Everything and Nothing

Today was one of those days that there was nothing to do so a little bit of everything got done.
The kiddos had no school and Dusty is at work so I attempted to sleep in. Eventually I gave up and go up. We all ate in shifts all day. No meal. Some TV but only while folding laundry. Chores got half done- the first rooms on the list look great and as they went down the list their calibre also slipped!

I have been on and off of the computer all day. I have been desperately trying to catch up on scrapbooks. Sometimes I really wonder if it is worth the time but I keep telling myself in 20 short years as my kids become parents they will want to look through them and remember the foggy memories a bit more clearly.

As I have been looking through the photos I have been scrolling through the blog trying to get a refresh of my own memories. I am so grateful I never gave up on this even though there are years that are scarcely documented.

Today as I have been sitting here and children have been coming and going around me, I would catch a whiff of body shop smell. It made me stop and smile. I must of been about their age (that 10/11 year old age maybe a little older) and I would go to the mall and I would get smelly stuff. Lotions and soaps and my room would stink up like green apple and watermelon and I would have clothes and magazines everywhere. Life is changing in our house. We still have Andy to chase around but I now find myself saying things like, "less in more.... especially with perfume..." or "can you put that (insert any form of technology) down while I am talking to you" or "can you turn down your music".

I loved being young and listening to loud music and smelling of an array of scents and talking to my friends and having secrets and being busy but with nothing important.

Those are the thoughts of the day and  I might just go turn on some ace of base and spray room spray everywhere and dance around and pretend I am 12 again.

Long Hours

I have logged some pretty long and tedious hours the last few weeks.

The horse show is just days away and I have been stuck on my computer making the final preparations to the lists.

Tonight a friend texted me to go out and look at the meteor showers

I needed a break

I love the summer air

I love how it is warm and cold all at the same time

I could hear the hum of harvest all around me

and I smelled the dusty dirt earth smell that just hangs in the air

I looked up waiting for meteors 

I saw planes.

I love flying at night- I wondered where they were off too. Was it the first time away from home-going off on an adventure? Or was there someone coming home?

and the stars.

Stars and night make me feel small. 1 tiny creature in something so vast that it is incomprehensible. breathless almost. It fills me with awe and amazement.

As I stared up, I wondered and am still left wondering,

that maybe if more people saw stars instead of screens, 

there would be a return to awe and amazement,

 a return to a belief in something bigger than ourselves and our little lives,

a return to God

 and play 

and dreams?

I just really needed to write that before I returned to my screen.

The Great will Fall

I knew eventually my streak would come to a close.

It started this morning with more aches than usual.

Then I got myself THE fever.

Now I found my dying spot- I am here for the duration.

Loud Music

I love the word relationship.

Before today I was indifferent towards that word before.

Today it is funny.

We {as in me and the kids minus 1 but plus a friend} and there was a conversation that floated up front above the music. The word "relationship" was tossed in there and swished around with some 10 year old giggles and immaturity mixed with "grown-up" words like relationship and a few "mmmmhmmmm's" like they are two bitty old women sitting on the porch in the Deep South.

I had to turn up the radio to cover my own amusement.

I can't even fathom what floated up to my mother or my friends mothers! It explains the loud music in my life!!!! 

Quiet Time

 Like I was saying previously,

we are cycling through the flu.

Ellie was the latest victim!

Poor girl!

She wins an award for best sick kid...

Last night Ellie came upstairs and says she "thinks" she might be sick.

She was.

No whining

No crying

She just set up shop on the couch and has been there all day.

We've been saving the "best" for last....

So hopefully they don't get a turn.

With all this quiet time I have been able to get a few things done.

I cleaned out my towel closet...

sort of...

I got it all out and then Ellie's teacher came over 

so I shoved it all back in!

hahaha 

maybe tomorrow...

I also got our farm blog set up so that we can sell our lambs.

I was just going to do it from here

BUT

I decided that I didn't want perspective buyers getting to see ALLLL of our crazy.

the new site is

www.cattailcoulee.blogspot.ca

I also am ALMOST done knitting Andy's sweater!

just in time for summer....

hahaha

Tomorrow I am going to pooper scoop my back yard by my ewe pen. 

I am tired of dodging all the land mines!

Too bad Dusty didn't have all this "down" time-

Maybe

he could of trained his dog to "go" in the field!

