Merry Christmas 2013

Aw it's Christmas Eve and as I take a few minutes to sit down this morning before the wonderful madness begins, I can't help but feel grateful for all the family we still get to visit with each year. I know that it will probably slow down or be more limited sooner than I'm ready for as traditions start to change. We have three beautiful great grandma's that our traditions are guided around and when they are gone (which better not be for a very long time) I know that things will change as our family travels great distances to mainly spend time with the great grandmas. For now though, I want to take advantage of building memories for Dax with these wonderful women and all of his aunts, uncles and cousins! It's often hard to find that balance of seeing everyone, running around like crazy and also really trying to feel the spirit of the season.

Sometimes it seems we forget that it is not about us adults who do the running but the kids whose eyes light up when we talk about going somewhere else to celebrate Christmas or who love spending time with their cousins running and playing. This year, I want to focus on this especially since it's our last Christmas carting around only Dax on Christmas. His last Christmas day with just him. I know next year will be amazing and beautiful with two little ones to share Christmas morning with and THREE for Christmas eve but there is something sweet about just spending it with Dax, one more only him Christmas. He asks on a daily basis when the baby will be here, he's excited! I love his excitement!

I wish you all a very Merry Christmas and a wonderfully Happy New Year!

Comparing... ;)

Okay... just for comparison sake and oh my gosh I can't believe I liked my hair like that... LOL ;)

25 weeks with Dax and 26 weeks with Baby #2

 Yes, think I was slightly bigger with Dax than this baby.

26 weeks!

Well, actually, today I am 27 weeks pregnant but haven't taken a picture yet and, really, haven't changed that much since last week. Baby is doing really well and so am I. Gaining weight at a steady pace and not feeling sick anymore. Sensitive to the smell of protein cooking but usually able to power through it and finish cooking... or overcook the elk steaks that had to go somewhere other than the stove top. Ha! Still struggling a bit with not knowing the sex of this little one but trying to move past that. ;) Baby appears to be growing right on track and moving like crazy so we probably will not have another ultrasound. I am thinking about asking my Dr. for another one but pretty sure I know the answer... and insurance won't pay for just a random ultrasound. So different having a completely normal pregnancy after a slightly more crazy one. Grateful for it though!

Dax has been feeling the baby move a lot lately. The other night he was laying partway on my tummy and the baby started to move around- he asked what that was, I explained it's the baby moving. He responded with "what is the baby saying?" "I think the baby is telling you to GET OFF ME!" Dax started giggling! It was very sweet. He is really very excited for this new baby and more times than not tells me that the baby will sleep in the baby bed in his room and expresses that he can't wait to snuggle the baby and help take care of the baby. I hope this continues after the baby arrives. ;)

Oh baby, how different you are...

 Every pregnancy is different, I have heard that SO many times but until you're in a second (or more) pregnancy you don't realize how true it is!  I've already noticed some serious difference, beyond cooperation at an ultrasound, that have stuck out to me!

 1. I had a Placenta Previa with Dax and nothing at all like that with this baby. I did not realize how much the placenta cushioned some of the different baby movements that I feel very clearly with this one. In other words, I had no idea what getting kicked "down there" felt like! Yikes is all I have to say! By the time Dax's placenta was out of the way, he was already head down and I didn't go through anything like this with him. It's not painful just..umm... odd??

2.HEARTBURN! Oh my gosh! I had horrible heartburn with Dax but it wasn't until much later in the pregnancy. Already have a bottle of liquid antacid in the bathroom. I'm scared. 

3. Definitely much more achy with this baby. I was warned by my doctor that the scar from C-sections don't stretch like the rest of your skin-- that it does not! While round ligament pain is about the same, so far, as my scar pulling, I definitely don't jump up or move quickly without my body reminding me to SLOWDOWN!

4. This one makes me feel really guilty and I'm hoping to remedy it soon--- by this point with Dax, we knew his name. We have NO idea yet what this baby will be named. I'm blaming it on not knowing if we're having a boy or a girl... that's probably just passing the blame but I really just can't get my head around having to pick two names. I am definitely more used to the idea that we might not know until the day of delivery what color of blanket to wrap baby in BUT I would like to have some names to refer to. ;) There has been so much distracting us that has nothing to do with the baby as well, my other excuse. Ha!

