2 days til 9

Whoa.  My baby is about to turn 9 years old.  He is everything I thought he would ever be. Helpful, respectful, and still a Mamma's boy!!  His new favorite past time is watching youtube minecraft videos. It's not what I'd pick but then I spent hours in my closet playing with plastic horses growing up.



We are about to start 4th grade and it's a whole new school!  I'm nervous but trying not to let Wyatt know so he won't be nervous!!  Lucky for him all his friends will be there so the new school will be new to all of them.  Strength in peers!!!

Hadley is 19 months old! She is as different from her brother as any child could be!  She's a joy but she is an independent girl. Do it myself is her motto.  She's talking some but no long conversations.  Such a Daddy's girl!! Her 18 month stats were 29 lbs and 34 inches. She's tall.   Wearing a size 3t for the most part, and she still looks like me for the most part.  New phase she is in is a little hard for her brother to understand. .  she is constantly grabbing his arm and scratching him.  I think she's just trying to play with him but she no longer treats him like he's one of us. . . always picking on him.  It's going to be a long year I think lol.

We went to NRH20 this week and Hadley loved the slides!!!  Brave girl! I thought she and I would get to spend a lot of girl time in the little pools . . but no, she wanted to ride the slides with her Bubba and Daddy. . . and slide she did! No fear!



Saturday is Wyatt's birthday party.  Minecraft theme this year.  I'll come back and post pics!! Happy Summer everyone!

Naptime Protest

Hadley has hit the stage where she is very resistant to naptime. . . our normal day is this:
Wake up at 7, get Wyatt ready for 3rd grade (holy moly), Drop Wyatt off at 8 am. . . drive to Starbucks for a Tall Salted Caramel Hot Chocolate, home by 8:30. . . play for an hour, then down for a nap at 9:30 with a bottle still. . . It's 10:51 now and she's still in there peeping.  Not crying. Peeping. . .

I'm thinking I may need to go intervene. . . again. . . for the third time. . .

Otherwise life with Hadley is a fun day everyday!! I've read back over how Wyatt was back at this age and they are so different!!  I did realize that we aren't doing as much new things with Hadley as we did with Wyatt. He had already been to the rodeo and loved it. . . so time for Hadley to get ready to go out! Spring is coming fast (I hope! Goodness it can't get colder than it has been!).  We are going to get a zoo pass with our tax return, also hoping to go to Great Wolf Lodge! Cross your fingers for us!!

Wyatt and Dad are gearing up for Baseball season!!!  This will be Wyatt's last season in 8U and that makes me very sad! He is growing up so fast!  He is loving 3rd grade. His biggest issue in school is that he understands assignments too quickly and therefore doesn't read the instructions completely! Small problem but we are working on slowing down!!  His favorite things in life are Minecraft. . . baseball, and MOM still!! LOVE that since Miss Hadley is firmly entrenched in the Dad camp.  She loves her Daddy!!!  No time for Mom after Dad gets home!!!

Well naptime has finally fired!!  It's 11:10 and there is SILENCE!!  She will sleep until 2 now and then it's time to go get her brother from school!!!

That's better! Hi Piper!!

Let My Piper IN!

Last Day of Summer

Today is the day I dread all year. Even during the school year I dread today.  I look forward (with an actual countdown) to the day school releases my Wyatt for summer and dread the day before school starts the minute he is free!  Tomorrow we get up early, get dressed, get breakfast, get in the car, (don't forget the sister) and get to school on time where we will try not to cry as we separate for the day.  Hopefully Wyatt will be successful but I doubt I will.

Kids grow up too fast. I know school is important and I know he loves it but I sure do hate how fast it makes everything go! Before you know it Summer will be here again and we will be done with elementary school!!!!!  Sigh.

Yesterday the three of us went to the zoo (Dad was at work) to just spend time together!  We were there a few weeks ago but we still managed to spend 4 hours looking at all the animals and visiting and talking and eating.  It was heaven. I really love my kids! Hadley was pretty content in her stroller but she spotted the birds and was very interested in them and as usual she loved the fishies.  There is a new baby elephant named Bowie and we all loved seeing him. (that makes two babies for the zoo elephant herd this year!)

Wyatt was super excited to get to talk to the keepers at the Gharial exhibit.  He asked a great question of the keeper: "Why do the males have a bulbous nose?" to which the keeper replied, "No one really knows!"  Maybe Wyatt will be a scientist and figure that out!  He sits in the dining area near the Gharials and gets so cranky when he hears everyone call them alligators lol.  Cracks me up!!  The keeper said that bothers him all the time too! Wyatt was impressed with them. Who knows.. . maybe scientist instead of baseball player?

