Fall Fun

What an amazing weekend! Record high temperatures perfect for those last minute fall chores to get ready for winter weather just around the corner. Handy Man and I had two big jobs to tackle - splitting the logs we were given by a friend and raking the leaves before it rained and made them all wet and slimy.

Unfortunately, the logs we were given for FREE were FREE for a reason. And you don't get anything for FREE in this world. Knotty and twisted, the logs were near impossible to split - even for my Handy Man/ Mountain Man.

Off to the hardware store to rent a wood splitter. 

Quite the handy little machine.

While Handy Man played Paul Bunyan, I was on organization and re-stacking duty.

I do good work.

Two hours with the wood splitter vs days of Handy Man power was well worth the $60 rental fee.

Leaves.
At out Little House on the Prairie, we never had to rake leaves. Where ever they fell, the wind would carry them away.

Unfortunately, this is not the case in the new house. Last year Handy Man "convinced" me to use the tractor to move the leaves into the pasture where they could "go away naturally." The lazy mans version of yard work in my opinion. Yeah, well his theory didn't really work last year. The next day the wind blew a third of them across the pasture and back into the yard. The first time I turned the horses out to graze, they ran right over to what was left of the pile and started eating the leaves like they were a buffet spread. Of course I am not 100% sure what kind of trees we have and I started to hyperventilate wit the thoughts of them devouring hundreds of toxic leaves. I quickly ran them back into their pen - under much protest - and hopped on the tractor again in order to bury the leaves in the pasture with dirt.

I spent the rest of the afternoon and evening watching the horses for signs of colic and feared the time I would look out the window and see all five of my four-legged-friends hoofs up in the pasture.

So this year - we raked and we bagged!

And we played...

Because you have to play in the leaves when you are young.

It's like a right of passage.

I saved the biggest, dog poop free (to the best of my knowledge), pile for my Brown Eyed Girl and Mr Blue Eyes to have. I told them to live it up!

Before long... the pile was not very "pile" like. But they were living it up!

Leaves in their toes.
Leaves in their hair.

This sequence of pictures was my favorite!

I am pretty sure they look happy.
Wonderfully happy.
And youthful.
And carefree.

Life is Good!

Now rake up that pile again. Mom wants to be done for the day!

I may by her her very own rake for next year...

NOPE!
I vow to never buy my children their own rakes. Ever.
I will especially NOT write their names on the rakes to make them look more appealing.
I will not pretend all the way home from school that I got them the best surprise ever.
I will never disappoint them with rakes.

Rah-Rah and I now have issues - with rakes.

Hmmm but she sure does do good work....

 

No my loves... I will rake. 

You just LIVE.