Thanksgiving

Tomorrow is Thanksgiving and I thought it would be a good idea to make a list of some of the things that I have been thankful for this year.

I am thankful for (in no specific order):

A loving God who always knows what is best for us even when we think we do.
A motel that provides our family with everything we could ever need.
Kids that make me laugh every day.
A husband that gets my weird sense of humor.
A house that got re-sided and re-roofed right before we bought it.
Family that has supported our crazy adventure here in Crookston. Even if the support was after a bit of, "Huh? You're doing what?".
Kids who are very well behaved, smart, independent, creative, loving, funny, caring, generous. . . . . I could go on forever.
My dogs.
Plumbing that works and great water pressure in our old house.
A husband who can fix above said plumbing.
Radiators that keep our old house warm.
The snow falling outside right now (it is beautiful!).
Old friends, new friends, and future friends.
Starbucks Java Chip Frappuccino Light. I know that is a weird thing to be thankful for but I really am.
A dry basement.
Thunderstorms.
Faith. Without faith I would have nothing.

My Sister, My Therapist, My Friend

I have been blessed to have one of the most beautiful, talented, fun, caring sisters. If not for her advice to "stay calm" I would be in a hospital right now curled up in a ball crying (that's where her therapist side comes in).

My sister and I did not always get along. She was the older sister who I looked up to and wanted to be just like. I was the little sister who annoyed her by using the phone in her room and stealing her sweaters.

We only shared a room until I was 3 and then after that our parents made sure that we had our own space. However, when we had guests spend the night (grandparents or friends staying from out of town) then we were forced to share a room for the weekend. One of the things that my sister loved to do to me during our sleep overs was scare me. As soon as mom tucked us in and turned out the lights Missy would whisper, "Debbie, there's someone at the window." Now, had I thought for just a second I would realize that would not be possible. Our bedrooms were on the second floor. However, it scared me to death

Having our own rooms was very helpful in keeping the peace at our house. Unless Missy would come into my room. I was the youngest and quite territorial. When I would tell her to leave my room she would drop to the floor and say, "I can't move. You'll have to carry me out." Did I mention I am 6 years younger than her? Carrying her out was not an option at that age.

I don't know at what point we realized that we had much more in common than stealing clothes and trying to scare each other.

I am happy to say that today she is truly one of my best friends. She talked me through the first few days of being a new mom. She talked me through helping Ada deal with a bully on the bus in kindergarten. She let me know ahead of time that my kids were going to ask questions that I was not ready to answer and I just needed to stay calm. And it worked.

Have I Mentioned We Do Alot Of Laundry Here?

Well, the last few weeks here have been crazy busy! The harvest is done so all of the beet drivers are gone. We will now stop being full all week and begin our weekend hockey tournaments and traveling Canadians. Hopefully we will have some time to breath and do some maintenance on the motel and at home and I will have some more time to update my blog.

We are so thankful that we were so busy this summer and have had an amazing time learning the motel business. I was very skeptical when Kelly brought this whole crazy idea to me last year and I am so glad that I let him lead us here. We have met some very interesting and fun people and have experienced so many new things that we never would have before.

I am also so grateful to God for seeing us through this adventure. Without Him we would have never been able to do this.

Happy Birthday Chicken

Nine years ago today Ada made me a mommy for the first time. She is so much fun to have as a member of our family and I am so thankful for her and her humor.

Ada is always looking for an audience and has such an innocent take on life. I have started calling her our "free-range child" due to her free-spirit and crazy attitude. I love this little girl so much and can not wait to see what she comes up with in the next year.

Below are a couple of what I call "Ada-isms".

"When I grow up I want to be a single. I will not drive a car. I will ride my bike everywhere. Not because I care about the environment, just because bikes are cool."

The other day Ada's teacher was reprimanding a boy in class for goofing off. She then asked the rhetorical question, "who thinks he's funny?" Ada was the only one to raise her hand.

Radi Sugar Beet Harvest

This week Kelly was able to participate in one of the most touching things I have ever seen in my life.

Last month, just as the wheat harvest was ending, a local farmer died of cancer. He was only 36 years old and left behind a wife and three daughters.

The pre-pile for sugar beets starts several weeks before the actual sugar beet harvest. The farmers harvest several rows of beets around each field and bring them to the plant (the actual sugar beet harvest starts October 1). Each farmer has only 4-5 trucks to bring the beets to the plant and 1 lifter to get the beets from the ground to the truck. The pre-pile usually takes 3-4 days, depending on the weather. The entire Radi harvest was done in a matter of hours.

Below are some pictures that Kelly was able to take with his cell phone during the harvest and 2 links to local articles that have all the details and some pictures of the harvest. Grab a tissue, click on the link and be prepared to have a good cry.

http://www.crookstontimes.com/features/x191999923/Friends-family-and-farmers-rally-to-harvest-Radi-beets-in-a-few-hours

http://www.inforum.com/event/article/id/291900/

FOOD!

