They call the thing Rodeo

"It's the bulls and the blood. It's dust & mud.  . . .  And they call the thing rodeo."  You know that Garth Brooks song. "Rodeo". If not go listen to it. Up until now the thing they call rodeo was something that every year or so we would go watch at the local county fair. 

 That was until my brother-in-law talked to my husband & told him about a Jr. Rodeo Association in our area & how he thought our boys would love it & maybe we should look into it. 

And so he did.

And then we looked into it.

We have been debating for a long time what we could have our boys do, that wouldn't take a ton of time away from the family & chores.  You see I live in a small town & we have a great athletics program for kids around here. HOWEVER, even for the 5 year olds  have games twice a week & practice twice a week & some groups practice every day. I am sorry, but for me I feel like that is a little ridiculous to be taking your 5 year old to sports practice everyday in the week. It's at least too much for this family. I know others think it is great & if that is you. Good for you, but for us. That isn't what we want. Since rodeo is primarily individual sport, my boys could practice in the front yard if they wanted. That was an appeal.  

Then we asked my boys what they thought.

Then my hubby found out that only the #1 spot in each event actually got a belt buckle & 2nd & 3rd a gift certificate. There were no trophies for just participating or taking a up space in the arena. 

Then we joined. 

And so for the last few weekends over the last 2 months we have spent our Saturday watching our boys Rodeo. Now we know nothing about rodeo, but we have been trying to learn as much as we can as quickly as we can. And we have loved it.

My oldest son has been participating in Chute Dogging & Steer Riding. 

  Chute dogging is they start the boys ages 9-12 in the chute with the steer, open the gate. Once it passes a line 10 feet out there goal to to turn the steer so it down. It's quite the challenge for these boys.

                                                   Then of course there is steer riding . . .

         There is definitely a technique to staying on.We have eaten a lot of dirt this season, but we are definitely getting better. They are required to stay on the full 8 seconds.

                      My 2nd boys "the monkey" participated in Goat Tying & Calf Riding. 

       The last rodeo we went to, he finally rode the calf his entire 8 seconds & received a score. He was so proud of himself & it was so fun to watch.

 
When we started goat tying (this is an 0-8 year old category) We didn't even know how to tie a goat.

 By the last rodeo he had made a time. It has to be under 30 seconds in order to received a time.

                            

                               My little dude also participated in calf riding & goat tying as well.  

           

   Once the goat it tied, you have to wait 6 second to make sure it holds. This little boy finally got his first time at our last rodeo. He has been working hard to finally get it!
.

 Then of course the calf riding. For being the youngest in this event, he always got some of the biggest calves.

 

He came so close so many times of lasting the whole 8 seconds, but he never quite made it there. 

                      "Red" (my new baby) was usually quite good the whole time of the rodeos & this little mischief

  Well this mischief  LOVES to watch. He loves the animals & is constantly yelling & waving his arms at them trying to "herd" them back to the corrals.

 He spends the whole rodeo just like this: leaning against the bleacher in front of him. watching intently & occasionally I can get him to peel his eyes away & smile for the camera.

Overall our rodeo experience this summer has been great. The 5 rodeos we participated in were so fun to watch & the boys made some good friends. They had some great mentors helping teach them, since their mom & dad are still learning as well. The boys favorite part was one of the older boys, a bull rider, who helped them & coached them every rodeo. I loved to watch how even though they were all competing against each other there were plenty of pat on the backs & coaching along the way.

This is the bull rider the boys have become friends with. 

I must admit. I love watching the bulls, but I know that these boys are only 13-16 on these bulls & it honestly makes my heart stop every time one of them gets on & rides, and I am not even their mother. I can only imagine what is going to happen as my boys grow up & want to hop on & ride bulls. 

Until then we will savor every moment we can with what we are doing. They are already asking about next year & what events they can do. They are counting down days until we can find some calves & practice in our own yard. So we are learning & will continue to learn & practice & watch events. And keep working at this new sport. because there is something rather addicting about this thing they call rodeo. 

Our Newest Addition . . .

   Today I wanted to finally introduce you to our newest addition.  Meet our little boy "RED". (This is not his actual name, just a nickname for the blog)

  He was actually born over a month ago weighing 7 lbs. 11 oz & 21 inches long.
He was healthy happy & besides our normal bout with jaundice perfect. So we spent the first 10 days on a billi-light getting it under control.

  I don't have cool birth story to go with him either. It was my 5th c-section, so it's pretty normal for us. I did have a month where my incision wouldn't heal, so we spent the first month at the doctor 3 times a week getting special care for it. But we are now all cleared & healed & feeling great. Just trying to get a new normal around here, but that may never happen.

