them very much but hope that they are o.k. and that I had a positive influence

Quote from: sawguy21 on September 12, 2007, 11:13:06 PM
KK and asy, that is great. 8) I do not have children but established very close relationships with my girlfriend's kids. Unfortunately, I have lost contact with them and miss them very much but hope that they are o.k. and that I had a positive influence

Saw.. if you can locate them and just drop a card.. saying " I was thinking of you".. you can't imagine how that makes the young ones feel.  It doesn't have to be fancy or expensive. I tried over and over to tell my daughter's father that , but he never got the drift. 
Tom loves Christina as if she were his own and he is the one she has asked to give her away at her wedding, ( couple of years off, she is still paying for college)
He is the one she calls when she needs "Daddy's" advice.  I feel so sorry for her father, he missed so much.  She is a wonderful daughter.

The other morning the girls were ready for school and Brooke came gave me a hug goodbye.  I told here to study hard and learn something so she could grow up, get a good job and a nice home so she could take care of Grandma and Grandpa. 

She walked off without commenting so I added, "Don't you think that'd be a good idea?"  She said, "Well,  I don't know what I'm going to be when I grow up.  So I don't know if I'll be able to afford you."  :'(

That is a lot of pressure for a little gal. She gave the right answer though. Joe

Quote from: Bro.  Noble on September 12, 2007, 04:56:56 PM
The Silverton to Durango Steam Locomotive.  It's an old minimg train that goes over the original railway.  There's some fantastic scenery there whether you drive or take the train.  I'd sure ride it if I were going there.  I sure wish I'd ridden the train that used to run from your local to Calico Rock.  We'd always planned to and then they shut it down :(  I love train rides.  My favorite is the Georgetown Loop which is also in Colorado.  It's short,  but really nice. ;D

Ok! I'm back and I DID ride the choo choo. GREAT fun!  Only real downside, I have chronic bronchial asthma and at 9000 feet there just wasn't enough AIR for me, so I didn't get to do any gold panning or walk much, but the scenery was just beautiful.  Got to see the really big Ponderosa pines.  Got some real pics of the place, I'll try to upload a couple in the gallery.

What a pain in the old kazoo.   smiley_tom_tutnurhorn2

Alex is starting to learn to play the kazoo. Lucky for us, she has taken it outside to practice most of the time.  The first night she brought it home I thought she was trying to call in the aliens from Close Encounters of the Third Kind.

This evening she's in her room playing "Mary had a little lamb." and doing a pretty good job of it.

Last week, I was talking with a friend (that has grandchildren) about how kids repeat everything you say when they are learning to talk.  It caught me off guard, and unfortunately, my 17 month old grandaughter now says, "Oh cap" everytime I drop something on the floor. 

My friend told me that it didn't get any easier as the granbabies got older, misunderstandings still happened.  She was with her grandson, who was 6 years old at the time.  She had to run some errands so she got him into the car, and he asked where they were going.  She said, "I need to go to Rite Aid and pick up my drugs."  Her little grandson said, "Just say no, Mom Mom, just say no."

 :D :D :D :D :D :D He has the right idea.

Brooke had been visiting friends on Monday.  When she got home she was telling Alex that they watched Shrek the Third on DVD.  Alex said, "Why didn't you wait until I could watch it?"  (They got to see it when it was in the theater.)

It reminded me of when I was a little shaver in the mid-50's.  Hopalong Cassidy would come on TV sometime on Saturday mornings.  It was must see TV as far as I was concerned. 

One Saturday we went to visit my Aunt Abby.   She lived at least a half hour drive from our farm.  When I got there,  I rushed in to get a seat in front of the TV.  But I was too late.  Hopalong had already hopped along and was over.  With disappointment I asked,  "Why didn't y-all wait for me?"

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/archives/people1/abbybunch.jpg)

That's me on the far left.  My sister Dorothy Lee is holding cousin Roger, next is cousin Roy and then Dickey on the far right.  This was taken before we had TV - or even electricity to plug the TV in.  Or a local station to broadcast for that matter.  We are setting on the well top.  Note the water bucket above Dorothy Lee's head.

Bibby, you haven't changed hardly at all.....yer britches is as baggy then as now!  This must have been the beginning of your belief that you "gotta be free, to be me".   :)

Quote from: Roxie on November 16, 2007, 11:12:23 AM
Bibby, you haven't changed hardly at all.....yer britches is as baggy then as now!  This must have been the beginning of your belief that you "gotta be free, to be me".   :)

Glad you're paying attention.  Just don't let Mary catch you...   smiley_rainbow_colors

That's a great pic, Bibb!  Y'all was at least as happy as these kids who have Playstations and all these other modern gadgets.  Kids is kids, and it don't much matter what they have or don't have.  They'll find a way to entertain themselves. :)

What a GREAT photo!   8)

It's funny, ya gotta wonder how y'all survived childhood, these days that well top would have to have a fence around it due to legislative requirements (or be a certain height above the ground). Gone are the days when kids knew not to go too near without being really careful!

Thanks Bibby, got any  more photos? Maybe of other ages, so we can compare the baggy-pantsedness of your youth?

asy :D :D :D

Asy, Most likely that well had a concrete top three or 4 inches thick. That is what Bibbyman and company is sitting on. At three to eight feet in diameter, the kids weren't going to move it- even if they got the notion to do so.

The wooden structure behind me was a little doghouse thing about 3' tall with a hinged lid on it that covered the hole.

The well is still there.  The doghouse structure is gone. I coved the hole with a couple very large flat rocks.

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10034/wsdotgary.jpg)

Here is a picture of me and my sister Dorothy Lee probably taken on "picture day" at the one room school I attened through 8'th grade.  I'm not too sure how old I was there but not nearly old enough to go to school.  Note the restroom in the right side of the picture.  Looks like my pants still has the tag on them - probably so mom can return them.  I never remember wearing them or seen them in any other photos.  :D

Quote from: Faron on November 17, 2007, 04:53:38 AM
Asy, Most likely that well had a concrete top three or 4 inches thick. That is what Bibbyman and company is sitting on. At three to eight feet in diameter, the kids weren't going to move it- even if they got the notion to do so.

Unless there was a tractor and chain handy. :D :D


Dave

 (https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/archives/people1/Bibbyman%20and%20Uncle%20Elmer2.jpg)

If you're a glutton for punishment,  here is a picture of me and my shadow.  It's my Uncle Elmer standing behind me.  Note the almost exact same pose.  I wrote a bit about my Uncle Elmer in older folks.  Of all my uncles,  I think he was my favorite. 

Uncle Elmer story in Older Folks (https://forestryforum.com/board/index.php?topic=155.msg7927#msg7927)

Another Uncle Elmer story in A Funny Story (https://forestryforum.com/board/index.php?topic=27755.msg51953#msg51953)

My oldest son brought home a paper that he had written at school that I wanted to share with you all.  The assignment was to write about the best day of your life;
                        The Day My Papaw Let Me Shoot a Gun
                             By Ethan (age 7)
     Last year I shot my papaws pellet gun.  It was heavy.  It was loud.  The gun was cool.  Jaron did it too. I liked it.  We shot at a cardboard  box on the fence.  The pellets were tiny.  The gun was long.  I know how to shoot it but Papaw had to show me how to load it.  I had to look through the scope.  When I pulled the trigger it came back and kicked me.  My arm was sore.  My mom picked me up.  My mom didn't let Avery do it.  The end.




This goes to show you that you can take them on big vacations or spend money on huge birthday parties but it's the little, everyday things that you do with them that are the most important and the most memorable.  Thanks Papaw for giving him the "best day of his life."

That is great, thanks for sharing it with us. Pawpaw, take a bow. 8)

 :D  Farons Kid, your story reminds me of my grandson, Nathan (4), and his recent trip to Disney World. 

When Nathan came home from Disney World, I asked him, "What was your very favorite part of the vacation?"  He said, "Granma, I got to ride in the very back of the van with Mommy and we watched video's and the luggage was on top of the van, Granma, the luggage was ON TOP." 

I guess Mickey Mouse is no match for loading luggage on the roof of a van and watching video's with his Mom.   :)

Aren't kids great, Roxie, they are so honest.  My kids asked me where my favorite place was.  I said "at home with you guys."  My oldest replied "well my favorite place is grandma's, it's so cozy there, and she cooks for us."   I just can't compete with grandma and grandpa.

Great reminders.
Our oldest grand daughter, when she was 5 and living in OK, was here on vacation, and for some reason we had a small trailer tire that she got quite a bang out of getting it to roll down the hill..heard that when she returned to kindergarten, she was asked about her vacation....and said "MY  grandpa let's me roll tahres". Caught the teacher having to chuckle a bit....doesn't take the fancy ToysRUs to keep them interested and happy (as long as Grandpa would retrieve it outta the woods.. ;D).

Last summer when the girls were off school,  Mary had a hard time getting the girls to go do shopping or run errands with her.  Especially Brooke wanted to stay home and play in their play house.

When we travel with the girls,  the big event is the pool in the motel.

Kids can get more fun out of a big cardboard box or a hill of dirt than they can with expensive toys.

I was impressed with a story faron'skid passed along to me the other day, and thought I would share it here.  Maybe she can kind of fill in the blanks later on.

All kids in our county go to a single consolidated school from 6th grade up.  That makes for a fairly large number of kids.  All types and all backgrounds.  There is a family of kids that are particularly needy.                         

One boy, a sixth grader, was wearing a pair of shoes to school that were completely coming apart.  Knowing 6th graders, I imagine he was taking a fair amount of cruel comments.  One boy sat down next to him and said something like, "Hey,your shoe's got a hole in it!"  The boy kind of hung his head and replied "Yeah, I guess I've about wore these out."  A school staff member overheard the conversation, and likely figured the teasing was about to start.  The first boy said," You have some pretty big feet, what size do you wear?"  The shoeless boy replied, and the conversation drifted, and then ended.

The next day or so, the staffer noticed the boy approach the needy boy again,this time with a box under his arm.  He quietly handed the box of shoes to the boy.  I don't know if he had gone home and gotten a pair of his own shoes, or bought a pair, but he provided his classmate with something he needed. 

Instead of teasing and making the boy's situation worse, this kid quietly did what he could to help. I don't know either boy, but some parent has reason to be very proud.  I believe the staffer nominated the boy for, and he later received, some award presented to kids for doing the right thing.

And that is what this Christmas season is about.

That's a great story Faron, thank you. A good reminder to us all. :)

Newspapers have gotten so big that local news has taken a back seat.  In my youth, our local paper had editors who would write columns about stuff like this.  There was usually enough information that the people involved could recognize the the incident, but, to the rest of the reading audience, it was just a local happy story.  The last thing to do is embarrass someone.

I had a story written about me by the most influential columnist of the day, Charles Cope.   Grandmom cut it out and kept it in her bible for years.  I don't know what ever happened to it and I'm probably the only one that would recognize it if I saw it in the Paper's archives.  But it is there for all all of recorded history as long as someone doesn't "house clean" to make room for storing AP stories.

It's a shame that the newspapers have gone this way.  I guess it's got to do with success and their idea of "growing up".  The TV and Radio stations are guilty as well.  It certainly leaves a big gap in the lives of locals when their paper abandons them.

Why don't you write this story as a Letter to the Editor and see if you can get it published?  :)

My Stephanie did a similar thing.

There's a lot of new African Immigrants in her school and Stephanie was friends with one in particular. This girl was a good athlete, but didn't have any shoes. The school shoes she wore were falling apart and she didn't have a pair of runners.

Both girls were on the school's soccer team.

Whenever they played, Kadi would take her shoes off and play bare-footed. She told the teachers and other kids it was "how they played in Africa and she was used to it". The teachers kept telling her she HAD to bring shoes, as they wouldn't be able to allow her to play the inter-school sports bare-footed.

Kadi confided to Stephanie that it was because she didn't have any shoes. Stephie surreptitiously checked and Kadi's feet were a size or two smaller than Steph's. Stephanie came home and scoured her room for too-small shoes. She came up with a pair of Soccer boots from the previous year, and a pair of Black Dress shoes from Choir. Her choir shoes are barely used, as they're only worn to rehearsals and performances. She took both pairs to school and quietly gave them to Kadi.

She wore the old choir shoes as school shoes, and now had soccer boots which she was thrilled with.

asy :D

ANOTHER great story.
The papers SHOULD be full of these kind of stories instead of all the negatives.
Good on both kids and good on Faron and asy for telling them.

Two great stories. Stephanie and that boy Faron talked about may have no idea of the  consequences of their kindness but they will eventually be rewarded.

Well,there's two kids that was bought up right.

Reminds me of an episode on the old Andy Griffith TV show when 10 year old Opie, Andy's son, didn't want to contribute to the school Fund For the Poor at Christmas because he wanted to save up for a gift for his girlfriend.  Andy always interrupted and never would let Opie tell the whole reason and belittled his son for being so selfish, etc.  End of the show, it turns out Opie was saving up to buy his girlfriend a winter coat since her family could not afford to give her one.

Good to hear of real-life episodes of the same philosophy.  The boy that gave the shoes to the other boy is in for a rewarding life.

There is a fellow in Springfield that owns a shoe store.  Every year he supplies  shoes to every student in a small rural school near us.  He will only say that someone pays him to do it.  Not even Paul Harvey knows the rest of the story,  but I'm sure it's a good one.

I have a nephew that loves tractors and when he comes over to stay with Uncle Donald we have to do some work. He wanted to dig a hole to catch Santa Claus and his reindeer.  :D :D  He is 5.  I figured since I had to dig a trap for Santa, I would get up a small oak stump in the side yard.

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/12960/donk_hunter1_jpg.jpg)

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/12960/donk_hunter2_jpg.jpg)

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/12960/donk_hunter3_jpg.jpg)

We got the stump out and finished the trap which I promptly filled as soon as he went home.

