summer – The Bless Your Heart Blog

Summer So Far

Today is the *official* first day of summer…but we’ve been calling it “summer” for well over a month now. Lucky for us {insert sarcasm here} summer is really showing off and it’s supposed to be over 100 today. Gag.

Despite the heat wave, we’re really enjoying our summer! The kids are at such fun ages and we’re in a season where life is relatively easy again. (I know, I know…it’s time to have another! We’ll have to see about that…) We’ve tried to take full advantage of our time and resources and do some fun things!

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We started June with a birthday party for the big guy! He turned 35 this year and has been wanting to have a Minute to Win It party with some of our favorite friends so, that’s what we did!

We played silly, ridiculous games – and had a blast while doing so!

The classic knock the water bottles over with pantyhose on your head game... — The classic knock the water bottles over with pantyhose on your head game…

At the end of the night, this team DOMINATED the competition…which, I mean, look at them. Bonafide athletes, all of them!

We made their trophies out of something from each of the games we played. If they made it home, I’d be impressed! HA!

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Sawyer got a new horse from her friend Mr. Jeff. This sweetie’s name is LuLu and we. are. in. love!

LuLu is strong and stout and as sweet as they come. She loves to eat treats from your hand and will stand all day where you tell her to.

These two are going to make a lot of good memories together… We just have to keep the fighting down when it comes to who gets to ride her!

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A mobile Children’s Museum came to town so we checked that out! It was fun enough inside. The kids got to build and color and explore…

The best fun was outside! They had a chore challenge race that was a LOT of fun! They had to move the cow, throw the “cow patties”, haul the corn, churn the butter and shoot a buffalo! The kids had a BLAST at this station!

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Of course, we’ve already hit up Cody Park!

This is their favorite ride because it's FAST! — This is their favorite ride because it’s FAST!

I’m sure there will be a few more trips here for some good, cheap fun!

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We celebrated Father’s Day with this sweet guy!

We had yummy food (his love language – ha!), watched shows with snacks (Wryder’s idea), rode horses and played outside!

My kiddos are so incredibly blessed to have this guy as a daddy. He received two different father’s day cards in the mail that BOTH said, “I believe you are the kind of father that the Lord intended men to be.” I couldn’t agree more…

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We just got home from a mini-vacation to Kansas! Wrex had to go to the feedyard down there so we tagged along and had some fun when he was done!

We stayed at fun motel that had bunkbeds for the kids, checked out the local zoo (it’s free!!) and then went to the new indoor water park called Parrot Cove. It. Was. A. BLAST!

This one just wanted to roar... — This one just wanted to roar…

They had 4 little kid slides, a lazy river, several pools, a rock climbing wall, 4 big water slides – it was a LOT of fun! We can’t wait to go back!

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Sure do love these littles…and they’re only little once. We do our fair share of work around here…we kinda like to work hard and play hard. Can’t wait to see what the rest of summer brings!

Random Rambles

Today was one of those tough mom days where I didn’t really enjoy my job. Wryder is in a definite boundary testing phase…again. My apologies ahead of time to the wonderful sitter I have lined up for tomorrow. *ahem*

There just seemed to be an overload of disobedience and nasty tones (some of them mine, unfortunately)…unkind gestures and more housework than I could juggle. I just felt defeated come nap time.

We made it through the afternoon – praise the Lord for short sales and daddy’s who come home quick – and the evening ended decently well.

Sawyer is learning to read and doing a fantastic job! Our plan is to home school (for multiple reasons) and there are days when I wonder if that will ever work. Sawyer is an incredible student but we have a few little distractions running around…and I’ve never taught school before…and I don’t remember how to teach someone to read…and I’m not the most patient soul on the planet…and days like today, where it feels like we barely survive the normal daily activities, I wonder how I can add one more thing…and the thought of trying to teach Wryder to read…well…that’s just scary.

Some days I just wonder if I’m gonna be able to finish this mom thing and finish it well…

And then…Sawyer read new words she struggled with just this morning…and I came across a blog that was saying exactly what I was saying…and I learned of families fighting far bigger battles than ours…and my world got a little broader and my self-pity a little smaller.

