Really? Spam? An entire museum?

  • March 13, 2010 8:18 pm

Why yes! An entire museum. And one that I will visit again and learn more and enjoy even more. SPAM, and Hormel,  has an amazing history that will change my purchasing choices and encouraged me to make a stronger effort to learn more of the history of US-based products.

We visited the museum as a way to do something new and different on our arrival date for a basketball tournament for J. Austin, MN, while being known in the region for hosting basketball tournaments, is also the home of Hormel food products. I contacted a friend from a previous job who grew up here and asked what was fun to do during the day. The answer: SPAM Museum. Here we are at the entrance: spam-entry

Then we took a picture with the farmer and his two hogs: spam-statue

But T wanted a solo picture with Farmer Jones (actually, our Jones relatives did not raise hogs): spam-statue-t

The employees at the SPAM Museum are some of the most helpful and knowledgeable I’ve ever met. Elenore showed us the wall of 3, 390 cans of SPAM, and then explained that approximately 44,000 cans are produced every HOUR between the MN and NE Hormel plants. Henry and I were flabbergasted by that number…and still are! spam-3390-cans

Elenore then introduced us to Spammy, the SPAM mascot. So here’s our Fammy with Spammy (couldn’t resist that one): spam-with-spammy

SPAM was developed in 1937, just in time to make a huge impact on our war effort and American culture. You will be amazed (yes, I’m assuming you will make a way to visit this free, family-friendly museum). We learned through exhibits, films, puppet shows, and more, and made our way to the SPAM canning section:

spam-gid-work spam-silas-work spam-jonathanwork

They had a great time, and so did I, especially when I creamed them all and locked in a 10-second production time for one can. I explained that a mom of 4 who can prep three daily meals and snacks with interruptions of “Mom, can I–?” would have no trouble loading, heating, and packaging a little can. They didn’t get it.

As we exited this fabulous piece of Americana, housed in an old K-Mart building, Henry purchased a can of Black Pepper SPAM, newest flavor to the market. If you’d like to try it, you’ll have to come to Austin or head to Australia. Those are the only venues that sell that flavor.

What is not included here is an exhausted list of fascinating facts we learned, a picture of the 17.5-foot spatula, or the boys playing the game show SPAM Exam. Seriously, make a trip up here. And while you’re at it, drive another two hours to visit with us and the boys. Be sure to pack some SPAM for snacks along the road!

Basketball Tourney Camera Card

  • March 13, 2010 4:41 pm

We’re at a basketball tournament. Well, the tourney is over (thank goodness…it wasn’t pretty…’nuff said).

I was going to share pictures of our fun mini-vacation, including pictures taken at the Spam Museum yesterday. Unfortunately, the camera card (yes, this blue one, right here…see it?) will not be recognized by my PC. Just doesn’t like it today.

Fine, be like that. I’ll just go hang out in the pool with the other families.

The Ultrasound

  • March 1, 2010 6:14 pm

19 weeks – first day. Ultrasound showed measurements of week 19, day 3. Highlights duri ng ultrasound:

1. As the technician applied the gel to my not-as-big-as-I-remember-it-at-this-stage-before belly, Henry exclaims, “Whatintheworld? You gonna fry an egg?” I must admit, it did feel like an excessive amount of gel.

2. Wow, what a spine! All of our children are slight and even at age 8 or 10 you can still see their spines through their skin. I often call them “riblets” when they are toddlers and running through the house with a diaper and no shirt. So, we are definitely brewing another Riblet.

3. Really? That’s a kidney? Looks like a shadow to me.

4. Most important: gender. Well, we didn’t find out. I wanted to, so desperately. After four boys, you can imagine my desire and justification for such information. Actually, until we crossed the threshold of the exam room, I was the one pushing to find out, even if just to have it sealed in an envelope. So Henry begins asking for an envelope and I waved my hand in a “this is what I want…and I will have what I say” manner stated, “We don’t want to know.” True, I was lying. I did want to know. I still want to know. But as I explained to Henry and the technician, my desire to know will be outweighed by the regret I would feel once knowing. It would be too much to bear. So instead, I’ll remain in the dark for another 21 weeks.

What’s 21 weeks when I’ve remained ignorant of such things for a collective 179 weeks?

MIA

  • February 10, 2010 10:32 pm

Missing In Action, right? Isn’t that what MIA means? Well, that’s what I’ve been on this blog, partly because my computer had serious issues and partly because of my other MIA.

New acronym: MIA = Maternity In Action

That’s right, we’re brewing a new batch of chromosomes to see if another combo will create just as wonderful a concoction as the last four. Maybe we’ll get a female blend. I’m happy either way…a little more nervous on the girl front (can you blame me?).

Anyway, long first tri and I’m getting my energy back. And with energy and a functional computer, I have resurfaced.