Hey, Santa hadn't delivered my new lathe yet. :D  I couldn't make the man mad. ;D

I'll come up with a good story as to why the hole is full when he comes back. ;)

Don

What an unusual tradition.....up here in Pennsylvania, we leave Santa milk and cookies.

Ya wanna hope Santa goes North ---> South, rather than the other way, otherwise yer milk & Cookies might get left alone coz Santa's stuck in a santa-trap at DonK's!

Hey, Rox, while we're on the subject, and hidden somewhere da Boss hopefully won't see it, did ya notice he hasn't rudolphed us yet this year!? hehe

asy :D

I have a 9 year old Grandson the same way.Well almost,he never asked me to dig a hole for a Santa trap.   :D He always wants me to get the tractor out.Even if we just put brush in the loader.I have plenty of rocks to dig out,but he's sick of doing that.Glad you filled the hole in.I don't know if Santa is going South to North or not.If he going North to South you can keep the hole.He will all ready dropped off my new woods trailer to me.
When I lived alone I did not have a Chritmas tree.My 4 year old niece came over to see me.With eyes wide she told me that with no tree I would not get no presents from Santa.I told her that he would leave them at Grammies house.All smiles from her and I was in her good graces again.

Good one, ROXIE.  I'm glad Santa comes north to south.  He'll get to me before heading to the Alabama trap.

Bunch of us small younguns strung up a fish net around the tree at grannys one year. Idea was to get santa all tangled in the net so we could wrangle some more goodies out of him in return for helping him get loose.  :-\
BTW it didn't work, aparently santa has seen that one before.

HAH!

Good thing you didn't catch your Granny in the net, coz I suspect that would NOT have got you any additional pressies!

asy :D

Well, Don K, I'm concerned about the child's psyche when he finds out the hole was filled in.  Perhaps you could tell him that Yukon Cornelius was prospecting for gold and filled in the hole accidently while he was pannin in the backyard there.   smiley_christmas

I might have a little to do with his idea. I was picking at him that I might leave the hole there and trap Santa and then I could get his presents plus all the rest and keep them for myself. :D  He didn't like the idea at all but then he thought it would be funny to see Santa caught in a mudhole.

Well, we didn't get Santa, but my wife nailed one of the reindeer this morning on her way to work. :(  She said she didn't know they flew hooves up the way that one was last she saw it. :D  Put a nice dent in the bumper of the little Malibu. >:(  The grandkids are sure it was just a regular ole deer, though. :D

They keep hoping it was not one of Santa's :D :D :D

Tell'em that it was me, Santa's brother, that was the one roaming around your place and I have special magic that keeps me out of traps like that.  Santa is OK,  I'm OK, and we'll be visiting you again reall soon.  We're trying to catch up on whether everybody has been good.  Mrs. Claus has been behind in making the candy or we'd have left some on your porch.  Maybe next time.    MERRY CHRISTMAS!

The wifes family must have almost caught him one year. Cause every year the reindeer leave a mess on the roof, looks like a horse has been up there. Every year the little ones go outside christmas morning to see if santa has realy been here. Cause horses dont fly the only way it could get up there is Santas reindeer.

I just had to share this.  Please meet Lindsay, our newest grandaughter, who is only 4 months old. 

We've subtitled this: "I don't like Christmas, and you can't make me." 

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/11566/lindsaychristmas.jpg)

Rox, that is just FAR Too gorgeous for words...

She's SO cute! 

Give her a  :-* :-* :-* or three for me!

Love it. Definitely a photo to drag out at her 21st...

asy :D

Lindsey is a doll, smile or no smile! :)

Awww what a cutie. :)

Looks just like her Grandma. ;)

Next Christmas Roxie.

(https://forestryforum.com/images/YaBBImages/userpics/BrookXmas99.jpg)

I posted this one before under a topic "Grandkids".  Brooke is excited about Grandma Mary starting to bring food to the table on Christmas morning.

Its Christmas eve and we had some grand kids earlier but none tonight there folks picked them up about noon. So i took a chain saw mill and cut up some knotty cypress to make benches out of. Before i realized it i was splitting out white oak to make pins to pin the first bench together with. It needed to dry some more before sanding the top so me and the wife hauled it over to a friends house to see how it will look on there porch. No one was home so we left the bench with a note saying that. Santa's helper would be back to sand the top and square the legs after it dried for a while ,it was dark before we left. About an hour after we got home there little girl called so excited and high pitched that she was hard to understand cause Santa had been to there house and left a big old bench on the front porch. The wife explained that since Santa is already in the area she needed to try to get to sleep so he could bring her gifts. She was so wound up that she was making noise to high to hear,but it was good.
       Have a good Christmas    ben

My wife sent all of the Grandkids Frosty The Snowman Chritmas letters one year.The ones you put the kids name,pets name,addresses,name of their school ect on to. We had kinda forgot about it when we went to see them.The 6 year old Grandson came running out of the house,missing the front steps hollering Frosty knows my name,Frosty knows my name,Frosty knows my name.Say this 3 times as quick as you can,real loud and you may understand why we had to tell him to slow down.He was all out of breath.He really enjoyed the letter.Too bad they have to grow up.

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10026/charlie-tom-ben-rabeshekkah-opt.jpg)

Merry Christmas on this 2007 Christmas Morning.  :)

Charlie, Tom and cousin Ben

Had to grow up

ooooh, that's so CUTE!

Merry Christmas to you, too, Tom. A big hug and smoochie kiss from me to you and your family.  :-* :-* :-*

Thanks for sharing that photo, it's gorgeous!

Just out of curiosity, is the number on the sign the year???

asy :D

Yep!  1947.
We were standing on the hearth, made of red ceramic tile, in front of the fireplace that Granddad would back up to, with his hands behind his back, and do a little jig as he warmed his backside.
He would chant:

Injun puddin', pumpkin pie
The gray cat kicked out
The black cat's eye.

Then his feet tapped out "shav'n a haircut, 2 bits" on the tiles.

I can still picture his shined, brown Florsheim Welles on those long, narrow feet :)

Tom,

Is that one of those baby rare white tigers? Must be full grown by now! ;D

Theo

....that cat has a stripped tail???

It could be an interesting 2008 at my house.  My oldest son, who is 7 recieved several gifts this year that will probably get him in some trouble.  He got his first BB gun, his first pocket knife, a metal detector and a "eyeclops" which is like a magnifying glass that shows the image on the TV.  I think he is set for a few adventures this year ;D   I'm a little worried about what they will drag in my house to look at with that eyeclops.  He also got the book The Dangerous Book for Boys.  It is a really neat book about all the things little boys should know and try like tying knots and making their own sling shots and learning manners and there is even a Navajo code talkers dictionary.  My husband is enjoying it as much as the kids.  I would suggest this book to anyone with sons.  It is by Conn and Hal Iggulden. 
  It makes me a little sad that he is getting big enough for these kind of toys but also very proud that he is responsible enough to trust with them.   I'm trying hard to keep my kids from being like so many other kids who sit in the house and play video games all day, even if it does mean a few broken bones and stitches. 

Little boys must be allowed to be little boys so they grow up to be strong men like your dad.  ;)    Scratches and broken bones are a part of that growing up.....then they become young men who race motorcycles at insane rates of speed. Being a mom, and letting them be boys is why we moms all get paid the big bucks.  ;)

Roxie your granddaughter is a DOLL! I love the little plaid dress and patent leather shoes......what a little cutey. She is certainly special.

Quote from: faronskid on December 26, 2007, 03:25:25 PM
  My husband is enjoying it as much as the kids. ...............  It makes me a little sad that he is getting big enough for these kind of toys but also very proud that he is responsible enough to trust with them.  . 

I will be glad when my wife thinks I am big enough for for those kind of toys. I suppose she doesn't think I am responsible enough yet and the sad thing is she is right. :(
Bob the little kid at heart ;D

"He also got the book The Dangerous Book for Boys."  Me too!!  My wife thinks I'm finally grown-up enough to handle it.

I am having a hard time getting them to let me play with that eyeclops. >:(  If they don't straighten up, I am going to have to go buy myself one. ;) The thing functions much like a 200 X microscope.  Big one says he has read how to kill and cook a rabbit from that book.  Guess we may have to go see about that this weekend.

The other day my 3 year old was packing her suitcases and I asked her if she was moving.  She was just as serious as can be when she answered "yes, I'm moving north,  I have been sweating all day long and I'm tired of it.  My babies can't sleep at night because they just sweat, sweat, sweat.  I'm sorry I have to leave but I just can't take it anymore." :D  I don't know where she came up with this but it was hilarious.  By the way it was about 15 degrees out at the time. 

Mary took Brooke to the doctor today to see about her earache.  Turned out as we expected, ear infection.

Son Gabe had helped me saw this morning but the weather kept getting worse so we knocked off at noon. Mary and Brooke got home about 1:30.  I was watching the old John Wayne movie The Horse Soldiers when they come in.  They had bought lunch in town and Brooke sat at her TV stand and eat it while helping me watch the movie.  In the train scenes she noted the similarity of this movie and an old silent film with Buster Keaton "The General" and re-told some of the funny parts of the movie. 

When "The Horse Soldiers" movie ended,  I looked through our DVD library and come up with a DVD I recorded the evening Turner Classic Movies had about four Buster Keaton movies in a row.  Brooke had watched most of The General when I recorded it.

We watched The General again and I helped explain to her some of the words she didn't know and other things she couldn't relate to – like what a telegraph was.  She watched close and picked up a lot more from the movie this time.  She laughed and laughed.

When the movie ended, another Buster Keaton movie started.  Brooke soon got restless and asked,  "Can we watch a movie?"  I said, "This is a movie.  You enjoyed the other one.  Don't you think you'd have fun watching this one too?"  She says,  "I like having fun.  Just not all at one time."  ::)

Our fourth grandchild was born yesterday.  His name is James and he weighed 7 pounds 13 ounces and was 21 inches long.  He has a head full of dark curly hair and cubby cheeks.  I'm in love.........

 8) 8) 8)  Congratulations !

Grandchild #4 is just as special as numbers 1, 2 & 3 !  Enjoy the little fella, he will grow up quickly.  :)

Congratulations! 8) 8)  But without pictures it didn't happen. ;)

Grand children are great...they grow up and that is when the phone rings, and a grand daughter asks for some help with a science project..  build/make a piano !!

Needs enough notes to play a simple tune..5 or 6.

I've been scrounging around my shop looking for bits and pieces that we might throw together tomorrow to come up with a tunable clone of a piano likeness, and something I can guide a 12 yr old to make herself.

Any ideas would be appreciated.. :) :) :)

(I will post a pic or two)

I have pictures!  He's one week old today.....

James

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/11566/James.JPG)

He is a mighty handsome one Roxie. 8)

Awww what a cutie. :)

Rox, he's GORGEOUS!!!    8) 8) 8)

Congrats!!!

Cowboy Bob'll have a whole parcel of little helpers come summer! HOORAY!!

Need a photo of them all together now, that'd be cool!

asy :D

I think I said before that our granddaughters don't ask for much.  They've never got a new toy every time we went to town and such like some kids come to expect. 

But a couple of weeks ago Brooke went with Mary to Wal-Mart and she noticed a beach ball she really wanted.  She didn't ask Mary to get it for her but she did start to save money to buy it.  When she came home, she asked me for a job that I would pay her to do.  So I got her to clean out the leaves that had built up around the front entrance and paid her a dollar.

Last Thursday Mary and I were in Wal-Mart getting stuff and I remembered that Alex wanted some AAA batteries for some music thing-a-mabob so I pulled a four pack off the display rack.  I told Mary if we got this for Alex we should get the ball for Brooke and we did.

When Brooke got home from school Mary gave her the ball and she was a very happy girl.  She went right out and played with it. 

I was out doing some stuff and when I came in,  Brooke was on Mary's lap (although she's much too big) with the sad story on her face and in her lap.  The ball as already busted.  :'(

Mary later told me that Brooke sobbed for a good twenty minutes.  She knew it couldn't be fixed because she'd done tried fixing balls with tape and staples and it didn't work.  Mary asked her if she thought a cookie would help.  Brooke said she'd try.  She got the cookie and returned to Mary's lap to eat it.  Afterwards she said it helped a little.  After a bit more lap setting she told Mary, "Thanks for comforting me." And got down and went on her way.

She's some kid.  I think we'll find her another better ball next time we go to town.

Bibby
Sounds like she is learning her tricks methods from her grand daddy.... :D :D :D

Roxie!

The little guy sure is special. I don't know how I missed the picture until now. Give him a big hug for me.  :)

 (https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10034/wsBrookeAlex_and_ball_20080317.JPG)

Update on the busted ball and upset kid. 

This evening I figured out how to make a fix.  I started the process by inserting a balloon in through the hole.  Sister Alex took over, as older sisters often do, and inflated the balloon and tied it off.  Fixed and one happy kid.  Note the stem of the balloon sticking out.

Once fixed,  I asked Brooke, "Now. Who's the smartest man you've ever known?"  She said, "You are, Grandpa!"  Just give her another five years.

Quote from: Bibbyman on March 17, 2008, 06:45:31 PM
Once fixed,  I asked Brooke, “Now. Who’s the smartest man you’ve ever known?”  She said, “You are, Grandpa!”  Just give her another five years.

  Figure it will take that long  eh eh    :D

As long as we are bragging on grandkids....... ;)
This is Sydney, one of four that I have to brag about.
She happens to be a KU fan. ROCK CHALK Jayhawk.
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10092/Syd_%28WinCE%29.jpg)

Roxie and Haytrader,

Y'all did good ;D.

