The view of the forest

What are they so excited to be watching?
On the other side of our backyard fence, this is what is happening. There used to be a "forest" here. In the last month, almost every tree has been removed and now it looks ugly. Instead of the scent of pine, we smell diesel. Instead of green trees, we see a chain link fence and the back of the city recycling center. It's not pretty. Will keeps asking me what God is going to do about it (because He made the trees and the machines knocked them down.) On the upside, that means we'll have neighbors in a few months. There are supposedly three lots that are in this space being cleared. Maybe the view will be better when homes & fences block the view of the city and road. Maybe they will plant new trees.

How are my kids supposed to nap with all this noise? How am I suppose to relax when I am wondering if that tree disposer is going to fling shrapnel through our window? I took the kids outside to swing and play for a little while, then these folks moved in and ruined our peace. I brought the kids and dog in because this machine does throw trees. I am sure these people do this everyday and know how to do it safely, but please pray this will all be over soon and our home and family will not be hurt. I knew when we moved into a new neighborhood that as it was built around us, we would have construction noise, but I hadn't anticipate this scale of racket.

Allen asked me why I hadn't blogged lately, and my answer was that I often write when Will is at school and the babies are napping. Since they all had been sick, Will wasn't in school & the babies weren't napping. It was difficult to get any time to myself, and when I did, I needed to do all the busy work -- laundry, dinner, napping. Last Sunday, Randy, Jason, and Allen went skeet shooting while Shelley and the kids napped, and Jenn and I ran around town. We all had a wonderful dinner at Texas Roadhouse, and Allen tried embarrassing all of us as he danced on the birthday saddle at the restaurant. It was a tasty meal and it was fun to share it with family. The kids are feeling much better, but Jon is still coughing enough that he throws up at least once a day, thus, adding at least one load of unplanned laundry to each day. The poor guy is having problems sleeping, too, but he is having fun during the day, so I know he will be better soon. Last night we celebrated Allen's birthday with a home cooked meal -- he and I tried our hand at fried chicken breasts with mashed potatoes. We had recently seen a Good Eats episode where Alton Brown described how to make the perfect fried chicken; although we didn't make it using his exact recipe, we did use his methods, and it was VERY tasty. We ended the meal with Allen opening his cards and gifts and we all enjoyed Tres Leches cake. Happy Birthday, Babe!!

Today is a beautiful, sunny 73-degree day & I wish we could all be outside. Instead, we can only open the windows to bring the fresh air in while we stay away from the Snorts* out there.

* In the children's book "Are you my Mother?" by PD Eastman, the baby bird calls a power shovel a Snort. That's what it gets called in this house, too.