Caleb's Musings

Since there is not much to report this week, we thought we'd share some of Caleb's deep thoughts and original expressions:

How do you make gas?...but how does oil turn into gas?...What machine makes that happen?(Mom's exasperated sigh)

What makes a car go? How do the brakes work? How do the wheels turn? No dad, it's not a driveline, it's called a crankshaft.

Mom! That car is broken down! The radiator must not be working. That car looks hot!

Why do we have to have mud? (Because water and dirt make mud) I know, but why do we HAVE to have mud?

Did Jesus make toys?... But you said He makes everything for us!

I don't want to go to the baptism! I don't think baptisms are so important!

(Heard several times throughout the day) I smell sumping stinky!

Where do we live after we die?...I think that would not be fun. (Why?) Because there would not be any machines or electricity there.

(During a tantrum over eating vegetables) (sobbing) I'm a sad boy! I'm a bad boy! I'm a bad sad rhyming boy!

Kirstin! I found your sunglasses! All of your dreams have come true!

What if there were no elevators? What if there were no stairs? What if there were no earth?

“I’m tired of saying, ‘Yes. Ma’am."

"Why do your legs jiggle when you walk?"

When I said, “I’m a mean Mommy.” Caleb said, “You are not a mean mommy right NOW.”

We love our sweet Caleb and get a kick out of him every day. His mind is always going and we never know what he's going to say next!

In a Pickle

Well, as the title suggests, the most exciting thing we had going for us this week is making pickles. Kirstin got just enough cucumbers off her vine to can one jar of pickles. She planted the cucumbers because she has always been a big fan of her Grandma Loveland's pickles! So she called up Grandma and got the following recipie:
Brine: Mix and boil
3 cups water
3 cups vinegar
1/2 cup salt
Sterilize jar and lid then put alum in the bottom, the amount equal to the size of a pea.
Also put in a clove a garlic and a head of dill (we got that from our herb barrel out front). Pack the cukes in the jar then pour the boiling brine in the jar. Put the lid on (don't forget to wipe the rim like I did!)
We had fun doing it and Kirstin can't wait to taste them. We decided that she could open it on her birthday.
We also went to the library for the Bug Box program and saw all sorts of creepy crawlies. Caleb tells me that he thinks that there are some cockroaches that are good. I BEG to differ! All you Lovelands know what I'm talking about (shudder). I don't care how much education I get about the virtues of bug life, I will always be creeped out by them!That's about all I have to report this week except for the fact that it is hotter than blazes with no rain in sight. Our lawn is dead and our garden (for all our efforts) offers almost no produce. Oh well, we gave it a try. Rob is currently charting the movement of the sun and which trees block it out. He's thinking about chopping some trees down and building some raised beds for next year. Sigh, these big outdoor projects get the better of me sometimes! We love all of you and appreciate the emails and comments left on this blog. We are looking forward to seeing family and friends next summer.

A Farewell to Remember (according to Robbie)

On Thursday night we got a phone call from Bishop Lowe he invited us to come to his farewell party. we drove up to Washington D.C on Friday to attend the party. I liked being at their house again and I enjoyed swinging on my favorite swing. They are moving to Centerville Utah when we first knew the Lowes in Vienna. He had a calling to serve as our bishop My Dad was one of his counselors when he was released as the Ward Organist. he was a good man and we loved him. I asked him Why he was moving? It was because he had so many families and friends to visit. after he was released as our bishop he had a surgery as Michelle his daughter told me. another person who was there was my old Primary Teacher. my Mom told her about me playing the cello. she told me that she also plays the cello too. I also told her that I was going to be in Orchestra at Swift Creek Middle School. I am very sad that they are moving I said goodbye to them I will greatly miss them I send them the best wishes in Utah they will be moving in another few weeks.

The Fourth (according to Kirstin)

***special thanks to Aunt Ruthie for the beautiful photographs***













Today is July 4th and we are having a party! The people who were invited were the Gregorys, the MacQueens, The Gregory's relatives, Jed and his mom, and Aunt Ruthie, my dad's sister. There were 2 baby pools and 1 pool for older people like Caleb, me, Tyler so we played in the pool, played on the zip line, played with the hose. But before the party me, Dad Caleb, Robbie and Aunt Ruthie went to the James River. I had a clam. Her name was Clamy. She's 3 years old. And my rock Roco is 5 years old. And I found a tiny clam and inside there was a tiny white slither! (So thats what is inside a clam!)



































Now back to the party! Well, we ate dinner, me Maddie and Whitney played a game where you knock on the door and then run and hide! But then it was time for s'mores and plain roasted marshmallows! Then we played hide-and-seek and freeze tag. Me, Whitney, Isaac, Maddie, Riley and Tyler played. Then we played Dead Man on the trampoline.















































Then it was time to go home. Me, Aunt Ruthie, Robbie (who was very excited!) and Dad watched National 4th with lots of singing, talking, singing then the best part came--we watched the fireworks! After that we went to bed. Aunt Ruthie slept in my room! Not to mention I heard fireworks last night. God Bless America! Happy Birthday America!


****THE DAY AFTER (according to Mom)****













We recovered surprisingly quickly from the day before thanks to help from Ruthie. We were looking forward to going to Lake Anna with Tom and Sandra and watching the fireworks from their boat, but rain interfered with our plans. Not enough rain to water our garden, but just enough to ruin our plans! Tom and Sandra, true to their generous and loving nature, traveled from Fredericksburg to take the kids to see Wall-E then to Dairy Queen for ice cream. Coming home, we realized we had forgotten that our neighborhood was having a block party in our cul-de-sac. So in 30 minute I whipped up a pasta salad, cut up some leftover watermelon, made a chocolate cake and Rob dragged out tables and chairs etc. Our neighbors couldn't believe we could set things up so fast when we hadn't made plans to attend. They were especially surprised that I had a cake mix just sitting in my pantry. I couldn't bring myself to tell them that I actually have 10 cake mixes in my food storage! It was a nice evening. All the kids ended up playing in our (converted) garage and back yard. I can't wait until Monday so I can start recovering from the weekend!