This that and the other thing...

Waiting impatiently patiently...
My brothers and sisters, when you have many kinds of troubles, you should be full of joy, because you know that these troubles test your faith, and this will give you patience. Let your patience show itself perfectly in what you do. Then you will be perfect and complete and will have everything you need.
James 1:2-4 NCV
It seems we have been doing a lot of waiting these days around the Anderson household. Here is why...

Toothless Tate.


Tate has just been waiting for the perfect opportunity for this wiggley tooth to come out.



Finally, eating his first ear of sweet corn of the season did the trick!

Might I add, he impatiently awaits his payday...that darn tooth fairy! She is horrible at her job and rarely remembers to leave money! In his favor, she usually leaves more when she forgets...


School is FINALLY out!
Avery and Tate have had the count down on! They knew exactly how many days left til the last day of school and they would remind me EVERY SINGLE DAY...Finally, on June 2nd they said good bye to Mound View Elementary and their teachers for the summer. It was much harder on me than them. Their last day brought back a feeling for me, the same feeling I felt many years ago, it seems like just yesterday I was in their shoes. It's funny how that memory is so vivid for me; it's very sweet. They will always remember the first and last day of school for as long as they live! I absolutely love their school and most of all, their teachers; Mrs. Paulson, Mrs. Knutson and Ms. Labs. They are truly a blessing to our family and we are thankful for them! The boys giggle at the fact that they are going to be in different classes and are going into 1st grade next year. We look forward, but for now we embrace summer and our days together. Say a prayer for me:)


Daddy even made a special appearance at the school picnic!



Mini Mounders :)



Can you believe it? They made it into 1st grade!




Avery and his best friend Aiden along with Tate.




Growing goodness.
So, this year I finally got my way. We planted a garden. The busyness of having babies and raising little ones hasn't allowed me the time nor ambition to have a vegetable garden. It seems that lately we are feeding an army of little men so this year I made it a priority! The ground is tilled, seeds are planted and I am THRILLED!


Water, wait, water, wait....grow little garden, grow!



Mother Duck. A tail of two domestic ducks...
A few weeks ago the boys were outside doing whatever it is that little boys do outside...when they stumbled upon a nest behind Ashley's garage. I couldn't believe what I saw; here is what we found...


Mother Duck's nest with approx. 11 eggs.

 So, I did what any woman of the 21st century would do and I googled mallard duck...I found out a whole bunch of cool facts. I was informed that they make nests in these very odd areas, safe from predators...the eggs take 60 days from the first day that she starts laying them until they hatch...she has to 'incubate' lay on them for 28-35 of those days. They will be here within the month of June, sometime.



Here she sits on her nest. Yep, that is my trellis; under it is where she feels safe... I won't be using it until she is done with it:)



She comes off the nest only to eat, once a day.



Father Duck.

So, we impatiently wait along with father duck for the arrival of their sweet little ducklings out in the nest. We are uncertain of the day; we are anxious! Hurry up mother duck.


New toys...scare me to death.
Boys certainly will be boys around here! The latest and greatest fun at the Anderson's is a pair of dirt bikes and a four wheeler. While they scare me to death, I continue to grow in faith...I pray heavens angels watch over my 'babies' everyday and TRUST that it is out of my control but thankfully in God's Hands. I can remember thinking that my mom was completely and utterly insane for worrying about my brothers and I when we raced go carts as young children and she is still, with my brother racing at 25 years old. Now being a mother, I totally understand! I am and will be 'that mom' whether I like it or not. I try to play "cool" when they want me to watch or show me a trick. The truth is, it is only by God's Grace that I can handle to watch even for a minute. They will never understand because unlike me they will never be a mother! Avery and Tate are only allowed to "ride" when their dad is home...so they wait impatiently every day for his arrival home from work.

The video failed to upload...I will post one soon.




It don't matter if we sit forever and the fish don't bite.
Avery and Tate along with Adam (our neighbor boy) love to fish with the canoe out in our pond. They sit, cast their line and wait for a bite! There are hours of entertainment for a boy just waiting; out in a canoe; in the water. They scout turtles and snakes, catch frogs and explore nature from a whole new perspective.


Tate's job... pushing off the shore.



Tate steers, Adam navigates on this trip.



Pool Project.
Well, I am unsure how I feel about it; but, it is what it is. It was five against one. The Anderson's now fit in with the rest of the people in the world who own a "blue pool". I must confess; I may have passed judgement on those of you who own one. I can no longer, because I am now one of you. But let me say that we are taking it one redneck step further and we have plans to build a deck around our 'temporary' pool :) The boys are THRILLED; they wait very impatiently for that piece of blue plastic to come to life! It seems like forever as they sit and wait and watch and wait...

Daddy in his skid steer, digging up the yard.

Dumping a load of sand.

The Anderson Boys watching and waiting.

Leveling out the sand.

Pool installation. Tate cannot wait...doing his part to help.

A work in progress...Slowly, it comes to life. I will post final project pics soon...

As we wait, we are thankful and we praise God for all of the Goodness that He has provided us...it's like the old saying: Good things come to those who wait; in which case we will try a little harder to wait impatiently patiently! Blessings to you on this day, I think Summer is finally here to stay!<><