The Farwell Family

This past week started off early for Andrew and Jackson as they headed out to the ranch to help round up the calves to take to the sale barn. Andrew had me set my alarm for 4:30 to make sure they were up on time. I noticed the lights on at 4, so I knew they were good to go.

I went for a run later that morning (it was already very humid) and then we got Ellie to SOAR.  Andrew and Jackson got home around noon and were pretty tired. Buddy got a bath and rested most of the afternoon worn out from all the excitement. Jackson also took a nap at Andrew’s insisting since he had a game that night. A couple hours later, Jackson emerged from his room and decided he needed to do that more often J. Lincoln got to play on the trampoline with the sprinkler until kids started getting hurt. I actually started packing up food, paper items, etc. in some storage totes for vacation. But soon it was time to make dinner and get ready to head out for ball games. Ellie had a game in Lancaster at 6 and Jackson had one in town at 7:45. So Andrew and Jackson stayed home while the rest of us headed out to Lancaster a little after 5. It just got darker and darker the further north we got. And as we were close to the ballfield, Andrew called to see if it was raining because it looked like it should have been on the radar. It wasn’t yet and the girls were warming up. We didn’t even get our chairs out because I didn’t want to have to mess with packing them up when the rain did start. It was starting to lightning though but they thought they would go ahead and start the game. But after a few more lightning strikes and some rain starting, they finally called it. And it stormed big time. I pulled off in a parking lot before I even got to the highway because I couldn’t see well and I didn’t want to risk it. I put a movie on for the kids and we sat there about 10 minutes before heading out again. But it got bad again and I ended up hydroplaning as I was near the Schuyler County Schools. I was able to keep it under control but it scared me. I was a nervous wreck plus I had a car right on my tail. It got to the point I could barely see again and I finally pulled off again when I could finally see a parking lot to pull into. It was almost impossible to see too far ahead, so I wasn’t able to pull over as early as I was wanting. My nerves were shot and I just wanted to wait for it to pass. I was paranoid about hydroplaning again. We finally made it home a little less than two hours after we left and by that point they had called off Jackson’s game too. We desperately needed the rain so I was thankful for it, but didn’t like driving in it.

We woke up the next morning to some more rain. I wanted to go out for a ride but had to stick with the trainer. Ellie went to SOAR and she was excited they got to start baking for the bake sale they were having at the end of the week to raise money for the Humane Society. That night Lincoln had a ballgame. They went to doing three strikes and three outs this time and the game was done in 45 minutes. Shortest game ever. Wednesday was the calf sale and Andrew really wanted all of us to go. They told them they would probably sell around 9:30, so Ellie skipped SOAR. I did an earlier swim and then we all headed to Green City. The twins started complaining about the smell as soon as we got out of the truck and Bennett was even holding his nose as we walked into the sale area. They eventually got over it and enjoyed checking out all the cows. Although Bennett was insistent that the white calves were sheep. I’m sure his Grandpa was so proud J. After they sold, they gave all of the grandkids Green City Livestock Market hats.

We went to my parents’ pool that afternoon for just a little bit. We had a heat advisory so I thought they may enjoy cooling off a bit. Jackson and Ellie both had games that night at almost the same time. I made a very early dinner and we ate at 4:15 since the games were at 5:15 and 5:30. I was able to sit in between the fields and watch both of them. Ellie’s team won and Jackson’s team lost by 1 run. And thankfully there was a nice cloud cover and breeze so it wasn’t miserably hot. The twins and Lincoln played on Ellie's field when her game was over while Jackson's game was still going. They pretended like they were playing a ballgame :-).

I went grocery shopping afterwards while Andrew took the kids home. The next morning, I went on a bike ride out to the lake and then got Ellie to SOAR. We invited some friends to go swimming that afternoon so we went to my parents after lunch. First we had to drop off my car to have the brakes looked at, so Andrew met us there and took us to my parents. The weather was beautiful and much nicer than the day before. There were quite a few kids and they had fun playing Sharks and Minnows for a while.

