Yep, Another One

Amanda found a male this a.m. in the barn.
I had Brandon do a clean up in the back yard and he found this Black Widow female with two egg cases.

Titanic Lifeboat

If you can go during a less busy day at the Mariner's Museum, you can probably get a cool shot of this lifeboat with the Titanic in the background. There is a picture of the Titanic on the wall to the left, but I was unable to include it in the shot due to other people.

Check out how Miss Hannah is looking at the camera in the bottom picture! It looks like we'll have another camera ham in the Asbell Family!

Mariner's Museum 2

http://www.mariner.org/

Mariner's Museum

http://www.mariner.org/

"We Are The Only People I Know

who can go to McDonald's and buy $1 hamburger for everyone in the family and come out with a "grocery sack" of burgers!" ~Clint

Must Be Comfortable

On weekends, we allow the children to "camp out" in the den together.
This is how we found Bethany asleep! :-)

New Study Finds Dinosaur Models Are Too Thick

http://www.icr.org/article/4775/
by Brian Thomas, M.S.

Dinosaur reconstructions in museums worldwide may all be too large, according to new research published in the Journal of Zoology. Researchers revisited the 25-year-old statistical formula used to estimate dinosaur mass, based on fossilized skeletal information. The old formula is “seriously flawed,” according to study author Gary Packard.1

If the new formula holds up, it strengthens the feasibility of the Noah’s Ark account in Genesis, which has already been thoroughly established.2 Not only would Noah have taken on two skinnier-than-previously-thought juvenile representatives of each of the larger dinosaur kinds, but his family would have been less burdened with feeding requirements during the year-long event.

The new predictions of dinosaur size may also alleviate a longstanding conundrum over herbivorous dinosaurs. How could the large dinosaurs, such as Stegosaurus and Apatosaurus, have eaten enough food to support their massive bodies when they had such small mouths on their tiny (by comparison) heads? Perhaps they didn’t have to eat quite so much after all, if their bodies were actually substantially less bulky.

How off was the old mass-estimation equation? According to this research, today’s dinosaur models depict dinosaurs being twice as massive as the new estimates say they should be. The fact that such a remarkable difference in mass estimation has gone unchallenged for so long illustrates how tenuous paleontological reconstructions tend to be.

The old formula has had a widespread impact, having dictated perception of dinosaur sizes for the entire Western culture. If something so basic can so easily be misconstrued from the physical evidence, what other misinformation is being spread? Without being able to base depictions of early earth history on the trustworthy information from the biblical record, reconstructions of dinosaurs’ lives and times will forever inhabit a near-fictional realm.

Snake Removal By Brandon

The snake became quite mad once we put it in a container.
It struck at the sides which gave our younger children a good lesson on how fast a snake can strike.
This juvenile probably came from the "Big Mama" black snake Clint allows to live in his workshop.
Big Mama's lived here longer than we have! I've seen her and she is BIG.
Clint has been in there right next to her and she just leaves when she sees him.

How do you like my baby boy?
He's turning the ladies' heads every where we go now.

Just a lil' ole black snake!

When I cleaned out the flowerbed last week, I put down landscaping fabric for weed suppression.
Brandon kicked up a black snake while weed eating in the orchard and it went right under the weed barrier.
Brandon caught it so we could relocate it some place it is not likely to give me a good scare.
I don't act hysterical around snakes and will even handle them, but I do not like surprises!

Amanda found a second black widow spider near the same location as the first. We have been here almost 14 years and have never seen one before and now we have found two in two weeks. I speculate they came in some firewood we brought home. I am taking steps to lower their numbers: clean up all I can, keeping the grass down, drying out damp areas, natural pesticides to cut down on bugs (their food source) and of course, looking for egg sacks to destroy whenever we find one. The adults will die in the fall, so it will be safe to handle the firewood this winter.

If there is an egg case present in a black widow spider's nest, she will aggressively protect it which means you are more likely to be bitten. Use caution! "The most dangerous place in the world is between a mother and her children!"