Birthday Gift

We have had so much to do this January.

The start was a bit chilly and snowy

but

this week we've entered a 

heat wave!!

It's been so nice to watch the ice melt

and 

its been nice to actually get outside to do things!

I bought low bogs and that was a 

BIG

mistake. 

I have never had a problems with them in the

4 

years I have owned them

but

tonight doing chores the muck in the corrals is up over top of them.

YUCK!

Dusty and I were able to haul our horses in to the arena.

It was fun to take them and get to take a test run on my 

BIRTHDAY GIFT!!

 

The horse is old.

The saddle is new.

Lincoln was in need of some new duds.

I had to sell my old saddle

(which I loved)

but

Lincoln loves all the bling!

(and so do I)

Penny rode with us on Midnight

and

she (the horse) did awesome like always!

We were at a horse jumping show helping out

our local pony club.

The girls had fun running around the barns and arena

(mostly supervised by the spectators)

It's been a long time since I've run a concession out of a tack room!

It took me back to my 4-H days.

This week coming up is going to be fun.

I have been helping set up a goat tying clinic

(embracing my inner cowboy- haha yah right!!)

and then Ellie has a riding clinic.

 

Flower Girl

Dustys job sent a bouquet of flowers

Penny loved them

Couldn't my stop touching them

Or asking what each and every flower was

Finally when the time came to dispose of the flowers

Her dad let her pick one.

She wore it most of the day.

New Normal

So this past Monday was supposed to be my first day of "normal".

Dusty was back to the grind

I had a doctors appointment first thing in the morning.

The girls and I had to figure out a new morning routine.

I woke up at 530. 

Fed Andy.

Got the girls on the bus at 8

Pack up Penny and Andy 

And was on the road by 810.

Dropped Penny off at a friends

(After a slight change in child care- my other friend called that morning with sick kids)

I thought it had been too long since I had driven.

I kept missing my turns.

Anyways.

I got going into town. 

Music on.

No crying baby.

The news came on...

Do you know that this past Monday was blue Monday?

It is the most depressing day of the whole year.... There is a mathematical equation based on a ton of factors like time after Christmas, winter, money etc...

I scoffed hearing this that mornings news.

Got to town

A light turned red.

I went to stop.

No brakes.

None.

Slight panic.

Say a little prayer.

Re- route myself to only make right hand turns.

Manage to get to the doctors office.

Two minutes late.

Go in.

Find out he has a posterior tongue tie.

Cut it.

Was forewarned it was going to be a rough week of nursing....

Great.

Like nursing wasn't already bad!

Get out to my car.

Panic.

Make a few phone calls.

Call a mechanic

( who was awesomely amazing)

Then call roadside assistance.

On hold for 1 hour

Then another hour for the tow truck.

My sister comes.

We get everything switched.

Tow truck shows up.

And home.

Longest Monday ever!

First day of "normal" sucked.

I might not be scoffing about blue Monday anymore...

Paranoia and Anticipation

 Things never go as planned.

They rarely go smoothly.

At least for me.

I say this not to be pessimistic

But

The more kids I have

The older I get

Etc

I learn that things just are as they are.

This last week has been no exception.

I had planned and worked hard to have a lovely Christmas.

It was

But

Not quite how we planned.

This has been a relatively smooth pregnancy

I have actually lost weight and felt pretty good

But

This last week has been a good reminder how quickly that can change too.

I always 

{I am assured this is normal}

Have anxiety towards the end.

I am not an anxious person by nature 

I honestly don't know how people deal with the worry

It is exhausting.

I am fortunate that it really only strikes in the later part.

But

It is here.

I felt it withe previous three. 

It's gotten worse with each child.

Maybe I realize how much can actually go wrong

Maybe I have more at stake

Maybe it's worse with this one because of all the little things that have happened this week.

Or because of our experience with Penny.

Part of me wishes I could flash forward and know that things will be fine

But

I know that I wouldn't want to know if it wasn't going to be fine.

That I suppose is the beauty of life.

It is what it is. You do your best. You put a smile on your face.

You put one foot in front of the other

And

You walk forward with anticipation {and a little anxiety}

Waiting for the next part to unfold.

Piles of things

Dusty is officially back to work.

The house is now being cleaned of all the wonderful piles of new things.

This next week promises to be busy

But

Busy with fun activities like

Skiing

And shopping

And skating

And if the weather holds out

Horseback riding.

