ARGH!

I'm happy to report that we had a very successful International Talk Like a Pirate Day.  There was lots of arghing, maties and threats to walk the plank while in the lunch line.  My job is so fun.

WE lucked out and hubs has some work for him this week so he won't have to resort to auctioning off his Homecoming Court spot.

Angel #4 is discovering the benefits of being one the managers of the football team.  The popular, mean girls in her class are all jealous of her close proximity to the team quarterback, an unattainable senior boy and claim she's "so lucky".  They also think she's lucky to be able to ride the team bus on the way home from games.  #4 just smiles and doesn't tell them how stinky a school bus full of tired sweaty teen aged boys actually is and just lets them imagine her life as one big glamorous football party.  A couple freshman girls also have a huge crush on WE's best friend and think #4's so lucky to have him hanging around our house - she didn't even tell them about the time he was wandering around upstairs wearing only his boxers, she's so used to her older brothers that stuff like that doesn't phase her, which is why she handles things with the football team so well.  I pointed out to her that I bet she never imagined the day when having WE for a brother would be an asset in her life, but now look, what (almost) 15 year old girl wouldn't love to be surrounded by upperclassmen.  I've got the feeling that all her friends who are lacking in the big brother department are going to be spending more time hanging around here this year.

I've got my garden about half cleaned out for the year.  The other day I pulled up all the dead corn stalks and pulled most of the onions. The tomatoes are all picked and canned, I did 54 quarts, not as many as other years, but I've still got jars dated from 2011, so I think I'm good on the tomato thing for quite awhile.  Today I pulled weeds, picked about half of the bell peppers (a 5 gal bucketful) and one of the cabbages.  Tomorrow is only half a day of school, so I've recruited Angel #4 to help me dig potatoes, it'll be nice to have those out of the garden.  Then all I've got left is to pull the carrots, pick the rest of the peppers, both bell and chili, pick the rest of the cabbages, pumpkins & squash and figure out what to do with the rest of the kohlrabi and the brussels sprouts.  As much as I"m not looking forward to winter, I AM looking forward to a break from the gardening.  As much as I love doing it, things start getting exhausting this time of year and I'm ready to focus my life on something other than pulling weeds and putting up veggies...like butchering up all those filthy broiler chickens that are stinking up my barn.  Raising laying hens is so much nicer than raising the meat birds, thankfully, the whole meat bird thing only takes 3 months, then it's back to just me and my ladies in the barn.