Thoughts...

OK, I remember when I started this blog I promised I would try to make it as honest as possible and not an "it's all roses" kind of blog. That is really hard to do! It is easy to share funny or exciting or sweet moments but what about the hard things of REAL LIFE? So, here are some struggles I have been having, some not so great but honest moments in the life of ... me...

Why is is so hard to think on the excellent and praiseworthy things about my husband? I find myself constantly struggling with thoughts less than excellent or praiseworthy about him which leads me to fear and frustration which leads my attitude to be way less than loving or honoring...

Why is it so hard to eat right when I know my life as well as the health of our new little one is at stake? I thought by now I would be "done" with this struggle in life but no, it is still hanging around...

Why is it so hard to just DO the things I know I should be; and in fact want to be; doing? Whether this involves eating healthy, quiet times, prayer times, speaking in love to my family, serving others, whatever.... (gee, that complaint sounds familiar) Why is it so hard to actually DO them?

Can't I ever just "arrive"? Somewhere, anywhere? :)

Luke Justice

I have a new nephew! Luke Justice was born this morning at 9:47 A.M. He is my brother Randy and his wife Dandy's second son...Max is a big brother!!! I would post pics but I haven't gotten to see him yet-- I can't wait to get my hands on the precious little thing! :) The kids are VERY excited about their new cousin.

Benjamin the Pool Tool guy!

Benjamin has been a maniac around here with a tool box my sister gave him for his birthday and a tool belt my parents gave him for Christmas. He is always looking for a project. The other evening I was in the kitchen making dinner and he walked in with his tool belt on and his tool box in hand and asked if there was anything I needed "fixin". I suggested he make sure all the screws in my cabinet doors were nice and tight. He immediately got to work with his screwdriver tightening my screws-- or so I thought! The next thing I know the little guy had the whole door off the hinges and the hinges off the cabinet! Needless to say, he was quite pleased with himself!





He has also taken apart a birdhouse and several toys and has plans to build a bird trap with the pieces. Ryan says he was just like that as a kid-- always taking apart things (but he says he put them back together again!) The two of them worked on a project together right before Christmas-- an old TV of ours finally bit the dust so they decided to take it apart to see what was inside. It stayed in my living room floor for a week until Benjamin could finish taking off every single screw and undoing every wire. He cracks me up! He can't sit still to color a whole page but he will sit for hours screwing, unscrewing, hammering, whatever... on a project like that! I LOVE LITTLE BOYS! :)

Date Night!

Ryan and I got to go on a real live date on Friday night! We had a babysitter and everything! The kids have never really stayed with a "babysitter" and they loved it! Taylor is a 15 year old girl we met at church (also the daughter of the sheep family!) First thing Friday morning the kids got up and made Taylor a thank you for keeping us card. I could hear them in their bedroom raiding their piggy bank and when they came out they had the card and $1.07 they had agreed on paying her for her efforts! It was so sweet! I can't believe they even thought about paying her!

Ryan and I went to dinner and a Frank Sinatra tribute. It was nice. It was the first time we have done anything in like that in our new town so we enjoyed the experience of new places!

Marking and Cutting

Today was another windy day-- I am listening to the wind howl through the windows right now! It just never stops! The kids and Ryan spent the day marking and cutting sheep with some friends of ours. For all you who don't know what this entails, I will try to explain in as "pretty" a way as I can...

First, they round up all the sheep from one pasture (yes, this is done on horseback by real cowboys with chaps and boots).
Then, they pen the sheep and "sort" them by smaller groups into a chute area.
Then, the cowboys will pick out the lambs (literally picking them up one by one)and send them through an assembly line of sorts.
The first man (or woman) in the assembly line vaccinates them with several different vaccinations, the second one marks their ear (makes a notch in it with a knife), the third one cuts out their "manhood" if they are a buck, the fourth one tags their ear, and the fifth one cuts off their tail and sprays it with iodine.
Last, the cowboy lets the lamb down into the larger pen to be reunited with their Mama.

Although quite a messy operation, I was surprised at how little of a fuss the lambs make. They seem to do quite well with everything and hardly bawl at all. It was very interesting.

Sarah was in charge of sorting and counting tails.
Benjamin was in charge of helping reload the tagger.
Ryan did the tagging.
Maya and I helped out where needed.

Of course I didn't get any pictures; you probably wouldn't have appreciated them anyway! :) But it was fun and we look forward to later in the spring when they work the sheep again because it will be shearing time!

Archeolympics

Yesterday there was an Archeolympics at the State Park near us. It was a great time. The only downfall of the day (and its the norm around here) was the wind! The kids got to see demonstrations of flint napping and fire starting. There was an expert archeologist around with all kinds of goodies we could touch and ask questions about. There was a rabbit stick throwing booth and an Atalatl (I think I spelled that right) shooting area. There was also a booth where they were making cording from Yucca and the kids got to create a cord from the first step to the last. The thing I enjoyed the most was the friendliness and helpfulness of all the volunteers. They were so willing to help my little ones be able to try out anything they wanted. We all enjoyed the day very much and are looking forward to going again next year.

Baby Update

Just thought I would post a brief baby update...

My last appointment was January 20th and I was 17 weeks (I think!) I had gained 3 lbs. total and the baby was doing great! My next appointment isn't until the first week of March. My doctor has been letting me come every 6 weeks since we have a 4 hour drive to get to him! Yes, that leaves lots of questions and concerns come "Baby Time" but since I am historically a very slow laborer, we are hoping the drive won't be too much of a concern-- we will have to wait and see what God has for us this time! Ryan does have his First Responders training which includes basic baby delivery and he has all the necessary supplies so if worst comes to worst, I guess the baby can always be delivered safely between here and there! (I wouldn't mind so much but Ryan is horrified by that thought!! :)

I can tell I have had some rapid weight gain and growth the past two weeks but that is also "normal" for me. With the other three pregnancies, I gained between 10 and 15 pounds between my 4th and 5th months!!! One day there is no bump, the next, I will have no clothes that fit anymore-- literally!

The coolest thing is that I have been feeling lots of movement! This is probably my favorite part of being pregnant! What a blessing to be able to feel this miracle moving and growing inside me! I am so thankful God is allowing us to experience this joy once again.

I did say this would be short right?