Turn Old Mini Blinds into Fabric Shades

I found this nifty idea through Econobusters. If you have or care for small children, mini blinds are dangerous because of the cording. Be sure to use a cord keeper, clip and tie them shorter or tie them up out of reach of small hands.

http://littlegreennotebook.blogspot.com/2009/02/make-shades-out-of-mini-blinds.html

Save Money @ Used Sporting and Fitness Goods Shops

These two have local locations, but you may be able to find places like them near you.

Replay Sports: http://www.replaysportsva.com/ "Williamsburg's sporting good consignment shop! Replay Sports is the place to go for all of your sporting needs! At Replay Sports its our goal to provide you with the best gently used sporting goods for all kinds of sports: Soccer, Basketball, Hockey, Baseball, Tennis, the list goes on! Seasonal equipment rotates regularly. We also carry fitness equipment and game tables! Whether you play for fitness, or simply for fun, Replay Sports is the place to come for gently used equipment at a great price! Why pay for new equipment that you're scared to beat up because of the price? Replay Sports carries tested equipment that you can be proud to wear, and use the way it was meant to! Replay Sports, where we make sports affordable!"

Play It Again Sports: http://www.playitagainsportspeninsula.com/ "Play It Again Sports is your neighborhood sporting goods store offering new and quality used sports and fitness equipment. Kids grow like weeds, teens want name brand everything and you want affordable prices! That is why Play It Again Sports is the sporting goods store for your entire family. We buy, sell and trade new and used sports equipment and fitness gear and pass along the savings to you! We carry popular brands like Nike, Adidas, Taylor Made, Wilson, Easton and more. Contact us and find top brands for less. "

It's Hard to Believe We are Already a Week

into July! The summer is flying by!

Brandon is still working on the two broken lawn mowers and putting them together to make a new one. One had a bad transmission and the other has the bad motor. Clint and he had some trouble getting a pulley off. They cut it off with a grinder last night. Brandon is getting small engine repair experience and so far he's enjoying it.

This week, I am hoping to tackle two flowerbeds that have been neglected since I was expecting with Hannah. I was unable to do it then and have been too busy with other things until now. They are horribly overgrown. It gets to me when I can't keep things looking nice, but the flowerbeds really aren't important. The spiritual, emotional and physical needs of my husband and children come first. Our animals basic care, comfort and happiness come next. During the summer, I also have the garden to tend. The yard is low on my priority list.

Sometime soon, I also need Clint's or Brandon's help pulling off the storm windows so I can clean them and the outside of the house windows. My old farm home's windows are very old. I'd guess 60+ years old. The kitchen windows still have the old rope and pulley system. We still have some of the original, cool looking wavy and bubble glass too. Most of the windows were caulked shut by Clint when we moved here, so cleaning windows requires that I have help. They don't get cleaned often. I like being outdoors and when I can't be, I want to have a view of nature, preferably a clean one. If I can't at least see outside, I tend to feel stress much easier.

Here's a quote a friend shared last week:

"Faith can change any situation, no matter how dark or difficult. Lifting your heart to God in a moment of genuine faith in Him can quickly alter your circumstances. God is still on the throne, and He can turn defeat into victory in a split second, if we only trust Him". L.B. Cowman

More Picts from the Party 2

Amanda cutting up with me.

These are the items that came from the diaper bag (baby care set) we bought her which we saw as a possible chocking hazard. You are your child's first line of defense; don't rely on the CSPC or manufacturers. These went right into the trash.

Brandon stood up half an hour so he could hold the popper toy in place on Hannah's bouncer seat. She kept trying to get at those colorful balls!

Miss Em wore herself out!

More Picts from the Party

Emily found some presents!

Emily laughing at the pull along dog.

Emily laughing at the dog. Clint laughing at Emily. I caught the boys "helping" her open her new baby doll's diaper pack. :-)

Brandon laughing at something I said.

Emily's Birthday

Emily enjoyed her birthday party, but not the singing! I guess you could say she was "moved to tears" by the Birthday Song!
She did like the Lady Bug cake and asked for seconds!

Micah 6:8 He hath shewed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth the LORD require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God?

Emily's Birthday

Emily turned 2 today!
We are so thankful for our fun loving character of a daughter! She adds joy to each day!
That is the Lady Bug cake we will serve at her party. Amanda and I baked and piped (frosted) it this morning.
I am not very good at piping frosting, but the children don't mind at all!