Midnight Whiskey
McKay's Horse.

Yesterday was Aubrey's 7th birthday. She has been so excited. She wanted a unicorn cake. Do you think I could find anything with a unicorn that wasn't a ton of work? I found a horse spray painted it with glitter and hot glue a paper horn on it. She was excited. She took it to school today to show her friends. It was a good day. We had a big Sunday dinner. Mom and dad came to eat with us and then Chance and Carissa came for cake and ice cream later. John and Dixie called her Saturday. It was good to hear from them. We had a good day.

We actually had enough leaves for Bo and Aubrey to play in. Okay we had a little pile but they had fun. McKay would throw them up and Bo and Aubrey would dance a twirl in them. It was fun to watch them.

I thought Cheyanne was done with volleyball for a little while but now she starts a tournament. It will be good for her since club ball will start in December. Then the real fun begins. I love to watch them play.

Matt and I were able to attend a 60th wedding anniversary party for Keith and Lola Coombs. I have never met a better man in my life. He still can make me feel like I am a little girl. Sixty years is a long time. Matt and I will have our 20th in November. Twenty feels like forever. I wonder what 60 will feel like. Keith has helped me with rodeo when I was in high school. We bought my barrel horse from him. He has given me his time, ropes, Tony the pony, his arena and even a dog. I have alot of great memories of that man and he will always be close to my heart. I can't even imagine how many kids he has helped throughout his life. What a guy.

Where Does the Time Fly?

Summer has come and gone. It seems like time goes by faster and faster each day. I got a few months to catch up on so here it goes.

June was Chances Graduation. It was really weird to have him grow up all of a sudden and complete his high school education. It was time for me to let him go. It is really hard to do that I still catch myself wanting to say "You are doing what?" He moved out not too long after graduation. He has a cute little apartment in Brigham City. Seems to be doing well. He has a good job and is playing pretty hard.

July brought our little Bo's 2nd birthday. I can't believe he has been part of our family for that long. He is so funny. And he is starting to talk alot. I have to interpret for the rest of the family because he has his on way of saying things.

July also brought with it the Baxter Family Reunion. We were able to spend a few days in Zion's National Park. Josie did an amazing job organizing and entertaining. We stayed in a huge log cabin furnished with lots of fun things. Matt had to go to work for a few hours one day in St. George. It happened to be the day we went to the narrows. I had no intentions of hiking up river with Bo and Aubrey but thought I would go a little ways up and turn back. Just to say I did it. Brandon (Matt's brother) said he would carry Bo on his shoulders. There was no way that Bo was going to go along with that idea. I ended up carrying him on my hip for about a mile or two. It felt like 10. We waded up to our waist in water. We had lunch and started back. If it wasn't hard enough to carry Bo to begin with it was really fun when he fell asleep. Nothing like dead weight. Jami (Matt's sister) carried him part of the way back for me. Needless to say Bo had a great nap and I slept really good that night.

August was the Marble Family Reunion at Lava Hot Springs, Idaho. The kids floated down the river in tubes. We swam at the pool and I got Bo to not be so afraid of the water. We stayed in a Motel with a RV park in back where my family with trailers stayed. We all had a good time.

The Box Elder County Fair was also in August. Chance, McKay & Cheyanne all took steers to show. They all got a blue ribbon. We thought that they should have done better in their class. They did well at the auction. There are sure alot of good people that support these kids at the Auction. Aubrey and I were in a horse riding club called Trail Trotters. We had alot of fun together. I enjoyed riding in the arena again. It brought back alot of memories.

School started the following Monday after the fair. Time to get into a routine. Aubrey was really excited for 1st grade. She likes her teacher and is doing great. I think she could be a spelling bee winner. Cheyanne started 8th grade. We tell her we send her to school to learn but I think she goes to school for the social part. McKay is in the 9th grade. He wasn't to excited to go back to school but went anyway. He's doing good too.

