It's SPRING!!!

There are Tulips blooming in my yard, baby bunnies in our nest boxes, and the smoker has a rack of ribs on it...It's SPRING!!!

Miss Anna has been found in the strangest places lately, soaking up the sunshine.

I love weekends where we just hang out and tinker around outside, which it what we did most of the weekend. The boys did some work at the farm. Jacob has won Charlies heart...food may have been involved!... and has finally able to get his hands on her.  Soon he will be getting her halter broke and walking her.

I transplanted starts from 3 rosebushes from the farm over the past week. With the rain we've had, they didn't even wilt! I really hope they live! If they do, I will have parts of  rosebushes that both my Grandmothers planted!  One is a really pale pink/almost white, but it's been years since I'd payed attention to what colors the others are. I guess I'll be surprised!

Today we had some of the cutest little girls in the county come over to learn about rabbits. I'm so excited to see increased interest in this project!  We may be a bit biased, but we think its the BEST 4-H project out there!

The babies have started arriving. This weekend was full of nesting mamas and through the night checks. I was convinced it was cold enough to kill newborns, but I was surprised when I went in to check at 3am to find 3  boxes filled with warm, toasty, cleaned up, babies snug in their nests. The moms just looked at me like, "Yea..I got this..you go worry about the human children."    We always learn during this hobby, and this time was no exception. Jacob has a cute little black Havana kit, who was born with NO TAIL! Like it never formed.  He's named him Stubs.  ;)

Hope everyone got plenty of sunshine this weekend!!

LOOK AT WHAT I MADE!

I love crafts. I am just not very good at them, unless they came  out of the kids section  and the package says for 5 and under.   I WANT to be good at crafts, but I have found I am just not good at anything.

BUT!!
See what I made for my door for Easter??

There is a running joke in my family about my love of Peeps. I do love them. I LIKE eating them too, but not nearly as much as I LOVE LOOKING at them. They are adorable, all lined up in their cute little package!

I do realize while all I did was hot glue sugar coated marshmallows to wreath, and added some ribbon, I feel its a small victory for the crafty-challenged!

Capital City Rabbit Show

We weren't going to go. Really. We were not!!
But we did.
I kept feeling conflicted as there was another show 2 hours away and it is a 3 hour 45 min drive to Emporia. We would have nothing good to take with us, as all of our does are bred and due this coming week. BUT!  We were pretty sure ALL of Tristen's Dutch does had missed, and his Dutch mentor, Briony, was willing to load up her herd bucks up to breed them at this show.  After breeding Oreo 6+ times to several does, we've come to the conclusion that the guy is sterile. 

But it was a wonderful 2 days!  After prom dress shopping with my sister, Danny met us outside Wichita and picked me up, so I wouldn't have to drive BACK from Wichita, and then all the way to Emporia.

I was happy we got there early, so we could play a little and not rush around.

Bright and early the next morning, we headed to the show. I was happy to FINALLY get to wear my new bunny show shirt I had Cindy make.

I should probably start by telling you that Jacob hauled 4 Havanas, 1 Mini Rex, and 2 Californians to this show.  The Californians are 2 Sr bucks. Truman is 3, and is Jacob's very first homegrown winner. He won 1st Reserve In Show in the very first show Jacob ever went to! Anyway, he also brought along Brat, Truman's son, who is 2. Brat hasn't left our barn in over a year, and Truman for over 2. He pretty much just brought them to have more rabbits to show. When we arrived, Jacob realized that Tara had come to show her Cals. Tara is from OK, is a really sweet girl, and has the most AMAZING CALIFORNIANS I have never seen. Jacob has quite literally drooled over them for over 2 years now, and anytime she's there, she easily sweeps the BOB and BOS. She had brought 12 with her, Jacob had the 2 old guys, and there was another exhibitor there who had 4. I think Jacob pretty much thought he was walking the walk of shame as he hauled his carriers up to the table. BUT--  would you believe who won??

Umm..yea..you could have pretty much knocked us all over with a feather. Jacob's Brat won Best of Breed under Tex Thomas.  I wish I could have taken pictures of Jacob's face when Tex kept sending bunnies back and Brat was still in the coop. Jacob claimed it was almost as exciting as the Best In Show judging!

Brat has hopefully sired a litter of babies expected later this next weekend!


In the Havana Specialty, Jacob was thrilled to win BOB with Jagger, his broken chocolate, with his buddy Tyler winning Best Opposite with a broken doe. It was St Patrick's Day and everyone was really festive, as you can see!

Jagger also went on to win Best Opposite in the regular show, (I'm bummed I didn't get a picture, but Tristen had rabbits on the table and we were in a hurry to get over and see how he was doing)   with a little blue doe from OK winning Best of Breed. That doe later went on to win Best In Show!

And THIS guy...!!!

 This guy won Best Opposite in the Ks Dutch Specialty with Oreo. He took 5 Dutch to show. Tristen met and shook hands with the vice president of the American Dutch Rabbit Club. He's from Gardner and a super nice guy. Dutch people are the BEST people out there!   Briony got all 3 of his does bred, so hopefully we will have Dutch babies in the nest box in a month. GO Dutch!

T also talked his parents into buying him a super cute 4 month chocolate Dutch buck, who has yet to be named, but took to our family very well...