 But we just wanted to share him with you. He is loved & admired by all the other boys as well & it has been wonderful.

 Here is is now just over a month old & he has already joined us on 2 fishing excursions, 3 rodeo's & a multiple road trips.  We are so blessed to have him join us! And I am so happy to no longer be pregnant & feeling great everyday. Hopefully, I will be showing up on here a little more often as well. I have lot I want to share with you.

Life

I have been MIA for months. Literally months. I didn't mean for it to happen.  I was trying to have LESS time on the internet  &  it happened. Then things just snuck in & time slowly crept by. For those that are still checking out this little blog, I thank you. Here is a quick glance at what I have been up to.

As usual life has been kept busy with these ladies. More for my husband, than for I. Shearing came & went.

All the sheep were moved off the fields & back into the lambing sheds.

And then lambing began. The first lamb dropped on the ground Jan 1st. 3 weeks earlier than we planned.  We are down to our last few waiting to lamb, but it has been a long 3 months. My poor husband just keeps going & going, but I don't know after 90 plus days. He is superman.

I have been trying to get a few minutes in of sewing here & there as I can. And to have LESS unfinished projects lying around my home.

We discovered the boy number 5 will still be in blue. This has been the main reason for my absence. I only have 8 or so weeks left, but am lucky to enjoy morning sickness for the entire 10 months. So with everyday feeling awful. or at least throwing up in the morning, things don't always happen as I would like.

We have tried home school experiments that haven't worked & some that have. If anyone discovered the secret to building your own hot air balloon, please let me know. We have tried multiple you tube videos & tutorials all of wish never even get off the ground.

 So I am hoping to get back on here, once or twice a week again, but no absolute promises yet. At least not for 8 more weeks. I will try, but for now we  have been just spending our days trying to get by & make the most of what we have. Trying to enjoy more of the simple things: like watching a boy & his dog. 

LESS

     I am sure if you have browsed around the internet for more than a minute or two you would see the trend of choosing one word as a type of New Years Resolution or statement. This year there was something about the idea  that seems to appeal to me. Maybe it was the possibility of making it simpler to actually remember my new years resolutions.

    I  remember growing up, we would almost always have a Family Home Evening about goals in January. My mom would make a cute handout for us to write our resolutions on. Most of the time they would be divided into 4 or more categories: Spiritual, Physical, Mental & Emotional. I used to love those lessons & the excitement of setting new goals, but after several months these great goals would fall by the wayside. Maybe it is my inability to focus on something very long, or that I am slightly blonde or just get easily distracted. Either way many resolutions were set, few were actually accomplished. 

   So for the sake of simplicity & hoping it will "stick" better I am chose One Word for my Goal. 

This year I want LESS.

• LESS stuff cluttering my home, so I have More time to do what we enjoy.
• LESS spending, MORE Saving.
• LESS self doubt, MORE Self belief.
• LESS discouraging words, MORE encouraging ones.
• LESS fear of failure, MORE trying new things.
• LESS time with technology, MORE time with my family
• LESS reasons why I can't, MORE  . . "I will . . ."
• LESS poor habits, MORE good ones.
• LESS time partially distracted, MORE time focused.

You get the idea. I do realize it is kind of a two worded goal, for every "less" I also have a "more" but you get the idea.  I loved this system that I read about last year ( I couldn't find here original post about it, so you get this one). So every month for the next year I am just focusing on one aspect of my less goal. One thing in my life for that month  I want less of & at the end of  the month I will share what is was & how it went. So here is a to a new year with a whole lot  LESS!

Do you have a new years resolution or goal? I would love to hear what it is. 

Don't Stop . . . Keep Going.

 Years ago we lived in a very rural Montana town. It was an experience unlike any other. There were good days & bad. While living there someone sent me a like to talk by one of the leaders in our church.  

It was an inspiring message with the words "Don't Stop" and "Keep Going." 

  I remember sitting in our small, brown office in front of my computer and bawling as I was listening to these words. I listened to it many times in that small Montana town & many times since moving back closer to what I know as "home."

 "Don't Stop. Keep Going!" are words I think every mother needs to hear. We all have those moments, moments where we don't think what we are doing is actually doing any good.

This month has been a long one for me. And though today is a day for celebration, and celebrate we will. I am inwardly rejoicing this month is over. I have been too many days without my hubby home. He is my rock & without him, I always feel slightly lost. 

I have been tired.

I am been confused.

And I have had those days I have no idea what is tomorrows is going to bring. 

But as mom we all have those days. 