I have no doubt that HE wants me to finish this mom thing and finish it well and thus He will encourage me and refresh me and renew me and strengthen me and grace me and give me the wisdom I need to do such a thing.

Bring it, Friday…

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The last two nights, Wrex and I have grabbed a blanket, killed the power to the mercury light and laid out on the trampoline to watch the meteor shower. The sky has been cloudless and our prairie view has allowed for an awesome window in which to watch.

I was thinking of how majestic the Lord truly is and how He blessed us through His creativity. I mean what if He chose not to make stars? What if the night sky was just black? What if instead of a blue sky during the day, He chose olive green instead? What if there were no such thing as animals or what if every human looked exactly the same? What if birds didn’t make sounds or what if food had no taste? What if…

His creation speaks of His wonder and goodness and glory…

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The other day, the kids had gone out to play and I had to change Sayble’s diaper before I went out with them. I got that done, grabbed my shoes and headed over towards the tree, right where they were playing when out of the corner of my eye, I saw an orange streak slither quickly in their direction.

It was a long, nasty garter snake and he was headed right towards them. I told them to move and then cornered him while Sawyer got me a shovel. (The only good snake is a dead snake around these parts)…

I chopped him up and threw him in the ditch…and then had the willies the rest of the day… But it was a good reminder of how the enemy is doing just that – heading for my kids. He’s on the prowl, folks. He’s real and he’s looking for someone to devour.

Pray for your kids! Cover them and intercede for them and demand satan to flee in the name of Jesus. You’ve got no authority here, you creep.

The snake. I know it doesn't look that big, but it was. *ahem* — The snake. I know it doesn’t look that big, but it was. *ahem*

Sawyer holding Sayble so I could do my thing... — Sawyer holding Sayble so I could do my thing…

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On a brighter note, I saw this the other day in Sterling…

It made me feel so at home. Only a few more days until the start of football season and I’m sure hoping for a mildly successful one to say the least. Now, to get Wrex agree to cable for the winter…

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I’m headed to a consult with the orthopedic surgeon tomorrow. I hurt my foot/ankle/leg back in February and it’s gotten increasingly worse. I’m sure they’ll want to do an MRI and all of that (expensive) jazz. If you would join me in prayer that it could be healed without surgery, I’d much appreciate it.

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Praying your Friday is fun and that the presence of the Lord is thick with you this weekend. Praying that for me, too…

Camera Dump

I plugged my phone into my computer to charge last night and I realized I have a lot of pictures that haven’t made it anywhere, so I thought I’d post some of my favorites! We’ve had such a great summer…can you believe it’s August?!

We took a little trip up to the sandhills of Nebraska to see the elder Phipps’…always a good time and good food!

We had supper with some friends and the kids got to check out the volunteer fire department!

Checkin' out the fire truck in Wages — Checkin’ out the fire truck in Wages

Wryder lost his pants and I'm not completely sure what Sawyer is doing. Hilarious picture though... — Wryder lost his pants and I’m not completely sure what Sawyer is doing. Hilarious picture though…

The Stukas family came for a visit and we had more fun than we knew what to do with!

Reading with Tanner. Wryder loved having a brother around!

Daddy brought home some new barn kitties. Wryder is officially in love. Poor cats.

Good gravy he's cute... — Good gravy he’s cute…

Wrex made this arrow for me for a wedding gift. I loved how it turned out so he’s cranked out a few more since!

I bought groceries one night ALL BY MYSELF. It was a little quiet but quite nice. The kids were incredibly tired and thus distraught when I left. I had to document the fact that they were crying because I was leaving. That never happens…either thing – me leaving or them crying because I do. 🙂

Sawyer has gotten her craft on lately.

We busted out the puff paint! Flashback 1991!

