First day of School 2009/10

...Hard to believe that this time is here already.

Had to take first picture inside as our patio isn't poured yet and very muddy at front door.

Riley's 1st day of First Grade! Brandon's 1st day of Eighth Grade! What???

(the extra boy on the bench is Alex, a neighbor boy that I'll be watching periodically)

Love the side shot of Ri with her backpack on. Brandon had one too...but the sourpuss look on his face was not blog-worthy.

...almost missed this shot...

Have a great school year everyone!

Riley is growing up

Riley decided it was time for some hair to go. Deb wasn't so ready.

Yikes! It was only supposed to be about 10". Turned out about 15".

It will be going to Locks of Love. She said she wanted to help a little girl with cancer.

She was such a big girl. Brandon was embarrassed by mom's tears.

What a smile. Now I can maybe comb thru it a little easier.

Slater Creek Update

These are our friends, Brent and Emily. We stopped and had lunch with them on our way to Kansas City. I don't know where a slender gal like Emily puts all that food. Whew!

This is one of their daughters. Gracie is a year younger than Riley and they use to go to Sunday school together before they moved.

The Boz at a historic site. At $7.50 to get into the museum, I just stood by the sign. Jesse grew up outside of Kearney, MO.

Buddies! We hardly saw these girls all weekend. They were constanly busy with each other.

Mom/Grandma bought them matching outfits. As an aunt and a niece, is that right? Well, Jane and Aunt Betty dress alike.

Brandon knew entertainment was going to be hard to come by. He brought his Playstation and chilled out on Danny and Jessi's new couch.

This is the new dog house we built when we got back. I know it is huge, but we built it for 2 labs.

It is insulated in the walls and the ceiling. The floor is stuffed with straw. Tess and Champ really like it. They crawl in the door and lay down on Tucker's old bed.

The puppies are home

We made sure to give momma some attention before taking Tess and Champ from her. That was actually harder than I expected. I felt very sad for her.

Tess got her foot right in the water bowl. So stink'in cute!

Riley with Tess....

They both love Riley's outdoor desk.

Brandon with Champ...

Welcome home! They are so sweet and have been very good for the first couple days that we've had them. The dog house is finished...we just can't move it without the help of dad and his tractor. YES...we built it to last. For now they are sleeping in Tucker's old dog crate at night. and during the day they are free to run...although they haven't. They have miraculously stayed within 10 foot of this tree. We are all happy! ;-)

What in the world are they building now?

Work never stops around here. The chicken coop is done, so its not for them. The goat barn is also near completion, so why all the wood being hammered and cut.

What could get Brandon involved as well? It must be.............
PUPPIES!

On Monday we are picking up 2 yellow Lab puppies. The little lady with the blue collar is Tess and the big strong tuff guy with the red collar is Champ. As you can see, they won Deb over pretty quick.

Update from Slater Creek Farm

Well, as you can see, the chickens are doing their thing. Delicious brown eggs. Their yolks are dark gold. So much fun.

The garden is doing well. Big, red tomatoes. You can't beat them.

What....how did this get in here? I am kidding. This is a good friend of mine. Lynn went to grade school and high school with me. We ran into her when we went out for Debs 25th class reunion.

Deb looking fine for her class reunion. You don't look like you have been out of school 25 years babe.

The chicks are definitely chickens now. After getting rid of the three roosters, we have these 9 hens left. We also have one guinea which is one weird bird, but her main food is ticks so we like her.

Last but not least. A lot of hard work is being done, and some of it by Brandon. He pounded in about 25 fence posts for the goat pasture. It was tough work but he did it all by himself.

We went to Quincy last night for church and then met up with Joe and Cindy at Sprouts. The meal was good and the company was excellent. Thanks for listening guys.