Kudos!!

Big Kudos and Congrats go out to my big brother and my friend K.J. who both ran in the Fargo Marathon this past weekend! My bro ran the 1/2 marathon, and K.J. ran in the relay. My bro had hoped to complete his 1/2 in less than 2 hours, and did it in 1 hr and 45 minutes! Way to go! K.J.'s team placed well, but the more amazing thing is that her baby isn't even a year old and she did this! I wasn't even sleeping through the night, I don't think, at this point with the Guyser, much less thinking about running close to 7 miles! Great job to both of these amazing people!!!!

Spammed!

I got hit with my first batch of blog-spam today! What a pain. As if the 12 in my inbox aren't enough, I need more. How annoying....

A New Game!

I think we should start a new game titled,

"What has the Guyser ingested today?!"

It's not like my kid eats coins or marbles or toys... he strictly sticks to organic items, like dirt, grease, mud, and I will just let you guess from there on. If I admit what I have actually caught him eating, my contention for "mother of the year" will be out the window!!!

Exactly how much dirt can a kid eat??

Ahhh... my little "Pica Pete."

Family portrait

I like this picture. A lot. A family portrait of sorts. I wish I knew how many miles those little boots have traveled so far......

NOT cool.... not cool at all

My Hubby has assured me several times "I have NEVER seen a snake out here." Today, he was proven wrong. Unfortunately, I was the one who almost stepped on this bullsnake's head before realizing he was lying across the sidewalk! And yes, I did scream like a little girl and jump about 4 feet high! I am not really all that fond of snakes, but I can deal with them, if they are small and don't bite. This beast was about 4 feet long. YUCK. I made the Hubby take him a mile away and relocate him. Kind of creepy though, because he was close to the house, and don't really know where he came from. Now I am paranoid and find myself staring constantly at the ground. I will say it again. YUCK.

Friend's visit

My best friend, Petra, came to see me this weekend, from her home in Big Sky Country. It was SOOOOO good to spend time with her. The hubby, her and I have known each other for 9 years now. We all worked together, once upon a time, in the same ICU. It was strange for us to realize that 9 years have passed since that. Her and I went through that life altering experience of "What!? THIS is life?!? This is what we went all the way through high school, all through college, to get this degree for THIS??" I think many people think life starts after high school, after college, after you get married after blah blah blah.....We were younger then...23 or 24 maybe... and maybe the fact we were working in an ICU at such a young age made us face our mortality. I remember sitting on her deck, enjoying a libation, watching people go in and out of the Dairy Queen... we were chatting... and then there was a long pause..... and we were said "So this is it, huh? This is what we busted our butts for in college?!" And then I think we both realized, that no, this (the job) it was a source of income. It paid the bills and gave us a means to buy things we needed. Life is all about things like this weekend. Walking through a pasture, listening to frogs. Sitting around a fire, making smores and cracking jokes. Taking a long walk on a gravel road, sharing our thoughts and fears about our skin, our weight, our husbands, our dreams. To have a friendship that allows you to tell the same things to over and over, and you never have to fear they are tired of listening to you, that is part of Life. We have both grown, changed, made mistakes and learned along the way. But, through it all, we have only grown closer.

I feel so very blessed to have Petra in my life. Every woman deserves and needs a friendship like this. We talk most everyday. The Hubby thinks we should just have a direct line put in. "What can you possibly talk about." He is a boy. He just doesn't get it. But women out there, you know what I am talking about. She is that one who is always there for you, and will always be there for you. And you can always find something to talk about.

A couple more photos..

I am not sure what was outside that window, but it sure drew a lot of attention from the cats!

The Guyser calls Grandma and Grandpa and tell them about all of his adventures.

Photo Update

This is our "Rent-a-dog", Meka. She belongs to the neighbors, but when the wind is right, she can hear us out in the yard, and comes to visit. No, those are not her teeth, rather she found antlers drying in one of the buildings. I think she looks like a dog/walrus cross!


The Guyser inspects Dad's tree removal.



And this is how we take trees down here, at the farm!