NOPE we have not!!
Yesterday our great neighbor Mike brought a friend of his over with his little boy, about 8 years old, to see the piglets. They got the farm/straw bale house tour and after they'd left my kids all came RUNNING to me!! Mom!! Do you know what he said!! He LIED!!! They were horrified, not that they don't lie on a fairly regular bases, but it was WHAT he'd lied about that hit them where it hurt!! The little boy, remember we don't know this family at all and after yesterday we'll not go out of our way to make relationships!, told our kids.. 'You wont learn NOTHING homeschooling!!' I soothed the kids with reassurances about everything that they are learning, including manners!! Ok time to hop off the box!!
Papa got a phone call the other day and from the glint in his eye I knew it was no good!! I could just TELL!!! As I was sitting beside him I got to hear quite a bit of the phone call and by the end I'd put my .02 in. Papa laughed with the guy on the phone as he explained and there was no point in him having to listen to us argue about it and he'd call him back in a bit. I knew it would be a LONG bit!! It really wasn't. Once I'd heard the whole thing and gotten a few considerations.. hee hee.. I didn't really have a problem with the idea. The guys name was John and he's somehow or other involved with one of our local Christian schools, several years ago the school had problems with one of their buses and brought it up to see if the guys where Papa works could fix it. They figured out the problem but it ran to too much money to fix it. The school ended up getting a different bus instead and still has it to this day. When the bus had been in for repairs Papa had told John that if they ever wanted to get rid of it to let him know. It has a diesel motor in it that he really wanted for one of our trucks. WELL!!! Yup you guessed it.. two years later and they want to get rid of the bus. John remembered what Papa had said and gave him a call. There were a few things that really cinched the deal... #1 it was free. #2. It runs.. but will not start unless you use either, not a problem as I do NOT plan on EVER driving it. #3. Papa can fix it :) #4. It makes a GREAT playhouse!! :) #5. We can take some seats out and convert it to an RV for camping. Rough but better then paying through the nose for an actual RV and we don't camp all that often so rough is fine! #6. Papa really does want the motor for one of his trucks. #7. The kids love it. They got to drive home with Papa in the bus and man oh man the smiles were face cracking!! I SO wish I'd remembered my camera!
And we have a great place to park it!! At least for now.. we'll see how old it gets having a bus within view of the house. The spot where the bus is parked is a dead spot in our otherwise lush acreage..We're not sure why as it's been seeded and babied for several years. Papa thinks maybe because of the trees right behind it.
Oh yeah... and the funnest thing of ALL... Internationals do make buses.. they are everywhere but this one just happens to be made by
Bahahahahhahahaha!!! (It is also our 1st ford EVER!!, Papa says AND LAST!!)
Oh and before you think now we're going to go crazy with buses.. one of the 'considerations' was that there WILL NEVER BE TWO BUSES ON OUR PLACE AT ONE TIME!! They may pass in the driveway but may never linger!! Papa still dreams of owning a International Bus you see but as far as this homeschooling, do it yourself-er, mother, wife and all around farm apprentice, never mind chief cook and bottle washer, is concerned.. ONE BUS IS ENOUGH!!!
