9-18-10 Saturday

Levi took Jesse to Uncle Randy’s around 7:30, and then he went on to CIT to pick up some wood there and also did a Farm & Fleet run. Back home, we girls did kitchen work and the boys outside did various jobs, mostly getting the shed and grounds ready for company tomorrow. They also cut the broken limb off the Jon-A-Red tree so they could cider some of the apples underneath it (most of those apples went to the cows). When Tori was done with her inside jobs, she took over the cidering; she pretty much did it all solo and really enjoyed doing it, too. Seems like it’s usually Jesse that does all the cider; since he was gone it’s good that she got the chance to do it. At the end of the day we ended up with 16 gallons of cider, which is consistent with the usual 2 gallons per bushel that we get (she did 8 bushels). Most of it was canned in jars, which Kate helped me can since Tori was outside, and she did a great job too. The rest of the cider is in various containers; we’ll freeze what we don’t use tomorrow. Mid- (late?) morning, the cider press and process was moved into the shed due to heavy rain. It didn’t last long, but it was pretty wet for awhile. Soon after that rain, Grandpa Kaiser brought Jesse home from hauling manure; they got rained out over there too. It was nice having both boys here for the rest of the day then. In the afternoon, Dad took Kate, Ben, Sarah, and Jewel with him to do payroll. Here, after all the cider was boiled and the mess was cleaned up, I don’t know what the boys were doing, but Tori and I took a break to read for a little while before we were right back at chores and supper prep. After supper, Dad and I enjoyed a brisk walk between drizzles while the kids did dishes; then it was a final housecleaning for the day, baths/showers, books, Bibletime, playtime, and beds.

Curious little Joshua.

Yesterday’s work.

More books with Joshua.

That’s it; good night.