That’s it. Nothing else to say for now, but will try to be  more consistent.

Loving the view cause I can still see my toes!

09-10 Blogging Season is Open

  • October 21, 2009 1:25 am

Life is just too intense in the summer to blog. I’m not sure life with four boys gets any less intense in the school year, so we’ll see how well I keep up with things this year. I’ve tried to recategorize things and am going to keep posts shorter (for the most part).

Through the summer, most of our cyber-journaling has taken place on a caring bridge site for one of the boys. We are confident that we are through the worst of that, so will plug through here.

There is plenty to blog about this season: two of the boys are in bible quizzing, Mr. S has started gymnastics, Mr. G is more verbal (and is prepping his 09 holiday dance), Mr. J has made the basketball team, I have more speaking engagements (my venue for sharing the nitty gritty of what I learn from parenting these troops). Oh yes, there will be plenty to analyze this year.

I’ve also opened up a Norwex shop for those looking for a greener way to stay clean.

My family is more dear to me (extended and immediate). My friends are more precious, as we all experience the challenges of 30- and 40-something life. And my God is more real and more powerful, as I need Him to be as I see so much pain and suffering around.

Truly, there is more than enough to blog about. Forget the mug, you might as well get a carafe!

It’s gonna be a great season!

Courage in the American Revolution

  • July 26, 2009 3:19 pm

Our current Konos co-op has us studying the character trait of courage. We are learning what can happen when you do what is right ever if it is dangerous and even if we are afraid. The colonists did just that, and we are experiencing many freedoms because of their courage and sacrifice.

We learned quite a bit about the cause of the revolution. We discovered that being a patriot was quite dangerous; if discovered, you could be tried for treason in England. Not many ways out of that. So how was Paul Revere to know how to travel to Lexington and Concord to warn of the regulars pending arrival? The lanterns, of course! One if by land, and two if by sea. Well, we have three lanterns in our home now. And the boys got a lesson in proper use of tools with dad:

Can’t Blog Life

  • April 16, 2009 7:30 pm

As much as we can document of our lives, we can’t blog life. Reading someone else’s blog doesn’t make you want to blog. It makes you want to go out and create the experience for yourself. It makes you want to live.

I haven’t blogged in forever, but I’ve been living. I’ve been laughing and cleaning and working and visiting and sharing and praying and holding and bandaging and calling and answering and dancing and being. So many times I’ve thought, “I need to blog this later…,” but I didn’t have time because some other moment needed to be lived.

So eventually, I’ll catch up with pics, but for now, I can’t blog my life. I’m too busy living it!

Pre-Collegiate Madness

  • March 26, 2009 4:01 pm

The fourth grade Junior Tiger squad played in a tournament this past weekend. These young athletes really showed grit on the court, and I don’t think one parental eye was devoid of pride for their son.

They’ve grown exponentially, forged new off-court friendships, and set high goals for the upcoming year. Here is the team, their unbelievably committed coaches, and our Master J.

jr-tigers-09.jpg jr-tigers-coach-09.jpg master-j-on-court.jpg

March Madness for Moms

  • March 22, 2009 5:03 pm

March Madness seems like yet another focus for sports fanatics to aim their obsession. For moms, it’s usually a point of frustration because every male in the house (in ours, 5/6 of the household) eats, sleeps, and breathes NCAA basketball.

For homeschooling moms, however, I’ve discovered that March Madness is our friend. This is the time of year that we desperately need a spring break. Henry had the boys complete a bracket (and me, too) and we tally up our rankings at the end of each night. Spring break is starting here in our fair town and we will be on half break for one week and full break for the next.

March Madness is going to be Mom’s Madness for me: spring cleaning the old fashioned way. I’ve got quite a list created and given a sensible night’s sleep, I’ll stay on target. The boys have been told that they will assist and will continue to do work. They will help me and play games. Each day they will be assigned games to play: chess, Othello, corners, and more. Between meals, laundry, gaming, and spring cleaning, I believe that playing with the neighbors and watching NCAA will provide the balance.

So March Madness is providing a focal point for my little people while I get the house in order, phase 3 (four phase process that started last year. Phase 2 was completed over Christmas). No teaching for me, just lesson prep, family time, and housekeeping with a fervor.

I love my job!

First Day of Spring

  • March 20, 2009 3:56 pm

In addition to the fabulous-o tablecloth we got today, we played with play-doh. Play-doh is our friend. Little people get it and they sit still. They make a mess, yes, but that’s what little people do. A play-doh mess is containable, and there’s a method to its proper cleaning: avoid the mess for 12-24 hours and it all hardens and can be vacuumed in seconds.

Mr. S was given the Easter Play-Doh kit for his birthday. It’s full of pastels and fun cutters. They had a blast with it and I thought it a fine way to celebrate the first day of spring (which was filled with rain here…so inside activity was required).

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