April 22-28 Strawberry Camping Fishing

April 22nd Monday - Callaways Family Home Evening! So we have been trying to plan this FHE for weeks now and since the weather has not been so great we kept putting it off "until next week" but this week we just couldn't do that again we were all too excited so even though it was cold and windy we did it anyway. My dear friend Tara Callaway brought her whole family down for FHE. We ate KFC and desserts, held the chicks, rode in the John Deer UTV, fed the baby goats, chased the big chickens, and rode the horses. I think we all had so much fun that we didn't want it to end. Tara has such a cute family from her own kids right down to her parents, siblings, in-laws, nieces and nephews. They are all so fun to be with! Thanks for your visit to Crazy Creek!
April 23th Tuesday - Today I spent the day creating this YouTube video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7udbxmrr30o of our first rodeo. I do not like spending so much of my day on this but it is a project that in the long run is worth it. This way all of our away family can see what we are doing and feel like they were there even when they couldn't be. After school we had activity days, Tia soccer, Bowdee scouts, and then we went to sand the basement bedroom a little more. We were hoping to get it textured but that just didn't happen tonight... Maybe another night.
April 25th Thursday - Did you know that today is take your kids to work day? Well my Tia and Treg made sure we were well informed. Since they are such great straight A students how can we deny them such a great opportunity. So I took them to preschool with me and made them teach my class. It was cute to see how they interacted with the kids, they did GREAT. Then I took them up to Terry's work and we went to Wendy's for lunch and then they stayed with him the rest of the day. They loved the idea of being at daddy's work!
After I dropped them off I snuck up to the arena where my mom and dad were working my moms horse Misty. I have never dared get on this horse she is so much horse she has always intimidated me... But today was our magical moment. After a little bit of a struggle I pulled my self up on her big tall massive body and we cruised around. She was great, not sure she wanted to do everything I asked but she did it anyway and I sure appreciated it. I don't think I have the cowboy skills yet to stay on her if she wanted me off :)
April 26th Friday - Ok so I must be tired and just need a break because I have been cleaning the trailer all morning then went dress shopping with Kami for lunch. It was horrible. It was up at the Gateway Mall some LDS Brides dresses and they only had one size of each dress to try on and since I was not a size 6 it SUCKED the lady was totally rude and unhelpful so to say the least I DO NOT RECOMMEND THIS BRIDE DRESS STORE! I came home feeling like crap. Finished cleaning the trailer, started packing stuff and dad needed his horse trailer cleaned out so Treg and I shoveled poop, then he came to get 3 horses for a ward party and made me feel completely bad for not helping him. I would have rather been there horsin around but I got to go help Terry texture the basement. Anyway today was just one of those days that reminded me I really need a break from EVERYTHING! So I went to bed as soon as I got home and hopefully tomorrow will be better.
April 27th Saturday - Today was Matia's dance competition in Spanish Fork and Terry had to stay with the boys to coach games, get Bowdee to baseball practice, then to his soccer game, get the food for camping tonight, get Bowdee a fishing license and finish packing. I really didn't want to go and sit around alone for hours at the competition so I invited Kami to go with me and we had a great grip session. Sometimes it just feels good to talk without being judged. I sure had fun spending the morning with Kami. I know she had other things she wanted to do today but it was sure nice to have her with me.
Came home and we finished packing and at 3:00 we were on our way to Strawberry to go camping and fishing. We had a great campsite all to ourselves but the wind picked up so after we ate dinner we headed to the lake for a little night fishing. I had a few bites and then I landed one. Of course it wasn't big enough to keep but it was sure fun to land it. Terry caught a little bit of swampy mess, it was cute he was having all sorts of bites but he was facebooking my catch and missed his bites. What a cutie, thanks for getting me out Terry, you know just what I need all the time!
April 28th Sunday - We woke up and hauled the trailer down to the lake for some morning fishing. It was slow!! I mean really SLOW!!! So Terry made us a really yummy bfast while I read my horse magazine. The kids walked up and down the shore searching for lost treasures to add to their tack box collections. They were having fun even if the fishing sucked. I was enjoying my down time since I don't think I have had any downtime since our vacation in June. So it was great but then it got windy and we decided to go hang out with Troy and his family down at Deer Creek.
