December wildlife

Wildlife Seen in December

* 6 deer

December's Backyard Birds

* bluejays
* cardinals
* chickadees
* northern shrike
* white-breasted nuthatches
* hairy woodpeckers
* downy woodpeckers

Books read in 2007

* Square Foot Gardening
* Hamlet
* The Apple Grower
* Type 2 Diabetes Basics
* Everything I Want to Do Is Illegal
* Letters from a Nut
* This Country Life
* An Unlit Path
* Jayber Crow
* When Love Is Not Enough
* Cane River

Food preserved in 2007

* 15 quarts apple pie filling
* 5 quarts tomatoes
* 7 pints green beans
* 28 jars apple butter
* 42 quarts applesauce
* 14 quarts corn
* 12 oz. juneberry jam
* 18 pints gooseberry jam
* 24 pints blueberry jam
* 16 cups rhubarb

This is the best year yet!

This is the best year I've ever had in the sense that, I got wonderful gifts! I got:

• 5 pairs of clip-on earrings (3 from Michael, 2 from Grandma)
• A diary (Grandma and Grandpa)
  
• A beautiful purple shirt (Grandma & Grandpa)
• A violin pin that goes well with the shirt (friends)
• A Nancy Drew book (friends)
• An Elsie Dinsmore book (Mom and Dad)
• A picture frame with pics of my best friends (Mom and Dad)

And that's not even including stocking stuffers or family gifts! The funny thing is that I wanted all those things except the pin, which is so pretty that if anyone took it I would want it back right away, and there's nothing I really wanted that I didn't get. My favorite is the picture frame because it reminds me that my friends are still real, and still want to send me letters, and that helps me write the way that I would speak to them.

Well I need to get to bed. Thanks for reading!
Lynae

Last minute plans

When I was growing up near here, there was an older couple who bought land across the creek from us and built a cabin there. B and E lived in the Cities and came up on weekends for years, until their cabin was built. We used to visit back and forth every weekend, and my mom kept in touch with them over the years.

When we came to MN on vacation, B put a fire in the stove for us before we arrived at the cabin my parents built. We stopped in to visit with them for a while (except a couple of the boys, who played in the snow the entire time).

Between then and the time we moved up here a year ago, B died. E sold their cabin and moved to town. I knew where she lived and thought of her every time I drove by, but never did call or stop in. I'm not good at that.

This afternoon, as usual, I got a call from Loren when he got off the interstate near her house. (From there, it's 10 minutes home on a poorly plowed road, so we know where to look if someone lands in the ditch.) I told Loren to stop at E's house, and if she was home, invite her to dinner tomorrow. And so he did. She was planning to spend Christmas home, alone. Instead, we will pick her up and she'll be here with my chattering, hollering, headstanding, somersaulting crew!

Slender young hare #5

Was caught yesterday. I saw a slender young hare (SYH) trail through some high brush, so I put a 1 1/2 long spring trap right in front of where the good hiding places are on Friday. I caught an SYH the next day. Ever since then it has been snowing, and there are fresh tracks in that area, so I hope to catch another soon. I replaced the steel trap with a snare, because snares work better for SYHs.

In addition to slaying evil SYHs seeking to possess my high brush, I have learned some new songs on my guitar. I have learned to play "I'm for You" (Toby Mac), "East to West" (Casting Crowns) and "What Could be Better" (33 Miles).

Dog training is going pretty well. Alvin gets bored really easily, but he now alerts Mr. B at the sound of:
The smoke alarm
The telephone
Me calling Mr. B
Me knocking on the door.

Last night we made gingerbread houses. We got done around 10:00 p.m. and Mom said "OK, everybody put on your hats, gloves, coats, and snowpants. 2 hour snow romp". Well, we were out there till midnight. I would have checked all my traps, but it was too late because the law states that trap setting and tending hours are between 5 a.m. and 10 p.m.

Welcome to my world

As winter descends upon us, the dry air leaves skin chapped. We are newly arrived at a point where the littles can apply lotion themselves without much risk of mishap. Jon's hands were so dry that when he first began applying lotion, they would burn. I told him to apply a small amount after each handwashing, and reminded him over the course of a few days with little acknowledgement. One evening he was remarking to Loren that his hands were very dry. Loren told him he should apply a small amount of lotion after each handwashing. His response: "That's a good idea, Dad!"

One afternoon, I took Lynae to volunteer at the nursing home. Since the hospital waiting room was empty, I took Jon and Michael in there to do school work. Between assignments, I got them a cookie and broke it roughly in half. I gave Jon the smaller half, broke a tiny bite off the larger half to even it out, and gave the rest to Michael. Later, I heard Jon telling Lynae about it... "Michael got the biggest piece, then her, then me. So I got the smallest piece."

Earlier this week, we found ourselves at a non-Arby's "fast" food restaurant. As I filled a cup at the drink station, I saw something I wish I hadn't seen on a soda head. I showed it to the cashier and let him know, very politely, that he might want to make sure the soda heads were cleaned well that night. Loren piped up from behind me, "Yes, just take them off and soak them." (I don't know what the standard is now, but I did that every single night when I worked in a restaurant. How about you?) Anyway, Jon's comment as we walked away was, "You're good at that, Dad!"

This morning we were enjoying doughnuts with our coffee. Toby hadn't had much to eat, so I told him he could make some toast, and even sprinkle it with cinnamon and sugar if he wanted. Jon chimed in, "I know, we could make cinnamon toast!"

December Days

Written and directed by Lynae

December Days on YouTube

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