Most people who know me know that I love to eat. I mean LOVE to eat. Gooey, greasy, fatty foods. I don't care for veggies or fruit and have to force myself to eat them. I am always planning the next meal. If we go on a road trip I have to know when, where and how often we will be eating. If Kelly and I share a pizza I will eat half. Easy!

Now on the other hand, one thing that I don't like is getting my picture taken. There are very few pictures of me that I actually like and almost none that I love. The funny thing about these two things is that one of the few pictures I do like of me is of me, you guessed it, eating.

These pictures were taken by my sister when we were shooting a wedding together. She needed a model (and I use that term loosely) to help set up some shots. I was in the middle of eating and, of course, was not about to put down my food.

WHAT?! No Apple Orchards?

I was shocked when I found out that we do not have apple orchards up here. Something about the growing season being too short or something. I wasn't sure how I was going to get through the fall without my apple orchard and hay ride fix.

So, here is what we do in the Red River Valley in the fall. We visit the Polk County Museum and the Sugar Beet Museum. I didn't get my bag of apples but I did get a ride on a trailer pulled by a tractor (kind of like a hay ride) to watch a demonstration of beet harvesting. It actually was pretty cool.

Me, Kelly and the kids on the "Beet Harvest Demo Ride". No, Ada does not have allergies or anything. She was just being Ada.

At the Sugar Beet Museum they also had a threshing show. They had an old steam tractor that ran the thresher to demonstrate how they did it many years ago. I did not get any pictures of that but Emily was kind enough to give us a little demonstration of her own.

11 Years Of Bliss

Eleven years ago today I married my best friend. Marrying him was the first best decision I ever made. I would not change one day of the last 11 years. Good, bad, or just plain boring, everyday has made us the couple, parents and people that we are today. I love this man so much and I am so thankful that God gave him the patience to wait for me.

Happy Aniversary Sweet Baby!!

When I Grow Up I Want To Be A Farmer

Living in Crookston we have experienced so many things that we didn't back in the cities. One of those experiences is farming. Sure we have driven by many corn fields. We've seen cows and horses and all that stuff. But to live in a farming community is very different.

Growing up I lived on a hobby farm. We had sheep, 2 goats and a bunch of chickens. I did my share of milking the goats (ok, maybe only once or twice) and helped pluck chickens after my dad cut their heads off. Kelly on the other hand was all city boy. He was raised in the suburbs, mostly in apartments.

In Crookston when it is harvest time everyone knows it. The streets are full of beet trucks taking loads to the sugar beet plant. The fields that were once filled with rows of green are now full of combines and tractors. The motel empties of the construction workers and is now full of guys coming from all over to help the farmers with the harvest.

Kelly was lucky enough to get a job with a local farmer. First to drive a truck for the pre-pile (the first step in harvesting beets) and now to drive a plow and help with their soy bean harvest. He will also be driving a truck for the official beet harvest that starts the first of October. The farmer that he is working for has over 3,000 acres of land and has wheat, sugar beats and soy beans. It is so neat to get to experience this life that is totally different from anything we have ever done.

Kelly in his big red tractor while plowing

Em on her way out to take a ride

Ada heading out for her turn in the tractor

Happy Birthday Beana

My baby turns 6 today. What a bittersweet thing. She started out as such a tough little thing who always made her presence known and has turned into such a sweet, timid little girl.

We are so blessed to have her as part of our family and I thank God everyday that he gave me the privilege of being her mom.


What is your favorite food? Tacos.

What do you want to be when you grow up? A vet.

What are you most looking forward to about kindergarten? Learning to read.

What is the best thing about turning 6? I will get to read.

What is your favorite TV show? Codename Kids Next Door.

What is the best think about our family? We spend allot of time together.

How Many Dishes Can You Fit Into A Bathtub?

So we bought this old house to refurbish and decided to redo the kitchen first. The old kitchen cabinets were taken out on July 26 and the new ones put in that day and the next day. Due to changing the location of the sink we had to special order counter tops (along with re-plumbing the whole house). Well without counter tops I have no sink and without a sink (or a dishwasher) I can't do dishes.

So what's a girl to do for 6 weeks without a sink. Use the bathtub. Unfortunately the only bathtub in the house is upstairs.

Here's the routine. A laundry basket sits on the cabinet where the sink would be. That is where the dirty dishes go. When I'm ready I carry that upstairs to the bathroom. I have another basket to put the clean dishes in and a big stuffed bear to kneel on. It really works out quite well and is really making me appreciate the new kitchen.

Ox Cart Days 2010

Well, we survived our first Ox Cart Days and what a fun weekend it was! I had been pretty stressed about it for months. The people had made their reservations for the motel last year and so there was a lot of pressure to make sure that everyone was where they wanted to be and get everyone settled, not to mention meet their expectations of last year.

Most of our guests for the weekend were here with their classic cars for the car show and the rest were here for a 50th high school reunion. What fun people! The car people come every year and are very cool. They had no trouble coming in and chatting or joking with us. They made us feel like we were apart of their group. I can't wait to see them again next year.

Well, everyone found their rooms (and raved about how clean they were - always a plus) and we got to participate in much of the entertainment for the weekend. Everything happened in town just walking distance from our house so it was very nice not to have to drive in and try and find parking.

