3 Girls, 1 Guy and a Zoo!: November 2013

Friday, November 22, 2013

Carrots...

The girls favorite part of gardening is fresh carrots I think. They LOVE them. This year they took a liking to fresh, raw green beans as well...but nothing compares to their love of carrots. I don't know what the deal was this year but we grew some MONSTER carrots, onions and potatoes. When we were digging potatoes we found a bunch of mole nest so I don't know if they helped irrigate the soil so things could grow bigger or what the deal was, but the girls think its great!

(Madalyn said she could only handle a small one!)

And here is our pile! One of these days I'm going to get the energy up to clean, cut and freeze them all!

Thursday, November 14, 2013

Special Music Again!

They did so good again :)

Wednesday, November 13, 2013

Fall Cookies

We don't do much for the fall season, but one day the girls and I were in the mood to make sugar cookies. It was a little early to start in on Christmas cookies so we made "fall cookies" :) They did a really good job! Daddy took pictures while the girls cut the cookies out....

Beaker was helping Daddy out :)

Friday, November 1, 2013

Fall Fun!!!

With fall here and thanksgiving around the corner, we decided it was time to get some pumpkins and do some carving! We went with Cari and the girls last Thursday and they each got to pick out their own pumpkins. It was fun watching the girls and seeing what their idea of a "good" pumpkin was. Madalyn wanted a baby pumpkin, Jamie wanted a medium one and Madison and Marissa both wanted as big of one as they could find. Cari and I picked out pumpkins for the guys. Of course we went a day too late and had to uncover ours from the snow before we could see if they were good or not. LOL

Then Friday night we met at their house for pizza and carving fun! (Smart thinking on my part to do it at THEIR house instead of mine huh?) :) We had a really yummy supper...Sweet Baby Rays BBQ pizza and Garlic Chicken pizza, both homemade and SUPER good! They kids begged and begged for us to stop eating so we could get to the good part of the night!

We covered the floor with plastic and let the kids get to it. All the kids carved theirs except Madalyn. She did not want to "kill" her baby pumpkin. So she used pieces that you stick in the pumpkin to give it a face, kind of like Mr. Potato Head. The Dads assisted with cutting off the tops so they could remove the guts.

Madalyn worked very hard on her pumpkin....she was so cute!

All done!

Lacy helped too ;)

I think this part was Marissa's favorite.

At this point in time Madalyn is starting to think that this process isn't as bad as she thought it was....

Yup, she loves it!

Daddy, starting on his now!

Madalyn did most of Daddy's gutting for him.

Stefan Jr. hard at work...

Lacie, all wore out

Guinness...I love those eyes!

And then the paint came out...

Stefan Jr's pumpkin finished! I love how he left the guts in it.

I'm pretty sure at this point in time we are just making more of a mess.

Look at her!

Madison took this job very seriously.

Daddy let Marissa cut her own! She thought she was big stuff...

Daddy's pumpkin is all finished!

Jamie's finished pumpkin

Marissa's finished pumpkin

Madison's finished pumpkin and Jamie's again

And of course, after all the fun and hard work....this is the result...

And for some odd reason, this squirt ball is still awake!

We had a lot of fun and I really think we need to make this a new tradition!

If you were to ask me where I would see myself in 10 years, I never would have guessed that I would be here. However, I couldn't be happier! I'm very happily married to the love of my life and have two girls. We have begun our journey towards adoption and I'm excited to see what the Lord has in store for us over the next couple of years. I'm a stay at home mom who home-schools. I enjoy researching and finding things out for myself. This blog allows me to share with others my passions and keep in touch with family that I wouldn't normally be able to keep in such close touch with.

Daddy is such a blessing to me. We met in college and became best friends. About one and a half years after we met we were dating. The rest is history. Together we have grown in the Lord and learned many lessons even in our few years together. Things haven't always been smooth, but together and with the Lord's help we can accomplish anything. He is the love of my life and my true soul mate. He is 100% committed to his family and the Lord. He is currently working for Dairy One in Ithaca. He loves to ski, ride dirt bikes, tinker on things, mow the lawn :) and spend time with his girls.

Marissa is our oldest. She was born in May 2005. She is 100% Daddy's girl. She is a home body and usually isn't away from home for long and she is asking to go back to our house. She always claims a job and sticks with it till its done. She is very quick and catches on fast. You have to be careful what you show her, because before you know it she is going to be attempting it herself. Madalyn is her best friend. She loves church and loves learning and singing about Jesus. Marissa is now is school and she is doing great. She loves to read and do projects. She LOVES animals and has decided that she wants to be a Veterinarian when she grows up!

