New milkshake machine
New ice cream flavours: Peanutbutter & Jam, Slapshot (raspberry ripple with chocolate fudge brownie pucks)
Losing sleep
Lots of driving
No mosquitoes in the North, lots of mosquitoes in the foothills
Enjoying pools and indoor play areas
Mud bogging at midnight in a Freightnliner with travel trailer & a sedan with three sleeping children
Catching up with friends and family
Birthday parties & parades
Rain
Sun
Wind
Showing posts with label Adventures of a Carny Family. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Adventures of a Carny Family. Show all posts
Wednesday, June 15, 2011
Monday, April 4, 2011
Thursday, August 26, 2010
Kayla's Story
So you might have noticed that we have a brand new baby girl, but I don't have many pictures posted. Believe me I'd love to show her off, but I seem to have misplaced our camera. As soon as I locate it (hopefully today) I will be more than happy to plaster my blog with her beautiful face, fingers, toes, eyelashes, chubby cheeks...etc. In the mean time I thought I'd post her birth story, mostly for my own memories, since it seems my brain cells are deteriorating and I'm losing things and forgetting things all over the place. I don't want to forget Kayla's story.
We have been traveling around our province again this summer, hawking ice cream at fairs and rodeos. We scandalized our friends and family by deciding to continue our travels even as my due date approached. Since the pregancy was going well, and there were no complications and since there was a chance we could be over due we decided to keep on living like normal (whatever normal is). So off to the fair far from home we went. We were blessed that the fair far from home was actually not very far from Mike's parents home, so when they offered to take Dade & Matia for a couple of weeks we said "yes! God bless you!". Not that I didn't want the kids around, it's just that I was worried about being alone in the delivery room if I happened to go into labour, since Mike would have to stay with the kids.
After Mom & Dad picked up the kids our baby moon began. Mike treated me to a long over due pedicure, well he paid for one, since he wasn't going to touch my gnarly feet with a ten foot pole! Ahhhh it was so nice after not being able to bend down and touch my toes for a good 3 months! The pedicure took place on the last day of the fair far from home, so we packed up that night and drove to another fair, not so far from home, but still too far to get home in case I went into labour. The next day we set up our concession, and I made some calls and found some staff. This summer the Lord has sent us amazing, wonderful staff. All just in the nick of time, and all very nice capable people. I know they were sent by God because scooping ice cream at a fair isn't exactly the most glamourous or thrilling job, but the people he sent thought it was fun (at least that's what they said).
On Tuesday morning at 4:07am contractions woke me up. I timed 3 sets of contractions and they were 8 minutes apart, and then quickly progressed to 5 minutes apart, then 3 minutes apart. I packed my bag and woke up Mike, and then of course started second guessing myself, as the contractions seemed to lessen in intensity once I was up and walking around. Mike was sure, though, and ordered me into the car. He couldn't understand why I was putzing around, putting unnecessary stuff into my bag. "Get in the car woman!" he ordered after I paused for another contraction, and wondered out loud if it was just false labour. Hee hee, good thing I listened to my husband.
We arrived at the hospital at 5 am, with no prenatal papers, an out of province health care card and contractions coming one on top of another. The admission staff were over joyed, I'm sure. Still they were nice to me and got me to a labour and delivery room ASAP. The porter predicted we would be having a girl, judging from the way my big belly looked. Lucky guess I suppose, or is there really a way to tell?
Once we were tucked in to the delivery bed things really started to move along, which may have been distressing for the nurses who were already in the process of delivering another baby on the ward and dealing with other patients too. In a small town hospital the nurses have to divide an conquer, and though I know they were under staffed and over busy, they were still amazing and available for my every need. Wonderful people those nurses! I think they had super powers. At any rate my nurse was prepared when Kayla decided to make her way into the world at 7:04am, 3 hours after I woke up. The doctor was also ready and waiting and calmly cut the cord from around her precious little neck. I didn't even know there was any cause for alarm until it was all taken care of and Kayla was blinking with a slight look of surprise in my arms. It must be weird being born, not an easy trip I'm sure. Kayla was indeed shocked by her suroundings. The nurses called it cold shock, which means Kayla's little body couldn't keep her temperature up after going from the nice warm environment of my womb to the chilly air conditioned hospital. She had to spend the first 2 hours of her life in an incubator, but after that she was good to go. She was treated to an ounce of formula to ward off the cold shock, so she was full and sleepy for the first day of her life. Therefore we spent the first night of her life awake mostly. Ah hospitals, they really give you incentive to get well and go home. Just when you think you get to sleep for a while they come in and wake you up to give you your sleeping pill! Well I didn't really need a sleeping pill, but they did have to check me and Kayla a couple of times in the night so that they could check off their to do list. That was all fine and dandy, but it was in between the times that I was up with Kayla trying to nurse her, never at the same time of course. That's ok, though I was so happy with my labour and delivery that the nurses could have pinched me awake every hour on the hour and I still would have loved them.
