Dad's Memorial

 We had a beautiful memorial/funeral for dad.  It was just what he would have wanted!  This may be tacky to post pictures, but I think it helps the healing process, so I am doing it.

 

Dad did not want a funeral, so we had a memorial instead.  Do you know the difference between a funeral and a memorial? A funeral has the body and a memorial does not.  Something you will never need to know unless a loved one dies.  Anyway, I think a memorial is for the loved ones left - a way to bring closure and a part of the healing process.  We settled on a simple open house.  Dad would not have wanted a big fuss, so we tried to keep things really simple. 

 

My dad served in the Navy in the Vietnam War, so we settled on a red, white, and blue theme.  

 We borrowed all the tables and chairs and linens from my school

(I've said this a million times, but my school is AMAZING!)

 This flag is from my dad's house and the ribbon is from a super amazing co-worker. 

 Paula did all the decorating - white flowers and leaves from a tree in her backyard (which is where we held the memorial) along with red and white ribbon were the centerpieces.

We had a few table full of pictures of dad.  The miss matched frames looked great!  From when he was a baby (luckily we found a box with a few pictures in his attic) all the way to current pictures.  The guests really enjoyed looking back at all of the pictures and remembering when they knew him. 

 

We also had food and dessert!  I didn't take pictures, but we served meatballs, mac and cheese bites, and simple things like that.  For dessert we had camo cupcakes and carrot cake cupcakes (his favorite).  The food was great and of course the dessert was great too!

 

Overall it was a great memorial and we couldn't have done it without the help of Paula, Stacey, Alicia, mom, and I am sure I am forgetting someone.  THANK YOU!! 

 



Flat Aggie

I am VERY EXCITED to show off Flat Aggie.  This I am running pretty late since life got in the way, but Flat Aggie is ready to go!

We made Flat Aggie last year but, I did it a little different this year.  We read Flat Stanley by Jeff Brown then I showed them a few of Flat Aggie's adventures from last year.  They got really excited and wanted to make their own.  Instead of making just one and have it get lost in the mail, we each made one but we had to make them look alike so they would look about the same in pictures. 

I didn't take any pictures as we made them, but we started at the feet and talked about what kind of footwear people that visit farms should wear and voted on the color, and all the way up.  I have a class full of girls this year, but we voted on making it a boy since it already kind of looked like a boy and the hair would be easier to make (aren't kids the cutest?).

We then made the envelopes and my amazing helper laminated them for us.  I spent the first part of my break cutting them out and now they are ready to go!

 

 

 



I am very excited about our Army of Aggies and all they will learn this year! 

 

My kids made a list of things they wanted Flat Aggie to learn about:

- how money is made (since money is made from cotton)

- how cottonseed oil is made

- learn about a cotton bale

(can you tell we are in the midst of our cotton unit)

- how cows are milked

- how ice cream is made

- lots of my kids want to learn everything about agriculture

 

If you were in my class, what would you want Flat Aggie to learn? 

Where would you want him to visit?

 

Scrap Wood Flag Project

 

 I made a flag out of scrap wood - it was a simple afternoon project and most of the time was spent waiting for the paint to dry.  Here is what I did:

 

 You'll need a rectangular piece of wood, red, white, and blue paint, a tape measure, stars, and some painter's tape. 

 Having a sweet dog lay at your feet is an added bonus!

 

Paint your wood white - I gave it two coats. 

 Then measure out and tape stripes.  My painter's tape was 1 1/2" so my stripes are 1 1/2" - next time I would like to try 1" painters tape and see how that looks. 

 Paint two coats of red.

 Take off the tape. It's starting to look like a flag!

Stick as many stars as you can on - then tape with painter's tape (not shown since my red was still wet and I am impatient)

 Two coats of blue and remove the painter's tape. 

Peel off the stars

 

And enjoy your flag!  This would be perfect for the mantel or with a coat of poly it would make a nice porch decoration.  It was a quick and easy project that would be perfect for Veteran's Day!

Death, Dying, and Blogging

I have written and rewritten this post many times, it is hard to put into words how I am feeling right now and why I haven't been blogging.  So, I am just going to say it type it - my dad died.  He died at the beginning of the month and the past month has been a blur.  A blur of cards, an obituary, ashes, sub plans, family drama (his family has been a pain), and stuff that seems to be growing by the day. In the past month I have had to explain what surgery is, fight for my dad's last wishes to be followed, and explain what passed away means to my first graders.  It has been a hard month.

