Squash and stuff

What a weekend! With two days to go (we are enjoying a 4 day weekend here at the State of Indiana), I'm already tired. We have been doing so much! Today we went to the Tennessee Thunder Train yard, and the "gang" rode on the train... This is Indy, Chris, cousin Macy and Duck boy, sitting in the last car of the little train (Duck makes a great caboose)!

Next we hit the pumpkin patch, where Duecie, Heidi, Macy, Duck, Indy and Chris picked out 225 pounds worth of pumpkins!

Indiana had a ball climbing amongst the pumpkins and posing here and there for pictures...

The patch was enormous, and Duck and Chris looked near and far for just the right ones. Macy came away with a 50 pound pumpkin, Duck with a 53 pounder, Indiana got himself a 54 pound monster, but the all time big pumpkin of the day went to Chris with his weighing in at 55 pounds.

Yesterday we took Indy's grandma donkey and her sister to the beach, i took well over 100 pictures for the aunt to take home. Tomorrows post will be beach pictures! Oregon's coast is so beautiful, and i have so many photos, that I need more time to get together which i want to post! Keep an eye out tomorrow for the scenery...

600

Ok, yeah, I'm an idiot ... It is OCTOBER. I should make myself write lines, huh.

my broken link sucked, I found a better one... Sony Kinetics has its own site. Clicking on product overview on that site will show you the whole thing.

Yesterday was Indiana's grandma Donkey's birthday. She turned 44. She is a good sport, and thinks being called Donkey is pretty funny and unique. The quick version of how she got her name is that, well, its nicer to call her Donkey than Jackass (we were out at a tavern a few years ago and she got silly and acted kind of like an ass and a new nickname was born when our friend said she was being a jackass and I told my dear husband that next time we went out he needed to leave his donkey at home).

So, the cake... By the time the neighbors had all had pieces and everyone was "caked out", there was still half a cake. We left the last half on the kitchen counter overnight. Today I had to go out to town, so I went in my bedroom to change into jeans and a clean tshirt. I came out of the bedroom (in less than 5 minute) to find Indiana covered in chocolate frosting and sitting in a plastic "thingy". I walked into the kitchen, thinking "that better not be what I think it is". It was. The plastic "thingy" was the cover off of the cake. The cake itself was upside down on the kitchen floor. grrrr.

about the title of this post? This is post #600 here at "the State of Indiana"!

Sunny and Clear ...

How sweet is it that nearly midway through November, Indiana can still hang out outside and be warm about it! The sun is STILL shining, although mornings are getting chilly.
I have started (gasp) doing Kinetic work outs on the playstationII. (click on the word Kinetic to check out the game) Its evil. Its fun. Its awful. I love it. I hate it. The "game" is a personal trainer that works with the eye toy camera, to make me move my body, burn calories, and improve cardiovascular fitness. I am so fat now that its a real work out for me just at the beginner level. The quest to drop weight resumes.

Adrift

Sometimes, I find myself at a loss. No particular reason. I talked about this several months ago, but its that time of year again where I get a little "crazy". I still take delight in those things I love, like hanging out with Duck. It isn't depression. Its lethargy, I think. Exhaustion from nearly a year and a half without a full nights sleep. Sadness at another impending holiday season with a tattered family, strung hither and yon. So, pardon my tendency for erratic behavior; pardon my rambling.

Am I the only one effected by fall in this way? When the weather turns cooler and the children return to school, the holidays close in, memories come back of years past. It seems that there is more time to think. More time to brood. I see the beauty of the season, feel the crispness of the air, and smell the delicious scent of impending rain, and I feel sad.

Funky

We have been so busy getting ready for the up coming visit of Grandma Donkey's sister that I haven't had time for picture taking and blog writing. I am a horrible blogger, but I swear I will get better. Not, obviously, with this post, but soon.

zzzzzzzzzz .......