Now Gladys, on the other hand, I did not love so much. Who is Gladys, you ask? She was the lady down the hall who had a hysterectomy, and enjoyed going over and over the details of her experience with her room mate. I guess when her room mate was sleeping she had no one to talk to, so she called up a buddy at around 5am. Now that is a good friend, some one who will talk to you about surgery and hospital food at 5am! Lucky for Gladys, not so lucky for me!!!! I did agree with Gladys on one point; the coffee was cold and they didn't provide enough cream and sugar. I have to say, my hospital stay was rather good if these are the only complaints that I can come up with. We even had visitors! We were far from home yet, Mike's Aunt & Uncle drove an hour to come hold Kayla and make my day. Also, my friend's mom (who lives in the town we were in) dropped in to pass on prayers and good wishes. What a nice surprise; since I couldn't have my mom there that day, it was a treat to have my friend's mom come to admire my new daughter.
To top it off Mike's best friend's parents were passing through and stopped with a beautiful bouquet for us. How cool is that? The Lord knows me well, and knew I'd need a few visitors and he sent them. What a God of details he is. He knows me so well and blesses me immeasurably.
Kayla and I went home the next day at 11. We were comfy and cozy in our camper. We slept when were were tired and got a very nice feeding schedule started. Kayla has been very compliant and seems to like sticking to the schedule. Mommy wakes her up and feeds her, Daddy keeps her awake as long as he can (which is not very long at this stage) then we tuck her in and let her sleep until the next cycle. At night we just let her sleep till she tells us she's hungry, and so far she only needs to eat once at night, then goes right back to sleep until morning.
On her 4th day we packed up the concession and camper and drove to my home town to see Grandma & Grandpa and Aunties and Uncles and friends on my side. It was about a 6 hour drive, but was really 8 hours with the stops for the feeding schedule. Kayla never complained and just snoozed away the day. I thought I might be in for it at night, but she slept well and ate like usual.
Having just one baby to care for right now seems like a honey moon. Mike and I are enjoying being able to lavish undivided attention on our 3rd child. It won't always be like this. I look forward to having our family all together again. I can't wait to hear what Dade and Matia have to say about their little sister. Matia has promised to give Kayla her cherished elephant, the one she has clung to since she was old enough to cling, the one she sleeps with and sucks her thumb with. It will be interesting to see if she is able to make the transfer easily. We will keep it as a crib decoration though, because neither of us want Kayla to become as attached to it as Matia did. Hopefully we can avoid the thumb sucking this time, and we think it is better if our kids aren't so attached to one object that they have trouble settling without it. We'll see how it goes.
For now we are still enjoying the one on one time with Kayla. The other carnys are smitten with her, and the biggest, most tattooed and scariest looking dudes just melt when they see her, and are so pleased that I am doing well. They are like mother hens clucking to me that I need to take it easy and rest and enjoy this time because it passes so quickly. It is a joy to show off God's blessing to us and to tell others of his perfect timing and provisions.
Kayla is only 1 week old right now, yet her story is unique and unfolding as I type. I appreciate prayers from friends and family as we seek to raise her up in the way she should go, and strive to guide our little family with wisdom, knowledge and understanding that only comes from the one true God, the giver of every good thing.
We have been traveling around our province again this summer, hawking ice cream at fairs and rodeos. We scandalized our friends and family by deciding to continue our travels even as my due date approached. Since the pregancy was going well, and there were no complications and since there was a chance we could be over due we decided to keep on living like normal (whatever normal is). So off to the fair far from home we went. We were blessed that the fair far from home was actually not very far from Mike's parents home, so when they offered to take Dade & Matia for a couple of weeks we said "yes! God bless you!". Not that I didn't want the kids around, it's just that I was worried about being alone in the delivery room if I happened to go into labour, since Mike would have to stay with the kids.
After Mom & Dad picked up the kids our baby moon began. Mike treated me to a long over due pedicure, well he paid for one, since he wasn't going to touch my gnarly feet with a ten foot pole! Ahhhh it was so nice after not being able to bend down and touch my toes for a good 3 months! The pedicure took place on the last day of the fair far from home, so we packed up that night and drove to another fair, not so far from home, but still too far to get home in case I went into labour. The next day we set up our concession, and I made some calls and found some staff. This summer the Lord has sent us amazing, wonderful staff. All just in the nick of time, and all very nice capable people. I know they were sent by God because scooping ice cream at a fair isn't exactly the most glamourous or thrilling job, but the people he sent thought it was fun (at least that's what they said).
