15-month checkup

Some of these pictures got out of order while uploading them, but I still wanted you to see them.

Finley at his 15 month appointment. He was 24 lb, 30-1/2 in and again perfectly proportioned. He loves climbing up into chairs and pretty much anything higher than he is.



His scraped up nose from his fall with Mattea....and some very rosy cheeks! He still had some of the scrapes on the day of his doctor appointment. Who knows what Dr. Bell thought when she saw his face.


Playing hide and seek behind the couch. Where is Finley?

There he is!!!

Back in the doctor's office. Starting to climb up in the chair.

Still climbing...

...and he finally made it.

Getting ready to jump off of the exam table. Yes, he really jumped. Don't worry, I caught him and he laughed and wanted to do it again. At least he says "jump" when he wants to jump. Sometimes I'll hear it though when I'm in another room and can't get there in time to catch him. I suppose he'll learn soon enough though that it hurts when someone isn't there to catch him when he jumps.

Sitting in the chair waiting for Dr. Bell to come in. When she came into the room, he played hide and seek with her from under the exam table. They both thought it was pretty funny. He said "hi", "up please", and a few other words to her. She was impressed with his vocabulary...and with the fact that he still doesn't have his molars...especially since at his 12-month appointment it looked like he would be getting them soon. I knew he had a hard time with getting teeth, but I didn't think the molars would take 3 months! He still doesn't have them yet. When she told him she was going to look in his ears he pointed to his ears. When she asked me if he would let her look in his mouth I told him to saw "ahhh" and he said it with his mouth wide open (we do this every day for brushing his teeth). When she had me put him on the table for the whole body exam she asked him where his belly was and he pointed to it.

veggietales and the fall

Finley loves listening to his VeggieTales CD in the car and watching the movies at home. He will only watch 5-minute segments but he loves the music and dances to it.

Finn listening to VeggieTales on the way home from church on Wednesday.




Watching VeggieTales in his favorite outfit. After bath time now he runs away when he sees the diaper and clothes. He would much rather walk around totally naked. I would rather not clean up the mess...


Finley watching, dancing and jumping to VeggieTales. On Thursday Finn and I went to Jeramy and Danae's new house to help them paint the 3 bedrooms. While there, Mattea and Finn took a tumble down the stairs together. They were both really scared and lying at the bottom of the stairs. My heart stopped when I saw Finn lying at the bottom of the stairs crying, but at least he was crying. It didn't take very long to see that his face had taken the brunt of it and the rug burn showed up on his nose and forehead. You can see a little bit of it in this video.

wheat screenings

Matthew called this morning and said that he needed me to go get wheat screenings (what's left over from the wheat being sifted. It's very light and they can mix it with the feed for the cattle). So, I dug out my really warm winter clothes, got Finn dressed and bundled up and out to the farm we headed. Darlene (Matthew's mom) watched Finn for us.

I hopped in the 1970 Chevy grain truck. Let me tell you a little bit about this truck. It has leather seats...not the nice luxury leather, but the kind that freezes and then never ever warms up, no matter how long you sit on it. Eventually your legs get to be the same temperature as the seats so you never really warm up. Not that you would anyways because there's no heat. Did I tell you it was 16 degrees actual temperature when I left this morning and the real feel temp was around 0? The driver's side window was rolled down when I got into it...that didn't help the temperature inside the truck all that much...and the passenger side window doesn't roll up all the way. Shifting gears isn't too bad but fourth gear always grinds...even Matthew can't shift into fourth without it grinding. I'm pretty sure they hadn't heard of power steering back then because there wasn't any. It would be easier for me to get out of the truck and manually turn the wheels myself. I almost hit the elevator (where you drop off and get the grain) and a truck at the railroad tracks trying to turn. I'm sure all the men were laughing at me because I practically had to get up on the seat to be able to steer this truck. I'm not sure what my face looks like when I'm trying to steer that thing, but it must be funny judging from their faces. The breaks are not that good unless you put the pedal to the floor and then you jolt forward, but you have to press on them really hard. Oh yeah, before I left the farm Bob (Matthew's dad) and Matthew had to show me how to switch to a different gas tank if it started sputtering out. They both gave me different directions...