Today we are staying home trying for a day of normalcy and xbox.  Hadley is actually napping much to her dismay after sleeping from 9 last night until 6:15 this morning, then from 6:45 to 8:45.  She was TIRED!  She didn't have a nap yesterday while we were at the zoo because she absolutely refuses to nap in her stroller! She might miss something you know. . .  She got to eat snow cone again and was a bigger fan this time.  That's my girl!!

Meet the teacher night went well!! Wyatt got the teacher he wanted so badly.  She was one of his second grade teachers and had moved up to 3rd grade.  At least I know she loves him! They talk Harry Potter together so I'm hopeful it'll be a great year!! Now back to enjoying my , I mean Wyatt's, last day of summer.

In his class room and at his desk!

3rd Grade Hallway!

Whoa. That was a BIG jump.

Okay Okay so I'm not known for my follow through.  I'll admit it. I've never had any. I'll start a project with gusto and quickly peter out to a tiny puff of wind!! The first day of editing photos I will go gung ho at it and have a ton posted. . .then the next day I'll do 3. . . then 2. . . then I'm looking at my last 12 going. . . these are great photos, get to them!   So it's no surprise that my last blog post was in 2010.  So what to do. . go back and fill in the missing pieces?  Possible but not now. . who has time for that!!  With that in mind I decided to just jump back in like I posted yesterday. . . only I'll update on what happened yesterday a bit to catch everyone up! lol (yesterday being a figurative time frame more encompassing the last year).

Everyone who knows me and who would have any interest in this blog in it's past knows that we are now a family of four!!!  YAY! Wyatt has a little sister!!  Miss Hadley Jane Spivey was born January 4th of this year and we couldn't be more smitten! Especially Wyatt, just ask him.  She is about to be 33 weeks (7 1/2 months old) and is just a happy girl!!!

I've discovered that I LOOOVE cooking. . (I know who would have ever guessed that. . . )  I love recipes. I can read them like a novel. . . send me old recipe books and I'll pour over them. . . which means I'm going to liven up this place with a new recipe or two in all likely hood. Can't help it!!  Although to do that I will have to get my camera out. . .oh geeze.

We have a lot more critters at the ranch, and have lost some as well. . . We have 4 new horses since our last time posting, Tavaci, my 6 year old mustang from Nevada, Pretty our 3 year old mustang from Oregon, and Teddy and Charlie. . our mini's from Ennis. lol.  Which this brings me to my newest and quite encompassing addiction. . Mustangs.  Yeah. There may be some posts here about mustangs in the future. .

Our losses hurt and we still miss them all.  We lost Sunny to Colic in 2012, Sable passed this January, Ron is gone, Dizzy is gone, and we lost a kitten I adored named Milo.  However we do have more cats than we did. . . a grand total of 7. . . Mr. Schwartz is 15 this year, we have Soot, who is 14 (he lived with me in college as well), Harry who is 8, Hermy 5, Happy, 1, Trouble 3, Della 2.   We have 4 dogs. . . Piper will be 7 this fall, Ella Beans, 3, Lady, 6, and Scoot who is 1.

So that's a run down on who is out here! lol.  Wyatt is 8 this year and is just about to start 3 rd grade!!!!  I can't believe it.  Time goes way too quickly when you would prefer it crawl!  

Quick photos until I have more free time!!

Spelunking!!  

Hadley LOVES her brother! 

Here Mom!!!  Have a toy! 

First vacation! San Antonio! 

I'll be back! I promise!! Have a yummy winging it dinner to post later!!

Water Fun!

 So I still call Hurricane Harbor Wet-N-Wild. . . but whatever you call it, Wyatt's a big fan!!!

 Daddy & Wyatt playing!

Lazy River!

Bubba Tub!

Happy Birthday Wyatt! 5 Years old!

Can't believe how fast the time has gone!!  Wyatt had his 5th birthday party this week!  He had a swim party with a bunch of his friends!

 Wyatt and his cousin Dani

 Wyatt and Cousin Shell-Shell

 Daddy & the birthday boy!

 Giving Aunt Nana a big hug for the AT-AT!

 Aunt Nana and Shell-Shell can't be beat for presents this year! 

 Cake disaster?  Lol.  Never have your cake made by a high school student. . .

 Cousin Cole

 Colin & his Mom

 Reid

 Wyatt & Reid

 Bella is a mermaid!

Wyatt underwater makes the same face as Daddy under water!!  Funny!

 I was there too!!

 Bella's Dad Andrew (one of my best friends from high school!)

 Wyatt & Reid

 Wyatt & Reid

Cailyn enjoying the giraffe!

Pool's open!

 OH and SURPRISE!!  Meg had a spare baby months after returning home!!  This is one of Hercules' babies which makes her a full sister to Lele!  Now we have Meg, Mira (the new baby), Lele & Lucky! 

Cute little bugger isn't she!!!