On Tuesday morning at 4:07am contractions woke me up. I timed 3 sets of contractions and they were 8 minutes apart, and then quickly progressed to 5 minutes apart, then 3 minutes apart. I packed my bag and woke up Mike, and then of course started second guessing myself, as the contractions seemed to lessen in intensity once I was up and walking around. Mike was sure, though, and ordered me into the car. He couldn't understand why I was putzing around, putting unnecessary stuff into my bag. "Get in the car woman!" he ordered after I paused for another contraction, and wondered out loud if it was just false labour. Hee hee, good thing I listened to my husband.
We arrived at the hospital at 5 am, with no prenatal papers, an out of province health care card and contractions coming one on top of another. The admission staff were over joyed, I'm sure. Still they were nice to me and got me to a labour and delivery room ASAP. The porter predicted we would be having a girl, judging from the way my big belly looked. Lucky guess I suppose, or is there really a way to tell?
Once we were tucked in to the delivery bed things really started to move along, which may have been distressing for the nurses who were already in the process of delivering another baby on the ward and dealing with other patients too. In a small town hospital the nurses have to divide an conquer, and though I know they were under staffed and over busy, they were still amazing and available for my every need. Wonderful people those nurses! I think they had super powers. At any rate my nurse was prepared when Kayla decided to make her way into the world at 7:04am, 3 hours after I woke up. The doctor was also ready and waiting and calmly cut the cord from around her precious little neck. I didn't even know there was any cause for alarm until it was all taken care of and Kayla was blinking with a slight look of surprise in my arms. It must be weird being born, not an easy trip I'm sure. Kayla was indeed shocked by her suroundings. The nurses called it cold shock, which means Kayla's little body couldn't keep her temperature up after going from the nice warm environment of my womb to the chilly air conditioned hospital. She had to spend the first 2 hours of her life in an incubator, but after that she was good to go. She was treated to an ounce of formula to ward off the cold shock, so she was full and sleepy for the first day of her life. Therefore we spent the first night of her life awake mostly. Ah hospitals, they really give you incentive to get well and go home. Just when you think you get to sleep for a while they come in and wake you up to give you your sleeping pill! Well I didn't really need a sleeping pill, but they did have to check me and Kayla a couple of times in the night so that they could check off their to do list. That was all fine and dandy, but it was in between the times that I was up with Kayla trying to nurse her, never at the same time of course. That's ok, though I was so happy with my labour and delivery that the nurses could have pinched me awake every hour on the hour and I still would have loved them.
Now Gladys, on the other hand, I did not love so much. Who is Gladys, you ask? She was the lady down the hall who had a hysterectomy, and enjoyed going over and over the details of her experience with her room mate. I guess when her room mate was sleeping she had no one to talk to, so she called up a buddy at around 5am. Now that is a good friend, some one who will talk to you about surgery and hospital food at 5am! Lucky for Gladys, not so lucky for me!!!! I did agree with Gladys on one point; the coffee was cold and they didn't provide enough cream and sugar. I have to say, my hospital stay was rather good if these are the only complaints that I can come up with. We even had visitors! We were far from home yet, Mike's Aunt & Uncle drove an hour to come hold Kayla and make my day. Also, my friend's mom (who lives in the town we were in) dropped in to pass on prayers and good wishes. What a nice surprise; since I couldn't have my mom there that day, it was a treat to have my friend's mom come to admire my new daughter.
To top it off Mike's best friend's parents were passing through and stopped with a beautiful bouquet for us. How cool is that? The Lord knows me well, and knew I'd need a few visitors and he sent them. What a God of details he is. He knows me so well and blesses me immeasurably.
Kayla and I went home the next day at 11. We were comfy and cozy in our camper. We slept when were were tired and got a very nice feeding schedule started. Kayla has been very compliant and seems to like sticking to the schedule. Mommy wakes her up and feeds her, Daddy keeps her awake as long as he can (which is not very long at this stage) then we tuck her in and let her sleep until the next cycle. At night we just let her sleep till she tells us she's hungry, and so far she only needs to eat once at night, then goes right back to sleep until morning.
On her 4th day we packed up the concession and camper and drove to my home town to see Grandma & Grandpa and Aunties and Uncles and friends on my side. It was about a 6 hour drive, but was really 8 hours with the stops for the feeding schedule. Kayla never complained and just snoozed away the day. I thought I might be in for it at night, but she slept well and ate like usual.
Having just one baby to care for right now seems like a honey moon. Mike and I are enjoying being able to lavish undivided attention on our 3rd child. It won't always be like this. I look forward to having our family all together again. I can't wait to hear what Dade and Matia have to say about their little sister. Matia has promised to give Kayla her cherished elephant, the one she has clung to since she was old enough to cling, the one she sleeps with and sucks her thumb with. It will be interesting to see if she is able to make the transfer easily. We will keep it as a crib decoration though, because neither of us want Kayla to become as attached to it as Matia did. Hopefully we can avoid the thumb sucking this time, and we think it is better if our kids aren't so attached to one object that they have trouble settling without it. We'll see how it goes.