It is, apparently, absolutely exhausting being so cute while trying to impress your new family!

I am constantly amazed where these little bunnies have taken us,  the time spent together, just the 4 of us, and the friendships we have formed along the way.  Sometimes in life, only our rabbit friends will do. And we were sure happy to see them!!

And on the way home, I was drug, perhaps against my will, to THIS PLACE!!  Its not that I HATE Cabela's. I mean I don't LOVE it either, but I have 3 men in my house. I've learned to be tolerant!  But I hate crowds. And this was the week of grand opening of this store. *shudder*  Pure insanity!  These people are just nutty over dead animals, camo, and guns!  I found a little tiny candle section and tried to sniff my way to my happy place and  pretend I wasn't just bumped into by a 6 1/2  foot man dressed in a deer costume, wearing a blaze orange cap.  It didn't work. As we were leaving the parking lot, which had police officers directing traffic I might add, I found there is a super-Target just down the block.

So,next time they have the urge to go there, I'm just running to Target!! As fast as I can...

=)

Posted on my Facebook page this morning by my cousin. =)

Source: imgfave.com via Sophie on Pinterest

Oh Spring Break..

..how I love thee.

My boys are home this week on Spring Break. Ahh. Just what this momma needed! No more morning drama, no more having to stop and think who is going where after school and when they will need to be picked up.  For the first time in 9 years, my daycare load LIGHTENED during this break, and today finds me with *2* children.   It's strange, and nice, all at the same time!

We've been enjoying temperatures in the 80's. I LOVE it, but fear this year will be another like last year.  Took a little walk around my flower beds, and was THRILLED to see most of my plants starting to leaf out. I did lose a few plants in the bed I added last year, but its not nearly as many as I feared.  I'm seeing life in things I was certain were dead and would need to be replaced. 

The Naked Lady's have shot up!

I'm proud!! This is a poppy I translated from my flower bed last year! It's THE ONLY poppy I've managed to transplant successfully in the 10 years we've lived here!!

The Blanket Flower I was convinced was killed by the Summer 2011 has returned after all!

And the Purple Coneflowers have started peeking through!

This weather has the bunnies feeling very "frisky", and after only have *1* litter  in 8 months, every available doe in our barn was bred, and are due next week. I'm pretty sure not ALL of them took, but judging from some of the bellies on some these girls, our baby drought is about to end.

Hope everyone gets a chance to get out and enjoy this weather!! Sounds like our area is in for some thunder storms next week! Would love the rain, just not any activity! 

Charlie

The Herefords have returned !! Jacob's heifer was delivered on Saturday, and he hasn't stopped smiling yet.

First off,  take a look at this picture I came across of my dad. (So sorry, Dad! I couldn't help it! Its CUTE!)

Anyway, I'd like you to meet: Charlie. Yes-She IS a heifer. But..

...her name makes me smile and I don't think Jacob could have  picked a better name. Because MY grandfather's name was Charles, his dad's name was Charles, and HIS dad's, the man who built our family farm, name was Charles. It's an almost 14 year old boys way of honoring what was here before and the heritage that is continuing.

Jacob is really proud of this girl, and the fact that the first Hereford back on the farm was purchased and owned by him.

Charlie...well, Charlie isn't really sure about all of this yet.

Next up, getting her gentled and halter broke.Should be a fun time!! She's only about 500lbs bigger than the last one we did. *gulp*

O.U.C.H

Tuesday evening my sister injured her ankle in basketball practice.  This was a big deal because:

She's a senior. Her basketball season was coming to an end.
Sub-State tournament  was just in a few days.
This was no ordinary little twisted ankle.  This injury promoted calls to doctors and trips an hour away everyday for therapy.

Her ankle was so painful, but she announced she was playing her in her last games. *insert a snicker-snicker here from the annoying big sister. I didn't think there was ANY way she would be on the court, but played along anyway.*

 Here is the big fat nasty foot the day after she did it.

And here is it 4 days after the injury, and the morning after she PLAYED in the first game of sub-state!!  Wow-can you imagine running up and down the court with that?? You can see the bruising starting to go up the leg where she sock lines are at.
I took these pictures in the parking lot of her Dr's parking lot. I rode along with her to therapy for moral support..and to gripe about her driving and music choices. hehe

So, in the end, she did play both sub-state games. She wasn't quite herself, but she finished out her Sr basketball season out on the court, doing what she loves with her teammates.  They won the first sub state game, but got beat in the championship game, so her high school basketball career is now over.

The lesson I learned from my sister this week?

When life hands you lemons, you pick them all up, turn around, and start pelting the lemons back at life. Attitude IS everything. 

New Life On The Farm

Meet Remington!

(Yes. We name our cattle...ok ok...the kids and I... mostly me, hehe,  name our cattle. ;) )

All cleaned up and ready for visitors

We've been waiting for her arrival for about 2 weeks now. Last night we knew she had to be getting close. Rosie's poor udder looked like a blown up exam glove. OUCH!

So this morning, before the sun came up, I was headed out to see if anything was going on, and was greeted by the new momma and her little red calf.

 Isn't she adorable? New life always amazes me. The entire process is just such a miracle.

And in typical  funny farm fashion, she gets up and tries to nurse....off Whiskey..the horse. Yep--I think she's going to fit in nicely around here. =)