Mornings

This is how I wake up! Lucky for my kids they generally don't wake up like this. I have always hated mornings. When I try and explain it to people I get the blank stare but, I truly do not feel good and hate to get out of my bed. I have no idea whether this is a mental or physical condition non the less it is a condition I have always had. Two weeks ago I decided this had to change so Tina and I made a plan to meet every morning at 6:30 for a morning walk. If there was anyone in the world that could feel my pain on mornings it would be her. She likes to stay up much later than I do but loves her bed just as much as me. All things considered this was the only time of day that we could fit any kind of exercise in. The first morning was hard and for the first week we were both feeling how out of shape we are. I must say I still would love to stay in bed but something about having a friend waiting on me at the stop sign keeps me getting up. The truth is I feel much better, I get more done in a day, and I am able to cope with things much better. So, until the snow comes back we will keep meeting at the stop sign and I will conquer my condition.

Healthy???

So I am on a quest to be Organized and Healthy by Christmas. I am slowly ever so slowly doing both. On Saturday I went to a bread making class with Jessica, her family, and Susan. Not sure I was impressed at all but always willing to try a new recipe. My first attempt was pizza that worked great and Dan loved it. My second attempt was bread for Sunday dinner, it failed miserably. The taste was good but the texture was all wrong. Dan kept encouraging me because the concept is to save money by making your own bread that is healthier for you. So I made spinach feta bread on Tuesday night and we all loved it. I used the wheat instead of bread flower. So last night my family wanted pizza again. Knowing that this is not the healthiest dinner to eat I agreed. I was brave and went way out of the norm on this one. I used the wheat recipe to start with. Jake hates pizza so I always make him bread sticks, this time I chopped up some fresh spinach and put under the cheese. I made my own pizza sauce. (The can from the grocery store is not healthy for you.) My pizza sauce. . . stewed Tomatoes, 2 cups fresh spinach, green pepper, onion, garlic, and Italianseason put it all in the blender and tada you have fresh pizza sauce. YUMMY!!! Then I loaded our pizza with veggies and meats including spinach and added 1/2 the normal cheese. I was worried wondering if my family would even try it. Now that you are all wondering. . . Yes, they ate it and loved it. They said, "they like white crust better but they will eat it with wheat. If you are reading this and think she has gone nuts your right we are eating lots of nuts at our house as well. I am not loosing any weight do to my attempts at eating healthy and exercising but I feel better and so I will keep trying.

Old McDonald's Mom???

I had no idea when I had this little boy 7 years ago that the farm would come with him. I can't wait to see where life takes him and what profession he chooses. From a very young age he has loved animals. When he was 3 he asked for a a whale. I told him he couldn't have a whale, they were as big as our house and they needed to live in the ocean. He said, "maybe Dave (Cattoor) could dig us a big hole and we could fill it with water." Soon I convinced him this was not possible so his next request was an incubator. That was different birthday request for a 3 year old boy but, doable. Dan questioned me then and I had to remind him that we had steers and horses for Zeak what was the difference? At age 4 we got the chicken coop and a few chickens. Age 7 a pony not that we don't already have 4 full size horses, 8 roping steers (4 babies due any day,) 2 show steers, 3 dogs, 2 cats, a coop full of chickens, a cage full of chicks, we have had several goats, and now we have 2 DUCKS! I am not at all happy about this latest addition to our farm. They are messy, they stink, we already have chicks... ugh!!! I'm sure you are all thinking don't you already stink with all of those animals what can two little ducks hurt? I DIDN'T want to be Old McDonald's wife, mom, or daughter. This was not my life long dream.

So how did this happen? Dan made Jake a deal that if he worked really hard at the scout service project Saturday then, he would buy him something. Ice cream would have been great don't you think? But, no when Dan asked what he wanted Jake said, "Ducks!" (I am sure he had the most mischievous grin on his face as he said it knowing that he had manipulated his way into getting ducks.) Dan's response, " hun my hands were tied he worked harder than most of the grown men that were there. " Jake tells me he will take care of them and clean up after them. He drew a picture of the duck pen and pool for him and his dad to build and he claims they will eat all of the bugs in my garden. I am amazed at his knowledge of animals and how to take care of them at such a young age. So I guess I will learn along with him and Find Joy in the Journey of being Old McDonald's mom. If the bugs get bad and you need to borrow our ducks for a few days Jake will rent them out but, I must warn you he comes with the ducks!

