Happy Birthday Eric!

You're so special ~ oh so special ~ God gave you to us!
It's no wonder that we LOVE you so!

So, it was 10 years ago today that your dapper little self joined our family. 
The day was blistering hot...or so it seemed to me.  I was a bit nervous about having a little boy after having two girls.  How could you possibly be as cute???
Then you made your debut, you had a perfect head of blond hair which the nurse immediately combed over to the side ~ and we were smitten! 

You were a perfect little gentleman from the beginning.  You looked it then, but now you are truly are ~ always ready to protect someone and everyone around you ~ even protecting Mom from a mouse!
 

Turtle wrangling...you need a cowboy hat for that ya know!

I love you.....Love, Mom

Fathers

Today I am grateful for you, Shannon, the father of all my cherubs.  When I was pregnant with our first child I said, "I just want my kids to look like Shannon, so I am always reminded of him when I see them." 
Seven kiddos later that is hilarious, as all our children resemble you at least in looks way more than me.  Now, if we're talking attitudes....hmmmm.

I love the way each child thinks you are the greatest...from fishing, to hunting, to playing games, to taking a good ole fashioned nap. 

They love to hear your stories and jokes at dinner, "Tell it again, Daddy!" 

You know what is best for us and no matter what I say, you do the best for each of us despite my complaining.

You are truly the leader in the family, but allow me to think that I am the boss at least sometimes. 

I think back how you have grown in our years of marriage ~ how I thought I knew what love was back when you first became a father. 

You have shown me what love really is, through the thick and thin, over the bumps and through the rough waters!

I love YOU, but you loved me first....thank you. 

Bits of This and That

Friday night we celebrated Father's Day with my family, minus a couple siblings. We were blessed to at least have my sister's "representatives" with us while she and her husband are in the hospital. 

"I want candy....."     Just kidding, it was only a raspberry...followed by a bowl of ice cream!

My mother has told me all about you....but since you gave my sis some sweets...hmmmmm.

It is always good to have everyone together, but tonight was special with Theresa's babies ~ how everyone loved them up.  Kath drew the short straw (in reality, all my kiddos were arguing over who got to stay) and spent the night to help with the girls.  Burning the midnight oil with a crying babe did nothing to dampen her hopes of having her own someday.  She did spend the afternoon napping, however.  Maybe now she will understand when I pass out every afternoon when I snuggle down to read with Dominic. 

Which brings me to the subject of napping....it is the greatest.  I now believe all the studies on the benefits of the afternoon siesta!  The 3-year-old in residence is not too hip on taking a nap, it is was a daily struggle to get him to lay down and even rest for a while ~ until we discovered the Oliver Pig books!  Now, every day, he and I snuggle into my bed at naptime, read a book from that series, which is being supplemented by Grandmere, and check out.  I have never been one to adhere rigidly to a schedule, but our days have been immensely more peaceful since he has been napping regularly.  Oh, and did I mention how awesome I feel for the rest of the day???  Shannon has commented on the fact that I am not the one falling asleep in my food during dinner any more!  This past week we kinda slipped back into our whatever-happens routine and it frankly did not work out so well.  I was grumpy come Friday, not to mention what a turkey Dom had become!  Anyway ~ when I see that kid peacefully asleep on a rainy afternoon, actually any afternoon, I am one happy camper and when Momma's happy, everyone is happy! 

And as for rainy afternoons, well, we have decided if we wait for the weather to get better we'll be sitting inside for a mighty long time, at which point it will probably begin snowing again.  So, this past week a friend and I loaded up our cherubs, fifteen between the two of us, and headed off for a hike. The temp kept dropping on the vehicle thermometer but we had a blast.  We hiked up to a waterfall and got soaked, but it beat sitting inside eating M& M's...well kinda. 

The beginning of the trail...see how they are all pretty much together...shortly after, they left us mothers in the dust, or mud as it may be, for parts unknown. 

He had to avoid the mud puddles,only to race into the creek ten minutes later. 

We were mostly still smiling! 

Oh, that was bear poop that we stepped over at the beginning of our hike...well, they were nowhere near after hearing my singing! 

And a few more pics from our Father's Day evening ~

Shannon giving Joshie some pointers.

Uncle Matt, showing 'em how it's done, or just throwing him to first base.

Okay, Eric, you don't throw the ball at the runner.

Happy Father's Day!



