Good Grief

Just one moment of quiet without my name being said over and over again. That is all I desire this morning. I woke up early and all the kids were up too. They are all wanting to do something this morning... something that needs my attention. Guess what I want to do? I want to sit in the living room and drink a cup of coffee. That's it. Oh yes, I want it to be without interruption.

I have been up early feeding four kittens, three children, two dogs, and one husband. I have been bitten on the rear end by dog number one, mudded by dog number two's paws, scratched by the orange and white kitten, and sprayed with nasty sulfur water as I moved the sprinkler from flower bed to flower bed. I have snapped at all three children for asking me to do things. The boys have asked me four times if they can play playstation this morning. I said not now, maybe later this morning. The last time I asked, "Why would you think the answer would be yes at this particular time?" The answer...."Because you aren't in the living room and you are outside doing nothing so we figured you were done relaxing." I took a deep breath and as calmly as I could explained that I had not even sat down in the living room once yet. My coffee cup, which is still in the kitchen, holds very cold coffee.

I am now in my chair. The kids are in their rooms for the moment. I am always baffled that they have no ability to notice my mood and respond accordingly. I know for a fact that I could read my folks, and I could tell when to hush my mouth and retreat to my room and stay there. Not so in this house. As I have written these short paragraphs I have been interrupted six times.

My coffee I am attempting to drink is in my favorite cup. One of my wonderful Texas friends, Kelli, gave it to me. It has one of my sayings on it: "Good Grief, Charlie Brown." I have been muttering it a lot this morning.

I am over my rant and am now going to get a fresh cup of hot coffee, read some in my Bible to get things back into perspective, and ask those babies to forgive MY attitude. I would love for them to be able to read me, but the bottom line is that they need me to help them and to be their mom 24/7. They all like to talk to me.... a lot. Deep down I know, I wouldn't want it any other way.

Hebrews 4:12-13 "For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. Nothing in all creation is hidden from God's sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account."

Oh give me a home...

Night before last, Harland and I retreated to our bench glider rocker that is under a tree on the west side of the house. From that spot, we can see all of the mountain ranges around us. It is a beautiful spot to sit.

As we sat and enjoyed the quiet, we saw a large group of animals in the far field. We checked them out with our binoculars (which we had with us just in case we needed them) and found it to be six white tail deer and six pronghorn antelopes. What were they doing together?.... you got it... they were playing. I burst out into a poorly sung version of "Home on the Range", and we got a good laugh.

As the sun went down behind the mountain range, it was getting chilly. Harland brought a blanket out which I thought we would definitely not need. The wind was whipping down from the mountain, and it was flat-out cold. I had a Pensacola Beach flashback. When you swim in the Gulf of Mexico, there are pockets of very cold water and pockets of very warm water. I was feeling the cold wind on my face and all of a sudden there was a hot wind that came from across the plains. It was fabulous. The mixture of both the winds was just right (with the blanket).

We stayed out until after dark and watched as the stars began to show up in droves. There were stars in every space of the dark sky. We saw shooting stars. It was like the comparison I have heard of the blanket of stars. I would have to say that it was so hard to stop looking at them. When our necks were aching and our kids finally came looking for us, we headed back in with the help of a powerful flashlight. I was thankful when we flashed the light out over the field, we did not see any eyes looking back at us. Our path through the yard was all clear as well, and we walked into a loud and bright house complete with MLB The Show on the playstation and two boys hopping around playing. It was an auditory assault after the two hours of quiet. Two hours in the yard noticing the animals, the winds, and the sunset and stars sure does beat a movie.

Philippians 2:14-16 "Do everything without complaining or arguing, so that you may become blameless and pure, children of God without fault in a crooked and depraved generation, in which you shine like stars in the universe as you hold out the word of life.."

