Remembering...

My mom sent me these pictures from 30+ years ago.  Pictures I've seen before, but have found new meaning now that I'm a a mom.  Below, I'm sitting on Santa's lap down in my Grannie's basement apartment (my sister now lives down there.)  I love how Santa is reading the Christmas story to me.  Nothing like mixing it up!  I see a lot of Pyper in this one. 

 Here I am at 3, Pyper's age.  I see a lot of Pyper and Raegan in this picture.  I remember that bucket...particularly catching a garden snake while my dad worked on our home's cement and stone stairs out in the front of the house.  I remember my dad catching the snake, and I put it in that bucket, but let it go because it smelled so bad!  Ha!  The things you remember...

I'm between 9-10 months old in this picture.  Walking between Grannie and my mom.  Clearly, I don't remember this, but boy do I remember my Grannie.  December 5 marked 5 years since she's been gone, and I miss her daily.  More so during the holidays.  Like when she misplaced her false teeth on Thanksgiving Day in 2007 and was so upset that she wouldn't be able to eat (one of her favorite past times.) Or making haystacks for Renae and I as her special Christmas treat.  I made them this year for the girls, put them in the freezer for Christmas and told them of how she would be so pleased that we were carrying on the tradition.  My favorite memory was the Christmas of 1999 when mom, dad and Grannie came down to my apartment in Cleveland, Tn and we baked cookies and danced in my small kitchen.  I am hoping to build memories like that for my girls. 

Dog-Gone Good Biscuits!

Aunt Nita gave Pyper a bunch of cute cookie cutters for her birthday this year.  She knows our 3 year old loves to bake.  Then, we received in the mail from Nita a recipe for dog biscuits and a sample of the ones she had made for her labs.  Knowing we were going down to the German Shepherd rescue on Sunday to drop off all the donations we collected, I thought this would be a nice touch.  Jenn and I made up the batter, and it was such a mess!  So much so, that I called Nita to make sure I hadn't done something wrong!  But, I listened to Nita's advice to let them cool (we put the batter in the fridge over night), and the next day, Jenn and the kids set out to rolling out the dough, and cutting the biscuits using the cute dog, bone and paw shapes.  Jenn called me hours into the ordeal and told me that I owed her...BIG!  She ended up making 257 biscuits, and the kids lost interest after about 20!  ha!

 The ingredients are all natural, and so Shannon tried one out.  I expect him to start barking any minute...

 A box full of biscuits for the homeless dogs to enjoy.

 All wrapped up in a pretty box for them!

Here is some food I bought for them, along with dog bowls, rawhides, dog beds (I made!), collars donated from the local pet shop, treats and some medicine from the pharmacy for some sick pups.  I hope these precious pups have a blessed Christmas!

Egg-Celent Find!

I've been such a bad blogger lately.  Between work, home and the pharmacy, I feel as though I never get caught up, let alone have enough time to blog about it.  

When we open the chicken coop door in the mornings, only my heritage breed girls, Ida Mae, Mable and their babies, Fannie and Barry stay in the coop run-in while the other girls and guy fly the coop.  They laughed at our attempts to keep them enclosed...and I'm secretly happy about that.  So, they jump into the open window that houses all our hay and lay their eggs.  I was feeding hay one afternoon to the horses, and found a nest of 24 eggs (pictured above).  Little Steven came out to help me, and we brought them in.  The blues, greens whites and occasional brown eggs are so pretty.  Seeing as the temps have been in the 20's-40's the last week or so, (especially in our barn), I decided they were good to eat.  And they were!  YUM! 

Lost Randomness

I was browsing through some pictures and found these...little tidbits of summer while it's turning colder by the day.  

 Itty helping us dig up the second crop of potatoes...

 I'm sure she had a bath that night...

 Pyper loving on Hannibal.  

Rolling out the dumplings for our homemade chicken and dumplings.  They're both growing up so fast!

Gnome Man's Land

Yep!  I'm THAT mom.  I sew outrageously tacky holiday dresses for my girls and even considered making a matching dress for myself.  Luckily, I decided against it.  On Halloween, Pyper and Raegan wore their spook-takular dresses all day, while anxiously awaiting my arrival home so we could go trick or treating!

 Pyper was getting ready for the cold weather (35 degrees, with misty rain and wind), while I got costumes ready...

 Itty played a little ditty...