She’s also been drawing a lot. Here’s a picture of a fish…

And just a couple of my faves…

Worth 1,000 Words: Summer Fun

So, let’s just get straight to the point…I’m WAAAAAAAAY behind on posting pics of our {spectacular} summer so far. Here’s a tiny recap of what we’ve been up to!

The kids got to go to the Denver Aquarium with Uncle Warner…

I think it's safe to say Wryder liked the mermaids. *ahem* — I think it’s safe to say Wryder liked the mermaids. *ahem*

We checked out the Kearney Children’s Museum with some friends…We checked out the Sutherland Rodeo on July 4th…We’ve played in the water…a lot!We’ve played hide and seek…I loved Wryder’s hiding place. Sister couldn’t find him and he was more than content with that!We’ve enjoyed daddy being home for a week or two…We’ve had pop surprises and yummy desserts…We’ve gone on adventures, decked out in our finest, no less!We had missionaries come for lunch, whom the kids did NOT want to leave!We’ve taken our chickens out for strolls…Totally kidding. Just seeing if you were still with me. Isn’t that picture hilarious!?

All-in-all, we’ve been having a blast together! The next big thing (besides local county fairs and more summer fun) is gearing up for someone’s 5th birthday. How in the world did that get here so quick?!

The little lady asked for a county fair party so we’re hoping people are too county-faired out to come – she’s SOOOOO excited!

I hope your summer is going just as well. It’s a hot one here today and we’re headed out to throw some water balloons! YAY!

Soaking Up Summer

This time of year, most sale barns in this area take a week or so off for wheat harvest and such so daddy gets 10 or so days of built in vacation time. Are we blessed or what?!

Since we went to Texas last month, we’re opting for more of a stay-cation – with a few day trips thrown in for good measure. We’ve already been to Nebraska to see the grandparents and Oklahoma cousins. We got to go to Cody Park and feed animals and ride the rides…we stopped in at the Children’s Museum in Kearney with good friends and today we had really great company come to the house for lunch! The kids were stoked to have visitors and we loved every minute with them! (More on that later).

Last night, daddy took us to supper and we stopped at the fireworks stand on the way home. Tonight, Wrexy lit some up and the kids had a BLAST!

They stood on the edge of the yard, holding hands waiting for the bang and the flash of lights. Their little eyes were wide with excitement and anticipation. Wryder jumped nearly every time but then would squeal with glee and run around asking daddy for more.

I love their excitement and zeal over all kinds of things…from fireworks to new swimsuits to meeting real live missionaries to eating Mexican food to watching a DVD in the car to seeing new baby chicks to spotting the moon in the sky before it’s even dark…the world around them is new and exciting and ready for them to explore…..AND? As their parents, we get the pleasure of taking that journey with them.

Friends of wee ones, we are living in the best days of our lives, I am convinced! Wrex and I were married for 5 years before we started having babies and those 5 years were really sweet. We did that {horrible, awful, ridiculous, no good} long distance dating thing for 3 years before we were married so it was so nice to have some “us” time. It allowed us to really solidify our marriage and prepare ourselves for raising children.

As good as that time was, we love this time of our lives even more. To be able to see and feel and interact with the product of our love is such a treasure. Oh yes, there are some hours and days that may feel long but oh – the joy far outweighs the work and the blood, sweat and tears that go into this parenting thing.

There’s a chance that you’ll never be this loved, this exciting, this worthy of emulation in their eyes ever again. Revel in it.

Friends, I encourage you to soak up those kiddos of yours this summer…

Say yes a little more often…

Go swimming more than you want to and get in that swimsuit and jump in with them…

Eat at McDonalds (or Mickey Don-dalds) even if you just drink a Dr. Pepper…

Blow bubbles and jump on trampolines and go on nature walks…

Look for ways to show them grace…

Get messy and muddy and eat popsicles to beat the band…

Take lots of pictures and capture those smiles and squeals and ingrain them in your mind’s eye for days to come…

These are the best days of our lives. Soak them up.

Worth 1,000 Words: Summer Fun

We have been flat out having fun this summer! Daddy’s sales have been short and we’ve been enjoying the days of our youth…

Here’s a little of what we’ve been up to!

