Garden

I am pleased to announce our gardenhas little plants sprouting!

Lettuce and beans sprouted today.

Beans



Lettuce



Tomato Plants



Banana Pepper Plants



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Rent House For Sale

Our renter is supposed to be out this week.  So, I set up an appointment with the realtor for Thursday.  She told me they have gotten some calls looking for a house in the price range of our house (or what I hope for it to be worth).  So, that gave me some hope. 

The past 7 days have been tough.  First the renter not wanting to get out of our house. She's not even staying there.  She is only leaving her stuff there at this time.  Then, Saturday I went down to Wharton to sign up early for the barrel race.  I get about 15 miles from my house and my truck starts acting funny.  I call my brother in law, Ron, to ask him.  He said it might be just the sensor,s o I am hopeful.  After I hung up with him, I went to turn around and go back home and my truck won't go forward.  It shifts into gear, but nothing happens. So we towed it to Needville to our mechanic. Hopefully we'll know something by the end of the day.  It's a diesel and it only has 140,000 miles on it, so I am hoping for a sensor.

On top of that, my stroller broke.  I know, not that big of a deal, but REALLY?  That too???  So I'm shopping on Craig's list to find another stroller. I want the Jeep Stroller. I found some on Craig's list, but the people haven't responded yet.  Arg....

Oh, yea and our trailer is in for repairs. We hope to get it back this week.


I did make it to my barrel race.  I figured everything is screwed up I may as well go to the race.  Shiner did GREAT!  He is getting more consistant and I hope to start adding some speed to his runs in the next month or so.  If I could ride/practice more I could add it sooner.  But, reality is I have no time.  Hopefully it will start getting better now that Ryan has quit the George Ranch. 

I was dissapponited in Twisters run.  He just didn't have the fluid, forward motion I wanted on his turns.  So, we'll see. I am thinking about changing him to a REALLY light bit. I thought maybe I was in his face on the turns and that was hanging him up.  This year is for fun, so i'm moving on and not worrying too much.

So, pray for us.  We are going through some hard times and the thoughts of having fun and doing some cool stuff in California is starting to diminish with all these other financial 'crisis' that keep happening.  I am praying for a house that will be sold for a small profit to help get us back to '$0' balance so we have some extra money for our trip and one less 'stressor' on our list.

I will say Praise God that Ryan's farrier service has increased double or triple fold.  His friend, Chuck, has gotten him a lot of business and we are blessed!  That has helped a lot!!!  I also feel pretty secure in my job as we head into budget cuts (which translates to job cuts), so that is another thing to be thankful for.  So, you see, in the scheme of things, our lives aren't too bad.  We still do what we love, live where want to live and have a job to go to each day and a home to go to each night.  God is good isn't he?

Layla Grace beanie

Shelby got her Layla Grace beanie the other day. She finally left it on long enough for me to get pics.







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Garden

I don't have a lot of time to write, but I did want to share some pictures of you. I finished the garden this week and now I am waiting very impatiently for it to grow.  :)  Shelby and I ahve to walk by the garden each evening to see if there is anything sprouting.  I hope to see something this weekend or early next week. :)

I call these pictures "In The Beginning..."  LOL  Watch them grow!

Shelby went riding with Ryan last night.  She had so much fun! She giggles and squeals while reaching out so we'll pick her up and go ride with her.  After the ride, I had this headstall in my hands and she reached for it as well.  So, she hung on to them for a little while.  Of course I had to get a pic!

Back to Work

Today is my last day of vacation. It has been a busy week with the garden and some house cleaning. I especially liked having more time to play with Shelby.

Today we had a great sermon on fear. The devil can have such a stronghold on you thru fear. So simple to trust God for everything and rejoice in His good works, but yet we don't. We feel the need to fix it or not have thatfaith.

What is amazing is how simple these fears are. They are the doubts, the desire for control, the seaking for what we want to hear instead of what God is saying.

I am blessed to have found a church that is Bible based and allows me to worship Him whole heartedly! What a great country we live in that let's USO do that!

After church I put Shelby down for a nap and cleaned our kitchen and living room. Both of them were in need of some TLC.

Ryan took our trailer in for
repairs. Geico has agreedto pay damages done by our blow out! Yea! So we will be w/o our trailer for two weeks. Ryan's friend has offered to loan us his two horse slant! Phew we haul 1-2x a week and would be lost w/o our trailer

The sun is out today. Now all we need is for it to dry up and warm up! I can't wait to see my garden flourish!

Fun stuff

We have had a fun spring break so far! We had a barrel race Saturday, church and garden on Sunday, rodeo Houston Monday and today we went to Katy to sam'sclub and bass pro shop. We also detoured to my fav pizza place in brookshire! The pizza was so cheap I bought two! LOL I am Marlene's daughter after all!

Here's pics of our fun!

Going for a stroll


Petting Zoo @ Rodeo Houston










Ice Cream- she Loooovvveeeessss ice cream!


Juice Box for the rde home from rodeo



She found Grandma Boudrie's jewelry and loved wearing it.


Playing peek a baby while going to Katy mall. Silly girl!




She LOVED this hat so I got it for her. I hope it fits her next year. In the meantime she can play with it inside.



Tomorrow i go to see Gary Allen with Eva and Jessica. I can't wait! I love GA and I enjoy the rodeo even if it is not close up.

It is raining today so my garden is on hold. We've hauled 5-6 loads of manure and still have more to add. Then we need to rotatill it again and hopefully plant. I hope we get it done this week, but w/ the rain I am not sure. :-(

Time to play with Shelby....

