Happy Birthday, Stephen!

My favorite middle son turned 16 today.  It often overwhelms me how fast these boys are growing up!  Older and up, I guess.  Although Stephen seems to have levelled off at 6'2".  Now he just has to put a little meat on those long bones.  He looks like such a toothpick on the football field.  But looks can be deceiving, as some of the opposing team members can attest.  He swung one poor quarterback around and threw him about three yards!  Today's QB was a little more slippery, so Stephen took a more offensive approach, intercepted a pass, and ran about 70 yards for a touchdown.  I wonder if the coach is rethinking his decision to put him on the defensive line....

Anyway, the Rebels are 3 and 0 after today's home opener. And they are having a blast.  I was a little worried that those big heads wouldn't fit in the door when they got home after the big team supper celebration, but both Adam and Stephen are safely in bed.  They have been burning the candle at both ends, trying to harvest and still make most of the football practices.   Stephen was cut from the AAA team he was trying out for, and I think that is a good thing.  He wasn't really sure he wanted to play on that team, or if he wanted to move away to do so.  And he and I were both having second thoughts about the coaching there.  So he will stay home and play on the Midget team here, and will be affiliated with the new Junior B team that is starting here this year.   No pressure - he can just coast.  And that's just how he likes it.

Poor Clem was left combining all by himself today while Derek and I went to watch the game. He and the boys licked up three small fields of barley last night, and it busheled really well.  Imagine having to worry about bin space in the dry year that we've had!  So there is about 150 acres of barley left to go, and then the wheat.  The peas and lentils are safely in the bin, except for a few spots that are still ripening.  They will get cleaned up when the cereal grains are finished.  If it hasn't snowed by then!

We are still enjoying fresh vegetables from the garden, although the variety is more limited!  We had the last few cobs of corn last night for supper.  The tomatoes are starting to slow down.  And then there are just the potatoes, carrots, and onions to bring in.  Not as many as last year, but that is a good thing.  I ended up giving away potatoes and carrots this spring as we wouldn't have been able to finish them before they went bad.  

Derek gave us a scare the other day when he ended up with a concussion after hitting heads with another boy while playing touch football at recess.  Only Derek can have an accident like that.  He was pretty groggy for a couple of days, with a good headache and nausea.  But he seems to be getting over it.  In fact, when I got to the school for the football game today, he was playing touch football with his friends.  Yep.  He was told no physical activity for a week, and the next day he's playing football.  This child will be the end of me, I swear.

And the end sometimes doesn't seem that far away!  Today I received my new BIFOCALS!!!! Talk about feeling old!  The really sad thing is that they work, so I must have really needed them.  I had been trying to convince myself that the optometrist was out to lunch, but no, I need bifocals.  Enjoy your youth while it lasts, kiddies!

Well, the house is quiet, and as much as I enjoy visiting with you, I best be off to bed, to rest before the start of a new day here at the zoo.

Thanks for stopping by!
Chandra