A Good Dog is Worth His Weight in Gold

We have a pretty special dog to put up with what Hannah and Helena dish out. Gus is very tolerant of the girls and only protests when he is truly being hurt. Hannah has been working up to riding Gus on her own. Only lately has she been able to mount by herself.

I'm pretty sure that Gus puts up with this so he can be inside next to the fire, but whatever motivates him works for me. It looks like Hannah will be ready for something a little larger to ride in the not so distant future. I'm planning to hold out as long as I can. Dog food is cheap compared to a horse.

Hannah Speaks in January

I thought I would start making "Hannah Speaks" posts. I realize many of the things she says would be much more entertaining if you were here to hear them, but humor me while I record these for posterity sake.

Hannah was in the bath tub and she, Ben and I were discussing who's mommy was who's.

Ben: Grandma Bevie is my Mommy.
Hannah: No she's not, she doesn't have a pony tail like Mommy.
Ben: You have to have a pony tail to be a Mommy?
Hannah: Yes.

The other day she was singing songs and this is what she came up with.

Hannah: This is my commandment that ye love one another that your joy baby bull.

It should be may be full. I guess it's all about what you know.

Hannah gives us a good laugh on a daily basis but I think I'll leave it at that for this month.

Heléna's 9 Month Picture

She wasn't feeling too well they day we took this but I managed a few good smiles out of her.
Here's an update on what's happening in Heléna's life. She has six teeth. She is can now speed crawl and walk along things while holding onto them. Neither of our girls escaped the independent gene, and Heléna doesn't seem to want help walking. My favorite phrase as a little girl was "I do by self me", and Hannah's favorite phrase is "I WILL." It will be interesting to see what Heléna comes up with to express her independence.

She loves to eat which is a nice change from Hannah who wouldn't eat baby food. She is a joy to be around and is always smiling. It is fun to watch her personality develop. If I get more time I'll put up a few more pictures of her.

Christmas Day

We decided to take it easy on Christmas Day. We opened presents with my family, had brunch and played. The cows didn't know it was Christmas so we had to feed them. We came back in for a hamburger BBQ and cupcakes for Jesus's birthday. We played and relaxed most of the day. The day after Christmas we had dinner with my Dad's side of the family.

Here's a few pictures from Christmas day.

We aren't done celebrating yet. We have more family coming in tomorrow and some coming back for a second round. We hope you have a Happy New Year!

Pre-Christmas Activities

We were fortunate to have both of Ben's brothers here and our nephew for the week before Christmas. We had a lot of fun while they were here.



I know this isn't very much snow but we decided we had to take advantage of it before it melted that afternoon. Hannah and her cousin had a blast sledding with their uncles. I towed Heléna around in a little sled by herself.

We had quite a few family meals throughout the week. We spent Christmas Eve day with Ben's family. In my hurry to get out the door, I forgot my camera, so I'm sorry there's no pictures of the festivities.

On Christmas Eve Hannah and I made cupcakes for a birthday party that we had for Jesus on Christmas Day.

Here's Heléna enjoying herself while Hannah and I bake.

Here's the tree on Christmas Eve. I should have been in bed but instead I was playing with my camera, trying to get a picture of the tree.

Feeding the Cows Today

I've been falling down on the job of taking pictures of the girls. I attribute it to the challenge of carrying one and chasing another. I just need another arm to carry the camera. I was feeling particularly adventurous today so I took the camera when we went to feed the cows.

Here's Heléna enjoying hanging out while I feed the cattle in the corrals.

The girls in their Carhartts today. They both have bibs on but Hannah is finally just big enough for a jacket, and she loves it. These are a couple of my favorite pictures that I have of the girls. I just can't stop smiling.

Here are the ladies waiting for their dinner. Just so you don't think we have more cattle than we do, it's just the gals nearest in the picture. The ones in the background belong to our neighbors.

Mmmm...dinner.

If you're low woman on the totem pole you get to eat at the second feeder. All of the big wigs eat at the first feeder. We have one cow that goes straight for the second feeder. I think she's just smart and has figured out that you have to put up less of a fight at the second feeder.

Oh, she beat us to the feeder.

Heléna is checking on Mommy through the side mirror of the pickup.

On our way back to the gate we feed a bale of junky hay for the cows to pick through later. Here's Hannah ready to throw a flake of it off the feed wagon.

And there it goes....

Heléna and Daddy waiting while we close the gate.

Heléna isn't happy in the pickup unless she's "driving."

Merry Christmas

Making a Statement

Hannah has reached the point where she would like to pick out her clothes and then dress herself. Tonight at 7:00 she has decided that it's time to go to the library. Let's see what she picked for the big outing. And, no we didn't actually go.

Hannah is sporting the layered look tonight. She's wearing a John Deere t-shirt, topped by a red and pink butterfly sweater, daringly layered again by a turquoise winter coat. To compliment these pieces she's wearing lavender leggings with white socks, layered by a set of blue, white and green leg warmers. To round out the outfit she's got on a pair brown cowboy boots. This is a one-of-a-kind outfit and can't be duplicated. It is being shown for your viewing pleasure only.


After taking herself to the bathroom Hannah insisted upon getting herself dressed. Here she's wearing a pair of green and pink underwear. Both legs went down the same leg hole so now she's wearing them as a belt. The pink fleece pants made it on inside out, but at least they aren't backwards. She's trying to bring the exposed seams look to the fashion forefront.

First Sled Ride of the Season

Evidence that good times were had by all.

Some of What Happened in October

We helped with the grain planting on the little place next door. It's just a few acres and we raise grain hay for cattle feed.

Fourth cutting off of the alfalfa field got baled...and sold...such a blessing in a tough hay market.

Hannah got a trim and I think she's about due for another. I had better go shorter next time.

Helena has become quite proficient at crawling. In the last week or so she has begun to pull herself up and try to stand in the middle of the floor. I hope I'm ready for this!