Blessings and More

Why is this world so fraught with injustice?  Why do bad things happen to the best people?  Today, as I sit here, any problems that may have seemed looming yesterday simply have a new light shed on them.  They are minuscule and life is good, life is not just good, life is beautiful. More importantly, life is what we make of it.  I watch as my sister heads to the hospital for her second round with cancer and how positive she is.  While I'd be falling apart she seems to be looking at it as another bump in the road.  She drinks up life, she inspires those around her to do the same.  I tend to see the grass in someone else's yard and think how green it is, while ignoring the fields of flowers around me.  Just for today I will count my blessings ~ how abundant they are!

Today ~ I am grateful for neighbors that offer to give my girls riding lessons.  The look on M's and Kath's face as they were trotting around the arena was priceless.  Isn't that what (most) every girl dreams of...horses?  Oh yeah, and knights in shining armor ON horses. 

Maybe not a knight on a mule, but you take what you're given!  Michaela is not super excited about being given Paula to ride but she is certainly not complaining...she still has four hooves! Heavens, I chopped her pretty little head off in the pic. 

Today ~ I am grateful for the abundant rain that we are receiving ~ now we don't have to waste time watering our garden and new trees we planted!  More time to perfect our poker game, right? 

Today ~ I am grateful for little birds that crash into our windows.  This little guy kept Eric and Joshie busy for the afternoon.  Apparently it is flying around their bedroom ~ oh yummy, bird poop on the carpet. 
But all is quiet upstairs ~ Life Is Good Beautiful!



Feelin' Alive

When I was a teenager I rode my horse, or anyone's horse that might be boarding at our house, all over the hills behind my parents house.  We would run up and down just for the sheer fun of it.  The horse may not have been having a ton of fun, but I sure was.  Sometimes, I would head out and run up and down the same hills myself.  The feel of the wind in my face, the brush beating against my legs made me feel so alive, so powerful....like I could conquer the world. 
Today, when my cousin mentioned she was going biking with her brothers, I jumped at the chance to get out of the house and invited myself along.  I am more of a road biker, I like it fairly smooth, or so I thought.  Michaela and Katherine went along, I needed an excuse to not look like I was totally draggin' up the hill, thus I could claim I was waiting for them.  Truth be told, Michaela kept up with the boys despite her lack of mountain biking experience.  She always throws herself in to what she's doing wholeheartedly, unless it's another English assignment!  Katherine was more cautious, but chugged right along.  The flowers, the air, the clouds were constantly threatening rain, but the sun kept beating them back...it was GLORIOUS.
I threw my camera back in the vehicle prior to taking off, thank my lucky stars, as I had a couple wrecks that I wish no one had seen.  I was unable to capture the beauty of the day but at least I still have a functioning camera.  Tonight, as I sit here with sore legs and scratches galore, I simply feel alive. I could conquer the world and may try tomorrow! 

Pre-ride with my girls

There are some nights we are pretty hard up for excitement here on the hill.  We have an old stock tank that we fill up with hot water, our "redneck hot tub."  It is awesome...no worries about dirt in it or splashing too much water out!  We filled it up on a rainy night this past week and had two hours of peace as it kept my two busiest boys, well busy.  They came in completely pruned and were experienced scuba divers...well at least they could hold their breath for a long time! 

Friday nights would find most people at a movie, dinner, a baseball game...something!  Not us, we were having turtle races....isn't that at least as gripping as watching, say, a golf tournament? 

The End....

Special Gifts

I love bowls, I love beautiful salads, mostly I love beautiful salads in beautiful bowls, they simply taste better.
Last winter Shannon purchased a new washer and dryer set for me, I promise this this will come full circle. The washer was a necessity but I choose to believe it was because he loves me sooooo much.  For some reason the washer began uncontrollably shaking amid the 3rd or 25th cycle, I was climbing out of a mountain of laundry and lost track.  I figured it wouldn't hurt the washer to complete the cycle, but it did hurt my favorite bowl perched atop my kitchen cabinets.  It shattered all over the floor and I cried. It was my favorite bowl after all, and I really, really liked it.  There was always compliments paid when something was served in that bowl.  Its demise was all Shannon's fault because he had not ensured the washer was properly level.  Really mature, I know.  In hindsight, the bowl was a source of too much pride and it needed to go.  Shannon assured me that I would get over it like everything else that broke around our house.  He was right, I promptly forgot about it. 
BUT, my mother did not.  It was a unique bowl, kinda funky and held a lot of salad.  So, for my birthday what did she surprise me with?  This awesome bowl.  It is way better than the deceased one, it is not as wide as the prior one, but longer, not so obtrusive on a table, but still holds as much....I LOVE it. 
Thanks Mom, you are the most thoughtful ever...how did you have it so long and not forget about it??  Just kidding! 