Anyways, I started down the highway. It's a pretty short drive, about 6 miles from us, so it should take 5 or so minutes to get there...except that in fifth gear the truck goes 40. I know you can shift into the higher gears, but I figured "Why press your luck". So, I went 40 even though it sounded like I was going 90...and about to take flight. I crossed the big bridge going out of town and then noticed how horrible the truck reacted to the wind. So, I steered into the wind coming from the driver's side. At least that window was shut all the way now! I got to a curve in the road and turned toward the right. Wow, a tailwind! I was going 45 and sounded like I was going 100! I could see the elevator up ahead now and started slowing down...more preparing for the turn than anything else. I had 2 cars behind me by now and I was almost sweating with the thought of turning the truck. I turned and like I said before, I almost hit the building. I probably would have if someone hadn't already hit it and dented it in. The men in the elevator were turning to look and I'm pretty sure they were laughing. I sat and waited my turn as a truck turned in behind me and got in line. One time I noticed that he was getting closer to me and then realized that my foot had relaxed a little on the brake pedal and it was me backing closer to him. This happened at least twice. I didn't want to turn it off though for fear of it not starting again. My turn came and I got my wheat screenings. The operator is on the fire department with us and was nice enough to explain everything to me so filling the truck with the screenings was pretty uneventful. When we were finished I pulled out of the elevator and back out onto the highway...of course going onto the shoulder of the opposite lane trying to turn the truck. And then the wind hit...and went right through that crack in the window, which happened to be right in line with my head. Wheat screenings are very light and if you go really fast you can lose a lot of them in the wind...so I had to go in fourth gear...30 miles per hour! I got back to the farm freezing cold, but just happy to be out of that truck! I was too cold to stand outside and tell the guys how it really went so I said it went "just fine". I'm pretty sure that means this is my new job at the farm. =)

finn's stats and progress

I thought it would be neat to update you on Finn's progress and the day-to-day things that he likes to do.

When he gets up in the morning, he likes to play right away. No lounging around or cuddling, just get out the toys and play. His favorite toys are of course the tractors and pretty much anything that has wheels. His favorite place to drive them is on people. As I sit here typing, he is driving his smaller tractor up and down my legs of course humming to make the motor sounds.

After he plays for awhile, he starts pointing to the kitchen and saying "Deese". His food varies a lot but he's a good eater and must be going through a growth spurt because he seems to be a bottomless pit right now. He can eat 2 to 3 eggs, a pear, a banana and then half an hour later can eat more. I'm glad he loves all kinds of vegetables and fruits. That is what he gets most of the time with his eggs, French toast, grilled cheese or casseroles. This morning, he had a pear and 2 slices of French toast.

He likes to brush his teeth with Mommy. We sing "This is the way we brush our teeth" as we brush his. He will stay still for 2 rounds of the song, so we brush fast. Of course, he only has 8, so it doesn't take long.

After he brushes his teeth it's back to playing or reading books. There is no schedule to his play time. If he wants to read a book he brings it to me or even sits on the floor and looks at it himself. When he's playing, he tries to figure things out on his own, but if he needs help, he will ask for it (sounds like "Dopeese" for "help please"). He does get pretty frustrated sometimes and at those times he either needs to be redirected to something else or if I can calm him down enough to show him how to do it then I will.

Finley has shown already to be a pretty strong-willed child...I wonder where he gets that from. I've done some research on this subject and I've started with some pretty solid disciplining already. When he knows he's not supposed to be doing something, and he keeps doing it, he will be punished. We've already seen that he tries to push the limits. An example of this is a corner of our living room where all of the computer and telephone cords are. They are all together kind of blocked off by the computer desk and chair. He knows not to go back there, but he will run back there and either hide in the corner or just stand there laughing about it. If he hears me coming, he will run out and pretend like he hasn't done anything wrong (I didn't believe it either until I hid around the corner and watched him do this).