--Funny name story- Dax was at Gigi and Papa's house eating Olives and he looks up and says "Mama, we should name the baby Olive" Then goes back to eating. My Mom, having heard this, says, "actually that is kind of cute" OH HELL NO! I am not having the story of coming to my child's name be "well your brother was eating olives one day and it just stuck" Of course, by the end of the evening he also wanted to name the baby salad and cheese... just don't think this will work. :)

5. With Dax, I practically KNEW he was going to be a boy before it was confirmed. With this baby I change my "mommy feeling" everyday. One day I lean so much toward girl and then the next I'm dreaming it's a boy. Geez! ;)

Overall, I feel great! I am still able to do most of my normal tasks and am still keeping up with Dax. That I am more than grateful for!

 I am excited for this baby and I know that the second we see him or her, every other concern or frustration will melt away. It's so hard for me to believe that this baby will be here in about 15ish weeks, depending on when the C-section is scheduled. In less time than I've been pregnant we will have a new little one to love! That in itself is something to celebrate. :)

A Mystery

I am a planner. I have been since...hmm... well always. I like to have my ducks as much in a row as physically possible, I like to have an idea of what to expect in the future. I think this stems from having an anxiety disorder- order and planning make me just plain feel better. Chaos, flying by the seat of my pants and having no idea what to expect-- scare the crap out of me. Ha!

So imagine the whirl wind when we find out at the ultrasound...nothing! We find out there is a super cute baby in my tummy, we find out our dates are correct for expecting this little lovely but we do not find out if we are expecting a boy or a girl. I felt a little out of place, a little confused leaving the appointment. I really expected this to go as quickly as Dax's first ultrasound - first 10 seconds- Look, it's a ____.  Nope! Not to be this go around apparently.

This is so odd to me. I just can't get my head around how to plan for this baby. How to name a baby I can't say "yes, we're having a baby ___ and his/her name is ___." I will get over this, we will find two baby names and life will be just find and dandy but I just am not there yet. I haven't even brought up names up with Dustin except the occasional, "Dax thinks the baby should be Goldilocks" or "Dax and Gigi think Olive is a cute girls name." Which is both not serious and quite funny.

I did get the answer to my prayers though. I did pray that the ultrasound would show a healthy baby and it did. I remind myself of that daily. Our ultrasound this go around was "good" instead of finding an issue like Dax's 1st ultrasound did. There is something HUGE to be said for that! I am eternally grateful for that.

Here's what I've decided: We will know the baby's birthdate (or at least when we schedule it), we will know two names (or more) BUT the one true surprise will be when the doctor announces if we have a boy or a girl. That will be exciting! It will. :) Pray for me...

Oh baby!

Well if we happen to be Facebook friends, you know this news already! Dax will be a big brother sometime around the end of February/beginning of March. Official due date is March 7 but I'll have a scheduled C-section due to how much *fun* we had during Dax's arrival. Ha!

I'm 17 weeks today and in the last two weeks life has gotten a lot more bearable. I was one sick chick all summer long and actually lost a total of 12 pounds. If you didn't see me much this summer, that would be the main reason. Was miserable at home, not far from the toilet. Dax watched WAY too much TV this summer but we survived.

The test that made me stop taking tests- must be accurate if it turns to a + before the control line even shows up.

We're still in a bit of shock that we'll be having our second baby together 

but I know soon that will give way to excitement.

Crazy is all gone

Phew! Good news, I have gotten over being a "Crazy Chicken Lady." This might seem kind of hard to believe given my love for them this spring, the huge amount of work that has gone into keeping them healthy and happy AND how gosh darn friendly they are BUT yes, it's true.

I have found that once reality starts to set in about creatures you fall in love with as babies, the joy can sometimes where off. I do still love my chickens... most of them... and we will still continue to raise chickens BUT we will not be 100% free ranging ever again?

WHY might you ask? Umm, have you ever been around a larger flock of chickens that are allowed to wander?? Let's just say HOLY SHIT! ;) Give you a hint?? On hot days, the girls could be found in the shade of our back steps. Sweet except when you remember that they don't care where they defecate. Many a trip into the house was prefaced with "do NOT step in the chicken poop"  UGH!

The second reason has to do with the large garden I planted this year. I put a green 'utility' fence around it in the hopes of slowing my chickens down from entering the garden. I knew it wouldn't keep them out but I had hopes it would at least save my plants a little. My beautiful 8 tomato plants grew to great sizes this year and were LOADED with tomatoes. That was, until, my stupid chickens found them. I have not gotten a single tomato out of the garden this year! Luckily they did not find the sugar snap peas before Dax and Dustin ate their fill BUT they did find the corn. Between the deer (one buck in particular) and my chickens, only 1 ear of corn out of 10 rows survived! At this moment, it looks like the only thing we're going to get out of the garden is pumpkins. Good night!