The days were kids are sick or hurt. Crying or whining. Where the sound mom no longer brings happiness to our ears but a slight cringe because your not quite sure how much more can do. You don't know how much more you can give.

The days you feel as if you are trying to climb the impossible mountain, with no end in sight. 

Days you feel like you have been pushed down, & your just not feeling that optimistic. 

You know those days. 

Or maybe you don't.

Mostly likely you do, you just don't want anyone else to know.

And it in those moments, those words I heard so long ago, begin to ring in my ear:

 "Don't stop, Keep going."

It's those words I want to share with every mother, if I could. 

"Don't Stop . . . Keep Going"  You are doing so many wonderful things. 

Because in the end, You realize you can pick yourself back & take a break from the world.

Get a push start or two.

And just keep your head above water.

Because in time things will be easier.

 Days will get better. 

And soon you will find your heart swollen with gratitude at the blessings you are able to call your own. 

How lucky  you are that you are blessed to spend your days inspiring & teaching. 

And though the days may be long, you may be tired on the never ending trail.

Just  " Don't Stop. Keep Going."

Because the view at the top of the long trail is absolutely breathtaking.
 

So Don't Stop. Keep Going.

 You are closer than you realize, and doing more good than you could ever know.

To Everything there is a Season . . .

   The other day  I was feeling on kind of sorry for myself. I don't know if you ever have those days, but I did.   I haven't had much time to post on the blog the last few days & that kind of had me down. I was supposed to go to a quilt group, but was in the middle of working sheep & had to miss it.  

Have you ever missed something, because you were heavily involved in something else?

Like having a house stay clean for more than 10 minutes because your science experiment exploded a little too much?

 You know or all those moms that get together for a girls lunch because all their kids are in public school & you can't even go to the bathroom by yourself without a kid knocking on the door.

Or not being able to get a post on your blog, because your kids have decided to wake up randomly throughout the night, just to throw off your game. And by the time they are all asleep, your exhausted & say bag it.

Or miss a picnic in the park, because it decides to rain. 

Or you miss quilt group, for 3rd month in a row, because your lambing.

So any ways, do you get what I am getting at? Now let me say I truly love what we do for a living, I do. 

So back to my story . . . the other day I was feeling kind of sorry for myself. We are going on 60+ days of lambing & to be truthful, there was a few days last week when I was ready to be done, But it isn't done & so we keep going. So I was tired, & it had been a long couple of days, & I was feeling kind of down. Not really feeling sorry for myself, but just one of those moments, when sometimes is just hard to be responsible. I had missed quilt group for the 3rd month in a row because we were working sheep & I couldn't get gone. (Now quilt group is like the highlight of my "Me" time for the month. I love it, it is inspiring, fun & completely refreshing). I then talked to my friends, they were vacationing on a warm summer beach, I was reading my favorite quilt designer blogs & they had just come out with new patterns. (One day I plan on designing & selling quilt patterns.) I haven't made a trip back home to see my parents for almost 5 months now. Anyways you get the idea. 

So I was feeling a little down about all the things I "couldn't do" right then, because I am heavily involved in something else. (Ie. Homeschooling & Ranching).

So as I was going through my down day, I had the thought & scripture come to to me. Ecclesiates 3:1-8. 

"To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven: A time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which is planted; A time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up; A time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance; A time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing; A time to get, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to cast away; A time to rend, and a time to sew; a time to keep silence, and a time to speak; A time to love, and a time to hate; a time of war, and a time of peace."

I realized how crazy it was for me to be in a down mood. Just because I am not currently not doing some of those things I wanted to be doing, doesn't mean I can't ever do them. It just means it is not the right season for me.

My season right now, is baby lambs & baby boys. And that is wonderful. My season is to be working along side my husband every day. To stand back & admire him from a distance as he provides for our family & I get to be next to him. 

My season is cooking meals, & changing a million dirty diapers. It is my season to be snuggling with babies, teaching math & washing muddy clothes from little boys. 

My season right now is reading bedtime stories, playing soccer as a family & eating lunch with my boys, not my girlfriends.  One day I may not be able to read bedtime stories, & snuggle. I may not have any more dirty diapers to change, or spelling to practice.  There will come a time (& I pray not for 75 more years!) That I won't get to stand next to my handsome hubby & work.

One day this season will end & then I will have plenty of time to make quilt patterns, & sit on a beach,  eat lunch with my friends, or have my house stay clean.  But sometimes we just have to remember, to everything there is a season. And how lucky we are to be in the season of life we are in.  And I am sure when that day comes I will dearly miss this season I am in. 

