What's In It For Me?

We have arrived at Day 103 of posting.  My daily audience is beginning to dwindle as my subject matter becomes more predictable and less exciting.  Thank you to my regular visitors who come nightly to see if the day's activities were good, bad, or enlightened.  Today is Wednesday and Wednesday is my day off.  I run errands, errands, more errands, pretend to clean house, play with the pets, and go to the grocery store for the fourth time.

Every Wednesday I have a grand ambition of finding someone else to drive my children to school while I sleep in.  Every Wednesday I get up and take my kids to school with a list a mile long of errands.  Wednesday is usually date lunch with Thadd, although the past two weeks he has rescheduled.   Should I take the cancellations as a hint??

Today I went down to the barn to feed the pony and goats.  Pip, my black and white goat, was not feeling well.  She did't want to eat and had bowel issues.  After a full day of foraging on wild birdseed from my patio, potted plants around my chicken coop, chicken feed, and other various snacks, she seems to be back to normal.  My broken wing/leg chicken removed her makeshift cast and is beginning to hobble around better today.  Tiny, the tiny little chick will spend the night outside with his friends and I will attempt to sleep wondering if he will be smashed.  I know those of you with teenagers are wondering how I might handle my children going out and driving themselves anywhere, EVER.  The answer is, "Therapy."  Actually, I'm not sure therapy will work but I'm certain God will hear more prayers during the teenage years(my kids) than he has in my entire life.  It could be good for my prayer life.

Hmmm, that makes me wonder.  Why is it that when things get really hard I pray extra?  God wants us to need Him all the time and to seek Him all the time.  I would prefer to come to God in a good season and not a bad one.  My prayers are more hopeful and thankful in the happy seasons.  Our relationship with God should be like our marriages.  Through sickness and in health, for richer or poorer, till death we finally meet face to face!  The only difference is that once your wagon is hitched to God's, He stays with you.  You can't divorce God.  Well, you can try.  I digress...Your relationship will have its ups and downs, but the nature of a relationship is that is grows stronger every day, every year.  There is more to like and more to love.

Today I was driving down the road and I began to think about my husband.  I thought about his silvering hair and how much more handsome he is every year.  He started out very good looking, but has managed to get better looking every year!!!  I imagine God's love for us is so incredibly deep we cannot begin to fathom it, BUT I also believe that we begin to know Him when we have a relationship.  We begin to find him more amazing and more wonderful with each passing day, month, year.  The relationship is not for His benefit, it is for our benefit.  He loves you more with each passing day and knows your heart.  Below I posted a song that reminds me so much of the heart of God.  There has to be one line in the song that makes me come to pieces.  Toward the end of the song is the line, "You see the depths of my heart and you love me the same."  This song speaks to the awesome power of God, but also the very detail of knowing us so uniquely and despite our flaws and our shortcomings, HE STILL LOVES US.  Wow.


          Indescribable by Chris Tomlin  click here to hear the song.

From the highest of heights to the depths of the sea
Creation's revealing Your majesty
From the colors of fall to the fragrance of spring
Every creature unique in the song that it sings
All exclaiming

Indescribable, uncontainable,
You placed the stars in the sky and You know them by name.
You are amazing God
All powerful, untameable,
Awestruck we fall to our knees as we humbly proclaim
You are amazing God

Who has told every lightning bolt where it should go
Or seen heavenly storehouses laden with snow
Who imagined the sun and gives source to it's light
Yet conceals it to bring us the coolness of night
None can fathom

Indescribable, uncontainable,
You placed the stars in the sky and You know them by name
You are amazing God
All powerful, untameable,
Awestruck we fall to our knees as we humbly proclaim
You are amazing God
You are amazing God

Indescribable, uncontainable,
You placed the stars in the sky and You know them by name.
You are amazing God
All powerful, untameable,
Awestruck we fall to our knees as we humbly proclaim
You are amazing God
Indescribable, uncontainable,
You placed the stars in the sky and You know them by name.
You are amazing God
Incomparable, unchangeable
You see the depths of my heart and You love me the same
You are amazing God
You are amazing God

So, quick recap....pray in all seasons of life and build a relationship with God.  It is worth it.  If you are still wondering, "What's in it for me?" I can't help you.  Goodnight Friends.

Is That Your Best Work?

"I'm not sure your moon picture is very nice.  You colored it sort of sloppy." I said.  Brett looks at me and says, "Well Mom, everyone is different.  That is how God made them."  I'm not sure that is the answer I was expecting.  I wanted him to say something about doing it better next time.  He usually has very nice drawings and so I expected it to be nicer, but once he added the marker it just looked like a jumbled mess.

How often do you look at something and think it could look nicer, be better, or be more fabulous?  Surely we NEVER think that of our own work, mostly we think that of the work around us.  The mom who didn't organize the carnival booth the way we wanted it or the cake that your friend made didn't turn out perfect.  I often think those things about the way people dress.  Does that person not realize that pair of pants does not flatter their body?  I always want to fix that person and then I think about all the people out there who just want to fix my outfits.  I try to dress "in style" but I usually just dress in my own style.  I call it Mimi-chic.  I like it, it is comfortable, it is flattering, it is usually black.

Indeed we are all created different.  Some of us actually prefer heels to flats and others of us prefer tennis shoes to flip flops.  Some of us spend our days in sweats and others in business attire.  Brett is correct, God created us all to be different.  If we spend less time tending other people's gardens we might actually grow something worthwhile in our own.  It is always nice to have the reminder from the mouth of the seven year old....humbling is a better word.

Having heard this advice, how will your tomorrow change?  Or will it change at all?

Smelly Cat

For as long as I can remember I have worn the same perfume.  Many of my friends associate the scent with me, both good and bad.  Gone are the days that I can enter my closet and take a deep breath and smell Ralph Lauren's Safari.  Sadly, they stopped making the fragrance and now I am either buying very old bottles of perfume or I must find a new scent.

I have been to the fragrance store, department store, and kiosk too many times.  The sales people all know my saga and they really do try to accommodate my scentful search.  Every time.  Recently a friend sent me a bottle of perfume.  It wasn't the next forever scent, but it was nice and I used the whole bottle.  I went to try and purchase it at the store and it was no longer available.  I'm noticing a trend.