At 10:30 he goes down for his first nap. I'm not sure how much longer he will be taking 2 naps. Some days he lets me know that he only needs 1 by either not going down for his second nap or just being wide awake until noon or so. I'm trying to be really flexible with this as I know this is usually the age when they transition into 1 nap. Since he's been eating a lot more he's been sleeping a lot more too. For the last couple of weeks he has been taking two 2-hour naps a day and sometimes a little longer. His second nap is at 3:30.

Finley loves going up and down stairs...more up though and he LOVES to be chased up the stairs. He gets really excited though any time he's being chased. That may be one of his favorite games. He also has begun to really like playing hide and seek. He can't hide by himself since he comes out right away when you start calling his name, but he loves to try and find people. There was one day when it was just the two of us playing. I was trying to teach him how to hide, but when I started saying "Where is Finley?" he came right out of his hiding place. I decided to pretend like I didn't see him. He thought it was hilarious that I couldn't see him right in front of me, but when I said it again, he thought I was really looking hard for something so he started to help me. In essence, he was looking under the bed and behind the rocking chair for himself. It was even a little confusing for me...=) We found him though and made a really big deal out of it.

I'm guessing Finley to be around 23 to 23-1/2 pounds and I have no clue on his height. He'll be having his 15-month checkup at the beginning of December, so I'll post it then. He's in 12 to 18 month clothes and size 5 to 6 shoes depending on the brand. He wears more 6s though. He's in size 3 diapers and has been for most of his life now. He doesn't like coats and despises mittens and hats. He'll have to get used to them though. Matthew wanted to take him out to the farm for a few minutes to get corn on Saturday so we bundled him up in a snowsuit just to try it out. They didn't make it out of the back yard. Finley fell and was so mad about the big snowsuit he just layed there and cried. He ended up wearing jeans, a sweatshirt, a coat, hat, mittens and tennis shoes. He still wasn't happy, but at least he was able to move.

Finley plays really well with other kids and loves play dates and the nursery. Yesterday morning when we got to the nursery at church he started wiggling to get in there and play. The nursery worker came over and he practically jumped out of my arms and into hers to get in there. He was the only kid in there for the first little while, but he didn't mind and went straight for the rocking car (a kid-sized car that he can get in and rock). The nursery workers almost always comment on how well he does in there with the other kids. If someone takes his toy he doesn't get too upset and can usually find something else to play with right away. I honestly just think that he's not quite old enough to care when another kid takes something he's playing with.

I think Daddy is his favorite person. When Matthew gets home from work Finley loves to greet him at the door with a smile and sometimes with a tractor that they should drive through the house. Matthew has a bigger toy tractor that he drives and Finley has a smaller one. They both have to bend over to drive their tractors and it is hilarious to see them try and run through the house with them...but more hilarious to see Matthew do it. I'm so thankful that Matthew and Finley enjoy each other. Matthew looks forward to my Ladies Nights because he gets Finley to himself.

Finn goes to bed at 8 and we are fairly strict with this. If I know he has to be up later, he gets a little bit later nap in the afternoon. He knows when it's time to go down for a nap and when bedtime is and I think we all like this predictable schedule. All I have to do now is pick him up, tell him it's time for a nap and he will lay his head on my shoulder and go right down in his crib. Usually there is no sound that comes from his room when he goes down. It took a long time and a lot of frustration to get him to this point, but he is happy with it and so I'm happy with it. He will sleep about 12 hours through the night. With teething he will wake up sometimes crying, but most of the time he's able to put himself back to sleep. All in all, Finley is a happy, well-adjusted 15-month-old little boy and we love him like crazy!

Here are some of the most recent pictures I have for now.


Finley in the cubby I cleared out for him in the kitchen. It's to the right of the stove and to the left of the dishwasher, so it's really in the middle of my working place in the kitchen and he loves it in there. Apparently, on my last Ladies Night (last Saturday) Matthew climbed in there with Finley and they just sat together talking. So sweet.



Matthew reading to Finn and Jeramy reading to Mattea. Danae and I thought this was a great picture.


Jeramy is reading the big John Deere book and Matthew is reading Dr. Seuss.

Jeramy reading to Finn.

Finley and Mattea sitting together. We had about 5 seconds to take this picture.