This was a little better the fishing still sucked and the wind was still blowing but the kids were having fun playing with their cousins just doing what they do. Dash was NOT very happy about being stuck in the trailer but he was a real trooper. Terry, Troy, Jolyn and I just sat there being lazy getting sunburnt. That was not our plan but that is what happened. We finally got up enough energy to go home and Troys family came down to show Jackson what the farm is all about. So we ended up having a nice little bbq dinner and let the kids ride the horses.

April 15-21 First Rodeo

April 15th Monday - Today was such a sad day it was the Boston Marathon. Which my friend has had a dream to be able to run in and do her best. Well she made it and she ran a great time and as she crossed the finish line she noticed how many families and friends were there to support their loved ones. What a great way for family and friends to support their loved one accomplish such an amazing accomplishment. Just 20 minutes after she crossed the finish line the first bomb went off in the crowd. A couple minutes later another bomb went of a few blocks away which was the location her family was headed to before they decided to turn around. They would have been there at the wrong time. Luckily my friend and her family was ok but what a terrible ending to an amazing accomplishment. How horrible can people be to even think of this horrible act. I am so thankful for all the helpful hearts that we feel around the world praying for Boston and everyone this bomb has affected. My heart goes out for those in Boston on this horrible day.
April 17th Wednesday - Today, was another one of those busy days. The relief society presidency came to meet me and I had a million things I had to do before that. It was nice to sit down and talk with them a little but, as soon as they were gone I was up and running again. I had a fabulous lunch at Dear Lizzy with my dear friends Miss Mindee and Tara. As we were there talking what seemed like the perfect atmosphere it hit me... Kristi you have the most amazing friends ever and you are so blessed to have these great women in your life. I seriously love all my friends and I hope they know I would do anything for them. It still amazes me that these great ladies want to be my friend but wow I will take it!
Right after lunch I picked up Matia and we met my dad & mom... They were driving their truck and horse trailer and we were headed to Herriman to look at an amazing horse. Her name is Sally and owner was Kaylee. The first year they did 4-H they took Grand Champion Then the next 2 years they made the state team and did awesome. So my mom and dad bought her for $850 so that one of the kids can ride her for 4-H since Robbie and Jake aren't doing the best. I felt bad for Kaylee because this horse has been her best friend from 11-16 years old and she cried as we drove off. I have felt that heartbreak when I lost my Sassy, and I feel for this sweet girl that is going through the same thing. I think she will be a great addition to the ranch she has a very sweet personality and seems to really want to please you. We got home unloaded her and away me and Tia rushed to Hope of America.
Matia participated in the Hope of America program at BYU. She has been SOOO excited about this since they started practicing for it in the fall. She loves to perform and she really puts a lot of expression into it. Terry and the boys all had soccer practice so they couldn't make it. Not that they would have gone anyway they had decided Hope of America just wasn't for them. So me and Tia had a mother daughter night and we LOVED it. We stopped by Subway for Matia's favorite 12" Cold Cut Combo and away we went. I sat by my friend Jerianne which made it fun to have someone to talk to. And the performance was so amazing! I seriously loved it, thank you Matia for such an amazing night.
April 18th Thursday - Wow our Thursdays are just getting so busy I am going to pull my hair out if there is one more thing that is added to our Thursday schedule. Today was especially crazy we had Craig the farrier come again to trim Sally's hooves. They were so long that yesterday when Izak was loping her she tripped right down to her face and he nearly fell off. I didn't want that happening again so he came to help out. Bowdee and Tia had dental check-ups which turned out perfect, then Bowdee had his first baseball practice. He made the White Sox team, he doesn't know many people on the team but that's ok. Tia had dance then Guss (an amazing papered miniature standard poodle) showed up to bred Daisy. That was weird to say the least to be scheduling my dog's happy moment with a stranger! Brian turned out to be nice it took a while because Guss is only 17" tall so they had to get creative. Hopefully, in 63 days we will get the perfect liter of F1-B Labra-doodles that should be Dash's size!
While they were getting that fun job done, I took the kids up to 4-H at the equestrian park. It was super busy but the sad part was Jake freaked out when we got there and pulled way down on the lead rope being tied up and burned his face. His lip was bleeding and his face was scraped. The poor boy didn't look good at all so Bowdee didn't want to ride anyone else and had a horrible night. I try so hard to make this a fun experience for that boy and it always seems to backfire. I put him on Trigger because he was doing so good for me and he spooked and took off running and after that Bowdee was done. I don't blame him Trigger can be intimidating but WOW he looked so good on him while it lasted! Jake has been such a good horse for Bowdee but I am afraid Bowdee is beyond Jake. Jake needs a new family that has young children who only want to be walked around. He is still a good horse but I think he was telling Bowdee that he doesn't have enough juice left in him for Bowdee's abilities. We love you Jake-boy!