She has a sparkle in her eye just like Grampa, Haytrader.   What a cute little girl.  :)


I see alot of Mary in Alex, and Brooke is a sweetie Bibby. You are lucky to have them, as they are sure lucky to have you and Mary.

Quote from: Patty on March 18, 2008, 05:01:54 PM
She has a sparkle in her eye just like Grampa, Haytrader.   What a cute little girl.  :)


I see alot of Mary in Alex, and Brooke is a sweetie Bibby. You are lucky to have them, as they are sure lucky to have you and Mary.

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/archives/people3/MaryAlexHug2.jpg)

Alex and Mary a few years back.

Alex, now 9, is almost the same height as Mary.   ::)

Looking back over this thread, I realized a serious oversight on my part...........You did good too, Bibby 8).

I don't think I stand a chance against these grandkids.  I have a pair of granddaughters in this bunch who are 3 and 4 year old cousins. They were here the other evening.  The three year old came to me kind of whimpering.  "Cousin and I fell down, and I hit my head!"  I asked her, " Think if I kiss that bump it will make it feel better?"  She believed it would, and I did, and she went back much happier.  Half a minute later I heard giggling, and both came back.  The 4 year old crawled on my lap, still snickering, and said, " When we fell, I landed on my butt!  Are you going to kiss it for me too?"  :D  They dissolved in gales of laughter as I declined, and offered to find a switch for both of them. ;D  I thought Chris must have prompted them, but a little investigation revealed the 3 year old hatched up the plot and enlisted her older cousin. ::)

Just think.  They'll be wives one day.  Feel sorry for the poor slobs that win them.  :D

Glad you brought this topic up again. 

The girls are getting older and don't have those funny little stories they did when they were small.

Here is the kind of thing that goes on now.

School has been filling their little empty heads with all kinds of mush.  Brooke has become very environmentally conscious.  She made an argument to Mary the other day that we should get solar panels to generate electricity to run our cloths dryer.   Mary informed her we already had a solar cloths dryer right in our front yard – a cloths line! 

Quote from: Tom on May 06, 2008, 09:49:06 PM
Just think.  They'll be wives one day.  Feel sorry for the poor slobs that win them.  :D

It is nice to be so considerate!

He he he!

(We have 3 purdy daughters 9, 6 & 4)

Nate

School was out for the summer for the girls last Friday.  Most of the week they've been planning where we should go on our summer vacation.  Mary has given them the task of researching and making a list of places and things they'd like to do.  Alex has manned the PC looking up vacations spots in Missouri surrounding states on the internet. 

Mary has also challenged them to look up the costs for the activity, lodging, travel expense, food, etc.   Most of this has fallen on Alex but Brooke is helping too.  She made a list of what she was going to eat for breakfast, dinner and supper and the estimated costs.  The first morning she was going to have biscuits and gravy.  The next pancakes and so on.  For dinner she was going to have a corndog but if they didn't have corndogs (not all places do) then she'd have pizza.  Mary commented that she was her Grandpa's child.  She was always worried about what she was going to eat and when she was going to eat it.

Cowboy Bob (A.K.A. Granpa) took our four year old grandson, Nathan, on his first fishing trip.  There were a few tense moments as an aversion to worms had to be overcome, but then Granpa stopped crying and they had a good time.  They proudly display the catch of the day! 

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/11566/fishing.jpg)

   8) 8)
  Hope I can do the same with Carrie in a couple more years.  8) 8)

  Good going CBB  ;) ;D ;D

Roxie,

Fish Fry!!

The thunderstorms and general wet conditions have kept us in the house more than we would be normally otherwise.  'Corse, we're gathered around the TV - modern equivalent to the camp fire.  To make conversation we got to picking on commercials and how stupid they were, etc. 

After one rather stupid one I asked Brooke, "Did you ever stop and think.  Someone had to write that commercial?  That is, they had to come up with that idea to make a commercial."  Brooke, setting Indian fashion with one foot pulled up inches from her face as she was grooming it, replied,  "No." and continued to groom her foot.  I then said,  "I bet now you'll think about it. Won't you?", trying to plant an new thought in her head.  "Well,  maybe once or twice.  But that's it." She said,  as if that's all the effort the whole notion required.   ::)

At least she was honest about it. :D


Dave

Mary is trying to keep the girl's mind's active this summer by giving them some academic challenges.  They both love to read so that's no problem.  But she's asking them to write book reports.  Brooke, after repeated instruction, has not caught on that a book report only needs a brief explanation of the main point of the book.  She'll almost re-write the book in her report.  Mary asked her to just tell her what the book was about.  Brooke started in and just about orally recapped the whole book. Mary kept interrupting her telling her she didn't have to tell everything.  But no,  there was no stopping her.  Anytime she paused to draw a deep breath, I'd add, "THE END".  She's say, "No, Gradmpa, it's not the end." and go on. 

The next day Alex read the same book and wrote a book report.  It was short and fine.  But then she wanted to tell Mary her book report out loud. 

Then last week Mary took the girls to some water fun park.  They got home and Mary told Brooke to tell me what happened.  She came over and swelled right up with a deep breath to start with and recapping every event of the trip and park in detail and gesture.  After a bit I started protesting and asking her to find her dad and tell him.  She kept on. And on. And on! 

Finally her dad came in the house and Alex came back from where she was and the two double ganged him with their adventure stories.  But he didn't get nearly the full load I did.

Funny thing is,  these girls can remember the smallest detail in a book.  They can sing along with any commercial that's been on the TV over a week.  But if you tell them to do something, they'll turn around and the instruction will be completely lost in their minds.

Females are blessed with selective memory at about the age of 2.   :)

Males are also blessed with selective memory at about the age of 2. At  about 60, it is no longer selective. :(

My dad has always described that as being vaccinated with a Victrola needle. :D

We toured the Buffalo Bill Historical Center in Cody, Wyoming this morning.  If you're ever out this way,  keep at least 6 hours open to tour these museums.

Buffalo Bill Historical Center web site (http://www.bbhc.org)

After hours and hours of viewing all manners of art and artifacts in the five museums there, we ended up in front of a tepee display in the Plains Indian Museum.  Brooke asked how they made the tepee.  I showed her that three poles were tied together at the top and then the women would raise these and they would stand.  Then they would lean the other poles against these three and so on.  She asked about the smoke from the fire and I pointed out the hole in the center that made it work like a chimney. She asked what happed when it rained and I pointed out the flaps on top that could be closed by use of the two poles that were now holding them open. I went on to explain that the cone shape made it very stable and the round shape made it less likely to be blown over by the wind. 

To all this information she expressed, "Wow!  Those Indians were really smart.  They didn't suck lead pipe."

I asked her if she know what it meant to "suck lead pipe" and she said it made you crazy,  So we concluded the Indians didn't suck lead pipe and they were not crazy.



(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10034/wsCodyWYBrookeAlex20080802.JPG)

Alex and Brooke with Sacagawea at the historacal center.

A picture of the tepee is on this web page.

The Plains Indian Museum (http://www.bbhc.org/pim/index.cfm)

Mary, Brooke and Alex spent three hours yesterday shopping for school supplies.  They had to go to five stores to get things.  Tons of supplies.  I posted a list of stuff here somewhere but in addition,  this year Alex had to have a $20 calculator and mini-DVD-RW disks.

Today Brooke got a letter in the mail from her new teacher.  It had all kinds of questions she wanted to ask.  One question was what they liked most about school and then the next was what they didn't like about school. 

Brooke's answer to the "What she don't like about school." question was a bit thought provoking.  She answered, "Teachers that don't teach things." Then she corrected three mistakes in the teacher's letter.  I'd say she's off on the right foot with this teacher.  :P

That is hilarious!  :D And disturbing. :-\
Dave

My oldest son moved back to Iowa about a year ago to work with Patty, my youngest son and I. We've had a great time working together but the best part is I get to see my grandson about every day.

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10427/joel_and_ayden.jpg)

Darn right I'm proud of them. :)

Well , ya know what ... !!!!  Ya got every right to be ,  ;)  8) 8) 8)

Do you let um loose in the office once in a while .  8)

Norm. if you took that picture you must be verry funny looking to make that boy laugh like that. :D

Sure are some handsome guys in Iowa!   8)

 

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10034/wsalexbrooketp20080711.JPG)

Sometimes you never know if kids pickup on things.  We spent a half a day in the Buffalo Bill Historacal Center in Cody, WY.  There was a lot of questions about how the indians built their tepees.  (see post above.)

Today I saw Brooke and Alex draging edgings down by their play house.  Soon they had the poles up.  Later Brooke came from the house with some sheets.  I guess she couldn't find buffalo skins.

I dubbed my next to youngest grandson "Mad Dog" at birth.  Looks like that may have been inspired. :D  He is two now.  He was watching "Cops" on TV a little while ago.  When a perp began to struggle with officers, Mad Dog started yelling, "Tase him! Tase him!" :D :D :D :D

Quote from: Bibbyman on July 17, 2002, 06:12:23 AM
Our just turned five-year-old granddaughter Alex is going to be the smart one of the litter.  No sooner than she could talk she could say her ABCs.  Better than a year ago she could write them both in caps and cursive.  Then she learned to spell her name and those of her sisters and other important words like MOM, DAD, DOG, etc.  Anytime she's not directly involved in being a typical five-year-old, she she is setting with a pencil and a notebook and is "practicing" her ABCs.  :P

The last few months she's really ramped up the number of words she can spell to somewhere up to 100 I'd say.  She was "practicing" the other morning and asking me new words to spell when she asked "How do you spell Disney DOT com?".  :D

(https://forestryforum.com/images/YaBBImages/userpics/MaryAlexHug2.jpg)

How time flies!

I walked by the office room last evening and there was Alex on the PC.  She's been using it for the past couple of years to look up stuff on the internet for homework so I figured that's what she was doing.  But I noticed she was making a document in Word.  I took a closer look and she had changed the font, centered the headings, changed the font size, etc.  I asked her where she learned to use Word.  She said in school.  She's just started into the fifth grade.

I went on to my chair and related the story to Mary.  She didn't think it so big a deal. 

I told her they didn't teach me those things in grade school. ::)

I know what you mean.  I have only been out of school 10 years and it has changed so much already.  Last year my son was doing power point presentations for school,  he was only in the second grade :o He already knows a whole lot more about computers than I do. 

Our younger son Chris and his new bride of one year wanted to take Alex and Brooke home with them one weekend and show them a good time.  One at a time.  Chris came out on Friday and waited for Alex to get home from school and took her back to Shawnee Mission, Kansas to stay over Friday and Saturday night. 

Saturday,  Heather took her to a spa where they had massages and pedicures and such.  Then to a beauty salon where Alex got her hair cut and styled.  Then they went shopping and got some fancy clothes and shoes, etc.  Then they went out to supper at a fancy and expensive restaurant. 

Mary and Brooke drove down on Sunday and picked up Alex.  When they got home,  Alex told her story, showing her painted toes, and new shoes, etc.  They no doubt spent a good bit of change on Alex on Saturday.

They had given Brooke a quartz rock they'd picked up in Colorado.  She was happy.  :)

We just had a visitor. It was Tanner, the VERY active ten year old from upstairs and her friend Molly. They gave Karen two fresh warm peanut butter cupcakes but informed us they had forgotten to add the peanut butter.  :D The cupcakes are still DanG good.
A few months ago we were wakened by some nocturnal activity. We questioned the girls a few days later and they said they were baking cookies (at 2 a.m. ::) ) They could not find the baking powder so they sat down and ate the raw batter. Kids.  ;D

Well, the girls got all kinds of Christmas gifts from all sides of the family.  The both got nice digital cameras and assorted other things.  Their aunt Heather cleaned out her closet and brought four trash bags of nice clothes for the girls to pick through before the rest goes to Good Will.

But after making the rounds of at least four Christmas parties, they came home and opened up the Play-Doh. 

Brooke wanted to open it up and start playing with it as soon as she took the Christmas wrapping off but Mary told her to wait until later.  Obviously,  it was on her mind the whole time she was gone off to the other parties because as soon as she came back, the first thing she did was open the Play-Doh.

The girls played with the Play-Doh a good bit yesterday afternoon and I'd say they have at least 4 hours playing with it today.

Don't overlook the simple gifts!  ;)

QuoteThe girls played with the Play-Doh a good bit yesterday afternoon and I'd say they have at least 4 hours playing with it today.

Don't overlook the simple gifts! 

Bibbyman your right there about the simple gifts.

I just came in from the shed and Angus my 2 & 1/2 yr old was sitting up at the kitchen bench with a big ball of green Play-Doh. I said what are you making cobber? He said "A Watermelon Dad" Our Play-Doh is simple and cheap, Nicky mix's vegetable oil, flour, salt, cream of tartare, veg dye and water, works a treat.

We weren't in a position to buy many toys for our 1st born, i used to give him a block of pine with a big nail started and a hammer, he'd slowly knock it in, as he got older I'd give him a handsaw and a piece of 4x4 in the vice, he would stand on a chair and saw away, if he went to his grandfathers for the day dad would get him sawing up fallen branches. Other cheap ways to keep him entertained was snail hunting in the vege patch followed by feeding them to the chickens, lizard catching and fishing. Tim's 17 now and this morning we were working in the shed galvanising a welding project when i asked him to file off a dag I missed earlier, he was filling away then said, I'm wasting my time can't I just use the angle grinder dad? He had a point I spose but it made me realise how things have changed.

Some things don't change though, Tim still loves his fishing and is taking Angus cat fishing this afternoon to stock some new dams we put in on the farm. Young Angus gets to collects the worms from the compost for bait. I might tag along and get some photos.

That's the way to do it, WildDog.  They will always be  your children, but not kids for long. It's the mental visions of mine that make my dreams so sweet.

I loved play doh as a kid... The homemade stuff was better. 
Mostly cause it doesn't smell like the bought kind and you can
make a ton of it for only a few dollars.  It does go bad after a few
months though. 

