The Building of Fort Cruncher

I'm just going to let the pictures speak for themselves.

It's obviously not finished yet. This is going to be a work in progress for a while to come but I wanted to get these out there for those who have asked about it.

Hired Hands

So long, farewell to the old cedar shake roof, and all the moss that was growing beautifully over the top of it! We finally got a new roof. And although we did not demand a discount for all the labor Grant put into the job, his contribution was not small.
For literally hours, Grant kept filling his little wheelbarrow with the shake, and took it around front, unloading it all with his bare hands....
always careful to lift it up and empty every tiny piece into the contractor's trailer. (I at least made him wear his helmet to avoid falling debris on his noggin.)
The guys doing our roof were both impressed and perplexed at his dedication. So were we.
While posting this, I said, "hey Grant - come look at the pictures of you working!" He said, "Mom, I really did like doing that." Cool kid. I don't think he'll be on the parental "dole" for long with that attitude.

In One Month....

On March 2, (exactly one month ago) the boys planted all their seeds in these cups on the deck.
A couple weeks of TLC and a tiny little garden sprouted up right before their eyes.
Good work, boys. Not a single smashing incident.
Then they were ready for a new home - a bigger place with a view,

and the boys got busy transplanting.
















Gloves are for sissies.

There were a few meltdowns over mud pies,
but every plant and every boy survived.
Zabriskies gave us this start, so it was a little ahead of our own - but look at this! 4 Little zucchinis already!
One month ago, we had a bag of seeds. Now we have these cucumbers racing for space.
Good job, boys!!

Now it's my goal not to flip out every time they drive their big trucks up and down the paths, dump way too much fertilizer on 'em, take reckless shortcuts over perfect little rows of beans, and flood the place. Last year we ended up fencing the whole thing in, and they cried for days over that. This year, we just tried to plant plenty of everything to offset the inevitable casualties. After all, are we growing pumpkins, here, or are we growing boys? With any luck, we can do both.

Labors and Fruits

The Crunchers finally got their act together and got their seeds planted. We did the math on our water bill/expenses involved with our garden last year, and I'm pretty sure we could have saved money by just buying produce at Costco. So why do it? Because I LOVE IT! Also, our Stake Pres. challenged everyone to do a garden of SOME kind this year AS A FAMILY. I love it when they give a challenge you're already doing!! I mean, call me unmotivated, but I was just grateful there was at least one thing mentioned during Stake Conference yesterday that I could just sit back and say, "okay - we are so righteous!" And you know why he made the challenge, right? Give the video games a rest, put the cell phones down, help prevent carpel texting tunnel in teens, and teach kids what "fruits of your labors" refers to. Of course, it's always good to learn a few skills that might save your life, someday.


So here's a Cruncher tutorial on gardening:
1. Choose seeds
2. Label cups full of dirt, with drain whole in the bottom. (I like to say "dirt" because it enrages fussy pants horticulturists, who call it "soil." I did, after all, work in the business my entire employed life.)
3. Add seeds. (Hopefully not a whole pack of carrots between two cups. I also can't wait to see the new garden that will be sprouting under our deck, soon, in the lawn.)
4. Pour dirt on top, and pat down lightly. (TIP: Costco grape containers make great greenhouses.)
5. Check with supervisor to make sure everything was done properly. She approved.

Roto-Ruster

It's springtime in the northwest and that means time for gardening. Last week I tried to wheel our rototiller out of the shed. It was in neutral but the wheels wouldn't budge. I started the engine and tried to put it in gear but the gear shifter wouldn't budge either. Finally, I dragged it into the garage and took it apart. I knew it was a bad sign when, as soon as I broke the seal on the gear box, reddish brown water dribbled out onto the floor. It's not quite as bad as it looks. After I started wiping the rusty residue away from the various gears I found that most of them were in good shape. The sliding gear that actually transfers power was the worst. I scraped and filed and sanded and chiseled at it until the outer gear would slide freely. Then I cleaned out the old grease and packed all of the gears back in with new grease. It was then that I wished that I had been a little more methodical about organizing the various nuts, bolts and pieces when I was disassembling it. In spite of it all, I got it back together without serious mishap and, more importantly, without any leftover mystery parts. And amazingly enough, it actually works! I got the garden tilled and we'll be planting in no time. Anybody want some zucchini?

I 1 the Sandbox

Loyal readers of our blog will recall that last September we built a sandbox in our backyard. Because we have two cats, not to mention other even less desirable neighborhood critters, we have tried to keep the sandbox covered with a tarp when it was not in use. So our first outdoor project of the season is an enclosure for the sandbox.

The boys love noisy power tools. (And yes, I am one of the boys.) Here's the finished product in use on the beautiful 70° Saturday we experienced today. Of course, the boys were thrilled to be able to rediscover all of the things from our yard. Grant began adding to the pile of wood in the play house. Cole made an appearance as well but he was more interested in being silly than moving logs. Although he did put the swing through its paces. And there's no better way to end a beautiful day than with popcorn and a movie with your best friend.

The Plumber

...or, How I Saved $300 in Less Than 3 Hours. ...and got a 26¢ tip for my efforts.

The Incredible Mom

Here's my mom holding Brynie:
Here's my mom cleaning out our garden:
Here are two completely occupied and happy boys, outside with my mom:
Here's my mom raking up all the leaves: (and they were not a few - 7 lrg yard bags full.)
And here's my mom teaching the boys how to work:
Moooooooom!!! Come baaaaaack!!!

Muscle Man

Grant loves hard labor. (Especially if there is mention of his "strong muscles" from the side lines.) I raked up the grass from our last (hopefully) mowing of the season.
I was loading up the clippings, and he just took over. And ya know, I don't bend over quite so easily these days, so I got the camera, and let him finish up. (How do you like our house number painted in blood red horror style on the side?)
It must be packed down every time.
Fuzzy kitty helped, too.
Just look at the intensity! If only there was a mere spark of that intensity when it comes to cleaning up toys and messes in the house. Evidently, he's overqualified for those jobs.
He dragged this heavy thing all around the driveway like a trophy, and WOULD NOT let Cole touch it.