AREA YOUTH STABS SELF IN EYEBALL WITH BUTTER KNIFE, NOT KIDDING...

I really should be updating a little more frequently to keep up with current events. To say the past few weeks have been a roller coaster ride for the Johnson Family would be more than a modest understatement.

I guess the thing that sticks out most in my mind is that earlier this week Henry STABBED HIMSELF... IN THE EYEBALL... WITH A BUTTER KNIFE! None of that is an exaggeration. I was outside feeding the chickens and whatnot and came inside to see find my momma tending to our son with an eyeball wound. Apparently he was trying to cut an apple with his little butter knife and somehow he ended up stabbing his eyeball. Momma and I discussed a plan of action. I said let's wait it out and maybe put some frozen peas on it. Then they went to the ER. The doc gave him some ointment and said if it had been a quarter inch toward the business parts of his eye he would have been in serious trouble.

The photo doesn't really do it justice. If you look at it close up you can see the stab wound.

A wood whittler will always tell you rule #1 is to whittle away from your body. I guess the same logic applies to cutting up apples with a butter knife and you're never to young for that advice.

We refinanced our mortgage which is was pretty sweet, but then a couple days later I got a letter in the mail from the IRS! Not so sweet. My accountant goofed up on our 2008 tax return and it turns out we owe an extra thousand bucks. Oops. He said he'd cover the $56 dollars in penalties and interest though so I just have to cover the thousand dollars. Thanks buddy. The best part was when I got back in my car from the post office I opened the letter from the IRS and said a few swear words and threw it aside and started my trusty '92 Subaru Legacy (223,XXX miles) and it let out a REALLY loud bang. I thought the motor finally blew up. Turns out a spark plug just came unthreaded and shot out when I started it. I've been expecting the car to blow up for at least three years or so. I sometimes honestly can go a month of commuting without seeing a crappier vehicle on the freeway and I have also seen people openly snickering at me for what I can only guess is the general appearance of the old Subaru. It is so badly rusted that some of the body panels actually flap in the breeze as I amble down the freeway. Despite the lack of aerodynamics, the car routinely tops 35 mpg.

The children enjoyed their tradition of decorating Easter eggs over at Grandma Judy's.

Basically everything Violet does is adorable. Including this.

Last year Henry ended up crushing most of his Easter eggs because he would sit on them and roost. He has matured quite a bit since then.

Best Quote of the past few weeks: "Daddy, could you maybe get me a band-aid? I have blood leaking out of my body." Do you want Sponge Bob or Spidey?

This was a couple weeks ago -- Henry prancing around in my safety glasses that I stole from an old, old shop teacher at a middle school in Minneapolis back in the mid 90s. There must be some irony there somewhere.

Violet is totally off the nuks and we have basically banished sippy cups from the house. The nuk thing was a breeze. We did the same deal as we did with Henry -- snipped the ends off of some nuks. She quickly lost interest. The sippy cup situation affected both of them and has been kind of annoying with all the spills. On a random note: Henry is a staunch sweatpants enthusiast. He is Mr. Sweatpants. He says he likes them because they are soft and denim is to hard and crunchy on his body. One more note: He got his costume for his upcoming dance recital -- a red glitter vest!

I can now say from experience that having chickens in a kiddie pool in your basement for one month is enough to try a man's tolerances and thresholds. From what I have read, it is still a little early in these parts to be putting chicks outside in the coop but I put a heat lamp out there and they seem to be doing just fine. We found our chicken coop on craigslist. It is awesome. We haven't decided if we are going to leave it with it's rustic finish or paint it red and white like a barn. I kinda like it the way it is.



I still have to fence in a little run for them and tend to a few other things. The neighbor is setting me up with some free chicken feed in exchange for some eggs. I love the barter system.

Look at the guy in the back. He looks angry.

I actually bought this watering can right after we closed on our land knowing pretty well that at some point in the near future I would have some chickens. It took about three years or so.