Witcher Family Christmas

We had our first Witcher Family Christmas with our new cousin, Christopher,  this year. The boys have especially enjoyed having another "partner in crime" at family events. We started off with a great meal cooked by Nana with additions made by Aunt Vicki, Aunt Betty, and Aunt Amanda. Our Christmas celebration at Nana's includes lot of extended family members.

Mary Claire's affection has been permanently won by Aunt Vicki, Aunt Betty and Nana because they indulged her Minnie Mouse obsession. She is now decked out with t-shirts, dresses and a couple of dolls. She will even dig her Minnie Mouse clothes out of the dirty basket so she can wear them two days in a row.

Unc provided some entertainment by "stealing" Minnie Mouse. Mary Claire ended up getting a garbage bag to put Minnie in so she could keep it hidden from Unc. She really thought he was going to take Minnie home with him!

Henry also had some items added to his Thomas collection. The way to that boy's heart is through Thomas, especially if you are willing to listen to his Thomas stories.

Liberty received an adorable baby doll. Mary Claire wasn't really interested in her dolls until she was nearly 3. I expected Liberty to follow. She opened the doll and it has barely left her side since. She loves to carry the baby around and pat it's back.

Watch out! Ben got a gun! He has now learned that Mommy and Daddy are not moving targets. Ty had some Nerf guns and all the boys {Christopher included} have enjoyed lots of Nerf battles. That's why God gives boys other boys to play with - they can shoot each other!

The boys also acquired a couple RC trucks. Mommy and Daddy are getting used to the constant sound of whirring wheels tearing through the house.

Madisyn is in Heaven with her Nook from Aunt Vicki. She came home and we immediately loaded it with tons of books. Is enabling a reading addiction a bad thing?

It has become increasingly difficult to find gifts for the Grandparents. We didn't take a new family picture at Christmas this year because of Felicity's impending arrival. Since Madisyn was born, I have become the family photographer. Most of the pictures taken over the last 13 years are in my possession.

 So, Kent and I decided to make Nana a photobook. We included lots of pictures of her, Papaw, Grandpa and both Mamaws with the kids. A few tears were shed but I think it was a well loved gift. 

Back in Time {Part 2}

 

The heat of the day and the activity of  the morning left some of us dragging by the afternoon. Since I don't look as cute as Mary Claire when I suck my thumb and take a nap on a picnic table, I refrained {this time}. :-) 

 

 

The younger kids loved washing clothes. This sweet lady fed the same clothing through the ringer over and over and let each child have multiple turns wringing the water out.  

 

They had such a good time that Nana and the older kids left them there to play while they visited a few of the other exhibits.  Too bad I can't get the same enthusiasm for laundry at home!

Next they visited the Post Office/Newsroom. We've never had a PO Box so the whole concept of going to town to get your mail is pretty foreign to us. The printing press always impressed the kids. They can't believe how big the plates are compared to how today's printers.

The man at the outhouse was very informative. He told us that the star symbol on the door meant it was for boys and the moon was for girls. If an outhouse had both, then both sexes could use it.

He also had a "fancy" bathtub that Mary Claire promptly hopped in and spread out for comfort.

It got a little crowded when "three men" joined her in the tub!

Libby doesn't get much from field trips but for the most part, she's happy to go along for the ride.

Our last stop before heading home was the exhibit on pioneer games. The older kids all had a turn shooting the sling shot. Some even managed to get their rock to go the right direction!

Hoops and sticks also provided a lot of enjoyment. Henry would just roll his hoop and chase it down.

The older boys enjoyed the challenge of rolling the hoops down the ramp on the porch. I don't think we have any champion hoop rollers in the making.

Back in Time {Part 1}

Things have gotten a bit busy around here. I've had a couple of posts ready and just never got them published.

A couple of weeks ago we visited Parker Homestead. It's a great "pioneer village" type place that opens in the fall. Several of our homeschool friends joined us and the kids were especially excited that Nana came along. They have big plans for her to attend all future field trips. ;-)

We started at the Rope Maker's stand. This is always a favorite for the kids. They always jump at the chance to make their own rope.

Sisal twine is looped through a jig. When the handle is turned each section of twine twists and they all three sections twist together. The Rope Maker rigged the stand so that it only takes three people (two keep the sections separate - one at each end, and the kids get to turn the handle) to make a rope instead of four. Before his rig, a fourth person had to keep the rope taught.

Liberty and Clara had a good time checking each other out. I was hopeful that Liberty would want some of Clara's independence for herself and start walking but 3-4 steps seems to be her maximum distance.

Next we visited the man that showed the kids how the cross cut saw worked. No one in our group got to try their hand at it but they enjoyed the demonstration just the same.

Next a man from the extension service talked to the kids about agriculture, specifically crops and how they are grown and harvested. Ty was renamed Jethro and served as an assistant. My country kids know their crops!

It was a very warm day and shade seemed elusive. Some of us couldn't get close enough to the medicine lady so we played in the trees.

I think some of these pictures may be gracing the walls of our home soon.

The covered bridge is another favorite place to visit. The kids really enjoyed Nana coming and dragged her all over the homestead.

During our lunch, Griffin and Lee put their ropes to good? use and played a game of tug of war.

A Day in the Life of an Auctioneer's Family

I thought it would be fun to chronicle our life on auction day! This particular auction was out of town and I was concerned it would be very hot so we secured a sitter for Henry, Mary Claire and Liberty.

Auction days are like Christmas around our house. The boys all slept in the living room. The day began with me waking them up at 6:30.

The previous night, clothes were laid out, lunches and coolers were packed and shoes were located.

The sitter arrived just before 7 and the rest of us loaded in the van. The auction was about 45 minutes away and due to a cooler malfunction, we had to stop for another bag of ice.

Once we arrived at the auction yard, the kids unloaded the van. A cooler was placed in the office trailer and in the sound truck.

Other lunch supplies {bread, silverware, etc}, Mommy's camera, purse and laptop were also carried to the office trailer.

We open the windows on the office trailer about an hour before the auction begins for registration. Nana and Mrs. Janet check people in along with Mommy. Unc is our IT person and was double checking a few things before we began.

Before the auction started, Senator Ronald Caldwell, presented us with a Senate Memorial Citation in honor of Kenneth, the founder of Witcher Auctions.

He read the proclamation and said some very kind words about Kenneth, our family and our auction business.

 

 

I didn't get pictures of Madisyn in action because she spent most of the day in the office trailer. She ran errands and messages between the sound trucks and trailer, and helped keep up with Ben and Griffin when they weren't actively working.

 

The boys get right in the middle of the action. Ty holds the sign during the sale so that the crowd can always tell what item is currently being sold.

We ran two auction trucks most of the day. Daddy and Unc each handled the bid calling in their truck. I served as a clerk in Kent's truck most of the day {which is why I wasn't able to get pictures of Madisyn}. Before and after the auction, I worked in the office trailer.

When Griffin and Ben aren't in the middle of the auction ring, they like to "inspect" equipment.

Madisyn brought Ty a sandwich and lunch. She also prepared lunch for Griffin, Ben, Kent and I.

Griffin and Ben also assist people with loading small items at auctions.

We sold approximately 700 items in about 7 hours. Once the sale was over the crowd lined up to pay and I returned to the office trailer to help check people out.

We got home to Henry and the girls around 7 pm. Auctions make for long days, but we're thankful to be able to spend most of it together as a family.