Happy Birthday Gabe and Welcome Big Red!

What a week we had!
This week, my boy turned 10!! Amazing to me since it seems yesterday they told me WOW Heather, he weighs 10lbs 5 oz...at a minute old!
For his birthday we went out to Bogue Chitto park in Franklinton near our home for some fishing and fun. A simple day, spent with family and friends who feel like family. The catch for the day was Dad 2, Sarah 2, Gabe 1 and Mr Clint 1....combined weight of less than 1 lb for the lot of them!
Thanks to all that came out to spend time with us, we enjoyed you all immensely!
Here are some photos to share from the day!

The big catch of the day!!


My beautiful Joy and her boy Colby


A spider in a web (no, really, it's Sarah)



My baby girl Abi



We also added a new member to our family this week. Dashing Big "Red" came to live with us. Red was a gift to us from Denise, a wonderful woman I know from caking. Red needed to slow down his pace in life, and he is a perfect mount for my timid Sarah to pursue her riding on. She jumped right on him and took off..which is NOT her style.
Red lived part of his life as a race horse, and was retrained. Although he is a quarter horse, he's got a lot of thoroughbred in him, which you can see in the photos to come.
We are pleased as peaches to add him to our family. Ms Flicka has adopted him as her own, and is madly in love with him (unless he tries to sneak in and take a bite of her food). Denise loves Red dearly, and it was her love for him that helped her decision to bring him to us....and we shall continue his life in the style he is accustomed to, SPOILED!!
Some photos to share for you...

My beautiful Foo girl...I will always say she amazes me. She's come so far in so little time this girl. And God bless her, she was sharing her hay with Red.



Red and Sarah, she's in love to the hilt. They were having a love festival...her with Red and he with the treats she had in her pocket.



Now..before you say anything, YES she's barefooted...she was just hacking around not really riding. I did make her put on my helmet.



And..yes I'm in sandals, we had just come home from Gabe's fishing excursion...



So..that's our week~ Life never stops here in our house, but it also never stops being blessed.

Fourth of July Fun

We always try and do some fun things with the kids for the Fourth, so this year Jamie and I got a few fireworks and planned a bbq for the day.
We dodged the rain and did our bbqing, then made some homemade ice cream (god bless that kitchen aid churn attachment, she's so good to me). When darkness fell we headed outside for our good ole redneck fireworks show!
Here's how it works, we all pile into the back of Jamie's truck and he is the fireworks guy. He puts them out in the street in front of our house (we live on a little dead end gravel road). That way everyone is safe. This year I took Harley out, b/c I really feel like they should be used to all noises. Molly just gets too excited, not scared at all, just wants to participate TOO much.
Then we always let the kids play with sparklers and Jamie helps them shoot roman candles. Amazing how fast it all goes, but they love it!

Praise God for the independence that allows us to celebrate this day...and for living in the country where you can shoot fireworks with no fear of irritating your neighbor...our whole street does it!

On to the photos of course, not great ones, b/c I had a certain dog sniffing my camera.

Blurry fireworks...I try every year to get cool fireworks pics, and never succeed.



Abi and her "cannon" she called it



Checking out the loot



He wuvs her, really he does



A fountain



That's all folks!! I hope you enjoyed your fourth as much as we did ours!!

Sweet sweet summertime!

This summer seems to be the summer of the horse at our house. We've also had Scout camp and VBS. It's been a great summer though, so I thought I'd share some pictures.
Sarah and Flicka are doing well. Flicka has started doing lessons WITH Sarah now, so they can both learn. They had their first this week, and did great. It's hard when you're a four year old horse to understand things, and hard when you're a pig headed 11 year old girl to know that your horse isn't the BEST thing that ever walked (well, maybe she is), but they are learning together and that's awesome. Here are some photos of her at the barn for her first lesson




Earlier this summer Sarah went to riding camp for the week. (Remind her, all of you, how wonderful her mom is for letting her do this.) Then the end of the week brought a dressage show for her. She rode Maggie and Bobbie Sox, who you can see below. She did well, it rained TERRIBLY hard and it was nasty, contrary to how the weather looks in these photos.



Riding Maggie in her dressage test



And a little Bobbie Sox riding



Just hanging out with Maggie between classes.


Our other big thing was summer camp with the scouts. Gabe loves Scout camp, this is his last year as a camper, next year he will have to volunteer. He had a great time. He went into it with a broken finger poor chap, then got attacked by ground hornets, but his awesome den leader (we love you joy) made it a good week anyways. Here are some photos from camp for your viewing pleasure!