Once Christmas is all boxed away

And in between

The fun stuff

I should probably think about getting something out

For the baby...

The One and Only Shot

No one gets to see a body shot....

But this will probably be one of the only photos posted

That will be of my stomach.

Ever.

Baby 4 comes in less than a few weeks

I should be getting ready

Should is the key word.

But instead life just keeps purring along.

Penny is impressed with how big the baby must be.

She has taken up the roll of official "bender"

She picks up everything.

Hopefully this will keep up post-baby!!

I must look like I am haggard or something

Even dusty is starting to help out in the house

(outside of his "normal" tasks)

It's a good thing Christmas is but a week away

Because I am totally ready to go into hibernation mode!

Planning

It's hard to believe that this was two years ago,

So much has changed.

I have been thinking about life "plans"

We were very happy two years ago.

Ellie was just starting grade 1

We liked our house.

We were busy making plans and living

and no one would of even guessed this is where we would be now.

we are happy now too.

(you'll love this lead-in to the new thought...)

and we are planning still

like for the storm that hit us.

We prepared

 but no matter what preparations are made

there will always be surprises...

like frozen water lines.

sheesh.

the water lines weren't even the biggest battle..

it was putting on my pants

and taking off my boots...

and i wouldn't of been able to plan on how many times

i would actually have to do those two tasks!

Ellie out doing sheep chores.

I think they were happy to see her 

after the long cold night.

I guess the point is..

have fun making plans

but

they probably won't work out 

and 

you'll still be happy

even if you are trudging through a mountain of snow

with a hammer

screwdriver

and kettle.....

Cookies and Soup

I tired to write a post a couple of days ago 

but

I just couldn't get my head together.

We have been busy doing lots of things as usual

the kids are thrilled it's Christmas

we made Christmas tree cookies today

they decorated them with mm ornaments and green frosting

I am surprised they are sleeping from all the sugar.

We also made a huge pot of soup

so 

hopefully we can just eat that and I won't have to cook for a while.

The girls have been busy skating

and riding

and playing

and cleaning.

We have been trying to get our act together and get a few neglected places sorted out.

it has worked out pretty well.

I hosted a girls night out last week and did a toy swap

Dusty and I took the left over toys to the sally-ann

it turned out pretty good.

Dusty crossed off his "good deed" for the week

although I am pretty sure he could of crossed out a few more....

I decided to paint the office...

So

dusty painted the office this week and it looks great

so much better and brighter.

The girls love it

and I love it

which means the room is actually being used again for what it was supposed to be used for.

Everyone has been super helpful lately

which either means

I am cantankerous or

I look like I need help

either way it's been nice to have the kids be extra thoughtful.

Especially Penny...

I don't remember the last time I had to bend down to get anything!

This week felt long

but I think that next week will probably be better.

It's supposed to be warmer

which means Dusty and the girls will be out riding their ponies

and the chickens will lay more eggs

and there won't be frozen hoses to string out and drain

and its report cards and the last week of November and the relief society Christmas party

and I don't have a doctor's appointment...

Tomorrow promises to be the start of a good week...

This Month

November

I haven't taken nearly as many pictures as I should be.

Lucy is in skating 

and loves it

Dusty has been skating with her during the week

plus her lesson

We will probably put her in for the winter term.

Penny has enjoyed being an only child

she does look forward to her sisters coming home

she has developed a new friendship with her dad

it involves fast speeds

snow

and the quad.

Ellie went into school this year

really looking forward to the year

and while she is enjoying school and her friends

she is beginning her retreat

to the "quiet" of home.

Dusty never feels like he has enough time

which is not new

but added to his plate are all of the things to get ready for winter

plus we had a really hectic fall.

I have all my Christmas stuff out and most of it up

I have slowed my days down.

I am back to knitting

(multiple things)

and crafting

and baking

and cleaning

all the quiet centering activities in which I love

I am almost done creating my gifts

it feels good.

With the snow and the melting 

the riding is slowing down

(that and it's almost impossible to get on)

I might need a stool to get into bed never mind on a horse.

the animals are getting settled into a new winter routine.

I used to love the snow and winter

and then as I have had children

I like it less

it's a season for a  lot more work

but

I have appreciated the weather this year.

It's slowing me down.

giving me more excuses to just be home.

