I am thankful for . . .

 FALL

I am thankful for my sweet boys and the joy and laughter and happiness and love and craziness and faith they bring into our home. They are mine and I am thankful for that. I am not committed enough to write something I am thankful for each day of the month of November but I will write a few things while I wait to change the wood chips in my smoker. I am most thankful for my Father in Heaven and his son Jesus Christ. I am thankful for their guidance and direction and for their incomparable love. I am thankful for parents that instilled in me a testimony of my savior. I am thankful for their examples and for everything they gave to me. I never went without and I am thankful for that. I am thankful for my Joseph B. and for his love and support. He has worked hard to provide for this family and has done an amazing job at making our lives comfortable and at making us feel loved. He has made it possible for me to stay home and raise our boys and I am so so thankful for that.  It has been a gift he has given me that I can never repay. I am thankful for the temple and eternal families and music and baking and my siblings and for my in-laws. I have much to be thankful for and I am glad that I have Thanksgiving to remind me of the amazing people and things I have in my life.

"BLUE"

So after a week of trying to say "Z" which we found out is a really strange and awkward letter or name in this case to say and just doesn't work, we have changed our puppies name to "BLUE". It fits and is a ton easier to say. So she is now "BLUE".

Five Little Pumpkins and "Z"

Five little pumpkins sitting on a gate
The first one said "Oh my its getting late"
The second one said "There are witches in the air"
The third one said "But we don't care"
The forth one said "Lets run and run and run"
The fifth one said " Its time for some fun"
Then "Woo-oo-oo" went the wind 
and out went the light
and the five little pumpkins rolled out of sight. 

I was so excited when Tad brought this poem home from school as one of his craft projects. I remember learning this poem when I was his age and for some reason, I have no idea why but it has always been my favorite Halloween poem. 

  We carved pumpkins this last week and before I could get a picture of them, their faces shriveled up and they are not very appealing anymore. We roasted the pumpkin seeds and Joe and I made ourselves sick eating to many, to fast, but they were SO GOOD!!!

THIS IS "Z"

 

A few months ago we had gotten a puppy and we named her Liv and we loved loved loved her. She was the BEST dog! She was our first dog Sis's clone I swear! She looked just like her and had the same disposition and mannerisms. She was smart and learned fast. We had her for about 4 or 5 months and she was chasing after Doc one morning who was chasing a rabbit across the street and she got hit by a truck and died. Taffy, the dog we inherited with the house got sick in August and she died too so I was wanting another pup to replace Liv mostly. We found her on craigslist and I had to have her. She has been great so far. She is a fat little toad but is playful and smart and so much fun. She has earned the name "Z" cause all she does is sleep. She can be in the middle of playing with you then just lay down and fall asleep.  She only gets real excited in 5 minute bursts. ha ha ha then she's done for a few hours. I am really hoping she turns out to be a good smart dog. The boys just love her to pieces already.

I don't know about ya'll . . .

But in our neck of the woods, this is the best kind of playground you can get!!! ha ha ha

We bought this slide during the summer and the boys have bugged Joe non stop to build them a club house so they could put the slide up too. The clubhouse has yet to be built but we did manage to get the slide up for their entertainment after unloading the firewood out of our trailer. All three seemed to enjoy it!!!

We are loving these crisp fall days!!! Joe and I have both decided that FALL is officially our favorite season. Our leaves are falling and the air is a cool reminder that Halloween and Thanksgiving are near and winter is just around the corner and with winter comes Christmas and snow and baking and traditions and decorations and wonderful aromas in my home and music!!! 

I am most excited for these holidays!!!

6

Six years ago, we were blessed with "Boogs" my 7lb. 14oz. wonderful surprise. When I got pregnant with Tad, it was not planned for sure but was a pleasant surprise. I would get so mad when people would call him my mistake. He is no mistake, he is a surprise. The same feelings of denial I felt on Darrells birthday, I have felt with Tad. How did he grow up so fast?! Where did six years go and how have I kept him alive and happy for that long! ha ha ha He has been a blessing to this family for sure and we wouldn't trade him for anything! I started calling Tad "Boogs" when he was just a baby. He always had a runny nose and I was constantly wiping it. I would tell him all the time to get his little boogs over here so I could wipe his nose and the name just stuck.