Legos were always my favorite...  I made all sorts of multi colored
vehicles....  Ah Memories...   :D

Mary broke up the Play-Doh party a bit after my post above.  There was a lot of moaning going on when they had to put it up.

A bit after supper,  Brooke came bouncing out of her room and headed right into opening the Play-Doh cans.  Mary stopped her, telling her she'd played with it enough for the day.  Brooke tried another way by stacking all four cans under her chin and walking off with them.  Mary asked where she was going.  "To my room to play with the Play-Doh."  Mary told her she couldn't and to find a book or come watch TV with us.  That was not what she wanted to hear but she did it.

Alex came out of her room later and sat and watched some of the old Andy Griffith shows with me.  She's come to love them.  At some pause, she went over to the dining room table and started to pop open the Play- Doh cans.  Mary stopped her.  She wasn't happy with the band on Play-Doh either but came and set back down.

Mary assured them that they could play with it again tomorrow.

We ended up going for a fish, an electrical storm cut it short, a few bites though no fish but young Angus had a good time all the same.
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/13885/The_boys.jpg)

All those rocks got the better of Angus,  he had to throw one in, might be the reason no fish were caught :)
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/13885/Rock_in_the_water.jpg)
We call Angus the Ginger Ninja, he's always throwing rocks, swinging sticks or kicking something.

I forgot to mention the older boy is Tim ur 14yr old mitch wold normaly be with us but he's holidaying and fishing up in Queensland.

Boys throw rocks.  It is natural ;D.

......And kings stow thrones.  :D

Oh to be a King :D :D.

The way I am going, all that I can aspire to is to be the King of Manual Milling :).  (My butt is dragging tonight ::)).

Mother's Day is coming up.  8)

Mary has already gotten two gifts from Brooke - both hand crafted.



(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10034/wsmothersday2009.JPG)

Here is one of them.  Brooke commented that she took a lot of time getting the eyes just right.  They look like two black olive slices.  :D

The kid has a talent, Bib.  She did very well on the eyes, and they match the smile.  #1 Grandma looks like she just spotted a slice of cherry cheesecake in the fridge! 8) 8) 8)

One major detail is wrong.  If Mary wears a hat, it's going to be a Wood-Mizer or her Husqvarna forester hat.  :D

Bibbster, that's a crown, not a hat. 

Quote from: Roxie on May 03, 2009, 07:27:50 AM
Bibbster, that's a crown, not a hat. 

I missed the crown! 

Sometimes she's a real queen.  And often she just thinks she's the queen.



(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10034/wsmothersday20092.JPG)

I see this queen pretty often!   :o :)

Quote from: Bibbyman on May 05, 2009, 06:57:44 AM
I see this queen pretty often!   :o :)

The number one rule of being King of the Castle is to keep your Queen happy. You may need some retraining.  :D :D :D

My little one is starting to walk now. She is 10 and half months old. She got her first bloody lip yesterday by slipping on the floor. I think mom cryied more than little one. I was working on the mower outsideand she came running out saying her mouth is bleeding. Nothing major. I told her to take her for a 4 wheeler ride she stoped crying soon as it started up. ;D.

I was only 20 when i had my first little one and 24 with my second. Its funny how being older now you notice so many things with your kids. It seems i overlooked. With my first two.  I guess being older does start to have its advantages.

  A lot cheaper to keep present Queen happy then to get a new princess  ;)    ;D 

Quote from: isawlogs on May 06, 2009, 07:56:32 AM

  A lot cheaper to keep present Queen happy then to get a new princess  ;)    ;D 

Roger that old Wise man!

Quote from: Bibbyman on May 05, 2009, 06:57:44 AM

Quote from: Roxie on May 03, 2009, 07:27:50 AM
Bibbster, that's a crown, not a hat. 

I missed the crown! 

Sometimes she's a real queen.  And often she just thinks she's the queen.



(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10034/wsmothersday20092.JPG)

I see this queen pretty often!   :o :)

I showed the above picture to Brooke last night.  Her first concern was that I'd done something to her masterpiece.   "How'd you do that?  Did you draw over it?  Did you draw on the back?", etc.  I told her it was magic. Then I explained that I had done it on the computer.  "Oh."

It's a new world guys.  Both girls use the "family PC" to do their homework.  It's amazing what they can do without help.  

The other day I picked up a piece of "kid debris" and looked at it a minute.  It was some of Alex's 6'th grade homework where she had to create a data base and make some records and then makes some queries, etc

Back in my teen years I thought I was a pretty good artist.  But I only did portraits in pencil.   

Back about '67, I took a childhood picture of Mary and made a portrait from it and gave it to her mother.  When her mother passed away,  we got it back and it's hanging on our living room wall.  The only evidence that survived as testimony that I may have has some talent at some time in my life.

Just a little bit ago I returned to my chair and walked past Brooke making a drawing.  She showed it to me.  I asked her if it was a self portrait.   She said no,  she was trying to copy the picture of Grandma on the wall . Well, she had the major features right.

She asked me how come I don't draw any more.  I explained I'd love to be able to but the years of being a draftsman and then years of working on a keyboard all day and then now working at the sawmill has left my hands to where they don't work well enough to draw.

To this she commented, "Yea,  Now you draw flies .. and that's about it."  ::) :-\

(https://forestryforum.com/board/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fwardensawmill.members.ktis.net%2Findex_files%2Fbibbymanbig.gif&hash=51b27451bf1f8a04b17f6cb4385118fae1c1e7a3)

That's me!  :-\

 :D :D :D  Don't you just hate it when that happens?

The other evening I had a mustache hair curled up and tickling my nose.  I did a pinch and snort to get things in order.  Brooke was on the bench in front and left of me.  She turned and asked, "What'ga do,  launch a snot rocket?"  I'd never heard it called that before. 

I don't know if I like this kid.  >:(  ;D

This is an enjoyable thread. No yunguns of my own yet but I try and spoil all the kids I am around. I have 3 nephews and two neices on my wifes side and I just got a little neice from my brother (havent got to see her yet.  >:(  )  My freind and neighbor has a step daughter a daughter and a boy that I have absolutely ruined with 4 wheeler rides fishing and other activities. I can't wait to see my new neice and start spoiling her.

We celebrated my Grandson's 2nd birthday over the weekend. Joel came over and borrowed my ice cream batch freezer to make home made ice cream for the party and Ayden was fascinated with the whole process.

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10427/212/Aydenandicecream.jpg)

Aaaaaaawww!  He's adorable!! 

Norm
Is he licking the platter clean?

That's the lid on top of the batch freezer. He's watching the dasher turn and probably licking the lid just in case he can get a taste.  :D

Joel was telling me that he got a round of shots at the doctor today, afterwards the doc stuck a sucker in his mouth. Ayden didn't cry but took the sucker out and threw it at him. ;D

The famous terrible twos have started. ;) ;D

My Daughter called me last night, seems I have another Grandbaby in the oven 8) That will make 4 :o

So I'm sitting here wonderring when it was I got old enough to be a Grandfather. Seems just yesterday.........................................

Son told me it's time to grow up Dad your old.

Quote from: Norm on June 30, 2009, 05:25:51 PM
Joel was telling me that he got a round of shots at the doctor today, afterwards the doc stuck a sucker in his mouth. Ayden didn't cry but took the sucker out and threw it at him. ;D

That's my boy! Takes after his Gramma  :D


Congratulations Raider!

Congrats Raider 8).

Patty,

A chip off the old block ;D.

On Sunday night I was hauling a load of pulpwood to central Wisconsin and sometime after midnight I was going thru a small Wisconsin town and I saw something dark colored with no lights coming toward me on mainstreet. As I got closer I saw it was a horse drawn buggy, no lights, and with three Amish youngins in their fancy black and white Sunday clothes. They waved enthusiastically as they passed and I sure had a good laugh. Suppose they snuck the horse and buggy out for a midnight ride thru town?

I don't suppose that anyone else has hot wired or snatched the keys to the family car and taken it for a spin in the middle of the night while the parents slept. Boy I sure never did something like that.  ::) ::)

But then again I seem to remember something about pushing the car to the end of the driveway so's nobody would hear it start. :D :D :D

Sure brings some memories.  8)

If I had run into that here, I would have figured that they had dressed themselves up into costumes and were stealing a Horse and buggy.  :D

Years ago the girls were little and everything was new to them.  They often came up with the most amusing logic.   I've recorded a number of them right here on this thread.  But they're older now and those cute things just don't happen very often. 

But this evening we were watching some TV and on comes a commercial advertizing an embroidery machine.  The big selling point was that you could make money in your spare time.  I said, "We could get a couple of those and start our own sweat shop."  With a puzzled look on her face, Alex asks,  "Who would buy sweat?"    ::)

When I post something about the girls here it's usually with at least some pride.  You may even think I brag on them.  Not this time.

Yesterday was as nice a Sunday as you could ask for at the first of August.  I thought we'd take the day off and go do something different.  We loaded up and headed south down some of the back roads to the river bottom.  I thought I'd explain some of the local history to the girls as we went along.  We passed through an area that had been homesteaded back about 1820 by a family and I explained as I drove along how many acres they had, some of the buildings that still existed, and that they had slaves, etc.  I explained that the road we were on was one of the oldest in the county.  A little further along I pointed out a place where there had once been a community.  They dug coal at this location and shipped it by rail road to the river.  It was the first rail road west of the Mississippi.  At first it was only wooden rails and the cars were pulled by oxen.  Then later the rails were replaced by steel and the oxen by a steam locomotive.

We continued on to a location on the river called Cote Sans Dessein.  The name is French for "hill without design".  It was the first community in what is now our county.  The land was granted by the Spanish or French before the Louisiana Purchase.  It had been at one short time the furthest west settlement from the east. (If that makes sense)  Lewis and Clark and camped there going out and coming back on their expedition. It had been attached by Indians (allied to the British) in the war of 1812.  It was the meeting place of the first organizers of the State of Missouri and had been fist chosen to be the site of the Capitol.  Daniel Morgan Boone was one of the delegates. It had been a growing and important community for 100 years.  One traveler wrote that it would someday be the New York of the mid-west.  Well,  he was wrong.  There is nothing there now but one farm house and outbuildings.  Not even an historical marker to note all of the above and more that took place there.

I explained all of the above to the girls and I thought they were listening.   Today I asked them, "What was the name of that hill we saw yesterday?".  They didn't know what I was talking about.  I gave them some promptings.  Nothing.  It was all a blank.  Brooke said,  "I could hear you talking but I had the window down and could not understand what you were saying."

Duh!  :-\

What can we say, Bibby ?  ::)

One of my grand daughters has a certain way of rolling her eyes. Seems she has been able to do that since she was about 2. Makes me smile.  :) :)

I get the message.  ;)

Keep trying, some of it will stick.  :D

Quote from: Bibbyman on August 03, 2009, 02:33:59 PM

We continued on to a location on the river called Cote Sans Dessein.  The name is French for "hill without design".  It was the first community in what is now our county.  The land was granted by the Spanish or French before the Louisiana Purchase.  I

  Bib , if you want the true translation to the name , it would be more like " Hill of no sense "  it is French   Would there be a hill of good grade , or with a bend in it ... or maybe even a long, long grade near this location.  That would give the name a better reason. 

In everything I've read it's been translated to mean "hill without design".  But "hill of no sense" will work too as there is no explanation for why it's there.

From a local history link.

"The above words signify "a hill without design," and were the name of an ancient French village. This place has its name from an isolated hill that is standing, as if by accident, on the river bank, in an extensive bottom. It appears that some convulsion of nature may have cut it off from the hills at the mouth of the Osage, on the opposite bank of the Missouri, and given passage to this last mentioned river, between it and the base of its kindred hills."

Here is that link with more info on the settlement.

http://www.callawegian.org/content10.html

All I know is if someone here was to tell you the you where " sans dessein " .. well he would really be telling you you where making no sense , but none at all ... that from someone whom has had it told a few times  ::)

Sounds like some of the hills around here....
I live on/near Crowley's Ridge, a little bump that no
one has heard of... but it's the same way.  Flatness
and bottom land all around and the ridge just jumps
out of the earth. 

Speculation varies somewhat as to how it arrived here.
Many think it is a leftover of a glacier but no one is sure. 

Bibbyman, how old are those girls now?  I've lost track of that, but have enjoyed watching them grow up immensely. :)  I'd be willing to bet that open window had little or nothing to do with their not hearing.  Sounds to me like ol' Grandpa was being tuned out.  You may as well get used to that, 'cause you're gonna get a lot of it over the next few years.  Not that you should stop trying, by any means, but you will be tuned out more and more as they go into and through their teen years.  I think you ought to print some of this stuff out and save it somewhere for them to see when they have kids and grandkids of their own.  That's when they will realize and truly appreciate all that you have done for them.  It would also document a little bit of almost forgotten history that may be of huge value to someone someday.

Alex was 12 early in the summer.  Brooke will be 11 in the fall.

Alex is already taller than Mary with Brooke soon to pass.  Mary and the girls went shopping for school supplies and cloths the other day.  Brooke's shoes are a little too big for Mary.  Mary's been wearing Alex's hand-me-down shoes for a couple of years.



(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10034/wsAlexDave20090314.JPG)

Alex and Dave Mann at the Wood-Mizer open house at Arky's last spring.