Today I went to Sephora with my kids.  Not a great way to find a fragrance with Brett on the floor searching for lost items under the displays and Chloe working the "scent finder" app on the wall touch screen.  Brett located close to $1000.00 in merchandise that I'm sure they just wrote off as stolen items during the inventory days.  He was very proud of himself especially when he pulled out an unidentified object.  Chloe grabbed it for further inspection and identified it as a very old and never eaten chocolate covered strawberry.  We all made the "gross face" and Brett tossed the remains in to the trash.  The woman who was waiting on us asked Brett to avoid anymore cleaning sprees as she was afraid he might find a live animal.  As I watched those words spill out of her mouth I wanted to return them as quickly as they fell out.  A live animal would only add more satisfaction to the floor crawl cleaning spree.  I quickly looked at Brett and gave him "the face," hoping he understood how I meant it.  I saw a smile flash across his face until he saw my face.  I knew he understood just by the quick loss of joy in his face.

I returned my attention to the perfume finding adventure that began with spritzes up my arms.  Luckily the lady didn't see me spraying on my skin.  You know how they always want to spray it on a spritz stick and hand it to you as if it has any usefulness on the paper.  If I liked the fragrance on the paper I would already have found a fragrance!!!  Unfortunately scents turn to all sorts of yuck on me.  Having Chloe around as a sniffer isn't the best plan either.  I got a bunch of, "That one smells old." or "That one smells like an old lady trying to smell young." or my favorite, "That one smells like an old lady and a young lady are friends."  What does that even mean?

After the longest thirty minutes of my life, I settled on a scent I've purchased in past years.  The first time I bought this perfume I was on a cruise with a bunch of girls celebrating a friend's 40th birthday.  Every time I smell the scent it reminds me of the cruise.  Oh to be on a cruise again!!!  Well, as long as I wear this fragrance I can be on an eternal cruise.

I really wanted to like the perfumes with the names like, Simply Irresistible, Candy, and Envy, but none of those worked for me.  I settled on the cruise fragrance by D&G, The One.  Not too terrible of a name.  It sounds almost like the number of clays I shot at the shootout.  One is a good number.  I make my purchase and head for the car with Chloe and Brett playing games that require them to have their volume turned to 11 and for them to be in bouncy mode.  I ignore them and focus on trying NOT to smell the six smells rising from my arms.  Or was it eight?  Yuck.

Perfume never stays on me unless I spray eight different ones and then it seems like they never go away!  I can't wait till I shower tonight and get all the nastiness off of me.  Maybe those little sticks aren't so bad after all.

Your Perspective. Your Choice

I've been thinking about writing this blog for a while so when I heard my pastor talk about perspective this morning, I knew it was time.  Perspective is something that shapes our experiences and molds our memories far beyond the now.  We carry our perspective every where we go and we constantly add and subtract as needed to clearly see the picture of our lives.

All of us piece together our perspective with good, bad, fun, not so fun, boring, exciting!  The one thing that does not shape our perspective is someone else's experiences.  Imagine two people standing at the dock watching a skier do his fancy tricks and he wipes out.  Each of the two bystanders will have similar but different variations of the events.  Uniquely swayed by each persons attention to detail, life experience, or even level of vision.

Yesterday, when I buried one of my tiny chicks who was crushed in the late night cuddle session, I decided to move the other tiny chick indoors at night.  Of the eight babies that survived The Great Chicken Relocation of 2012, one was crushed by the other chicks during a late night cuddle under the warming light.  The last two babies are smaller because they were born last and they are bantams.  Bantams are miniature chickens.  Although tiny, they make up for their size in their grand attitude.  Ok, stay with me.  The surviving baby bantam chick is being removed nightly to the big purple box inside.  Tiny is truly half the size of the other chicks even though he is only three days younger.

Tiny, when moved indoors for the evening, cheeps and cheeps and cheeps and cheeps.  He does not like being alone and thinks I am a mean farmer lady for quarantining him at night.  This morning when I took him back outside with his friends, he walked up to each one and cheeped something.  He worked his way through all six of the chicks and then he ran around and flapped his tiny Tiny wings.  I watched him cuddle with the chicks and cheep louder if they tried to keep him from cuddling with them.  As I write, Tiny is CHEEPING and won't quit.

My perspective is, I'm saving him from being crushed on accident by his friends on this cold night.  His perspective is, farmer lady is evil and is taking him away from his family.  He remembers these long nights filled with crying only to be returned to his family in the morning.  Maybe if he cries louder he will see them sooner.  As you can see, our perspectives are entirely different even though we are both a part of the same experience.

I am a child of divorced parents and over the years as I hear my parents talk about what did and did not work in their marriage, the one thing I can truly understand is our perspectives will never be the same.  We were all there for the marriage.  We lived in the same house and ate the same food, celebrated the same holidays and went on the same vacations.  Every single day and every experience we had together shaped a different perspective in each one of us.

I think one of the most pivotal moments in our lives comes when we choose to allow the negative experiences in our lives to outweigh the positive.  Everyone has STUFF.  Some people have more stuff than others.  You are the one who chooses how to live out your life given your perspective.  I do know God can help tremendously.  He can help you to leave the past behind and to forgive all sin.  God is also your choice.  He stands at the door and knocks...

Revelation 3:20

New International Version (NIV)

²⁰ Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me.  (biblegateway.com)

Life is full of choices and I'm sure your perspective is filled with lots of stuff, good and bad, but how will you choose to make that perspective productive.  How will your individual events and lives impact those around you?  Will you use them to hurt people or help people?  To encourage or discourage?  To punish or to forgive?  To hate or to discipline? Your Perspective.  Your Choice.

The BFA

I have a degree.  A real college degree.  I've been thinking about earning another one.  I just can't quite figure out what I want to study besides veterinarian medicine.  Recently I sat and began to evaluate my life.  I wanted to consider my achievements and my mishaps.  I thought about my degree....BFA Dance.  Bachelor of Fine Arts.  ok.  What if they offered a BFA...Bachelor of FUN ARTS??

I know!  I'm brilliant!  What would the Bachelor of FUN ARTS look like?  The possibilities are endless.  It could include classes in home economics, calligraphy, bungee jumping, snorkeling, trampoline fitness, or whatever you choose.  The only real hinderances would be the lack of classes offered at the university.  I imagine it would be beneficial to attend a really large university that is more apt to allow you to create your own major.

If you could create your own version of the BFA (Bachelor of FUN ARTS), what would it look like?  What sort of classes should be offered and what sort of job opportunities await the BFA graduate.  You also have to consider what classes should be required and what kind of electives should be available for the BFA seeker.    Electives should involve community service class, dirty jobs, and cupcake making.  Required courses, the things that I think every fun-haver should be required to know, are Doomsday Prep Class, Hunting and Gathering Class(I may only eat berries from then on), and something involving a tiara.