The first night was the kids peddle pull. The girls were so excited to get to be involved. Neither of them won anything but they had a good time.

After the kids peddle pull was the bed races. I really didn't know what to expect but it was pretty funny to see. Two people push the bed down the road while 2 people sit in the bed. When they get to the end of the road they switched places and clothes and run back to the other end of the road. After the race we enjoyed the brat and corn feed. It was the best corn I have had this year!

The second night was the classic car show. It was so cool to see all of these old cars. It was also cool to see so many of our guests and their cars there.

There was also a raffle and the girls were chosen to draw the winning numbers. They were very excited, however, they didn't draw our numbers.

After the car show was the parade. Some people from our church have a house on the parade route so they invited everyone from church over for a BBQ and the parade. We stayed very late and had a wonderful time.

There were lots of other things going on all weekend that we just didn't have time to participate in. We were sad to see all of the wonderful guests leave but it was nice to be able to take a breath and put our feet up.

Truly God's Country

When we decided to move up here I Googled Crookston to see if I could find some pictures to show me what we were getting ourselves into. All I could find were pictures of flat, empty fields with snow blowing across them. I was a bit scared and sad that there didn't seem to be any scenery. Well, that is not at all true. Crookston has one of the cutest down towns I have ever seen. There is so much history here. I did my best to get some pictures but it is really hard for me to truly capture the beauty of this town.

This picture was taken during Crazy Days in July just outside my favorite store, Willow & Ivy. They are a mixture of antiques and boutique type stuff. They are in the old fire and police station. Across from Willow & Ivy is Widman's Candy Shop. They have been run by the same family and in the same location for almost 100 years. (I will try and get pictures of inside the candy shop soon).
Oof-da Taco is a food wagon that shows up in different locations downtown during the summer. We have not tried one (every time we see it we have just eaten) but to walk by it smells wonderful.
Just outside of town, no matter which way you drive, there are many farms. The scenery is amazing! Yes, in the winter they are empty, flat and blowing snow but in the summer they are just beautiful.
Another amazing crop out here is sunflowers. I have always taken for granted that sunflower seeds just show up in bags in the store. I never really gave much thought as to where they were grown. They are grown here. Thousand and thousands of acres of sunflowers. The smell is just as amazing as the field itself.

Amber Waves Of Grain

These are two of the many wheat fields just outside of Crookston. The first one was taken about a week ago and the second one was taken about two days ago after they started harvesting.

Mitchell, SD

This year for Kelly's family reunion we went camping in Mitchell, SD. Despite 2 major storms, 2 flat tires and Ada getting stung by a hornet, we had a great time. It was so nice to see Kelly's family. Some of his cousins we have not seen for many years.

Two of the frogs Ada found on one of her "hunting" expeditions.

Lots of swimming...

and relaxing.

Ada got to ride a bikes through the campground with grandpa.

Emily played mini golf with grandma.

Some of the damage after one of the storms.

The sunset after the storm.

Not the best picture but proof that I was there.

Water balloon games for the kids.

Old House Rule #1

Just because there is no standing water in your basement does not mean that your basement is dry.

The Knee Bones Connected To The Thigh Bone.....

And the kitchen is connected to the bathroom, the outdoor spicket and the radiators.

My dad came out earlier this week to help us install our new kitchen cabinets (I will have pictures when it is completed). It is amazing how much of the house gets effected by putting in cabinets. We moved the sink from one end of the counter to the corner and because of that little change we ended up re-plumbing the house.

The ceiling in the basement was a maze of pipes in a variety of sizes which resulted in very low water pressure. Some of the pipes were installed around 1920ish (we think) and some were moved/replaced in the last few years. It was a mess! There were bends and loops where no bends or loops were needed. The outdoor water spicket just plain wouldn't work. It was almost impossible to brush your teeth and flush the toilet at the same time.

Granted have been without water for about 24 hours now but it will be so worth it!

4th Of July Festivities

Every year my family gets together for 4th of July. This year, being that I moved away, my brother and his family invited me and the girls (Kelly had to stay back and look after the motel) to stay with them for the weekend. To say they were wonderful hosts would be an understatement.

The first night we were there Steve grilled and had a cherry pitting race with the kids. Very fun! Ada got such a kick out of it. She even tried to cheat a couple of times but it never worked. Steve won every race.

On Saturday we went to the carnival in town. Ada and Em got to see a baseball game for the first time (only about an inning. The Shea's are not big sports fans).

They went on a couple carnival rides.

Ate cotton candy and a snow cone (thank you Uncle Steve!)

On the 4th of July we always go to the Delano parade and have a BBQ at my dad's house. He makes brats and ribs and everyone brings a side dish to share. There is always so much food.

When we were not running around doing carnivals and parades we just hung out at my brothers. Steve and the kids would race each other on Mario Cart on their DS's. Again, Steve won most races. Unless the girls ganged up on him and made him lose.

We also played with Ellie the family dog. She is such a sweet and good dog. I wanted to take her home with me.