For now we are still enjoying the one on one time with Kayla. The other carnys are smitten with her, and the biggest, most tattooed and scariest looking dudes just melt when they see her, and are so pleased that I am doing well. They are like mother hens clucking to me that I need to take it easy and rest and enjoy this time because it passes so quickly. It is a joy to show off God's blessing to us and to tell others of his perfect timing and provisions.
Kayla is only 1 week old right now, yet her story is unique and unfolding as I type. I appreciate prayers from friends and family as we seek to raise her up in the way she should go, and strive to guide our little family with wisdom, knowledge and understanding that only comes from the one true God, the giver of every good thing.
Thursday, August 19, 2010
Sunday, August 15, 2010
Saturday, August 22, 2009
Time Managment Envy
I've been reading about what some other people's days look like HERE, and it caused me to stop and consider what my day looks like, and what I would really like it to look like.
Currently it is still summer. Our hours go late into the night, so I'm a bit different than most people. Here's a stab at my current schedule compared to my dream schedule:
The Dream
5:16am Devos & work out
6:00am Coffee & computer
7:00am Yummy breakfast,reboot laundry
8:00am Phonics with DS,DD free play
9:00am Kids-Art Me-Fly lady zone
10:00am math games (sorting, matching manipulating)
11:00am kids-play outside Me-start lunch
12:00pm Lunch
1:00pm Kids-Naps Me-more Flying
2:00pm Call BFF while flying
3:00pm Snack & Circle time, Chores
4:00pm Kids-watch a show or play games Me-start supper.
5:00pm Supper
6:00pm Kids-Daddy time Me-Clean up & reboot laundry
7:00pm Stories & singing & bed time routine
8:00pm Kids-zzzzz Me-hang with DH
10:00pm Bedtime routine
11:00pm zzzzzzzzzz
12:00pm zzzzzzzzzz
1:00am zzzzzzzzzz
Reality
5:16am zzzzzzzzz
6:00am zzzzzzzzz
7:00am zzzzzzzz
8:00am DS wakes me wanting a snack and a show, me-coffee & computer
9:00am breakfast of some sort, clean up & get dressed.
10:00am Breakfast of some sort for DH, kids snack & play with toys.
11:00am park/outside
12:00pm open concession (I work in concession, DH takes kids)
1:00pm Kids-Nap
3:00pm DH swaps with me, lunch, Clean up camper, go to park or walk or shopping.
6:00pm Supper of some sort, swap with DH work in concession
10:00pm DH swaps with me, put kids to bed
12:00am DH closes concession, Hang with DH/clean camper
1:00am bed time.
Currently it is still summer. Our hours go late into the night, so I'm a bit different than most people. Here's a stab at my current schedule compared to my dream schedule:
The Dream
5:16am Devos & work out
6:00am Coffee & computer
7:00am Yummy breakfast,reboot laundry
8:00am Phonics with DS,DD free play
9:00am Kids-Art Me-Fly lady zone
10:00am math games (sorting, matching manipulating)
11:00am kids-play outside Me-start lunch
12:00pm Lunch
1:00pm Kids-Naps Me-more Flying
2:00pm Call BFF while flying
3:00pm Snack & Circle time, Chores
4:00pm Kids-watch a show or play games Me-start supper.
5:00pm Supper
6:00pm Kids-Daddy time Me-Clean up & reboot laundry
7:00pm Stories & singing & bed time routine
8:00pm Kids-zzzzz Me-hang with DH
10:00pm Bedtime routine
11:00pm zzzzzzzzzz
12:00pm zzzzzzzzzz
1:00am zzzzzzzzzz
Reality
5:16am zzzzzzzzz
6:00am zzzzzzzzz
7:00am zzzzzzzz
8:00am DS wakes me wanting a snack and a show, me-coffee & computer
9:00am breakfast of some sort, clean up & get dressed.
10:00am Breakfast of some sort for DH, kids snack & play with toys.
11:00am park/outside
12:00pm open concession (I work in concession, DH takes kids)
1:00pm Kids-Nap
3:00pm DH swaps with me, lunch, Clean up camper, go to park or walk or shopping.
6:00pm Supper of some sort, swap with DH work in concession
10:00pm DH swaps with me, put kids to bed
12:00am DH closes concession, Hang with DH/clean camper
1:00am bed time.
Thursday, June 25, 2009
un
Well here I am.
I finally have internet access, but I don't really have much to say.
We're still scooping. It is going ok, but not great weatherwise. Still waiting to make it big.
Our days are enjoyable. Today the kids and I hung out at the laundry mat, which might sound like an awful way to spend time, but really it was quite nice. There was a snack bar there, internet access, a t.v. with Treehouse on, paper and crayons and a large open air conditioned area to run around and throw paper airplanes in. Not bad, actually quite relaxing.