Fries, Firearms, and New Friends

Today was a great day in the country. We had an early morning baseball game for Nathanael in a neighboring town about 20 minutes away. We had planned a cookout at the house with a couple we met a few weeks ago at a ballgame. They followed us home to the prairie, and we drove up to find about twenty antelope in our field.

We had our new favorite country cooking specialty-- homemade french fries. We fried up about eight pounds of potatoes, and we ate almost all of them between the nine of us. We headed out to the back of the house to our make-shift shooting range, and we four adults took turns shooting the Judge. I must admit that it was genuinely fun. We are turning into rednecks more and more each day.

It is rare that you find a friend that you feel comfortable enough with that she knows the contents of your kitchen cabinets and drawers and makes herself at home. After only a few hours, some fries, and some shooting, this new friend was helping me clean the kitchen and was all in my drawers. I love it.

We finished up our Saturday after our friends headed home with Harland hanging four ceiling fans. Three of those fans were advertised as "five minute fans". I can confidently tell you that the three five minute fans took one and a half hours to hang.

To unwind from the fan-hanging extravaganza we drove our giant dog in our very small car down the road to the spot where the gravel turns to dirt. He was thrilled to have a car ride-- he had his head out of the window in the backseat and his wagging tail was nearly hitting the other window. We then took him for his usual length walk on the dirt and then piled him back in the car and headed home. In the nearly forty minutes we were walking, we saw not one vehicle. The only thing we saw was a beautiful pink and purple sunset over the mountains, and the only thing we heard was an owl and a lone coyote.

Speaking of noises, while at the ballgame at the start of the day, we heard two loud trains roar through the town. It was an immediate throw back to our days in Fort Worth. We heard trains (LOUD trains) all hours of the day and night for almost eight years. While I miss my close "kitchen drawer-knowing" friends there, I do not miss so many things. I am so blessed with each day and the new things we are experiencing. I am looking forward to a cool night under my new fan, and a new day tomorrow.

Lamentations 3:22-23 "Because of the Lord's great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness."

How are my boots these days?

It has been a little over three months now since we made our move to the Greenhorn Valley. I think it is time for another look at myself and my family and the changes I see.

I have lived almost all of my life in very hot places. Growing up in Pensacola, I was accustomed to 90% humidity, and living in Texas for eleven years I was pretty sure I knew what it would feel like walking into an oven. I have ALWAYS had central air conditioning and was a little nervous as summer approached here. We have no ac at all. We do, however, have an enormous amount of wind and an adobe house. We also live far away enough from the main bear spots that we are able to leave our windows open. The breeze is great and we have been amazingly comfortable. Last week was hot here (89 degrees), and I went to the library with the kids and to church for a ladies' Bible study. Both places had air conditioning, and I was freezing!!!

I have always used lotion pretty liberally. I now live in a place with 4% humidity and lots of wind. My skin is alligator-like. We have used two giant bottles of Cetaphil lotion from Sams in these three months. On the upside, our hair is dry so we don't shower or shampoo nearly as often as we did before. Most folks here are not very "dolled-up" on a daily basis. I have found that make-up is only applied for my trips to Pueblo and for church.

When we first arrived, parking at the elementary school in the parent parking and walking up to the office doors caused me to pant like a dog and to not even be able to talk. Now I am able to hike up trails and while I still feel it, I can talk and breathe. We are at about 6700 feet at our house. I have even learned to look for high altitude directions on the things I bake.

We have become a part of a church here and are feeling like it is home. There is a love of Christ that is evident there and a mentality that church activities are not to consume your week. If you spend all week in the church building, how will you have time to be a part of the community and have time to teach your kids about faith at home? I like it.

People here have been genuinely friendly. I have been amazed at the willingness to accept new folks and to take time out of their own lives to spend time with us. I have lots of people I would already call friends and am meeting more all the time. I see the same folks everywhere! They are at school, the community baseball games, church, the gymkhana (horse-riding), the pool, the grocery store, the library, and the diner. A small community is a different animal than the big city! I love seeing someone I know just about everywhere I go.

