eight.

We kept our celebration somewhat simple this year.

It was still a very busy day/weekend.

Flag football.  A play day with some friends.  A Movie.  And a cousin sleepover.

We were tired, but it was fun.

Don't know where the time has gone, but I sure wish it would slow down a bit.

Can't believe how fast my baby is growing.

Paint, Floors, Fishing, and Rocks.

I just noticed that is has been almost a month since I last posted an update.

Here is a little of what has been going on. . . 

All of these photos were taken with my iPhone. 

 Brady standing on the partially built rock wall #2 in front of the house. Collie has fretted over what to do in the front of the house to divert water, make it easy to mow, and to look good.  I think he succeeded.  I will show the finished wall later!  I haven't uploaded those photos yet.  

 Trying to pick the perfect shade of gray.  

And let me tell you, there are WAY more than 50 shades. . . .  :)

We did manage a fishing trip on a Sunday.  Can you believe how big this frog is above?  There were tons of them!

There were several Red eared slider turtles basking on these trees.  

This is the same kind of turtle  as our little turtle, Franklin.  

Hope he makes it to be as big and happy as these guys.

  Brady excited to be fishing and to show off how good of a fisherman he is!

 Mom caught another fish!  

 Brady not so happy that his mother is out fishing him.  He had to give up and pout for a few minutes.  He is used to being the star fisherman.

 Later, Nanny and Pa joined us out on our little island.  Here Nanny and Brady are having some good luck fishing off of the point.

 Joe Burkhardt and crew installed our Red Oak hardwood floors for us and they look amazing!  He will come back once the painters and carpenters are done and finish them!  I just wish we could have done hardwood in every room!  I LOVE them!

Hopefully another month won't go by before I update again!  Our move in date for our house is August 1 and I am getting stressed to the max.  I am very excited too. . . just lots to get done before Aug 1 and that isn't very far away!  Wish us luck. . . .and for some rain, please!  Our crops REALLY need it!  

Snow Days.

It has been one snowy winter here in the mid-west.  We have had ten snow days since the second week in January.

Yes, 10.

I, for one, absolutely love snow days.

But, even I am reaching my limit, a bit.

Brady's favorite pastime on a snow day is shoveling snow. 

I watched from inside the Scrap Shack. . .he was trying to clear our driveway. . .while it was snowing.  And then he would haul it away around the corner and dump it.  Crazy kid.

We went sledding one day.  

He likes to sled, but he would pick shoveling snow over sledding any day.

Strange kid.

Here is a picture of our backdoor during our most recent blizzard.  

We live in a very flat area along the Missouri River.

The wind is truly something, with nothing to block it.

Here is the kitchen window. . .I love these little birds in the window.  

And this is the view outside.  White out conditions.

We don't live very far from our machine shop.

I asked my husband to please bring home a tractor or some other large piece of machinery. . .in case we have a medical emergency of some sort and need to get out.  The drifts can get really bad on our gravel roads. . . and I worry.  His response was, I can walk to the shop if I have to.  It won't be a problem.  Then his Dad had a hard time getting home and he decided he would rather have a tractor ready then have to walk to the shop to get one.  And of course, the neighbor got stuck and needed help getting home.  He was glad his tractor was already here.    Driving the tractor, in the blizzard, to help the neighbor who was stuck, he thought he was  traveling north.  Next thing he knew our house was in front of him.  This means he had to drive in a complete circle out into the middle of our field, without even knowing it.  I think my husband was then convinced just how dangerous a blizzard can be.  He was turning circles and didn't even know it.

the view of the neighbors house.  

Most of the time during the storm,  you couldn't even see their house.

Playing a fun game of Sorry. . .

Digging out.

We always get a tall drift in the back of our house. . . . 

Even though I really like snow days. . .I am really ready for spring.  

Christmas Vacation.

Took this of B in the Garden after our first snow of the year.

The day before, he had been playing in the very same place with a t-shirt on.

Crazy Missouri weather.

I am absolutely loving our Christmas Vacation!  It is so nice to have the little guy home AND to not have to get up so dang early!!!  We have really enjoyed our time together!  I haven't uploaded many pictures lately and I have barely been on the computer!  I hope to change that soon!

I hope you all had a very Merry Christmas and I am wishing you a very happy New Year!

Six.

I started this blog post two weeks ago.

And I was reminded I forgot about it as I was blog surfing this morning.  

I didn't want another day to go by without posting about Brady's 6th birthday.

It was actually a birthday week. . . complete with three Halloween celebrations thrown in!

Here are Six things about Brady.

1.  Loves School

2.  Loves to play outside and dig in the yard.

3.  His best friend is his cousin Eli

4.  His favorite pizza is Taco Pizza 

5.  He loves chocolate.

6.  He loves playing basketball.

And a 7th fact. . .he is growing up way too fast.  