We do have 7 chickens in the freezer ready for eating and this winter, when it's cold and I'm wanting to warm the house up with a slow roasted chicken, we will definitely enjoy them again. Of the 20 we started with this year, we butchered 7, lost 2 two other critters and are keeping 11 at the moment-- although 3 of them are hopefully going to another home as 11 is still a lot to winter.

I'm thinking one day we may try to add ducks to our flock BUT trying to talk myself out of it for a bit and make my reasons something more than "they are so cute!" ;-)

CHICKEN COOP

Can I just tell you that Dustin gave me the BEST birthday present this year???

 Inside my birthday card were the plans for a brand new, big chicken coop!

Dustin has been working his tail off, while also doing 100 other projects,

to get the coop done so all 20 chickens can live together. 

It's ALMOST done!

I am so excited!

 The Chicken Palace

 Taking painting VERY seriously

SEE my paint brush

(this was also the point that I panicked about my new phone)

 Best little painter out there!

Can't wait to paint the door red, add some white trim 

and MAYBE a flower box under the window :)

green grass, dandelions, red barn, cowboy boots, tractor and a camo hat

My handsome farm boy

 

There is nothing like growing up on or near a farm. 

My name is Becky...

... and I fear I may be a crazy chicken lady.

You see, in May of last year Dustin and I discussed getting chickens and found the feed store was already sold out of them. So a friend and I ordered 15 birds together via mail- I got 6 and she got 9. Our Buff Orpingtons are wonderful, sweet birds. They are SO easy to care for and Dax is madly in love with them. "The Girls" got names shortly after...although we don't know which is which... originally I believe their names were Rosie, Sunny, Popcorn, Peaches, Dottie, and Penny. I love their names but they have now, all six, become known as "the girls" or Peaches and Popcorn--the two names Dax came up with of course.

Since these girls have always been so easy, I thought this spring, I am SO getting more chickens. Which then began my investigation of different breeds. I decided on dual purpose birds- they'll lay eggs and we can butcher the excess since I really only want to winter 10 birds. My very good friend, Lynnette and I watching Big R like hawks waiting for baby birds to arrive! We had the date down and everything! She made it first and reported back the breeds available. I then set to deciding on numbers from the research I did online. 10 birds in all- 5 Silver Laced Wyandottes, 1 White Leghorn, 2 Rhode Island Reds and 2 Black Polish- just for fun, they're pretty much ornamental. (You should have heard me rattle off those numbers, I had rehearsed!) And... of course... they got names. The RIR are Rhodie and Butterscotch, the Black Polish are Coco and Puddin (Dax named) and the Leghorni s Uncle Bill's honorary chicken because he named it Foghorn. Actually the conversation went like this:

Me: this one is a leghorn
Bill: You CANNOT have a Leghorn and not name it Foghorn, in fact if it dies I will buy you another one.
Me: sounds like this is your chicken- want to take it home??

Not sure what he said next but ended up being a "no go"

JUMP ahead 3 weeks and Dustin and Dax make a trip to Big R and report that there are NEW breeds at Big R. Which I pass on to Lynnette. Of course they can't remember WHAT the breeds ARE but I decided to check it out. Ha! At this point we have 16, yes 16 chickens!  SO you'd THINK that I had enough, right? HELL NO! We came home with 4 more. 2 Barred Rocks, 1 Black Sex Link and 1 Gold Sex Link. Sex Link means they can tell gender by the color they are at hatching---guaranteed hens.

Once I got home and got everything set up-- the number of chickens we had began to sink in. 20 chickens... we went from 6 to 20 chickens. That's like...INSANE! We had 6 chickens outside in a coop, 14 in a dog kennel in the laundry room and 4 in a box in the kitchen. Big, Medium and Little Chickens. It's nuts. Dax thinks it's the best thing ever!

We are now another 3 weeks into having 20 chickens and we now have only 4 chickens in the house- they are in a bird cage now and in the laundry room. The medium chickens are in the dog kennel surrounded by the baby fence. It works.

I am also getting a BIG COOP! As a birthday present Dustin got me the plans for a chicken coop-- this also spurred the being "okay" with getting more chicks. :)

I am a little scared this might turn into a chicken blog... and it could because...well... they're cute and I think it's pretty neat we're raising our own food!

Any roosters will probably be butchered and we really, truly only plan to winter 10 chickens-- anything over 12 will not happen-- they will be butchered.

Next year I think we'll do just meat birds.

Here they are....