April 19th Friday - At 4:00 we loaded up 4 horses and headed to the equestrian park. I sure hope some day we have a riding arena big enough to practice barrels and poles some day. But for now we head to Highland. We made an appointment with Kaylee (the girl we bought Sally from) to come and teach us Sally's cues and help Tia and Tayla get ready for their first race on Sunday. She was awesome it was nice because she has really been struggling with the sell of Sally so it was nice for her to see her again and help us out. She is a sweet girl who can really help us know what to do with 4-H and work toward scholarships with it. We brought her over after to see the farm and she seemed to really be excited about it. Then Terry and I went to the preschool house to turn on the sprinklers to get the yard looking nice to sell.
April 20th Saturday - Bowdee's baseball practice, Coach Treg's Soccer game, Coach Matia's soccer game, watch Bowdee's soccer game, lunch from Sonic, pole bending and barrels practice then our friends Adi and Amy came to visit. We let them feed the goats, I am not so sure they were as excited as I was but it was fun to watch them anyhow. Bowdee took Adi for a very short horse ride to the road and back. Sally was being excited and Bowdee wasn't to confident on her yet so they came back and decided to just mess around on the farm. Around 7:00 they went to play night games up by our old church with a bunch of friends. They rode Amy's tandem bike over and when it was time to come home the bike was gone. So sad that you can't leave a bike for 2 hours and expect it to be in the same place. Poor Amy! She loved her bike and now it is gone. Dang people, why, why are they like that?
April 21st Sunday - Our First Rodeo! We have never been involved in a rodeo before no matter how big or small so we had no idea what to expect. I guess that is why we chose to go to Lake Shore Giles arena and participate in the CUBRA rodeo this Sunday. We figured Sunday would be a less congested day and fewer participants making it all crazy and confusing. We were right this was the perfect first rodeo experience. We told our kids not to expect any winnings but just the experience of how to get in and out of the barn and to know when to go. It was worth the $73.00 fee so we would know what to expect the next time. Bowdee was the only one who placed in both poles and barrels. He got 3rd in poles and we DQed in all other events. I guess if you break pattern at all then it is a DQ. So see we learned a lot today and we had a fun time with Kye and his family while we were at it.
After we got home Terry and I headed up to Costco and then to the preschool for our last layer of mud on those walls. It was one of those times we didn't get too much done but we had fun talking and laughing while we were doing it. We are trying to not think of how much there is left to do but just do what we feel like doing at that moments and it worked no arguing this time. We came home got cleaned up and headed to Kyles house for a campfire and hot dogs. Kami and Iz came and we just enjoyed the night talking and laughing. Man I sure love our family and I love that we do so much together these days.

April 8-14 Soccer Games Begin

April 14th Monday - Okay so Terry told me I needed to create this post just for him. He told be this weekend as long as the house is clean and dinner is ready when he gets home I can play with my animals all I want. So I woke up at 7:00 made all the kids lunches, helped Matia milk, got the kids off to school, then made zucchini bread, made French bread, made Terry brownies, made sure I had everything ready for a salmon dinner, caught up my blog, then cleaned like crazy, dusted, moped floors, scrubbed toilets, tubs, did the dishes, washed 4 loads of laundry and put them all away, vacuumed everything. Well I am sure you get the point this house was sparkling. Then I helped my dad load 6 horses into the trailers and went to pick up the kids on the way to the equestrian park for the fun part. We stayed there practicing our 4-H and horsemanship until 5:30 then we headed home and while Terry BBQ the salmon I helped the farrier do 3 more horses. It was a busy day but I did it all and then I collapsed on bed when all the kids were tucked in. But the funny thing is when I have a day like this my mind races so I have a really hard time falling asleep. I think of everything I did and all the things I still need to do. Even though I am so tired I can't sleep and this is my life long bother. Terry doesn't mind because when this happens I rub his back until I fall asleep. Man this life is one fun adventure. I hope my kids remember to enjoy every moment even if it is the work that needs to be done before you can play. Just enjoy it!~ April 15th Tuesday - So after preschool Craig the farrier came over to finish the last 2 horses. I am sure he is sick and tired of this Crazy Ranch with our Crazy horses but Kiwi and Holly were so good for him! As soon as he left my friends Kim Vanausdaul and her kids came to check out the ranch. The kids let the feed the goats and Amanda just LOVED every minute of it. Kim grew up on a farm so she remembers so much of what we are going through. I sure love sharing this place with people that enjoy it. Matia and Tayla went to activity days for the first time in this ward and they had so much fun going together! I love that Tia has Tayla and they love each other like sisters. I have to remind Tia to treat her like a friend sometimes because she can get snippy with her (like a sister). Then Bowdee went to scouts which they had this awesome combined activity where they printed out their genealogy for generations deep. It was so cool it makes you really think about these people and how we are related to them. Kinda makes me wanna research each of them and find out who they really were. Bowdee went over and babysat Kyles kids while they were at a work party and I just can't tell you how happy it makes me that they get to have such a close relationship with their cousins.