Workin' Man

Some days I struggle with the workin' man I am married to. Growing up my dad would come home cook us dinner help us with our horses and then sit in front of the TV for an hour or two before going to bed. It is interesting that you just assume the way you grew up is the same as everyone else. It is hard to adjust your expectations when you have only one experience to form those expectations. Even though my dad was a hard worker and a great provider for our family I really had know idea what hard working was. Dan to a fault is always working. He gets up in the morning works all day and then comes home and keeps on working. Today is a perfect example of this. He got home about 5:00 pm only to drive back into Nephi so he could pick up Mike's bobcat. He then proceded to extend our garden spot, tear out the freezer that didn't work last year and level the driveway. Eearlier that morning I had mowed our front lawn and fertilized all of the lawns, flowerbeds and raspberries. I wanted to get it done before the storm moved in that night. Dan got a jump on the storm but didn't beat it so at the end him and Zeak just joined it. Most men and women would have called it quits and went in the nice warm house but not my workin' man. He is getting so he involves our children in his after work projects. It amazes and frustrates me that they enjoy working for him more than for me. When I grabbed the camera to take photos (which he is getting more comfortable with) he said, "when you get frustrated with me not working inside you go look at theses photos. It isn't that I am not working I am just not doing what you want me to do." He has me there! So as I was reading my scriptures that last two mornings I had a thought come to me and the more I think about it the more I realize that I am married to a great man. As I read about Nephi and we all know what a great man he was I see similar characteristics in my workin' man. He is not idle, he loves his family, he trust in the Lord, he obeys the Lord, he doesn't murmur

(even when I think he is justified), and he goes and does. If something is broke he fixes it. If someone says it can be done he figures out a way to do it. I have much to learn from this workin' man and I hope that my children our learning from his example. I am so blessed that this workin' man in MINE!

Branding Time

The Man with the Iron!

(Grandpa Don)

Like Father Like Son

Working the Ground

The Girls

If you have never been to the branding fire you are missing out. I love the spring time it means, new flowers, new babies, turkey hunting, and branding. One the thing that amazes me is how noisy it is. It almost sounds like a swarm of bees. Mama cows calling for their babies and scared babies actually answering the call of their moms. My least favorite part is the smell. My favorite part of branding is the family togetherness. Grandparents, moms, dads, kids, husbands, wives, aunts, uncles, cousins, and us adopted family all working together and having fun. Berezays believe in working hard and having fun while you work. They are so good at making sure everyone gets their turn. Even the youngest tikes get to help if they want. This year I took photos, set out lunch, and helped push the cows back at the very end with all of the girls. It was another fun filled day at the Branding fire with some of our most favorite people. Jake and Kaci missed out this year because they were having fun at the desert with grandma and grandpa Woodland they did bring me back a surprise.

Zeak's Class Party

One thing about being a "flexible working" mom, is that I can attend my kids school activities and help in the classroom. I have helped in the classroom since Zeak started school. I missed the year Kaci was born yet, I was still able to help with activities and class parties. I love being with my kids and letting them know how important school is. This year I go in every Thursday and help with the take home books in Jake's class. I usually take Kaci with me she loves it and always wants to stay. She even asked Mrs. Wohlforth the Prinicpal if she could stay one day. Mr Peay Zeak's teacher is not a fan a mom helpers so I am glad I was able to help with the Easter Party. Tina came and helped me which was a blessing. We played a hard boiled egg game that the kids had fun with . The craft was the biggest hit and the boys loved it more than the girls. Who would have guessed? Mr Peay is a great teacher for Zeak. He is pretty rough around the edges but, he is great for Zeak he relates to him and expects a lot out of him.

Faith Restored

!!!Warning!!! I am going to be completely honest here! Sometimes being a mother is so hard for me. I want so much for my kids and struggle with how to teach them and how to get them to see. It is hard for me to remember I can't beat it into them. I can't lecture it into them. Most important I can't yell it into them. I had high hopes for the Easter Holiday and tried way to hard to create memories, fun, and excitement. Worst of all I tried way to hard to teach them about Easter. Maybe not to hard just tried at the wrong time. By Sunday afternoon I was feeling like the worst mom in the whole world. I was in tears in my room when I heard a talk given Elder Bradley D. Foster. http://broadcast2.lds.org/general-conference/2010-april/2010-04-5030-elder-bradley-d-foster-eng.mp3 He told a story about herding cows. My favorite quote from his talk was, "The end would be better than the beginning." Tonight I was humbled as Kaci and I watched a video and song about Jesus. She sat for an hour and asked me questions and looked at pictures of Jesus. When Dan and the boys came home she shared it with them. We replayed it twice and by the end they were all singing the song and telling me about Jesus.