A little about TAD

My little sugar pie! He is the sweetest kid you will ever meet.He has always been the quieter child. He has always been content to just look at a book or draw or just play quietly by himself. He is a smart little boy and has a great mind and imagination. He is all boy for sure and loves spending as much time as he can with his brother and dad outside in the mud, on the four wheeler, on the tractor, or even just in the sandbox. He is very creative and has loved drawing since he was little tiny. At the age of one I would find him on the couch with a pen and a pad of paper drawing circles or lines or just scribbling. It didn't matter what he was drawing, he just wanted to draw. He has created some pretty creative and neat monsters and trains and things since then. He has always been a sweet child that cares about others and their feelings. He is pretty shy and quiet but once you get to know him he is CRAZY! He loves to wrestle his brother and his dad and ride his bike. He has an amazing little spirit and loves to go to church. He loves spending time with his cousins and playing soccer. He loves to spend time with his dad in the field and with animals and if you ask him what he wants to be when he grows up he will tell you either a worker or a farmer or both, he cant decide yet. ha ha ha I am so thankful he picked us to be his family. I love being his mom and I love that he is mine.

WE LOVE YA BOOGS!!!

First day of school

 Our first day of school was August 13. The boys both got teachers that they have LOVED so far! Tad started kindergarten this year and is really liking school. He has become a little more shy now that he doesn't have Darrell there all the time but he is doing really well. Darrell loves first grade. He loves the fact that he gets to stay longer and eat lunch in the lunch room and he gets two recesses now. He tells me how awesome that is all the time. Ha ha ha

 The boys helped me make cookies and these cards to take to their teachers on meet the teacher night.

Darrell was given a blank piece of paper shaped like a person and was told to make it look like him. What he wanted to be when he grows up or what he looks like now. He decided he wanted to make him look like a train engineer because that is what he wants to be when he gets older. He had to be creative and find all the things he needed himself so he found some old hay that was bleached out by the sun and used it for his hair and some old buttons I had for his eyes and found some fabric that looked like an engineers overalls so we cut some overalls out of it. He colored the rest and had me draw a train for him to cut out and hold. I asked him why he was coloring his teeth grey and he said I'm not coloring all my teeth that color just my dead tooth! ha ha ha he turned out pretty cute though, I thought.

 Tad wanted in on the crafting too so this is the monster he made for me! I thought it was pretty cute too! He cut all kinds of shapes and glued and colored and he was really proud of his monster. I was proud of his creativity! He made the tail out of fabric so it could swish and hit other monsters and dinosaurs. Ha ha ha

Ninjago and Ben 10 were a must for their attire this year and they were so excited to get to finally wear their shirts!

I just can't believe how big they are and that both of them are in school now!

It is a fun adventure for sure!

Seven years and a few weeks ago . . .

I delivered this 9 pound bundle of awesomeness! I don't know if I have not been wanting to admit that my little guy isn't so little anymore and is turning into a big kid instead of being a little boy or if I have just been lazy but it has been hard for me to sit down for five minutes to post that Darrell turned SEVEN a few weeks ago. It makes me sad to look back at pictures when he was little and realize that time has passed by so fast that I don't hardly remember getting to this point. I have had this little boy in my life for SEVEN years! I have kept him alive for seven years! ha ha ha that amazes me! I have loved being his mom and it has been a fun, hilarious journey with him so far.  

A little about Darrell.

 He is a fire cracker and has always kept us on our toes and laughing. Some of the things he says, I swear he was born in the wrong century. He has been adventurous and fearless since he was born. He is super strong and all boy! He loves to work and help his dad out with anything he is doing. He loves his dad and loves to spend as much time as he can with him. He has LOVED trains for as long as I can remember. He can tell you all about steamies and how they work and diesels but he likes steam engines the best. He is fascinated with the mechanics of them. When you ask him what he wants to be when he grows up, he will tell you a Pioneer. ha ha ha I have to remind him that a train driver is an Engineer not a Pioneer. I think he has it down now. He is a smart, smart little boy and always has been. He pays attention to the littlest details and loves to learn. His favorite dinner is meat loaf and his favorite breakfast is biscuit style cinnamon rolls. He loves his little legos and will spend hours building houses and trains and trucks and Optimus Primes with them. He has a great imagination. He loves his bike and his sand box and to be outside. He is way excited for his tenth birthday so that he can go hunting deer with us. He is a genuinely sweet child and loves people and is always thinking of others and how he can help them out. His hugs are AMAZING!!! I love to sneak one any chance he'll let me. He has an awesome, awesome little spirit. I love to watch it grow. I love that he is MY little sweet pea and as hard as it is to watch him grow up and become independent, I love to see the young man he is turning into.  

WE LOVE YOU TO PIECES BIG D!!!