Back to School Fun!

Today the kids and I went into Lethbridge to get the few things they would need for school! We had gone through all Emry's clothes and last year's school supplies and decided she didn't need much! We replenished pencil crayons and erasers and got one new binder. But she is happy to use her old lunch kit and back pack since they are still in good shape! She decided she would like a new jean jacket and some zip up boots and a skirt! Which we found for a steal of a deal! Since Calum is starting Kindergarten (insert look of complete shock-seriously where did the last five years go?!!) we decided he needed a couple new things too! He got a pair of athletic pants and a superman t-shirt as well as a batman t-shirt, and a pair of runners. The kids were great and seemed to have lots of fun picking out some new clothes!

After clothes shopping we went over to the hospital to visit my grandpa. My Grandma was there too so we had a nice visit!  My Auntie Di took the kids down to the cafeteria to get a drink, so I really had a good visit! They are good people and I have really learned a lot from them! It truly is wonderful to have the example and influence from family in our lives!

After the visit at the hospital the kids and I went to see Smurfs 2! The parts I saw if it were good, and Emry said it was sooooo awesome!!  Armin lasted for three quarters of an hour and then he and I spent the rest if the time walking around the lobby!!

Then it was time to come home! We had a fun day. I am proud if my kids and thankful for the joy they bring to my life! Though there are moments of chaos, I still really do love them and my life just wouldn't be complete without them! I will miss them while they are at school but I am thankful they have the opportunity to learn and to grow.  Time goes by too quickly!

Upside Down Cow

We have heifers at home that we need to take to my brother in laws to be bred with his heifer bull. Last night Jared and I separated the ones that needed to be treated for pink eye from the rest of the herd with the intention of running them through tonight. After supper Jared headed out to treat the five heifers before loading them all up and taking them to greener pastures!! I asked if he needed my help and he said he was sure he could handle the few that were there but would need my help loading all of them up. So I went about cleaning up after supper when I was pleasantly interrupted by the ringing of the phone! My sister called to visit, after about twenty minutes of chit chatting she asked if her husband had gotten to our house yet? I wasn't even aware he was coming over and she filled me in! Jared had called Buck in a bit of a panic because he had a cow flip over upside down in the narrow alley leading up to the squeeze. I went out shortly after to see how things were going.

Jared explained what happened to me:

One of the heifers had jumped up while in the alley and hooked her front legs over the top, she was resting on her arm pits (if cows in fact have arm pits!). Jared was tapping her on the head to try and get her to go back down while also lifting her legs back the other way. She somehow ended up moving the bottom half of her body turning the top half the other direction! As she was lowering herself back down into the alley, facing the wrong way, the cow who was behind her spooked and charged forward flipping the heifer facing her upside down!

To get her out Jared and Buck got the front end loader, but first had to put the bale forks back on, and headed over to the squeeze, where they slung a chain around the upside down cows neck and slowly started to lift her out. If a cow is left on her back for too long she will bloat, miraculously they got her out and gently lowered her toward the ground and when her feet were touching the ground they unchained her and off she walked!!

Her back is a little skinned but other than that she is a-okay!!! Quite the excitement on the Puzey Farm yet again!!

One Week With My Family

Last week Jared and I both took the entire week off to spend with our kids!  It was a great week!  I had to work the Saturday before our week off officially started but Jared got right into holiday mode and took the kids to the Vulcan Centennial Parade.  They had a good time and said it was a really good parade, over an hour long!  On Monday we loaded up the van, hooked onto the boat and headed to Little Bow to camp for a couple of nights!  We haven't been camping since before Calum was born so this was the first time for both Calum and Armin, and they seemed to absolutely love it!  We set up camp while the boys declared a little group of trees just behind our campsite as their fort!  They had fun collecting sticks and making them their weapons!  Boys!!

The kids played so good together, they rode their bikes, played cars, and bocci ball!  We roasted marshmallows and had smores.

I think Emry put her swimming suit on in her sleep, she was in it as soon as she woke up!

We spent all afternoon Tuesday on the lake tubing and swimming!  We found a nice beach while on the boat and docked there for a few hours while the kids played in the sand.  Calum wasn't a huge fan of the boat, he said he felt like it was going to tip!  Neither he or Emry liked the tubes either!  They cried the entire time Jared pulled them!  Jared decided to try and take Armin in the tube with him while I drove the boat.  Well, I didn't go fast enough to get the tube out of the water and ended up just dragging the tube to the point where Jared just couldn't hold on anymore.  He and Armin toppled over the back and under they went!  Armin was not impressed!  Jared finally convinced Emry to give the tube another try, and promised that he would be in the other tube holding onto hers.  I went nice and slow and they had a blast!  While I drove Calum stayed huddled between the passenger seat and the dash, terrified!