My dad had a fall off his 4-wheeler and ended up in the hospital with a broken hip at the end of last month.  He has had health problems for the past 12 years including hearts attacks, open heart surgery, lung problems, heart problems, a major car accident, trouble breathing, and did I mention heart problems?  A major car accident five years ago left him in tremendous pain and unable to walk without a cane or a walker.  He has just not been the same since the accident.  After this fall he needed surgery to repair or replace his hip and all of his health issue made the surgery complicated, but he got through the surgery and got off the ventilator in only a few hours.  He was doing great.  Then, he just tanked.  Maybe he got tired or it was too much for him - both of which I completely understand.  He was clear with the doctor that he did not want to be hooked up to a machine again, including the ventilator and he did not want to be resuscitated if his heart were to stop.  On the morning of his death, he looked up and saw that we were there and then he quickly and peacefully passed.  He was ready to go and he is in a much better place now.  He is not in any pain anymore and he gets to hang out with grandpa (his dad).

But, that doesn't mean that it is easy for my brother, sister, and me (and the rest of the family) - we still miss our dad. 

Some AMAZING things have happened in the past month too that I can't wait to share with you!  So, bear with me as I take the time to get my head above water. 

Parade Photos

 Michael's dad has a thing for tractors.  He loves them - new, old, running or not, John Deere or International - he doesn't care - he loves them all.  Similar to my love of shoes - except I don't love broken shoes and I am really picky, so I guess the only similarities are that he has lots of tractors and I have lots of shoes and we are both always on the lookout for more.  

Anyway, back to tractors ... there is a parade every year and he wanted to put sin ome tractors.  

So, here they are:

 5 John Deere tractors in all - 2 that he has restored and 3 tractors that belong to friends. 

 Steven on one of his tractors (the same tractor he brought to Farm Day) just as happy as can be!

 Michael on the newly finished B - his dad got this tractor about a year ago and it was in boxes - everything was taken apart and in boxes.  Looks great now!

The best smile I could get out of him ... 

Fall Outfit and Uncomfortable Comfort Shoes

 I'm trying to get into the habit of taking at least one outfit post for the week.  

Here is what I wore earlier in the week:

Dress: Max Studio via Norstrom's Rack, Belt: Some cheap brand from DD's Discounts, Flats: Naturalizer

It is still hot here, but has been cooling down in the morning and evening so it is started to feel like Fall at those times.  I thought orange and leopard print would be a fun combination and I was right!  I like it, but I HATE these shoes.  Hate!  They are made by Naturalizer (which is a comfort brand) and they are painfully uncomfortable.  I have a teaching friend that swears by Naturalizer - but they have never been comfortable for me.  I keep trying different styles but they are never comfortable.  I am tossing these in the trash!

It has been so busy with the start of the school year and getting used to another school!  I LOVE my new school - the parents are amazing, the staff is great, and the kids are so much different in the best possible way.  It is going to be a fantastic year!

What have you all been up to?  Are you getting back into a routine?

Hog Update

 Good morning long lost friends!  I have been a bad blogger, and my posts have been random since I started school - but, they will still be random until I get used to my schedule again.  Hope back to school has been great for you!

Today the butcher is coming out the butcher the last two pigs.  When the last set of pigs were butcher, I told my friend and reader Viktoria I would share pictures to see how big the pigs are before they get butchered.  I quickly snapped some pictures last night as we were moving them into a smaller pen and getting everything ready last night. I know that pictures aren't very good and I'll be honest - I am a little embarrassed that I did such a poor job.  

Remember when we got the pigs?   They were so small!  I'm realizing now that I haven't done a lot of blogging about the pigs.  How we care for our pigs in the heat and of course Flat Aggie's visit to the pigs. 

 They are usually covered in dirt or mud (since it has been hot lately) and last night was no exception.   If you look closely, you can see the rolls of fat on his chin. 

Take a look at the last picture on this post then take a look at this picture - you will be able to see just how much they have grown in just a few months.  

I got up at 5 this morning to bake cookies for the butcher.  I always keep a couple dozen cookie dough balls in the freezer so all I have to do is but bake them. 

Hope you are having a great week!