I really want to hear your opinions about your best scenario degree plan!!  If Blogger does not allow you to post comments, just e-mail me directly at merissa.stricker@gmail.com and I will add them to the blog.  We seriously do not have enough opportunities to use our imagination in a fun and creative way (besides planning what we would do if we won the lottery) and this is your big opportunity to just have FUN!!

The Sweetest of All

Yesterday was a sad day.  Of the ten (10) babies who hatched from the incubator process, there were 24 who did not make it.  We finally emptied our incubator due to the rotting eggs.  There were twenty four fertilized eggs that did not make it to full growth.  The noxious gases escaping from the rotting eggs have a negative effect on the growing babies.  Unfortunately, two of those babies id not make it very long.  One died during the hatching process and the other died within 48 hours of birth.    The rotten eggs were placed in a hole in the ground.  We cracked the eggs and some had partial baby chick bodies that had stopped growing during the incubation process and some that were fertilized but never grew.

Brett thought we needed to hatch more babies.  No thanks.  I think eight live and frisky babies are enough for me.  I stop to think what life would be like with eight children.  Nope, not for me.  Although, I think about the incubation process as similar to being a surrogate.  I can't imagine giving my babies away and they are first, chickens and second, chickens.  I realize when a surrogate carries someone else's child, they are carrying nothing of their own.  I know they are paid to do it and they are required to give the baby to their biological parents at birth.  Nope, not for me.  Any woman who is able to help another family have a baby by being a surrogate is an absolute angel!!

Today, I was holding my friend's grand baby in my arms with his perfect round head, white blond hair, and blue eyes.  I even told his mother that within a month he would no longer miss her.  I'm fairly certain that isn't the nicest thing to say to a first time mom, although true.  I close my eyes and think about all the precious children with their perfect round heads and beautiful bright eyes living in orphanages around the world.  There was no one there to take them home.  There are so many stories for why these children are not in a home.  Maybe they should be in my home or your home.  I can smell that sweet smell of baby coming from their soft baby skin and the soft pinch you feel when they first learn to use their thumb and forefinger.  The smiles that brighten the darkest rooms and the tears they cry when they just want to see your face.   

My children are not babies anymore and the beauty they add to my life even when I was the only one who could soothe them, will long be remembered.  The smell of baby never gets old and babies never get un-perfect.  They are a miracle and a gift.  I wonder if Brett will let me rock him to sleep tonight.  Yeah, probably not.

A Huge Shortage

I am coming to you this evening with a business proposal.  I think we can all get rich and retire if we do this hot new thing.  I'm certain it has not been around very long and it seems easy.  I know you aren't ready for this bomb, but here it is:  goat milk.  Is this a hot new thing?  NOPE!

My friend's grand baby came to town today and his mother asked if we could find some goat's milk for him.  I, being a goat mom, knew just the place.  I recently had a conversation with a friend and she told me about this holistic healing spot in Boerne with fresh, delicious goat's milk.  I showed up this morning ready to pick up my gallon of milk.  The nice lady at the healing compound informed me of the huge goat  milk shortage.  I left sad to have failed at the acquisition of my one item to bring to the baby.  I began a frenzied calling spree to every goat herder, health food store and co-op.  Unfortunately I was placed on the month long waiting list.  WHAT??

I have to wait one month to get some fresh goat's milk.  I can get everything at the store EXCEPT raw goat's milk.  What sort of place do I live where I don't have goat's milk at my beck and call??  Now do you understand why we need to start a goat milk business?  I'm considering quitting my teaching job and becoming a full time goat farmer.  Sounds lucrative.

Now that you are envious of my brilliance in riding the goat milk wave, please feel free to join me.  Just think of all the fun we'd have on the farm.

What Did I Do Wrong?

This week has been filled with some very sad stories of loss.  On Saturday I read a message from a grade school friend of mine where she shared her deepest grief in the loss of her baby at eighteen(18) weeks gestation.  Today, another friend suffered the loss of her baby at ten (10) weeks gestation.  My heart aches for these two women and their husbands.  This is the first child for both of these young families and having suffered a similar loss early in my marriage I remember the hopelessness and grief I felt.  I have previously written about this loss, but today is going to be a little different.

I, too, experienced loss this week.  My loss was far less difficult than what these two families experienced, but it brought feelings to the surface that I had not felt in recent days.   I had two chicks cracking through their shells.  They were between four and eight hours from hatching.  I had a full day at work and so I moved the eggs from the incubator to the big purple baby chick box.  When I arrived at the end of the day, one was partially hatched and the other had not made any progress.  I helped the partially hatched baby make its way out of the egg and lifted the other egg to my ear to check for signs of life.  When I left in the morning it was actively poking at the egg shell and cheep, cheep, cheeping.  With the egg by my ear I lightly tapped the shell.  I didn't hear any sounds coming from inside.  The egg felt stiff.  I walked outside and ripped the egg open to find a dead baby chick.  Just this morning the chick was alive and trying to make its way out of the shell.  What happened?

Was it not warm enough?  Was it too warm?  Should I have come home to check on them when I had that urge in my gut?  What did I do wrong???  All of the questions go unanswered.  All of these questions will go unanswered for most woman who suffer a miscarriage.  You will never know why?  It is also likely the reason you miscarried had nothing to do with what you ate or drank.  There are women who are alcoholics, drug addicts and prostitutes all at the same time and they deliver babies.  Now, the problems her child suffers are likely due to her issues, but your loss is NOT your fault.  The sip of wine or the delicious cup of coffee didn't cause your body to spontaneously reject the pregnancy.

The hardest part of the loss for me was the not knowing.  I will never know why.  I will never know why either of my miscarriages occurred and I will never know why my little chick died when it was progressing nicely eight hours earlier.  I don't think I really understood faith like I did in the weeks following my miscarriage.   Parents who lose a child at any age due to an unsolved mystery often feel this sort of questioning.  They may never see or find an answer for their loss and at some point they need to give it over to God.  He is truly the only one who can make your heart feel less broken.  The heartache never completely goes away because we choose to keep the memory alive.  Keeping the memory alive is part of what makes us who we are.  Each and every one of us has a story to share and our experiences, good and bad, are what make us unique.  No one has ever lived the same life, not even twins have the exact same life experiences.