Looks like it might not be wise to engage "Mad Dog," my three year old grandson in a gunfight.  A couple weeks ago Faron's kid needed a hot relaxing bath, for some reason. ;)  She warned the kids to behave while she did, and told the older kids to watch the younger ones.  About the time she got in the tub, the kids decided it was time for a water gun fight-in the house, of course. ::)  Her bathroom is off the master bedroom, accessible only through the bedroom.  She heard Mad Dog open the bedroom door, lock the lock, and close the door.  He then proceeded to fill HIS water gun from the toilet in the other bathroom.  As soon as the older kids figured out what he was planning, they headed for the bathroom door to tell mom.  Well, they piled up against that locked bedroom door like a bunch of panicked turkeys.  Mad Dog gleefully soaked them down with toilet water at his leisure. :D  I don't know what the future holds around here when a 3 year old plans and executes that elaborate an ambush. :D

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10068/Maddox_Faron_2009.jpg)

Doesn't look like a schemer, does he?

   Now that's funny, I don't care who you are. ;D

Now that's a Grandson to be proud of! :)

Last summer Brooke spent the night with one of her friends at school.  Mary talked with the mother of the little girl to get directions.  The task was far more complicated than need be but we found the place.

Last Friday evening Brooke was invited to a birthday party and sleepover by the same little girl.  But they had moved since the last party so Mary had to call the mother and get directions to their new home.  Even though it was much closer than last summer, there was a lot of completions getting the directions.

Mary made some comment to Brooke about their ability to give directions.  Brooke said in their defense, "Maybe they're directionally challenged."

Unrelated..

This evening Brooke and I had a little adventure.  We took the Mule up to the mailbox and visited with my folks for awhile.  Coming back to the house I decided since it was such a nice afternoon and already out in the Mule,  we would drive down to the creek and see what gravel haulers had been up to. 

Well,  we've all seen in the movies where someone will be standing ankle deep in water and someone else will walk in and get to some point and just go completely under water.  It was almost like that. 

We drove up the big gravel bar – almost like a parking lot since the gravel haulers had removed the gravel to almost the water line.  There are some puddles of water mostly about ankle deep that we drove through. We got to one stretch of shallow water that kept getting deeper.  The water was clear and I could see the bottom and I'd expect the Mule to be able to cross water up to a foot deep.  But all of a sudden it got deeper.  I guess the hole was in the shadow of at tree and didn't look as deep as it was. 

Long story short,  we ran into water about 2' deep and the Mule drowned out.  The hole we ran into wasn't over 10' long and 6' but there we were.  10' to the left or right and we wouldn't have been dead there.  If we could have gone 10' more we would have driven out of it.

I called Mary and she came down and got me.  I took the tractor down and hooked onto the Mule with a chain and Brooke provided the guidance.  As we were coming out backwards, most often she turned the wheels the wrong way.  But we got it out.  I tried starting it but it wouldn't start so we pulled it to the house – about 1/4 mile up the hill.   Once we had it turned around, Brooke did a fine job of driving the Mule as I pulled.

The air filter is low on the body but it should be sealed and the air intake is way up at the center of the roll bar.  But I took the filer cover off and it was full of water.  It was on the "deep" side of the pool.  I tried starting it again but it wouldn't hit.  So I'm letting it dry out and try tomorrow.  I don't think the engine was more than half under water.  The water was clean and clear so I'm hoping there was no real damage done.

Brooke – woman in training.

A couple of evenings last week Brooke begged me to go with her down to the creek so she could play in the small sand bar we found on the creek.   It was a small request and it was as nice an evening as you could ask for but I was so tired.  But we drove the Mule down and I set while she played until the sun was already setting. 

But what she's always wanted was a sandbox.  That too would be a small thing but she has a small mountain of sawdust she can play in any time she wanted.

Last evening she again begged to go down to the creek to play in the sand.  I told her to gather up the 5 gallon buckets and put them in the Mule.  We went down and filled them up.  She talked about where she wanted her sand box – under the playhouse walnut tree.  It was getting late by the time we got back to the house so we just left the buckets of sand in the Mule.

Today I had some time and a couple of heart sawn boards that were left over from an order so I made her a sandbox about 5' square and 8" deep.  I put it under the walnut tree and set out the buckets of sand.  I figured she could take it from there.

She got home from school and found out from Mary that I had made her a sandbox. She came out to investigate.   Her first comment was, "You didn't put a bottom in it."  Then she argued that she didn't want it out on the ground,  she wanted it IN her playhouse.  We had to go into full brainstorm mode to find or make her a box with a bottom that would fit in the playhouse.  I was hot and tired.  We'd think about that another day. 

She came in the house and spotted a plastic tub that Mary uses to bring home groceries from the discount food store and wanted it for her sandbox.  Mary was not about to give that up. 

So, on we go.  Where she stops, knowbody knows.   ::)

Then, once it's built to specs it sits idle. :D

Brooke is a regular chatterbox.  While we were at the creek,  I asked her who her favorite Grandpa was.  Her reply;  "Well,  you're the only one young enough to live long enough to give me all that I want."  That kind of set me back.  I asked if she had a list of everything she wants so I can get started on it now.  She said no, she was still thinking of things. 

Looks like I'm committed for the long haul.  :-\

 Looks like I'm committed for the long haul.   :-\
:D :D  But we on the forum already knew that! ;)

Oh yeah!  One of the joys of growing old is laughing at the younger ones who are just totally amazed that we can still bring a spoon to our lips at the ripe old age of Fifty. :D :D :D ::)

DanG, I dont think that old and fifty can go together in the same sentence .. I am going to resemble that remark way too soon .  ::) And yes I can still bring da spoon up , but I prefer da fork . I think the spoon thing Dan is a sixty thing .  ;D

Brooke and I took our drive down to the creek this evening in the Mule.  Brooke drove.  It was quite a ride.  I kept yelling for her to slow down.  She says, "But I've hardly got my foot on the gas pedal."  My reply, "Yes, but sometimes you need to put your foot on the brake!"  Then we jerk to a stop when she slams on the breaks.

A little further on she says, "Don't you think I'm ready for my own car?"  (She wasn't putting me on.)  I tell her there is a lot more to driving than the gas pedal and steering.   Then I tell her she can have her own car when she gets a driver's license and a job to pay for it.

Years ago when Alex was small, she actually asked me if I'd leave her our house when I die.  After all,  I wouldn't need it any more.

Does anybody now wonder why my hair is turning gray?  ::)

Quote from: Bibbyman on September 10, 2009, 11:17:37 PM
Does anybody now wonder why my hair is turning gray?  ::)

You still got hair? ???

Quote from: DanG on September 10, 2009, 11:23:43 PM

Quote from: Bibbyman on September 10, 2009, 11:17:37 PM
Does anybody now wonder why my hair is turning gray?  ::)

You still got hair? ???

Less as time goes on.  Got a thin spot where it rubs the bed headboard.  ;D

DanG Dad is 92 and has a full head of thick hair.  When he gets a heircut, much of the gray comes off.  :-\

When I get a trim, all of the grey comes off too.  The three remaining hairs are as white as the driven snow! :-\ :D :D

My granddaughter asked me the other day when I was going to turn into a frog.  I asked her why she thought I was going to turn into a frog.  She said her mother told her that when I croaked they would be rich.

This one really happened.  My daughter was helping her 6 year old daughter pick out some new pants.  The granddaughter Sara  was having trouble getting the pants zipped and buttoned.  Barbara, my daughter said she needed to learn to do it.  Sara says, "I know, I know, whose going to do it when my boyfriend isn't around."  Barbara almost faints," Why did you say that?"  " Well, the other morning daddy was cutting up my eggs and said I should be doing it for myself. He said, whose going to do this when your boyfriend isn't around."

The kids are helping me build a box for the garbage cans.  Gotta get it done before the wife's bday on Tuesday.


(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/16789/Nov07_0001.jpg)


(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/16789/Nov07_0002.jpg)
Later my daughter decided to lay on the beech ;) ;D
A beech log I cut and peeled for a customer to use as a bench.  I need to do 10 of these. :o


(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/16789/Nov07_0003.jpg)

That's a good looking crew you have there! I'll bet Mom will be impressed on Tuesday. :)

That's a lot of hammers with a lot of little fingers going all at one time!  :o

When they have two hands on the hammer, the fingers are safe.  There were no mishaps this time 8)

Nick

They are safe but how 'bout the rest of us?

Yesterday was Earth Day but today Brooke went on a field trip to some place – a nature center or something.  The instructions were to pack them a lunch for the outing.  And the instructions included that the lunch had to be packed in a paper bag so it could be disposed of.  Mary thought that a bit out of character for Earth Day and instead packed the lunch in a cloth tote sack just made for such things. 

Brooke got home tonight and told that her teacher made her transfer her lunch into a plastic bag.  And informed Brooke she was not going to debate about it.  Brooke brought home a big plastic bag full of handouts and other doodads given to the kids by the Department of Conservation.

She did smash her soda can and put it in the recycle bin. 

 She was chastised for bringing a re usable bag and given a plastic one ??? Somebody didn't think that one through very well.

Write a letter to the editor about that Bibby. It's just another example of people paying lip service to something instead of educating themselves on the subject. Good thinking on Mary's part.

I knew this day would come.  Alex has a seventh grade home economics class (although it's got some other politically correct name) and Mary had to run to town to get some baby cloths for an assignment.   Alex had to stuff a jumper with cotton and make a balloon head doll and carry it around for some time period.

Yesterday evening here comes Brooke and Alex, licitly split down our drive on their bicycles – going way too fast even though they've been told.  Alex pulled up the Terex shed where Mary and I were standing.  She had the baby body in her backpack and the balloon head in a sack.  I remarked that's not a good way to transport a baby.  She said, "Well, that's the only way I could figure out how to carry it.". I asked her if she was going to get up a dozen times in the night to feed and change it.  "Heck no!".

Later in the evening she was setting on her futon watching a movie, reading a book and holding her baby.  I had a glass of ice tea and offered to pour it over her so she'd know how that worked.  She figured I was bluffing.

I'd think a better point would have been made if they were made to carry a 12 pound bowling ball that leaked every time you picked it up and cried every time you set it down.

One of the best contraceptive ideas to come along in quite a while.  A junior in high school had an electonic baby in church the other weekend.  It went off and everyone thought she had the real thing.  She had to take it out and change it.

Maybe guys ought to do the same thing.

Cedarman,

I'll just lend them my boys to take out to dinner. ::)

I asked Alex if only the girls had to carry a baby aruond or if the boys had to also.  She said boys and girls but there were only "like" two boys in the class.

Quote from: Bibbyman on August 03, 2009, 02:33:59 PM
When I post something about the girls here it's usually with at least some pride.  You may even think I brag on them.  Not this time.

Yesterday was as nice a Sunday as you could ask for at the first of August.  I thought we'd take the day off and go do something different.  We loaded up and headed south down some of the back roads to the river bottom.  I thought I'd explain some of the local history to the girls as we went along.  We passed through an area that had been homesteaded back about 1820 by a family and I explained as I drove along how many acres they had, some of the buildings that still existed, and that they had slaves, etc.  I explained that the road we were on was one of the oldest in the county.  A little further along I pointed out a place where there had once been a community.  They dug coal at this location and shipped it by rail road to the river.  It was the first rail road west of the Mississippi.  At first it was only wooden rails and the cars were pulled by oxen.  Then later the rails were replaced by steel and the oxen by a steam locomotive.

We continued on to a location on the river called Cote Sans Dessein.  The name is French for "hill without design".  It was the first community in what is now our county.  The land was granted by the Spanish or French before the Louisiana Purchase.  It had been at one short time the furthest west settlement from the east. (If that makes sense)  Lewis and Clark and camped there going out and coming back on their expedition. It had been attached by Indians (allied to the British) in the war of 1812.  It was the meeting place of the first organizers of the State of Missouri and had been fist chosen to be the site of the Capitol.  Daniel Morgan Boone was one of the delegates. It had been a growing and important community for 100 years.  One traveler wrote that it would someday be the New York of the mid-west.  Well,  he was wrong.  There is nothing there now but one farm house and outbuildings.  Not even an historical marker to note all of the above and more that took place there.

I explained all of the above to the girls and I thought they were listening.   Today I asked them, "What was the name of that hill we saw yesterday?".  They didn't know what I was talking about.  I gave them some promptings.  Nothing.  It was all a blank.  Brooke said,  "I could hear you talking but I had the window down and could not understand what you were saying."

Duh!  :-\

I posted the above about a year ago.  Here is a related story.

Last Thursday evening I was up visiting my folks and my older sister and her husband were there.  He and I always have a good visit.  They have three grown sons with families.  Two are doing just fine.  Their youngest son has two children, a boy 10 and a girl 13 but is divorced.  My sister and David, my brother-in-law, are retired and as the two above mention children are right here in the same town, they tend to spend a lot of time with them. 

David was talking about trying to give the grandkids some education that the public schools and their parents don't give them.  He taught the grandson how to play the guitar, took him hunting, taught him how to shoot, got him a youth model rifle, they went fishing and camping, etc., on and on.

A couple of weeks back he decided that it would be of benefit to expose the grandchildren to so sense of patriotism.  So he looked up on the internet and found that there was a national cemetery in north-central Missouri and they were having a Memorial Day program.   They made and outing out of it.  He said the grounds were made up wonderfully with flags on every tombstone, etc.  Said they had a program honoring the fallen that was quite moving. 

The kids were not impressed.  On the way back, the boy grudgingly made the comment, "We drove two and a half hours to see the graves of people we didn't even know when we could have been fishing."

Here are my pride and joy and the reason why I want to come home safe every day (in no particular order):

Abigail Grace- Born Jan 2009

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/14756/1209/Abigail.JPG)

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/14756/1209/Abby___Dad.JPG)

Abby's First NHL Game with Mom:

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/14756/1209/Abby_s_First_NHL_Game.JPG)

Aspen Bo- Born June 1999

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/14756/1209/Aspen-_11_going_on_35.JPG)

Nickolas Samuel Conway- Born May 2002

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/14756/1209/Stay_at_Home_Defence.JPG)

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/14756/1209/Nick_Checking.JPG)

All 3 together at Uncles house @ Easter:

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/14756/1209/Kids_%40_Easter.JPG)

My Granddaugter had one of those electronic babies. The boys had to have one too. But there is a setting on the ones they used. Can be set for easy or hard by the teacher.May have more settings but that's all she mentioned. The teacher set hers on hard. If you did not support the neck just right it would start to cry and take 20 minutes to calm it down. It would cry no matter what every 3-4 hours due to feeding time,all night long too. This was all recorded inside the baby too. She had a basketball game one night and her Mother had to babysit the baby.