Later the kids and I went on rides at the fair, because there were no line ups. Our favorite ride is the tilt a whirl, the kids giggle the whole time and I love the sound of their laughter. Other moments of our day are spent napping/cleaning up the camper/making & eating meals, just like most SAHMs. I have to say, I'm very pleased with my kids. They can get a bit tired and cranky, but for the most part they are able to find something fun to do in whatever situation they are in. I'm always very proud of them and feel blessed by them.
Over all, there's not much to report.
I'm feeling kind of uncreative, uninteresting, unavailable, unplugged, undisciplined, uninvolved. Yet, I'm not sure what to do about that feeling. Maybe I'll just wait for it to pass.
I'll post some pictures, though I haven't even taken many of those lately, and then I'll go lurk on other people's blogs for inspiration.
Sounds like a plan.
I finally have internet access, but I don't really have much to say.
We're still scooping. It is going ok, but not great weatherwise. Still waiting to make it big.
Our days are enjoyable. Today the kids and I hung out at the laundry mat, which might sound like an awful way to spend time, but really it was quite nice. There was a snack bar there, internet access, a t.v. with Treehouse on, paper and crayons and a large open air conditioned area to run around and throw paper airplanes in. Not bad, actually quite relaxing.
Later the kids and I went on rides at the fair, because there were no line ups. Our favorite ride is the tilt a whirl, the kids giggle the whole time and I love the sound of their laughter. Other moments of our day are spent napping/cleaning up the camper/making & eating meals, just like most SAHMs. I have to say, I'm very pleased with my kids. They can get a bit tired and cranky, but for the most part they are able to find something fun to do in whatever situation they are in. I'm always very proud of them and feel blessed by them.
Over all, there's not much to report.
I'm feeling kind of uncreative, uninteresting, unavailable, unplugged, undisciplined, uninvolved. Yet, I'm not sure what to do about that feeling. Maybe I'll just wait for it to pass.
I'll post some pictures, though I haven't even taken many of those lately, and then I'll go lurk on other people's blogs for inspiration.
Sounds like a plan.
Saturday, May 30, 2009
What would you do?
Ok, so here's what happened and I just want to know what you would have done in my situation.
My friend and I took the kids swimming. Afterwards we decided to take them to McDonalds to play in the indoor playground (since we didn't get to stay in the pool long because it closed 30 minutes after we got there, which = 15 minutes of play time + 15 minutes of change room wrestling). When we got to McDonalds we were informed that the play area was closed. The manager must have seen the look of desparation in my eyes, because she said we could use the play area as long as we didn't eat in there. It had been cleaned and they didn't want any messes in there. That part is funny after you read the rest.
The kids behaved very well while eating and when they finished I allowed them to go into the play area which I could see through the glass that we were sitting right beside. I was just relaxing with a cup of coffee and visiting with my friend when I glanced up to see a cute little full moon presenting itself through one of the windows of the play area tubes that the kids climb up to get to the slide. I gasped and dashed into the play area to find my little girl coming down the slide with no pants on!!!! Her pants were actually in a wet puddle at the bottom of the slide!!! As I tried to think of what to do, a well dressed couple with a little boy walked into the play area. I tried to conceal my daughter's patootie with my jacket. I told her to sit down beside the slide with my jacket covering her. With a red face I notified the other parents of the mess awaiting unsuspecting sliders, then dashed out to the eating area to ask my friend to keep an eye on my kids while I searched my vehicle for wet wipes and a change of clothes. Luckily both were handy since I had just gone grocery shopping, then swimming. I came back in and put some clothes on my daughter, and wiped up the puddle at the bottom of the slide. Then I began to wonder if the mess was just at the bottom of the slide. Fortunately my son had just climbed through all the tubes and came down the slide. I chose to take his word for it that it was not wet anywhere else on the play area, rather than suffering further humiliation by trying to climb through the entire tubing system built for people who are 3 feet tall. Once the initial embarassment was over I decided to let the kids stay and play. The couple who came in seemed to take it all in stride and I actually visited with the woman for a few minutes. They were from out of town too.
So what do you think? For sure next time I'm going to insitigate a potty session before any play area activities. Now I know!
What would you have done in my situation?
My friend and I took the kids swimming. Afterwards we decided to take them to McDonalds to play in the indoor playground (since we didn't get to stay in the pool long because it closed 30 minutes after we got there, which = 15 minutes of play time + 15 minutes of change room wrestling). When we got to McDonalds we were informed that the play area was closed. The manager must have seen the look of desparation in my eyes, because she said we could use the play area as long as we didn't eat in there. It had been cleaned and they didn't want any messes in there. That part is funny after you read the rest.