April 16th Wednesday - Today went pretty good until Terry came home. As soon as he came home I told him we needed to hurry so we could get the trailer hooked up to take to soccer practice so we could pick up Strawberry (my friends horse) on the way home. Well Terry HATES to be rushed but he tried to play along with me. We went through a big dip right before we got to the soccer field and the horse trailer came off the hitch (bummer). I had hurried Terry to fast and he didn't latch the hitch... I felt so bad I knew it was all my fault so we hurried and jacked it back up, hooked up again and made it to soccer practice late (bummer). But they had a soccer game going on in the middle of our practice field (bummer). So we practiced next to the field on the grass but then they came over and told Terry not to use his whistle cuz it was affecting the game (Bummer). After practice we went to pick up Strawberry and as we were talking to my friend Terry noticed his truck's exhaust was white which he assumed the injectors were bad (BUMMER). We got home and Kyle was here and he affirmed Terry knew what he was talking about and it was going to cost us at least $4,000 to fix (BUMMMER). Then as he was talking to Kye I was in the house making Alice Spring Chicken dinner (one of his favorites) when he heard a baby goat just BAWLING told Tia to check on her and she found Cupcake had jumped right into the tall water barrel and was near drowning (bummer). Treg rushed her into the house to dry her and take care of her. She is crying because her friends aren't there reminding Terry there is a farm animal in the house which he HATES. So to quiet her we had to bring in the other babies. So now there is 3 farm animals in the house not just one (BUMMER) of course they were in the bathroom but still they were in the house. Finally I got to serve him his favorite dinner and made him another batch of brownies and just let the whole days events sink in... What a fun day! Let's not do this again tomorrow and lets thank heaven the day is over and we all survived!
April 17th Thursday - Today was the day all of my preschool kids have been waiting for all year long. They were so excited to finally get to come visit my farm and see the chicks, pet the bunny, feed the goats, find an egg, and ride the horses. I had my dad, Kyle, Emilee, Michele, Matia, Treg, Tayla, and Lily all here to help me. I woke up feeling really sick and wanted to cancel but I didn't I knew that it would break my little kids hearts so I just cowboyed up and got'er done. We had 6 different stations with fun activities at each one. I sure hope they all enjoyed it and will remember this day for a long time.
I know it made my heart so happy to see them all here and loving the moments. I sure owe my dad and Kyles family a BIG thank you for helping me make it successful. Also Michele for bringing sweet Strawberry for the kids to ride! What a fun day today was. After preschool I just got worse and ended up canceling preschool and did as little as possible to get through the day. Even though Bowdee had baseball tryouts and Matia had dance Terry helped once he got home. Thanks everyone for being my backup in life! What would I ever do without you?
April 18th Friday - Bowdee calls me about 7:45 asking if he could go to a Jazz game with Jackson... I told him I would love to go and what time were they going to pick me up!!! He laughed and then said really mom can I please go. I said sure but if I had known they had 4th row seats I would have duck taped Bowdee in the closet and dressed up as Bowdee so I could go... Man I have never been that close in a real Jazz game. I am so excited he had this chance to go, yes jealous as all get out but happy for my cute boy who loves the Jazz almost as much as I do. Treg and Tia went out to ride horses in our arena where Kyle and Dad helped them work on a trail riding course. After horse riding Terry and I went to the preschool to mud the unfinished bedroom. This is really getting old I can't wait until it is all finished and we get to work on the farm. Still thankful Terry can do all this... But man it is sure getting old fast!!!!