So, I am mostly feeling better. I can breathe through my nose again, which is a nice plus for those who have to sleep near me when I am sick. I have the most un-feminine snore when I am sick. Its not loud enough to wake ME up, so I guess that's all that matters, since my charming husband would NEVER announce to the world that I kept him up all night snoring like a jet engine. He is too nice to mention that. With my honking loud snores though, the upstairs neighbors must have thought we were watching "top gun" with the surround sound turned all the way up.

Here's the scoop on today's picture: How cool is it to get Indy geared up in Florida Everglades stuff before he even gets there. Counting down... Just 6 months until vacation!

Last bit confidential to Jimmie: Happy belated birthday Nihm! We enjoyed dinner , thanks for going. We love having Duck and you here. Thank you.

Yuck

Being sick sucks. I will be back when I feel better, but for now the nasty icky flu has me in its grip and its too much to do to sit upright. I hope Indy doesn't catch it.

Summertime Strikes Back!

It was such a beautiful day today Indy and his dad packed up the stroller and headed for the park. What a nice break for me to take a nap while they did some Daddy-Indy bonding time.
The weather was fabulous, almost too warm! Where is our famous Oregon September rain storms? (daddy took this picture to show me what a good time they had without me)

On a separate note: Congratulations Duck on being student of the week! Keep up the excellent work!

Sunset over Albany:

Technology stands Tall in the face of natures beauty.

Another Day draws to a close.

Happy Birthday Duck!

Happy Birthday to my very favorite teenager! I love you more and more everyday since the one when you came into this world, 14 years ago. I remember that day like it was just yesterday. I cry just thinking about it.
Dakota, you are an amazing, special, incredible, talented, handsome guy. I am proud to have you as my son. You brighten my world, just by existing.

The picture here, for those of you who aren't in the know, is Duck's new bike his dad got him for his birthday. We just gave him cash.

a small thought.

Hello.

I have been asked more than once why I dedicate my corner of the blogosphere to my boys. "Why, with a web address like American Airspace, aren't you using it for something "important" like politics, war talk, television commentary or even airplanes... Why a mommy blog?" The answer is short and long.
I love them, that's the short bit.
The longer answer, well, its about who I am and who I want to be and how I see the world around me.

What do you see in this photo? Do you see a blond child peering through a fence at a brown horse? Or do you see what I see? A moment of grace and innocence, when a small boy learns about the beauty of the world around him? An innocent greeting without fear?

I enjoy sharing our lives with family and friends. I enjoy meeting new blog friends and drawing them into our lives. We aren't "family values" people... That's a bunch of crap anyways (I wonder who was the first jackass who said "I believe in family values" and really meant "I am a homophobic bastard"? That jerk ruined what family values are really about) We believe real values are about sharing our toys with grace, even when its hard... Admitting to mistakes we make, not the mistakes of others... Snuggles and hugs are more important than tidiness... Neatness counts, but only for part of the grade... Water is good for the soul... Dogs, cats, and horses are family members and must be treated with respect...If you love someone, who cares what race religion sex creed class (or other thing society frowns on), love them...

This stuff is important. These two boys are more important to my life, my home, and my community than one more blog condemning or condoning the war, more important than one more bush supporter or basher's ramblings; more important than one more hack review of last nights episode of family guy. So that's why... Because if the whole world thought that love and sharing and hugs and petting the dog were the most important things, we wouldn't need 50 million web sites and blogs dedicated to killing our fellow man.

SO, I am going to go now, and sit upon my neighbors porch, and let our small sons explore the world together, and we will talk about the cool wind bringing in autumn, and how the potty chair usage was yesterday. We will scratch the dog behind the ear on occasion, as he keeps a watchful eye on the children. We might have a cup of coffee. We will teach our boys to share toys with one another without grabbing or pushing or crying. Perhaps our sons will teach that to the world one day.

"holy birthdays, Batman!"

