Grandkid update!

For all the grandparents out there (and those that like to watch my goofy family) here is a video of my youngest latest skill. Fencing.

And here is the famous Sprout dancing to Sugarland. Please notice that when the music stops she asks for more by signing it. Too cute!

Our Awesome Vacation

My hubby took a few days of leave so that we could take our time driving to our new assignment. What a great trip we had!

Our first stop was Isaiah's Place. We love you Diane! We had a nice lunch with friends we consider family.

Next stop was my sisters house. And Sprout got to play with her cousin. Aren't they a pair??

We had so much fun just hanging out.

Our last stop was Palo Duro Canyon. WOW! Here we hiked behind our tent spot. Beautiful place.

This is another shot behind our tent spot.

We enjoyed dad campfire cooking for us. Yummy!

I took this picture for Papa. This was a pretty nifty grill made out of an old wheel.

We then took horses down thru the canyon. Everyone really enjoyed this, including the baby. The guides said it was the first time they had a baby that small not go to sleep on the ride. I was very proud of my troop. Even little man did awesome and lead the group.

Sprout riding with dad.

And lastly doing some hot dog cookin' at the campsite. We had so much fun we can't wait to do it again!

We packed up camp and headed to Amarillo to enjoy one last day in Texas. We stopped at the FREE local zoo. Very impressed. Very clean and fun, even though small.

This was a tortoise we caught a glmpse of.

This guy was the girls' favorite, of course. He kept flashing his lips at us. Too funny.

They even had wild cats, including these lions.

And this lonely longhorn. I did not zoom this picture. I was that close. Beautiful animals!

Our last stop was the American Quarter Horse Association Museum. Cool place! My favorite part was the book shop of course! Sprout couldn't get enough of the horse ride. She actually rode this moving horse by herself . . . over and over again.








We finished the trip with one last night in a hotel. Then on to our new home. A very memorable trip!

Preggie Sisters

For the first time, I am having the wonderful experience of being pregnant at the same time as my sister. Although this is my fourth and her first, we are still enjoying sharing this time with each other. The down side is that we live about 7 hours apart and seeing each other often is difficult. Well a couple weeks ago I flew up to see her for the weekend (yes, by myself!) and we got to spend some time together. We are due about 6 weeks apart so I won't be able to visit when she has the baby (which is very soon!).

Anyway, I wanted to share some pictures we took together. Enjoy!

Dead battery . . . no problem!

What do you do when the battery will no longer hold a charge on your John Deere Gator (kid-sized, of course!)? Well you could always take turns pushing, but that just wouldn't be fast enough and too much work.

*Well it is just not letting me share this viedo with you! The kids tied our pit bull to the front of their Gator and threw a ball for her to chase. That little Gator was moving faster with the "dog motor" than the battery could ever have gone! They also tried to tie the dog to a little push toy, but that was too much motor for that little thing!

Rainy Days

What do you do when it is raining outside? I am so busy right now with college classes, that I just don't have time to post a lot of stuff . . . so I am asking you guys to help me! I am tagging Something About Arah, Gerlt House, Just Peachy, and My 3 Boys and I! Post what you do on rainy days and link back to my page.

FYI: Don'f forget I am hosting a Fall Y'all Blog Contest. I am really sad only two people have signed up! I will extend the deadline to Monday to give you guys more of a chance. And not only am I doing the book giveaway - I am giving away free season mixes on my cooking blog. I will extend that contest date until Monday too.

Here is Shelby climbing the door way - that is what she does when she is stuck inside. Literally climbing the walls!

This is how Katy, our pit bull, spends her time inside. Looks comfortable, doesn't she?

And this is what I do when it rains. This is my redneck-made indoor clothesline. It hangs in the school/craft room. Lovely, ain't it?

Redneck Kids

The other day, sitting around the table, my daughter exclaimed "I ain't got no more!" I was talking to my best friend, Josh, on the phone and I couldn't put it better than he did. Being the witty guy that he is, he responded with "Quick, get back to Texas before it is too late!"

We have enjoyed Alabama, but we are ready to see Texas again. Enjoy the pics of my redneck country kiddos!

The Mule Pull

Wow! This was so cool! On Labor Day every year a little town (pop. 800) hosts a mule pull. Thousands of people gather around to watch as these huge mules and draft horses pull incredible amounts of weight. I would love to share this with all of you because it was so cool. Words can't explain it, so I will let the pictures and the video do the talking.

This video is of the draft horses pulling. This was only a little over 5000 lbs for a team of horses that weighed about 4000 lbs. They got up to 7900 lbs!

Here is a picture of how big these mules were:

Here is a good shot of the draft horses:

And of course we had fun too! Here is a picture of the local culture:

And Tobie getting to ride a paint (my girls are dreaming of owning a black and white paint, so this was very special):

Happy Birthday Jeff Cook!