Madalyn is our youngest. She is 100% Mommy's girl (nice of them that they split us up so that one isn't quite so overwhelmed isn't it?). Madalyn knows what she wants and goes for it. She has no fear and is usually the leader of my two even though she is younger. She does love to shadow her older sister though. She is my girly girl, but also my one that is always getting messy. She loves her hair done, to get dressed up, and shoes! We are in trouble with this one! She loves school and is super smart. She has decided she wants to be a "snow plow driver" when she grows up. She is also going to build a house RIGHT next to us and live there so she can still see us every day ;)

Case was actually our "oldest child". Sadly we said goodbye to him on October 29th, 2013. He was a black lab/ red-tick coonhound. He loved to roam the fields, swim, play ball, catch frisbees, go hiking and spend time at the barn. He also very much enjoyed those black and white cats that roam in the dark and have stripes down their backs...or he must have because he kept getting sprayed! He hated to be abandoned by his family and preferred us to all be in the house by 9pm or he started pacing. His biggest dislike was winter. He hated the cold and would rather hold his potty all day long than to go out and pee. Even when he did go out he barely makes it out the door and he was starting to go! Haha He was our "little boy in a doggie suit" as my aunt says. We love him and miss him like crazy.

Cali is our first cat together as a married couple. Sadly we said goodbye to her on October 8th, 2014. We got her from the barn shortly after we moved. She had to be one of the softest cats you had ever felt and of course one of the best looking calicos. LOL She was a great mouser and spent alot of her time in the basement hunting. She had a funny quirk. When she got ready to settle down and sleep, she parted the hair on her tail so only a few hairs were sticking up and then she proceeded to suck on those hairs.

Beaker is a litter mate to Cali. She is a great mouser. She loves to sneak outside when she gets the chance but if you say her name she quickly darts back in. She is VERY attached to Doug and is always coming up to him purring just as loud as can be begging to be picked up. Beaker of course never does this to me. She doesn't like change and isn't fond of strange dogs, although she has gotten much better with the dogs. She will still swat at Molly but it's not angry, it's almost like she is playing.

Sid was our Marshall Ferret. We said goodbye to him in 2012. He was amazing! Great with kids and other animals, but a total goofball. He definitely lived up to the typical ferret personality and a total thief! Sid's favorite thing to steal was pacifiers. He would take them right out of a baby's mouth if given the opportunity and then take off running! He always hid everything in the same place, so at least we knew where to find them, but of course they were always ruined. Anything rubber was in danger of ending up in the said spot. We definitely miss having him around.

Chloe is Cairn Terrier. She is a blast to have around and I'm definitely sold on the terrier family! She is great with the kids and loves spending time outside. She is a great woodchuck hunter and will sit at an occupied hole all day till she catches one. Even in the winter time she will spend forever out there and come back looking like a snowman. She loves to swim and will swim in any temperature water. She loves to mother other animals. Whether it be kittens from the barn, Case, or her own litter of puppies, she is a great mother! We have since fixed her. Although I'm sad there won't be another litter, it's for the best with the probability of us moving and having to find a new vet.

Meet Molly, our newest dog addition :) After taking some time to heal after losing Case, we decided that our household wasn't the same without a big dog around and we were missing something. So we took the plunge and went full out this time. Molly is a purebred, mis-marked mantle, Great Dane :) She has grown into one good looking pup! I'm still in love with this old picture though, so I'm not changing it! She stands about 31 inches at the shoulder and weighs over 100lbs (although honestly I'm not sure how much over because I can't lift her anymore!) She is great with the kids and loves to cuddle. She shares our bed and is the biggest baby ever. She is very protective and does not like when anyone is pinned down. She is right there to break up the "fight" LOL We love her to pieces!

When Doug's sister and her husband started breeding rabbits, I had a feeling deep down that it was only a matter of time....Here she is! Peterette started out as "Peter". When Madalyn realized "he" was actually a "she", she settled with Peterette. :) Peterette is a flemish giant, which according to what I have read is the Great Dane breed in the bunny world! Figures right? She is super sweet, very laid back and loves to be cuddled and pet. She'll stick her nose out of her cage when you enter the room just so you will scratch it!