September we brought the cows home from Malad. It's a good thing we have alot of good help with the boys and a friend (JD). Matt and I went up one day and had a nice ride looking for cows. I now know why it's takes all day. I think there is alot of B.S.ing going on. It was quite fun. The trees were changing colors and it was a cool day. I am glad I went.

It is now October and Fall is here. Cooler days and cooler nights. So why doesn't the stupid flies freeze and die? They are driving me crazy. Not the 5 kids and a husband haven't already made me crazy. Cheyanne has been playing volleyball with a city league. Aubrey has started Tavosi (a singing group). She is singing Christmas songs. McKay has almost completed his eagle and has gotten his learners permit. He's completed his driving course and now needs to finish the online course. He bought a 2 year old colt and has been working with her. Chance is having fun living it up and working. He's doing great. As for Matt and I? Matt is still working with cows, fixing fence, working his 9 to 5 and being a dad and a husband. Me, I am still in young women's, have taken on a craft club and just bought a vinyl cutter. I can't wait until I have the time to sit down with it and figure it out without interruptions (will that day ever come?) Hopefully not too soon. I forgot about Bo. He's sure fun. He is happier than a lark or madder than a bull. There really is not an in between with him. I keep telling myself... hard toddler, easy teenager. He's alot of fun still. I enjoy it being just he and I during the day. Now if we could only work on the potty training all would be good. He's not even close.

My Grandpa Olsen of 90 years fell this week and broke his hip. He did not have to have surgery so that's good news. My mom and my aunt moved him to a nursing home in Delta (that's where my aunt lives). So far so good. Hopefull all will go well for him.

Anyway, this is life of the past months.

Dad

Dad is in the hospital again. He has been having some pain in his abdomen so mom took him to the doctor on Tuesday. The doctor sent dad over to the hospital on Wednesday morning to have an ultrasound. They found that his gall bladder was full of stones and diseased and needed to come out. Mom and dad wanted the same doctor that did his colon surgery to do this one as well but he was on vacation and wouldn't be back for a few days and dad couldn't wait that long. They decided to have Dr. Ashdown do the surgery. Dr. Ashdown came and looked at him and admitted him right into the hospital. Dad had surgery that night at 5:30 p.m. The gall bladder was as big as a baseball but shaped like a football. He will be in the hospital for 4-5 days. I called this morning and they said he was doing great and had been up walking around. They were a little worried about his kidneys but the nurse told me they were working okay. Hopefully we won't have a repeat like last time. The doctors wonder if this is why dad hasn't felt very good and been able to get back on his feet.

Tuesday, dad thought he would go get a 40 lb. bag of pellets for their stove. Mom looked outside and saw him. She went out just in time to see him fall. He hit the grass and skinned up his head and bloodied his nose. I think his pride was wounded the most.

The other day I was coming home from the cows and I saw the best sight that I have seen in months. There was a green pickup coming down my lane. It was dad. That was the first time I have seen him drive since his colon surgery. I wished I had my camera. I would have taken a picture.

Easter Vacation

We had a good vacation. We vaccinated most of the cows on Friday and branded the new ones that Matt bought. Aubrey and I went to pick up some propane and the lady asked us if we were going camping. Ya right. We had a couple of jumpers that Matt & the boys had to rope to vaccinate. Crazy. It took us about 6+ hours to get it done.

On Saturday Matt took some of the cows to Brigham to pasture for the summer. I think Chance really likes to drive the bull wagaon.

Bo was right there with us. He really did pretty well until the last hour maybe. He went from tractor to tractor and played in the dirt and rocks or so I thought. I could see him playing in a hole then he stood up and started walking over to me. It wasn't a hole it was a mud puddle. He was caked with mud from his waist to his boots. I had to take him home and bath him and then go back. His onesie never came clean and his boots still leave his socks dirty. I think he had fun though. The kids were alot of help to Matt. I don't know what we would do without them.

The kids had a good Easter morning. We went to church. Everyone looked nice in their new dresses and shirts and ties.