My hopes of how things would be three months after moving, have been far exceeded. Despite the water trials, the rattlesnakes, mice, and the wind, we are loving it here and are feeling settled. It has been a long three months, but three months full of new things and new friends.

My boots are not as new as they were. They are very dusty and pretty worn. They are a part of my everyday here. They are becoming more and more comfortable.

2 Corinthians 1:3 "Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort..."

Threat level-- red

We met the third rattlesnake today. We killed the third rattlesnake today. Our threat level is now back to red. It had been at orange for the past couple of days since we had not seen any snakes in over a week. I tell the kids every time they cross the threshold of the house to go outside, "Watch for snakes. Watch for snakes. Watch for snakes." I am a robot of repeated warnings.

My sweet husband shot the snake with his Father's Day gift. My youngest son got his weapon of choice out -- his buck pocketknife. After the head was chopped off and buried out in the field, Nathanael cut the rattle off of the snake and very proudly showed me his knife covered with rattlesnake blood. It was a nine button rattle. I was thoroughly grossed out on top of being freaked out.

Fall is coming in just a few short months, and with the cold weather comes a retreat of snakes. Ahh. I always knew I loved the fall. Until then, I must continue my robot mother nagging and my walking with my head down swaying it to and fro looking in every nook and cranny. I know that God put enmity between the snake and the woman in the garden, but honestly, what a bizarre animal. The bodies writhe for hours, headless. Watching it makes MY skin crawl. Harland touched it with his bare hands as he helped Nathanael with the rattle removal, and his hands smelled like he had been scaling a fish. I was taken to a new level of disgusted.

All the while I had dinner in the oven. To say I lost my appetite might be an understatement. I guess I should be thankful we were having spinach rolls and meatballs instead of fish. We will look forward to the giant vultures/buzzards coming tomorrow to pick the skeleton clean.

Thankfully, no kittens were close to the snake. They have been hunting grasshoppers and ladybugs and learning to climb trees, but hunting mice and scaring off snakes are not in their short list of abilities yet. As a side note, we are glad to report that the kitten Nathanael named Kevin is indeed a boy. He was labeled female for about three days because he was a late bloomer when it comes to his boy parts. The best we can tell, we have one girl and three boys.

The puppy saw the snake after it was dead. That seems to be his modus operandi. I am thankful he has not been bitten, and I am hoping he will learn to stay away from them and to warn us. I know he is more oblivious than my children so I will keep doing my warnings and searches and will keep the threat level at red.

I am overflowing with thankfulness again as I think of the danger and of the fact that everyone has remained safe. I know snakes are loved by many and probably not a big deal to most. I am, however, realizing that my life and my stories and the things I am learning are influenced greatly by my fears. That includes snakes at this moment. There are new things in life every day to be afraid of. Thankfully there is one less rattlesnake on the Cason Ranch to fear.

Isaiah 41:9-10 "I took you from the ends of the earth, from the farthest corners I called you. I said, "You are my servant; I have chosen you and have not rejected you. So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand."

The non-animal family is learning the ropes.

We have made one more stride toward being at home here in Colorado. We are now established with pediatricians for the kids. I took Isabel to hers last week and the boys to theirs yesterday. Everyone checked out fine, and the doctors took their time with each kid. I was a little surprised yesterday that the last twenty minutes of the boys' appointment was entirely devoted to wildlife safety. Yes, wildlife safety is as important in a check-up as height and weight. I chuckled inside but also was thankful for the directness with the boys about what to do if they see different animals and what to do (or not to do) if they come across a dead animal. The boys ranked that doctor's visit as their all time favorite.

