Hanging out at swimming lessons

My home on a lovely summer evening

My country lane just before sunset... I drink it in!

Our geese are growing...  we lost one baby... but they are such a cute family.

Josiah's 12 year old pictures

Josiah and I carved out a few minutes for me to capture him at 12 in pictures.  He was thrilled.  Not really.  But, he was sweet and willing to do it for his mama.  We just walked around the farm and found a few picturesque spots to snap a few shots.  I enjoyed looking at him through the lens... such a handsome fella.

Here are my faves...

So, Will wandered over and thought he would like to have a few pics taken of him and I was all too happy to oblige.  I thought I ended up getting some really sweet pictures of him.

What was that noise!?!?

Picking a flower for mama.  I heart getting flowers!  And my boys love getting them for me. 

Happy Father's Day 2011

John is an incredible Dad!  I'm so proud of him and I know our boys are blessed to have him for their dad. 

They really enjoyed the gift parade...

And it just wouldn't be Father's Day without a picture of John in the recliner with the boys gathered 'round!

And here's a picture of me and my dad when we got to go visit my parents earlier this week...



More Josiah's Bday

We spent a day in Springdale with Grandma and Grandpa...  always a treat!

And an evening at Devil's Den with the Wasson/ Hoelzeman clan...  another big treat!

Happy 12th Josiah!

Our house in Fort Smith is SOLD!! Yeah!!

Happy Birthday Josiah!

Josiah is 12!

Happy, happy birthday to our precious Josiah!  He's growing into an incredible young man...  we are so proud of him!!

Back from Washington DC

Green (Gabled) Acres is the place to be

Farm livin' is the life for me

Land spreadin' out so far and wide

Keep Manhattan (DC)

And give me that countryside

Are you humming the tune?!  We had a great trip to DC for the sale owner's convention and a few touristy sight seeing days, but we are HAPPY to be back home!  It was a lot of fun to see the nation's capital again - it's all so impressive and well, just really cool.

My favorite thing was touring the inside of the capitol building.  Really cool!  We got to watch the Senate in session - it was pretty interesting to watch the Senators give speeches to the wall.  Yes, really!  Who knew?  It looks a lot different on tv.  What was awful was that this was a record setting HOT day and we had to walk from the other end of the mall to the capitol for our appointment.  Did I mention the humidity?!  We were completely drenched in sweat by the time we got there...  seriously, drenched is an understatement.  Our tongues were so dry we could hardly talk!  And I had huge blisters on the bottom of both of my feet!  I guess we didn't do much to help the hillbilly perception of Arkansas.  We just walked in the Congressional office building, panting, soaked and stinky.  Kinda hard to shake hands with all those suits in that condition, but we did it anyway. :)

Visiting DC and seeing the city was fun, but city life is not for us.  We much prefer our sprawling acreage to the crowded bustle of so many people in one place.  But, we learned how to ride the metro and John drove all over DC, Georgetown and Alexandria...  amid lots of honks. haha  It was like Midtown Madness dejavu!

Then we had two days of the convention and it was great to meet a lot of John's clients there.  He did a session on his software and he really did a fantastic job!  I'm always SOOOO proud of the way he handles himself in business.  It's just a huge pleasure for me to watch him! 

  Our flights to DC went very smoothly, it was just coming home that got messed up.  We ended up stuck in Charlotte, NC and had to spend the night there before coming home a day later than planned. 

After unpacking, I went to find the boys and here they were...  (Josiah had walked out of the picture)...  but I knew John was just relishing the country air and the relaxed pace of home!

Picking Up Sticks

We had a lot of limbs blown down out of our trees during the recent storms.  The boys have been working hard this weekend to get it all cleaned up.  Yard detail is a big job on a farm.  But, they have worked hard and done a fantastic job.  I've just loved watching them.  Josiah has become a pro at driving the riding lawn mower and Shep loves his ride on the back.  They go back and forth with limbs to throw in the woods.  And I love that every time they drive by my office window they wave at me!

Tonight, while John and I went for a walk, Josiah fired up the mower and gave his two little brothers a ride all over our property.  They had a blast!  Farm life has its perks!  And John and I enjoyed watching them so much.  It feels almost like we are living in a dream...  it's so exciting to be here and get to watch the boys adapt to "country living".  My heart overflows with "thank you, Lord".

Shep finally got his...

BUZZ HAIRCUT! 

He's been waiting for months.  Wants to be like his big brother and dad.  I've resisted.  He has great hair.  I thought I might cry.  But, he's cute as can be and super adorable with his new "do".  And he loves it!  He'll let anyone rub his head who wants to.  He even offers it.  I think he looks like a real farm boy now.

Before:

After:

So, Will wanted his picture taken, too, while he was getting his hair cut.

And Josiah has been wearing this cut for a long time...  still looks good on him.  You can really notice his deep chocolate brown eyes with a buzz cut.



The New Chicken Coop

It was delivered about a week ago!  Here are the guys watching them set it up.  John has been busy working all week to finish the chicken yard.  I need to get back out there and take an "after" pic.  I think these chickens are living in style! :)



Like father, like son

I found John and Shep in the garage watching the little chicks together.  I just loved seeing their matching stances!