We stayed there for a few hours but then I needed to pick up my car. I took the kids home while Andrew picked up pizza that Kristin had ordered and then we took it out to their house for a late Father’s Day dinner. The kids were excited to get in the little pool they had out there and also had a lot of fun playing with the new kittens. They also got to check out the cool treehouse Kristin built. Kristin also had a sundae bar for dessert that they were all very excited about.

Ellie had their big bake sale for SOAR on Friday. She was part of the group that filled up wagons with the treats and walked to the other school buildings to sell to the staff working at them. Later that afternoon we went to see Finding Dory with Lauren and Kristin and her kids. The kids seemed to enjoy it…and enjoyed their popcorn which was dinner for the night J. After the movie, Ellie went out with Kristin to have a sleepover with her cousins. They picked up Mexican for dinner and then did some swimming.

The rest of us had to go to Lincoln’s ballgame and Andrew met us there. After the game, we went by my parents’ storage unit and got the kayak out. Danielle and I were planning on practicing some open water swimming at the lake the next morning so we wanted to use the kayak for that. The next morning, Andrew took the kids out to the ranch while I went for my swim. I picked up Danielle and we headed out to the lake. We planned to go the beach but it was locked up. She knew of a little spot just over from the beach that we were able to get the kayak to and push off from. Danielle swam first and I did the kayak since she had a better idea of where she was wanting to swim. She went about 840 yards and we were in a shallow area again where we could switch off. I was nervous since it was my first time doing an open water swim so I was thankful Danielle was there. It wasn’t that bad and the water was actually halfway clear so I could even see my watch a bit under water. They wetsuit definitely helped-the added buoyance made me feel like I was gliding through the water. I did 840 yards back and although I was a bit tired, I felt like I could have done more. We decided to put the kayak on the beach and swim around the outer edge of the swimming area to a dock and back with gave another 540 yards. It was a good workout and nice to finally get my first one under my belt. But after I rinsed off my wetsuit, it kind of made me do a double-take while it was drying in the shower because I would think it was a person for a second.

I dropped Danielle off and went home to empty the dishwasher and change the laundry. Andrew and the kids weren’t back yet, so I went for a bike ride. It wasn’t the most fun bike ride as I was fighting a decent headwind on my way out on Highway 3 but I just kept going knowing that they ride back would be so much better. I saw Danielle and Tyler heading back to town as I was heading out. And a mile or so before I got back to Hwy. 11, I looked up and saw Andrew and the kids pulled over on a side road waiting to cheer me on. They were live tracking me and were on their way home from the ranch, so they decided to surprise me. It was fun to see them there.

We didn’t do much the rest of the day. The kids played with the Magformers quite a bit and then played with some of their friends. I did a bit of packing and catching up around the house.

Then that evening, the three oldest and I worked the K-Life fireworks tent. Leah wanted Zach to do it to so he came and so did his cousin, Jackson. We ordered Mexican and had it delivered there and the kids picked up some drinks from Hy-Vee. We were kind of slow at first so the kids stood on the side by the road with some signs trying to bring in business. When we did have some customers, they would ask them if they needed any help. I did have to teach them how to back off a bit and just let people browse though J. We ended up having a decent night. It was hot though and the breeze wasn’t coming through the tent. The kids occupied some down time playing Uno and checking out all that was for sale. Then my parents came close to the end of our shift and bought some stuff. Then it was time to head home. The kids played outside for a bit and we set up outside because a family with a house on First Street was having a wedding and they were having a big fireworks display at the end of the reception. The kids were excited to watch it and it didn’t disappoint.

The next morning, Andrew went for a bike ride before church and then I did my grocery shopping afterwards. It looked like some rain was heading our way so we stuck around home for a bit before heading to the pool. The kids did get to swim a little bit and then we ordered some pizza. Andrew and Buddy showed up for a little bit too and Buddy did some swimming on his own.