West Pasture

Aunt Sissy needed to take a load of water to the West Pasture so we tagged along so the kids could see the cows too.

Hailey was Aunt Sissy's helper. I don't know how she does it with out her.



The boys both fell asleep in the truck on the way over there. So the slept through most of it.

I'm not very good at taking pictures of myself, but this one didn't turn out to bad.



We were talking about my babysitter Lucinda, and here came a momma cow with 5 or 6 babies. And A. Sissy told Hailey that that cow was a baby sitter cow. The kids got a big kick out of that.



Ben woke up and there were cows all around us and he gave them all dirty looks and looked at me like what are these big things and why are they making all that noise.

Pops

One of our favorite parts of going to the ranch is we get to ride Pops.


Hailey's always so excited to ride pops


Last year Jacob refused to ride he said it was scary but this year he told me "I'm gonna ride all by myself." but when we got over there he said "I think I'll ride with Hay" once he got up there though he told me "this isn't scary at all it's fun"

He really enjoyed it this year. Which I'm glad because I don't want him to be a big scardy cat.

Ben refused to get up there by himself and every time I tried to put him up there he would grab on to my head, scream and refuse to let go. So I decided to try to put him up there with the big kids. He was OK with that and found that it was actually fun.






He wanted another turn So I stuck him up there with Hailey





Hailey learns something new every time and this year she learned how to turn him by using her knee and the reins. She was so excited every time she got him to turn the way she wanted him to.



Ben Ben riding in the golf cart. There was no pleasing him when we wanted him in the golf cart so he wouldn't get stepped on he screamed and tried to climb out, and when we let him out to walk with the big kids he ran back and jumped in to get a ride.




Jacob was supervising Pops eating his dinner.

The golf cart

Aunt Sissy uses a golf cart to do her chores around her house. My kids think it's the best thing in the world and want to ride it all the time. They think it's a big toy.

The Ranch

Ben really bonded with Aunt Sissy's Puppy patches, Ben and her are both puppies so that had a lot in common. I would laugh at them patches would get to rough with Ben and knock him down and Ben would cry so then the next time she would start to get rough and Ben would grab her around the neck knock her to the ground and jump on top of her. We would laugh that he was practicing to be a bulldogger.

Patches likes to sit in the back of the golf cart so Ben decided he needed to climb in there with him. He wanted to be with his buddy.

Just a cute boy.

another cute boy.

The Ranch

The kids and I go to my family's ranch in Northern New Mexico almost every summer. We really enjoy it we get to spend some quality time with Aunt Sissy who I love and the kids adore. The kids get to play in the dirt all the want. And I get to share some of my family history with them. My family has owned the land since the 1800's when my great grandparents homesteaded the area. My dad has very fond memories of the ranch from his childhood and that was something that my dad shared with us and now I am glad that I can pass it on to my kids, I hope they grow to love the land and history as much as I do.



This is a cool old building on the way to the ranch I love these old buildings. One of these days when my kids are big and don't need me so much Mom and I are going to tour the country and I'm going to take pictures of old buildings and mom is going to write and we're going to write a coffee table book.


Aunt Sissy has a little park behind her house with a swing set and bouncy horse. the kids always enjoy playing in it.

Ben pushed this dump truck all around the yard. He would get tired so he would sit in it and want one of us to come push him back to the house. And of course Hailey or I would give in and go push him back.

Church

The big kids and I went to church at the LDS Church in Raton. It was a totally different experience. The church is so small here that they don't even have a Ward they only have a branch. Everyone was really nice to us. I felt bad though 3 different people came up an introduced them self to me and were so excited when they asked if we were new. When I told them no we were only visiting you could see the disappointment in there face. Hailey went to primary which she really enjoyed but it was new experience for her since there were only about a dozen kids in the entire primary. Jacob refused to go and came to class with me. It was really nice to go to Sunday School and Relief Society for once. Jacob fell asleep on my lap we did fine until he started snoring in Relief Society that was a little embarrassing.

I'm a mean mom and I left Ben home with My parents mainly because I don't have church babies they are horrible during church, so he stayed home with Grandma & Pappy. He didn't appreciate that very much, got mad and fell asleep on the floor. He woke up and was mad so Pappy picked him up and loved on him and he fell back asleep on Pappy's chest.

Uncle BooBoo & Aunt Kristen

I have this very good friend who lives in Pueblo Colorado. I know what all of you that aren't familiar with the area are thinking. Your thinking hay I thought you were in New Mexico. But where my family lives is right over the Colorado boarder. So anyway Mom and dad were going to Pueblo which is only and hour and a half away to run some errands. So we caravaned up there and we all went to lunch and then we went to the duck park so the kids could feed the ducks and then we went back to their house and visited. My friend Chet-AKA uncle BooBoo and I have been friends since I was 13 so what is that 17 years, wow that's along time when you look at it that way. Anyway in November it will be 2 years that he and his lovely wife Kristen got married and in December there going to have there first baby. It's a girl, I tried to talk them into naming her Vicki but there going with Madison Grace. I'm really excited for them. My kids just love Uncle BooBoo. I think it's because he's on the same mental level as them. =) I really like his wife, It's always awkward when someone you care about brings someone into their life there's always that worry what if I don't like her or what if she doesn't like me and then it makes your friendship awkward, but Kristen and I get along really well. In fact I talk/email/text her more then I do Chet. Well anyway this is our day with them.


Aunt Kristen, Jacob, Hailey, & Uncle BooBoo


Aunt Kristen, Uncle BooBoo and Benners


Hailey and Jacob feeding the birds



Hailey feeding the huge geese that came up on shore. She was a little nervous. To be honest mommy was kind of nervous too. I wanted her to keep all of her fingers just where they were.


Ben was a stink at lunch and refused to eat anything we offered him at lunch, so when uncle gave him bread to throw to the ducks he would eat it instead of throwing it.




Aunt Kristen and Uncle BooBoo. Ben really thought Unlce BooBoo was funny. Same mental age and all





Ben liked the Trampoline until the big kids would start bouncing and then he'd go from laughing to crying in ten seconds flat.

Nursing Home

We went to the Nursing home in Springer to see Grandma Nona. The kids made picture frames and bookmarks for the other "grandma's & grandpa's" as the kids call them, and we handed them out but I didn't get any pictures of them handing them out.

After we took dad to dinner for his birthday we took grandma back to the nursing home and took the kids in the back yard so they could "run the stink off" as grandma says. I told grandma there wasn't enough running room in the world to run the stink off of my kids.

The kids found a puddle and and got all wet.















Dad/Pappy/Kent, Mom/Grandma Carol, and Great Grandma Nona watching the kids. Who needs TV when you got little trouble makers to entertain you.







So we had to stripped them down and make them ride home in there unders.

The kids with Great Grandma Nona. I am so glad my kids get to have a relationship with my grandma. I have very fond memories of my great grandparents, and I'm glad my kids are getting to bond with her.




Jacob last summer formed this strong attachment to Grandma. He refereed to her as "his" grandma Nona. and for weeks after we went home he would cry and say "I want my grandma Nona." and would tell me "she's the best grandma Nona in the world."

When we first got there I Had Ben on my hip and I leaned in to hug grandma and she leaned in to give Ben a kiss and tried to hit her in the face. He's such a stink. But he really liked her necklace and as long as he could play with it he would sit with her so she could love on him.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY PAPPY!!!!!