So since that day, I have been keeping that in my head, to everything there is a season, & I have tried to enjoy it more. Snuggling a little longer, loving the curly locks of my baby, letting them stay up a little longer, trying to say yes instead of no more, admiring my ruggedly handsome hubby more,  reading another chapter because they asked, slowing down & being grateful. Just grateful that I have been so blessed in this wonderful season of my life. And you know what, once I changed perspective I feel so much more at peace & I found time to sew! 

What is your season of life right now? 

Homeschooling with a New Baby

I have recently heard a few concerns about homeschooling with a new baby in the home. This is something we have dealt with this past year. I love my baby.

But adding a new baby to  life & then homeschooling, it challenging. So I thought I would share a few tips & tricks that work for us. Now keep in mind, I am not an expert by any chance. In fact, I debated whether or not I should even write this post, because I feel inadequate at times. But here we go anyways.

#1. Keep it simple.

For us the simpler I can keep things the more consistent we are with doing them. Life gets tricky enough by adding a new baby don't make it harder by adding complex curriculum as well.

One example is our history curriculum. Story of the World. I love it because it can be as simple as reading a chapter over lunch (which we do frequently) or as complex as building models. I can decide how much we do.

# 2 Be Flexible


The joy of a new baby is wonderful. We have loved watching our newest addition grow & change over the months. But this also had meant that our schedule isn't the same now as when he was a newborn & slept all the time.

     I know what time I want school to start in the morning & the things I want to accomplish & learn by lunch & after lunch. We don't go by an hourly schedule. The babe doesn't know that at 10:30 I really wanted him asleep so we could make things explode for science. Or that I need one on one time with my oldest. So instead I tell my kids when the baby is down for his nap this is the time we will be doing one on one stuff. When I plan knowing that I just have to be flexible I get less stressed out & we still usually accomplish what we need to.

# 3. Take advantage of mini learning sessions.

So your baby was sick all night & now your morning is spent in the Dr. office instead of homeschooling. Don't stress. Just use this time to teach your kids about staying healthy, doctor & nurses, spreading germs ect
.
The baby is taking an extra nap, great! Grab your kids & work on some extra projects you have been meaning to do.

Spend your time driving listening to books on tapes, reviewing phonics, or adding up house numbers. You get the idea.
    You may not have large groups of time any more, but 10 minutes here & there can certainly add up!

# 4. Record what you do each day.

This was taught to me by another homeschooling mom. I love it. I record little bits that we do throughout the day. Here is an example:

   

I just type mine up in the notes on my phone. It's small & I always have my phone with me. I can email it later to print out & save. You may want to use a notebook   Just jot down notes on what you did. You may notice that mine are not even complete sentences, just put something down.  It helps on those days were you feel like you haven't done anything to realize that indeed you are doing more than you realize.

# 5- Have a quick grab bag.

I have a shelf that has what I call my quick grab bag. These may be bought science experiments, dollar store crafts, or kits I put together when I had extra time.

    These are my life saver for days we need to go school but I was up all night with the baby & I am exhausted.  Or day one of my kids is sick. Or life got crazy & I didn't get things ready like my original plan. You know those days. I can grab one of these off the shelf & there we go. We have it all ready to go, it painless & quick & I feel good that we still did something that day.

# 6 - Have your kids help..

In the midst of our school day almost everyone has a time that they are responsible for the baby. Keep in mind my oldest is only 8, & even my 5 year old can be in charge if entertaining him for 15 minutes. My other boys can change a diaper, get him dressed, & feed him.  This teaches them responsibility & helps lighten my load as well.

# 7 - Last but not least - Enjoy it!!!!

In the end some days are smooth as silk & others are as bumpy as a dirt road. The trick is to remember they all grow up too fast! The homeschooling journey is like running a marathon & this piece of time is just a short mile in the journey. So enjoy snuggling the baby. He will be big before you know it.

( from Lay Baby Lay)

- Tiffany

P.S. I am linking this baby up to Hearts for Home Weekly Blog hop

Happy 2013!

I can't believe another year has come & gone. 2012 was great!! I think 2013 will be amazing as well. We have been at the "ranch" since Monday. I can currently hear my boys screaming with delight as they get pulled on sleds on the way to do more chores.
My baby is in my arms nursing & getting ready for a nap. It's precious & these moments make me happy. We spent New a years here & then made a quick trip to Utah to pick things up for work & had the chance to stay with my sister overnight. She home schools as well & I always leave her home inspired with new ideas & my excitement renewed about homeschooling. I will post ideas later, since things I can post from my phone are limited.

Here are a few pictures from these past few days: