WOOPS!

I posted a blog on my hunting journal on accident instead of here, so go check it out on the HJ. the link is to the left, up top. I've got some cool pics on there but didn't feel like redoing the whole thing. yeah, i'm lazy. but go check them out!!!

Some pictures I found

A discovery in Hawaii....





River and Sasha...they were so little! AWWW!

Trail camera 2006 (I think):
One of my favorite pictures.. And, wedding day:

Summer Fun

The boys on a float trip. No, that's not Jason's back with the tat...Jason's the one taking this pic. This was my garden in June, it's practically empty now. I'll have more tomatoes coming though.

This is corn. Or could we call it "cornhair" ??? I love cornhair. Cornhair is b-e-a-u-t-i-f-u-l. And this is a daily harvest of greenbeans. My favorite.
This was in Branson on July 4th. Apparently, it was a long day. You must play hard in order to fall asleep in your life jacket.



More to come soon. I'll have a blast from the past later. I've been working on cleaning and rearranging folders on my desktop and found some pretty cute pictures I have to show off from previous years. I'm gonna attempt another video too. Maybe. If I can remember. :) You know me!

In 69 days....I feed my addiction.

It wasn't icey cold or snowy, just a little drizzly. Seeing as how it was October it was a pretty wet "cold." My nose was red and sniffly and my hands were already stiff and I hadn't even put on my gloves yet. I had spent the last five minutes getting my pep talk...and detailed instructions on what to do if needed help or got into trouble. My heart was racing. I was darn nervous. Is this really what I wanted to do? That's when Jason started strapping and wrapping me up, in a canvas sling with hooks and belts going every which way. How would I ever do this all by myself? Most people do this with a buddy or a group of freinds and he was ....sending me ALONE? MY FIRST TIME? Are you kidding me? (At that time, I didn't know people went with other people...I'm pretty sure this was my husband's strategic plan for our future hunting years. He knew I didn't know any better). I think the sight of myself was enough to get me scared. I think I was beginning to sweat through the inside of my boots (or should I say 200 lb. socks inside my boots), and then all the way through the 2 layers of pants and 3 layers of shirts and coat. All of a sudden I felt a little claustraphobic so I ripped off my camouflage bandana and took a deep breath in. I didn't want to seem nervous in front of my husband so I pretended I had to "redo" the "do" with the camo rag. After I was "put together" and he finished going over everything once more, that's when he led me astray. He introduced me to my addiction I didn't know I had. A fever I never knew of. An addiction that had yet to be fed that would soon take over my whole thought process. He led me into the deep dark wild, the bosom of the wilderness, the cold and never-ending woods that would butt up to a corn field just coming out of season. A field providing the last bit of food for the deer to find as everything started going dormant for the winter.
And there it was, the tree stand he'd set up the year before. Now, this was not a simple ladder stand. Had I known there was such a thing as a ladder stand I would have wrung his neck for making me climb this peg-in-winded-uneven-crooked-tree stand; not to mention climbing with an extra 300 lbs of garb on your body, pet bow in hand, trying not to snag your tree strap on a random branch as you scrape belly up the tree. It's even harder when your fingers are frozen. (Once again, my husband's strategic plan to make all the hunts to come a mere breeze. What a smart man. After my first hunt, I would be able to do anything.) WHEW! I was up. Hand on seat. Steady. What a view I had! Now...I just had to figure out how to turn around and get my arse set down. That's when Jason hollered from 20 ft. below "Be sure you get yourself strapped in first! You don't want to fall out of that thing!"
Uh...how was I supposed to do that? I was holding on for dear life with one hand on the seat, and one arm hugging my body against the tree afraid to let go...that's when I just let go, jumped up, turned myself around and got myself positioned to where I thought I wanted to be. Once again, WHEW!
After some coaching from below, this whole tying myself to a tree with a canvas thing-a-ma-jigger going up my crotch, squeezing my boobs just wasn't working out. So J finally climbed up and helped me out. Thanks I said...with a big fat wet smooch that nearly got us stuck together up there because of the cold wetness. (It didn't happen though...darn it!) That's when he left me. "I'll be back in a few hours! Good Luck!"
And that's history. I sat there in that tree for about 3 hours that day. Alone. Finally coming to a level only hunter's have been to. I got it! I finally understood why anyone in their right mind would do something like this. I spent countless minutes staring, thinking, praying, worshipping, praising God, admiring, and yearning to see an animal...preferably a deer, but at this point anything would do. And then I spent the whole rest of the time, thinking "Why didn't I pee BEFORE I went hunting?" Yes! I could call myself a hunter now! I knew he was proud of me! I now knew why he needed this. At least I thought I did. Until I saw the first herd of deer come into sight across the feild about 100 yards away. And that's when it hit me. I had buck fever and have had it ever since. A feeling, an addiction, a true fever racing through my veins and I need my fix NOW! Finally I had found another place in God's green (or at this time, kinda brown) earth where I BELONGED. I don't belong too many places on this earth, but in that tree in a cold day was one place I knew the Good Lord made for me. I never did get my deer that year. J did. An eleven-point rack. It's on my wall, I helped him feild dress it and kissed it for a picture before we butchered it and ate all the meat..which isn't as good as doe meat. So this year, I'm getting my trophy buck. There's much more to this story than can ever be told. You wouldn't understand. No offense, but until you've done it, you will never know the rush of this drug called hunting. This year, I'm bagging the limit. That's my challenge.
I have 69 days until opening day. My list of "to-do's" is growing. My anticipation is eating me alive. It will be hard waiting.
This year, if I get that granddaddy buck, I'm going on a bear hunt in 2009.