The kids behaved very well while eating and when they finished I allowed them to go into the play area which I could see through the glass that we were sitting right beside. I was just relaxing with a cup of coffee and visiting with my friend when I glanced up to see a cute little full moon presenting itself through one of the windows of the play area tubes that the kids climb up to get to the slide. I gasped and dashed into the play area to find my little girl coming down the slide with no pants on!!!! Her pants were actually in a wet puddle at the bottom of the slide!!! As I tried to think of what to do, a well dressed couple with a little boy walked into the play area. I tried to conceal my daughter's patootie with my jacket. I told her to sit down beside the slide with my jacket covering her. With a red face I notified the other parents of the mess awaiting unsuspecting sliders, then dashed out to the eating area to ask my friend to keep an eye on my kids while I searched my vehicle for wet wipes and a change of clothes. Luckily both were handy since I had just gone grocery shopping, then swimming. I came back in and put some clothes on my daughter, and wiped up the puddle at the bottom of the slide. Then I began to wonder if the mess was just at the bottom of the slide. Fortunately my son had just climbed through all the tubes and came down the slide. I chose to take his word for it that it was not wet anywhere else on the play area, rather than suffering further humiliation by trying to climb through the entire tubing system built for people who are 3 feet tall. Once the initial embarassment was over I decided to let the kids stay and play. The couple who came in seemed to take it all in stride and I actually visited with the woman for a few minutes. They were from out of town too.
So what do you think? For sure next time I'm going to insitigate a potty session before any play area activities. Now I know!
What would you have done in my situation?
Friday, May 29, 2009
Scooping Ice Cream 101
When you have 157 pails of ice cream to keep cold you should make sure you have enough electricity to power 6 chest freezers. We use an inverter that Mike build onto our Freightliner when we are driving. When we are parked and there is no available power we use 2 Honda generators. When we have access to outside electricity Mike has made various adaptors to be sure we can plug into pretty much anywhere.
There is also a technique to storing our ice cream. When we started it seemed like a good idea to store the ice cream into categories (all chocolates in one freezer, all florescent "kids" flavours in another etc.). This is not a good idea for 2 reasons.
Scooping. There are a few techniques that are important.
There is also a technique to storing our ice cream. When we started it seemed like a good idea to store the ice cream into categories (all chocolates in one freezer, all florescent "kids" flavours in another etc.). This is not a good idea for 2 reasons.
- It is difficult to explain to casual staff where to find each flavour, as you simply have to know how we categorize our flavours.
- When all the popular flavours are in one freezer that freezer is almost always open, causing the air inside the freezer to warm up a lot. This melts the most popular flavours into soup.
Scooping. There are a few techniques that are important.
- Speed ~ it is important to scoop quickly and get the lids of the freezers closed as fast as possible to prevent the cold air from being exchanged with too much warm air that causes melting.
- Keep your wrist straight ~ on a busy day scooping can become painful, especially if the ice cream is quite hard, if you bend your wrist too much. I try to scoop mostly with my bicep, and bending my arm at the elbow. Of course the deeper the ice cream is in the pail, the more difficult this becomes.
- Build the ball in the pail, not on the cone ~ I try to make my scoops about 6 to 8 ounces ( I just eyeball it), about the size of my palm. I form the ball in the pail, when it is nice and tight I press it firmly onto the cone. If you try to form the ball on the cone often the cone breaks and it generally takes more time.
- Keep the size the same ~ this takes practise. Sometimes customers try to pressure us to make the scoop bigger. I used to feel guilty if a customer commented on my scoop being too small, but I stopped to consider that we sell a quality product & our prices & sizes are on par with other ice cream venues in our area (Dairy Queen & Marble Slab Creamery). Usually customers complain just to see if they can get something for nothing, they will generally pay full price after complaining if the alternative is to go without. I'm taking a hard stance this year; I'm not cheating anyone, and I work hard for what I make, so complainers can just cough it up or move on!
- Don't touch the cone or ice cream ~ an inexperienced scooper will often have difficulty getting the ice cream on the cone and try to use their thumb to work it on. Don't do this, no one wants to have someone stick their thumb in their ice cream! If it is difficult to lift the scoop out of the pail I usually use the cone itself to pick up the ball of ice cream. Usually you can just work the scoop under the ball and pick it up. It is also very important to wrap a napkin around the cone you are using, preventing any hand to food contact. Even if you have gloves or have just washed your hands thoroughly people don't want their food touched with another person's hands.
- Don't look at the line up ~ it is easy to get flustered when there is a line up. This causes a person to forget orders, charge the wrong price, give the wrong change and generally make lots of little mistakes that cost money. The less flustered or rushed I am, the better the service and the less time I waste in silly mistakes. This takes practise. Never look at the line - keep your eyes on the person in front of you.