We had Easter dinner at Grandma Della's house. I cooked chicken on the grill. Our grill wouldn't start and mom's and dad's was out of propane. Darrin went and got his. McKay finally got mine started and Darrin's started right up. Bo was crying and I couldn't hold him and cook. Matt and Chance had to go to Brigham and take some more cows in. Bo wouldn't let anyone take him. He was getting tired and hungry. Finally, mom took him, screaming and all, in the house and got the tractors out for him. That made him happy. Everything tasted great. Grandpa Olsen is here for a few days. It was good to get together.

Monday I took Bo, Aubrey and a friend to a movie. We saw Mosters Vs. Aliens. I thought it was really cute. Cheyanne and a friend went with us but they went and saw a different movie. I guess I am not cool enough anymore. We still had fun though. I didn't even have to take Bo out. YEAH!

Dad

Not a whole lot new. He acts like he is feeling a little better. He went to the doctor last week and doesn't need to go back for a month. He said he was having some pain but that seems to have eased up. He is still sleeping a lot but is getting around pretty well. Dad has been to a few ball games and looks forward to them. He is progressing, slowly, but it is progress.

Matt took him for a couple of hours last weekend. They drove out to Little Mountain and down to the cows and messed around. He enjoyed it.

A close friend of our family passed away unexpectedly last week. Dad took it really hard. Matt and Darryl gave him a blessing. I think he was feeling frustrated and a little depressed. I have never seem him like that before.

Newest Member of our Family

This little guy's name is JoJo. His mother was sick and wasn't able to take care of him. Aubrey has had a lot of fun with him. JoJo will run after her. He has to be bottle fed 2 times a day. He is out in the barn. He was a little sick but I think he is getting over it.

We lost a cow that was pregnant this week and a calf that has been sick. They have kept Matt and the boys very busy this week.

Aubrey lost a front tooth a week ago Saturday. She had school pictures on Monday, dance pictures on Tuesday and gymnastic pictures on Wednesday. She still looked really cute. This is the same tooth that got pushed back when the pony reared up backwards and went over. The saddle horn got her in the mouth. Her tooth turned black and the dentist thought it was dead. It got its color back and just now fell out. One year later. Aubrey fell off the pony last Sunday when she was feeding cows with her dad. She's a pretty brave little girl.

Chance had an exciting week I guess. He called me Wednesday morning and said he was called to the office. His counselor told him he was lacking 1/2 credit of Fine Arts. I was not happy. I called and talked to his counselor about 3 weeks ago to make sure he was on line for graduation. She told me that he was and all was good. Chance had gone and changed some classes so that he could have work release again. This was before the trimester started. Well the Vice Principle got involved and the counselor was in the wrong. She checked Chance's classes but they were the old ones and failed to check the class changes. She apologized and admitted she was in the wrong. Needless to say he still needed Fine Arts. He would have to have a third hour and take away one hour of work release. He would be three weeks behind in Pottery and would need to make up everything that he has missed so far. His other options were to take a night class at the Community High School. He would have to have 45 hours of class time and had to attend 2 nights a week from 6-9. Or he could take a Fine Arts class at North Ridge Learning Center. It is a packet that is completed at his own pace at home. That's what he decided to do. It shouldn't be too hard for him. If he passes everything at 90% he will not have to take a final exam. Hopefully no more surprises.

McKay has been working on a Lewis and Clark Journal. It has been quite a project for him. We have tea dyed some muslin for a cover. He wanted a map on the cover so I said we could print on off and iron it on. It worked great all accept that I forgot to print it upside down. Everything was backwards. So now we get to try it again. It has to be seven pages and hand written. He can draw pictures but it is supposed to look like an actual journal. McKay had to make a catapult out of a mouse trap, a dowel and a plastic spoon. It had to catapult a weighted ping pong ball. He loves this kind of stuff. The school record was 54 feet and his went 60 feet. Way to go McKay. The other night he put a motor on his pinewood derby car and had a mouse trap on it and it was hooked up to a battery. It would go across the hard wood floor. Amazing how his brain works.