Here's a try at my first video post....i'm not tech savvy so finally, with the help of a good freind, I think I've figured it all out. Sasha is very opinionated and she had been voicing her feelings about going outside...it was muddy that day and she just wanted to go romp in the mud...

more pictures, in no particular order

He'll do anything for his daughter and she knows it...he'll even fix her line on a Barbie pole.
The girls made home-made playdough.
Our tag-along...Jason painted it black and silver, put all terrain tires and a lift kit on the camper..now it can go anywhere. (You do have to have a coule extra step-ups just to get in it though.)
No matter how tired you are, you will persevere to finish the bacon....
...even if you fall out of your chair.

Like I said, persevere.

full time mom = full time job

Geez, Jason said "I'll be cleaning my gun."
Rehearsal makes you hungry!
She was really proud to be dancing with the bigger girls.
Ornery Sasha, she loves camping.
Notice the rope tied around her waist? It was tied like a noose. In her words "I need it here in case I have to save somebody." (There was a loop tied at the very end of her rope-belt."

So I've been a stay-at-home mom now for a couple weeks, which is why I haven't been blogging. I've been reading all of yours though! This time of year we spend our weekends camping and swimming and we just went to Kansas City for the weekend for a girl's weekend...my mother, grandmother (85 yrs.), 2 cousins and their children. KC is a central meeting place for us all and we had a great time. Smart me forgot to bring my camera. Of course I would do something like that! Last week we had Vacation Bible School and the week before that was setting up and preparing at the church. We had a great time. The theme was the "County Fair." I had a little girl in my group who was so interested in Christ and becoming a Christian. Her name is Bethany. Please pray that Bethany can stay on the path she's on...I don't know what her home life is like. From what I can tell her parents work alot, they live on a farm and recently told her she would be allowed to come to church on Wednesday nights. VBS is a blessing for our rural area of kids who don't know about the Lord.

On another note, here are some pictures of our typical everyday life. They aren't too recent (as you can tell by the oh-so-attractive dates on the bottoms of the pics.) As soon as I have time I will get some pictures of my ever so time consuming garden. I have potatoes (sp?), onions, corn, carrots, beans, okra, tomatoes (sp?) and various pepper plants.

again...

so, storms (mainly tornados) again. apparently they are widespread across the entire midwest and the national weather service is saying this could be one of the deadliest days. my mother in law said an insurance agent is on her worship team at church and the NWS called him at his office telling him to be prepared for one of the worst days ever. so, this is big. I've been struggling all day that for the first time i'm actually letting the weather get to me....okay, so maybe i'm a little nervous. But here's the deal...i think i'm only nervous because i've let other people make me feel that way. (and that's what makes me really mad..) I couldn't even get through Dollar General today without hearing every person in every isle talking about the weather to come. (Okay, I'll admit that I was in dollar general looking for a magazine to take to the storm shelter figuring i'd have go down in there for awhile...i walked out empty handed sick to my stomach.)
Everyone thought my daughter's should be at my in-laws for safety. I was obviously asked to come too, but i just couldn't leave my dog at the mercy of tornados...it broke my heart. Some people say i'm heartless to worry about a dog over my family (WHICH I'M NOT) but then again, wouldn't that be heartless to not worry about the dog? so, I took the girl's to my in-laws because I would feel awful if something freakish happened and I didn't take them there, PLUS they are gauranteed much more safety there anyway. they really have been freaking out the last week over all these storms we are having. It's definitely unusual. They offered to let me keep the dog in the garage but I can see it now, she'd bark all night and scratch at the door because she'd be alone, then i'd be sitting in the garage during all the storms...I don't want to imagine ME trying to break down the kennel by myself and getting in my car and taking it over there..) If that's the case, well, i might as well be sitting in my own storm shelter...a big concrete box embedded underground (no, i don't have a basement). I thought about going to my dad's, I'd have a garage spot and i could have my dog inside, but i can't get ahold of him. i thought maybe my sister would like to come ride out the tornadic weather with me in the shelter since she doesn't have one, or a basement, but i can't get ahold of her either. So, after i took the girl's over to the in-laws....i just came back. And here I am, listening to the 50 mph wind, the clouds are building, my anticipation is growing...there's a tornado right now about 50 miles away, yet i'm not even in a tornado watch. I think what makes me the maddest (is that a word? whatever...) about this whole ordeal is that I have never before felt "unsafe and insecure" in MY OWN HOME. And now I do. I've always respected the weather, God can do what He wants right? And I'm smart about it, but I suddenly feel kinda scared, kinda queasy, uneasy, and very very lonely. Jason is on duty to make matters worse. That means he'll just be out on calls in the middle of a mid-western tornadic outbreak that's already starting. Oh.....there go some shingles off of my roof! well, I guess i'll just go...do...something to keep my mind busy. Maybe I'll toss my "storm-shelter bag" I've prepared down the stairs and just wait. This sucks.