- Quality Control ~ one of the perks of this job is that it is actually necessary for me to taste the product. I need to be able to tell people what is in each flavour and whether or not a flavour really tastes like it should (like cream soda float, it really does taste like cream soda!) I know that now that I've scooped for 17 summers I probably don't have to taste as much as I do, but hey, someone's gotta make sure we're serving up the good stuff!
A Carny Family Reality Show?
Mike and I were talking to our friends the other day and we were laughing at the idea of having our own reality show. Since watching the Gosselin family fall apart that is definately the last thing I would want to do, but it did get me thinking. What kinds of things would be interesting to "viewers" about our life? What do we do really well? What do we struggle with? What do we take for granted as "normal" that most people would find unbelievable? That to me is the essence of reality t.v. So I thought I'd give some glimpses as to what it is like to be a carny family on the road, scooping ice cream for a living.
For starters, there is some lingo that we have picked up.
For starters, there is some lingo that we have picked up.
- Joint: Our concession is a "joint", so is any concession or game stand at the fair.
- Jump: When we move from one fair location to another we are jumping.
- Spot: the location that our joint is placed within the midway; also used to refer to the town we are in.
- Spot Fee: the amount we pay the fair company or rodeo association for our spot (usually a percentage of our sales)
- Set Up & Tear Down: Setting up the rides, concessions & game joints then taking them down again.
- Jennys: Generators
- Rig: Big trucks used for hauling the joints.
- Lot call: the time that carnys are requried to be manning their joints in order to get them clean and ready for when the ticket booths open. It is usually at least 1 hour before opening.
- Indys or Independants: People (like us) who own their own joint.
- Nick names. Mine is not that interesting, I'm the ice cream lady and I think Mike is the Ice cream guy. Some of the people we know are known as Budda, Shorty, Lougy, Tiny
- When passing by the bunk trailers do not peer in (that might not be fair culture as much as my own personal policy)
- It is important to be clean & shorn. Carnies have a bad historical reputation of being unkempt, which is understandable if you see their bunks, and think about how long they are on the road for with limited access to showers, sinks & flushing toilets. They all are required to have short hair cuts and wear clean clothes (black jeans & company t shirts & coats & hats). Needless to say, Mike finally cut his hair last week before joining up with the fair company. We don't have to wear uniforms, but I'd like to get some aprons & hats that we wear when working. I know there have been time where we have fallen short of the carny standard.
- No judgement. People out here come from every walk of life. There are mothers & fathers, accountants, electricians, druggies, philosophers, children, grandparents, Christians, Atheists, Muslims, and everything in between. What draws carnies together is a sense of family the group provides. Though people can be ornery, strange, sad, or lost, we are all together to create a successful fair. We all have to work together to make a good fair, everyone has their jobs to do. It is important not to judge. This is something that has become more and more clear to me the longer we travel with this group. Assume nothing, treat everyone with the respect, keep smiling and look for ways to encourage others. I'm not the only one with this philosophy, most carnies treat me with the kindness and familiarity I'd expect at a church on Sunday morning. In fact some of our churches could learn a thing or two out here, but that's another post.
- Stay alert, especially at night. Of course the fair at night is interesting, but it can also be dodgy. People drink too much, or are on other substances, fights start in the blink of an eye. So far we have had blood splattered on our white freezers once, and Mike has had to break up one fight in front of our booth. Both events happened with very little warning. Usually I'm not around when these things happen because I'm all cozy in our trailer with the kids. Please do not stop praying for our safety. Though the fair is supposed to be a fun place, it can also be dark and scary. For the most part though it is the patrons that I worry about. I know if I made one yell for help I'd have 5 or 6 carnies ready to jump in and fight for me. I pray that will never be necessary.
- Eating out. Even though I have a wonderful travel trailer with a fridge & freezer we seem to eat out a lot. Mostly for convenience because sometimes I just don't feel like cooking, or sometimes we have to drive all day. It is difficult to stay away from fair food and eating out.
- Swimming & parks. This is what we do in our down time (between shows). We always look for the pool and parks that are close enough to walk to. The kids love both. When we are working one of us can still take the kids to the park or for a walk. We try not to hang out at the fair with the kids because it gets expensive when they want to go on rides every day (though I can usually trade a ride for an ice cream instead of buying tickets).
Thursday, May 28, 2009
Hangin
Well we're offically back in the swing of things. Praise the Lord, we made it to our second show (up north) with only small truck problems. We've been able to relax for the last couple days and hang out with our cousins. Collectively we've gone swimming, shooting, & playgrounding. Guess which two the kids and I did, while Mike did the other. It seems we have staff lined up and ready to go this for the weekend and is sounds like the weather will be better than originally expected. Life seems to be puttering along pretty good. We're up north until Tuesday I think, then we head to my home town for next weekend. I'm looking forward to enjoying my sister's bridal shower, and seeing familiar faces, especially Grandma's & Grandpa's. Thanks to all who are praying for us. We'll be keeping you posted.
