Putting My Trust in God

After these past few weeks, I find myself having to run to God and put my trust in him so I don't fall into great amounts of fear. When I get on Facebook, it seems to be full of prayer requests. I stop and fervently pray for each one. I keep seeing God's hand and His Grace come through on each of them. It calms me. To know that he is in control. I have struggled with fear a lot in the past, so now I just have to keep turning to God, taking each thought captive, and put my trust in Him. Because really, what else can we do?
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I figured out a way, albeit slow and I can't edit them, to get pictures onto the computer. Here are some cute ones from the past several months.



See that cute boy on the left? He's my nephew. He's going to be a big brother in November. I'm excited.





Dakota, I think this is one of her 2 month pictures




I love this picture of Ben and Paula and Dakota. It was taken either the weekend before or the day before they got engaged. I can't remember now which it was.



Never Enough

No matter how much time you spend with those you love, no matter how close knit of a family you are, once you know that you won't get to see someone from your family again until your time on earth is over, the time you did have just doesn't seem like enough.
Until this past week I had never lost anyone REALLY close to me. I have lost grandparents, which is very hard, but when it's your brother it is something altogeher different.
I don't know if it is from being in a semi large family, or if it has to do with being homeschooled, or just the way we were parented, but my family has always been extremely close.
I didn't agree with the way my brother lived. In fact, our lifestyles were nearly polar opposite, but that didn't keep us from loving to be together and have fun. We always have so much fun together.
My older brother Bill died early Saturday morning. His 31st birthday will be April 29th, the day after Ben and Paula's wedding. Bill was always up for a good time, and loved to spend time with his family. I was on the phone with him right before I shot that deer the night before Dakota was born. He thought that was awesome. He loved to dare people to do things. Or he'd say if I did some goofy thing he'd give me a dollar and then ask to borrow a dollar. He loved to laugh and would do anything for a laugh. There are so many things now I wish I hadn't been too afraid to tell him. I DID tell him I loved him. But I wish I'd told him how proud I was that he was trying to get clean. I kept meaning to, but I never really thought this would happen. I thought I had time. I hope his 3 year old daughter will remember him. He loved her so much. I know this is rambly and random, I just needed to tell.... someone. Bill I love you so much. I will miss your laughter. I will miss your phone calls that lasted SOO long that I was looking for reasons to get off the phone so I could actually get something done. I'm sorry. I wouldn't try to get off the phone now. I'd love a call. Chris misses you. A lot. You were his best friend. Not having you to see when he gets out is going to be hard for him. I wish I could give him a hug. At least the rest of us have each other to lean on. I miss you so much brother, and I hope a day doesn't go by that I don't think of you.

Learning the Ropes

Yesterday evening as I was sitting here at the computer feeding Dakota, the phone rang. It was my MIL from out in the barn. She said I might want to grab a camera and get out there.

Tyrel and Kimber were helping with the barn chores. Kimber gathered the eggs and Granola asked Tyrel to get the calves in to the pen in the barn.

 She suggested he get the rope hanging in the barn to help him. Once I got out there I kinda gave him a few pointers on using a rope. Not that I am a great roper, but I did coil it for him and show him how to hold it.

 He chased the bigger calf  around and around the barn lot.

 He got discouraged and asked me to do it for him a few times. I told him he was doing great, and that me doing it for him wouldn't teach him to rope. He's seen Daddy do it enough that watching me wouldn't help. I just think he was surprised that it wasn't as easy as Daddy makes it look.

 He got it over the calf once, but didn't pull it tight and the calf went right on through. Eventually he got him chased into the barn.

 

                            Then he started on the smaller one. It was a little more his size. I was a little worried about him actually catching the bigger one.

 He got the rope over her (we need to work on where to hold the rope as I can see by the above picture).

 And hung on. He almost ran out of rope before he got a good hold on it.

 The calf wasn't very happy about having a rope on her.

 He pulled

 And pulled

 I told him to get up there closer to her.

 So he worked his way up the rope

 And pulled some more. Eventually I grabbed the end of the rope so the calf would quit getting farther from the barn, but I made him use his own muscle to get her closer. (You can see Granola chasing an ornery milk goat around behind him)

Finally, with a little help from Granola behind the calf, he got her pulled in. He was very proud. He had to go call his Daddy and tell him that he'd roped a calf. He got a rope burn, but I think he's kinda proud of it too. :)

Gardening, Sourdough, and Mutton Bustin.

Spring has pretty much sprung here in West Texas. Not that winter might not show up for a little while still.
The jalapenos, tomatillos, cayenne, and different varieties of tomatoes that I planted in the house are sprouting. My lettuce and spinach had just barely started peaking out of the ground also, but a certain miniature donkey that resides in our yard helped me with that. I looked out the window today and saw him rolling in my garden bed. So I had a brilliant idea...... put the fence back up around the garden! Genius right? I know, I'm quick like that. All I had to do was move the fence panel back in place and wire it. It took all of 2 minutes, because I had to look around for some wire. We had moved it a few months ago when we were working on our house. So hopefully the plants will make a comeback.