 The last 4- 2 Barred Rocks, 1 Black Sex link and 1 Gold Sex Link

 1st picture of me with one of our chickens

 Kyleigh and her brothers with the chicks

 My fav picture of Dax and a chick this year

 Giving one of the "big" girls a ride

 My kiddos and the big girls

 Little bit of farm girl in her :)

 Our Buffs free ranging

 Foghorn Leghorn

 Either Coco or Puddin

Black Polish

Isn't that an AWESOME hairdo?

 Rhode Island Red and Silver Laced Wyandotte

We'll say this is Rhodie and Silvia... although I have NO idea

 Dax loves the chickens and the chickens are SO good with Dax!

The "medium" chickens home until the coop gets built

Day 17, 18, 19, 20 and 21

Day 17: Hands

Dax playing with his monster trucks

Day 18: Animal

Lots of chicken pictures, sorry, they're still new to us :)
The new chicks all lined up and asleep last night

Day 19: Something pink
My awesome camera case

Day 20: Close up
Black Polish chick, either Coco or Puddin

Day 21: From a Distance
My kids --took this one while standing at the chicken coop

New babies!

Today we got new baby chicks! I have been SO excited about our trip to Colville all week long and Dax has been almost as excited. Last weekend I spent most of the day Sunday reading blogs and doing research on different breeds of chicken. Looking for sweet breeds, breeds that were dual purpose so we could butcher any "extras" this fall and what colors I wanted to add to our flock. Cold hardy was almost one of the requirements. Well...for the most part... I stuck by what I was looking for. :) There are still a few more breeds I'd like to add to our flock but I think they'll have to wait for next year or at least later this spring.

We ended up with 10 chicks. 7 that are dual purpose, 1 that is pretty much just for eggs and two ornamental chickens. We have 1 Leghorn (which my brother says must be named Foghorn), 2 Rhode Island Reds, 2 Black Polish and 5 Silver Laced Wyandottes.

Although there is a good chance we will be butchering 1 of the rhodies and 4 of the wyandottes... we're already coming up with names... which could mean a couple of our current buffs will be headed to the butcher in the fall. I'm finding that the ones we got "in mass" may be easier to part with-- we have 6 buffs and right now I can't tell them a part.

Here are some of the pictures so far....

 All 10 in one picture

 SO in love with his babies

 Black Polish

 Sleeping Rhode Island Red

 Sleeping Silver Laced Wyandotte

Foghorn Leghorn

Ha! Although this little girl will be all white and not red like her namesake

Happy Valentines Day

To Dustin:

I love you.

I don't say that just to say it. 

I say it because I mean it.

I say it because everyday I worry that it might be the last time.

I say it because years have proven to me how deep and how much I love you.

I have loved you since I first laid eyes on the picture of you and puppy Dakota.

I've loved you since we started talking on myspace about being single and hanging out.

I have loved you since our first dinner at Mi Casita which led to our first hug in the parking lot-- which we would both later admit should have been a kiss.

I've loved you since you took me snowmobiling in the dark,
 making snow angels in the middle of the field.

I've loved you since you took me in your arms and gave me the sweetest first kiss- completely out of the blue, showing me around your parents house.

I have loved you since we started saying I LLLL....ike you! 

I have loved you since February 20th, 2008 when I looked at you and admitted I was ready to be your girlfriend.

I've loved you since the first time you showed me pictures of Kyleigh on your phone.

I've LOVED you since we went camping in April in FREEZING cold weather in the back of the truck.

I've loved riding in the S-10 through mudpits and trail rides in the Yota. 

I love hot tubing with you....

 I love you clean, dirty, stinky and fresh from the shower.

I love you clean shaven and scruffy from a weekend off. 

I love that you have never given up on me.

I loved you when your reaction to finding out I was pregnant was- "we wanted kids, just not quite  yet. It will be okay-when do you want to get married?"

I loved you when you sat with me while we told my parents we were having a baby. 

I love that you tease me, poke at me, joke with me (okay about me)

I love the little things you do- bringing home the sunglasses I was eyeing, taking my truck to get the oil changed, putting my snow tires on, keeping Dax on Mondays, building a chicken run, and so much more.

I love your eyes, your lips, your strong arms, the crease between your eyes, your smile, the looks you give me and your smell.

I love your heart. You have the biggest heart and when you love, you love with all of it.

I thought I could never love you more than the first moment I saw you with Dax in your arms.

I was wrong though because every day I truly love you more.

We've loved each other through some amazing, wonderful, exhilarating, happy, happy times.

We've loved each other through rock bottom, mud slinging, horrible moments that tore us a part and brought us back together.

Through all the tears, the smiles, the laughter, the fear, the joy and so much more, I have loved you.

I love you, handsome. With my entire heart.

Thank you for loving me too.

