IceCapades!

What a beautiful day we've had! Zach and Wyatt stayed overnight and this morning after a big pancake breakfast, we took Squeak out for another long explore. We went to the pond first, and the boys had fun sliding on the ice. It was great fun, and I was able to catch a few really good snapshots!
After running and sliding for quite a while, they went to get their bikes.

Of course, all the while, the sun was shining and making the surface of the pond more slippery by the minute! I had fun watching the boys attempt to ride their bikes on the ice. Eventually, they figured out how to keep from crashing. Well, at least...how to keep from crashing so often. Then, they started having races. They soon lost interest in that and went out to the pasture to ride on the hills.

It was pretty icy out on the trails too, but they didn't care. We had a lot of fun, and at the same time, we got Squeak worn out. She was so tired by the time we got back to the house that she didn't even try to bite and chew on the boys any more.

Later today we plan to take Herman (the bad smelling billy goat) back to his own home. We hope that he's been here long enough to take care of the business he was brought here to do. If so, we'll be having kids in June!
The video is Wyatt riding his bike over a section of the trails in our pasture, with Squeak chasing, and Zach yelling for Squeak to come back. You'll notice, she didn't pay one bit of attention to him!

As Promised...

But then, who really cares? I sometimes wonder who reads this anyway. Of course, I know there are a few regular readers, and ONE of you (you know who you are) mentioned that you've missed hearing from me. So, here's the update.

Since getting the puppy, it seems that I've been really busy. I don't know how that can be true, but it is! Of course, I do have to spend a good deal of time playing with the her and trying to teach her some manners. She's also been a good reason to get out and walk more. She loves going on our "long explores", as the boys call it. We usually walk to our back (south) property line, stopping along the way to sniff everything out. Well, not me...I don't sniff around. Squeak does that! Poor Scamba is learning to like the energetic bundle of fur, and when he's feeling a little lively himself, he even plays with her. But, she does get annoying to him, and she has learned that when he growls and bares his teeth, it's time to back off and find something else to nip at and chew up.

I've spent the past two Saturdays watching Show Choir competitions. Last week, we were at West Liberty and yesterday Keokuk. Our kids performed well at West Liberty, but they were much better at Keokuk, taking first place in the 3A division. I enjoy watching show choir, and being the bus driver means I get in free, plus I get paid to watch! What a deal!!! Can't beat that with a stick!

Zach and Wyatt have been here several times, and we have played that Fox and Geese game a few times. The boys had never played it until I taught them how, and they seem to love the game. Of course, I always start off being the fox, and I'm so slow I have to wait until the geese fall so that I can catch them. After playing one day, we came back to the house for refreshments. We were all in the kitchen, and discussing the excitement of the game. Here's a little portion of our conversation:
Me: "I'm too old and fat to play that game!"
Zach: "You're not fat!!!"
Wyatt: "Yes, she is!!!"
Zach: "Wyatt!!!"
That may not seem so funny when you read it, but it absolutely cracked me up! Of course, Zach would never purposely say anything to hurt my feelings, and apparently he thinks that Wyatt was insulting me. In truth, Wyatt would never say anything to hurt my feelings either, but he doesn't think fat is an insult. It was really funny, but maybe you just had to be there!

Another project that is taking up a lot of my time is scrapping. Not really scrap booking, but making digital scrapbooks. They're fun to do, and I like doing that better than getting all the tools and stuff out to make scrapbook pages. Making a StoryBook is much easier in my opinion! It doesn't require any "workspace", I don't have to get stuff out and put it back, and there's no clean up! Anyway, I'm working on two or three StoryBook projects. By the way, for those who MIGHT be interested, Creative Memories is making changes. They've gone to a True 12X12 size and an 8X8 size instead of the 7X7. I think we'll like the changes.

On March 1st, the Liverpool Legends will be performing at the Grand Theater. I have tickets and plan to attend. I don't know yet who will be going with me. I bought two tickets, and Dennis isn't really interested.

Well, I think that's about it...now I'm done.

A Quick "Hello!"

It seems like a very long time since my last post! I will be posting something new over the weekend. It may not be exciting or interesting, but it will be something new. Right now I'm getting ready to leave for the day. I'm driving our show choir all the way to Keokuk for a day of competition! Hope they make the finals this time! Enjoy this gorgeous day!

Meet Pipsqueak!

We're going to call her "Squeak". Today is her first day away from mother and the rest of the litter. Scamba is interested in her, but seems aloof.











Squeak is just 7 weeks old. She looks like a little ball of fur. We're hoping she will learn to be as good as Scamba, who is the best dog we've ever had!

Happy Birthday Mom and Dad!

Surprise, surprise, surprise! We really surprised them. Kyle brought them to the party by telling them a big tall tale, and when he got them to the Ivor Fowler center, they were going to stay in the truck because they thought he was stopping in to see one of his friends!
When they realized that he'd been telling them a story, they came in to see many of their friends and family already there, waiting for them.
The party was very well attended. We tried to get everyone to sign the guest book, but are pretty sure there were a few that didn't even know it was there.
The cake was beautiful, and delicious, and gone! We ate the whole thing. Gariann's baked potato soup was a hit as well.
Mom and Dad are standing at the cake table, while we sing the "Happy Birthday" song, and I think they were saying to each other, did you know about this?
It was a fun party, and I'm sure they enjoyed it too.
We took some family group pictures of those who were there. Unfortunately, we didn't get started taking the pictures until after some of the kids had left, so we didn't get everyone in the pictures.
This is all the grandkids who were still there at the end of the day. We also took one of Mom and Dad with their kids....except for Lynn who had to work and could not be there.
Can you guess what's going through Mom's mind in this picture? I KNOW what she was thinking, but would enjoy reading your comments and guesses as to her thinking.



