Man...

My dad said something very important the other day...

"A little boy has so much to learn to become a man."

I've been thinking about that statement ever since.

It is so true.

It is so beyond the scope of what I can understand alone.

It is what so many people miss in this day and age.

We are not all the same.

We can't step into the shoes of something we are not.

I am not a man.

I will never be a man.

I can't begin to understand all of the things that make men... men.

Thankfully...

Brysen has a dad, two grandfathers and a brother-in-law to help guide him along this journey.

The road ahead is long and... I'm sure... full of bumps and pot holes.

With the help of those good men I mentioned above...

He should travel that road just fine!

Thank goodness I don't have to figure it out all on my own....

Woodchucks...

How much wood can a woodchuck chuck...

If a woodchuck could chuck wood...

The Haps...

 Mark and I are heading out to visit with our Cheyenne today. 

I am so excited. 

I miss her tons. 

Besides, a little birdy told me

that someone is turning 21 soon

and I don't live where the big stores are...

so I will be doing a little shopping and

heading to the post office tomorrow. 

I hope it makes it in time.

I told Mark that everyone is going to think we have become some type of firebugs...

Besides the burn barrel and the burn pit...

and burning the garden field...

Last night, we finished making (I use we lightly.. since I had nothing to do with it. lol) our fire pit.

We then proceeded to sit out there long past Mark's bedtime and enjoy a cozy fire.

It was really nice.

I thought I would share this photo of me and my dad.

... now I need to get one of us with my brother!

Happy Friday, everyone!



Dream...

Pulled from a field...

unused...

unwanted...

A child's dream.

The tire swing.

Mutual...

We have 4 new additions to the family.

Two cats...

Rosie and Cinderella...

named by the little girls.

David and Goliath...

named by Miranda.

David is the teeny tiny one laying down.

Yesterday, he seemed very sick and we think he has worms,

so please pray as we see if the medicine will do its trick.

The poor little guy is very weak.

Certain family members are enthralled.

In love.

Infatuated.

The feeling is mutual, I think...

Where Were The Marshmallows?

Sunday was chilly.

After church, the kids department had Family Fun Day.

Everyone had a blast.

They fed us mexican food... yum.

Then the kids played on inflatables.

When we got home, the weather was perfect for getting some jobs done that just can't be done during the hot weather.  Who wants to do anything when it is boiling outside?  Not us!

There was some painting and cleaning up of the outside... which is a huge problem for me.

We all like a little pride in our homes when we drive up, right?

Anywho...

My dad started asking me some questions about our garden next year.

What did I want to plant?

How big did I want to make it?

We got busy talking this over and then took a walk out in the left front field to kind of map out how big we want this thing.

I was told that we would need to mow very slowly through the overgrown brush around the perimeter and then burn the inside.

I guess those boys meant NOW!

Then next thing I knew, Dad was mowing and then as the sun was going down...

the kids came running in to tell me that they were setting the field on fire.

I walked outside with the bigger girls and...

indeed...

fire was everywhere.

But...

it did warm things up a bit!

Mark is seriously having too much fun out there!

The little firebug!

Buck doesn't really care for the fire..

He proved several times why he is named Buck.

Above is Miranda and Sydnee...

my walk around the perimeter of the fire, "garden", partners.

and...

To prove that I actually live here too...

A photo of me at the fire.

It was a fun and productive way to watch the sun go down on a sunday afternoon...

But, where were the marshmallows?

From Ari...

Ari decided she needed to send something special to Cadi and Galen.

When I suggested a picture, letter, cookies...

she said, "No."

So, this is what she opted to send...

For Cadi...

For Galen...

For fun...

Love you, Cadi and Galen!!

Amazing...

It's a cool day today...

Mark and I have headed into the big city to visit with one of our older daughters.

So, I will just have to leave you with a photo of the most amazing young man in the world!

Making Memories...

Summer days are coming to an end.

We are waking up most mornings with a chill.

The fog lays into the valleys and makes for an eerilly beautiful start to your day.

The kids love that it is cool enough to get outside and really enjoy their surroundings.

Every morning, once the chill and fog burn off, they ask if we can head outside to play.

With camera in hand, we usually do just that.

Tomorrow the weather is taking a decidedly cool turn.

I am actually looking forward to it.

I expect to have a fire burning at least one of those days.

I guess it is time to find the boxes that are still holding the kids warmer clothes.

There are so many jobs around here that still need to be completed.

You know how it is.

This job can't be completed until this and that get finished.

It can seem like a never ending job.

It will get completed.

We will have a long winter ahead to get a lot of inside work done... I hope.

... not the winter part, but the work done part.

For now, I will just enjoy making memories with my sweeties.

Crazy...

I love this girl...

Especially when she gets a little crazy!!!!

A Little Longer...

Our son loves football.

Especially now that he actually goes and sits in the stands. 

He loves to scream, "Go Blue!" 

He loves to hear the sound of bodies crushing other bodies. 

He loves the screaming fans.

He loves the noises, smells...

He loves to buy an occasional funnel cake...

... just saying...

When we are at home, he is in constant motion.

Ball in hand, toss, throw, jump, fly, hit, run...

You get the point.

Mama has a hard time keeping up with him.

Nearly every day, he will grab that football and say, "Let's play!"

So I do.

I just can't maintain the same energy level that he can.

I wear out.

Then he says, "Galen likes football."

... and I sigh...

and play a little longer.