And then they were gone...

I was trying to take a picture of his big belly after eating but he wouldn't stay still for me. I think you get the idea though.=)

It's kind of hard to see in this picture, but he is putting money in his piggy bank from Bama and Paka. He knows where to put money when he finds it.

It's now full, so we'll have to get some coin rolls and start saving them for him.

our song choices for the day

And the winners are:

1. "Deck the Halls".
2. "Angels We Have Heard on High".
3. "The First Noel".
4. "Silent Night".
5. "Oh Come, All Ye Faithful". (This one had the BIG finish and since it was the last one it'll be in my head all day long.

After hearing these Christmas songs for a few days now, maybe this is a good thing to help get Finley used to sleeping with noise. He's had a hard time in the past with creaky floor boards and squeaky doors, but if he can sleep through 5 songs blaring outside his window, maybe he'll be able to handle me typing on the keyboard while he's sleeping. =)

christmas music

You know, you used to have a choice as to when you would listen to Christmas music. You could choose to not go in 'that' store until you were actually going to do Christmas shopping. You could choose to not tune in to 'that' station until you were ready to hear all of the Christmas songs. Now, we have no choice. My quiet house has been filled...and I mean FILLED with the sounds of Christmas music. The church in town has chosen to play Christmas music each day for about 30 minutes. Now, when I said that my quiet house was filled with music, it's because at that time every day it IS quiet with a sleeping little boy. And they have chosen this time out of the whole day to play their Christmas music. Did I mention that we live 2 houses down from the church and that the church speakers are actually the town sirens? We now have no choice. I wonder if Finn will go down for his nap with ear plugs in...

the trashcan

Finley has a brown pair of shoes that I bought him about a month ago. He has never like them. They fit him and look nice with dressier clothes, but for some reason he can't stand them! I was sitting at the computer yesterday when he brought them to me and pointed to his feet. I thought, "wow, this is a big improvement!". I put them on his feet and he immediately started fussing and kicking to get them off. I put him down on the floor thinking that once he started walking in them he would like them. Finley refused to even stand in them. He melted to the floor in a puddle of tears, so upset that he still had the horrible shoes on. So, I took them off and handed them to him. I told him to go put them back and he headed off to the kitchen to put them on the rug by the back door. We've been working on putting things away (books, toys, clothes) and most of the time he gets it right. Well, later when I was making lunch I went to throw some trash away and sitting neatly on top of the trash were his brown shoes. I knew he hated them, but didn't think they were that bad!

veteran's day

Happy Veteran's Day, Grandpa and to anyone else who has served in the past or is currently serving. I appreciate you being willing to give up your life for your country and I never want to take it for granted. I hope everyone was able to pause and take a minute to reflect on the lives that have been lost and the freedom that we've gained in years' past.

the haircut

Yes, I really did it this time. I couldn't stand the shaggy hair around his ears. I was always tucking it behind his ears and you just shouldn't be doing that with a little boy. Just so you know, I only trimmed around his ears. I would like feedback though on whether to cut the back. I like his curls, but maybe a little boy shouldn't have curls???

Before pictures...

After pictures! What a handsome little boy.

misc. pictures

Finley watching the school bus go by the living room window. You can't see it because it's still dark outside, but the lights are really bright and they flash when the bus stops in front of our house. He loves to watch it.


I made some whole wheat bread that was pretty coarse; however, I put Finn up on the counter top while I did the dishes and he unwrapped the bread and started eating it. I can't believe how much bread this boy can eat!


Yes, that is the heel that he's eating off of. I won't say the inside was really soft either, but the heel??? That was definitely tough!


Finn talking on the phone to Grandma. He's so captivated by the sound coming out that he usually won't say anything.