 And I got them dressed.  Here are my little garden gnomes.  I made all the parts of the costumes except for the turtle necks.  The elf shoes were made out of felt and fit over their shoes like spats.  Their hats and capes are from a wool sweater I bought at the Goodwill for $3.50, and the cool vintage mushroom material, I bought at Jo-Ann's this summer.  Yep, that's how long I've been planning this...

 Each hat was made from the sweater's sleeves.  Of course, I had to push the cute factor a bit more and add felt pointy ears and white beards. 

 We stopped by the pharmacy to see daddy.  Pyper is rallying her buddies, Steven (Thor) and Hunter ( a pirate) to take cute pics.

Alma, our trusty technician, holds Itty Gnome.  It was one of the coldest Halloween's I can remember, and only made it to 4-5 houses before we headed to our church's Halloween party...INDOORS!  It was a blast though. 



Happy Fall Ya'll!

Saturday, before Sandy caused such a commotion, we took all the girls to the park.  We have a sweet little park here in RR.  I walked with Naki around the track until she was dragging.  Then we headed up to see what Shannon and the little ones were up to...

 Pyper learned how to pump her legs on the swings.

 Itty just loves to swing...and feel the crisp air on her face.

 Itty learned how to go down the slide by herself.

 Pyper showed her how big girls do it.

Worth a million dollars.  Love my family!  Happy Halloween!

Cold Weather Crafts

On cold dreary days such as today, Pyper likes to sew.  I got some burlap at the fabric store, some big plastic needles and added yarn as the thread.  I hemmed the burlap, and she went to work.  This is an inexpensive and fun way to nurture little one's fine motor skills, hand/eye coordination as well as encourage their creativity.  Hope you all stay warm and safe in the midst of Hurricane Sandy!

Meet Sydney

Have I ever mentioned how fortunate I am to have my friend Brandy?  Brandy is the epitome of a natural mother.  A woman who was meant to have children, take care of her family and make her house a home.  She offered to make Pyper a Waldorf doll for her 3rd birthday.  Here she is.  Meet Sydney.  I am so beyond impressed with the attention to detail (look at that yarn hair!) and the mastery of making all these little outfits for her.  She made her to look like Pyper, and I know Pyper is going to FLIP when she meets her at her birthday party.  I had some scraps of material left over from various sewing projects, pillowcases purchased at the Goodwill and some knitted fabric that was given to me.  I handed them over to Brandy, and take a look at what she created.  Oh, and Brandy is a pretty great photographer, too.  Check out the pics!

 A little diaper...

 Roan and Willow in the background...

 This material is what I've made Pyper and Raegan's Halloween costumes out of...

 This top was made from a pillowcase...

 These pants were made from a tiny linen pillowcase I found at the Goodwill. 

Sydney's PJ's.  Pyper is going to love dressing, undressing and changing her diapers!!!!  Thanks a million, Brandy!

Old And New Friends...

Don't you love it when you reconnect with old friends and then make new ones?  I do!  Farmer Amy and I were friends in high school, and then reconnected several years ago when we both had our horses stabled in King George.  We became friends on Facebook and the rest is history!  She lives in Culpepper on a farm with her boyfriend and emailed me last week to tell me that she was going to visit her friend from college, Audrey in Radford, and if she could stop by for a farm visit.  Of course I agreed!  What a treat!!!  Audrey is a nurse at the hospital Shannon worked at and she has twin girls that are close to Pyper's age.  Double treat!

 Pyper showed off part of her Halloween costume. 

Hannah and Madison love chickens!  My kind of girls!

Our girls watching the chicken girls...

New friends, Audrey and her girls.  

Farmer Amy with Pyper.  You may wonder why I call Amy "Farmer Amy..." It's because she is a real farmer!  YES!  She is the one responsible for my chicken obsession  hobby, she raises and butchers pigs, chickens and lambs! She's hard core...

 Amy and Abby

 Abby is so gentle and loving.

Iney had to get in on the action.

 And of course did Anna.

I love this picture because Audrey handles her girls with such grace, confidence and love. I on the other hand,  would lose my mind.  I have so much respect for parents of twins.  I don't know how my mother in law did it with Shannon and Shawn!  

New friends watching Dora after dinner and playing.  This is one of the wonderful things about living where we do.  Friends far and near meeting up to visit a farm without a name...