Don't give up, Don't give in.

Keep Shaking it off:

One day a farmer's donkey fell into an abandoned well. The animal cried piteously for hours as the farmer tried to figure out what to do. Finally, he decided the animal was too old and the well needed to be covered up anyway; so it just wasn't worth it to him to try to retrieve the donkey.
He invited all his neighbors to come over and help him. They each grabbed a shovel and began to shovel dirt into the well. Realizing what was happening the donkey at first cried and wailed horribly.
Then, a few shovel-fulls later, he quieted down completely. The farmer peered down into the well, and was astounded by what he saw. With every shovel-full of dirt that hit his back, the donkey would shake it off and take a step up on the new layer of dirt.
As the farmer's neighbors continued to shovel dirt on top of the animal, he would shake it off and take a step up. Pretty soon, the donkey stepped up over the edge of the well and trotted off, to the shock and astonishment of everyone.
The Moral: Life is going to shovel dirt on you, all kinds of dirt. The trick to getting out of the well is to stop wailing, and not let the dirt bury you, but to shake it off and take a step up. Each one of our troubles is a stepping stone. We can get out of the deepest wells just by not stopping, never giving up! Shake it off and take a step up.

(Saw this on FB today, posted by one of my friends. Thought it was pretty good)

35 of 52 weeks

All these years I've taken pictures of my kids on their first day of school. Did I ever even THINK to take one with me in it too? Nope. Well, thanks to Carin's "mom's missing from the pictures" challenge, I did it this year!
The other pictures of the kids are on this post.

The very reluctant senior...not only did she have to GO to school, she had to have her picture taken AGAIN and then to top it all off, one with mom too!


My youngest sweeties. No problem getting pictures from them! and if Mom is with them in a picture, that's even better. The best thing? Going to school! :D


And one more here....I get very few pictures anymore of our oldest son, hardly any of him dressed up lookin' spiffy, and pictures of me with him...well, lets just say that it has been a LONG time! (no, he wasn't going off to school!)

A post for Morgen

Morgen discovered bmx racing a couple years ago, tried it out and really wanted to do it. It didn't work out for him to actually join until this spring when the season started again. This summer he's been at the track to race nearly every week, and likes to go out to it in between to practice when he has a chance.

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The track, early spring at the beginning of the season.





Before the actual races start, all the racers ride the track as a group while the National Anthem is played. There's always one biker in the lead carrying a flag. Kind of fun to see!

Lining up...I don't think he's in this picture.




At the starting gate, ready to roll!










One of the curves. I don't think Morgen was actually in this picture.


One week this summer his friend was visiting, and went out to watch Morgen race. He found out he could race too as a guest, Both boys ended up with a trophy that night. Morgen would love to have one of his friends around to bmx with on a regular basis!


Kaela's watching pretty close how this works, she is fascinated by the racing, and thinks she would like to try it too! At this particular race she got to barrow a bike & helmet and ride the track!

34 of 52 weeks--Kaela's day

I just want you all to know that I'm now SO in the habit of getting in the pictures with my kids, that I've actually got a back-load. All in the last week and a half! WOW! who'd ever have guessed it!

Last week we were busy all week with freezing corn, and every day Kaela (our youngest) kept begging to "DO" something and I had to keep putting her off. Finally the other things were done, and I told her that Friday would be "her day" and she could choose what she wanted to do.
So here is KAELA'S day along with Mom in some of the photo's too.


First off, she wanted to take a bath in mom's big tub. She loves it about as much as me!
Then she'd been wanting to help bake bread, so that was next on the agenda. She actually did most all of it, I told her what to do while I was making granola. I had to help knead it, and I made it into loaves for her.


Water, yeast, sugar, oatmeal, butter....

Add some eggs



Mix the flour in.

hmmm, not too sure about this part, it's kind of messy.

About this time Morgen came to the rescue and asked me if I wanted him to take a picture of us!

Cover it with a clean towel to raise....

She wanted to have some dough to make a word, so I left it to her what she did.....





Pretty good huh!

Here's what she choose for lunch....We didn't have time to make the jello, but we had peas & carrots with our mac & cheese!

Another thing she'd been begging to do was to go to the animal barn out by our lake, so after the bread was out of the oven, off we went.






Most of the animals didn't pay a whole lot of attention to us, but the calf was curious...
"Did you really make those yourself? hmmm, they smell nice, wonder how they taste?"





Then we went swimming for a while, played in the sand.

Computer time... always a favorite, but it's limited at our house. But, it's KAELA'S day, remember?!


Then we headed out for a family dinner together at Perkins. I wanted to try the picture in the mirror that I've seen some of the rest of you do, but I didn't have any luck. Tips anyone?


The best way to end a day is to snuggle with mom in bed!
What a very fun day Kaela, you made everyone else want their day now!

Ready...or Not!

Today was the first day of school for Kara & Kaela and Relyssa.
(Morgen & Meshayla will start later)
The "little girls" were quite anxious. I don't know how many times Kaela told me to be sure & set my alarm so she could get up at 6:00. She even offered to set the alarm for me. Never mind that they don't leave until 7:30, they have their clothes laid out the night before and they eat breakfast at school. It takes them about all of 5 minutes to get ready. No telling these girls twice! I'd bought some basic school supplies, so this morning they went thru them and filled their school boxes & got out their back packs (Their ones from last year were still good, so didn't have to buy new ones! WOOHOO!)


The tradional first day of school picture. My babies! *sniffle*!! Kaela's going off to 3rd grade, and Kara off to 5th grade, her last year in grade school!! (another *sniffle*) Like another blogging friend mentioned, they should still be 3 & 5....not those grades!!




Now this daughter is a different story....*rolls eyes*
I tried to make her happy by reminding her that this was the first of the last days of school. It didn't help, she still rolled her eyes.
"WHY do we always have to take a picture, I hate school, It doesn't amuse me, (whatever we said), it's not a happy day,...........O.K.....Just PRETEND like you're a nice girl, o.k.?
*BROTHER*!!
Here's our Take 4, one is barely decent. O.K. Relyssa, you're done, this was the last time. THAT SHOULD MAKE YOU HAPPY! You're a SENIOR! AND you only have 1 semester left!!!





Oh yeah, and someday you're going to hate it that you had that kind of posture in pictures, trust me! :D

Camping at the lake

Backing up to the first weekend in August. This is the only real "Lazy days of summer" that happened. The rest really can be under the heading of "crazy busy"!
We did this last year, and all voted that we should go again this year, so here we are. I didn't take any other pictures than at the lake, the others were taken by someone else. Our camp spot this year was not picturesque, so I guess it didn't inspire me to take any there!


We were loaned a trailer this year to use! My kind of camping....Jeanne's inlaws had a trailer also, & the others had tents that were down in the trees behind us.

Trey & Kyrie heading to the beach!

I LOVE jet-skiing. Both watching others on it, and riding it myself.
Totally random in no particular order.....







Beach art & fun in the sun





Meshayla turned the little girls into mermaids!






Derek burried Morgen in the sand, only the top of his head was sticking out. (See the hat in the left hand corner?) The guys had to help pull to get him back out.


And other random Misc moments





The guys cooking hamburgers over the fire-pit, a bonfire Friday evening for marshmellows & smores, Kyrie & Trey lovin', & me getting a belated birthday present....50 of them no less from my daughter's inlaws!