Having a unique story makes your story so valuable as a guide, lesson, or maybe even entertainment for people around you.  Sometimes your hardest moments make your story so valuable to someone else who is currently experiencing similar difficulties.  Likewise, your happy stories can add hope and happiness to those who might be hurting.  Life is meant to be shared.  Do not be afraid to share your experiences with the people around you.  You never know when your life experiences might be an encouragement to someone is your sphere.

As I close tonight's blog I offer no answer for your loss.  I offer God as a solution for your grief and I invite you to share your story.   Your story is valuable.  Share it.

This morning I awoke to a message from a dancer friend of mine who had this to share, "I lost a baby at seven months and three(3) years later had lovely healthy Isabella...God has your master plan and there is nothing we can do but have faith and carry on.  What is meant to be is meant to be.  I feel blessed for every experience, good or unfortunate, in my life.  Although, it's never easy losing something you love."  -KLU

There are so many stories to be shared.  Please post them if you feel comfortable doing so, as it can help the healing process for those woman around you who are suffering the same pain.  Again, thank you to all of my friends who feel comfortable enough to share their stories in this public forum.  Your faith encourages me, as well. 

PRAYdar

Today I saw a police officer I have seen many times around town.  Yes, I live in a small town.  Yes, there aren't a ton of officers in the small town.  BUT, when I see someone enough times I am reminded to pray for them.  Today I walked in to a local restaurant where he sat with a fellow officer and a woman.  I asked if I could pray for him.  He may have considered reaching for his gun.  Not sure, but he had a puzzled look on his face.

I prayed for him and then returned to my table for lunch.  I think there were a few people at the restaurant, him included, who thought I was strange.  As he was leaving he thanked me and then commented that he is highly visible in this town because he is a police officer.  True, but I've lived here for five years and I've seen him twelve times in the past two months and never before then.  My point is, if someone shows up on your radar PRAY FOR THEM.

Goodnight friends.

The Sound of a Pin Drop

Peaceful Evening by Dale Ziegler

After the events of the weekend I was eager to have a quiet and uneventful day.  Today was that day.  A baby chick hatched while I was at school and another one is on the way.  No complications and no stress.  Classes were quiet and my children did not require excessive or medical attention.  All of the animals are either healing or are healed or dead.  Poor hamster.  Speaking of Weasel Scamper, his burial was pushed to tomorrow or maybe even Wednesday as the funeral home was full and couldn't accommodate us any sooner.  Which is code for my husband has been working late and can't attend until Wednesday.

Chloe's carving catastrophe has made it impossible for her to play her last volleyball game this weekend.  Brett still plans to play football and to trash talk the other seven year olds.  By trash talk I really mean, say things in order to distract the other team and remove their focus from the game to the topic at hand.  It could be frogs, grass, snakes or even candy.  I think Brett is actually turning a corner and making good choices.  He and his friends compete to see who can get a a coram Deo(Latin phrase meaning in the presence of God) which is a card given to students who go above and beyond in any capacity without being told.   Oddly, Chloe did get her name on the board today for not sitting correctly in her class.  She claims she "forgot," but if I know my girl, she was pushing boundaries.

The highlight of my day was being asked by a friend to pray for her mom who is battling cancer and was going in to surgery for an invasive procedure.  I am blessed to hear from my friends who trust me with their prayer requests.  I am not the person who locks herself in a prayer closet for hours on end, but I pray throughout the day for people and situations as they impress upon my heart.  I write this blog because I enjoy writing.  I enjoy this blog because of each one of you who reads it, comments, and allows me to be a part of your life.  If I can ever pray for you or encourage you, I'm just a comment away.

I hope your Monday was laid back and relaxing.  Have a wonderful week and I will see you back here tomorrow!

A Little Painful

This morning was relaxing and yet not so relaxing as my daughter's new dog paced the house looking for her.  Unfortunately for the dog, she was 150 miles away at the beach with her friend.  Even with my earplugs on I could hear the jingle of his harness and the clicky clack of his too long nails.  It seemed like a beautiful Sunday morning until I visited the chicken coop and realized one of my tiny racers(that is what I call them) who lays the light pink eggs, had managed to damage her wing.  She also seems to be dragging her leg a little.  I wonder if this is sympathy pain for my twisted ankle?  Nah.  She and her twin sister are usually the first two chickens to greet me when I bring them food.  She stayed under the table and watched all the chickens eat some delicious fresh oatmeal I made for them.  

I felt badly for her and so I carefully caught her and hand fed her some oatmeal.  I rummaged through my purse to find the band used on me this past Friday when I twisted my ankle and I used it to wrap her wing in place.  That is when I noticed the limp.  I stuck her in the small chicken coop where the baby chicks and the cocktiels live.  She is not happy about the quarantine, but it is necessary.

While working in the yard I also spotted some mating grasshoppers.  Brett walked over to where I was standing trying to get a good photo of the action and he asks, "What did you find?"  Looking over my shoulder he sees the subjects of my photo and says, "Oh, just mating grasshoppers."  Uh huh.  So now Brett is an insect mating specialist??  Yikes.

At some point during the day I decided to poke at the eggs sitting in my incubator.  I started with 34 eggs and only have six chicks.  Someone needs to be hatching soon.  Sure enough, one hatched at about 8:30 pm and #8 is hatching as I write.  I sure do love these baby chicks.

There was fun activity during the middle of the day, But I'm leaving it for the end because the picture included might be upsetting if you have a weak stomach.  The evening was filled with hatching chicks and the unearthing or un-pineshaving of Chloe's hamster.  This hamster has had a tumor and ate the tumor and even survived Brett sitting on him about six months ago.  Tonight, he lay peacefully in his little house.  Since we found him at bedtime I promised to freeze him for burial in the morning. He didn't feel as though he had been gone very long, but Chloe was sad.  She decided she doesn't want another hamster.  I'm so glad for the no hamster decision.  She cried a little.  I wrapped him in saran wrap and placed him in a box in the freezer.  Tomorrow we will say our formal goodbyes to Weasel Scamper Stricker.

