The journey west

The first day of our trip we drove to Louisiana and spent the night with the Petzold Family.  We were treated to some good fried cajun food.

The following day we drove to Oklahoma and spent the night with the Millers.  They took us out for a picnic and the kids got an ATV driving lesson from their cousins.  It was a blast.

 We roasted hotdogs and had smores over a fire in a little canyon.

The following day was filled with driving through the wide expanses of the west.

We found this grill at a rest area in Texas.  It doesn't look like anyone has ever used it.

This is a village we built for our stuffed animals

This is the clothes maker. His name is Stoop. To make the clothes you tie leaves

onto the stuffed animal with pieces of grass. The grass must be long enough so

that you can tie it with enough room to tie it.

 In this picture Gabby is trying to make clothes.

In the lower left corner of this picture is a platform I made out of rocks.

I made it because we decided to build the village on the side of a hill.

It's purpose is give more flat area on which to build houses.

 She decided to give up.

Gabby however liked building houses more than making clothes.

This is a house she built for Lucky. The house is made completely out of rocks 

-Samuel

A revealing fridge

As I watched Darin retrieve the milk from the fridge one morning, I realized that the front of our refrigerator reveals details of our life.

I thought about straightening it, but the organization in itself is revealing.  The bright orange paper is the church's schedule.  It gets hung in the middle every month.  We have the missionaries we pray for, the reminder about my hepatitis shot, the library printouts of checked out books (we can check out 25 books with our cards.  The girls and I have cards=lots of books), our family calendar filled with road trip appointments and of course, artwork.  I believe the picture on the bottom is Gabby's drawing of a horse.    

Here is the drawing up close.

Yep, it's a horse. 

Rebekah's creative pumpkin

After patiently waiting for paint to dry so she could add more details, Rebekah's masterpiece depicting life on Little Maple Farm is finished.    This was a project that took her four days to complete.

Climber:  AKA Stripey

  

Kitten Columbus and Herbert:  AKA Kitty Colo and Herbie

Cypher:  AKA Cypher

An amazing mum

This amazing mum began growing in January and bloomed in February because we had such a mild winter.   During the 100 degree temperatures of July and August it stopped flowering and the leaves wilted, but apparently it was just preparing to be beautiful in the fall.  It is the one flowering bush that I have planted that has actually grown.  Whoever named it hardy, knew what she was talking about.

Homemade carmel apples

Easy steps:  cook, coat, enjoy!

 

 YUM!!

What to do on a warm fall day

I went outside to find Samuel and Rebekah in the top of one of the cedar trees.  Apparently Rebekah believes that if the trunk is more than an inch in diameter, it can support her.

"What????  It was Samuel's idea."

We will miss the tire swing in the woods.

 While Samuel and Rebekah climb trees, Gabby would prefer to hang out with the kittens.

One Crazy Saturday

Take a breath before you read this post; you're going to need it.


8:00 am: Gabrielle's soccer pictures.  I had to wake kids up on a cold Saturday morning to make it on time.

9:00-10:00: Gabrielle's game.  The previous day's rain, cooled the air to a mere 42 degrees, and left behind a wind that cut through uniforms and caused tears to flow freely from our eyes.  Not to mention the wet grass.

Hardcore fans

10:00:  Rebekah's pictures.  

11:00-12:00:  Rebekah's scheduled game.  Although the sun appeared, its rays no match for the wind's cutting chill.  Of course those playing would have disagreed with those spectating.  I was spectating.  It was cold.

11:30-12:30:  Rebekah's actual game because we waited for refs to finish a different game.  Samuel partakes of yogurt, granola bar, and water for lunch.

11:00:  Samuel's pictures.  There was some overlap in our schedule, but thankfully all morning events occurred at the same park. 

12:00-1:00:  Samuel's scheduled game time.

12:30-1:45:  Samuel's actual game because we waited for the refs from Rebekah's game.  The girls and I ate our lunch:  Peanut Butter graham crackers, cucumbers, Pringles, and granola bar.  I also fed the youth who had kindly given up his Saturday to ref all three of my kids' soccer games.  

1:45-2:00:  We drive with enthusiasm to the birthday party of one of Samuel's friends that started at 2:00.  It's no fun to be late to a party.

2:00-4:30:  The girls and I visit a small, free museum, while Samuel has fun at the party.

4:30-5:30:  We drive home, exhausted, and oddly,  silent.

How the day ended:  Mac and cheese for the hungry, and Vick's vapor rub for those with a dry cough..   You can breathe again.  We made it through our crazy Saturday.

Samuel's Legos

Here is a Lego roller coaster that I made. It is about two feet high and five feet long. It is built entirely out of Legos and has nothing else holding it up than what you see here.

This is what it would look if you were at the top about to go down. you may be able to see the car at the bottom of the coaster.












This is the full length of the
roller coaster.
At the bottom you can
 see the car.

Could be good hunting

Most mornings I run through the back of my property and I can always tell when the weather changes because the deer move in different patterns.  I have scared deer on each run this past month.  I believe they are the same ones and they are probably frustrated that I continue to disturb their trek across my woods. 

Based on these sightings, I had picked my hunting site until...

Samuel came to show me this great shot he took of a deer early in the morning right next to our house. Whoever said you can't sit in your PJ's and hunt deer didn't have them trampling through their yard.  I think I found a new site.

Incriminating Evidence

I asked Samuel for his camera's SD card so I could finish the pictures for our September newsletter.  Which by the way if you are not receiving our newsletter and would like to, please contact us.

           Here's what I found on the SD card.

Technically they are not jumping on the bed, but now I understand why they wake up with sore arms and legs.  I thought it was just growing pains, but now I have the evidence.