Friday, May 22, 2009
All is Well
Happily Mike has solved the mystery of the cataclysmic truck problem.
We prayed that he would be given the knowledge, wisdom and understanding to diagnose & fix the problem. Thanks to a good friend's idea and discussing the matter with the boys at Freightliner, Mike thinks that the problems is far less cataclysmic than the original prognosis. He said something about it being an engine mount. All I know is that the repair job is far less expensive and far less time consuming than pulling out a transmission and replacing a clutch. We are very happy about this.
Also, today, our first day open at the fair, is looking like a beautiful day. Sunny and warm. Looking forward to a good day of scooping.
We prayed that he would be given the knowledge, wisdom and understanding to diagnose & fix the problem. Thanks to a good friend's idea and discussing the matter with the boys at Freightliner, Mike thinks that the problems is far less cataclysmic than the original prognosis. He said something about it being an engine mount. All I know is that the repair job is far less expensive and far less time consuming than pulling out a transmission and replacing a clutch. We are very happy about this.
Also, today, our first day open at the fair, is looking like a beautiful day. Sunny and warm. Looking forward to a good day of scooping.
Thursday, May 21, 2009
The saga continues
Ok, I guess we're not done with break downs and learning from stressful situations.
Last night we got all loaded up for today. Mike was just going to haul our travel trailer closer to the house so I could transfer our stuff. I went out to help direct traffic (meaning help him back up), and saw Mike walking to the house with a grim look on his face. His words were, "I think something cataclismic has happened either to the transmission or the clutch". Oh!
So our delima was that we were expected to set up our concession today, and we have 130 pails of ice cream on the way. We had a few ideas for getting our conession to the location by the agreed upon time. One way was free, so we tried that first. I steered the Freightliner while Mike pulled it with our Navigator. The Navigator just spun its tires because of our incredibly soft ground (thanks to 4 days of snow and rain). So out came the back hoe to pull the concession out of the yard. Once we got it on the gravel road the Navigator was able to pull the concession, but we didn't think it would be able to manage to pull it up the ravines near our place. Luckily the Freightliner somehow revived and was ablet to drive on its own power after that little pull of encouragment. By this time it was midnight. Mike decided to keep on driving while the truck was able. So I loaded up the sleeping kids and followed him into town, to make sure he made it there and to transport him home.
We made it with no further difficulties. Mike is perplexed, because if it is the problem he thought (the clutch) how on earth was he able to drive it to town. If it is not the clutch what on earth is it? Hopefully not something expensive. We are praying that God will give Mike wisdom, knowledge and understanding to fix the problem. We also praise God for keeping the truck on the road last night, it was a miriacle. We're praying that we will have a sunny weekend, and that we will have good business to pay for our ice cream and the truck maintainence and everything else. I'm also praying for peace of mind regarding our trip up north on Monday. Last year it was a fiasco, so I'm a little nervous, especially now that we're having truck trouble. Yet I know that it all works out all the time, somehow.
Last night we got all loaded up for today. Mike was just going to haul our travel trailer closer to the house so I could transfer our stuff. I went out to help direct traffic (meaning help him back up), and saw Mike walking to the house with a grim look on his face. His words were, "I think something cataclismic has happened either to the transmission or the clutch". Oh!
So our delima was that we were expected to set up our concession today, and we have 130 pails of ice cream on the way. We had a few ideas for getting our conession to the location by the agreed upon time. One way was free, so we tried that first. I steered the Freightliner while Mike pulled it with our Navigator. The Navigator just spun its tires because of our incredibly soft ground (thanks to 4 days of snow and rain). So out came the back hoe to pull the concession out of the yard. Once we got it on the gravel road the Navigator was able to pull the concession, but we didn't think it would be able to manage to pull it up the ravines near our place. Luckily the Freightliner somehow revived and was ablet to drive on its own power after that little pull of encouragment. By this time it was midnight. Mike decided to keep on driving while the truck was able. So I loaded up the sleeping kids and followed him into town, to make sure he made it there and to transport him home.
We made it with no further difficulties. Mike is perplexed, because if it is the problem he thought (the clutch) how on earth was he able to drive it to town. If it is not the clutch what on earth is it? Hopefully not something expensive. We are praying that God will give Mike wisdom, knowledge and understanding to fix the problem. We also praise God for keeping the truck on the road last night, it was a miriacle. We're praying that we will have a sunny weekend, and that we will have good business to pay for our ice cream and the truck maintainence and everything else. I'm also praying for peace of mind regarding our trip up north on Monday. Last year it was a fiasco, so I'm a little nervous, especially now that we're having truck trouble. Yet I know that it all works out all the time, somehow.
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