Giving Thanks!

        As we take time this weekend to spend time with family and friends to give thanks for the many blessing we have, I am especially grateful our kitchen remodel is just about complete. 

 

         It's been a busy week.  Our counter tops and kitchen sink arrived on Tuesday afternoon.  Then that evening my brother came over to install the rewired light fixture above the kitchen sink.  It was the one thing from the old kitchen we reused in the new kitchen.  It used to be central lighting for the whole kitchen, but we installed a new fixture that would give off more lighting for that. 

       We decided to take out the fluorescent light above the sink to use in the dark basement and install the globe light above the sink.  It turned out pretty nice even though my husband had his doubts.  Don't look too closely. I still have to paint the metal parts.

        Watching my almost three-year-old nephew try to be apart of the action was funny.  He had to be right there holding a screwdriver that he snatched from his dad's back pocket. 



         My dad came over on Wednesday to help us finish up the rest of it.  We started by measuring and cutting out the hole for the sink.  Then we glued the 45 degree seam that connects the sink piece with the bar piece.  Next we set it back on top of the cabinets to attach the sink to the counter top.  Now it was time to screw all the counter tops to the base cabinets.  While Dad and I were working on these steps, my husband was finishing up cutting and nailing the trim pieces. 

       After work my mom came down to see the progress and bring pizza for supper.  The last time she was over everything was torn out and only the soffits were built.  She was impressed with how it turned out. 

       As soon as they left I started cleaning up the sawdust mess for the last time.  Since the next day was Thanksgiving I didn't get much accomplished on putting things back together.  I spent all day Friday cleaning the sawdust out of the cabinets, cleaning the dishes that have been stashed around the house for the past seven months, and putting everything away. 

        Now to decide on what kind of window treatments to hang up.

Happy Thanksgiving!!

Harvest 2013

         Monday, November 11, was the perfect day to finish picking corn.  Our last field we custom harvested for a neighbor.

        It was 20 acres of bottom ground that was planted with a four-wheel drive tractor and a 6 row planter just to make it through the mud this spring.

        It produced some very nice looking ears even with a short growing season.

       By this time in the season, the combine needs some TLC. Look at all that dirt!!

        The corn head picks the ears off the stock and sends it through the combine to shell out the kernels from the cob. 

       After the separation takes place the kernels travel to the hopper, while all the trash flies out the back.

        Ace enjoys riding along. Watching for wild animals that get scared out of their summer resting places.

        Since this field was a mile down a winding lane followed by a steep hill, the semi could not fit back there.  We needed to take the Grain Cart to the field and shuffle the grain to the semi.  

         To stay off the road, we used a neighbor's bean field to fill the semi.

 

         The auger at the bottom of the grain cart carries the corn out the bottom up a second auger to the semi.

 

    

       It doesn't matter what tractor he is in, you better not leave home without Ace.

       We loaded the last semi as the drizzle moved in.  By the time we moved all the equipment home and took the last load to the elevator, it was snowing. 

Our Lady of Snows

        Last Saturday a group of ladies from our area churches took a day trip to Belleville to visit Our Lady of Snows. 

Here is the icon for Our Lady of Snows.  It was too difficult to snap a shot without a glare.

        The devotion to Our Lady of Snows is tied to the miraculous snowfall in Rome on August 5, 352 A.D. on a hot summer day.  It was brought to Illinois by the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate and the work of Fr. Paul Schulte, O.M.I.

        The grounds include many devotional areas.  There was the Agony Garden, Annunciation Garden, The Church of Our Lady of the Snows, the Lourdes Grotto, Christ the King Chapel with mosaics of the Joyful, Sorrowful, and Glorious mysteries of the Rosary, Our Lady of Guadalupe Hill, Resurrection Garden, and the Way of the Cross. 

        It was a beautiful day to walk the grounds and get lost in prayer.  With all the scale models of church history it was like visiting Mexico, France, and the Holy Land all in one day.  Plus, we had the best guide, our Pastor, who has a close connection to the area.

       Starting next week I hear they have an amazing display of "Christ"mas lights. If you happen to be near St. Louis in the coming weeks I highly recommend it.