Hopefully next post I can bombard you with awesome pictures of the girls and all their November activities...

Canadian Parents

so generally, 

I put myself in the slacker category for parenting

I don't do much with them

(intentionally)

I figure they are young..

lots of time to play and just be little

EXCEPT

Lucy want to skate.

So I signed her up for skating

and specifically she wants to figure skate

so being the "good" parent I am 

I called around for figure skating clubs in the area

There isn't any...

Now this is a sub-tangent

HOW IS THERE NO SKATING CLUB?!?!

we live in the land of snow and ice...

skating is part of our culture

skating is our past time.

My dad taught me to skate

when I was young

AND

granted I am a slacker SOOO 

I haven't force taught them 

YET

it was coming though

always on the "to-do" list

Well this whole phoning around for skate club

has made me realize that there 

may be a few of us

"slacker" parents

who are responsible for killing 

iconic Canadian past times

NEEDLESS  to say

we are going skating tonight.

and yes

even I intend to strap on the ol' blades

and pay homage to 

something

that 

should

truly 

be cherished

and perhaps in my new resolution

of not being a slacker

i will

give my children

a love of ice

and skates

and small town rinks

and hot chocolate

and cold toes

and rosy cheeks.

Drum Roll Please....

So if you know me

you may have noticed 

that I have gotten fatter.

Well it's not just from food....

(thank goodness)

 

So hopefully I'll be less fat the beginning of January.

Penny is THRILLED

(which is good 

because I was worried 

about her and Dusty

coping

with

the 

change)

Lucy wants a boy.

Ellie has been here so I think she mostly thinks

about crying babies

diapers

and me

being too busy.

Dusty and I are both pullin' for a girl

but

it really doesn't matter to us.

so that's it.

life in a nutshell.

I've done a good job ignoring it

this has seemed to go by

faster than the usual

snails pace.

I have about 10 weeks left

which almost seems like a homestretch

after 30...

Days to Look Back Upon

While the weather has been cooling

the afternoons are still warm

and pleasant

Our grass is green and

we've been home more 

Our animals have been turned out to graze

on the delicious grasses 

and clovers found on our lawn.

All of our animals have their place here

but 

the sheep seemed to have found

a special place

in the 

hearts of 

our girls.

I am grateful for the opportunity

we have been given

to raise our children in the country.

To have sheep

and chickens

and geese

and ponies

and kitties.

To have space and fresh

(albeit dusty prairie)

air.

We spent 5 hours this morning 

riding.

The girls just saddled up

(I mean I saddled them up)

and they took off.

Ellie rode around and around and

around

the yard.

In and out of trees

over sticks

through the garden.

Lucy worked on a barrel pattern

and pole bending in the corral.

Even little Penny

rode completely

by herself for a few laps.

We came in 

hungry

tired

but 

so

very

happy.

I think we've found our happiest place on Earth.

MAN-ipulation

This was going to be a funny post

but 

I sense that my delay in writing this post

will now turn this into a vent

but

I will try to maintain 

some sense of decorum

even though

it is 430...

(breathe.... smile... think happy thoughts)

MAN-ipulation

- When (particularly during hunting season) a MAN trys to use women's logic to get what he wants....

example:

"I should really go get the trailer so that we can go camping like you wanted"

means:

"I would like to disappear for the day and 

not feel guilty that 

you are home taking care of everything 

while I go and find a good spot 

to go hunting for opening day"

and I am saying this

with no 

bitterness 

at 

all.

Harvest Haze

There is a thick cloud of dust

hanging over everything

it's hotter than Hades 

There is the promise of rain

I don't know if it will come.

The heat has made the trees tired

the kids grumpy

the garden droop

the horses are irritated

the sheep have disappeared under the trees

the hens are lounging by the watering buckets

and I had to find a place to nap.

The nights are cooling off

Fall is coming

but right now

in the midst of harvest

we are stuck in the haze

of dust

sweat

and heat.

A dog.... er.... Sheeps day

it is hot

which is usually fine with me

but

I am not at the lake

and

it was one of "those" days.

Millions of things to do

and no energy

and grumpy

and it wasn't just me

Luckily for me

it looks as though we might get a storm.

phew

Ellie is outside as I type this

getting chickens in the coop

and dogs in the barn

Penny is outside

mostly because that's what she does

but

she is supposed to be picking up toys

likely not going to happen.