It ended up raining Tuesday night, but didn't start until after 9:00, so it actually was very welcoming since the kids needed to go to bed!  The next morning was clear and beautiful!  Jared and I packed up while Emry and Calum sought out the friends they made while there and played.  Armin would follow Calum but stop at the edge of the other campsite just watching.  Jared and I would check on him to make sure he didn't get too far.  The next time we looked he was gone so I went looking while Jared climbed on his bicycle to look for him.  We didn't think he could really get that far but boy were we wrong!  He made it all the way to the flush bathrooms near the entrance of the camp.  I noticed a little boy walking with a lady and her dog and didn't recognize him at first, he was still so far away!  When I got closer the lady said she recognized him as the little curly headed boy near her campsite and thought he was pretty far away to be all by himself, so she walked back toward home with him!  He didn't have a care in the world as he took off by himself, he seems to be familiar with taking off on his own!  Little stinker gave us quite the scare!

After getting all packed up we headed to the day use beach and hung out there until late afternoon!  The kids had a blast swimming with their new found friends and building sand castles!  Calum swam all the way out to the dock by himself and had fun with the big kids pushing each other off! Even though we were so close to home, it still felt like we were away!

Emry jumping off the dock into the water!

Armin wandering away again!!

Thursday we spent the day unpacking, doing laundry and just hanging out!  We did go out for Chinese Food for supper, which was yummy!  Friday, Jared finished cutting the barley for the cows green feed and then we all headed to Lethbridge to go see Despicable Me 2!  It was really cute and the kids seemed to really enjoy it!  We had supper at Costco and headed home!  It was a fun day too!  Saturday Jared took Emry golfing and she had an absolute blast!  The boys and I went to Vulcan to return all our pop cans and milk jugs.  Later that afternoon Jared and I went out with my sister and brother in law!  Our neighbour, Christie, babysat the kids, and they were so excited!  So excited in fact that Emry and Armin were still up when we got home at 11:00!!  They love Christie to pieces, I'm thankful she lives only half a mile down the road!

We had a great week off, I was happy we did so much as a family and except for the little bit of cutting Jared did he didn't think of work at all!  The weather was perfect, and the company even better!  What more could I ask for!  A great break indeed!

Boom, Boom, Boom!!

Last night we took the kids into Vulcan to see the fireworks for the 100th Celebration!  We got pj's on and blankets and loaded into the van just before 10.  We got to Vulcan and parked near the baseball diamonds and carried our loot over to the soccer field.  For quite a long time we were the only ones on the field.  We laid out our blankets and all five of us took a spot and laid there looking at the stars while we waited.  Jared pointed out some constellations to Emry who thoroughly enjoyed seeing them!  Calum desperately tried to stay awake!  He had fallen asleep on the drive up to Vulcan and was finding it hard to stay awake!  Finally at 11:00pm the first boom went off!  Capturing the attention of all!  Armin would say boom, boom after each blast, Calum just laid his head on my chest watching in awe and Emry would say the typical ooh and ahh when the sky became all lit up!  It was so much fun.

Before the fireworks started I just laid there in the dark night admiring the stars above with all my favourite people gathered around me.  It was a sort of magical moment, one of those "I can't believe I'm here and have all these amazing blessings" moments!!  It was spectacular!

Notice how only Armin's little thumb is in the picture!  He has just discovered he can do this and is now doing it all the time!

Half way through the show Calum fell fast asleep and not even the thunderous boom of the fireworks would wake him!  Actually, the way he fell asleep looked as though he tripped and passed out!  His face was smooshed into the grass and his arms down along his sides!

Everyone fast asleep on the way home!

On another note, Calum is always singing songs he hears on the radio.  Yesterday he started singing, "Don't be a Queen, just be a Drag!"  A Lady Gaga song!  I stifled a little laugh as he asked me what does that mean?  I wasn't quite sure how to explain it to him so I told him to ask daddy!  Very nonchalantly Jared answered by saying some boys like to dress up like girls and they are called drag queens!  That boy really is quite priceless, and the things that come out of his mouth are quite entertaining!  I love how when he opens a door he always says, "Ladies first!"  Or out of the blue after dinner he will say "Thank you for dinner mommy!"  Or when I ask him to do something, like clean up his toys, he says "No thank you mommy!"  I sure love that boy and I am thankful for his innocent little spirit!

Today at church, Sophie, who is right in between Calum and Armin in age, drew a picture and walked over to Armin to give it to him.  The rest of church was spent with the two of them passing pictures back and forth.  It was quite a cute scene to take in!  Armin would walk over to her but stop a few feet away and wait until she came over to him with another picture.  She would give hers to him and then he would give his to her!  They each had quite a stash of scribble pictures by the end of Sacrament meeting!  So heart warming witnessing the innocence between children, not one word was passed between the two of them and yet they were wanting to do something nice for each other.  It made me remember that even little things can make a difference in someone's life.