Chloe arrived from the beach at around 3pm and I finally made it to pick her up at 4pm.  I made sure to bring a bottle of wine for her friend's grandparents.  Having two girls at the beach for the weekend can be exhausting!!  We leave one friend's house and head to another.  Chloe was invited to carve pumpkins and decorate cakes.  I'm inside visiting with some of the other parents who are there and I walk outside because I see Chloe with a sharp object.  I ask her to refrain from using the object to carve because it "doesn't look very safe."  I return to the indoors where the air conditioner and adult company are keeping me happy.  Chloe walks inside.  She calmly raises her hand and says, "Mom, I cut my hand.  Do I need to get stitches?"  I look at her hand and say, "You might need stitches."  She begins to scream, "NO!!!!!!!!!  I DON''T WANT STITCHES!"  I realize this whole situation can be avoided if I take the wait and see approach.  "Look Chloe, we are going to have to wait and see what the doctor says, but we should probably grab your stuff and go get it checked out."  I remain calm and avoid saying the word stitches and Chloe remains calm and keeps the paper towel on her hand to stop the bleeding.  I take a quick look and assess the cut.  It could probably take stitches, but maybe we can just butterfly it.  We get to the car and I say to her, "Chloe, this is one of those times where I hate being right."  She replies, "I'm so sorry mom.  I should've listened to you.  I really do hate being wrong!!"  I consider recording these words to playback when she is a teenager, but I refrain.  I call my friend and her husband who just happen to be a nurse and a surgeon.  I drive to their house and after looking at her hand and understanding the complications involved in stitching her up, they kindly butterfly her wound.  We all agree if she decides to be a hand model they will need to airbrush the scar.  If you have a weak stomach I encourage you NOT to scroll to the picture of Chloe's hand at the bottom of the screen.

Today was a good Sunday.  Lots of lessons learned.  We learned how to identify mating grasshoppers, how to fix a broken chicken wing, how to butterfly a cut, how to freeze a hamster for later burial, and how to teach your child a lesson that she teaches herself.  The last one was the hardest. Oh how I wish we all learned by words alone.

A Good Day, Indeed

1994 Society of Martha Washington Pageant.  Me with Ann Richards

Today started out relatively normal.  I got dressed and hopped in the car heading toward Laredo.  I was scheduled to audition for The Society of Martha Washington's annual pageant, to sing the national anthem.  I arrived early so I could find the appropriate room and I pulled up at the same time a van full of American Heritage Girls, and their brother, arrived.  At that very moment I mumbled to myself, "You best get back in your car and high tail it to San Antonio as there is no way you can compete with a handful of cuteness!"  Turns out, I was right.  I spent the next three hours in a beautiful recital hall at Texas A&M International University in Laredo.  I was blown away by the young talent in the city and mesmerized by the amazing facility.

I was the oldest auditionee and therefore I believe there was an element of sympathy involved.   The panel having sympathy for me!  Nonetheless, I was proud to be a candidate considering the talented individuals who sang before me.  I was the last singer in the audition process and I'm not sure which is worse, first or last!


I received this kind note from the President of the Society of Martha Washington.  The truth of the matter is that for this occasion I was not the right fit.  I would do it again a thousand times even if I knew the answer would be the same.  The experience, the people, and the friends made and seen were worth the three hours spent at TAMIU.  Thank you Mrs. Hopson for your tireless efforts to carry on the legacy and traditions of the Society of Martha Washington!!

"You honored the Society of Martha Washington, WBCA, and your hometown  by participating in Saturday's event.  As a former deb, hometown girl done good, and very talented educator we were lucky to have you.  There was NO sympathy involved- you were wonderful..." -Mrs. Margaret Hobson

Before any of the auditioning started I spent some time visiting with the mother of some of the American Heritage Girls.  We spoke about homeschool and about classical education.  As I stood in the hallway with her, tears rolled down my cheeks.  I knew at that very moment why I was standing in a beautiful fine arts facility at TAMIU in Laredo, Texas.  I was supposed to meet this sweet mother and her beautiful children.  I said to her, "If for no other reason, God brought me here today to meet you."  I sat through the audition and sang and then watched as the group of young girls were honored with the opportunity to sing the Star Spangled Banner in February at the Society of Martha Washington's 2013 Pageant.  A smile came across my face as I remembered my mutterings from the first moment I saw them exit their van.  I'm glad I didn't pack up and head home before having the chance to meet and form a relationship with an eager homeschool mom who is searching for the best options for her children.  I hope I can, in some way, lead her down the right path in educating her children.  As she seeks to embrace classical Christian learning, I also hope to form a relationship with her family.

Prior to the auditions, I also met a young lady who is seeking to secure a spot at The North East School of the Arts here in San Antonio.  Having been a teacher at the school, I was able to offer insight and encouragement along her path to success.  If today was only about being chosen to sing, it would've been a disappointing day.  Today was about connecting with people, being an encourager, being encouraged, seeing old friends, and making new ones.   I even had lunch with my mom and a friend of hers that I haven't seen since I was in grade school.   The day was worth the drive and worth the time.  Thank you God for affording me to chance to be a part of something greater than myself!!

I hope your Saturday was filled with joy.  Much love and sweet dreams!

The Fall From Grace

This morning it was business as usual on the farm except I was dressed in casual running gear(I do not run) for our annual Jogathon.  Usually I am dressed in business attire with high heels and I feed the animals without any event.  This morning played out a little differently.  I stepped in to the goat stall from the high step right in to the hole the goats made for their new sleep spot.  My ankle was not stable and therefore it rolled and I hit the ground.  Goat food flying EVERYWHERE!!!  The goats climbing all over me searching for food stepping on my head and arm and foot trying to move me off of their spilled food.  I start to whimper and my son hears me and runs to render aid.  I tell him, "Go get Daddy!"  Brett tells Chloe and Chloe runs to the house.

It felt like only five seconds before my husband shows up and lifts me off the ground.  I give orders to re-feed the goats and to feed the pony.  It is now 7:47am and these kids need to get to school.  My husband drives me to the house and calls our good friend who happens to be a doctor.  He is frantic and thinking we should go to the hospital.  He has seen me cry thanks to emotional instability, but rarely physical pain.

I limp inside the house and tell him I have to go and get the kids to school for the jogathon and I am supposed to be volunteering.  UGH!  I can barely walk so I don't think I am going to be much help to anyone.  I get to school and drop the kids off and limp to the volunteer station to report my mishap.  I then limp over to a hidden corner where I find some ice for my ankle and I set up my chair.  I pout.  My husband shows up shortly with a hot tea from Starbucks.  Now I'm sad because I'm not helping, I'm not walking with my kids, and I'm loaded with caffeine and can't go ANYWHERE!!

This is Boo and my
co-puppysitter.

