March Creations

Shea was loving making guns if you remember from February Creations. See if you can guess which one this one is. 

The Firetruck Walker made by Shea

This is not technically a creation, its more like an optical illusion, but it is still pretty neat.

The younger boys took an old straw bale that we bought for Kacy's 16th birthday dance (yes I know that was a long time ago) and made it into a cow. They put it on an old toy car and set a plastic bull head on it that Zach got as a birthday present when he was 4.

Janessa and some of the ladies from her B.R.I.G.H.T. Lights group made these tea cup candles for the girls hope chests. 

A helicopter walker made by Shea

And a robot made by Shea.

The other boys had creations this month, but they ended up getting taken apart before the camera crew arrived.

March 31 - Trip to Breckenridge cont.

We were planning on leaving at about 10:00 the next morning, so we went over to the house early. We had a great breakfast then Janessa, Zach, Riley, Kole, and their grandpa Mr. Beardon all got our their instruments and we jammed for a while.  

Thank you all for such a wonderful time!! It is a memory that we will cherish for ever!

March 30 - Trip to Breckenridge

We went down to Breckenridge this weekend to see the Tatums and to watch them compete in the National Bible Drill. 

This is water...for all of you in west Texas that don't see much of it.

I don't know how well you can see the field, but it is filled with prickly pear cactus.

We went through the little town of Albany, Texas. It was one of the neatest, cleanest, cutest town we have seen here. It had lots of false front stores, an old train depot, a beautiful court house and town square. It looked like a town from a western film, only with a highway running through it.

The drill started at 2:00 in the afternoon. There were two classes of younger kids, which did very good. Then there was a youth class, and a senior class. It was a very good competition with everyone doing great.

Younger kids class 2 . Nate Tatum is the short one in the middle with the camo shirt on. He got a higher score than he did last time. Way to go Nate!!!!

Youth class, both Riley and Kole are in this class. (They are the only ones with camo shirts on) Sorry no close-up picture of Riley. She earned a higher score then her last one. 

Kole also received a higher score. 

Senior class.

All of the Bible Drill contestants. Way to go all of you!!! You did an excellent job!!

Later Janessa drove the older kids out to see Riley's horse. While we were getting him ready, Zach, Shea, and Kole played in the barn.

The extra hands are Zach.

Which one is Shea and which is Kole?

We finished up the day with dancing together. We all had a blast!! Thank you all for having us!!

March 28 - Candles

For B.R.I.G.H.T. Lights this semester, Janessa and all the girls are hosting a Gratefulness Banquet for the parents. Every meeting they make a craft for that, and then it will go into their Hope chest. This week they are making tea cup candles. We went over to the Dowels house (the family that is doing the craft) today to work out some of the kinks in making candles. We poured up one of each color so that by the time we meet again all the candles will be dry and the girls can pick which candle they like the most.

Most of the candles fell in the middle, right next to the wicks. Does anyone know why this happens or knows how to keep this from happening?

March 26 - Star Spangled Banner

At 5:30 this morning Zach and Dad went down to check on our pregnant mare to make sure she was okay, and they met our new addition to the farm, a little colt, Star Spangled Banner. When they were down there he was all dry and happy, by the time it got light it was raining pretty nice, in fact the best rain we have had all year.  

Our first sight of Banner, wet, cold, and sticking close to mamma.

Later some friends came over to see him. By then the rain had stopped and he was enjoying the hot weather.

Morgan getting to pet him.

Andi coming to get her turn petting him.

I thought it was so funny that he gets up like a cow ( he only did that for the first day or two)

Molly the cowgirl petting him.

Lexi spent most of the day with him and Libby. 

We were also babysitting Josie and Cami today and so they were here as well. Since we really couldn't let fifteen kids in with a protective mamma horse, most of the kids were playing with puppies, the calf, and on the hay bale.

Josie teaching Cami how to hold the puppy correctly....again.

Shea and Cami build a "home" for the puppies.

Then the hay pile was a huge hit.

Warning: If you think that I put up a lot of pictures of puppies, they will still come with the addition of a foal..... and more babies. Can you guess what kind?

March 24 - Rocket Shaving Cream

Shea is our all around trash man, and he loves burning things. One of the things that went into the trash this week was a shaving cream bottle. Which, by the way, was not supposed to go into the burning trash. Shea on the other hand didn't know that it was in the trash until...... it rocked twenty feet into the air right after he dumped the trash in. It blasted through three full trash bags. As you can see from the pictures it was not in prime condition when it re-entered the atmosphere (so to speak) 

What are some unexpected "science experiments" that you have experienced?

March 22 - Calves, Baby, and Science

Last night Kacy found an add on Craigslist for a Jersey heifer. We have wanted a Jersey for a long time, because their milk is very creamy. She came out of a dairy so she was very skinny. Warning: not only are there going to be a lot of posts on puppies, but now calf. Her name is Virginia (Ginny for short) and is doing good. To take her home we just loaded her into the back of our 15 passenger van.

We went to see Colton afterward. He is so cute!!! This was the first time all of the kids got to see him.

Sorry the picture is up-side-down, but that is how he was laying.

Zach is a natural.

Garrett is too...even though he didn't think so.

We also had science today with the Gillilands. Very fun, educating class. Thank you Professor Mike!!