Vayda got herself a J-O-B !

Vayda got a JOB!

In this picture she just finished 4 hours of strawberry picking in the rain and mud. Shes a wreck but shes happy because today was her first pay day. Shes holding $116 ! She stands to make alot more. Shes got big plans for a new hair do, a new bike, and lots and lots of school clothes.

What doesnt show here is that Mommy got a new job too~ Shuttle Bus Driver.

Up early, irregular hours, pay~ squat! :)

Strawberry season begins

Well we have a pretty nice strawberry crop this year. Maya Rae and I went out and spent a few hours picking the first bunch. The girls all took the tops off, washed them and bagged um up. They are in the freezer waiting for me to get around to making jam. We managed to bring in about two gallons. Good start.

Chicken came for a visit

The other day I left the front door open for some fresh air.

When I came stollin through the living room a half hour later this is what I found.

Though I was riskin a big ol pile O chicken poo in my living room- I ran for the camera and caught this crazy site 'on film'.

Creative Kid

Vayda has a stuffed cow that Maya Rae likes very much.

Vayda didnt want to give it away so Maya decided to borrow it and...
use it as a model to make one for herself. Isnt this critter awesome ?!?! Its even got an utter and a cowbell.

CRAZY outfit!

This was Maya's idea of a fun outfit today. Wacky!
Worth jumping up and down for :)

Holy CRAP- Elanee is 17!!!

This particular kid has a way of making me feel really old!

17!!! Wow! Tuesday we had a small family party in the kitchen. Vayda made Elanee a nice cake and we gave some modest gifts. On Sat she had a cluster of teens over for a much louder event including a camp fire and a sleep over.

Funny Bunny

Fay- thats Vaydas rat- was getting beat up by Bindy- thats Vaydas newer rat- so we moved her in with Harvey. Wasnt sure how that would go but it turns out they really get along great.
I was walking by the cage the other day when I discoved the pair cuddled up. Or- maybe it was Harvey was wear Fay as a scarf. I am not sure. Either way, it was super cute so I snapped some shots to show you :)

Sunday at the Ithaca Festival

The Ithaca Festival....

Back on Earth Day I signed up for an online group called

IthaCan. Its a group of people who like to can and otherwise preserve food.

IthaCan needed a person to help man their booth so I volunteered for a 3 hr shift.I was going so I got the girls on board and we all went. They brought their friend, Abby.

The girls had lots of fun while I 'worked'. Elanee got a henna tattoo.

Maya Rae got her face painted.Vayda and Abby bought cute little bikers on a stick.I was impressed by all the bikes!

We ate great food and did alot of people watching.We rode the T-Cat bus to and from our car. That was novel for us all. We had a great time at the festival!