We’ve done a little swimming…

and a little playing at the Children’s Museum…

We rode some rides at Cody Park…

and rode a dinosaur!

We’ve hung out with the neighbors…

and mowed around the house…

and snuggled cute sisters…and had lunch with cute dates…Tomorrow, we’re headed to see the Oklahoma cousins for a few days and then head back home to start our “summer vacation” when we get daddy to ourselves for two weeks! YAY!

Road Trip Funnies

During a 2,000 mile road trip, funny stuff is bound to happen! (Especially if you have two adorable kiddos who are observant of their surroundings and have stories and ideas they want to share). Here are a few of my favorites…

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EVERY time Wryder saw a deer crossing sign (and there were a few in that part of the country), he would excitedly scream, “John Deere!” and look around for the green machines. Thankfully, he only woke the baby a couple of times…

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On the tractor note… We were talking about Sawyer’s show cow named Cindy. When Sawyer turned four, we bought Cindy as a starter project and investment. All of the income would be hers, as well as the debt and when she was old enough, the work.

Before we left town, we dropped Cindy off to be AI’d and then turned out with a bull since we’d be gone during her heat cycle. Sawyer was asking if we were going to sell her calf and so Wrex and I were talking about needing to set up a livestock account just for Sawyer to keep that money separate. I then reminded him that we’d need to be on the lookout for a heifer or cow for Wryder who then piped up and said, “When I four, I want tractor. No cow.” The boy is serious about his tractors…

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When we arrived in Booker, the kids unbuckled and Wrex went around to their door to let them out. What he didn’t know was that Wryder was leaning against the door and as soon as he opened it, poor WD toppled right onto the concrete parking lot.

He skinned his arm and head and had a bit of a black eye. We finally got him calmed down and took him inside to meet some of Wrex’s co-workers.

When he met Roger, the CEO and Wrexy’s big boss, he was showing him his owies. Roger asked what happened and Wryder said, “Mommy hurt me.” WHAT?!?!?!?

We told him what happened and that if ANYBODY hurt him it was daddy and Wryder just kept saying, “Mommy hurt me.” How kind. Dad’s got him brainwashed, apparently… 😉

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The night of the rehearsal dinner, we forgot to take the kids’ cups to the wedding site and drinking out of water bottles is still a little hard for Wryder. He tends to put his entire mouth around the opening and always lets a little water back into the bottle.

By the end of supper, his water looked a little murky. I think at least an 1/8 of his dinner was floating around the bottom of the bottle. I was overly careful not to accidentally grab his by mistake and I even ended up putting a wedding favor koozie on it so I knew which one it was.

Fast forward two days later. We’re driving along in the car and Wrex is on the phone. He’d been eating trail mix and was a little parched and reached into the back seat to grab a bottle of water. He found one that was about half full (not a big surprise after that many days of traveling) and took a big ole chug…and then proceeded to spit and gag.

Yep, he found Wryder’s bottle.

See that murky goodness?? Go ahead and enlarge the pic and really take note. You’ll dry heave before ya know it…there was a whole Cherrio in there, folks. Still gagging…

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The kids were pretty hot in Texas. Sawyer’s a little like me when it comes to heat; she much prefers 70 degrees and drier climates. There was a bit of complaining a few times but we gently reminded them that we had talked about the heat before we came and that we all agreed to tough it out.

As soon as we got home on Tuesday, we let the kids out to run around and we started carrying stuff in. As we were making our first trip into the mudroom, they both came out of the mudroom looking like this:

Apparently, 82 degrees in Colorado warranted sweatshirts after their quick acclimation to 95 degrees and 97% humidity in Texas. Hysterical!

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I’m sure I’m forgetting things that I’ll have to add later, but these were some of my faves. Sure do love this (funny) family of mine…

Uncle Travis Got Married!

Wrexy’s boss and longtime friend, Travis, got married this past weekend in Cleburne, Texas. Wrex was the best man (awwww!) so obviously he had to be there.