Labor Day Weekend.

Brady & Eli at Layne's birthday party.

Just about the entire gang at the Birthday party.  

The birthday boy is on the right, holding the football.

They had a Spartan Football Party. . .and Brady actually joined in on the football game.

He had a blast.

Though, he was sad he never once touched the football.  

I'm just glad he had fun and joined in! 

Brady loading our watermelon we had just eaten. 

It was our third for the day and not our last!

One of the benefits of raising watermelon on your farm!

Throwing it away.  I think he just wanted to smash it.

My brother-in-law would be very proud of this hat!!

Nothing too exciting over our Labor Day Weekend.

We did get to sleep in!  I wasn't sure if we would be able to!

Lots and lots of watermelon. . .picked, loaded, and eaten.

Pizza at Van Till Farms on Friday night.  That place is amazing!  If you are close, you have to go!

Birthday Party on Saturday Night.

Hanging around home on Sunday and Monday.

Now, we are gearing up for Corn Harvest on our farm.  

Just waiting for it to dry.

Kind of like waiting for a pot boil. . .feels about the same!

And I see some Pumpkin Picking in my near future!  

Hope you had a good Holiday!  

Stories.

Ya know.
A friend of mine. . .and fellow scrapbooker. . .has me thinking about why I scrapbook.
We were having a conversation about organizing albums and photos and other stuff.
And she just got me thinking.
I don't know if I have done a good job of conveying why I scrapbook.
I am sure all of us have different reasons.
Mine just happens to be the stories.
As much as I love photos, they take a back seat to the stories.  For me anyway.
What I want to remember when I look at my scrapbook albums is, that Brady thought synchronized swimming meant you "sink chor ya swim. . . (sink or swim). . . or that he always wears his white tshirts inside out and backwards. . .or that he used to always wear his shoes on the wrong feet.
That is the important stuff to me.  The little, everyday things.

So, I may have a page of different pictures of Brady with his tshirt on backwards. . .taken at all different times and locations.  Where we were wouldn't be the important thing.  What would be important is that Brady was 5 and didn't care that his shirt was on wrong 95% of the time.  Actually I think he did it just to bug us.  Kind of like why some of my friends are Jayhawk fans.  Just to bug us.  Still love you guys though!  :0)

I recently purchased a really pretty little journal.  I am using it to write down some of the funny things Brady says.  And the funny things he does.  Things I don't want to forget.  Especially by the time I might get around to scrapbooking it.  I have started something similar before.  I really hope I stick to doing it.  It isn't anything formal.  Just quotes, thoughts, or events that I don't want to forget.


I do absolutely love taking pictures.  So, I am in no way saying pictures aren't important.
And a lot of times, I take pictures just because.  No story.  Brady was just looking cute or I wanted some practice with my camera or lens.  And sometimes I scrapbook these pictures, just because he looked cute.  A lot of times I use these cute pictures of Brady to tell something about him.  Nothing to do about the action in the photo, but just about Brady himself.  A personality page, if you will.

SO. . .enough rambling.

I just wanted to share why I scrapbook.  Must be the history teacher in me.

Now for a picture of the cute little bugger. . .

Inspecting the cantaloupe load.  He believes he is an expert. 

The 1st Day.

Getting on the Bus.  The Driver seemed really sweet!  

Too bad Brady didn't get OFF of the bus at the School.  

Instead he rode the circuit to all of the Schools and the Driver had to bring him back.

He was in tears when I met him at the door of the school. 

I am not sure if it made it better or worse for me to be there.

But I am glad I was.

He insisted on riding the bus.

Eli (his cousin) was riding the bus and so was he!

The Bus pulling out.

This is about when my stomach started hurting.

Brady had it together.

Sitting at his desk.

Ready for the day to start!

Yes, I was one of those Moms, camera in hand, at the school.

I didn't stay long, but I had to have a picture of him at his seat!

The bus coming home.

This is when my stomach stopped hurting.

I think I stood in my yard for an hour waiting for that bus to come around the corner!

Nice weeds, huh?

He was very happy with the bus ride home!

His buddy, Lucas, is on his bus!

And there aren't as many stops!

Getting a little fed up with all of the questions.

Sorry, buddy.  

Besides the bus incident in the morning, his day went really well.
No tears for me.  But my stomach hurt all day.
Especially after the bus incident.
And they have to shuttle to a different school, then get on their bus to come home in the afternoon.

When Brady got off the bus. . .he walked right past us and into the house.

He said it was fun. . .but still no comment on the morning bus ride, other than he didn't like it.

And he said he wishes school was only one day.  And then it was over.
Sorry buddy. . .you've got a lot of days to go!!!!

The End is Here.

The End of Summer.

The End of my days filled with my little boy. 

