White Guy update...

We traveled up to the vet which is about an hour away. This guy is the best around for leg injuries. We were thrilled with the news. They can't see any tears in the tendon. Which means that is has healed completely. BUT it is also right now very easy to re injure if too much exercise if given right now. So he still has to be on stall rest for a couple more weeks. Exercise 15-20 minutes everyday (walking). Then in two weeks we can turn him out into the pasture with the other horses. It won't be until the first of April until he can be rode really consistent and hard. Which will be great because horse and rider ought to be ready to ride at the same time. Which will save me having to ride everyday!!


ONLY 26 more days and the moving van will pull up in front of our new home (well it is an old home built in 1996 not really that old compared to the old home we moved out of which was built in 1736, but it is new to us just wanted to clarify that!!) It seems like we have been at this moving thing forever!! It has been 5 months going on 6 so that maybe is forever!!!

Friendship Amish Bread

Our real Estate agent kept bringing us this wonderful bread called Friendship Amish Bread. The kids loved it. Actually we all loved it. So I decided to search the net and find a recipe. There were many out there so we tried one batch and the kids said it didn't taste like Mrs Pat's so I got her to give me hers. So you mix this stuff for 10 days and then on the the 10th day you make up the bread. So today is the making day. It tells you to save a cup, give 2 cups away and then make up the bread with what is left. Well my family loves it so much that I just make up everything except the one cup and give some of the loaves away because it makes 7 large loaves and 2 small ones.

This is the line up of pans. I have sprayed them and coated them with sugar and cinnamon.

I actually set out four different bowls and just did all it at once.

You mix the wet ingredients first and then then add the dry ones.

Then you add all kinds of fun things to the batter. Alex picked out Reeses peanutbutter cups for this batch. We added vanilla pudding to this one. Notice the pile of egg shells each batch calls for 3 eggs.

Chocolate pudding to these two with miniature chocolate chips.

Vanilla pudding with this one and fresh blue berries.

Tomorrow I will post the finished product and give you the recipe.

Last Night...

I have had the stomach flu for a couple days so the frig is bare. Yesterday after school I told Alex we needed to stop at the store and pick up a few things. She did the hand gesture she does of yes (Hand is in fist and she extends it forward hip height and pulls it back towards her hip and shouts yes) it thought it odd because she has always hated going to the grocery store with me.

Well she grabbed the cart and we started along. I look back and she is bouncing on her toes and moving her head side to side. I thought OK. Then we finally move away from the produce section into the aisles and she starts to do some hand gestures and shake her head even more. Then someone came into the aisle and she was dead still. Then as soon as they left she starts back with this body movement stuff. I am thinking what has happened to her today.

As we moved deeper into the store and the aisle are empty she is full out dancing as she is pushing the cart. I am just enjoying watching her. A side of her I haven't experienced before at the grocery store at least. Well finally as she is dancing her way up the aisles and pushing the cart she says "I just love coming grocery shopping" I nearly faint. It used to be pulling teeth to get her to come. Then the truth comes out as she says "Mom don't you just love the music they play at the grocery stores here it make me just want to dance, I just love coming to the grocery store to hear the music" They she dances away from me to go and get her dill pickles.

Just some photos...

My daughter took many of these pictures a couple of years ago. I love looking back at her photos. She has such an eye for photos and taking them from different angles and from different perspectives! Enjoy because she truly has a talent for discovering and capturing the moment, thing, feeling, etc...

A Fun Summer Remembered...

I was going through some of my old photos and came across a summer camping trip. Grandpa, Grandma, my family and my nephews went camping for a couple of days. We did some fishing, camping, swimming and just enjoyed each other.

The summer before we couldn't take photos because they were skinny dippin!!!

A tired crew headed home.

And she is caught?!?!...

My son continually has a rope in his hand and is roping something. His two most favorite things to rope are Rooster and his sister!! She is usually really patient with him. I am not sure if it is because she knows she could really beat him up if she wanted, she enjoys being teased by him, or she sees the need for her brother to practice his roping skills!!

But this night was the night we got Steve not birthday surprise and really all she wanted to do was play with the puppy. And all Matt wanted to do was rope her. Awe brother and sister love!!

A Journey...

Today we traveled through the land of the metal giant grasshoppers (pump jacks)

The metal cages (cotton harvesting trailers)

more metal trailers

I am throwing this picture in to show you the vastness of this country. The trees that you see on the horizon are around houses to act as a wind block. The land is so massive, flat and it is all farm land. So they built their homes and plant tons of trees to protect themselves and homes against the elements.

The land of Red Dirt. They are starting to work the ground getting ready to plant their crops

The land of flowers. This was a cemetery we passed. Every headstone had a vase and flowers.

The land of the sticks (cotton fields that had been harvested)

This was the land of the snow. Actually this is a cotton field that hadn't been harvested. All of the cotton had fallen from the plants and had fallen to the ground.

So what was the purpose of this trip. It was to go to the Doctor. Great news and no so great news. Great news Matt can give up the crutches and move to a cane for the next 2-3 weeks, he can start to drive, and he goes back in 6 weeks. Then and maybe then he maybe can start to ride White Guy. Bronc riding yes but in the future. The pelvis is still stable. The big bone still has a crack but it is getting lighter and lighter (meaning it is healing). We are so grateful!! The not so great news my one on one time with Matt will slowly come to an end as he gets more independent. It has been such a special time for me to have one on one time with him. But all good things must come to an end!!

Steve's Birthday Surprise or not.....

For Steve's birthday we decided to play a trick on him. Where Matt kept White Guy the gentleman's dog had pups. He had one Red and White Border Collie left. We have been teasing Steve for a couple of weeks now that we were going to get him the puppy for his birthday!! Well Alex and I snuck out to the stable, picked up the pup, gave it a bath, then watched it and Rooster play, and boy did they play. Then we just waited for Steve to come home, we put the puppy in Rooster's cage. And...

Steve came home. We set down to open his presents. Then Matt threw a ball into the corner where Rooster's ball landed. I asked Steve to get the ball. He walked over to the cage and... the look on his face was amazing. It was a mixture of Shauna what were you thinking, to I am dead, to, Shauna you will be dead, to I am so shocked and hugely disappointed!!! The look was worth a million words. We could only laugh. So all through dinner we laughed and kept saying how cute the puppy was. Alex was especially winding him up. Steve sat through dinner with a pasted smile on his face. We kept giggling. Finally after dinner Alex said "so can we keep her". The anguish on Steve's face deepened!! I finally saved him and told him that the joke was on him. I have never seen such a relieved look on his face. Just as we were leaving Alex was on the floor loving on the puppy with "that" look. Steve almost gave in. So we quickly left. We will chuckle about this birthday surprise for many years to come.