Looks like a pro, though! =) Anything shaped anything like a phone is usually up by his ear and he's saying "Hi" into it.

another doctor visit

Finley has been having fevers for the last week and a half. Last Tuesday we went to Urgent Care and he was diagnosed with pink eye. Last Thursday we were back in Urgent Care because Finley was having a reaction to the pink eye meds. Yesterday, I took him to his primary care physician, Dr. Bell to have her look into the fevers he's been having. First off, she found out that my thermometer is wrong. She thought the batteries were dying. It has been reading high, which is a relief since I thought he was having fevers of 102. They are actually around 100.0 to 100.5. Still something to check into though. She looked him over really well, doing a full exam and when she found nothing wrong, she decided to get a urinalysis. I wondered how they were going to get urine from a 14 month old and then the nurse walked in with a weird looking bag. So I don't get too graphic, they taped a bag around him and then strapped his diaper back on so he couldn't pull on the bag. Then, it was a waiting game. They told me to give him water and then let him play in the water. I gave him his sippy cup and then I ran his hands under the faucet in the room. When nothing happened, I decided to just stick his feet in the water. So, off his clothes went and in the sink went Finley. He LOVED it! And more importantly, it worked. Here are a few pictures of the exciting afternoon at the doctor's office.

When I first put him in the sink, he was trying to drink from the faucet.


More of him trying to drink from the faucet.


And more...I promise, he does get water. I don't know why he got so thirsty.


Now he was just playing.

Trying to get further into the sink. I think he wanted to take a bath.

And he succeeded. His whole onesie was soaking wet.

So I took it off, checked his bag and when I saw it was still dry, I stuck him back in. By this time, there was about a 3 foot radius around the sink that was soaking wet.

Finally in the sink playing in the warm water...and then...success! I checked his diaper and we had our specimen.

His urine turned out to be perfectly normal, so now we wait. If he's still having the fevers through the weekend, I'll take him in on Monday and Dr. Bell will get some blood. There's still a chance that he could just be working really hard on his 1-year molars, but better safe than sorry.

Finley had kind of a rough day with fevering, but this evening he had a lot of fun playing on the floor with Daddy. We're so used to him being so happy that we really miss it when he's not feeling well. Hopefully, the fever is gone tomorrow and he wakes up a happy boy!

look what i found out!

Question: What is America 's first line of missileinterceptor defense that protects the entire United States ?
Answer: 49th Missile Defense Battalion of Alaska National Guard.
Question: What is the ONLY National Guard unit onpermanent active duty?
Answer: 49th Missile Defense Battalion of Alaska National Guard
Question: Who is the Commander in Chief of the 49th MissileDefense Battalion of Alaska National Guard?
Answer: Governor Sarah Palin, Alaska
Question: What U.S. governor is routinely briefed onhighly classified military issues, homeland security, andcounter terrorism?
Answer: Governor Sarah Palin, Alaska
Question: What U.S. governor has a higher classifiedsecurity rating than either candidate of the Democrat Party?
Answer: Governor Sarah Palin, Alaska

Check out my blog from Sunday, "9 days...and counting", a couple of posts down.

the little guy with pinkeye

Finley has pinkeye. What a yucky sickness! On Sunday he woke up with a little bit of redness in his eye. I really didn't think anything of it until later that day. We went to church and he went to the nursery. After the first service though, I went down to look in on him since we were going to be there for all 3 hours of church. His eye looked really red and a little swollen then. I decided to take him out of the nursery and just keep him with me. While we were there for the other services, his eye got progressively worse. On Monday though, it cleared up, didn't look red and wasn't gunky. I canceled the doctor appointment I had made for him. Then came Monday night. His eye got really bad and he had a fever of 103. Poor guy must have felt so bad, but he still played with Matthew and I for an hour dancing, laughing and climbing over us. Tuesday morning I took him in and he was diagnosed with pinkeye. He has to have 1 antibiotic drop put in each eye 4 times a day for a week. This will be a really long week. He hates the drops and tries to knock them out of my hand when he sees them. He's even run from me when he knows it's time. Boy, he's a fast learner.

