Piano

Mena has decided that she wants to learn to play the piano.  I found this electric piano on facebook and bought it from a family in Beatrice.  It fit just perfect so I didn't have to move the media cabinet to the right!  Mena will start taking lessons with Alicia, music director at church, beginning September 14th.

Eclipse

Another mom got pictures of Mena's class while they were out looking at the moon eclipse the sun.  The rest of the pictures are from where I was on my friend's acreage.  It was like having a 360 degree sunset around us.  As the sun came back out, the shadow of the leaves were crescent shaped.  It was an amazing sight for us to see.

2nd Day of School -- New Outfits at Mom's House

Getting both girls to look at the camera at the same time was a challenge!!

First Day of School

Maggie started 1st grade and Mena started 3rd grade on Monday.  Gene, Jess, and I were there to drop them off for their first day.

Maggie wants to be an Only Child

Our conversation on the drive home from the All Church Picnic tonight:

Maggie:  Mom, I wish you and Dad only had one kid.
Me:  You realize if we'd stopped with only one kid, it would have been Mena, and then you never would have been born.
Maggie:  Well, then maybe you could sell one of your kids.
Me:  What?  I'm not selling either of you; I love both of you.  Besides it's illegal to sell children.
Maggie:  Mooom, I mean give one of your kids to be adopted.
Me:  I'm not giving either of you to be adopted; I'm keeping both of you.  Are you wanting to be an only child?
Maggie:  Yes!  Two sisters fight; two brothers fight; but if you only have one kid then they won't fight.
Me:  So you're tired of fighting with Mena?
Maggie:  Yes!
Me:  Maybe you could just play nice together.
Maggie gives me cross-armed silence.

Gardening

This year I got our garden beds set up with the help of my dad.  We planted strawberries in one 4 foot square box.  They taste tart so I read on the internet to snip all flowers the first year and the strawberries will taste better the second year.  We planted tomatoes and bell peppers in the second 4 foot square box.  So far nothing is growing on these.  The first 4x8 foot bed had zucchini, cucumber, and peas.  The peas died early in the summer.  We got a bunch of zucchini but then the hot weather followed by a lengthy thunderstorm killed the zucchini.  The cucumber then did well, but I need to build a cage to protect it from the critters who keep nibbling on the cucumbers.  The back 4x8 foot bed had a watermelon seed that only produced a weed and cantaloupe seeds that have grown vines to cover the whole bed.  We have 10 small cantaloupe.

Joslyn Art Museum

The Friday of our last vacation week, we went to Joslyn Art Museum.  The girls enjoyed looking at a display explaining how art work was created for children's books.  They spent an hour in the Art Works room where they got to create all types of art.  We then walked through the outdoor art display before going home.

State Capitol

After spending so much money at Build a Bear, I told the girls they needed to choose a free activity for the second day of our last week at home.  They chose to visit the state capitol.  Both girls were interested in learning about who the various busts were of and the stories about the person.  And of course, we went to the top and found our car down on the street.