Cheyanne has been busy with volleyball. She has a tournament this Saturday. We had young women's at our house Saturday night and we watched the General Young Women's Meeting. Everyone brought treats and I had a pizza for them. It was quite nice. Bo and Aubrey were here so I am going to have to watch a rebroadcast or online or something. We went to parent teacher's conference. Most of her teachers said she is a fun girl and likes to talk alot. But it's not all her fault (one teacher told me) she just seems to be in the middle all the time. She is a very social butterfly. Matt and I tell her that we send her to school to learn. She just laughs at us.
She wanted to go to the mall on Friday but she didn't want me to go with her. All of her friends were busy so she decided it would be okay if I went. We had a fun time. It's a good thing I didn't let her take all her money or she would have spent all of it. She came home with $16. I think I have a shopper on my hands. She modelled all of her clothes for her dad and then she modelled mine.



Bo is just Bo. Not more to say. He likes playing in the toilet and in Jingle's water dish. We have shut all the doors so he can't get into things. He has learned how to say Aubrey (AUBEE). It's funny. He will sit right next to her and yell AUBEE, AUBEE, AUBEE. He loves to go outside too.

As for me, I got a wild hair. Or should I say alot of short, spiky hairs. Yes, I cut my hair again. It's in an A-line and has the pokey hairs. I really like it. I have wanted to do it for a long time. Matt hasn't said much about it. I don't know if that is good or bad.

Happy Patricks Day!

Nothing much new and exciting has happened lately. I guess that is a good thing.

Aubrey did not want to wear green to school today. They can't pinch each other anyway. I sent a green Ribbon tied into a bow that she can pin on her shirt just in case she changed her mind. She stuck it in her pocket. She's a funny girl.

The cow herd keeps growing. We have had some sick ones and Matt has had to spend quite a bit of time with them. It's getting warmer now and that's good. Matt said we are down to the last 2 weeks of hay. It better hurry and get warmer so the grass will grow. We will take them to Malad in May.

Cheyanne had a volleyball tournament 2 weeks ago. Her team took third. It was a two day tournament and the girls seemed to be tired. She has another one on Saturday. I let her color her hair to a dark brown. It's pretty. I told her that I wouldd to pay for it but she couldn't "GO" with boys for the rest of the school year. I keep telling her that boys have cooties. I don't know if she believes me anymore.

McKay's eagle project was a no go. For him to be able to do it he would have to personally go to Africa and deliver the supplies. He really would like to go. Our neighbor, who is putting on the auction, would love to have him go as well. He told me Sunday that there isn't very many boys that he would even think about taking with him but he would definitely take McKay in a heart beat. We got McKay's grades and he is doing better than ever. He got A, A-, A-, A-, A- and a B+. I think he thinks it's pretty neat.

Chance is working alot lately. Maybe because it is getting warmer. He might have to pull a 24 hour shift this week. He's looking for a truck to buy. I wish he wouldn't be in such a big hurry to grow up. Is there any way to stop it?? HaHa. We got his grades he got an A, A-,A-,A- and a B+. I was totally impressed.

I had the opportunity to take the young women and young men in my ward down to the Draper Temple open house. Cheyanne and McKay went with me. They were fighting with one another and I told them it wouldn't be a good thing for me to kill them before we go to the temple. They thought that was pretty funny. Then they both decided to ride down with me. I guess it's a good thing that they think I am cool. It was really neat but I kind of felt like we were herded through. I thought that we would be able to spend a little more time in the rooms. However there was someone in the sealing room that took a few minutes with us. Very beautiful though. The brides room was neat. It had the prettiest chandeliers that I have ever seen.

Bo's new thing is to go into Matt's closet and put on his cowboy boots and a cap. He comes clonking out with the hat on backwards. He is getting into everything. Nothing is safe anymore. We went to the bookmobile and I found a book with tractors in it. He loves it. He likes the page with the loader on it. He also likes to play with his cap guns that Chance gave him for Christmas. He is still a daddy's boy. Matt seems to really like that. When Matt leaves Bo will stand at the door and cry for 15-20 minutes.