Summer's End

Summer is officially over.

Not just on the calendar, but on the weather map.

I love these crisp days, though.

The leaves blowing around.

The colors on the hillside.

The breeze blowing and making everything feel somehow new... or old.. or different.

We had a very busygreatbigchange kind of summer.

I am glad to see it come to a close and get on with this new chapter of our lives.

As a friend recently reminded me...

Change is NEVER easy.

It is possible, though.

And...

It is possible to do it without completely losing my mind...

...partially, but not completely.

Learning...

It is chilly today.

Fall may have officially arrived in our part of the country.

The other day, however, the sun was still blazing and the kids were out and about.

Pay no attention to Aubrey's hair.

This was crazy day at school...

and she knows how to do it right!

I guess every animal on the farm came for a visit...

or that is what it felt like everytime I was called outside to see their newest find.

I did NOT take a photo of the snake that I "nicely" told them to get away from me...

I'm sure you can understand.

This little boy thought I was honestly going to let this turtle sleep in his bed!

No Way on EARTH!

He carried that poor thing around forever!

I finally had to make him put it down..

and then he wouldn't leave it alone.

I sent him off to do another task and that poor turtle moved faster than any turtle has moved in the history of the universe.  He knew he had his chance and he took it!

Raising country kids is hard...

when you have always been much more of a city girl than you realized.

I am learning, though.

No Photos... Just A Goodbye...

Today, my beloved Raider will leave us.

He is going to live with my brother in Arkansas.

I will spare you all of the gory details, but he likes to chase birds and... well, sometimes chasing isn't enough.

He hasn't assimilated to being a country dog as well as we would have hoped for.
He needs someone to let him curl up at the end of the bed.
He needs someone to let him hide in the bathtub when the thunder rolls through...

He has been my constant companion for 7 years.
He has been my protector.
He has been my friend.

I will miss him... greatly.

Goodbye my big sweet baby.

Very Quiet...

Growing up

Quickly

The body always seem to get ahead  of the brain.

Either way, it is always to soon for a mom and dad.

I want to keep my babies... well, babies.

Sydnee is off on her first official youth trip this weekend.  Thankfully, her older (wiser) sister is along for the ride as well.  This seems to be the point when a little girl starts changing into a young lady (hopefully).  I know they will have fun and get some good solid training in the Word.

I just miss my baby...

hmmmm...

What is that I hear?????

I... can't... quite... put... my... finger.. on... it.......

Silence.

Without my chatterbox girl here... it is VERY quiet.

Homecoming Parade...

Friday was Homecoming...

and therefore, the Homecoming Parade.

Now, I know that some of you live in areas like I used to...

where you think your school has some spirit...

and you think your town isn't too bad...

I am declaring that people around here are HUGE supporters of their school and their town.

There is pride in their community.

They love it here and so do I.

Miranda participated in building her classes float.

She spent many, many hours down there putting this thing together.

She is sooo tired, but glad that she was a part of it.

The kids who helped put the float together were allowed to be a part of the float.

This is such an important thing for a kid who is new to the community.  You have got to be out there getting to know people... because every other person around has know EVERY other person in town since conception!

The middle school chose 20 kids to ride on one of the fire trucks.

Somehow, Sydnee managed to be #19...

Lucky girl.

Anyone who knows Syd, knows that she was over the moon!

Which means that this already talkative young lady NEVER shut her mouth from the second she was chosen until she had told us about 500 times what it was like to ride up there!

And even then...

I had to tell her that we had already heard the story and could probably tell it ourselves since we were there!

As usual, for our family, we arrived  a little early.

We managed to snag a parking spot right on Main Street and let the kids hang out on the street and in the back of the van.  They loved it!

I kept taking pictures from our spot...down the road to where the parade would begin.  If you notice, there are a lot of cars, but not people at first... and then it gets busier and busier.

I think the picture below was about 5 minutes before the parade began...

People are just coming out and getting serious about finding their spots.

I loved how everyone just stood along the side of the street and talked with friends and family.  No one argued over their spots or felt like there wasn't enough room

I was really surprised by how many people were there.  It felt like 2000 people where standing along that road.  Maybe more!

This is the High School band.

12 kids.

They sound really good!

Football players, Galen...

Football is serious business around here!

You don't mess with football in this area.

If you don't like football...  You keep it to yourself!

The firetruck was pretty close to the front of the parade.

Syd was there with a huge smile on her face.

She threw us tons of candy...

just like she had been instructed to do.

LOL.

Candy in the face?

Oh, yeah!

Ouch!

The kids have a bike decorating contest.

I loved the kids who were dragging bears behind there bikes.

We were playing the bears that night.

Last years homecoming queen and her escort....

I happen to play in the worship band with both of them.

Hey Katelyn and Travis!

Anyone want to play

Whack a Bear?

Here comes  Miranda!

She is one of the dice walking alongside the float.

They did an amazing job with the floats.

I loved that the alumni from years gone by had a float and they carried signs that showed their graduation year.  It was cool to see how proud they all still are of their hometown and school.

... and would any post be complete without some pictures of my crazy munchkins?

That's how it works...

Aubrey tries to "control" the situation...

while Brysen and Ari wreak havic...

and Lily tries to wreak a little havic... but not get caught.

Brysen and Ari don't care if they get caught.

They just think its fun!

Oh...

By the way...

We did NOT win...

but that doesn't dampen our town spirit a bit!