Just Cailin!!!

Ever find your child in the dryer?

Where's Cailin?

She's playing in her tent in the living room!

The Mowgli walk, from Jungle Book

Sticks everywhere!!!

Yesterday was a warmer day, so I decided to utilize the day and pick up sticks. As we have been picking up, we have found sticks that are stuck in the ground. I pulled this one out yesterday. It was at least 6 inches in the ground with a little sticking out. We have to watch Cailin very close so she doesn't run where we have not cleaned up. I don't want her to fall and get stuck with a stick. That was some heavy ice for the limbs to fall with such force to stick 6 inches into the ground. I'm glad I wasn't a deer in the woods when the world starting falling!!! I wonder how many animals died b/c of falling limbs?

Can you see where my helper is, sitting on the front porch. My rake has seen better days also. I was getting with it the other day and the handle broke in half. But it broke about the time Cailin walked up behind me. The rake hit her in the head and I thought I had poked her in the eye the way she was covering her eye. Luckily, it was just a small scratch above her eyebrow. Today we went to the library for story hour. I was picking out books and she was telling some of the other kids there that "My mommy hit me in the head with the rake". One of the mom's there says, "I wonder what mom did that". I just raised my hand and said, "That would be me, but it was an accident." I guess we just never know what our kids will say and how it will sound when it comes out. LOL!!

Here is the brush pile that has been started. Matthew started this before we got back home. Last week a Disaster Relief group from Tampa, FL showed up and cleaned up Matthew's grandmother's yard next to us. So some of this is from her yard also. But the bad thing is, we are not near done. We have some lined up on the road so the FEMA hired people can pick it up. We'll see if they really do. The wind is blowing about 20 mph and gusting about 45mph. When Cailin and I got home today there was a limb in the back yard that has been blown out today. I really wish the wind would stop blowing!!!

Tea party!

Yesterday, Cailin wanted to have a picnic tea party. She laid out a blanket on the floor and got out her tea set. I went and got Animal Crackers for our snack. She wanted to put on her purple dress and tea party shoes. We had a lovely afternoon tea party.

Winter Storm '09

This is my first post since the beginning and the end of the ice storm. We woke up that Tuesday morning to no power. After several hours of seeing how bad it really was, Jessica and I got hotel rooms down in Union City. Matthew stayed with Michael, who still had chickens, down in the shop. After three nights in the hotel we knew it was going to take a while for power to get back on. Cailin and I knew we had a nice warm place to go so to Southwest Arkansas we went to Nana and Papa's house. I hated to leave but then again, not really. Our power was off for 13 days. Matthew stayed with his brother, who got his power on pretty quick. Cailin and I got back home on Friday. Here is a series of picks of before, during, and after.

Cailin and Papa had a great time while we were home. She could not reach the sink in the bathroom so, first on the list was to build her a stool. They checked the cows several times a day to make sure they were all still there. Checking the cows means riding Dad's Kawasawki Mule. They spent lots of time in the shop on the days when it was really windy and the last day we were there was cow sale day. We wasn't sure if Cailin would like going to the Sale Barn, but she loved it. She was upset and didn't want to leave when it was over (it only lasted 17 minutes). Nana had to work most days, but to catch Cailin, she had to come outside. But now we are home and have a mess to clean up. It will take us a very long time. If you have a chain saw and want to help, come on over!!!!

New pink boots and sore muscles

I bet you thought that Cailin got new boots. Not this time. I got new pink boots. If you don't have a pair, I highly suggest you get one, if you do any kind of work outside. They are so comfortable. Go here to Muck Boots and check them out. They also have some cool purple ones.

The sore muscles come from wearing my new boots yesterday and helping my B-I-Law in the chicken houses. I picked up three houses of chickens myself and them helped him with the other three. I haven't done that much manual labor in a while. I'll be better in a few days. I still need to clean up my pink boots. It's been to cold to get back outside and wash them off real good,

Randomness at 3am

Cailin cried out at 1:30. I got up to check on her and now I can't go back to sleep. I had started a prayer when I went to bed at 10:30 and I fell asleep in the middle. So I finished my prayer and here I am. Things I was praying about:

• Our troops that are protecting us while we sleep in our nice warm bed or sit at our computers at 3 am
• A job. I am sending in my resume to two different companies and I pray that I can get one of them. Both of them sound like I would really enjoy them.
• I was praying and continue to pray for a fellow blogger. She had a baby yesterday evening and the baby has pneumonia in her lungs. Please pray for Harper and her family.
• Praying for friends, new ones to come into my life. It has been difficult being in a new place. It has been hard to find new friends since I am staying home. I miss the days at the big blue house when our home was full of folks over for that latest BBQ that was going on. I seem to have taken those days for granted and now not having them is hard. I continue to miss everyone back in Arkansas and some days wish we were back. We have only been in KY for 4.5 months and being home with Cailin is something I never thought possible. It has been wonderful. I guess I have a bad case of the winter blues. It has been so cold here that we have not been able to get outside and it is all catching up with me. I enjoy the fact that we are so close to Matthew's brother, SIL, and their son. Our nephew and Cailin are only 3 months apart and they have become so close. It is really great to see them playing and growing up together.
• For my family. Since the loss of my Pa, I continue to pray for strength for my Nanny. They were married for 63 years and she misses him so. Pa was such a wonderful man to all who knew him. If he liked you, you knew it. If he didn't, well you knew that too.
• And to end all the randomness and by no means was this a prayer but I was thinking about how badly I need a hair cut!!!

Good morning to you all. I'm going to try and catch a couple hours before Cailin is ready to start her day. Love to all.

Hello 2009!!

2009 started with us in bed, as usual. I have had a cold all week and not felt like much at all. Matthew went duck hunting New Years morning. They had a good shoot. I was glad to hear because he has not filled his buck tag and the ducks had been hanging out on the refuge. The Mississippi River is full and causing lots of back water and ducks like back water. We went driving yesterday evening and I snapped this picuture of the Mississippi River at Sunset.

Here are the pictures of the Birthday boy and his cake from Sunday. All of his family came over for cake and ice cream.

Cailin helped her Dad blow out the candles.

I wish each of you a blessed new year. I'm hoping that ours is much more settled than 2008. All that moving wore me out.