So, I haven't been here in a few days. 2 weekends ago we went camping, and if i get up enough motivation then i'll post some pictures. That next week at work I spent stressing over whether or not I had clearly enough explained what would need to be done to whomever was taking over my role and tasks. (YES, I AM NOW OFFICIALLY A STAY-AT-HOME MOM). Then Memorial weekend we went on a float trip on the Elk River in Missouri. We had a great time. I spent most of Friday night watching our camp-neighbors cook, fish, and all the other things you do when you're camping as we were just setting up camp. I had been watching this little blond hair blue eyed girl fish on the river wearing her life vest. I was just thinking to myself how much she reminded me of my daughter...that's when her mom came out of thier camper hollering "River, it's time to eat now!" No way! that little girl's name was River. I went over to the mother and struck up a small conversation saying how my daughter's name was River also, yada yada yada, have a good evening, and then back to our campfire I went. The next evening, after we floated for 5 hours, I went up to the camp shower house. That lady was there with her daughter River and her neices. Then, one of the girls said "Hey Aunt Kendra, can we have some shampoo?" Now wait a minute, this was really wierd! I stood up and spun around and looked at this lady and the look on my face must have said it all. I said "your name is Kendra too?" "SHUT UP" she said. At the exact time in the exact same tone of voice we said "Are you serious?" WIERD. Now I would come back home and not one of my friends or family would believe that I had just spent the weekend camping next to a lady named Kendra with daughter named River. Like I said, WIERD.
Next, we drove home Sunday morning from Missouri and on the way home, we passed a body. Yes, that's what I said, a body. Jason called 911 and everyone in the truck was mad at him he didn't stop. Never did find out what that was all about. My curiousity is still killing me. Nothin' like a peaceful drive interrupted by a dead body on the side of the road. WIERD.
THEN...we got home, and I was getting out of the shower and getting ready to head to my dad's house to wish him a happy 50th birthday. Then Jason comes in the house and says he feels like "he got into something." "I'm itchy and hot and my heart is racing." An allergic reaction seemed probable. I looked at his back and he was covered in hives. Then he started swelling up. Called 911 and I think they made it just in time before all his air passages had finally closed up. He was going into anaphylactic shock from something. The ambulance took him to the hospital, they took care of and he healed alright. But after 50 cc's of benadryl injected into your veins, on top of whatever epinphren-type stuff they gave him, he knocked off his feet half drunk like (just the way he liked it I'm sure :) However, being completely out of it in bad weather is not a good combo. He woke up at 11pm Sunday night, just long enough for me to tell him that I couldn't get our weather radio to work right. He fixed it, sat down at the computer, pulled up the weather just in time to read aloud (to myself, Kylie and River) a tornado warning that had just been issued at our location. In his slow slurred speech and red puffy benadryl eyes his last words of the post read "GET TO YOUR SHELTERS NOW."............................................................And then we scrambled. How many times had I packed a bag ready to go to the shelter. I had played the scenario over and over again in my head. But now, I walked in circles, completely dumbfounded at where Kylie's shoes were, should I grab a blanket, how do i stop river from shaking, is Jason going to make it down the stairs? And so on.
We stayed in ourshelter for about 20 minutes, blessed to have it, and blessed to emerge to a perfect home still standing. Come to find out there never was a tornado, but we got good practice.
Then I spent this last week preparing myself mentally, spiritually, physically and emotionally to be a stay at home mom. And yesterday, which was my last day at work, (I've worked a full time job since I was 16 years old ) I missed. Riverlyn woke up puking and had a low-grade fever. And now, she is still sick tonight, a Friday night, meaning if she gets worse then we'll probably have to hit the emergency room. so, like i said, I'll post more as soon as I'm motivated to. Right now, I'm going to appreciate my family, my home, my chores, my shelter, my life and go and just be a mom.

A nice day...finally!

Sisters. I love this picture.

I haven't posted in a few days. And since then, I've been camera happy. So, here's a few things we do on nice days:

Kiss daddy.

Then, beg daddy for a tree house.

Pick some leaves from the "helicopter tree" to make some soup.

Add some grass for flavor.

Then get some water

Then get daddy to help you finish your gourmet green dinner. Yum.

Then take a walk with daddy.
And watch the storm roll in.