Tractor Ridin'

Over the weekend my oldest son and I got to ride in a cane cutter and a sprayer. He absolutely loved, as was expected, but it was really special to me too. I grew up ridin' tractors with my paw-paw and my dad. Paw-Paw had an old John Deere A that he'd drive down to check on the cows. I'd stand on the tongue of that thing and reach up nearly as high as I could to hang on to the back of the seat as he drove. An old metal bucket of corn clanged the whole way. It was magic...as soon as those old cows heard that tractor they would start bellowing and come running towards Johnny Put-Put. He'd stop the tractor in the pasture and it was like the disciples gathering around Jesus, their eyes fixed on him. He'd throw some corn to each one...and he made sure each one got the same amount. It was sad when his health deteriorated to the point that he was no longer able to take the tractor out to check the cows. I suppose it was around that time that my dad invested in a used, but well taken care of John Deere 3010. My favorite part was that it had fenders! No more hanging on the back. I went everywhere he went. We plowed, planted, mowed, scraped rocks, fixed fences, baled hay, moved cows from one pasture to another, plowed snow, and sometimes just rode around when there was nothing better to do. Dad has upgraded to a 4020 for most of his actual farming, but both the 3010 and the old A still sit in the barn. On those trips back home I still make it a point to get in a nice, long tractor ride before heading back South. Last summer I videod some of a ride he and I and my oldest son took. If nothing else, just enjoy the scenery and imagine yourself sitting on that fender on that perfect day in Illinois.

For My Lil Harris...

The Boy in Superman Pajamas



One little head peeks from behind the bedroom door. One little smile appears when he sees no one looking. Two little arms spread to the side like airplane wings and two little feet thump, thump, thump down the hallway. ZOOM goes the boy in Superman Pajamas! Two little hands rescue a glass of milk from the table and one little mouth drinks it down. Two little legs carry the boy to the bathroom to brush his teeth. ZOOM goes the boy in Superman Pajamas! Two little lips kiss baby brother goodnight. One little hand rubs one little eye. ZOOM goes the boy in Superman Pajamas. Two little arms reach up to hug Daddy goodnight. One little mouth gives a great big, yawn. ZOOM goes the boy in Superman pajamas! One little head lies down on the pillow. Two little eyes begin to close. Two little ears hear nighttime noises. Two little eyes open wide. ZOOM goes the boy in Superman pajamas! Two little arms reach up for momma. Two little arms squeeze her tight. One little head rests on her shoulder. Two little eyes close. One little kiss on one little cheek. Goodnight to the boy in Superman pajamas.

Embracing My "Hick-ness"

I had to laugh at myself today. I try to make a point of having music played at some point during the day while the boys are up. Sometimes it might be CMT as was the case today. My oldest son and I love the song "Big Green Tractor" by Jason Aldean. He likes it because it's about a tractor and a cowboy sings it. Not a bad reason. While watching the video for it today I thought to myself "what a romantic song." That's when I laughed and figured I must surely be a total hick. But seriously, that would be the perfect date for me. Ok...I'm a hick. I'm cool with that. So if you haven't heard it, go listen to it so you can laugh at me for being a hick too!

The Ice Cream Bucket

I had a flashback the other day in the freezer section at Wal-Mart of all places. We were walking down the ice cream aisle and I glanced over and saw a square ice cream bucket. I instantly thought of what a perfect berry picking bucket that would be. My Granny and I would use ice cream buckets when we picked blackberries. She used to dress in my Paw-Paw's overalls and long-sleeved shirts to avoid the chiggers. I, on the other hand, would climb in the middle of the briars in shorts and a tank top and be covered in itchy, red, welps by evening.

It's funny how many uses we had for those buckets. They hauled cat feed, persimmons, critters that I caught and would keep as a pet for the day, you name it. In the afternoons we would go out beneath the maple trees in the front yard and play frisbee with the lids. You had to throw with precision because the front yard wasn't real big. On one side was the house with it's peeling, white paint and huge front window. On the other was the road, which at he time was like fine pea gravel over crude blacktop. If you hit the maple branches at just the right time, dozens of "helicopters" would come fluttering down. The lids were so light-weight that they rarely made it to the other person. Eventually we would both take our own lid out and see who could throw it the highest and have it come back down and catch it ourselves. It was our special game.

I still find myself clinging to every ice cream bucket I come across. Who knew they could be such wonderful things?!

So Stoked!

Yippee Skippee, I'm so excited! Just confirmed today that I will be giving a fastpitch clinic in Lafayette Sept. 9 for the Rec. Department. I'm so stoked because it gets me back involved with the one thing I enjoy next to my boys and that's softball. Now I have to start practicing again to prove to myself that I haven't forgotten everything. That means a lot of underused muscles are going to be very sore, but it will be so worth it. My Marshall homies have also been hooking me up with some lessons up there. It's hard to believe that they are willing to wait for someone that lives 800 miles away to come give them a lesson. I don't know if I'm worthy, but it makes me feel really good. Plus it means the interest is back and that should get the program back up and running after being stagnet for so long. Yay for softball! :)