Riding Shotgun

It seems like the landscape changed from brown to green overnight. All the trees have been pushing out new leaves since I wrote last. Spring is here and nature is waking up from its winter nap.

One thing I have seen this year which is new to me are fields of canola. I've been seeing several fields full of bright yellow flowers but didn't know what it was until I asked Will Ed. He told me this was a risky crop for this area and that some farmers tried it a few years ago only to have a cold November that froze the crop out. I hope the crop does well this year. There are a couple of fields along my route to work which are spectacular.

HEALTH UPDATE. Mom had quite a busy week. She visited the orthopedic surgeon on Tuesday and learned that her ankle is continuing to heal nicely, there are no blood clots to be concerned about, and that she should be able to leave the boot behind by the end of the month.

Mom's biopsy was on Thursday. The surgeon took six tissue samples. We won't hear the results from that until Tuesday or Wednesday, but as far as the procedure itself Mom did really well. She did not have any adverse affects from the anesthesia nor has she experienced any pain in her gums, only soreness. We don't know what lies ahead but at least this hurdle was easily cleared.

LEARNER'S PERMIT. I knew this day was coming. I even wrote about it a few weeks ago. But it was still a bit of a shock to see Vicki riding in the passenger's seat while Jenna was driving in Springfield on Friday.

Jenna's birthday was actually on Thursday and Vicki took her to the driver testing center to get her permit but that turned out to be a disappointment. We knew she had to have a letter from the school saying she is a student in good standing for the license but we did not know this was required for the permit. So, the permit had to wait until Friday. Now we are riding in fear of every mailbox we pass. Actually, she is doing quite well considering her only driving experience has been on the dirt roads back on the farm.

After getting the permit Jenna and Vicki celebrated by having a girl's night out to Opry Mills Mall where Jenna got her ears pierced. Jenna had her ears pierced back on her tenth birthday. This was something she had been looking forward to for a long time but it did not turn out so well. The hole in one earlobe wound up splitting out and she let the piercing in both ears grow back together and has never been interested in having this redone until now.

HIKING. If you aren't familiar with scouting, all troops attempt to have one weekend outing a month. Our troop is no different, though we do make an exception for December. This month's trip was a day hike in Montgomery Bell State Park. Ben saved his money and bought himself a camel pack so he could take in yesterday's seven mile hike.

I think Ben enjoyed this trip. When we were all eating supper I asked him to share at least three things he enjoyed about the trip and he actually answered with more than one sentence. Some of the skills the boys practiced on this hike were wildlife identification (trees, animal tracks, etc.) and navigating with a map and compass.

ANYBODY WANT A KITTEN? Our kittens are growing…and eating. One of the bolder ones is starting to venture off the porch and explore a few feet away. What's really funny is to see Miss Cat, Tagalong, and the four kittens all sleeping in a big ball in the corner of the porch. We've gotten several cute pictures. Nate has even entered one he took in the art fair at school. We'll see how he does with that.

Joe