April 19th Saturday - Well here we go the soccer season is now in full swing. We had Treg's game first which we are coaching. The boys all did their best but it is many boys first soccer game ever so we have lots to teach them. They did good though and we only lost 3-1. I had to leave before it was over to drop Bowdee off at his game then run to Tia's game to help coach that game. I have helped coach this team for 3 years now. They are cute girls and they are really doing good, I don't get to watch the game as much because I am so busy trying to figure out rotations fairly. But Tia started off as aggressive as she ended last year. I was so proud of how hard she plays. They ended up winning 3-2 and Terry went to watch Bowdee's which they won 3-1 as well. So it was fun to get back on the soccer field and watch our kids run around like crazy. After all the games Terry and I went back to the preschool to work on the tile in the laundry closet and mudding some more while the kids played with friends and cousins. What a fun time.
April 20th Sunday - Treg had a dream last night that he caught his kitten that ran away back in September. So I said well go look and see if you can find it and catch it. So he and Tia went walking down the road and 1/2 hour later they came back with a cat in their arms. Wouldn't you know it that Treg and Tia found Hazel and caught her. Treg was so happy to have his cat back! Terry chose to go mud the preschool while me and the kids went to church. It was fun because my cousin was blessing their baby and the chapel was full of relatives. But then they all went for a luncheon at their house and the classes were so empty! The kids said church is not as fun as it usually is with your cousins mom. After church I was feeling down in the dumps so Terry took the kids and went to Scheel's without me. I think he does that to make me really think about what I am missing out on. Well it worked I took a nap and woke up feeling much better. I would have liked to go with them but I guess I really needed that Sunday nap, it felt so good. Yes, I guess it is important to listen to your inner self and take care of yourself when you need it.

April 1-7 Spring Break

4/1 Monday - We woke up to our door tied shut. Luckily Terry was able to weasel out of it. Then Treg gave us an Oreo cookie for breakfast that was filled with toothpaste. I tried to tell the kids they were late for school but nobody fell for that so I Vaselined their door knobs. Anyway there were tricks happening all day long. Bowdee even tried to set our alarm for 3:00 in the morning, we found out that one at 3:00pm when the alarm went off. What fun we had.
Then we had invited a lot of our friends to come down and check out the farm for Family Farm Night. We had the Harris's,Carr's, McBride's, Hall's, Jackson's and Prestwich's show up. It was perfect sad not everyone could come but those that came had fun riding horses, feeding baby goats and enjoying some yummy chicken bbq sandwiches. I think it was just fun for those that haven't seen this place to come check out what we have been up to. I loved seeing my friends and sharing our happiness with them.
Kyle & Dad showed up during our Family Farm night with 2 new horses. Kyle's friend Lund gave Kyle Kiwi she is a 16 year old sweet as can be horse for the kids. She will be perfect for Tayla to use for 4H (which starts Thursday). She will also be perfect for Lily and Joey to build confidence on and really start to fall in love with these horses.
Colorado is a 6 year old Quarter Horse who is gorgeous. He reminds us our our sweet Princess (the horse I grew up on). He is a more advanced horse riders kind of horse. He is super sweet like Goliath though. Loves attention by anyone and everyone but just so young he gets scared from the simplest things. I don't think Kyle is going to be able to keep him but Dad is hoping to turn him into a horse that anyone can ride. So we will see where he goes from here.
4/2 Tuesday - So we adopted our last goat. Matia put up a really sweet ad on KSL looking for a baby mini Nubian. Well she got a response from a lady that is moving to Florida soon and won't be able to take their family pet which is Lily a white Nigerian Dwarf goat. She is 2 and she acts like a dog. Mom and dad went up to pick her up with me. She will take some getting used to us and our life but we will see how it goes she seems sweet.
Today we had so many left overs that we invited our families over again to help us use up some of this food before it goes bad. So we did some horse back riding, dinner, campfire in the arena and then Kyle's 3 girls and 2 of Troy's girls slept over. I sure love my nieces they make sure they always give me a great big hug when they see me which always warms my heart. So I was happy to have them all over for the night.