Recently we had the privelage of attending the birthday party of Jeff Cook here in Alabama. Who is Jeff Cook? Well for all of you non-die-hard-Alabama fans (the band not the state), Jeff Cook is the fiddle player from the group. I attached a picture of us sitting around the table waiting for the festivities to start.

What a night! It all started when we went to pick up our tickets, they had been sold to someone else! Jeremiah's boss had bought VIP ($50) tickets, but now all those tables were full! So to make it up to us, he sent us home with Band ($100) tickets. We were excited! We were supposed to have better seats and a waitress. We show up only to discover they shoved us off to the side and the waitress didn't know they were supposed to wait on us. The table sat at a horrible slant and was under trees instead of under the tent. We tried to make the best of it . . . until is starting raining.

Here in Alabama it doesn't just rain, it storms. You can be sitting outside enjoying the breeze and then all of sudden a thunder storm is on top of you and you are soaked before you can reach cover! So we are sitting at our crooked table and trying to get comfortable, when it starts to sprinkle. We all look at each other and think "Oh no!" We grab our belongings and run for cover. We were only about 6 feet from the tent, but we still got wet! Now this storm starts to blow and within minutes the top of the tent is filling with water. Men were taking folding chairs and pushing the water out of the tent to prevent the topple of the tent. We are having to all huddle in the middle of this tent because out here we get side-ways rain. The band had covered all their equipment, but because of the wind they were having to hold the tarps down. Then a part of the trellis fencing fell down. It was looking bleak.

We had ordered the fancy cruisine that a $100 ticket affords (a BBQ sandwich), but they informed us that they were not cooking anymore. Jeremiah and I decided to run into the building and see if we could get some food. Now to get into the building we had to run all the way around, so by the time we arrived at the front door we were soaked. Then the bouncer had the audacity to tell us he was supposed to charge us the cover charge to get in! He didn't. We found a place to stand inside because there were no more chairs. We finally found a waitress that was willing to help us order some food, only to find out it would be an hour before we could eat! Now for a hypoglycemic who has not eaten in several hours - I'm getting mad!

We took off for the local chicken eatery. We ordered our food in "to go" boxes and brought it back to the bar. The rain had stopped and the band was now in full swing again. I sat down and enjoyed my meal. The band was good, but very loud. And we did have fun despite all the problems. But I will never go back to that bar!

Added note: I learned that this bar is now closed due to a fire that happened about three days after the party. Oops!

"Excuse me . . . "

"Your child is standing on top of your truck." Why would anyone think that I wouldn't notice this?! Let me explain.

This morning my children were playing outside while I was in the house. I do check on them and I generally know what they are doing. My youngest loves to climb . . . especially on top of our truck. So what? What is the difference of climbing a truck than climbing a tree? So this morning a driver-by (we live on the highway) turned around and pulled into my drvie to inform me that my child was climbing my truck. "OK, yea, thanks."

This also reminds me of the many times in grocery stores that customers have the great desire to tell me that my child is sitting on the edge of the grocery cart. "DUH, I am looking right at her!" I admit that these activities are dangerous, but how many of us did stupid stuff and lived through it? Kids are active, busy creatures and need to experiment. I am always there with a watchful eye, but I have to let them explore on their own. I could tell them 500 times that they might fall out of a tree and break a bone, but until they actually fall and hurt themselves, they aren't going to have fear of climbing that tree. I am not a child psychologist, nor am I a child rearing expert, but I can decide the limits for my children.

I also want to note that the majority of the "helpful onlookers" are childless. So to all those that feel the great desire to "help" out - please don't. I understand they are just trying to be helpful and are sincere, but after telling the child to sit down in the grocery cart 20 times, I really don't need to hear it from a stranger. And as far as climbing on the truck . . . please. Our rule is she can't climb on the hood - she is ok with that and I am ok with that. I actually think climbing the truck is safer than climbing a tree and since we don't have any trees in our yard - the truck works!

What a hottie!

Since I laughed at my husband's outfit the other day I felt the need to share with you what a good looking guy he really is! You probably won't enjoy this as much as I do - but you shouldn't! He is my husband not yours! LOL

Daddy's Boots

Don't you just love them! I had to take a picture of this - it is priceless. Please notice the neon green muscle shirt, khaki shorts and ariat riding boots. To top it off he is working on the computer. What a redneck! I love that redneck though!!! He makes life never boring.

Home Sweet Home

Most of you know that we have been living in a 5th wheel trailer for the last year. We recently moved into a small rental house, but still consider the 5th wheel home. Many have asked for pictures of our home and I would like to share. Here they are:

Outside View:

Kitchen:

Dining Area:

Bedroom Vanity:

Washer and Dryer:

Larry the Cable Guy

Yes, we claim the title redneck. We don't have television stations, but we have heard a Larry the Cable Guy joke from time to time. We get a kick out of him. And everybody knows about his "Git-R-Dun" phrase. But it just isn't the same when it comes from my precious 5 yr old girl.



Enjoy the video . . .