The kids were desperate to go (who doesn’t love a good wedding?! Plus, they LOVE Travis and his new bride, Kasey) but I wasn’t so sure how I felt about taking care of three kids – one of which was barely a month old – by myself in triple digit heat 14 hours from home. Do ya blame me?!

We sucked it up, spent 3 days packing, 2 days driving and did the dang thing! So glad we did!

We drove to Booker, Texas the first day where the weather greeted us with a balmy 100 degrees. *ahem*

Later, we experienced a flash flood (not sure my shoes are dry yet) and the loudest thunder I’ve heard in my life – no joke!

Wrex visited at the plant a bit, showed off miss Sayble and the next morning we scurried farther east and made it (by the skin of our teeth) to the rehearsal dinner. Despite the high humidity (oh my poor hair) there was a breeze and some shade at the wedding venue. Jesus loves me…

The next morning, while Wrex and the groomsmen hung out with the groom, we ate a yummy breakfast, picked up some some snacks and glowsticks for the wedding and then hit the splash pad!

The splash pad was a genius idea, if I do say so myself. It cooled us off, was highly entertaining for $0 AND served as an easy pre-wedding bath for 2 of the 3 kiddos. Oh yes, they were clean…

Everyone napped good, except for mom who was busy ironing clothes and packing diaper bags and feeding babies and attempting to make my hair do something other than frizz…and then off to the wedding we went!

Daddy almost sweated to death in his tux but he made it! The kids had a ball dancing to the Hogg Maulies and running around and making new friends and we had a good time catching up with old friends while witnessing Travis and Kasey make their covenant with one other.

Sawyer's new friend, Katie, caught the bouquet and shared some flowers with her — Sawyer’s new friend, Katie, caught the bouquet and shared some flowers with her

A few of Wrex's Clarendon College judging team members... — A few of Wrex’s Clarendon College judging team members…

By 10:00, we were all hot, sweaty, TI-URD and oh so happy we made the trek.

As Wrexy said in his toast, here’s to a lifetime of marriage…and a pastel of little sheep showmen…to the bride and groom!

Love you guys!

****And for those of you at the wedding that asked for a copy of said toast, I’ve pasted it here…

Good evening. My name is Wrex Phipps and it’s my honor and privilege to be able toast the happy couple tonight. I promise not to take up too much of your time as I don’t want to embarrass Travis too much…I’d like to return to Colorado as a fully employed man this next week.

First of all, lets make sure we all know who Travis is as he seems to have quite a few different nick names: In his early years you might have know him as Floyd, then later on maybe Woodrow or Toothpick. Now, he answers to Babe or Rathead – but you’ll have to ask Kasey about that. Now, I mainly refer to him as Travis my boss and also one of my best friends.

Travis and I met in junior college 14 years ago. We were on the livestock and meats judging teams so we spent A LOT of time together. Now we work for the same company and we spend a lot of time on the phone together.

As you may know Travis is not an over communicator! Sometimes, he can even be a rather private person. Or maybe that’s just with me and I get that. Our relationship can be kind of hard to define at times. When we talk, sometimes it’s friend to friend. Sometimes it’s boss to employer and sometimes I have a tendency to over-share other people’s news. They don’t call me “Radio” back home for nothing.

So when he first started dating Kasey, I didn’t know anything about it. I had kinda suspected he might have a lady friend when he was a little more chipper and optimistic than usual on the phone.

Normally, it’s a “Hell-oh” or “Roger” or “Odie”…anybody that’s hung out with him or called him in the last 5 years knows what I’m talking about…but things had been a little different lately.

He seemed to laugh more and I didn’t seem to be getting in near as much trouble when my cows were high. Not that that happened very often……

And then one day, I got a text…and I knew for sure. I had sent him a message from the sale barn that morning saying: “About 250 head here. You thinking the same bid?” He wrote back and said yes, I wrote back and said ok….and he wrote back and said, “Love you, too” – with 2 exclamation points!