Speaking of gifts, little Nicholas has not been feeling so hot the last few days...maybe he is as under-the-weather about the weather as the rest of us.  He has a line of willing snugglers around, it fills my heart to see how they each love him up.  Sometimes only mama will do, but a good share of the time any ole lap will suffice. What a gift that is for me, although at times I suspect they may be overly willing to read to him just so they can miss doing the dishes!  "What, you were looking for us?  Well, Nicholas was really crabby.  The dishes are done?!?  Look, he's feeling all better now, the trampoline is calling our name!" 

Random Thoughts and Rainy Days

My aunt used to refer to their family as "The Zoo." While this may conjur up a bit of a chaotic image, I LOVED it. In my 14-year-old mind it was busy but not in a pull-out-your-hair way. Now that I am the mother in a similar situation, especially on the rainy days we have been enjoying (and I use that term loosely) the irony of what a "zoo" it must have been is not lost on me! What I witnessed in their family is similar to what anyone may see on a trip to a zoo: elephants ambling slowly around, penguins splashing about, even the monkeys are only there to entertain.  Now I realize the zoo that my aunt and uncle saw was not necessarily the same zoo I saw.  Monkeys swinging from the trees is not always a delight, especially inside the house, and can even be worse when the "monkey" is outside and at eye level with you, and you are on the second story of the house.  We are in for a few days of rain and my monkeys are bouncing off the walls ~ hopefully we'll make it to sunny days in one piece!

Two dancing monkeys ~

Speaking of zoos, we live in one in more ways that one.  Michaela and some friends were running up our hill yesterday when she jumped over this ~ literally.



Can you see it, can you see it?!?  Here's a closer look.

It's an elk calf.  This is the second one we have stumbled across in our years on the hill.  

Everyone was pulling for keeping it, but we nipped that idea in the bud. 

Grandpa gave everyone journals this weekend.  Eric was begging me to tell him the story of the day he was born. I told him we saved those stories for birthdays and he didn't have too much longer to wait.  He stated that would be too long, he was writing his life story (all nine years) and he needed a little extra information on the earlier years.  After I told him that he could practice patience and fill in that part after his birthday he came up with a new plan, he would write down all the amazing things that happened to him....but only from the present forward. 

Even though we are looking forward to rain for a few more days we did get some good water time in this weekend.  The jumping rock saw it's first action of the season and Dom broke out the sprinkler for a dash or two! 

Oooo, it does look cold..there might be some seaweed in there....should I, should I???

I am the bravest!

Ahhhhhhhhhhh!  Was it a shriek of terror or delight....I'm not sure.





To Be a Kid Again

We went fishing at the lake last night.  At least Shannon and the older five went fishing.  I volunteered to sit on the shore with Dominic and Nickles.  Sitting on the lake shore sure beats sitting at home where the laundry is piling up!  Of course, I could fold it but it's just gonna get dirty again, it may not even get dirty before I have the privilege of washing and folding it again.  A friend and I were talking the other day and we thought getting a big bin, such as the ones that hold all the beach balls at Target, would be a good idea for laundry.  We could just toss the clothes in there straight from the dryer and each child could reach through the holes and grab what he/she needs, when they need it.  Okay, we may look a little disheveled some most of the time but what the heck, we'd shave hours off our laundry time. 

But I digress...spending time with just the little boys was entertaining to say the least.  The grass was the perfect height for them to play bear in.  Of course, Nickels was not cooperating with his older brother's plans, but all was well once they realized they were surrounded with dandelions ready to be puffed into the air, or their nose as the case may be. 

He can't blow his nose either ~ I believe he may sprout dandelions out his ears within the month!

And Nickles ~ he would bring them to me with maybe one seed left to blow off.

We rounded the evening out with throwing rocks, and more rocks, and sticks, and more rocks....and an empty beer bottle...I would have stopped them but they were so excited to see it bobbing on the waves. 

To be able to sit there are read a book and blow dandelion puffs, oh and throw rocks, made me so happy that these guys are part of my life.  No matter how crazy everyday life is, these moments make it ALL worthwhile!

Just one more pic because I love red sweaters and green grass ~ he is really not as sweet as he looks ~ well sometimes, but not typically.