Our latest happenings...

  We have recovered from our goat kidding fiasco. And now are back to life as we know it, but now with two bummer goats 😊 The bummers are eating three times a day now (with snacks in between 😉). We turned all the goats back out in the field and they are all doing great. No one has ventured towards the electric fence to experience that yet. But I'm sure it will happen sooner than later. The two bottle babies pretty much hang out by themselves and only play with one of the other baby goats. It's quite comical when we go out to feed them. We have to let the kids (human kids that is) get a head start running and then we let the goats loose and sprint away from them after we are done feeding them. Other wise they won't leave us alone and go through the fence. We dehorned them last weekend and in a few weeks we will casterate the males and give them their vaccines. Everyday they grow and get stronger and stronger. They are two weeks old now. So cute to watch! Our donkeys are doing great too. They are so good with the kids. Funny how the majority of the animals I want really have no purpose for us but to be looked at and played with. Makes me happy though. Can be quite the expensive and stressful hobby at times. Of course Chocolate Chip is as wonderful as ever. She is really enjoying the nice weather. She has been able to stay out without her blanket and be in her corral everyday. I feel so blessed that we stumbled across her. And last but certainly not least KODA is thriving! I'm happy to report she has gained weight and is looking as good as ever. Her energy isn't quite what is was, but she is 8 years old. I don't know what was going on with her, but I'm hoping it doesn't happen again. We do have some new additions in the works. We may be getting a couple field hogs! It's a pretty big maybe at this point. 

  We were able to sneak away to the coast the other day. It was absolutely gorgeous. It is so much fun as the kids get a little older. Austyn took her little quad and rode an incredibly long way for her age. We were very impressed. Quade also got to ride all by himself. Jordan hooked a strap to the quad like we use to do for Austyn. He loved it. 

  Jordan has done an amazing job on his diet. He is looking thin and trimmed!! He has also been having trouble with his shoulders lately. They've been bothering him for years now, but just in the last six months or so they have really gotten horrible. He's gotten several cortisone shots and a recent MRI showed that he has excess fluid (bursitis) in the joint and the bone isn't quit as smooth as it should be. He got another cortisone shot to see if there was any relief from it and to see how much time it would buy him before surgery. He will have to get an arthroscopic surgery to smooth the joint. It's a day surgery with 6 week light duty recovery. I'm sure the surgery will have to happen within the next 6 months. Jordan has also be starting ODP (officer development program). Within the next few years he will go through the training and testing and studying like he did with his Engineers test. He has been told it is not as intense as the Engineers program, but I'm sure it's no walk in the park either. He recently got a new (completely used and abused) truck. He has been loving fixing it up in every spare minute he can find. I have to hand it to him, it looks a million percent better than it did when we picked it up. 

  Austyn is practically perfect in every way. She is excelling in school. And she may quite possible be the kindest little girl I've ever met. She blows my mind with what rolls out of her mouth. Quade and I were having a "day" together and I had snapped at her for no reason at all. And later that day when I had realized what I'd done, I apologized  to her and she put her hand on my cheek and said "Mommy it's not your fault. It's ok." I almost started crying. I'm not kidding at all when I say she does these things everyday, if not multiple times a day. We were driving the other day and it was completely quiet and all of a sudden randomly she turns to Quade and says "I love you buddy!" I look back a few minutes later and they are both holding hands. I'm not sure what I did to deserve a child like her, but I thank God for her everyday. 

  I have the same aww and astonishment for Quade as I do for Austyn. Just in very different ways. He is 110% boy, through and through. I could watch him play for hours. He will act like he's hunting bears or wolves, run around the house like a wild animal, he LOVES to be teased, and he LOVES to tease, he likes to rough house, and loves to be snuggled. He has to have his owies kissed before he can continue playing. He would wear underwear and rubber boots everyday if we let him. If you've ever seen Old Yeller, he is much like the little boy. He is everything and more than we ever dreamed of having when we wanted a little boy. I can't begin to list how he has made me a better mother and person. We turned Quades crib into a toddler bed recently. He thinks it's the coolest thing ever! He looks so cute in his big boy bed. We told him once to not get up unless Mommy or Daddy says he can and so far he hasn't gotten out of bed without our permission. 

A little country kid fun:

  And as for me, I'm just living it up! I don't think I could possibly love life anymore than I do right now. We got a good thing going here and I'm so glad I realize it. Hope everyone is doing well and have a great Easter!