Speaking of a fast learner. He got a hold of a Q-tip and was trying to put it in his ear. I had no clue he'd know what to do with it. I nudged Matthew to watch and just as I did, he found his ear canal with the Q-tip. He didn't push it in far at all, but you should have seen Matthew and I both jump to get it out of his hand!

when grandpa was here

Finn had so much fun with Grandpa here. They played in the morning and evening when Dad was here. He loved riding on Grandpa's shoulders and was very, very interested in that weird hair on his face. Sometimes, he didn't know what to do with it...touch it or just stay away from it. =) I loved watching them play and wrestle on the floor. What a sad time it was to say goodbye to Dad on Friday. It was nice to have him be able to stay for over 3 weeks though. I'm already looking forward to next beet harvest when he has already said he'll be coming back. We miss you, Dad/Grandpa! Can't wait to see you and everyone at Christmas!

Finn and Grandpa at the bus station in Fargo.


So sweet...


Finn at Bible study on Wednesday. All of the other kids were out in the living room playing and I noticed Finn wasn't with them. He had found this game of Mattea's in her room and was just playing by himself. I'm glad he can keep himself busy and find things that he enjoys doing on his own. It is really fun to see them all together though playing with each other. =) He and Mattea like copying each other....mostly stomping and making weird grunting noises followed by giggles and laughter.

Finley likes to act like he's talking on the phone. I guess he's seen this a few times. It's really funny because he doesn't just stand there talking on the phone, he moves around...just like Mommy. =) Of course, the reason I have to keep moving is to always attempt to find reception somewhere in the house!

More of the same. When he puts it up to his ear he says "hi". Dad thought this was really funny.

9 days...and counting

I've never wanted to use my blog as a political forum. As you can see from the name, it has nothing to do with politics and it was created solely for Matthew's and my families to keep up to date with Finley. However, it is because of Finley that I now have to speak out and make sure that I reach as many people as possible to hopefully educate on some pretty scary issues arising this election.

I hate politics. I hate the media and I have come to realize that it is mostly because of the media that I hate politics. We would all have to agree that the media is so one-sided that it's no wonder Obama/Biden are doing well. I think we can clearly see what happens when Biden is asked the 'hard' questions. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yjX8wQPMADk&NR=1. We can also see that he is surprised someone in the media would dare to ask him the hard questions. He laughs in this clip...not because something is really funny, but because he's nervous. The Obama campaign then refused anymore interviews with that station.

People are no longer thinking for themselves and fact checking. If all you have done is watch the evening news, Obama/Biden would seem like some really nice folks willing and able to give them some much-needed tax breaks. Why is it that the media will not cover anything negative on Obama/Biden? Does the media not know that in Cook County (Chicago), they have a sales tax of 10.25%? Their public schools are also the worst in the country...and this is where Obama is from? Sadly, money is the main reason that people are voting for Obama and many of those people are Christians. Christians have strayed so far from Christian values that they too are in need of looking to who 'says' they will give them more money for the main reason of their voting choice. We no longer buy only what we can afford. We buy what we want, when we want it and in the back of our minds we know the government is there to bail us out if we need it.

Does the media even know what partial birth abortion is and what it entails? They should show this clip http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s_W75zh1j2I&feature=related. This is actually a very 'benign' clip compared to what is out there. Get on youtube.com and search for partial birth abortion. There are clips of them live. Maybe these clips are what need to be shown to everyone voting for Barack Obama since he is in favor of abortion and partial birth abortion. He says that he trusts women to make this decision with their family, doctors and clergy. When did God hand over that right to make the decision of a baby's innocent life? Is there any defense for infanticide? Check this out. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BYRpIf2F9NA&feature=related.

Can the media not see that Universal health care does not work? Hawaii just dropped their child universal health care program because of deficits.
http://canadianpress.google.com/article/ALeqM5hLmnk2nJW1GlWETxZ5EknjKJCYgg
"People who were already able to afford health care began to stop paying for it so they could get it for free," said Dr. Kenny Fink, the administrator for Med-QUEST at the Department of Human Services. Matthew, my husband, went to college in Canada. He got an ingrown toenail and called to make an appointment with a doctor. He was going to have to wait 2 weeks for an appointment and then wait for a separate appointment for surgery. He called to his PCP in Fargo and was back in the US the next day for his appointment and had the surgery needed. His friend had gallstones and needed his gallbladder removed. He too was on a waiting list of 2 weeks for an operation. I worked for a PA whose mother lived in Canada. Her diet consisted of lettuce for 1-1/2 weeks while she waited to have her gallbladder removed. This PA also said that she never left her mother's side while she recovered for fear of infection because with universal health care, waiting lists go up and doctor and nurse pay goes down which equals a decrease in quality.

