Rambling

This week has been a long, hard week for me. I was looking forward to having a 3 day weekend but Thursday our office received some devastating news. A former Turner County 4-Her was killed in a grain bin accident. He was only 23. He was working with his dad when the accident happened. There was a lot of wet corn that went into the bins this past fall and I fear that there may be more accidents to come. My heart and condolences goes out to the Graber Family. I cannot begin to imagine the pain and suffering that they are going through.



Since this is my personal blog and as a private citizen I have the right to free speech I need to get a few things off my chest. Has anyone paid any attention to the budget cuts that Governor Rounds has presented? Our youth will be impacted severely from cutting the arts to the SD State Fair. Also, there is a bill/proposal to tax non-profit groups (political and religious groups are exempt) for dues, etc. Also, the budget for Extension is looking to get cut by $ 1 million dollars. For Extension this will mean eliminating 15 positions and cutting travel. If anyone feels compelled to do something please contact your legislators or those on the joint appropriations committee. They need to hear why these programs or others listed in the budget cuts are near and dear to your heart. The more heart-felt, tear jerking the better. I understand that we are in tough economic times but cutting programs that focus on our youth is not the answer!

Happy Valentine's Day!!

Make a Smilebox greeting

What I have been up to...

The need to create and do something crafty got the better of me the last couple of weeks (ever since that last cold snap) so I decided that I wanted to try crocheting. I bought a skein of yarn and a crochet hook and starting looking things up on-line to see what I needed to do. I figured out how to do a single crochet and apparently I do a decorative pattern. I only take one stitch versus doing the traditional single crochet by taking up both stitches. Benjamin was pretty excited about his scarf until Dave told him that boys don't wear scarves. So now he refuses to wear it outside. He will wear it inside, though, so I think he is forgetting what daddy told him. Thanks a lot daddy!

I want to learn how to make an afghan but I will have to wait and rely on my mother-in-law's help. I am not quite sure how you add additional colors when you want to change them up. I have my ideas but not quite sure if that is accurate. I had a good time making this scarf. I have decided that crocheting is very relaxing for me and that seeing a finished project is very motivating! I am working on a scarf for Ada too and I hope to have it done next week.

Fun in the Snow

Ada has been so stir crazy that a day outside was just what this mommy recommended and what this little girl needed! She was in such a bad mood when we first got outside that all she did was lay down and pout. She started to come around when she realized that mommy was not going to give in. By the end of our time outside she was having a great time and did not want to come in!! Unlike, Benjamin, Ada is not a huge fan of sledding. We keep working on it because she loves going for wagon and stroller rides so I think she will grow to love going for a sled ride. Mommy can't get over how easy it is to pull a sled versus pull a wagon! I enjoy being outside as much as possible so playing in the snow was just what we needed!

Sledding and Playing in the Snow

Benjamin loves playing outside in the snow! He likes to make and see his foot prints in fresh snow. You can often find him climb up on top of snow drifts and piles of snow looking for animals to rescue (did I mention that he also loves Diego?). Uncle Corey and Danielle gave Benjamin and Ada each a sled for Christmas and Benjamin loves it/them! He is definitely an active kid and has been so stir crazy with the terrible cold weather that we had for awhile. Whenever, the temperature is nice or at least bearable you will find us outside. Benjamin enjoys playing outside and I enjoy the workout!

Potty Training

Benjamin has had a renewed interest in potty training (we tried when he was 2 1/2 but not much real success). This time things are going alot better. He goes poopy in the potty all the time! He wore big boy underwear for 5 days in a row (don't worry he had a new pair on everyday) and he kept them dry. He still needs to wear nap time and night time underwear but we will take these huge steps! We are so proud of him!! He will tell us when he has to go potty and he gets so proud of himself when he does it. When he was 2 1/2 we tried a motivation chart to get him to go potty and that just didn't work. This time he wanted to go potty (like a school kid--he really wants to go to preschool in the fall) and we didn't have to use any real motivation. When he wore his big boy underwear to Dani's house (daycare) he was so happy and proud of himself. We can't get over how grown-up he is getting!!

Hey Diddle Diddle

Benjamin is such a sweet big brother. Every night he will help say Ada's prayers and then he tells Ada the "Hey Diddle Diddle" riddle. Both kids have always liked this riddle and this riddle is/was the only thing that would help settle them down. It is so sweet to watch Benjamin say Ada's prayers and to listen to him say her riddle.