1 Turkey Down 3 more to go!

Jake Kareoke

We met Jake a few years ago at the Berezays. He is Janice's Nephew. When we met him Jake was a teenager doing all the crazy teenage things. While he was in college he was in a bad 4 wheel accident that left him paralyzed. He is such an inspiration to our family. The year after his accident he was out branding cows with us at the church farm. Dan got talking to him and asked him if he wanted to start hunting. So last year they put him in on a turkey and he went hunting for the first time. Last year was a huge learning experience for both him and Dan. They had a lot of fun but didn't bring home a turkey. He did however kill a deer last fall. So this year he got to hunt 3 days the weekend before the opening of the early draw. Dan asked him if he wanted to just kill a jake in Nephi or go to Fillmore and try for a big tom. He was all about going to Fillmore for a big Tom. Hunting in a wheel chair can be hard especially in 8 inches of snow. Lucky for Jake the Tom came to him in the truck so he only had to get out for pictures. Congrats! Now if the luck can hold true for next weekend when Dan gets to hunt.

Best April Fools

Yesterday Morning Kaci and I couldn't decide if we could hear a chick or not. I kept checking but didn't see any cracks in the eggs or any egg shell. By the time the boys had come home from school I decided I really could hear a chick and so we kept watching.

At 4:30pm I heard the egg roll on the mesh screen and sure enough there was an egg shell on the mesh. Within 30 minutes he was out. The kids got to watch most of it and Kaci and Jake thought it was gross when I pulled the egg shell out. It really is amazing how loud such a tiny little creature is.
When they are first born they are kind of scary looking. You wonder if they are really going to make it.

With in a few hours they normally start to fluff out and look like those adorable little chicks you see at IFA. Because, of the power outage this little guy took a little longer to get his cute fluff. When the power went out I thought the incubator would be fine as long as we kept the lid closed. Boy was I wrong with in 15 minutes the temperature dropped to 70 degrees. This is really bad for the eggs that haven't hatched and the chick that just hatched. Temperature is crucial. Tina happen to txt me to see if our power was out and I called her to say do you have any hand warmers or some way to heat this little guy up. (Our hand warmers got used up at the indoor barn this winter by our cute little girl.) They said yes so I drove up to get them. Andy also had a little power converter that he sent for me to try. Just as I was getting the hand warmers working the power came on. I thought we are ok. At 2:00amish I got up to check on the horse I thought was sick earlier and went to check on the chick. For some reason the temperature was still at 70 degrees and the baby chick was almost dead. So the "Mother Hen" instinct kicked in and I took the baby chick into my bedroom and held him close thinking this was his only chance to live. Within a half hour he was warming up and showing life. The temperature was back up to 99.6 degrees in the incubator so I put him back in and tried to go back to sleep. At 4:30 am the alarm rang for Dan and Jake Kareoka to go turkey hunting so I got up to check on the baby chick and he looked great. Jake said, " wow your house is pretty active at night." Dan said, "good job mother hen the horse is fine and you saved the chick, and we are all exhausted." I couldn't go back to sleep for a while and when the alarm went off for the boys to go to school I wanted to die. But from the next to pictures you can see my sleepless night paid off. April Fool's (Kaci named him) is alive and well. Now to see if any of his friends survived the power outage.

(Jake got his turke at 7:30 am it is turning out to be a great day)

This is our little April Fools Chick.

April Fools

Mother Nature and the Power Company didn't miss out on the fun this year. We woke up to 5-6" of fresh snow on the ground. It sure is much prettier in December than in April. Then just as we were getting home from our prank and getting the boys in bed (10:15 pm) the power went out. This would normally stress my children out but they stayed really calm I was really impressed. We all did well until I realized that this was not good for our new April Fools Chick. We gathered all of our flashlights and candles. Glad we were more prepared than the last power outage!
The boys wanted to play an April Fools trick on the Williams'. The girls are always door bell ditching us so we started trying to think of ways we could get them. Dan was to busy planning his turkey hunt and working so the boys and I were on our own. I wanted to fill their door will snow and then ring the door and go the problem was the snow had melted and wasn't enough for us to do that. So then I decided in the interest of time we could just get a big paper and write April Fools on it. So the boys and I set out to play our April Fools trick. We were so excited. Even though it didn't work like we wanted the boys had fun and we will be more prepared next year! So Williams' fair warning the contest is on for the best April Fools prank.
Jake lost his 3rd tooth. He had a little help from grandma Barnhurst put pulled it out by himself.

Zeak didn't want to miss out on the attention so he pulled out his back molar.

Cort (Brenda & Clay's little boy) turned one yesterday, yep he is our April Fool Baby and he loves Moos! We love him and had fun celebrating his birthday with him. He will give us a great reason to celebrate April Fools every year.

So you can see that our April Fools was very Eventful and I will save the best event for it's own post!