A new friend of mine that I met at retreat this year gave me some sourdough starter a week ago. So far all I have done is make sourdough waffles, and research sourdough. I am hopefully going to get the proceedings started tonight for some bread tomorrow. I was going to do that last night and make bread today, but after getting kiddos bathed and in bed, I forgot.

We are going to a birthday party for my grandad in a few weeks. I am really excited. It will be like a family reunion if everyone that says they are coming actually comes. I will get to meet some of my cousins new babies. Even newer than Dakota babies.

The rodeo is in town in our part of the country. We enjoy going every year. Stephen and I really like going to the smaller ones that they have in the small towns in the area during the summer, but the big one in February is fun also. This year they were having a mutton bustin competition in one of the barns on the fairgrounds. They have kids ride in the rodeo every year, but I never knew how to get Tyrel signed up. Well this year we signed him up at the stockshow, and they said if he got a good time he might get to ride in the rodeo. Well he didn't make a qualifying ride at 2.6 seconds, but he had fun. He told the lady that signed him up "I fell off, but I didn't cry..." She made his day by telling him that was a sign of a true cowboy. I guess I should explain mutton bustin for those of you who may not know what it is. Basically you take a small Tyrel maybe even Kimber sized if they're tough enough child and put them on the back of a woolly sheep. Then let go and see how long they can hang on! Great fun for the whole family. Of course I had left my camera in the pickup, but Stephen's Mom got some pictures on her phone.

using words!

So I guess I just need to decide to WRITE. I can't put pictures on the computer I normally use, and the computer I CAN put pictures on won't let me post anything on Blogger.
That means I have to try and actually articulate. I tend to be a person that spares the details when I talk. Sometimes I can get on a roll and actually talk a lot, but normally, I tell the basics and call it good.

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Ms. Dakota is growing so fast! She will be 3 months old tomorrow. She is fussier than my other babies were. Not really bad, but more than Tyrel or Kimber. She does not seem to care for the Ergo baby carrier. Tyrel and Kimber practically lived in it. Dakota wants to be held, facing the world, and with the person holding her to be standing and preferably walking. She smiles a lot and is starting to laugh. I just love baby laughs. And smiles. :)

Kimber has decided that being potty trained is the way to go again. I made her wear panties for about a week, taking her potty every 30 minutes or so, with lots of 'accidents'. Then she decided it wasn't worth the fight or something, and has had almost no accidents since. Which is still a LOT sooner than Tyrel potty trained. He was a good 3 1/2 before he was.

I got my garden started this week. I planted the cool weather things outside, such as peas, lettuce, spinach and I want to get cucumbers out too. Indoors I started the tomatoes and peppers. I have been reading some on GMO vegetables and such. I decided to try and quit buying corn products. So I am going to grow us some sweet corn, some corn for drying and grinding, and also some popcorn this year. We are praying for a wet, mild spring and summer. This past summer was record breaking hot and dry. The summer I was pregnant with Tyrel it rained a LOT (for here) and I don't think it hit 100* at all that summer. Which is VERY rare, but I'd sure take another summer like that.

Oh yes I guess I haven't told the blogging world some exciting news around here. This is something I really wish I could post pictures for, and when I can I WILL. My little brother Ben is ENGAGED! His betrothed is a sweet young lady whom also is a friend of mine. Back when I was 19 and she was 14 we worked together for some friends of ours, raising baby deer. Now SHE is 19 and engaged to marry my brother! I am excited to have another sister! I have to get my sisters through marriage since all I have is brothers. Congratulations Ben and Paula! Oh yeah, here is a link that my Mom made telling about them, and showing pictures of them growing up. Well of Ben growing up, and Paula now. We still need to get together and scan pictures of Paula growing up to put on there. http://benandpaula.shutterfly.com/

A Poem

Dusting and cleaning can wait til tomorrow,

                                                   For babies grow up

                                        (we've learned to our sorrow)

                       So quiet down cobwebs, dust go to sleep

Cause I'm rocking my baby, and babies don't keep.

~Autor Unknown to me.

Family Pictures

Yesterday I took advantage of dressing up my family for Thanksgiving to snap some family pictures. I started the day out with a brown skirt on, and Dakota had on brown pants so we matched a little better, but before we took pictures Dakota threw up all over both of us. So we changed.

 My friend Paula took the pictures of all of us. I took the one of just Stephen and the kids, and Stephen took the one of the kids and I.

 I also made the mistake of waiting til after we ate to take pictures. If you look closely you can see food on the kids clothes, and maybe a little on their faces.

 I got the idea for this last picture off of Pinterest. I really like how it turned out. He's such a good Daddy. I'll bet my Grandma will ask for a 8X10 glossy. :)

I've got Thanksgiving pictures to post also. I just don't feel like making another post at the moment. So you can wait. :)