The unthinkable happened at MY house...part 1

Last month we had the entire week of Thanksgiving off from school. Kennedy, Taylor, Blake and I had big plans. I'm not real sure what our plans were, but they were B.I.G. So, the "big girls" stayed with Chad's mother and father most of the weekend before Thanksgiving. That was great, except that it meant on Monday morning (my first official day off work) I had to be in Tyler by 7:15 A.M. to get them so his parents could go to work. Like I said, I'm not real sure what our plans were, but I do know what my plan was NOT--getting up at 5:45 A.M. to drive to Tyler!

But, since my kids were at their house, and they both seem to like their jobs, I did the "favorite daughter-in-law" thing to do and went to get my kids. Since I can't really function that early on a day off, I rode with Chad in the big truck. No, it's really not that big, but compared to The Mighty Moe (Toyota), it's huge! The big truck has four doors and can comfortably seat five people, and we can always squish another person in the middle in the front seat. And since I'm also the "favorite sister-in-law", I called Chad's sister on her day off (early...like 7A.M.) to see if she wanted to run around and shop with Kennedy, Taylor, Blake, and I. Now, if you don't know Mary, let me just tell you that I can't remember a time that I invited her to shop or spend time with my kids that she didn't agree to come along. That woman L-O-V-E-S to shop and A-D-O-R-E-S her nieces!

While we were waiting on Aunt Mary to get to Nanny's house, Aunt Nancy called. Nancy is Chad's other sister. I did mention that I'm the "favorite sister-in-law", right? Well, Aunt Nancy called to see if I wanted Heather to come along and help with the girls while I was shopping. I told her we had plenty of help, but would love Heather to come along if she wanted to just hang out with two of her coolest aunts! Although Heather is only 16, she is pretty smart and capitalized on the golden opportunity!

Now, I know some of my dearest friends are mathematically challenged, so let me just set the scene for you...

Front seat of four-door truck: Shannon, Heather, Mary
Back seat of four-door truck: Kennedy in booster seat, Blake in infant carrier with massive base that makes life so much easier, and Taylor in booster seat with back on it

Yes, we had three car seats in the back seat and three adults in the front of the truck. We were packed in like those nasty little baby food Vienna sausage things! Or, if you like, packed in like sardines!

The girls and I made several stops and had a fantastic time. One of the highlights of the day (before the unthinkable happened) was when we went to lunch. As we walked into Chick-fil-A, Taylor said, "Come on Heather! Let's go play!" In an attempt to save Heather from having to be the heartbreaker, I replied, "Taylor, I bet Heather's not the right size to play in there." Taylor quickly reminded me, "Heather is big enough to come play in here, Mom!"

Life on Mimi and Pop's Farm

Here's what started it all. Yes, I know. It really is gross to see your mom and dad kiss. But, aren't they just adorable? They truly are great people, parents, and examples for us younger folk!

My cousin Ashley came out to Mom and Dad's house on Thanksgiving to take some family pictures. She did such an awesome job! (Thanks Ashley!) She's going to do some of just our family one day soon. We scheduled a session over the week of Thanksgiving but had a H-U-G-E unexpected surprise. More about that later...but enjoy the show!


This is the crew. Mom and Dad with the grandkids on the tractor (minus Addy and Ayden). Standing is Trisha, Steven (my little brother), Me, Chad, Stacey, and Keith (my older brother).



Here's what happens when Popsi thinks no one is looking! Kennedy and Taylor L-O-V-E to ride the tractor with my Daddy!



This is one of my favorite pictures of the day...very creative and combines two of my loves...my kids and the Tractor!



And then there was this cow...

Her name, according to my kids, is "Crooked Horn Betsy". Crooked Horn Betsy has been on the farm a long time. She is quite gentle. Several months ago my daddy got a crazy cow that destroyed a lot of farm equipment type stuff. I didn't grow up on the farm, so I don't know the proper terminology. But, the cow was crazy and my daddy said on more than one occasion that he should've just shot her where she was standing! I don't allow profanity on my blog or I would quote his top 10 things to say about the crazy cow. After months of Joe vs. Cow, which included penning her long enough for her to destroy the corral and ruining a friendship between my dad and the "friend" who sold him this gentle cow, my dad hired a "real cowboy". This "real cowboy" was hired to come out to the farm with his dogs to haul the crazy cow some cows to the sale. Now, if you know my daddy even a little, you can just imagine how difficult it was for the tightwad to part with even a penny for something like this. However, his health was at risk. His heart and my mom's ears couldn't take it any longer...and it was getting expensive replacing fence panels, etc. One morning back in September or October, the two cowboys showed up with their many, many dogs and began rounding up cows. Yes, Chad, myself, mom, dad, and the girls were all outside on the porch watching what proved to be a pretty uneventful cattle round up. Dad had discussed selling several of the older cows. One of the ones on the list of "probably" for going to the sale was "Crooked Horn Betsy". Taylor was clueless about this development until she noticed the cows being herded into the corral. Very politely she said,"Popsi, I know you're not gonna sell Crooked Horn Betsy, are you?" I'm not real sure what happened after that. Six weeks later, guess who's still on the Akin Farm?



Yeah, her name is Betsy!

Grrrr!

This isn't much of a post, but I PROMISE you will laugh. Each child has a unique gift, right? Well, yesterday while having dinner, we discovered Blake's gift. Take a peak!