This Summer sure flew by fast. 

Brady learned how to ride his bike.  

(on his first attempt, I was very worried he was never going to get it. But he picked it up very fast!)

He even took the training wheels off himself. 

He heard his cousin was learning to ride and he couldn't be outdone.

We spent most of the summer on our Farm.  

Doing farm things.

Or at my Parent's House.

Doing more farm things.

Above, Brady is posing "at the Pumps."

 His Dad spent a lot of time "at the Pumps" this summer because of all the rain.  

That is the Missouri River in the background.  

We did manage a few days in Branson, minus the Dad.

And we fit swim lessons and T-ball in.

Lots of fun.  Lots of great memories of my last days with my boy.

Here are my niece and nephew and my boy. . .hamming it up at my Parent's house.

Even though it doesn't sound like it, I am VERY excited for Brady to start school!

We met his teacher and she seems really nice.  

I said, "Brady, I think you are really going to like your teacher."

Brady said, "I already do like her, Mom."

I think she is going to be perfect.

Such a milestone. . .starting school.   

I know the next few years are going to fly by, just like these first five have.

And the schedule school will bring to our family, is going to be life changing for us!
Especially in the winter!

I know Brady is going to love it and do great.
I just hope I am somewhat composed as I leave my little guy. . who isn't so little anymore. . .in the care of other people. . .meeting new friends and learning new things.  

1 boy 2 teeth 3 days

Not the best picture of the missing teeth, but it was all he would give me!

He lost a top front tooth and a bottom side tooth.

He is about to lose his other front tooth.

Good thing the sweet corn is done!  

I can't believe how fast he is growing up.

Kindergarten starts in 17 days.

SIGH.

My little worker.

I spotted Brady picking up sticks in the yard the other day.

I had not asked him to.

Probably why he was doing it.

He had tied an old jump rope to the wagon handle.

He would load the wagon up then haul it off and dump it.

He was having a ball.

Now,  if he only had that much fun cleaning his room.

It is days like these that I am going to miss next year.  

Felt

I love CTMH's new Heart Felt die-cut . . here is the Whimsy Collection. . . . Look at ALL of the shapes you get!!! The colors are Butttercup, Garden Green, an Tulip!!! The other colection, Wonder, has Chocolate, Olive, and Twilight!!!

It is hard to tell how many shapes you actually get from the small picture in the Idea Book. . . .so I thought I would punch them out.


Pretty quickly I had a helper. . . helping me punch out all of the shapes!! Look. . . he is concentrating so hard, he even has his tongue stuck out!


He was determined to get them all done. . .one small shape at a time!


There are SO many fun things you can do with felt!! I am working on a couple of cards right now. Come check out my artwork I will have ready at the Crop & Shop next weekend in Richmond! OR check here afterwards to see pictures!!!

School Halloween Party. . .

Brady had his first school party this week!!

Here a a couple of pictures.

He loves school and I am so glad!

Eli (my nephew) the boxer, Laney the tiger, and Brady the frontiersman or Davey Crockett or Daniel Boone or a Raccoon as my nephew said and Brady did not like!

A Whole Hand Full. . . .

Brady's Birthday party was this past Sunday. . .I am still recovering. Even though we decided to keep it somewhat simple this year, since harvest is not over. . .nothing is ever really simple. It was a rainy, cold afternoon for a birthday party. So no hayride or bonfire. But the bright side is most of the farmer Dads got to attend. . .and almost every Dad in my family is a farmer. . .funny how that works! Brady's birthday being a few days before Halloween and seeing how we raise pumpkins. . .we pretty much always have a Fall/Halloween theme to the party. . . but he always has something else in mind too. This year it was a Cat tractor party. Last year it was Smokey and the Bandit. . . though he liked the truck driver more than the Bandit. I guess big trucks are cooler than Trans Ams. . . anyway. . . . Brady thought it was really a milestone that he is a whole hand full now. . .ya know . .. five fingers old. . . I said, yeah. . . you really are a handful now!!!

Here are some pictures from the party. . .

treats my Mom made and about forgot to give to the kids. . .

The Cat Tractor Cake. . . not a beauty, but a step up from last year. Still have to work on the icing not running. I see why people purchase cakes! Nothing is easy and it makes a really big mess!


The Pinata my mother-in-law made. It seems like a crime to let the kids bash it in! She has made a bat, ghost, pumpkin, and now a witch! All were works of art!



All the kids painting pumpkins. . .we do this every year. I wonder when they will get tired of it?


Miss Ella painting her pumpkin

Brady blowing out candles


Brady counting the five candles on his cake



the castle my Sister built for Ella's first Birthday Princess Party! It worked great as a Haunted Castle too!



the whole gang of cousins. . .a couple were missing. . .when they are all together it really is a gang!