So, now that my apples have ripened, I have been busy. Last year I only had 6 apples because the tree was just pruned, but this year I have about 100lbs. Or more. I still haven't finished picking the tree. So this is what I have done so far.

I have apple butter and applesauce. I'll have about 2x that much by the time I am finished. It has been quite the chore though. I have a really nice apple peeler/corer/slicer, which allows a person to process an apple in about 10 sec. but it still took me over and hour to go through all the apples! Taking a break now because I need to wait for John to pick the rest. I am just not tall enough to reach the ones at the top. I do feel fortunate though that I was able to spray my tree (thanks for all the advice Dad!) so I had good apples and not wormy rotten ones. It's going to be so great in Feb to break open a bottle of nice chunky cinnamon applesauce!

On another note, I don't have a picture of this, but we started letting Little John ride the bus to school in the mornings. The first couple of days I waited with him, but now he runs out the door by himself and waits at the street. Luckily I was able to convince the school that they should move the bus stop to our driveway! It was really just common sense though. There is no point in have the stop down the street when we have the only kids in the neighborhood! And tomorrow he gets to get off the bus at a different stop and go home with his friend Noelle. My little boy is growing up!! They usually sit next to each other on the bus. They are such good friends, it is so cute to watch them play because they share the same type of imagination. Both always willing to enter the others world and take part, and I've never noticed a problem with one always leading and the other following, they seem to do a really great job taking turns.

Today it's been just me and Jackie, so I have taken the opportunity to catch up on the housework I didn't do while I was canning. (which means that the kids had uninterrupted time to make messes!) It's always so nice to feel your life in under control.

Last but not least, John's class was divided up into reading groups this week, He is in the highest one! I looked at the book his teacher sent home for him to read, and there is no way that I could have read that at the same age. What a little smartie! :)