Regarding Obama's relationship with Jeremiah Wright, he was a member of Jeremiah Wright's church for 20 years. Jeremiah Wright officiated Obama's wedding and baptized his two daughters. I'm glad that Sarah Palin has something to say about Obama's former pastor since McCain has stated that he wouldn't touch that subject. Only when video was released of Jeremiah Wright making anti-American and anti-Semitic statements did Barack Obama denounced his pastor. Are you telling me that after 20 years in his church that he had never heard Jeremiah Wright speak out like this? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vdJB-qkfUHc&feature=related. There are many videos like this just on youtube.com.

This brings us to William Ayers, co-founder of Weather Underground terrorist group. Barack Obama's advisers said that they were "certainly friendly". They served on a charity board together and worked together on various projects in Chicago. Bill Ayers hosted one of Barack Obama's first fundraisers in his own living room. McCain spokesman Tucker Bounds asks a good question. "If Obama didn't know in 1995 about the bombings Ayers was responsible for, when did he find out -- because Obama was promoting Ayers' book in 1997, serving on boards with him until 2002, and trading e-mails and phone calls with him as recently as 2005." Ayers has said he doesn't regret his Weather Underground activities.

This really is just the tip of the iceberg with regard to Barack Obama. I urge you to check out these sites I've listed and then get on the Internet and do your own research. It's so much more powerful when you see and hear the story firsthand.

"don't back over the blades!"

I've been hearing this in my sleep. If you were talking to the bosses about rotobeating, you were sure to hear this phrase. You could ask, "what kind of oil do you use in this John Deere 7810?" And they would reply "15-40 diesel...but don't back over the blades!" The blades are what cleanly cut off the tops of the beets. When you stop in a field and have to back up for any reason, you must make sure you lift the rotobeater and blades (two separate levers in the tractor) or else you can bend, break or chip the blades or, worse yet, bend the whole rotobeater.

Enter October 19, 2008. I forgot to turn the PTO on at the beginning of the row. Not a huge deal, but it meant that I had to back up and start at the beginning...about 25 feet back. I backed up and then hit mud. So I pulled forward and tried to use a little more momentum to get back to the beginning of the row. I got a little further that time, so I pulled forward again and put it in reverse. This time I went even further and then heard two popping sounds. The 'mud' I was hitting was the blades stopping me. This is when I turned around to see that the blades were down. Not only did I back over the blades, I did it 3 times! I literally had heart palpitations. I had heard that you get fired for backing over the blades. They are expensive and damage can be done to the rotobeater. All of this was going through my mind as I got out of the tractor to tell my boss. Not only was I going to have damage to the rotobeater, I was going to have triple the damage! I didn't even look at it...I didn't have to. I knew I was finished. When my boss saw me walking toward him, he immediately looked to the tractor and then all movement stopped. I don't remember much of what happened after that. I don't even remember telling him. I remember walking toward him and seeing his face and the next thing I remember is him telling me that we had to replace 3 blades and 2 cylinders. He was actually 'pleased' with the damage considering what it could have been. He told me not to stress out about it because he had backed over the blades before, his brother had done and it and his Dad had backed over the blades in that same field. Whew! What a relief.

On the second day of beet harvest, my mom and I were in the tractor together still trying to get the hang of it. We were in a very challenging field with weird angles...in the dark! We were both fit to be tied and so stressed out. When we finished the field, I called my boss and pretty much said, now what? He said, "You're finished". I said, "We're finished"? My mom, sitting 2 inches from me was nodding her head. I thought we had done such a horrible job that he was firing us already. He didn't even give us a chance! Mom was excited to be getting fired (that's how bad it was for her). He then clarified that we were just finished with that field and we were supposed to move to the next field. Doug (the boss) took the rotobeater to the next field. He told me to get his truck (the brown one) and bring it to the next field. First of all, I've never seen the boss's truck. Secondly, it's dark. Thirdly, where is the next field? He left and mom and I were left to find the brown truck (we had 3 choices) in the dark and get it to the next field. I found a truck and we thought it was brown. Now to find the field. Mom jumped in my car and I jumped in the truck and we started driving. I knew the field was north of town so we started driving that way. All the while, I'm looking in all of the fields trying to find our rotobeater and still wondering whose truck I was driving. I'd hate to show up in the wrong field with the wrong pickup! We did find the field and I did have the right truck. Doug has no clue we had so much trouble getting there.

