Worth 1,000 Words

This weather is tripping. me. out!  It’s phenomenal.  Best winter on record if you wanna be outside.  Today, we took full advantage of it, skipped naps and played outside for hours.  It was stellar.

Someone got hot...
Someone got hot…
"Fire" made out of the emptied playhouse
“Fire” made out of the emptied playhouse
A boy and his dog
A boy and his dog
There was trampoline jumping...
There was trampoline jumping…
and play structure climbing...
and play structure climbing…
playground decorating?
playground decorating?
Sliding...lots of sliding!
Sliding…lots of sliding!
Cat chasing...
Cat chasing…
Seesawing...
Seesawing…
and exploring!
and exploring!

The best part?  It’s supposed to be (at least) 75 tomorrow and daddy will be home to enjoy it with us!

My Little Man

Ok, so I’m sure you’re tired of hearing about it by now but that weather yesterday – killer, right?!  I’m not sure how yesterday afternoon could have been any more perfect.  I need to find someplace that’s 75-80 all year round, little wind and low humidity.  Where, oh where, would that be, do ya know??

****************

Daddy had a really short sale yesterday so Sawyer went with him and as soon as Wryder woke up from nap, he and I headed straight back outside.

It’s nice to have one-on-one time with each kid from time to time.  Wryder’s usually going 100 miles an hour and I’m usually attempting to keep him from hurting himself, his sister or just general mischief and outside time is so nice just to let him be a boy!

I'm coming to get you, mom!
I’m coming to get you, mom!
Look!  There's a kitty!
Look! There’s a kitty!
So cute...
So cute…
There's a kitty under here, too!
There’s a kitty under here, too!

He’s a bundle of energy and joy and rough-and-tumble goodness!  We washed about a pound and a half of dirt off of each kid last night come bath time…usually an indication of a good day.

****************

We’ve talked about how Wryder is moving upstairs so as part of that process, I’m getting his room all ready, just for him.  I’m not real big into themey rooms (Mickey Mouse or Disney Princesses, etc.) but I caved the other day at WalMart and bought the boy a John Deere curtain.

I had been online looking and looking and looking for something I liked and hadn’t found a THING.  Bleh.  In the store, I wandered over to the bedding to find him a pillow case that matched his toddler bed comforter and I stumbled upon John Deere, uh, everything.

The curtain was the perfect color combo (with some good ole green thrown in) and I just couldn’t resist it.  He was THRILLED!  He held it in his lap for the rest of the shopping trip and proudly held it up and shouted, “TRACTOR!” to anyone who’d listen.

****************

The dresser upstairs is his new room needed a little face lift to look a little more boyish and a little less like this-used-to-be-mom-and-dad’s.  I kept the frame the same off white color but  made the drawers a little funky!

I had bought some wrapping paper in the dollar section of Michael’s the last time we were in Denver and with the new John Deere curtain *ahem* it was the perfect accent piece to tie everything together.

Wrex cut the strips to size, we mod podged them on and voila – “new” dresser!

To die for, yes?
To die for, yes?

I am soooooo in love how with how it turned out and I have a little bit of dresser envy…

Don't mind the mess on top...
Don’t mind the mess on top…

****************

Little man is down for the count right now.  We got a surprise visit from Aunt Deb (whom he adores) over lunch and now he’s catching some zzzzzs before he’s up and at ’em again.

Twitterpated
Twitterpated
Now I'll cheeeese!
Now I’ll cheeeese!

****************

Love my little man…

Random Ramblings

My word, the weather was B-E-A-UTIFUL today!  71 degrees in January, are you kidding me??!  It was gorgeous!

We went to work with Wrexy today.  Wryder went grocery shopping with me, Sawyer stayed at the barn with daddy and then we all met up again.

Learning from the best...
Learning from the best…

We watched cows sell for a little while and then the kids and I took advantage of the weather and hit the park.  The kiddos had a ball and were covered in sand from head to toe.

Riding a squirrel?  Chipmunk?  What IS that thing??
Riding a squirrel? Chipmunk? What IS that thing??
Wryder loved this yellow horse...
Wryder loved this yellow horse…
Wheeeee!
Wheeeee!
Going down together!
Going down together!
Beauty
Beauty
CHEEEEESE!
CHEEEEESE!

****************

We got home, unloaded groceries and decided we STILL couldn’t drag ourselves indoors so we saddled up sweet Ozark and hit the road.

My evening view...
My evening view…

Old man looks really good these days.  We are so thankful for all of the days we’ve had with him and we’re praying for more…

After supper, they weren’t quite done riding horses so Sawyer volunteered.

Ride a little pony...
Ride a little pony…

It turned out to be more of a bucking bronc fest but it was good watching!

****************

I posted this picture of Sawyer on Facebook a day or so ago…

Fancy nancy
Fancy nancy

I love this girl’s style!  She loves accessories and shoes and fancy dresses; she is all girl and I love it!

She went upstairs to grab some jammies tonight and brought down some beads for me to put on her, too.