So God Made a Farmer

The best Super Bowl commercial ever. I usually watch them, giggle, move on and never remember the commercials again but something about the Dodge Ram commercial yesterday mesmerized me. It could have been Paul Harvey's voice, the pictures included in the slide show combined with the truthful words of the poem. Something stuck. It could have been that I had just been to the memorial service the day before for a farmer in our community and it could be that because of that my Grandpa K was weighing heavily on my heart.

As I reread the poem, it made me think about my Dad. My Dad is not a full time farmer, he's a "hobby" farmer but let's be honest-- there is no such thing as a  fun hobby farm- they are all work- There is nothing fun about putting up fields of hay in the hot summer sun after working 40+ hours a week in a rock pit on a bulldozer. There's nothing fun about having to watch for newborn fawns in the tall grass so you don't run them over. There is nothing fun about chasing cows from the county road back into the corral. There is nothing fun about worrying if your beef is going to sell this year. There is nothing fun about telling your friends price for your beef and hearing "that's too high" even when it's the bottom of the line, break even price. But someone has to do it. Without the farmer, we wouldn't have food on our tables. No farmer, no food.

I also think about living on our farm. About raising a family and livestock on the same acres me grandparents did for some 30 odd years. I think about the gift that was given to us of being able to share this experience with Dax. Not raising a city boy but one who will learn to feed chickens, raise a garden, run in the fields and that not everything is to be handed to you. I may not be the down and dirty dedicated farmer that this poem talks about or that my Grandpa and Dad are but I hope, in some ways, I'm similar to them.

So God Made a Farmer

And on the eighth day, God looked down on his planned paradise and said, "I need a caretaker." 

So God made a farmer.

God said, "I need somebody willing to get up before dawn, milk cows, work all day in the field, milk cows again, eat supper, then go to town and stay past midnight at a meeting of the school board." 

So God made a farmer.

"I need somebody with arms strong enough to wrestle a calf and yet gentle enough to cradle his own grandchild. Somebody to call hogs, tame cantankerous machinery, come home hungry, have to wait for lunch until his wife's done feeding visiting ladies, then tell the ladies to be sure to come back real soon and mean it." 

So God made a farmer.

God said, "I need somebody willing to sit up all night with a newborn colt and watch it die, then dry his eyes and say,'Maybe next year,' I need somebody who can shape an ax handle from an ash tree, shoe a horse, who can fix a harness with hay wire, feed sacks and shoe scraps.  Who, during planting time and harvest season will finish his 40-hour week by Tuesday noon and then, paining from tractor back, put in another 72 hours." 

So God made the farmer.

God had to have somebody willing to ride the ruts at double speed to get the hay in ahead of the rain clouds and yet stop in mid-field and race to help when he sees the first smoke from a neighbor's place. 

So God made a farmer.

God said, "I need somebody strong enough to clear trees and heave bales, yet gentle enough to help a newborn calf begin to suckle and tend the pink-comb pullets, who will stop his mower in an instant to avoid the nest of meadowlarks."

It had to be somebody who'd plow deep and straight and not cut corners. Somebody to seed, weed, feed, breed, brake, disk, plow, plant, tie the fleece, strain the milk, replenish the self-feeder and finish a hard week's work with an eight mile drive to church.  Somebody who'd bale a family together with the soft, strong bonds of sharing, who would laugh, and then sigh and then reply with smiling eyes when his family says that they are proud of what Dad does. 

So God made a farmer...

Author Unknown

Day 16-Faceless self portrait

Faceless self portraits are harder to take than they sound...

Day 15- Blur

I promise, these were not all taken on the same day--- just so happens I remember about this photo thing while at work AND my office happens to be where I spend a lot of my time during the week.

This is what today felt like...

Day 14- Something Orange

Gotta love an orange substitute folder! Changed the date to 2012-2013 after taking the picture :)

Day 13- your shoes

I mean my boots :) I have never been a cowboy boot wear-er but I must say I sure do LOVE my Justin's that Dustin got me for Christmas last year. Wear them ALL the time- hence their broken in appearence.

Day 12- eyes

Just one eye but pretty impressed by how detailed this picture is. Way to go new camera!

Day 11- sunset

We have had some gorgeous sunsets lately!

The view from our driveway

Day 10 Something Blue

HELLO Blue Sharpie! My favorite pen to write with!

yes, that is a list of all the days I missed so I could catch up :)

Day 9 Someone you love

I love Dax, don't get me wrong, but when I read this I knew it needed to be a picture of Dustin.

 He is definitely someone that a love with my whole heart, to the moon and back!