Despite these horrible experiences, I'm so happy I drove the rotobeater this season. We finished today, just in time for the rain tonight. Matthew's crew had only 60 more acres, but they didn't finish in time. They will have to start back up after the ground dries. Here are some pictures and videos of the end of our beet harvest.

My last set of rows for the season. What a nice feeling that was.


One last picture. See you next year!

A video of my last set of rows. You can see what has been rotobeated (the lighter green) and what rows have already been lifted (the darker rows). You can also see a truck being loaded by the lifter.

Remember how clean these rotobeater tarps were at the beginning of the year? Not any more! After 3 weeks, the dirt has piled up. You can also see a jack rabbit has lost his home. There have been thousands of mice, at least 2 skunks (one of them Kristen, my sister-in-law, ran over while rotobeating) and many rabbits (one I ran over) who have lost their homes.

Video of the beets being lifted and dumped into a semi. Everything looks simple and easy, but the truth is, there are many steps to lifting and dumping. When the semis and trucks pull up to the lifter, there is a rope hanging from the side of the lifter. The semi driver has to watch that rope to make sure that his truck doesn't touch it. If he does, it means that he's too close to the lifter. Then he has to line himself up with the lifter driver. They start dumping the beats. When there is a pile big enough in the truck, the lifter blinks a light and the semi moves up a few feet, all while they are going about the same speed. They do this 4 or 5 times to fill the truck. So, if you are ever driving down the road next to a semi, try to get about 4 feet from the side of him, look in your side mirror to make sure you are not too close or too far away, go the same speed as him and then move up a few feet and continue this for about 10 minutes. After having tried both jobs, I think I'll stick with the rotobeating. =)

diaper dancing and an indian

We call this first video "going crazy". At night before bed, he gets so tired that he claps and dances all around.

Grandpa was chasing after Finn in this video. Every time Grandpa tries to get him, Finn laughs and tries to run away.

Grandpa put one of Finley's blocks into a sock and made a game out of pulling it out. Even when he can't pull it out, he thinks we should clap for him. =)

A very short video of Finn dancing in his Indian outfit.

the night grandma left

Mom had to leave to get back to work early Tuesday morning, so Monday night was her last time to see Finn until Christmas. She read him books, played with him, got him dressed and ready for bed and then cuddled with him. It was sad but so sweet to see. It was always one of my favorite things about her visiting...to see my mom and my son together, loving each minute they had.

Here is Grandma reading Finn one of his favorite books, Dr. Seuss's ABC book.


Playing on the floor before bed.


Happy picture.


Goodnight and goodbye kiss to Finn from Grandma. I know Finley would love to see Grandma walk in the back door now with her big smile and hug for him and I can't wait to see them together again at Christmas. Thanks, Mom for taking care of Finley for me while I was out working. There isn't anyone I would rather him be with.

misc pictures

Here is a conglomeration of pictures while Grandpa and Grandma Stabley were here together.

Finley having cold cereal for the first time.


Liking his Rice Krispies.


Not feeling very well that afternoon...not related to the cereal. =)


Grandpa was teaching Finn how to rub Grandma's feet.


He's too young to be grossed out by the toe-bending thing (ask Mom).


Finn plopped right down in Grandpa's lap and started rubbing Grandma's feet.


Eating...who knows what.


After eating an Oreo. Daddy would be proud. =)


Finley on Grandpa's shoulders at the Olive Garden.


Grandpa held Finley for most of the time while we were waiting to be seated. He loved it....Finley that is. It doesn't look like Dad is too upset about it either, though.