I spent the day watching from my perch and had a very laid back day.  I am thankful for the time to visit with friends and to relax.  It was needed more than I realized and for the day off I am grateful, for the sore ankle I'm dealing with it.  I even had time to puppysit my friend's tiny dog, Boo.  She is a micro teacup Pomeranian and is full grown!!

The whole falling on the farm thing made me glad I don't have pigs.  Recently a farmer fell in his trough and was eaten by his pigs.  The goats trampled me, but at least they didn't eat me!  See, SILVER LINING!!!  I think today turned out great even if I now walk with a gimp.

I'm Totally Addicted!

Do you recall Paris Hilton coining the phrase, "That's HOT!"?  I'm hearing a new phrase starting to gain popularity in the soccer mom circle.  "I'm TOTALLY addicted to that!"  "That" refers to anything and everything under the sun.  It seems that our life is filled with all sorts of things that require labels and I even find myself reading text messages and new reports and wanting to "Like" the material I'm reading.  I want to comment.  I want you to know that I agree or disagree, like or dislike, + or -, but I want the emotion to be strong enough for you to understand my feelings.  The problem is we are becoming extremists.  We know more, see more, have more, want more, talk more, and we have a public opinion.  We are all public figures with our own accounts whether it be Google+, Twitter, Facebook,  My Space, whatever!  Imagine, years ago no one would have allowed me to have a blog and yet today I have an opinion and a loud one.

I want to visit temptations and addictions.  This is not going to be pretty, so continue if you dare.  Temptation begins early in our lives.  The toy on the floor when you are in the playpen.  The pacifier on the floor when you are in the crib.  The kitten who is always just out of reach.  As we grow it takes the form of underage drinking, promiscuity, adultery, pornography and drug use.  It can also look like something much less seductive.  Food, shopping, marathons and even just regular exercise can become addictions.

Being an extreme personality, I like things that make me feel good.  I like soft blankets, a loaf of warm freshly baked bread, and drag racing.  Ok, I've never drag raced.  I have so many soft blankets some might consider me to be a blanket hoarder.  I can eat an entire loaf of freshly baked warm bread if I have a moment of weakness.  If there are more loaves, so be it!  I get in to a daze and just begin to eat and eat and then when I'm done I feel guilty and empty.  I haven't done this lately, but this used to be a regular occurrence.  I would wake up in the morning thinking about food and I planned my day around my meals.  I don't think you necessarily have an addiction if you think about food, especially if you are a mom or dad who is the meal maker at home.

I think we all understand addiction.  Some people say they cannot break their addiction because they have a disease.  Science supports this theory.  I do not.  Cigarettes, sex, drugs, alcohol, food, exercise, any addiction requires YOU to stop the cycle.  The thing I truly can't understand is why people start something they know is addicting??  There are so many answers to that question.  They are defiant, they are supporting Darwinism, they are just plain stupid, they like the way it feels.  Oh how I long for the moments of reflection a cigarette smoker has as they exhale and blow smoke in to the air.  That moment of release seems so joyful.  I tried it once.  A W F U L!

I'm not sitting on my high horse looking down.  I struggle with addiction everyday.  I fight it at every turn.  Although I come from a loving family, my father's love never came in the form of attentiveness.  He was a gift giver and his love and affection was shared through treats, gifts, or special food.  Here is the moment of truth...."I am addicted to attention!!"  There, I said it.  I'm sure all of you are SHOCKED!!  In my life I have struggled with striking a balance between being me and seeking attention.  In the past five years I have been at war with myself learning how to be me.  The me that God created, not the me that I've spent years perfecting at the cost of a portion of my soul.  Well, I think I managed to get my soul back, I hope.

I began to understand a fundamental principle.  We all have powers.  Hear me out....We all have powers and you can either use them for GOOD or for EVIL.  The years I spent dancing and in pageants have prepared me to walk, talk and act in a way that makes a statement.  I perform life;  I do not merely live it.  Since life is a stage you can either demand an audience or you can place your focus toward heaven and hope that the audience sees God and not you.  Over the years, actually only the past five, I've begun to realize that God's fingerprint on my life is far more important to me than the fingerprint I leave on other people's lives.  I cannot leave God's fingerprint on your life if He has not left His on mine.

I always said I wanted God to be glorified, but not at the cost of my pride, my pain, or my sacrifice.  I was seeking attention for God.  HA!!  He does not need me to drum up attention for HIM!!  I used to make these deals with him.  "Ok, God.  I will do X, Y, and Z if you will do what I'm asking you to do."  I also used my abilities, appearance, and talents to get what I wanted instead of using God as my reference.  I demanded attention and controlled my environment through manipulation.  I was a master. I am ashamed.

I spent years using my powers for EVIL while pretending to be good.  I actually believed I was doing the right thing until one of those life re-evaluation periods caught up with me.  If you still think I'm an attention seeker, I won't disagree.  I do hope that if there is attention to be had, it shines brightly on my Heavenly Father as being the Master of my life.  I am not perfect, I suffer from addiction that I have to lay at His feet daily, and I struggle with temptations just like the rest of you.  I choose to use my "powers" for GOOD and to share God's love here, there, and everywhere.  I thank Him for accepting me as I am and being willing to use me for His Kingdom works.

1 Corinthians 10:13

New International Version (NIV)

¹³ No temptation^[a] has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted^[b] beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted,^[c] he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it. (biblegateway,com)

Choose your words wisely.  Don't be "addicted" to anything and everything that crosses your path.  Keep your eyes focused on Him and he will remove temptation or give you the strength to resist it.  The walk WILL NOT be easy, but it will be for GOOD.

I Am a Stalker

One day I will join this cause.  If you can't see the shirt this man is wearing, look at the picture below.  A Gathering Of Geezer!  Yes!!!!  I stalked this man through HEB to photograph his shirt.  If you are wondering, that is NOT my hand holding down his shirt.  I was merely the picture taker.

Chloe had recently been talking about geezers and I found it entertaining to hear her talk about our older generation in such a way.  She did not mean to be disrespectful, she was actually trying to be funny.  When we spotted the man in the geezer shirt we both started laughing and then preceded to stalk him through the store.  