4/3 Wednesday - I went and woke up all 8 kids at 7:30 to get their chores done. There was no complaining and as they were all out milking, feeding, cleaning and working I made them dinner. They didn't stop working until 10:00 when they asked if they could ride horses for a little. I figured if they are going to work that long and hard they deserved whatever fun they wanted. So we saddled Holly, Kiwi, and Robbie and the horses did GREAT and the girls had tons and tons of fun!
Then at 11:30 the Callaway's came over to check out the farm. So we let them ride horses before we put them away. Bowdee and Annie saddled Jake and Holly and went for a trail ride down to my aunts house. They have so much fun when they are together. Then we let them feed the baby goats their bottles which I think they all LOVED! Eva wasn't to sure about all the animals but by the time they left she was missing it. I kept the older kids until 4:30
Right after they left Terry got home and we decided we needed to dehorn Cowboy. So Matia and Treg stayed inside. Bowdee told dad he would help him and they went to the barn. I went out with the goats to keep Cocoa busy so she wouldn't hear Cowboy crying. Well this was by far the worst experience on the farm so far. We went to Cal-Ranch to get the dehorner. We asked for a goat dehorner for our baby goat and they gave us a calf dehorner. This being our first time we didn't know any better. We had youtubed it and figured we could do it on our own. Yes we should have called mom and dad to have them come help us the first time but we didn't.
And yes I should have researched to make sure we had the right size but figured Cal-Ranch knows everything so we were good... Lots to learn today, I just wish it never had to happen like this. Bowdee held poor Cowboy while Terry dehorned him. But the dehorner was so big it burned 1/2 of his whole head and part of his ear... We took him to some near by goat ranchers and they gave us some advise. We went home and I cried along with Tia. It was a LONG HARD night. I haven't hurt this bad in a long time. I will tell you what though. Next time we go to do something like this I am going to research the hell out of it before doing anything. I am so sorry my sweet Cowboy. I just pray you will be tough and heal fast. We all love you baby boy.
4/4 Thursday - Today me and the kids just did whatever we wanted. We went for a drive to Orem and got some donuts, sports cards, and slurpees. Then we came home and since Cowboy was doing so good I took him to Kerry's to burn the other horn. Which went so much better... Then came back and packed up the horses and headed up to 4-H. This was our first night and everything mostly went ok. Robbie was being difficult but Matia held her own and kept him under control. I am so proud of my kids for taking this step and doing their best.
4/5 Friday - Tonight we went to my Aunt Dixie,s for a cousin reunion. It was so good to see everyone there and talk to them. Dinner was fabulous and Carolyn and Mary gave me a bad time about having baby goats because now their kids want some too. Uncle Don and Aunt Marleen are going on another mission. This one is to Nauvoo where they will be dressed up performing to all the visitors they sang us a few of their songs and Don played his sax and I just have to say they are amazing and Nauvoo is in for a real treat! We sure have a great family with amazing people!
4/6 Saturday - Well Terry and I headed to the preschool house to work on the sheet rock in the one bedroom unfinished. I am so sick and tired of construction but it has to be done so we got started because that is the only way to finish is to start. It won't be too bad to just do one room but we need to do it fast so that will not be fun.
We came home for lunch and dad said did you see the wheel barrow I bought for the ranch? I turned around and found this cute little John Deere Ranch Utility truck thinger with a dump bed on the back. It will sure be fun for the kids to run around on and feed the horses with. I tell you what my dad sure knows how to make work fun.
4/7 Sunday - General conference. I would have loved to sit down cuddle up with my kids and enjoy the words of the church authorities. But Terry and I went back to the preschool house to get back to work with the sheet rock. We finally got it finished today which felt good.. Well not finished but sheet rock all up on the walls. We even got the trampoline and brought it to the farm. Little by little right?

March 25-31st Easter Weekend

March 25th Monday - Today Terry and I decided to invite both of our families over for dinner and just some fun at the farm. So I went shopping and got all the fixings for chilli cheese dogs, made some dessert, cleaned up a little and sent out a mass text. Of course everyone wasn't able to make it with such little notice. But my parents, Kamis, Kyles, and Taleshas families were all able to come down and enjoy the baby goats, chicks, and horses. Every Monday night at the farm we usually do some horse back riding with my family so they were all planning on being here anyway. It was a fun night and we feel so privileged to be surrounded by such great family members.
