Sam has spirit! Was there any doubt?

 

You might remember that when Sam needed a haircut back in April, he shaved the sides and made a mohawk. 

Here's the blog post: New do

He's kept it up for months, partly because he heard about Spirit Week at his new job at Benson School District. Last week he collected blue hairspray, red tempura paint and the strongest hair gel he could find, known as "gorilla snot."

Thursday was Spirit Day, so we got up at 3:45 a.m. Yes, that's 3:45 in the morning. Then we spent over an hour creating this masterpiece. We were thrilled that it worked so well! The kids on his bus loved it and he was a hit with staff and whoever else saw him.

On a side note, his profile reminded Sam of the Sleestak from Land of the Lost. (I had no idea what it was either.)

Last weekend was a big one in Benson, with two events we really wanted to see. Sam and Mom Virginia inadvertently dressed as twins. 

The first event was "A Heroes Welcome," honoring veterans of the Vietnam, Afghanistan and Iraq Wars. It included this wonderful traveling replica of the Vietnam Wall.

Plaques like this explained other recent conflicts. Sam served in the Air Force during these two. It was unexpectedly emotional to see, and to hear some of the stories. 

Next, we took in the car show at Lions Park. Sam hopes to bring his "new" International truck to events like this soon. 

We met up with our next door neighbors, Bill and Theresa, whose 1957 Ford Courier wagon showed well in its first Benson car show. We enjoyed visiting with them for an hour or two and are grateful to consider them friends. 

Back at the ranch, Sam headed out on his tractor and power grader to help out another neighbor, Frank. 

Also last week, Sam got the washing machine hooked up and I washed my first load of laundry at Pumpkin Patch Ranch!

Sam also installed this new, innovative solar clothes dryer. Most would call it a clothesline. We ran the line into the greenhouse to enhance the solar heat, but low humidity in Arizona makes it happen pretty fast anyway. 

We still have to build a platform under the washer and hook up permanent water lines and electric wiring, but it's operational and the dry well drainage works great!

Yesterday we had a spontaneous and totally welcome visit from our friend Marla (right) and her sister Donna. Once again I was having fun and totally forgot to take photos, so I borrowed from their photos online. A couple years ago they contributed lumber from their deck, which we're now using for our garden beds and many other things. We had a great time showing them around. 

Finally, I wanted to show you my latest efforts from painting class. This was so complicated, it took me about 3 weeks to complete and taught me to choose a simpler subject next time. It's from a Grand Canyon scene by Erin Hanson. Hanson original.

Blessings to you all from our Pumpkin Patch Ranch.