This brings me to my next point....STALKING.  I'm afraid I have a very stalker type personality.  I notice things and people and see people all over the place and they don't necessarily see me.  God and I have this rule.  If he puts someone in my path three times outside of school, church, or a gym, I consider it a call to pray for that family.  Sometimes I will text that person and let them know I'm praying for them or maybe just an "I see you!" message which is VERY creepy for most people.  I'm telling you that I would make a great stalker if it weren't for God.  I wouldn't consider myself a prayer warrior who is constantly on her knees in prayer, but I'm an excellent prayer stalker.  

If you get a text from me and feel like you are being followed, rest assured you are being followed with prayer.  Feel free to text back any request you might have for the prayers!!  God has so blessed me with a love of people and I know He intended it for His purpose and fulfillment.  I don't think it is special or nice of me to stalk people, I just believe each of us is given gifts and we need to decide to use them or LOSE them.

 I never want to lose my passion for people and the pursuit of their souls for the calls of Christ.  I'm sure some of you think I've lost my rocker and you are right.  God is the reason I am who I am and the reason I have done anything fruitful in my life.  I cannot take the credit for any of the successes I've had because hard work can't necessarily provide the opportunities I've been afforded in my life.  There are many people who work hard and don't get the things they are working toward.  If I take a look at my life there are few things I've strived to achieve where God did not honor the desires of my heart.

My life is not without personal disappointment or even frustration in the face of difficulties, but it has mostly been a beautiful ride.  Again, I remember the image of being held over the hard times and knowing that He held me above it all.  The circumstances didn't end nor did they get easier, but His overwhelming PEACE sets in and puts it all in perspective.  If you keep your eyes turned toward heaven you don't see the thieves and destroyers gnashing below.  I'm including a photo I took of my third baby hatchling to remind us of how God's hand holds us over the garbage of life.

If I ever send you a stalker text, know you are being slathered in prayer. I am a lover of people and I truly care about you, your family, your dog, your horse, your sick parents, you great aunt Nina, and everything else that makes you...you.  Your story is worth something to me and more importantly the author of that story, your Heavenly Father, is worth it to me.  I guess when you think of it in that way, everyone's story is authored by the Father, then it's of great value.  Book Signing Today!!!  Come have your book signed by God!  Don't you think your story is fantastic NOW??  Yeah, me too.

  1 Timothy 2:1-15

New Living Translation (NLT)

Instructions about Worship

2 I urge you, first of all, to pray for all people. Ask God to help them; intercede on their behalf, and give thanks for them. ² Pray this way for kings and all who are in authority so that we can live peaceful and quiet lives marked by godliness and dignity. ³ This is good and pleases God our Savior, ⁴ who wants everyone to be saved and to understand the truth. ⁵ For there is only one God and one Mediator who can reconcile God and humanity—the man Christ Jesus. ⁶ He gave his life to purchase freedom for everyone. This is the message God gave to the world at just the right time. ⁷ And I have been chosen as a preacher and apostle to teach the Gentiles this message about faith and truth. I’m not exaggerating—just telling the truth. (biblegateway.com)

Vote ME for President!

Vote Mimi Stricker for President!!  

The Top Ten reasons you should vote for Mimi

For those of you who know me, which is all of my loyal readers, this very statement strikes fear in to your heart!!  

1.  The Budget will be obliterated!!!

If you've ever heard the story about balancing my checkbook you will know for certain the American budget is NOT within my scope.  If you've never heard the story, here is the short version.  "Babe, why does it say approx $20 in your check register?" asked my sweet husband.  "I can't remember how much I wrote the check for, but it was around $20." I reply.  Can you say UNBALANCED BUDGET??  I have since began ordering duplicate checks.  So I guess the statement should read....The Budget will be confused.

2.  All chickens must free range! 

I'm sure many farmers will frown upon the idea of having to free range their chickens.  There isn't enough room for all those broiler chickens to just roam around and eat bugs to their heart's content.  I know this will also upset some city folk because of lax laws that allow city dwellers to keep chickens.  Instead of stray cats in the road you will see chickens.  I see this as becoming a serious safety hazard and I might need to rethink this one.

3.  All children must walk to school to "walk out" childhood obesity

I think if we require all children to walk to school there would no longer be a childhood obesity problem.  There might be a tardy problem, but they don't really learn very much in school, do they?  The other day Chloe informed me that 4th grade was getting hard because for the first time in her life she actually didn't know all the answers!!  Oh DEAR!  Her poor husband....sort of like MY POOR HUSBAND.  

4.  We should make all illegal drugs, LEGAL.

I really think we would cut down on the drug wars if we just made them legal.  Sell them, tax them, and give all the tax money to pay either the national debt or to fund education.  Another great idea is to turn the drug tax into the National Endowment for the Arts and then the arts will finally get the real funding they deserve!

5.  Rain boots for everyone!

If everyone has rain boots they will never have wet feet.  If they don't have wet feet they never get sick and therefore we can decrease the amount of money we spend on healthcare.  I think we should also supply Vicks Vapor Rub as well.  Between the dry feet and the Vicks, we are all healed!

6.  Make Florida beaches all NUDE.

I visited Florida this year because my friend moved out there to this sleepy little beach community.  No FAIR!!  So if we make Florida beaches nude beaches she will move back to Texas.  

7.  Every American couple is required to have more than one child.

If I couldn't be an only child, neither can you!!

8.  Movie candy will be required to be the same price as in other stores.

The movie theater is a luxury and it can be so expensive to take your family to have quality movie time.  If we lower the prices of the movie candy, we make it more affordable and they might actually make money instead of people bringing in the same candy that they purchased for less money.  

9.  I will sign into action the You Must Be Nice Bill.

This Bill requires people to be nice and if they are not nice they are required to stay home.  So if you wake up and are a cranky pants, you will receive a police escort home instead of ruining everyone else's day!!  You Must Be Nice Bill also includes a strict no whining clause.

10.  I can't tell you this one until AFTER the election!

Give Up the Insanity!!

I know I'm not alone when I say there are things I love to taste that once eaten make me feel miserable. I know most of my readers have excellent self control and even better discipline, so it is likely none of you have truly felt the awfulness I am about to describe.