:)
🙂

Jewelry with pajamas?!  Of course!

****************

With all of the nesting/cleaning/rearranging going on, Wrex and I decided that our room would officially be downstairs and the kids would each have a room upstairs.  I always feel like our room gets neglected – does that happen to anyone else??  It’s the place we sleep and get dressed and other than that, we don’t spend much time there and I feel like it shows.

We used a little paint, bought a new bedspread, made some paper flowers, rearranged the room and voila – “new” bedroom!  I’m really happy with how it turned out…DSCF2704DSCF2705DSCF2706Hoping to get lots of rest in there tonight.  I feel whooped!

****************

It was just SUCH a good day.  A REAL good day.  And tomorrow…with 75 degrees as a high…I hope is even better.

Feels Like Fall

I’m not the biggest fan of summer.  I don’t really care to sweat unless I’m doing manual labor in a ball cap and cruddy clothes…pumpkin bread doesn’t taste near as good when it’s 98 degrees out…there is no football and baseball just doesn’t do it for me…I can’t stand sunscreen on soooo many levels (feel, smell, chemicals, etc.) but don’t want my kiddos to burn on prolonged outdoor days…flip flops aren’t good for my horribly flat feet but confining them in real shoes just doesn’t feel good or right…I could continue, but that almost seems hateful.  😉

Today, though…when it’s barely 75 and breezy and the sky is a rich blue and there isn’t hardly a cloud in the atmosphere…when it feels like fall…I dig it.  So do these two…

Sweet sibs
Sweet sibs

I wrote on Facebook earlier, “how you hardly make a kid nap on a day like today??”  It’s just too nice out to worry with a few extra winks, right?

Slidin' Sawyer
Slidin’ Sawyer

Days like today…with play clothes and muddy shoes and dirty faces and pigtails…my heart holds close.

Love
Love

No hurry to be anywhere…no reason to be perfectly cleaned…no place I’d rather be…

She takes such good care of him
She takes such good care of him

“Are you gonna lawnmower, momma?”

“Not right now…I just wanna play with you guys.”

“Oh, goodie!”

Peek-a-boo
Peek-a-boo
Whhheeeeee!
Whhheeeeee!
This boy loves to "drive"
This boy loves to “drive”
Shoes?  Who needs 'em...
Shoes? Who needs ’em…

But then fall comes, kicking summer out on its treacherous a** as it always does one day sometime after the midpoint of September, it stays awhile like an old friend that you have missed. It settles in the way an old friend will settle into your favorite chair and take out his pipe and light it and then fill the afternoon with stories of places he has been and things he has done since last he saw you. – Stephen King

I don’t want to rush the time I have with these two cuties, but I have no qualms about rushing the weather or the changing of the seasons.  Today though, I shall marvel in this “summer” while my soul whispers “come on fall…”

Random Rambles

We’ve been fighting off the ick around here.  It started in the kids as (what I thought were) just little allergies.  Now, they both have full blown upper respiratory infections.  BOO.  We’re going to see some VERY important little people next week so we must, must, must be well!  Pray for us, would ya?!

Cutest sick guy around...
Cutest sick guy around…

****************

My to-do list to be able to leave and see those VERY important little people is a little extensive, ahem.

Just a few things...
Just a few things…

This is it.  It’s taped to the bedroom door.  It touches the floor.  And doesn’t include the basic things such as packing/snacks/cleaning/baking.  Come on supernatural mom powers!

****************

Wryder hasn’t had much appetite lately thanks to the ick.  He did, however, master some fork skills yesterday.

IMG_4973Green beans on a fork are way better than green beans with your fingers, just sayin’…

****************

We have a new bucket calf around the place.  Sawyer named him Fuzzy and he is doggone CUTE!

Sweet helper
Sweet helper

He may have to find another place to live thanks to our cross country road trip but for now, he’s a lot of fun!

Cuties
Cuties

****************

In the past two years, our yard has gained some pesky little visitors.  IF we had sod everywhere and IF they weren’t so cute, we’d have already eradicated these little boogers so they didn’t completely destroy the place.

Ground squirrel
Ground squirrel

They’re quite fun to watch but they sure don’t let you get too close.  I’ve tried to sneak Sawyer out there several times with no luck.  She’s set up a spy shack in the playroom to catch a glimpse of them out the window.  We’ll see how it goes. 

****************

Sawyer is in looooooooove with the story of Cinderella.  She recently discovered that we had the book and I can’t count the number of times we’ve read it.  She now has it memorized, voices and all.  It’s pretty impressive!  I’m thinking her Goo Goo is gonna think that’s the bees knees…

****************

July is one of my favorite cow-buying months…because they don’t buy a lot of cows.  🙂  We get Wrexy to ourselves for 14 out of the next 16 days.  Well, I mean we’ll share him a little bit with the rest of the fam, including these sweeties.