March 27th Wednesday - Family Farm Drama... Today was a hard day one that I am sure I will never forget. Through hard times come lessons learned and never forgotten. Today I learned to stay out of any kind of animal selling event which doesn't include my own animal. Kami has this horse Goliath that I have fallen in love with he is sweet yet young, spirited, and a little spooky to say the least. Kami bought him in December and we have worked with him a little but we just don't have the time or knowledge he is going to take to train. So my friends that have been toying with the idea of a horse came to see the goats and I showed them Goliath which Kami told me last night he was for sale so they rode him and wanted to buy him but I told them they had to give Kami the money. Anyway I went off to coach Tregs soccer game and when I came back Izak was riding him and my dad said we just sold the horse. But of course I already had. Anyway long story short I will only be involved in selling my own animals from this point forward. Kami did let the horse go to the Prestwich family which they are excited about this project and life changing decision. Kami is now heart broken because my dad had told her he would buy him so she was hopeful she could keep this sweet horse spirit in the family. I just hope it works out for both families and everyone will be happy in the long run. We do love our horses!
March 28th Thursday - Today was another life changing event. Bowdee our oldest son bought his very first car, it is a Toyota 4 Runner 1995 for $1,500 with 184,000 miles on it. Most people wouldn't understand why a 13 year old would want to buy a car so early. Well let me tell you... Terry had a friend from work tell him how his 4Runner had a small leak in the head gasket and was going to trade it in for a new vehicle. So Terry talked to Bowdee and Bowdee was very reluctant to most of his life savings on a car he wouldn't be able to drive for quite some time. Then Terry explained how they could work on the engine together and it wouldn't take to much to fix it then the car would be worth around $4,500 and to look at it as an investment.
So Bowdee withdrew his money from the bank with a sad sort of smile, then when Terry's friend delivered the 4Runner Bowdee was nothing but smiles. He is so excited about this purchase and learning more about car repairs. I feel like he will value his vehicle just that much more and learn so much from working on his own car. Good luck Bowdee it is sad to see you grow up so fast but fun to see who you are becoming at the same time. I love you!
March 29th Friday - At 4:30 we picked Terry up from work and met his brother Troy and friend Clint R. at Sizzler to have dinner then go to a Grizzly game. Our kids have never eaten there before and they were not too impressed. The food was ok but that was about it. The company on the other hand was GREAT! Troy of course is always a sweetie and Clint R. is an amazing person. One of the nicest & most genuine people I know. The Grizzly game after was also a good time. Treg was bored out of his mind and not really into the sport. Matia was just dancing like a wild woman when ever she could trying to get onto the GamboTron (big screen). They showed her 3 times so I guess she was doing a good job at her goal in mind. Bowdee was chillin with Jaxon who is Troys girlfriends son. They get along pretty good not like best friends but happy they are the same age and have some same likes. So the Grizzlies lost but we gained some good memories.
March 30th Saturday - So this morning I was browsing the horse section in KSL when I ran across a gorgeous buckskin. She was like 22 but so pretty and well behaved which is exactly what I am looking for because we are doing 4H with our 3 kids but we only have one horse. So I was just keeping my eye open for something that might work. I texted Dad and he said he would buy it for his grand kids and to go take a look. I quickly called and Terry agreed to go take a look. It was just in Highland in a nice neighborhood. We got her out and saddled her with no problems, took her around the pasture and she was walking funny so I picked her hooves out and was about to get on again and my cousin pulled up to look at the same horse. Justin knows a lot more about horses then I do and was worried about the same thing we were. They guy said we could just take her for a month and see if she gets better if not then to bring her back. Very nice offer and I was ready to take it and run when Terry pulled me to my senses and made us walk away. Which I am glad we did, she sold within the hour so someone gave her a nice home I am sure but I am so very thankful I have a husband who keeps me reined in and under control. Love you babe. If it wasn't for him I am sure we would have 20 horses on this farm and I would go broke trying to feed them all!
March 31st Sunday - Easter Morning is always so magical but this year really reminded me of when I was a child growing up on the farm. It was beautiful weather so the Easter eggs were hidden inside and outside all around the barns. We first fed the baby goats and then we let them down and they followed us around as the kids were gathering eggs. Then we of course had the baby chicks to enjoy but it was kinda sad we had 2 baby chicks die today. After we had a great Easter Morning we took a Easter Lily to Aunt Dixie for mom because she is talking in sacrament. We went to watch her and had another wonderful time at church. My kids didn't even complain once about going. Terry was sad to see us leave but he kept busy working in the hay barn.