Now, for a minute there, I was a little taken aback. I thought, whoa……he just took our friendship to a whole new level. And then I realized – aha! There IS a girl!

Then “ol Radio” kicked in. I immediately took a screen shot and sent that message to my wife and about 7 of our closest college friends…and Travis’ boss… This was good stuff! On a lot of levels!

You see, my wife has known Travis as long as I have and he’s taken as good a care of her as he has of me. She’s always been a big fan of Trav’s and she repeatedly said that one day Travis would have the best, sweetest and cutest wife out of our little group of friends. So we had been praying that he would find just that. While I’m incredibly fond of my wife, I can equally say – “Well done, Rathead.”

Here’s to a lifetime of marriage…and a pastel of little sheep showmen… To the bride and groom!

One of Those Weeks

It’s been one of those weeks.

Nothing horrid. Nothing to cry about. Nothing to shake your fist at the Lord about. Nothing remotely as bad as the majority of the world probably deals with. Just one of those weeks were some things have just felt off and we’ve had a lot going on and Wryder’s in another “testing the boundaries phase” and we’ve been at the mercy of a couple of people who weren’t people of their word and that?! Oh, that’s a tough pill to swallow for me.

Despite all of that, these little guys make my world SO worthwhile. They bring us such joy…unimaginable joy! Watching them play or seeing their smiles or hearing their sweet voices just ignite my heart with such love…

These are just a few of my favorite pics of our week!

I love momma's dish towel, apparently! — I love momma’s dish towel, apparently!

Holding daddy's hand — Holding daddy’s hand

Cowgirling it in her shorts... — Cowgirling it in her shorts…

Riding our newest gift, "Stubbs" — Riding our newest gift, “Stubbs”

Handsome boy with a tractor in his mouth... — Handsome boy with a tractor in his mouth…

Baby feet - who doesn't love baby feet?! — Baby feet – who doesn’t love baby feet?!

Watchin' a little baseball with Mr. Zach — Watchin’ a little baseball with Mr. Zach

Getting some love from Miss Jen and Miss P

These guys just have a way of redeeming all that’s wrong in the world…my world, at least…

Random Rambles

Well hello, September. What did you do with August??

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Tonight is the kickoff BBQ for Cubbies! There’s a little someone around here that’s awfully excited.

She’s been going through her book from last year and teaching Wryder the verses. I love this program and how it fosters a love for the Word of God.

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We started “back to school” yesterday.

Last year, I did a preschool curriculum with Sawyer that I’ll continue this year. This girl loves to learn; has since she was a little tyke. (She knew all of her shapes, including a trapezoid before she was two!) We don’t go at it hard and we only do four days a week, but it’s amazing what you can accomplish in an hour.

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Wryder has recently discovered he might actually like books…which is good, because we have a few. 🙂

Who doesn't love to read?! — Who doesn’t love to read?!

We are doing some serious rejoicing over here!

He’s on the go all the time and sometimes we force him to sit with us and read a little book, but it’s definitely not his favorite thing. He came across a farm book and it’s spurred his interest, praise the Lord!

He loves to stand in front of the book shelves and point and say “book, book.” We’ll get him a book and he’ll take it to his little desk and read. Seriously? It’s adorable.

Tractor in hand, still... — Tractor in hand, still…

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Wrex’s paternal grandparents recently celebrated their 60th anniversary.

On their wedding day... — On their wedding day…

How incredibly cool is that?! The family is hosting a party for them later this month because THAT is worth celebrating, yes?!

If you know and love the Phipps’, please join us!

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We’ve been soaking up these last lingering days of summer as they get noticeably shorter.

Sorting imaginary cows... — Sorting imaginary cows…

Digging with spoons... — Digging with spoons…

Dads make trampolines more fun... — Dads make trampolines more fun…

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These little sweeties are growing like weeds!

I can’t wait to get my snuggle on with them in a couple of weeks. Seriously, how cute are they?!

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I better get a move on…I’ve got little fingers to paint and lessons to teach and lunch to make and hair to do. All in a day’s work for a momma…and I love it!