His favorite water thing, zip lining! Gabe's in the blue life vest. Everyone must wear a life vest, good practice to have!


Slingshots! Which he is really good at!



We ALL go to camp, even dad gets in on the act. He is medic at waterfront, but we caught him riding his four wheeler!



Cub Scouting teaches respect for our flag. He was announcer for the flag ceremony this morning. He is the KING of announcement~!


And..just because this one I like:



And yes, the girls get in on the act, here's Ms Abigail


Sarah makes herself scarce, btw!

Lastly, this past weekend my nephew Taylor turned SIXTEEN! OMG save me! Well, we went to White Sands Beach for his birthday. What a fun time! Here are just a few from then.





Thanks to all of you for visiting our blog!! Now, all of you that haven't blogged in a while, and you KNOW who you are ANGIE, get to it!

Long time, no blog!

Seems I have neglected my little blog here. SO many things are going on in our lives that it's hard to find time to sit at the desktop. I find myself checking on the world through my phone, aahh technology.
Since we last met, we've done so many things. Our lives focus around our children, and their likes and dislikes, so we'll work on the likes here (and ignore the dislikes like good parents should).

Gabe has finished out his Scouting year with a bang, earning his Webelo badge and is moving toward his arrow of light. For the third time this year he achieved A average honor roll at school, REALLY an awesome kiddo. He has chosen not to play baseball this summer for the first time since he started playing ball, but I'm actually kind of relishing the break. He's looking forward to learning to cut the grass with his dad if one can imagine wanting to cut grass.
He's a sneaky buggar to get a picture of, but I got this one:


Sarah is as always up to her ears in horses. She is the proud rescuer of a little quarter horse mare, who she has named Flicka. When Flicka came to us she was very underweight and a sad sad tale. Today she still shows some signs that will take years to go away of that abuse, but is a new horse. I'll share some before and afters of her here in a few. Sarah participated in her first real horse show outside of the barn last weekend and did awesome! She, of COURSE, also has achieved A average honor roll all three nine weeks. She, of COURSE, has no interest in learning to cut the grass. Her other achievement of late was that she and Harley, our 6 month old German Shepherd, entered the 4H pet show, and achieved a "cutest ears" first place ribbon. I shall share his ears, you will totally agree with them.

My freckled beauty at the pet show:


Her beautiful freckles amaze me:



Flicka then: and honestly, this is a good picture of then, she looked much worse in person, this was February.


Flicka now: she's moved to an awesome friends house, is eating good groceries and getting good work, pink thing is bareback pad, kids are slowing getting her used to having someone on her back, and I'm lunging her to get some energy out.







Abi continues to be the same cutie patootie she always was. Kindergarten in this family means a hiatus from outside activities, so she's on a break from her typical dance regime, but I hear daily how she's starting back this summer. She amazes me with her learning, it's always so crazy how fast they start picking up reading and math and spelling. She has also learned to be a great help in the kitchen, one day, if you are all out our way, ask her to make you her "famous pizza", it's killer! She's turned an amazing SIX years old, and gotten her ears pierced! I told her that's all the growing up for now please.

Her cake:


Blowing out her candle:


You can spy a little big girl earring here:



For those following my gastric bypass journey, I'm now down 140 lbs. I've got some more to go, but I am feeling like a million bucks. It's a crazy journey, but one well worth traveling. I have been back on a horse for the first time in 12 years, and can move and groove with the best of them keeping up with these kiddos.

My husband, as always, continues to be my hero. He'll get upset at me for writing that, b/c he doesn't feel like he's a hero, but he is. He works so hard for us and continues to be right here by me to be my rock when I need him.

I did do a cake of late, I'm not doing them anymore other than family and friends, this was for a friend, very fun to do. Fondant cake, sugar ice and beer bottles, fondant crawfish and goodies.


So..I'll leave you with that, and some photos. I will try not to be away so long next time!

Mr Big Ears:



And..dressed for the costume contest:



Our family:

A picture post

My gorgeous Abi,




Look, it's like we're on top of the world. That's the clouds from ABOVE them, at Klingman's Dome.


My girl and her favorite girl!



I think this was at Cataract Falls, and TODAY my girl is 11, can you BELIEVE that!



Jamie and Gabe fishing at Tent or Treat at Five Lakes in Bush


Gabe's MONSTER fish


Learning Knots with Dad

Abi's field trip to the Pumpkin Patch


Cathedral Caverns in Alabama


At the Chimneys, in the National Park



When we reached the top of Laurel Falls



Gabe's fine self




I'm on Jamie's computer, so I thought I'd post some pictures from Tennessee, field trips and such since they're on here.