QuoteShe had a basketball game one night and her Mother had to babysit the baby.

For pay, I hope! ;)

Good looking crop of kids you got there, Samuel! :) :)

Yes, I would have to say the same as DanG, for your little family of young'ns. You have quite a head start on me Samuel. ;D

Thanks guys...a handful at times, but well worth it for sure.

Normally, I don't pay alot of attention to billboards.  Yesterday, I drove by one that caught my attention.  Not real flashy, just said........

Parents, spend time with your kids.  It makes a difference.

One of the best billboards I had seen in a while. 

Samuel, your photos made me think of that billboard, great family you get to spend time with.

(not to exclude all you other parents ;))

Samuel,

That is a fine whack of kids that you have there!  You got a right to be proud  8).  You did good!

So a couple of my boys wanted to go fishing in one of our ponds.  I didn't think they would catch anything, but they proved me wrong 8)


(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/16789/Jul06_0001.jpg)
It's a little pumpkinseed sunfish, and they caught a few more for good measure.  Now they've got the old man convinced he should get a hoe in and clean out the pond, and maybe slip a few bass in there ;D.

Nick

Great picture! Nas,get that pond fixed up for them boys.  Every boy needs some body of water to catch fish, swim and be an adventerous boy.  Next thing you know you'll be sawing out a boat pattern. :)

Tune on the radio was playing today.....think it was George Strait.....singin bout life not measured by the breaths you take but by the moments that take your breath away.  A lot of you guys are blessed and so am I.

Nas, that's a fine looking fella sporting that big smile.  I'm grinning with him, so thanks for sharing such an uplifting photo.   :)

Our soon to be four year old grandaughter, Sarah, fell and broke her collar bone.  After the x-ray, the doctor said that kids bones heal so fast that she wouldn't require anything more than a simple arm sling and that was just to remind her not to use the arm too much. 

The following weekend, the whole family was here for a picnic, and here is the conversation between Sarah and her Uncle Rob:

Uncle Rob:  "What happened to your arm?"  (bending down touching her tenderly)
Sarah:  "My bone broke off."   (matter-of-fact, and not going for any sympathy)
Uncle Rob:  "Oh!  Sarah!  I'm so sorry that you were hurt."
Sarah:  "I know, but it doesn't hurt now.  They took me to the hospital."
Uncle Rob:  "Was the doctor nice?"
Sarah:  "He was nice and they took a picture, but it's not very good."

You gotta love a little princess that expects an x-ray to be flattering.   :D

That is so cute! Don't they just melt your heart.   smiley_heart

Quote from: Roxie on July 18, 2010, 04:40:44 PM

You gotta love a little princess that expects an x-ray to be flattering.   :D

Wait until she gets her driver's license photo taken  :).   Sorry to hear about the injury to the Princess.

A couple of times I've got to watch Bill Cosby doing a live stage performance titled Bill Cosby Himself.  He makes big mileage out of kids being brain damaged and site many examples of stupid stuff kids do.

Now our granddaughters are plenty smart but,  like kids are, they can do the strangest things.

Last evening about bed time, both girls had taken showers.  The only complaint I have is that they use way too much shampoo and conditioner that tends to stink up the house.  The stink affects me.  Makes me sick.  So I throw a fit every time.  But...  I've got no life so I just complain and go on.

But last evening the bedroom end of the house latterly reeked with perfume stink.  I threw an even bigger fit with the same results of being ignored.

Alex came to the bedroom door a bit latter to explain that she had opened some perfume and the top broke so she tossed it in the trash basket in the bathroom. 

About 10 minutes later Alex came to the door again to say she had an awful headache and didn't feel good.  She said the perfume was bothering her.   I told her to go lay on the futon in the living room where it wasn't stinky yet and see if that helped.

The reek just got worse.   I asked Brooke to take the trash basket out of their bathroom and set it outside.   I heard the doors open and close and figured she'd did it.  The smell still lingered through the night and this morning.

This morning I check the trash basket on the porch and it's empty.  That's odd.  This evening I asked Brooke about the empty trash basket.  She said she took the trash out of it and put it in a bag and put the bag with trash (and stinky broke thing) in the main trash basket in the kitchen.  She did what I said – put the trash basket on the front porch.

I questioned her as to why she didn't just set the basket and stinky stuff outside.  Didn't it occur to her that it was the stinky stuff that needed to go outside? She didn't really know.  All she knows is that I wanted her to set the basket outside and she did.

Don't argue, Bibby.  She's being trained.  Women train women and women train men.   You're on losing ground.  :D

And when they get older and you ask one of them to cut an 8' 2x4 in half, they will come back and ask what do you us to do with these 2  2x2s or 1x4s.

Brooke still comes up with those difficult questions...


"Grandapa.  How old is Mickey Mouse?"

I later looked it up and it was 1928 MM was first draw. (if I remember right).

Our neighbor was relating the biblical story of Joseph selling his brothers into slavery for twenty pieces of silver to their six year old. To help clarify the concept he said it would be like selling her sister for twenty dollars to which she  replied "Well, I could use the money." :D

I believe he might have the story  a bit confused.  :D

I probably got it confused. :D

It doesn't matter, it was still funny! :D

Speaking of....

My grand daughter thought Grandpa should know the answer to her special math problem in HS math. I worked on it late last night, and again in the middle of the night and couldn't get it (felt I was close but no cigar). Thought she would tell me the answer tonight, but instead said no one in her class figured it out. Apparently they are in Geometry and working on proofs and theorems, but they want the length of the EF line in feet.

Here is the info given.  The foid in line BD is my drawing. The are all right triangles shown.
Any one with a solution?

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10180/Geo_problem.JPG)

I think I could figure that out, BT, but I'm glad I don't have to. ;D 8) :D

Only way I come up with an answer is to make some assumptions. Assumptions on my part as I can't recall all them trig identities from 25 + years ago. :D

My assumptions are these:
Segment AD = Segment DE, therefore Isosceles triangle
Segment BC = Segment BE, therefore Isosceles triangle

Therefore side BD is 70 feet

By Pythagoras theorem:
Segment CD = Square root(70² - 30²)
                    =63.24 feet

Tan(B) = 63.24/30
           = 2.108
Inv Tan(B) = 64.621 degrees
Angle CBE= Angle DEF  congruent
Cosine(DEF)=Segment EF/40
0.4286 x 40 = Segment EF
                    = 17.144 feet

I'd be interested in seeing the solution. ;D

I came up with 17'-1 11/16".  :D :D

Reminds me of the old story about the guy who was given an barometer and told to find out the height of a building--that's the way I solved it.









AutoCAD

SD
I like the approach (and agree with those assumptions), and the length of the line EF that you calculate is very close to the measured line when I drew it out. And the measured line is the same regardless of the length of CD.

Thanks for getting that assumed length of CD. That was the unknown in my head, and I was forgetting that one can make some assumptions here.  My geometry and trig was over 50 years ago. :)

Will learn tomorrow (maybe) what the class solution is.

I like yours. :)

Quote from: SwampDonkey on February 09, 2011, 11:31:16 PM
Only way I come up with is to make some assumptions. Assumptions on my part as I can't recall all them trig identities from 25 + years ago. :D

My assumptions are these:
Segment AD = Segment DE, therefore Isosolese triangle
Segment BC = Segment BE, therefore Isosolese triangle

Therefore side BD is 70 feet

By Pythagoras theorum:
Segment CD = Square root(70² - 30²)
                    =63.24 feet

Tan(B) = 63.24/30
           = 2.108
Inv Tan(B) = 64.621 degrees
Angle CBE= Angle DEF  congruent
Cosine(DEF)=Segment EF/40
0.4286 x 40 = Segment EF
                    = 17.144 feet

I'd be interested in seeing the solution. ;D

SD, really, after 25 years that's all you can remember? :)  Heck I wouldn't have remembered that 10 minutes after walking out of class :D.  I've been working on it but now I give up.

I am going to assume SD got it right  8)  I will also have to assume there are several ways to spell isoscoles  ???  ;)

 
I aint going to assume nothing .......  I know I don't know  ;D ;)

To spell What???

 :D :D :D

Figured I better go back and make a couple spelling changes, "Isosceles" and "theorem" as well. :D

Eyesauceoleeze, Bill.  I think it's some kind of potato cake that yankees and canuckadadians eat. ::)

No that's a hashbrown patty. :D ;)

Patty, now what did she do ???

SD

:) I made those changes before I sent your solution on to the grand daughter. :) Knew what you meant.

Heard back from the grand daughter and she said
".. you got the right answer.  The teacher solved it a different way but ended up with the same answer you got.  It might be something that we will learn more about in the coming weeks, I would guess.  Thanks again!!!"

So good on you SD.  
When I hear the other solution, I will post it.

Been a few years back. The oldest daughter came home with a math question about board feet. Had a formula that did not work. I explained board feet to her and showed her how to do it. Had her math test the next day, flunked. The only kid in the class that got 100% of the questions, but, the only one that failed.

WH
??? ???
Any more details as to what happened?

Sounds like a dumb teacher that thinks there is only way to skin a cat. ::)  My way or no way. :(

Neighbour was going over family pictures with the girls and 6 year old Keira wanted to know why she was not in a lot of them. Mom explained that she had not yet been born. Keira thought about this briefly then said "Okay then, let's get on to bigger and better stuff. Like the day I was born". I almost rolled off the chair laughing. :D :D

Beenthere, parent principle conference. She passed.

My daughter isnt even here yet and I worry about  school already.    I had a learning disability in school.    Had a drunk guidance  counselor   try to  put it off on me being lazy.     Schooling was an uphill battle fron the first to the 12th grade.   Plus to mention that  Tish county got the brunt of reject teachers.      My problem was  science and technical grades were too high to let me go to the  remedial classes.    I had some great math teachers tat  went extra far to help me.     

When I got to HS I got the help i needed from my SHop teacher.  He took the time to  teach me Math in a way that was aplicable to the real world.     I got triped up on all the Formulae that the  Math teachers wanted us to  do the run around on.      Shop teacher showed me how to  do it in a real world manner that made alot more sense.   


We re even looking into a home schooling environment.


Amy and I have  already agreed to  not make mistakes our friend have and plop the kids infront of the tv for hours  or a video game.      MIL is already poed about that but thats tough.   I hope she gets my wifes book smarts and my mechanical ability lol.

I believe that kids will look at the role model parents and grandparents present to them, and emulate their behavior. As well, kids will take an active interest in learning if their parents also take an active interest.
Don't plan activities outside of school hours that take away time to do homework (and that to me includes TV programs). Don't do fun things that the kids can't participate in because they have schoolwork to do. i.e. don't compete for their time to learn.

Figured I better go back and make a couple spelling changes, "Isosceles" and "theorem" as well. :D
[/quote]

Isosceles....., isn't that a bone in your leg? 

Theorem......, talking about them.  Theorem live down the road, don't they?

Thank you guys. I enjoyed reading this site this week.

Great to have kids and grandkids.

Kids are so much fun especially this time of year. My buddy,s 4 year old grand daughter was campaigning for some new toy and her mother told her no. "Nana will buy it for me". "No she won't."  "Yes she will, you wait and see." She knows Nana too well. :D
Can't wait to see the expressions on our grand kids faces tomorrow morning.

I'm looking forward to spending some time with the Great Granddaughter tomorrow. 

The granddaughter, the one we have raised, came home last night from grand parents on the other side. She had a new CD player with a radio on it. The joke around here is the basement is my room. With sharpener and reloading stuff I spend a lot of time down there. I told her, "Oh boy I can take it to my room so I can have a radio." I usually listen to tapes if I listen to anything. This kid is 8 years old. She promptly gets up and goes to the basement, with the radio. She then gives me a lesson on the different function of the device. She then tells me that if someone gets her a new CD for Christmas she can listen to it down there. She said, "I don't really need a radio, I have a TV". This morning she opened a present that was a Miranda Lambert CD, oh, the kids likes country music. She played her new CD and came back up. Looked at me and said "Pappy, I left the CD in the player in case you want to listen to it, we will put it in the car when school starts back." My wife takes her out to the bus in the mornings and they sit in the car and wait on the bus. Pappy has to take her deer hunting and has her own seat on the backhoe when I am moving logs. What do you with a kid like that?

You treat her like the little Princess that she is.

You give her a big hug and kiss and tell once again how much you love her.

Already did.

There is a lot more to growing than planting a seed.   smiley_thumbsup

I find children are a product of their upbringing.

Thanks for the smile on my face this morning Bill.  :)

What a sweet story. That girl will grow up to be somebody who cares about other people. She has the cares about other people part,now she just has to grow up.

I'm pretty new here, but I found this thread this morning while watching my kids play in the floor. This is just another shout out to the fine people here. I've enjoyed reading the stories and looking at the pictures. My Kids, Kassidy (3 1/2 yrs) and Alek (20 months) are the light of my world. Thanks to all of you for sharing your stories.  :)

Our 3 year old grandson got his first six point buck today! 



 (https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/11566/jamesgetsadeer.jpg)

It was his oldest brothers inflatable target for his pump action, foam cartridge rifle.  James announced he was gonna ride it, and after a brief struggle, he succeeded. 

Hey there!!!!

Happy birthday Roxie!

And many more too.

