This was the first time that Joseph and James rode a tractor with Uncle Scott. Joseph was excited to get on and help rake the hay. James refused to get near the tractor until Uncle Scott turned it off and then stayed on long enough to get his picture taken.

Giant Cabbage

The county fair had several enormous vegetables that were awarded ribbons. I fail to see how a giant, flaccid, grasshopper chewed cabbage qualifies as a winner in its category. Its like saying,"My garden grows huge plants, but its also full of bugs." I just don't get it.

The Caterpillar

A caterpillar crawled up under my bedroom window and decided that it was his spot.  I'm not sure what kind of a caterpillar he was or what kind of a butterfly or moth he metamorphosed into.  What I do know is that he looked nasty and gave me creepy crawlies when I first saw him.  I took his picture and decided to document as best I could his metamorphosis.

The next day he had changed drastically.  His body was now entombed and his body systems had started their work of turning into a beautiful butterfly or moth.

I watched him everyday for more than two weeks just like in "The Very Hungry Caterpillar."  I even held off spraying for bugs so as to not disturb this little fellow's processes. Watching something metamorphose is dull as there are not conspicuous changes from day to day until the day that it decides to emerge.  Unfortunately, I missed his exit from his cocoon and found an empty shell.  The shell is still under my windowsill.  When we play in the backyard, Joseph remembers to look at the shell and announces that the butterfly is gone.

The Turtle

 My dad, being a kind hearted guy, called my sister to rescue a turtle who was trying to cross the road.  He said it looked like a rock, but realized that it was more lively than a rock when he saw it move.  Rachel saved the little creature from a fate of being squished and brought him home for all to see.

 I figured Joseph would get a kick out of seeing a turtle in person, so we rushed over to see it before they released him.  Joseph wanted nothing to do with our reptile friend and told the turtle "no, no" as it scampered across the kitchen floor.  He was more entertaining than the turtle.

"No no!"

After observing the turtle indoors we made the little drive to our family park and let him go by the river.  Now when we visit the park Joseph asks,"Where turtle?"  He quickly answers his own question and says,"He's home."

Joseph recently discovered that the farm has tractors.  I think he knew we had them, but did not think they were interesting.  Uncle Scott started the first cutting and he was amazed when the winrower cut the fields around our house and the field below our house.  He runs to the window each time he hears the tractors drive by and loves to sit and watch them do their work.  A huge highlight was riding on the backhoe.  Grandpa cleared the path between our houses to clean up th pathway.  Joseph assisted on the project.

This is where Joseph says, "The sun is blinding me, but I'm really have a great time."

Our house is on the other side of the overgrown trees.  They make a wall on the side of our house that blocks the evening sun and help our yard to be pleasant in the evening.

Joseph and Becky stomping around in Grand Great's yard.

What should one do with Oreos that one does not want to eat?  Smearing them all over the face and shirt for safe keeping is an excellent plan.  After this feat, Joseph said,"Face! Shirt!" and desperately wanted his face washed.

What does a two year old do with flour?  Scoop it into a bag for soda cans.  Normally just the cans are recycled though, but Joseph figured that he'd try recycling the flour right along with the cans.  Grandma Great said,"Hey!"  Joseph replied,"Oh no! What happened!"  Then he ran to the other side of the kitchen.

 How do you get closer look at fish in an aquarium?  Try pushing on the glass really hard and saying,"Oh no!" I'm not sure why he said "Oh no!"  when the fish swam by him.  My best guess is that he was a little nervous over how large the fish were compared to him.

Why should a garden hose only be used to water flowers?  In this little guys case, running water does wonders to deepen the color of khaki shorts, add weight to shoes, and lower body temperature.  He found the hose running and decided to spread the joy of water all around the yard.  He had lots of fun until he got cold and started to shiver.  Aunt Rachel had to coax him inside with cookies.  Once inside, he switched to wearing one of Grandpa Greats old T-shirts.  I thinking wearing one of those shirts if a rite of passage for all the grandkids.

I think he pulls off the oversized shirt look pretty well.  He was too mesmerized by his 'show' to pose in his fabulous shirt.