VISITORS!!!!!

I am mad at myself cause I didn't bust out my camera while Ky and Lynaya's family was here! They came to visit for an over night trip (it is definitely going to have to be longer next time!) and we loved having them here to visit with. We had some really good laughs and a ton of fun up at Lyman Lake and just hanging around here taking it easy. Thanks for the new ANGRY BIRDS addiction! I don't think Joe has ever been into a GAME like that before! Ha ha ha. It was funny to watch him. We loved having you guys and you will have to come back again soon!

This is our other visitor. We found this little NASTY in our BEDROOM!!!!! Actually Darrell found it and told me he saw a snake and I kept telling him no you didn't there isn't any way for a snake to get in the house. Finally I looked so I could tell him there is no snake and lo and behold there was this little tiny eight inch baby snake behind my dresser! I quickly grabbed my tongs put on my I'm not afraid of these sick nasty things game face so the boys would think I was tough pinched it by the head and put it in the mason jar. So sick!!!! So now I don't know how it got in here but I am panicking trying to figure it out so this never happens AGAIN!!!! I would much rather have the previous visitors in this post!!!!

Summer Fun

Well we didn't go many places this summer, but we have had a ton of fun! Especially at our new house! Some of the the fun things we have been up to are

Riding Bikes EVERYWHERE! They LOVE their bikes!

Enjoying OKRA! A taste they inherited from their Father! YUCK!

Just hangin around the swing set!




Takin' a dip in the ol' water tank! Their favorite kind of swimming pool!
I know I am paranoid with the life vest, I would rather be safe than sorry!


Canning! I love to can stuff! This is Cherry Jam, I had never had it till I made it and I am certainly ADDICTED! I love it! Thanks for all your help Tish and Janell!


And we have loved every minute of the rain we have received! Tad told me the other day his favorite thing that day was rain puddles! Ha ha ha Silly boy!

I think I say this about every season but I LOVE THIS TIME OF YEAR! I love monsoon season and we have been getting pretty good rains here. I love the smells and the way it looks outside all gloomy then sunny again through the gloom! I think I enjoy the puddles as much as my little boys. I posted just a few pictures of our yard and the dog we inherited with the house that Tad is absolutely in love with!

This is Taffy! She is a very hairy but very sweet and docile dog that the boys just love to death!

I about had a heart attack when I saw this on a piece of plywood Joe and I were making shelves out of. REALLY CALIFORNIA?! Wood causes cancer? REALLY?!

We bit the bullet!!!

I was waiting to say anything till everything went through and it has! We finally bought a house. Well we bought the five acres and the house was just a bonus! Ha ha ha just kidding. We got an amazing deal that included water shares so we get irrigation which means we have trees and grass and flowers. For any of you that saw the place we were renting, you know how excited I am for green and not BROWN! Don't get me wrong, I love the color brown, but it has no room on my yards color wheel! The boys love it! They think they are in heaven! The house is an older double wide but we painted and put in carpet and it has made a huge difference. It feels really homey. I love, love, love it! I don't really have pictures yet of the yard I will get some taken when we don't have gale force winds blowing everything over!

This is part of the view from our back yard!

Tad enjoying the water!

Darrell helping Joe till where our garden went!

My Hammies!!!

These two are getting so big so FAST!!!! They will be turning 5 and 6 in just a few months. When Darrell was born all I could think was it is going take forever for this little boy to get old enough to start school. I seriously didn't think it would go by so fast! I had my melt down when I signed him up for kindergarten, now I am excited for this new thing for him in his little life! He loves to be around kids and he loves to learn. Everyone he meets he considers his best friend and I hope he keeps his outgoing personality. There is no obstacle to big for him. He is willing to try anything. He told me yesterday, I don't want to grow up and get married cause then I wouldn't have you with me every day. He is my lovie. I am excited too to just have Tad by himself to get to know for a few hours a day. With him and Darrell being only 13 months apart he has always copied everything Darrell has done so I am excited for him to be able to figure out who he is without big brother around. I am excited for the changes that are happening in our family.

OH A HUNTING WE WILL GO!!!!!!!

I AM SO EXCITED!!!!!! WE LEAVE TODAY FOR OUR HUNT!!!!!! Hopefully we have pictures to post this time! Last year we didn't have very good luck, we never even saw a buck but we are in a new unit this year and from what we have heard about the area we should have better luck this year. So I am hoping my next post will have pictures of us with our deers! Wish us luck! Hope everyone has a HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!!!!

Thanksgiving!!!!

Ok as much as I would love to put up Christmas decorations and lights and all that stuff I can't help but feel guilty for skipping Thanksgiving! The poor holiday always gets forgot about! I love this time of year! I love the way the leaves change and the snow that eventually comes. I love the smells, the smoke from the fireplaces the great food that is always fun to make. I love all the traditions, and I especially love the holidays that come with it. They are reminders to be thankful for what you have which is so easy to forget throughout the year. I love that Thanksgiving is so close to Christmas. Looking for things to be thankful for are still fresh in my mind after Thanksgiving so it is a little easier for me to not get so caught up in the hustle and bustle of buying gifts and decorations and all of that fun stuff. It reminds me to be truly greatful for my Saviour and his life. As my children run a muck through my house I wonder what Christ was like as a child. He is always thought of for his ministry but I wonder what he was like as a young child. I am sertain his mother handled him with so much more grace than I do my children. This time of year makes me want to be a better person and reminds me who I need to be more like to be a better person! I hope all of you have a truly great Holiday Season, and I hope it is easier for all of us to really remember the Reason For The Season!