As a quick update on our very own domesticated "wildlife", Momma Kitty bailed on us last week. After about three days here with us on the ranch, she took off. It seemed as if the four nursing kittens with her in the kennel were on her last nerve. We hoped she would return but have now decided that more than likely she became a meal for the coyotes. The kittens were sad for a few days (or so I think). Now they are venturing out of the barn during the day and are eating like crazy and growing. We have been told they are old enough to be fine without Momma and that they should be able to hunt by instinct. I hope they can stay away from the coyotes because we are getting attached to them. We are still putting them in a kennel at night to give them a better chance of survival.

In the back of the house, we have our giant puppy who would love to be friends with those kittens in the barn but unfortunately does not have the social skills to do it. He says hello in a ferocious barking manner. Then he cries and whines when the response is not friendly. We have been taking him in the car to the lake to walk. He LOVES the ride in the car with the window down (of course). We are attempting to socialize him with the outside world. There are Canadian geese, bikers, walkers, and other dogs to get used to. He has done so well. He is learning to not freak out, and he has become a sweet dog friend to any dog he can get close to. He wags that giant tail so hard he looks like he might knock himself right off his clumsy legs. We have decided he might need a friend. We have been checking the animal shelter daily for a companion for him, because I don't have QUITE enough animal food in the mud room yet.

Our mud room now contains dog food, cat food, and a stockpile of bird seed. The bird feeder has been removed from the tree. The hummingbird feeder is out of commission as well. I learned that the bears love the seeds and the hummingbird nectar. It was described to me by the locals as "crack cocaine" to the bears. Once they find that you have feeders, they will come back repetitively to get their fix. While we have thankfully seen no bears here, I would like to not be dangling crack in front of a very large and furry junkie. Sorry birds, no seeds or nectar for you. You are on your own.

Matthew 6:26 "Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?"

Court is now in session.

It has been an eventful few days here in our neck of the woods. We have had Harland's sister and her three kids here and we delivered an exciting visit ---maybe too exciting.

The first evening they arrived, all six kids were outside looking at the dog and the kittens. Ben pushed some of the kids out the way and yelled, "Snake!!!" We herded the kids back inside, and Harland went to check it out. It was a four foot rattlesnake right next to the backyard fence just off the deck. Thankfully it was sleeping, and he chopped it's head off with the shovel. The head of a rattlesnake can strike even after severed, and it bit the shovel about five times. We called the kids out and kept them at a distance of course, but we wanted them to see what the snake looks like and to see the way the head continues to strike. Harland then took the head out and buried it, and we all went inside and tried to get our heart rates to go down. It was disturbing.

The next morning we were enjoying a slow morning of playing when Harland yells from outside to not let anyone out of the house. He was heading back to the house from his office when he came across a second rattlesnake. This one was spread out in my flower bed right next to the front porch. It was too close to the wire under the house (which is there to keep all critters out-- I am very thankful to have it) for him to use the shovel. His only gun was located in his office with all the ammo inside the house. He called for me to get him a bullet or two. I hurried to the hiding spot and got Barney Fife his bullet. He shot that rattlesnake in the head in a single shot with his 22, and it was dead. He chopped the head off with the shovel and this time not only was the head striking, but also the tail was rattling. We called the kids out again so we could all hear the rattle. Two rattlesnakes in less than 15 hours--- it was very disturbing.

Harland went back to his office, and Kristie and I finished packing our picnic and got those kids out of here and up the mountain to the creek and park. Following the park, we headed straight to town to buy a much needed shotgun. I can add this to the list of the things I have never done and never really thought I would do. I have shot the BB gun and Harland's 22 for fun at targets we set up in the field. I have never held a handgun in my life. The one Harland and I had decided on is a handgun to do the job of a shotgun or handgun. That way we can take it on hikes, etc. It is called the Judge. I was less than graceful as a gun buyer. I made it through the process and learned how to load, unload, and hold it and aim. After a 40 minute wait for a background check with my sister-in-law and all six of our kids, I was escorted out of The Big R by a large man who held my new gun all the way to my car.

