Tim's Birthday Party

We celebrated Tim's first birthday last night. We had dinner and a party for family. Tim had a good time opening all his presents although we had to fend off the other two kids regularly. At first they wanted to just look at the toys after Tim opened them. Then it became "Tim needs help opening his presents mom!". Had we let it progress any further Nora and Nathaniel would have taken the presents and moved to the other side of the room away from Tim and opened them and never let him see them again.

Grandpa wanted to get a picture with the 3 generations. Starting on the left is Timothy and myself. In the middle is Ruben Hanson (my grandpa) holding Nathaniel and on the far right is Steve Hanson (my dad) holding Nora.

The deer

*Warning! This is a graphic blog post!*

Those with weak stomachs should sit this one out!

We have a deer! Notice I didn't say Chad has a deer or Chad shot a deer. This deer was obtained on Thursday night by a Honda Accord traveling 60 mph and driven by one Steven F. Hanson (my dad). Dad suffered no injures but the car...well lets just say it needed part of the bumper sawed off in order for him to drive it home. There is a possibility it has been totaled. Chad and my dad decided to go back and see if the deer was still there and picked it up. Chad stayed home the next day and butchered the deer in the back yard. The kids got and eye full. They had been eagerly anticipating daddy bringing them home a Bambi to pet. Nora though it was just great and I'm surprised that Bambi wasn't named. Nathaniel on the other hand wasn't so sure about it all. So far no one has had nightmares.

Yes, it is hanging from the swing set.

Biology 101 for Kindergarten and pre-school

I keep telling Chad that Nathaniel is not going to follow in his hunting footsteps. I think Tim is more likely to be daddy's hunting buddy.

Dot

We have a new cat! Well, not really. Dot lives across the street and has recently adopted us. A few days ago Nora and I asked the owner if we could feed Dot treats. After all Nora and Nathaniel are border line obsessed with this cat. We obtained permission. Dot shows up just about every time we open the front door. She has even invited herself into our house, uninvited of course. Our van too. The owner tells us Dot is not fixed, so kittens may be coming soon. Great. At least I have a while to decide if I can tolerate another cat.

A boy after Daddy's own heart

When Chad came home from hunting this morning he left his bow sitting by the door. I got this picture before it was taken away from him. Out of the three kids I would say Timmy is the most likely to be a hunter. After all he already has the PJs.

Another weekend in Dexter

We spent another weekend in Dexter hunting, horseback riding and playing. Chad did not get a deer. Please feel free to call him and ask why not. The clock is ticking and my freezer needs meat. Well, not really but these weeks of playing single mom need to pay off.

The picture below can be clicked on to enlarge it. I shows the Foltz property or at least the "homestead". I'm not sure what I should call it, but that works for now. I took the picture from the top of a hill that sits on the far south east of the property. Just so you understand where some of these stories take place. It is also the same hill we took the kids to to stargaze on Friday night. A cool experience we hope to repeat.

Arriving at Grandma's and Grandpa's is announced about a half a mile down the road with screams from the back seat of "COWS!" (as if we don't have any just down the road from our home) "ROCKY! TWISTER!". Those would be the horses. Once we pull in the grandparents are verbally tossed aside and the kids take off to see the new cows and visit the horses. Here are some of the pictures.

My new all time (for now) favorite picture of Tim.

Never ask a two year old to smile.

Chad took off immediately the first evening for deer hunting and the kids played with Blue the puppy. I unpacked and settled in. The next day I rode and when Chad came back from hunting we took the kids to the creek. I played with my camera and did some fossil hunting while the kids splashed and threw rock after rock into the water.

All in all it was a great weekend despite my freezer lacking a deer. Blue, and the Grandparents will need a day or two to recover from our visit.

Chad's 37th

Last Friday we celebrated Chad's 37th Birthday. We ( the kids and I) started out the day by making the cake.

Aprons courtesy of Mrs. Shaunda.

This trouble maker is wearing an apron courtesy of Grandma Foltz.


Licking the bowl.

Still licking the bowl.

Then we went shopping at Gander Mountain to buy Daddy some presents. I did not take the camera with me, sorry. Nora bought Daddy a mineral lick - to stick outside the back gate so maybe we can get the deer to come up to our house. Whether that be for hunting or wildlife spotting remains to be seen. Nathaniel bought a deer butchering video. I will NOT be watching that in my spare time. Tim and I bought him a t-shirt (to be seen later in the post)

So, as party time rolls around we meet the family at a local Mexican joint and enjoy some good cooking. After, we come back home for cake and ice cream.

Adding the candles. Note the candles sticking out sideways. Yes, there are 37 candles on there.

A fire to warm the hands by.

And the smoke clears!

Chad opening his new mineral lick from Nora.

Chad's gift from Tim and myself.

Hee! Hee!

The Party Animal.