Well, that's my latest news, and now Dennis and I are heading to Quincy.

Meet Herman!

This is the raggedy raggedy goat, with horns on his forehead and burrs on his coat!
He's not very pretty and not very neat, but you ought to see all the things he can eat!
That's from one of the nursery rhymes we used to read to our boys when they were little. Travis used to say it like this:
"Dis is the raggedy raggedy goat, with horns on his two head and burrs on his coat"
At any rate, this is Herman, and he's going to be the daddy of our "kids". We're hoping for three sets of twins....six kids. They'll be due about mid-June.
Once Herman has done what he's here to do, we'll be sending him back to his home north of Montrose. I have to say that Herman is really stinking our place up! I did not realize how horrible a Billy goat smells!

Oh, What a Beautiful Morning!

Just in case you missed the beautiful sunrise this morning....










No exciting news to report here. New Years Day was very wintery. A few days later, we had a thaw, then thunderstorms which included tornado watches and heavy rain. We had two days of temperatures well over 60 degrees, and now this morning we've had a light frost. The beautiful snow that covered the ground just a few days ago is all gone, leaving puddles and mud everywhere! We're getting lots of calls from people needing rock. That's good for Mr. "ChickenHead"! (see picture in previous post) He's staying plenty busy these days.
The goats are content and seem to be doing well. They haven't been a bit of trouble yet....should I be knocking on wood? The heifers got out Monday, and I had quite a time getting them back in where they belong. They gave this old fat cow a good work-out! I think they enjoyed it.

Update: 8:32 PM. An equally beautiful sunset this evening!

A New Year, and A New (to us) Game!

We've just learned to play Texas Hold'em. We're not quite ready for Las Vegas, but we've sure been having a lot of fun playing these past few weeks. Travis and Gail taught us the game, and we've been to their house several times since Christmas to play. Gariann and Kirk usually join us, and we have a lot of fun.
School resumed, so I'm back to driving the bus. It was pretty chilly this morning (-3) but some wonderful person had already started my bus, and it was all warmed up when I got there. Being back to a routine isn't so bad, I guess. I enjoyed the time off, but didn't mind going back. After all, it's just a short run and then I'm free for about six hours before going back to take the kids home.
Today, Wyatt had surgery in Burlington. He had tubes put in his ears, and his adenoids removed. He was out of the hospital and headed home by early afternoon. He wasn't feeling too well when I called this evening. We're praying that he will have a quick recovery, and that he will be able to hear much better!
Oh....I should mention that we had a great New Years Day at Memphis with the Millers.
There were 104 people present, and "Cousin' Bubba" did a mighty fine job of entertaining us, as he always does. Dennis had won a really great game called "Dumb Laws" which looked like a lot of fun, but Andy had the wild card. That meant that he could "steal" any gift, as long as he met the requirements of the wild card.
He had to wear a chicken on his head and do the chicken dance, but he didn't hesitate a bit, and he got the game. Dennis got the chicken hat. It was a most enjoyable day.

I think he looks really cute wearing that chicken.
That's it!
Happy New Year!

Let It Snow, Let It Snow Even MORE!

Well, it may not be a December record, but we've had snowfall every weekend this month. It's absolutely beautiful outdoors! I couldn't resist the opportunity to make a little snowman with the all the new snow and moderate temperature to go along with it. What fun to be outside on a day like this!
We enjoyed a wonderful Christmas with family and friends. It was over all too soon, but only 361 days and it will be Christmas again! There are still several fun family gatherings yet to attend though. We'll be having Christmas with the Manns tomorrow, then New Year's Eve at the Rockhold's for fun and games, and on New Years Day we will be going to Memphis for the Miller Christmas celebration.


This morning, Dennis and I took a little drive in the snow. We were just north of Keokuk when I saw a car spin out and slide sideways into the ditch! It happened right after I took this picture, and I almost got a picture of it!

We crossed the Keokuk/Hamilton bridge (which was completely snow covered) and I took a picture of the power house. As you can tell, the sky was thick with snow! I'd hoped to get a shot at an eagle, but they were all too far away. Visibility was very poor.

We drove up the Illinois River Road to Nauvoo. I really enjoyed the ride, because Dennis was driving carefully! We weren't the only ones out driving in the snow.



As we came into Nauvoo, visibility was so poor that we could hardly see the top of the "temple". We went out to the cemetery and were the first to drive through there. It wasn't bad until we got down to the south end where there are no tombstones, and then we were not sure where the road was, but we made it! Coming back, we were not far south of Nauvoo when we saw a deer standing on the road. By the time I got the camera turned on, it was running away.


After picking up a few things at the grocery store, we came back home and are just enjoying the quiet beauty of newly fallen snow!

Just ONE of the Joys of Being a Grandma!

I received this note recently. I don't know where he got the idea that I had something wrong with my foot, because that simply is not true. No doubt he heard something and thought I had something wrong though. Such a sweet note! From a very sweet boy!
It's snowing today, but it's pretty light, and we don't expect it to amount to much. Much better than the ice we were getting!!!
The boys are here for the day, so I'm staying pretty busy, but not getting much done. It really doesn't matter though....everything I have to do can be put off for a while longer.
The snow is falling heavier now...so we can HOPE it will continue!
Well, the boys are pretty quiet....wonder why? Better go check!
OH....by the way, can you correct the sentence in the note? It's a little tricky!