Today is "International Talk Like A Pirate Day"! Learn more Here!

Also, big happy birthday to Duck's paternal grandmother!

Count down to Duck's birthday... 2 days!

Count down to Duck's dad's birthday... 10 days!

Count down to Indy's paternal grandmothers birthday... 21 days!

It's the pony express and the wild wild west!

We had a great weekend! Brother Duck and his dad assisted Indiana in his very first ever taste of horseback riding. This particular horse is a miniature named Wee-Biscuit. Wee has a bit of a weight problem, but don't we all.

Indiana always enjoys going out to brothers house. Riding Wee in the side yard is just a bonus. It gets harder and harder to get Indiana back into the car seat for the trip home.

news-y

Thumb sucking is relaxing.

Indiana's Oncle Nate is going home tomorrow after a nice 4 day visit.

Grandpa Donnie retires in 6 months 2 weeks and 3 days.

Daddy is back to working lots of overtime. We miss him.

Brother Duck turns 14 in 7 more days. Quack!

It's been a slow, relaxing week and we don't have much to say, but it was time to post a new picture and let ya'll know we were alive and well.

On the battle field

My Union Duck taking out a few "rebs".

Although I myself haven't been south of the Mason-Dixon line (heck I don't know where the Mason-Dixon line IS, I just think the phrase sounds cool), Indiana's daddy is a proud southern gentleman. I wonder if we should tell him that the "Ducks" won this one?

Union Duck

Was Oregon part of the union? I think Oregon Territory was neutral during the civil war just because of geography, actually. This particular musket toting Duck is a union boy.

We all went off to the local Enchanted Forrest where folks can dress up in union and or confederate gear and do pictures with a Lincoln impersonator. There are lots of other things to do there including a fun log flume ride, a haunted house, and a shooting gallery. It is a pleasant walk along a tree shaded hillside amongst fairy-tale creatures and their habitat. You can walk thru faux Indian caves, wander the seven dwarves mine, peer into the three bears home, and even visit peter peter pumpkin eater.

More pictures of our fun day out to come.

WCC

Orange County Choppers, with the Tuetel's, is better, but out here on the West Coast, its all about Jessie James and the West Coast Choppers. They even make bicycles (well... Schwinn made this one, but you know). Duck is looking forward, it seems, to teaching his little brother to ride a bike.

Some Much To Do!

Finally the internet is up and running again. Goodbye DSL... Hello Comcast cable internet!

We have been so very very busy the last few weeks. I suppose you could say that without the internet to distract us we had to do family stuff or nothing at all! So without further delay, I present to ya'll some photos and short commentaries on the past weeks. Enjoy!

Indiana did a little gardening...



Daddy took Indy driving in the van...



The neighbors purchased Indy a new toy box that needed "in depth" investigation (yes, that is his new Harley in the background...



Indy won a game of "king of the mountain" at a local park...



Indy even spent some time just lounging around the house...



Indiana made a new friend, named Daniel (his mommy lives in our building) and is learning to share...



We even went out to Beverly Beach State Park (just north of Newport, Oregon on hwy. 101) to gaze at the beautiful Pacific Ocean...


So, now, as summer draws to a close, school begins again, the sun goes down earlier every evening than the one before it, we are working more and playing less. We really lived these last days of summer and made memories that will last me a lifetime or more. I love this chance to share our lives with you all, thanks for visiting!

technical difficulties

our ISP will be unavailable until the 5th of September.
I look forward to sharing some fun new pictures amd maybe even a nice 30 second video as soon as the ISP problems are resolved.
See you all back here soon!

Up a Tree (without a paddle)...

Falling out of trees is bad.... fortunately Indy was caught from behind and didn't suffer humpty dumpty's fate.

Ok, HD was pushed off of a wall by a skinny girl AND Indy was never in danger of falling because his dad was hiding behind the tree holding his shirt while i took some pictures of Indiana in my grandmother's apple tree.