X marks the Spot... Xenia IL that is

[An-g_BB]

Howdy SA fam!

The An-g_bb's have relocated out of the ratrace...into quiet countrydome!

for the past several months-- ive been packin up the house...for this move!

I guess it came together pretty quickly for such an uprooting.
We were looking to find a 20 acre property and this one came with a 5 bed/3bath ''manufactured'' home- ha its a Doublewide! but its only 5 yrs old and fits my gang! We hope to build a house in a few years- but who knows. but we love the area!!! I look out my window and see nothing but woods countryside!! ((as soon as i find my camera i'll post a pic)vs back in Chi-land... it was my neighbors junky house!

Actually just a bit ago... what do i see out my front window...but a simese cat run from the tall grass...into my yard then outta sight... as i gaped...((more for the fact ...i'd JUST read about Virgo6 & Chase's adventure))what runs out...and stops not 10 feet from my window...?? a fawn! yeah! Bambi was chasing that cat!!! it stopped. flicked its head, then dashed back from the woods they both came!! hahahaahh!!! :roflmao:


Its cool though - I'm from this area -all my family are around these parts. My parents are over the moon to have us so close!!! Ive never been closer to them than a 3 hr drive! now we live 20 minutes away!!
I have a lot of country teaching to do with my kids. They are learning what Chiggers are.... and Brian is a tick magnet... he was mortified when i told him youre a tick magnet now... in a few yrs...you'll be a Chick magnet!!! hahaha - the kids also are having a blast picking blackberries! My mom is to make them a pie(s) i think they have about a gallons worth already!

Hannah is still a bit wigged about the dark...its rather Advanced Darkness...but you sure do see the STARS much better that way!!! :) LOVE IT!

I'll be unpacking for quite a while. we have to build a pole barn for storage and vehicle parking. lol. as right now we still have stuff stored while our house is for sale in chicagoland.

Anyway--- thats whats kept me busy since Survivors ended.
Ive checked in from time to time-- but ive not gotten the time to watch the pirate show. lol

[spf15]

Congrats on the new place.

[Gabby]

Sounds like fun!

Enjoy it!!!

[frawniemae]

How exciting! I know you and the kids will love to grow it even more! Waiting for pics!!
(hint about chiggers that you may or may not know...with a Qtip soaked in regular ammonia, dab each chigger bite a couple of times for a few days in a row and it'll quit itching and heal faster)

[Fuel]

Congrats on the new place, 20 acres? wow, that is great looking for the photos.

[pocket]

Chiggers and ticks are awful...my MIL used to spray her feet and ankles with Off to keep them from getting on her. With kids rolling around in the grass etc., it's a bit harder to keep the pests off. Good luck...your place sounds great.

[Mouse9]

It sounds really nice. I'm sure the kids will love the new freedom of having a bigger place to explore.

When I was a kid we would paint the chigger bites with clear fingernail polish. I believe it was to suffocate the chigger so it died. I don't know if we just peeled the fingernail polish off or not. I am sure we didn't use removal to get it off.

One of my most vivid childhood memories is of painting my grandpa's chigger bites with fingernail polish. I was pretty young so I think it was a priviledge.

I was just wondering where you were. Though I don't always post anything these days I am on everyday at least two times.

I've lived in a double wide and I thought it was one of the most economical and nicest place I had lived in. As my husband started fixing it up by changing cabinets, fixing the walls with real drywall and covered up the seams, it actually became quite a nice place. Of course, if you are going to build you probably wouldn't want to do very much along that line. Doing drywall in the new house would be much more exciting.

[Slitter]

YAY!!! I know it'll take some time to settle in but it sounds like everyone is comfy and enjoying themselves. I'm sure Hannah will get used to REAL dark. It never does get fully dark in a city, does it? I bet the first good thunderstorm will be spectacular. Fourth of July fireworks will look better too if they do them anywhere nearby. Shoot, you can do your own out there! Have fun!

Here's everything you ever wanted to know about chiggers but were afraid to ask: http://mdc.mo.gov/nathis/arthopo/chiggers/ Actually it has some useful & interesting info and a nasty-looking close up of one of the little buggers.

[pocket]

The itch is bad enough without seeing that picture. Yikes, Sli. It sure looks like something from a bad science fiction movie.

[Fuel]

very interesting article, glad we don't have them around here.

[Virgo6]

Fuel there are chiggers in PA, you just haven't witnessed someone who had them. They are all over the country. People that I know got them picked them up camping, or in a park. Tall grasses and weeds.
ANG!!!! your new home sounds wonderful. Best of luck and happy memories.
Know you will be very busy settling in and exploring. Have fun and stop around to keep us posted. HUGS!

[Gabby]

I wonder if we call them something else.

I only ever heard my mom's family (from KS) use the word "chigger" before this thread. Honestly -- I always thought they were making some sort of racial bug slur!

[Mouse9]

That was a very interesting article.

Just goes to show you that things you do aren't always correct especially if it is handed down from your grandparents!!!

Just joking!

The reminder not to stratch is good.

[pocket]

We also have redbugs ... I said RED, not bed ! It might be another name for chigger. You have redbugs, Gabby?

*Yeppers! They are the same thing.

[Slitter]

I think some people call them "no see 'ems" too.

[Virgo6]

Slitter "no see ums" are really midges that are tiny flies that come right thru the screens and the bite like hell. They have them in Maine. The only way my father can use his cellular phone (as he calls it...lol) is to walk across his field and sit on a big rock in the woods. He picks up a cell tower across the valley or something.
Anyway, its blackfly season in Maine right now and I asked him how he stands the bugs sitting out there. He told me he has a safari hat with netting and also a full nettings suit thing he made to cover him. What a sight he must be to a wandering animal. The moose are probably scared of him.
Usually, the no see ums are in places near water.

[Slitter]

Oops, another assumption gone wrong. ;)

[Mouse9]

Not to change the subject or maybe it's not changing it... but, I bet Ang_bb's kids can really see the "fireflies" better out in the country now that it seems darker. I usually call them "lightning bugs" but most people call them fireflies.

We use to see how many we can catch and put in a jar with a holey top then let them go when we had to go inside for the night.

When we were in a more egocentric mood we would detach the lighted part and put it on our ring finger making believe it was a beautiful ring.

(I say more egocentric because we didn't seem to care that we were probably killing that poor bug for our vain beautiful ring.)

[pocket]

I think the noseeums name is used in different parts of the country for different tiny biting critters. I haven't run across any midges here,(there might be some, I just haven't been unfortunate enough to find any) but there are vicious black gnats along the Trinity River that raise big welts. They are definitely "seeums" though. Come to think on it, my mom complained about noseeums in northern Wisconsin...they probably were midges, there.

Ang's thread is thoroughly highjacked to a bug thread--sorry about that, Ang.

[patchiepoopoo]

Wow Ang, you are really in the boonies now.
What are you about 4 hours away from Chicago ??
I've never been to Xenia.
Good luck and congrats to you.

When I used to go to Canada, I would get bit by those nasty noseeums and they sure do hurt.

[Slitter]

Ang's thread is thoroughly highjacked to a bug thread--sorry about that, Ang.

LOL, no kidding. Sorry Ang. You need to come back and post some more to get us back on track.

Mouse, we call them lightning bugs here too. They're not out yet but they will be pretty soon and I bet they will be all over Ang's place. I never did the ring thing myself. I know others did but I never wanted to get bug guts all over my finger, lol. Now I don't chase them but I still enjoy watching them.