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Goodbye Layla Grace

I am sad to share that Layla passed away early this morning.  My heart aches for her family as they try to move forward without their precious daughter and sister.  May we never forget the Layla's in this world and how she changed so many people in her short little life.  God Bless You Layla!

I don't think it could be said any better than this.  Her mom wrote this on Twitter.

Great Websites for Great Causes

Here's to America - to the Entrenpreuner - to the one offering a helping hand. 

I just recently found out about these two sites and HAD to share.  Please take a moment to look, share with others, and BUY!  Both of these businesses are offering to help out two young babies (McKenna and Layla) by donating part or all of their profits to help fund their medical bills.

Beutiful Hats and Headbands... (hint, hint - I want a beanie or two for Shelby!....Great Easter gifts)... :)

http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=42221269
Here's a pic of Layla Grace wearing one....TOOOOOO CUTE!

I bought Shelby a blanket from http://www.stuffinfluffin.com/ They are very large and will last a long time!  It's going to be Shelby's Easter present. :) I can't wait to recieve it and give it to her.  She may not be able to enjoy it until next fall, but that is ok. :)

It has sesame street on the top half and then that SUPER soft material on the bottom.  You can also email Kimberly @ kimortega@msn.com.  She is VERY quick to respond.

Funny face

This pic needs no intro and you will laugh. She was enjoying her sucker while I took pics. What a great pic!




We bought Ringo a dog collar. Would've bought it two hours earlier if I'd known how entertaining it would be for Shelby!


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Good Pillow

Mr. Rabbit makes a good pillow!




Ryan's hog hunt went well. All hogs donated to feed needy.

These are pics of them unloading for weigh in.







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Fun day

Today was fun with Shelby. We got most of the house cleaned including mopping the kitchen floor. Boy it needed it. Shelby then took a nap as I washed the horses and got things together for the barrel race.

When she woke up we loaded up and headed to Rosenberg. My an was to run Twister And Shiner, but shiner was still a little sore from his cut on his leg. So I just ran Twister.

Twister did really well! He ran a 15.9 and a 15.2 won it in. So he was just out of the 2d money. Not bad considering he has been rinning just out of the money in the 3D.

Basically that translates into Twister shaved 3-4 tenths off of his time. I was so proud of him!

Ryan has been hunting all weekend in Damon, TX for a hog hunting tournament. Last I heard they were at 13 hogs caught. They are still hunting tonight and then tomorrow. Hopefully they will do well in the tourney.

Layla Grace is still fighting, but her breaths have slowed and she sleeps most of the time. My heart ACHES for her and her family. I am so thankful and blessed to have a healthy, happy child! I <3 Shelby!!!
Here are some fun pics.











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Emotional night

Had a PERFECT night with Shelby... Horseback riding, cooking dinner, ice cream, bath, play time, prayers and night time. Thankful for my blessings and counting them all!

What fun! This is Shelby playing in the water buckets we were filling for the horses.








I have always been grateful for the life I have... The good, the bad and the ugly. This week has taken it to a whole new level. My friend, Ruth, lost her brother to cancer last night at 8 PM. As we talked about her weekends with him it brought back memories of Mom and spending time with her. One memory sticks out. I don't know why. It just does.

She was pretty sick soshe walked much slower than what I was used to. In the past, I would have to almost sprint to keep up with her. We were at the Bay City mall walking into Target. I can still remember the sunny, but cold day and telling myself to slow down. That's it but I remember.

The other I remember is her teaching me how to make her egg rolls Christmas 2001. She was so weak she would have to sit down and rest. I love her for sucking it up to share that moment with me. Now I make them with pride and always remember that night...so many memories and those two stick the most... Simple but there. That's what life is about...the simple moments....

I have also been following @laylagrace on Twitter and at www.laylagrace.org. My heart aches for this family. I am so confused and struggle with why children have to die. I think about my nephew Ryan often. Why him? Why us? Why Layla?

I then pray for Shelby. I pray for a long life with her and her kids. I see us traveling from barrel race to barrel race together. I pray to be her best friend when she grows up. I pray that she knows I love her because I tell her and show her.

As I work through all these emotions I have to know God has His arms around ALL HIs children. Everyone one of us... Young, middle aged and old...we are still His children and His heart still aches for us.

I can only hope that my plans line up with God's plans. Being a Mom is scary and exhausting. I hear those feelings never go away. I can only pray that the fear of the unknown subsides and I NEVER forget to love life and those in my life.

I love you all.

Fun pics

Shelby two PAC-ing it



I have an app on my iphone that changes pics into a sepia pic. Here are some pics I took of her. Pretty cool, huh?















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Shelby Being Creative

Shelby gets more creative each day.  Here she is learning how to make music using a cup.  Normally we don't have her just in her diaper, but Daddy was sick and so the heat was extra high in the living room.

Click Here to see video.

Layla Grace

Last week I learned about a little 2 year old girl, Layla Grace. She has terminal cancer. I am amazed at how strong and articulate her parents. What brave souls.


I have always appreciated Shelby and understood what a gift she is to us, but Layla and her family have reminded me of how lucky I am to have such a healthy child.

These days I hold Shelby a little tighter, play a little more and pray a little harder.

If you want to learn more about this family you can go to www.laylagrace.org or on Twitter @laylagrace.

Take the time to learn about this family and their love for God and their family.