Crazy and Fast

Life is speeding by crazy-fast and I can't seem to get a block of time big enough to compose a decent post. I've started several interesting posts that remain unfinished (limestone lithograph plates, barn signs, a natural weed killer recipe, cloth diapering info. etc.) But since I don't want to leave the blog dormant, here's a list of tedious "recents" that are noteworthy: 

A hummingbird got trapped in our screened-in gazebo and had to be freed. I think it went in to check out the shiny glass cup that my husband had left there. We feed them, and so they check the windows (since we have a feeder suctioned to the dining room window) and they check out shiny bottle-like things too, as we have a glass feeder suspended from a tree.

My oldest saw a 5 foot black snake wound around the downspout when he was mowing. He walked over to check it out and it dropped in a coil to the ground and managed to disappear. We have yet to figure out where it went, and think that it was a black rat snake.

My husband and oldest helped bring in our neighbor's hay. They pay to store it in our lower barn. It was a bumper crop! My husband threw the majority of probably 350 square bales up to the loft for storage. My 14 year old drove our pickup in the field when the load got too tall for him to heft bales on.

The aforementioned child also attended a week of sailing classes. He did some solo sailing, and often had the tiller when sailing in a group. He loved it, and knows more sailing jargon than I do now. He is attending robotics workshops this week. Later today the Lego robot he programmed with 3 other boys will compete against 5 other teams. I hope to go watch the competition.

My husband took our small, wooden sailboat out on the lake on Father's Day weekend for it's "maiden voyage". The pond is 2 acres, but fingered, and not roomy enough for sailing, so he rowed it. He reported that it is super fast and lives up to the name of "swift" carved into her side.

Additionally, his "start-up" company has been dominating our lives lately. He's been traveling, has worked long days, is texting/e-mailing frequently, and has worked evenings and even on a weekend. He's always "behind" as the workload is heavy, timing is all-important, and there are a handful of employees. Despite his busyness, he managed to put together an over-sized swing set though, for which my children are grateful. He also bought more play sand for me to spread in the over-sized sandbox he built last summer and took down the giant Christmas star from the back of the barn, etc.

My 4 month old is doing some serious teething. Thankfully he is still a mild-mannered and happy baby, but he's been fussy and his sleep (and mine!) is suffering. He also seems very interested in food.

The tractor saga continued. The repair place had promised us free labor on the wring harness due to their involvement in its demise, but when he went to pay for the part cost after it was replaced, they charged him for the extensive labor too, because it was "more work" than they had "anticipated". He pushed the issue and only paid for half the labor, but this was very frustrating and expensive for us. At least we can mow the pasture and such now.

A possum has now found the grill, and along with the 'coon makes it part of his nightly rounds.

One of the over-arching items in the last weeks has been my latest and ongoing bout of kidney stones. I was diagnosed with a milk of calcium stone about 5 years ago after I had an attack that required hospitalization during my pregnancy with my youngest daughter. It was described to me by the urologist as being a diverticulum in my kidney filled with a slurry of calcium and stones. There is no set treatment for this rare condition, so I adopted a "wait and see" approach. I have experienced kidney pain and random frequency/urgency issues for brief intervals over the years, but nothing major- until I started passing stones on Memorial Day weekend (when my in-laws were "camping" here in their RV.)  I have continued to pass stones on and off since then. Just the other day I passed a stone the size of a green garden pea! I was urinating and heard an audible "plink". Upon further investigation, I was shocked and disgusted buy the size of the thing. I'm hoping that was the climax, so to speak, and I will no longer be cramping painfully, peeing crimson, feeling the need to go when I can't, or feeling the need to urinate so frequently. I have been imbibing vast quantities of cranberry juice, which I dislike. Hopefully that helped. And at least I was able to avoid the hospital and the massive painkillers that would have been problematic for my nursing son. This has allowed my husband to work uninterrupted, allowed me to continue breast feeding the baby, and saved us money, etc.

The other over-arching item of the past weeks has been my father's health. He suffered two "micro-heart attacks" this month (although we did not know what they were at the time, as he showed no signs of heart damage during subsequent testing) and is scheduled for an open-heart valve replacement surgery next week. He made a quick visit here to say his "in-case-I-die" goodbyes. And I intend to take the baby and travel two states away to "help". This leaves my husband caring for the other four children for a longer time than he ever has, and squeezing in some non-postponable work in the evenings. It will be good for them though, as he's been all-consumed by work for the past three years. They need their daddy. And he needs their distraction.

Other than that, I think that everything else is commonplace: the endless and profuse laundry, the constant and copious dirty dishes, the meal planning, cooking, and clean-up, the "schooling", etc. The rainy weather has continued, and the loooong driveway is nearly impassable. The insects are terrible. The humidity is nearly unbearable. And we're all getting a bit of cabin fever, despite it being June.

So, to wrap up, please pray for my safe travels, for the success of my father's surgery and recovery, for the end to my kidney issues, for family unity, and for help with keeping up with everything. Thank you!