Odds and Ends

This photo is our bountiful walnut harvest.  Last week's stormy weather knocked all the nuts off the trees.  Forrest cleaned them up.  The green outer coverings were knocked loose when they fell.  According to our internet research they need to dry in a cool, dry, place.  So they are currently residing on our front porch in one of the kids' old sleds.  This is the first big harvest from a tree we planted several years ago.  They should be ready to eat in 3-5 days.  Can't wait!

We braved long lines on Saturday to wait in our car for the drive-up  swine flu vaccination clinic.  The wait was three hours.  We are good multi-taskers and made the most of our time.  While Alyssa and I stayed in the car and snaked our way through town Forrest and Noah walked to the barber shop and got Noah a trim. Then I walked over to the hardware store and picked up a few things (and used their bathroom).  Alyssa and I went to Starbucks while Noah and Forrest stayed with the car for refreshments.

Alyssa has had some mild reactions to the flu mist.  A low grade fever and cough. My throat has been dry and scratchy.  But nothing like getting the full fledged flu.  We've had kids miss 7-10 days of school with high fevers of  103-105 degrees, high enough to cause hallucinations.  Some of our kids at school have developed pneumonia too.  So despite the long lines and some minor reactions I think it will pay off in the long run.

Football is now over. Noah's team lost in the first round of the play-offs on Saturday.  The field was a horrible mess and the other team handled it better than Noah's team.  They lost by two points.  The other team was able to convert their extra points and Noah's team wasn't.  Six games were played on that field in the span of five days of wind and pouring rain.  The sod just couldn't hold up under that onslaught.  We have tonight off, and basketball starts tomorrow.

I guess that's all the news for now.  I'll try to do a better job and not go so long between posts.