I honestly expected to come home to find more snakes. We had the kids stay in the car while we checked the entire area between the car and the front door. We were pleasantly surprised to not see any more snakes. The experience, while awful, was very educational as far as being cautious and what to look for and listen for. We were being careful before, but now we are careful on a whole new level.

Kristie was hoping to see a bear while here. I am pleased to report that we saw two black bears from our vehicle in a neighborhood around the lake about 15 minutes from our house. It was really cool to see.... from the car. On the way home from the drive, we were saying that we haven't seen any elk yet since we have been here. As we rounded the corner on the dirt road, there were two elk by the trees. They were huge like moose! It was a nice calm way to see some beautiful wildlife from a distance and decompress a bit from the day of danger and adrenaline.

There was probably no one better to have here with us when finding the snakes. Kristie is level-headed and is really gifted at staying calm. I think she was exactly what I needed as I tried to process all of the things that could have happened. I am so thankful that she was here.

My hope is that the one pair of rattlesnakes was all that we had. I realize that is probably unrealistic, but it is my hope. We are more prepared than we were and more educated. I am still overwhelmed with thankfulness that no one was hurt--- totally overwhelmed. For the record, I am looking forward to the cold weather when the snakes retreat for the winter. In the meantime, you might find us indoors a little more and searching every nook and cranny outside before we let kids out. You will find me learning more and more about gun safety and becoming a proficient shooter. If you see us on a walk or hike, you will find that we have one more member of the family with us--- The Judge--- just in case.

Matthew 10:16 "I am sending you out like sheep among wolves. Therefore be as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves"

There are always new things to learn.

After nearly three months here in the boonies, I find that I am still learning new things everyday. The first new thing of this week is that female cows can have horns. Craziness. I saw a calf drinking milk from what I thought was a bull with horns. I am glad to report that it was indeed a female and that they can have horns also. I googled it when we got home.

A second new thing is that we have found an outlet for our sweet tiny daughter's pent up aggression and pushiness toward her brothers. We taught her tonight how to walk Ranger on his leash with his training collar. She was amazing-- pushing him over when need be and directing him with a tug of the leash and a low "slow down". She can take her 55 pounds and snap that leash and control the 70 pound puppy. He was such a good boy for her, and she was empowered.

A third new thing is that we are learning how to care for cats. For those of you who know my kids, you will remember that my kids have not only been frightened out of their minds by dogs but also cats. I do not know where the fear came from, but today all three of them held kittens and immediately became cat lovers. We were given a momma cat and four kittens to be our barn cats to help us with the mice. Their names are Momma Kitty, Stormy, Little Smokey, Blaze, and Kevin. We are letting them adjust to our barn from the comfort of a kennel. From what we have heard, after a few more days we can let them out and hopefully they will stick around.

I still can't believe that we live here. The beauty of the mountains still overwhelms me multiple times during the day. I don't even mind that my mornings now consist of feeding one puppy, five kitties, three children, one husband, and finally myself. I am even getting used to having dog slobber on my face. I am beginning to not notice the enormous amount of spiders and flies (thanks to the horse manure flower beds I planted) and moths around and in our home. The bathrooms have started to remind me a bit of summer camp. You go in expecting to see bugs. You kill them and clean it up and move on. Hey, at least there are no roaches.

We are excited to have more company coming tomorrow. Harland said I should write up a tongue-in-cheek "What to expect while you are visiting..." sort of disclaimer for our guests to agree to. Something like: showers must be short, flushes must be needed, toilet paper must be kept to a minimum, expect the bugs in the bathroom, there may be mice in the house, and so on.

I am not sure if that would ultimately keep people away or help them as they get used to it here. Every third or fourth thing on the list should be "look at the mountains", and the bad ones might seem less awful.

Psalm 90:1-2 "Lord, you have been out dwelling place throughout all generations. Before the mountains were born or you brought forth the earth and the world, from everlasting to everlasting you are God."