I don't get to post here much anymore.  I miss that.  Our two granddaughters are teenagers now and much changed from the cute little girls I've wrote about so many times.  Oldest, Alex is leading the way in the rebellion.  Oh,  not nearly as bad as it could be.  And only natural for them to fight for their "space" and spot in the world.

Anyway,  last evening something happened that I was pleased to see -  a case of history repeating itself.

Many years ago when our two boys were say 8 and 10 we had rented the VHS tape "Rear Window".  We urged them to set and watch it with us.  They were reluctant.  It was "stupid" – old people just setting around, on and on.  But we pretty much forced them to start watching it.  They grumbled and tried to break away but we kept them there.  About 20-30 minutes into the movie – about the time James Stewart got suspicious of the actions of Raymond Burr, they started to quiet down and pay attention.  They started to ask questions of the different characters in the windows. By mid-movie they were hooked and by the finally they were glued to the TV, fully engrossed in it.

Well,  a few days ago we got a fully restored DVD version of the movie from Netflix.  I'd told the girls the above story and a little about the movie and what made it so special.  Alex said, "That sounds stupid to me.".   The evening was spent with homework and trumpet practice so we didn't get to set down and watch it together.  Mary and I watched part of it in the late evening and picked up on it the next morning while we were waiting for the sun to come up and fog to lift a little.

Turned out last evening Alex spent the night with a friend so we just had Brooke at home.  She's just turned 13 and still pliable to some extent.  I remainder her about the movie.   She was reluctant but I put it on during supper time.  (I've found they'll even watch Gene Autry during feeding times.)  She rattled along as she normally does only paying little attention to the movie.  We talked about Grace Kelley and how she looked and how she dressed.  I told her about Edith Head and how she was famous for the cloths like Grace Kelly wore, etc.  She thought it "stupid" to dress like that and couldn't see herself in those cloths. 

The romance between Kelly and Stewart got her first attention.  Then she noted when James got suspicions of Raymond Burr's actions and she got suspicious too.  She didn't want to wait to find out.  We wouldn't tell her.  One annoying thing about Brooke is that she loves to talk all the way through a movie.  If she's not discussing or commenting about it, she's repeating the lines.  It's most annoying but I let her go this time.  We'd even paused the movie and talk about it until she got talked out.  Of course she was hooked and kept getting in deeper until she was completely engrossed.

I enjoyed watching her enjoy a great classic movie. 

We talked about it after it was over and how it contrasted with movies made today.  She still couldn't get over why Kelly would put up with that "old man" and why he was so mean to her.

Those girls are growing up fast. :o Hang a moose rack over the door so all the young bucks in the county will think you own a gun.

Bibby you might consider what my neighbor says about his "soon to be teenager " grand daughter. The first boy that shows up will be taken out to the woodshed and given a sound thrashing as an example for the others that will surely follow.  ;D

I just doesn't get any better than this!

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10427/IMG_1544.JPG)

Joel surprised us yesterday by showing up unannounced with the grandsons. We spent the day going from tractor to tractor to semi to dozer to....

Cael is not afraid of anything and when we were in the excavator I was showing him the controls and how they move the bucket and such. I turned to talk to Joel for just a second and he grabbed the joysticks and promptly tried to bury his Dad! I grabbed them quick but then he grabbed the grouser sticks and almost spun us around. I shut off the hydraulics really quick!

Guess he was getting back at Dad.  :D

Congrats on a fun filled day.  Boys like stuff with motors.   Makes no difference whether they are little boys or big boys.    ;D

What a great picture!   :) 

We have a couple of grandkids staying with us this week.  Last night, I fried up some chicken for supper.  As I was dishing up a plate for the seven y.o. grandboy, I asked him what part he likes best.  "The outside" said he. 8) :D :D

DanG, I like the way your 7 year old gkid thinks.
I don't like recipes that say, "STEP 1" Remove and discard chicken skin.
I can't help but love it and all the seasonings.

That 7-year-old is definitely a keeper, DanG! ;)

Quote from: Tom on July 22, 2002, 08:42:26 PM
This young'un was the pride of my life.  My first child and he was a boy to boot.  I couldn't have been any happier.  He loved wheels and tires, spending hours sitting and turning one on its axle.
(https://forestryforum.com/images/YaBBImages/userpics/tommyc1973.jpg)
(https://forestryforum.com/images/YaBBImages/userpics/tommyc2000.jpg)

Then he turned into this monster diesel mechanic that could pick logs up and put them on the mill and rebuild a auto engine or bulldozer in a flash. He's still my pride but he sure is an armful to hug. :D

My son also loves to do that Tom.   

 (https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/28428/DSCN2764.JPG) 

 (https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/28428/DSCN2761.JPG)

He is 14 now, and could weld at 10 yrs old.  :P

Brooke had a class in welding last spring at school. She was very excited about it. Her fist attempt was frustrating. The helmet didn't fit or work right. The glass was too dark so she couldn't get a arc struck or make a bead. The next time went better. The helmet fit and she could get an arc established.

I asked her if she got to weld two pieces of steel together.  She didn't but she made her initials, a heart and a smiley face. She was pretty proud of herself.

This evening I drove the Mule up to the mailbox.   I got to the fork in the road and saw the neighbor lady had just got home and was walking back from her mailbox with her oldest daughter, about 3.  I couldn't resist.  I had to pull on down and say hi.   She had retrieved the little one from the child seat and came back out to greet me.  Both babies are beautiful blue eyed blondes with the cutest dimples.  The older girl could keep up a pretty good conversation but the baby couldn't talk yet but she had five teeth.  The older was real querious about the Mule and walked around it and was just tall enough to see what I had in the back. I sure enjoined visiting with them if only for a minute.

The new neighbors next up the road have a little dark haired girl with hazel eyes that sparkle.  She's just started talking.  They often drive down our drive in a golf cart. The little one just loves the ride.  If they see me out near the sawshed they will stop and visit a minute.

Or course,   I'm remembering back when Brooke and Alex were little and I had some importance in their lives.  Now they get home from school and get over the transition to being home and then it's off to their bedrooms to study or more likely text friends or listen to music on their ipads.   They come out for supper,  gulp it down and then back off to their rooms.

I've been going back and reading some of the posts and enjoying the pictures. 

We have a lot of new folks on the Forum.  Maybe they have a picture and story to tell.

I have a neighbor up the road that has twins girls about 5 and another girl that is 6. Those girls love cucumbers. they come to the veggie stand and pick out 3 cukes. I give them thier own bags and they think they really have something. Than they have to get on to the swing. I made one that is between 2 trees. It hold all 3 girls easy. Than they need a push. They call me Cucumber Man. I am working down by the road alot. Those girls are just a waving on the way by. It's great to be young.

I almost forgot about the other 3 girls. They have a camp on the pond. They love to come and play with our dog pumpkin. The dog has just as much fun as the girls!! When they left to go back to NH they had to come to say goodbye to Pumpkin. The Father got to see who Pumpkin was. I guess our dog was a hot topic at camp.

I have a nephew, Derek, that was interested in sea life and all the critters in the ocean and my sister, Louise, would go out of her way to get him any books and movies to feed this obsession and to keep him occupied with something productive and she would read with him and watch movies, etc.
Once when he was 4 years old we had all loaded up in the car and went down to the Monterey Aquarium. A huge place for folks to come see the marine life off the California coast with huge tanks, exhibits and glass walls seeing into the bay.
A very nice young lady was our tour guide and was doing a great job telling us all about the animals, and all the stuff that I sure don't remember. She was in the middle of telling us about a particular animals habits or something unique about it when Derek says that's not right and tries telling us how it was. This young lady was nice enough to stop and go get a book to show Derek and the other 50 people standing there how it actually was. Well, pretty quick she started getting a bit red in the face and excused herself, walking away at a fast pace. Pretty quick a young man wearing the same uniform comes out and lets us know he'd be finishing the tour with us. 8) There was a bit of laughing and carrying on by most of the group, but I think poor Derek was embarrassed along with my sister.
I will credit the young lady for coming back out before it was over and in front of everyone thanked Derek and presented him with a BIG book on marine life.
Today, at almost 35, Derek travels the world on ships doing what he loves.

Changing my avatar to my oldest grandson, Nathan, and I realized that I introduced each grandchild in this thread.  Nathan is introduced on page 4 and updated on page 20. 

I read the whole thread this morning, and what a wonderful thread about children, so thank you @Bibbyman (https://forestryforum.com/board/index.php?action=profile;u=34). 

Nathan is 12 now, and very hard to get a picture.  In this photo, he's accepting his tested belt in taekwondo.  As of today, he has tested as high as he is permitted until he is 16.  He's very big for his age, and the football coach at his school stands weeping in the hallway when he passes by because, Nathan is not at all interested in football.   :D

Thanks,  I enjoy going back through the old topics - a number of which I started.

Brooke got married last November,  a few days after her 17th birthday.   Alex is out of high school and kind of deciding on what she wants to do next. 

Wow, hard to believe, amazing how time flies. I have followed this thread and shared your joys and tribulations.

They grow up way too fast.  I loved seeing this thread back up, thanks Roxie!  We moved this summer as many of you heard, and I love the "community" we moved into, within 2-3 miles I can count 13 kids under 16 years old, most of which I either went to school with their parents or work or have worked with them.  They all know us and we them, it's a lot of fun watching them grow up and realizing the talent, respect, and genuine kindness there still is out there, they also know each and everyone is welcome at our doorstep anytime.

Quote from: Roxie on January 13, 2016, 10:45:47 AM
Nathan is 12 now, and very hard to get a picture.  In this photo, he's accepting his tested belt in taekwondo.  As of today, he has tested as high as he is permitted until he is 16. ...

I just saw the picture and figured ... grandson + Taekwondo. I hope he'll continue training and won't be discouraged by the wait for his next test.

He's devoted to training and learning.  His favorite part is the "frightening" reflexes of the sport.  It took so long to find a sport he likes, once he broke a board, he was hooked. 

Please excuse my ignorance, but could you enlighten me as to what "frightening reflexes" are?

That's great, Roxie.

I've known a lot of young people in the oriental martial arts who were totally focused on getting their next promotion. Most of them quit within a year or two.

The ones who were focused on always trying to improve their performance (and weren't worried about their next promotion) ended up being in for the long haul.

Ox, when Nathan started he was only six years old.  After his first class, I asked him if he liked it, and he told me that the reflexes on the older members were "frightening" fast.  I think the word he was searching for was lightning, but having watched some of the testing for the upper belts, frightening is a pretty good description, especially if you're six.   

Bibbyman,I have enjoyed watching your "Younger Folks" grow up through the years.   ;D It was good that you both was there for them.

Thanks, Roxie. 

Bibbyman - I just wanted you to know that your posts have always been among my very favorites, up there with Mr. Tom's.

Hi Guys,

I've read this topic at least twice, and with my memory it was new both times and it reminds me why I love this forum. One day I hope to meet Lynn and Bibby and Pat and many of you wonderful folks, but until then I'll try to participate and contribute as I can.

This thread is a peach, and at 62 with three wonderful kids and 6 even more wonderful grandkids I too have lots of memories I love to share when I can. I started my professional life at sea and since I spent a lot of my time away from family I started writing a journal to be able to share with my kids to one day try to tell them where they come from.

So far much of it is unshared but waits for them to discover, parts and pieces have been shared when it was pertinent to lifetime issues, and I have noticed my kids at times reading quietly some of my 40 year old journals. They chuckle when they find themselves the center of a story, and at 38, 34 and 32, they can begin to appreciate my mindset "way back in the day".

In keeping with this thread I'll share a note from about 20 years ago.

My oldest daughter was typically the "experimental" child, she tested us, and we tried to keep up. By the time she was 15 she was a handful, knew it all and wanted to be her own boss. Headstrong like her mother and pigheaded like her dad.

We bred and showed horses as a hobby then and she had a very special relationship with our senior stallion, who was also one of the most notable stallions of his breed in the world at that time. We were at a week long county fair at the end of the season that allowed the kids to take the reins instead of the adult professionals in an environment that allowed us to wind down after a season of exhibitions and competitions. All week they waited their turn to show, and my daughter was to lead the opening ceremonies for our show.

The fair starts with the 4H show, three days of their competitions, and then the second half of the week we took over the ring to do driving and pulling competitions. Our group had their own barn adjacent to the 4H barns, and we watched for three days as they went thru their paces. We never participated in 4H because we found the "politics" of their rigid competitions a bit too fast paced for our taste, the winning drive didn't appear to be worth the cost to "pay to play" so we tried to keep it fun.

A young lady in 4H, my daughters friend, stalled her horse at the end of the 4H barn closest to us and tried very hard to compete. She had a nice little QH who she was with every minute of the day when she could. We knew the family by sight because they ran a carriage horse business out of their family farm, took great care of their horses and were good folks. This young lady was the same age as my daughter and they struck up a friendship over the years at horse events.

The family wasn't very well off, struggling to make ends meet while trying to hang on to the family farm, so their budget for show gear was pretty much none existent. Almost all her show clothes her mother made, her saddle was second hand, bridle quite well worn, but it was all neat, clean and cared for. The kids she more often than not competed against had thousand dollar saddles, 10K horses, and full time trainers for their horses and always seemed to get those coveted ribbons.

This young lady, for all her effort and quite good riding ability always stayed in the back of the field, but every time she left the ring she hugged her horse and let him know that he was number one to her.

The show days for her for the week were about over and the opening ceremonies for our group were to begin that afternoon. My daughter said her friend was pretty depressed that it seemed that for all her efforts she was destined for mediocrity, so many of the stalls in the row had ribbons fluttering in the breezes but hers was conspicuously bare, and spent the morning crying about it (I have since found that girls at that age can bottle up the teasing and mocking they endure until one day it surfaces and how it's handled by the adults in the room can be critical).