Awwww
VIPs

The boys are doing soooooo well…miraculously well!  I can’t even begin to tell you all of the ways the Lord has poured out His favor on these five.  We can not WAIT to officially meet them and cuddle them and physically witness the miracle they are.  He is good and what He does is good.

****************

We’re headed up to pack Sawyer’s suitcase.  Poor kid has only asked about it everyday for about 10 days now.  She’s a little excited.   So we’re gonna pack and clean house and hopefully sneak in a nap…and pray that the tornadoes stay away for the day.  Then we gotta tackle the rest of that to-do list.  WE CAN DO IT!  (said in the voice of the mice on Cinderella)…

We Made It

We survived our first severe weather outbreak of the summer.  Thank you, Lord. 

I think I’ve mentioned it before (ahem) but I loathe severe weather.  I grew up in tornado alley…in the panhandle of Texas…without a basement…and with far inferior weather technology.  It wasn’t that fun to me.

I remember going through a couple of springs where tornado warnings were issued every.single.night; it was like clock work.  We’d get home from school and have no time for dinner before we had to hunker down in the hallway (remember, no basement), throw a mattress over our head and pray.  My mom would be in the living room watching the TV and my dad would be on the front porch storm spotting.  (Nuts!)

I remember a night that we were all so tired of the weather.  We had been in the hallway every night that week and it had just gotten long and wearing.  My brother was starving and I remember him praying, “Lord, please keep up safe…especially the kitchen because I’m so hungry!”  HA!

My grandparents came to visit one weekend and my grandma likes tornadoes about as much as I do.  Sure enough, that night all the sirens were going off…the tornado was about a mile from our house.  My mom, brother, aunt and I were sheltering in a closet and my grandma was in our bathtub “praying with a cricket.”

A tornado did hit the backyard of our home on two different occasions AND a small one hit our house in Brighton the last year we were there.  Do I attract these things, or what?!

Technology has come sooooooooo incredibly far; it’s fascinating to me!  Growing up, there would be a little thunderstorm and/or tornado symbol in the bottom corner of the TV – no map.  If it was just an outline, it was a watch…if it was filled in, it was a warning.  If and when it was a warning, it wasn’t just letting you know it was heading your way like they do now…it meant there was a tornado on the ground – take shelter!  I prefer today’s method.  🙂  The lead time they’ve been able to gain and the specificity with which they can predict is just amazing.

I do feel like that for the past two years it has missed us more than it has hit us, thankfully.  I firmly believe it is the Lord protecting this little area that we have prayed His protection over.  There will be storms all around us and they will arch up and over us…like today.

Screen Shot 2014-05-07 at 5.21.56 PM
The pink star is us, approximately…
Screen Shot 2014-05-07 at 6.13.19 PM
The pink star is us, approximately…

I am thankful we have a basement.  I am thankful for advanced weather technology.  I’m thankful for friends and family who pray, text and call.  I’m thankful for live internet feeds and buried fiber optic cables.  I am most thankful for the One who even the wind and the waves obey.

Fun Friday

The weather yesterday was absolutely divine!  As much as I’m an extremist in most other areas of life (cleanliness, organization, event planning, grocery shopping, etc.), I’m not when it comes to weather.  I freeze to death when it’s 50 or below and I sweat to death when it’s 80 or above.  I like a constant 75 with a gentle breeze – is that too much to ask?

We spent a little time outside yesterday because, despite our colds, we just couldn’t help ourselves!  Sawyer chased down Paint the Cat, who has grown significantly over the winter.

Fat cat
Fat cat

Wryder’s hair had gotten really long on top.

See how long that middle section is??
See how long that middle section is??

We’ve been combing it over and it had gotten way over, so yesterday he got his first (redneck) haircut!

Daddy's also a barber...
Daddy’s also a barber…

I was afraid he would absolutely hate the clippers but lo and behold, he loved them!  I think he’d have sat there all day.  He looks quite handsome with his new do.

Awwww...
Awwww…

We also finished re-organizing the garage.  Sigh.  Are we the only ones that do that??  You get it all straightened up and then life happens and then it looks like a tornado hit it and you have to start all over again?  Drives me nuts.  Sometimes it takes a swift kick in the rear and some nice weather to get some of that stuff done.  We have a friend staying with us for a little while so we needed to make adequate space for a few of his things.

Speaking of said friend, I made breakfast on Tuesday morning…french toast…one of my specialties.  I didn’t eat any since I’m doing the no-gluten thing but Sawyer didn’t really dig right in, much to my surprise.  She’s been sick so I didn’t think much about it…until I tasted a piece of hers.  That’s weird, I thought.  It tasted familiar, but it did not taste like cinnamon.  My brain started running through the catalog of spices and it hit me – NUTMEG!  Oh, it was NOT good…not in that quantity, at least!  Poor guy ate all three pieces I put on his plate.  Sigh.  Not my shiniest culinary attempt.

But back to the weather…today is just as nice out, there’s a new baby calf in the corrals, we’re all feeling a little better and daddy should have a pretty short sale.  Sounds like a fun Friday to me!