Farmers...for a day

We enjoyed spending our weekend with Eric and our visit to the pumpkin patch. As we were sitting in church it dawned on Mom that Dad would be finishing up harvest and if the kids didn't go over that day they wouldn't get to ride the combines until next year. So change of plans. Mom took the kids and left church early to go to the farm. This left Eric, Ben and I to enjoy the roast and potatoes she had already cooked. We enjoyed lunch and then put Ben down for his nap and took a nap too. Totally weird, going from 4 kids to 1, eating dinner with one and then getting to nap. It was almost like a vacation. :) We didn't nap for long before it was time to take him back to the airport.

The kids spent the afternoon being farmers. Mom drove them the almost 3 hours over to Mississippi and Ella, Jack and John hopped in the combine with my Uncle Keith.

He shared lots of good information with them. Like when they saw a hawk swoop down and grab a rabbit, he told them hawks have cameras in the eyes. When they saw a cotton plant, he told them that when a rabbits tail gets dirty they go over to the cotton plant and get a new one. Maybe that is where Peter Cottontail got his name from. Lastly and my favorite, he taught them how to check the soybeans. See you open the shell, toss a bean in your mouth, bite it in half and then spit it out. Not sure what that does but i am sure it is akin to thumping a watermelon to find a ripe one. Since i wasn't there they showed me this technique when they got home. I ended up with soybeans and spit all over the floor. They were so proud they knew how to check the soybeans.

After the ride with Uncle Keith, they hopped in with Grandpa.

I am sure told them all about the buttons and farming. He let them drive and before long they had to say goodbye and start the long drive home.

Well, Grandma took them to GiGi's (we call her Mawmaw but i guess she is feeling hip and told the kids to call her Gigi because she is their great grandmother) to wash off all the dust and dirt and then get on the road. They were late getting in but Ella and John were asleep. Jack would not stop talking about the day. He had so much fun. It was a great last minute plan. Thanks Grandma!