That kid who I thought I knew so well, my daughter, asked me something I sometimes still can't get my head around, she asked if her friend could ride her horse (my stallion) in the opening ceremonies leading the parade carrying the American flag. It about floored me.

Understand, this stallion is one in a million, was the star of the fair, gathered more visitors than any other animal there, and had fans that scheduled their trip to the fair to see him. All this attention my daughter soaked up as she was his full time handler and rider at the fair. They were home town rock stars.

And here she was willing to give up her spotlight to a friend who needed the boost. You should have seen the crowd when her friend rode out into the arena and all her "friends" realized that she was riding the horse they all coveted to ride. My daughter was pacing her about 4 feet away out of view and stayed with them at the walk around the arena and to the center line up for pictures and she was beaming as wide as her friend was on the horse she loved so much.

My heart was in my throat, and proud was an understatement. Since that day they have gone on to do great things and one more time in their riding adventures many years later she would once again give up her seat to another because her abilities were better suited to handle the stallion of another rider in a performance troupe (night time performance in total darkness with 8 stallions wearing lights at the premier dressage competition in the country) where her own stallion could ride the performance without guidance.

But that day many years ago at 15 she showed me a side of herself I didn't know was there and I knew that she'd make it in life. She and her wonderful husband have given us two phenomenal grandkids and the adventure continues. Oh the tales I can tell.

Proud, you bet. Please keep sharing, this reminiscing reminds me of all the good in the world and judging from what you've shared you all have every right to be proud as well.

All the best to you and yours,

Joe

Thanks for sharing your story Joe. Amazing. Blessings to your family.  :)

What a fantastic story.  It makes me realize what a better person can see and think.  Quite humbling.  Excellent story, thanks for sharing it.

Thank you for sharing that, my 15 year old daughter has a 28 year old mare that taught her how to ride and now she lets the neighbor kids use her for shows so they can learn too, believe me I know the feeling of pride  ;).  She still gets mad at me when I use her for cattle work though, but I'm old and frail enough she's the only one I trust  :D.  Sadly we just lost a colt that was to be Rylie's, I truly believe he would have been one in a million.  This is Rylie and her old mare Diamond a couple years ago.


 (https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/22514/everyday_pictures_094.jpg?easyrotate_cache=1339388631)

Looks like a nice combination, Pat.   smiley_thumbsup

Kids and horses, matches made in heaven. What a beautiful pair they are. It's amazing the bond that develops between horsey kids and horses, old souls taking young ones under their wings.

Joe

Thanks for bringing this back up, and sharing the girls stories.  "We sure could use a little good news today."   :)

I agree Roxie, thanks Josef.  We have our first show this Sunday and unless it rains I'll probably have to miss it, I love this one too because it's in a small town out in the sandhills with nothing but a bunch of ranch kids with their ranch horses, not the 50000 dollar trailers pulling up with 20000 dollar horses inside with the trainer, then showing some kid how to ride before they load it back up so they can take it back with them.  This show really is a lot of fun for everyone and the judges spend more time helping the kids learn then they do judging them.  Makes us feel a little better when we show up with our rusty stock trailers filled with 500 dollar horses, last year they asked "are you coming back next year, you doubled our contestants!" (my daughter, nieces, and nephew, plus a neighbor or two) :D.  Absolutely, I really hope I can make it and get some pictures for you all.

Thanks Dave, Ox and Roxie. I agree, in the world today we should look to more "good news" when ever we can, it's all way too easy to dwell on the negative and fall into the allure of the sensational.

We hosted a youth camp for horse kids for many summers (a while ago) opened it to any kid who could get here, no cost, no fees, just 4 days of total equine immersion. The TV got shut off at the start, all computer games were restricted to "after hours" and we had a ball! Sleeping bags everywhere, adult mentors got the cots and couches, horses were donated, and everyone was exhausted at the end of the day. Had excellent trainers (professionals who donated their time) and the kids got instructed in grooming, riding, driving and even pulling logs, they practiced a routine for a ridden demo and rode for their parents at the end of the weekend. I got to cook for about 40 at each camp, and we ate well, played hard, and slept like logs. The general consensus was that the adults got way more out of the weekend than the kids, or at least we thought so.

Pat, I envy you your time with your kids and their horses, we're downsizing, the kids have moved farther away but I remember those days with fond memories. Lots of miles, lots of work and the most fun I ever had. I remember a question at one of our exhibitions from a young parent, why would we go to all this work and effort, my answer, I get to spend a long weekend with my kids doing something we all love, with horses that mean more to them than some people, where they are in the spotlight and on top of the world, why wouldn't I do this?

Enjoy these times, they pass all too quickly,

Joe

You guys are building wonderful memories for everyone involved and helping those kids fuel their passions.  8) 8)
My niece's 6 year old told her he had a bad dream, they were at a wedding and mom was standing with him near the bride. When she asked what was so bad about that he replied "KISSING" :D

Thank you guys for sharing a bit of your daughter's hearts.  Enjoy them and cherish the memories.   :)

I can't believe you guys are still adding to this old topic.  116 thousand plus reads. I just went back and read the first 6 pages. 

What jogged my memory was a text conversation with Brooke's new husband J D.   They have been married a little over a year and now live in  Okey, Oklahoma.  She is finishing up her senior year of high school and works part time at some ice cream place. He works at ACME making fans. I'm sure they are on a tight budget.  J D commented that they went BIG grocery shopping the other day and it made Brooke happy.

His comment brought up to memory Brooke's grocery list of years ago.



 (https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10034/wsbrookelist200601.JPG?easyrotate_cache=1192056704)

STRAWBERRIES
WHIP CREAM
BISCUTS
SPUGETI
SOSAGO
TOMATOSOSE
HAM
BENSE
CORNBERAD
FRID POTATO
GORLIC BRAD
PORK
EVOO
ZICENY
BOTTOR
FLEWOR
EGGS

WOW just read the hole 30 pages of this for the first time it was great wish I would have done it sooner how time does fly ill have to dig up some pics of my 2 girls  thanks for posting all the events that  every one went through 

My niece's 7 year old "Can you get my backpack from the quad?"
Mom (laughing) "No"
Him "What does a kid have to do to get his parent's help around here, get his leg chewed off by a grizzly or something?" So dramatic  :D

http://youtu.be/AOchsKPLfR0

We met son Gabe, granddaughter Alex and 8 month old great-grandson Eli at Cracker barrel yesterday for breakfast.   Alex was feeding Eli yogurt.   I suggested she slip him some grits.  I didn't have my phone ready to catch his first reaction.   

awww poor thing making him eat grits  :) :) 8) 8)

He likes them!   :D

Alex has grown!   :o   Eli is adorable.   :)

Quote from: Roxie on March 02, 2017, 08:13:59 AM
Alex has grown!   :o   Eli is adorable.   :)

After Eli was born I was exchanging text messages with Alex.   I asked if Eli was ok.  She replied, "Grandpa,  he's perfict.".  A few days later we were exchanging text messages and I asked if Eli was still perfect.  She said, "Yes, but he's started pooping.". 

 :D :D

Bibbyman that is classic  :D :D

Grits can keep you regular. 

Pepperoni pizza will do that too.  :)

Quote from: WDH on March 02, 2017, 08:15:38 PM
Grits can keep you regular.

If you eat them regular.  :)

Since this is a thread on Younger Folks,and I haven't figured out how to post pictures from a cell phone. There's a picture of My Youngest Son in the November 2016 issue of Great Lakes Timber Producers Association Magazine. It's The Tug O War picture. He's the one with the short hair cut. My Other Son's knee is right behind him. It when Wisconsin pulled Michigan. 8) Sounds like that don't happen very often.

A sad update on My Son I just posted about earlier. He Passed Away in a ATV accident on March 19th. He was a Great Son as well as a Great Man and a Great Logger. He was 28 years old. He was also a Organ Donor & he helped 5 different people with The Gift Of Life.

That is sad to hear. Too young to live this great place of life.

Logger RK, you were very blessed to have a son who not only gave on earth but is continually giving life to others in the future.
Prayers to you and your family.

Sorry for your loss

  As sad as it is, in multiple ways your son lives on. Condolences.

Quote from: logger RK on April 07, 2017, 05:25:03 AM
A sad update on My Son I just posted about earlier. He Passed Away in a ATV accident on March 19th. He was a Great Son as well as a Great Man and a Great Logger. He was 28 years old. He was also a Organ Donor & he helped 5 different people with The Gift Of Life.

Wow Logger RK, I dont know what to say.  So glad he was an Organ Donor.... *DanG..hang tough, your family & his friends are going to need you. 

Words do not come easy in times like this.  I certainly can not relate because I have never been in your shoes.  I do offer my sincere condolences during this time of sorrow and loss.  Cherish the memories.

I am truly sorry for your loss, I can't imagine a greater pain than losing a child. :'(

There are no words, we lost who we claimed as our son in law several months ago but considered him our son anyway to a car accident, he was 26.  Stay strong, it'll never get better but it will get a little easier and after awhile you will actually laugh sometimes when something sparks a memory of him.  Thoughts and prayers for all.

Thank you for the kind words and support. Me and My Wife received his Ashes yesterday. He told his Brothers if he Died where he'd want his Ashes to be scattered. On a Rock Ridge not far from are Home. He got his Biggest White tail Buck there. (Which is mounted & hanging on my wall now looking at Me while I write this). Me and My other Son went to are Logging site yesterday for the first time since this happened. We were pretty quiet. But we started my Hahn to make sure no water got in it from sitting to long. And also so the neighbor's heard The Deitrot and know we'll be OK. I read a good quote yesterday. You never know how strong you are until being strong is the only choice you have. Bob Marley. And by the way,My Son's name was Andrew. Everyone called him Andy. I appreciate this forum very much. Thank You's All.

Wow RK, I am so sorry for your loss. I can't even imagine.

Logger RK,  so very sorry for your loss, 
our thoughts and prayers are with you and your family.

D

sorry for your loss

One last thing I'd like to say is,if you have a Honda Rancher with over 2000 miles I'd change the steering tie rod's. I was told that Andy hit some pot holes on the dirt road going around 25mph & the inner tie rod end came off. Causing that side wheel to  turn sharp,causing it to flip. He held on to the handle bars as it flipped. I have the same make & model of wheeler with over 26,000 & they have come off on me,but usually going through a rough trail at slow speed. We never even thought it would happen as it did. I have His 88 Chevy with his wheeler in the back & I go look at it once in awhile. Trying to make sense of it. But if he was wearing a helmet it would've turned out for the better,I think anyways.

RK, I am sorry for your loss. 

logger RK i am just seeing this for the first time and i am truly sorry for your loss  ;) we lost a daughter  about 21 years ago as an infant and i know it takes a while to get anywhere close to back to normal but hang in there you can do it :)

we buried mom yesterday and as sad as it was it was nowhere close to bad as the death of my little girl my thoughts ad prayer are truly with you and your family :(

Quote from: beenthere on March 03, 2003, 04:55:26 PM
I often wonder how a barber (let alone two) can make any money cutting hair. Even if he gets $12 a head, and can cut 3 an hour, seems the pay is marginal when figuring in overhead, taxes, benefits, etc. But they keep enough of them around, so it must be exciting and profitable for them. Now add an empty chair and one head in 45 minutes, seems to cut into any profits pretty quick. Hmmm?
Cute kid sleeping under that hard-hat. Glad I had mine on in the woods couple days ago when a good sized limb fell and crunched it down on my head. Saw a few stars but no wounds to heal.

My sister manages a barber shop in Seattle, awhile back she mentioned her shops sales that month were $75k.   :o

Just noticed that the post above mine was a completely different topic.. I just started into this thread and hadn't gotten very far into it.  I'm sorry to hear about your losses, Logger RK and Sandsawmill.  When it's your time it's your time and there's nothing no one can do to change that.  It is real tough when it happens especially when it's unexpected.  A guy I used to work with, Andrew Silvers, recently passed in February at 35 years old, it was in his sleep around 2 am, something went and he puked blood all over the place and he died instantly.  He seemed to be a healthy enough guy, no one saw it coming.   :-\       

Quote from: Bogue Chitto on June 15, 2012, 03:25:17 PM
He is 14 now, and could weld at 10 yrs old.  :P

Now son is 20.  Builds boats and other things.

 (https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/28428/Jacks2C_Boat.jpg?easyrotate_cache=1513782073) 

 (https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/28428/boat.jpg?easyrotate_cache=1513782138) 

 (https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/28428/craw_fish_pot.jpg?easyrotate_cache=1513782267)

He has certainly leaarned his craft, that is nice work

That last picture is a crawfish cooker.

Everybody needs one of those  ;D. 

A 20 year old  cranking out that quality work, I am impressed .

Very nice indeed.   8)

Quote from: WDH on December 20, 2017, 04:52:06 PM
Everybody needs one of those  ;D.

Not everybody has crawfish  ;D

Well done!

Quote from: sawguy21 on December 21, 2017, 12:16:37 PM

Quote from: WDH on December 20, 2017, 04:52:06 PM
Everybody needs one of those  ;D.

Not everybody has crawfish  ;D

But everyone needs Crawfish.   ;D

Heck, I'd be happy just to say I had the ability to build either to that quality, I'll go find the crawfish later  :), very nice indeed!

Build it and they will come. 

Brooke and Alex update. Married with children.

Eli Alex Jeremiah.jpg
Alex Eli and Jeremiah 

Brooke Emma JD.jpg

Brooke, Emma, JD 

@Bibbyman ! Welcome home!  ffsmiley  thankyou for the update.

Thank You Bibby.  Seeing you post this was a breath of fresh air.  ffcool

WOW!!! They have grown!!! 
Thank you!!! 
I can remember you posting about them.

It's good to see you back on here.