April 16-24 Matia 1st Dance Competition

March 17th Sunday - Sunday we woke up and those Leprechauns got into our house again. But this year they didn't make a mess (much to Tregs dismay) because Matia made them a cute little house to play in and asked them not to be messy. They still strung up the strings which led the kids to their little treat of green surprises. Then I made a yummy green breakfast and me and the kids started getting ready for church. This was our first time making it to our new ward and oh my goodness I can't tell you how cool it was. I called Emilee to see if her and the girls wanted to go with us and so they came as well. It was fun to see how different this ward is from our other ward. It was so completely different from what we have been used to. I didn't think I could like a ward better then the one we just came from but this ward seems like the kids really fit in better.
March 18th Monday - Today at school was the 5th grade maturation class. So I went to school and sat with Matia while they described the crazy womans body. Matia was so funny she said "Mom maybe I am going through puberty and that is why I loose control of my emotions lately." I was glad I could be there for her today. I still can't believe my little girl is growing up so fast. Then when Terry got home after work we cleaned out the stall barn really good as a family goat, dog and kids we all worked together. Cocoa was being extra clingy to Terry tonight and we noticed her bag was a little bigger then yesterday so she just might be pregnant. I told Tia to watch her a little closer this next week. How fun is the farm?
March 19th Tuesday - 6:15am Bowdee comes running in the house from his morning feedings yelling at the top of his lungs. All 4 of us were wondering who had died. Then we finally understood him the 3rd time "Cocoa had her baby... Cocoa had her baby". I was running around in circles looking for my clothes. Matia grabbed her robe and ran for the barn. Treg just ran bare foot and boxers. Terry was a little more hurried then usual but calm and collect with a bit of excitement. We all made it to the barn in record time to see the first born miracle on Crazy Creek Ranch. Cocoa was standing next to the most beautiful baby boy kid goat. He was all dried and clean with a soft little precious bah. Cocoa... a first time mom had given birth, cleaned up the mess, and patiently waited for us all to share in her excitement. What a beautiful, wonderful, miraculous day on the farm, Matia named this sweet baby "Cowboy".
We all would have just sat there all day long if we could have. But Treg had a field trip to the Hansen planetarium, I had to teach preschool, Bowdee had a quiz in class, Matia well she was forced to go to school and then a dance rehearsal after school. But after school we had decided since Cowboy was a boy and we couldn't use his milk for her milking business that the boys would buy their own baby girl goats and that is when C.C. and Cupcake came into the picture.
Grandma and Grandpa took them to go look at some Nigerian Dwarf goats in P.G. and they came home with 2 cute babies, goat supplement, bottle nipples and the biggest smiles ever. Cupcake took her bottle just like a pro... However C.C. didn't want anything to do with it. We will try again in the morning and see if she just needs a little hunger to convince her she wants to eat.
March 22nd, Friday - After making a big long list of what animals need what and showing mom and dad what needed to be done, I finished packing and thought how lucky I am to have parents so willing to help manage the ranch so we can skip away to Matia's 1st Dance competition ever in St. George Utah. We drove down to the Days Inn and got there at 9:00 the kids wanted to run down to the pool so Terry and I sat and watched them have a good time. The breeze was a little too chilly for us to be convinced into swimming. It was about 20 degrees cooler then what it usually is this time of year. But there is snow at home so we were happy to get what ever little bit of sun we could.
March 23rd, Saturday - Matia had to be to the High School by 9:00am so I got her up around 8:00 did her hair which is always an adventure for me. We got her there on time but she didn't dance until 11:45 so we went and did some errands around town and came back to watch them dance. She did great! Matia is so fun to watch when she dances and all the other girls on her team did great. In their bracket they took Diamond First Place which means they did a near perfect challenging dance and they were 1st out of the other 3-4 dances in that category. She was so excited and said she loved it and wanted to do it next year. We ate at the Brick Oven and spent the rest of the day swimming and relaxing.
March 24th Sunday - We loved the nice relaxing weekend away but oh we were ready to go home back to our babies. Well at least me and the kids were, I think Terry was having too much fun being away. It feels like forever since we have taken a mini vacation. Which is so not like us. The drive home was nice and uneventful, the kids are getting so much easier to travel with. We made it home and ran out to see the babies and do our chores.