This weekend at the 3rd Annual Shootout(where my team placed last, we are THAT GOOD) they served a delicious Texas style BBQ.  Brisket, chicken, sausage, pinto beans, creamed corn, cole slaw, potato salad, warm yeast rolls, BBQ sauce(of course),  and a dessert table.  I ate mostly chicken and sausage.  The mistake happened when I returned to the dessert table.  There was a smorgasbord of delicious treats ranging from every kind of mini cheesecake to chocolate draped macaroons and pecan pie bars to mini pumpkin pie.  All homemade.  All calling my name.  I grabbed one of each of the ones I wanted to sample and took a bite (as they were all bite sized) of all of them.  If you were sitting close to me you could hear some "sighs" and some "mmmmmmms" at the joyful delight I was experiencing while I ate the treats.  Fast forward about three hours to the worst belly ache.  Fast forward eight hours and my hands are swollen and asleep.  Between the sugar and the gluten and the guilt I was miserable.  Unfortunately guilt played the smallest role and therefore the problem was hard to ignore.

You would think after becoming aware of the side effects of certain foods I would avoid them, right?  WRONG!!  I have a great theory (yes, I am full of them) about these foods, "If it tastes good and makes you feel bad, don't eat it!!"  I think I must like feeling awful because I do this about every other week and sometimes more often.  I don't even have the excuse of having a craving.  I don't have strong cravings other than chocolate once a month.  I don't crave sugar. I don't crave diet soda.  I don't even crave delicious warm pastries.  I just want to eat them because they TASTE good!!  If I followed my theories I would be thinner and more fabulous, but much to my dismay I live a life full of treats, happiness, and then the dreaded stomach ache!!

I really need to get a handle on this food thing.  Yes, eat healthy, eat fresh, eat whole grains, avoid processed anything, eat leaner meats, and avoid the dessert table!!!  I am allowed to eat desserts, but a dessert table is my doom.  I usually am no longer hungry by the time dessert rolls around, but it sounds like fun.  Here is where I always get in trouble.  FUN has a way of coercing me to do things that aren't exactly in my YES category.  For example, highlights in my hair could be fun.  Dye my hair almost blonde from fun highlights, hate the blonde and cut hair off.  In the end, NO FUN.  This weekend's eatfest is also an example of FUN hurting me.  "Yummy!!!!  Fun dessert table!!!!"   DOOM!!

Next time you put something in your mouth that you know is going to make you miserable, just remember the definition of insanity:  doing the same thing over and over expecting a different result!  You are in good company.  Some day we will have to give up our insanity and start living better lives.  Please don't think I'm going to say something about avoiding disease and being healthy....NOPE!!!  Give up the insanity because, I promise, you will feel better.

I Know, I Know

Exercise is necessary and is actually good for you.  Having danced for most of my life I imagine exercise to include a pirouette or a grand jete.  After retiring from teaching dance seven years ago, I've taken a few classes and even began exercising.  I also quit exercising.  Exercise is supposed to be fun.

Catherine Chiarelli is a friend
and fitness guru...p.s. this
is not me!!  BUT I used to look
like this not too long ago. 

My husband disagrees with me about exercise being fun but instead says, "You don't exercise because it is fun, you do it because it is good for you."  Yeah, uhhhh, I don't think so.  Life is too short to not enjoy every ounce of it, so I'm on a mad search for fun exercise.  Another important thing for my exercise regimen is for it to have longevity.  I used to exercise for 8 to 10 hours a day and when I no longer had that exercise regimen, I lost all sense of self as my body transformed into something not recognizable by anyone I knew prior to 2002.  Luckily it helped my forge a new journey to find the real me.  I can't say I've really truly found myself, but everyday I get closer to God and somehow I think this story will end well.

Ok, so back to exercise.  Exercise is said to make you live longer.  My theory is if you live longer, it only evens out because of all those hours(years) you spent exercising that you lost.  Are you starting to get a glimpse of the extreme dislike I have for forced exercise??  I think this is also the same dislike I had for homework back in the days of homework.  They said homework was good for me, but now I know better!!  Am I going to look back on my life and realize exercise was NOT good for me?  Maybe.

It is hard to have friends that
look this good!!

Many of my friends are finding great workouts at boot camps, cross fit, even zumba.  Mentally, I'm not there yet.  I want an 8am ballet class with Mr. Wong or Alla Osipenko to start my morning.  A Dunkin Donuts French Vanilla coffee with cream and extra sugar and an hour and a half of ballet class zen.  I would even settle for a Graham class three times a week taught by any of the amazing teachers I had in college or high school.  These pole and ribbon fitness classes, although intriguing, are not for me.  I like to imagine myself doing this exercise till I'm 90 and neither of those exercises check that box.  I do love Pilates, too.  Sustainable  exercise is key for me.  I know if I hit the gym hard or started cross training I could look like I did back in the days when I wore a cheerleading uniform.  I cannot imagine continuing to exercise that much or that hard ever again.

good old fashioned ballet company class

Some of my friends probably hear my theories and say, "She is just lazy!" or  "She isn't very disciplined!"  They might be right.  For now I will settle for a little bit of this and a little bit of that.  I sure wish my friend and uber-successful business owner, Jenna Wilayto Zaffino had her Pilates studio in San Antonio instead of Chicago.  Come to think of it, many of my friends have their own very successful Pilates, dance, or fitness studios and programs.  Maybe I just missed the boat!!  Nah.

If you find a fun exercise regimen and think I need to know about it, please feel free to comment.  My husband also suggests cleaning the house more often.  That exercise idea is bad for morale.  Happy Exercising friends and CHEERS to a longer life because you do exercise!!

Armed and Dangerous

AWWWWWW  SHOOT!

Today was our school's annual shootout.  If you've followed my blog you will notice that I don't really use guns for killing, but shooting clays I've done, well, thrice in my life.  Last year was my first clay shoot EVER and I had a perfect score.  I have two students who compete at the world level and do amazingly well, unfortunately their talents have not rubbed off on me.  You see, when I say perfect, I really mean, a perfect "0."

This year I had only one way to go, UP.  After hitting 5/50 I didn't have quite the same pride as my perfect "0" and was hoping if I scored low enough annually they would consider having a lowest score prize.  It would be even better if the prize was a TIARA!

As you can see, I was part of a very stylish team which included my friend Skye and her husband and my husband, too.  We had a combination of 12 and 20 gauge shotguns and the bruises to match.  I look forward to the event every year as I don't often get to shoot things and I actually enjoy the challenge.  The challenge is mostly to avoid swinging my loaded rifle around when I ask a question, but everyone  just screams , "Whoa!!!!!" or they duck.  Luckily we all avoided injury.  Have a great Saturday and remember to have fun even if you aren't good at whatever it is you choose to do!!

On our way to check-in

Check in

The ATV we didn't get to ride in...I think it
was reserved for the good shooters.

Me missing it!!

Skye killing it!