Anna's Photo Blog

I am trying to catch up, so forgive me for lumping two months worth of pictures into an entry, AGAIN. As I am looking over all the pictures to post, I am overwhelmed with gratitude for our children and our family. We have three of the VERY best kids ever! (I am allowed to say that because this blog is mostly for their grandparents. ) And not only are they so cute, they have kind hearts and they are sweet and good and so very enjoyable! It is a privilege to be their mother! It is impossible for me to put into words the great joy that I have in my family. Nothing beats that feeling that comes in those moments when everything is going perfectly in our family as we work, play, and love together. It is no wonder that the family is ordained of God. The family is where we have our greatest joy, our greatest blessings, and our best opportunities for learning and growth of all kinds. And, I have come to understand so much more about God and His nature and His relationship with us through being a parent. What blessings!

(Wow, I just wrote a real paragraph on this blog. Just don't get used to it. )

And now, onto the pictures:





L lost her first tooth!




Goofball M wearing the ears she colored from Primary. (They are on a string tied around her head.)














This is the train at the American West Heritage Center.






Their favorite part was riding the ponies. There weren't many people there so they got an extra long turn.

We got some kittens this spring. They are so incredibly friendly and sweet.


The gray one is named Sparkles. He is a boy, but the name was picked out months in advance, so he is stuck with it. He is very cuddly and loving.








Tiger is a girl. She is also very loving.



They both are very gentle and put up with anything. I think they really truly love every minute with L and M, even being carried around like this:







L and M are very gentle and good with them, but Baby A gets a little too excited and wants to grab them. She has managed to grab them a couple of times, but they do not retaliate at all. They both will just sit patiently while I work A's hand open. (Even the time Baby A grabbed Tiger's face with both hands!) And then they will scurry two feet away so that they are just out of reach. Over the months, Baby A has gotten pretty good at petting them softly, so as long as A is on my lap, Tiger and Sparkles love to rub up against her and be with her. They are smart and know that if Baby A is by herself, it is best to stay just out of reach.

10 days ago, we got three goats. They are Nigerian dwarfs, which are quite small. Goats are extremely social, and can be as friendly as a little puppy dog who follows you around. Ours came from a herd of 100+ goats, so they did not start out that tame, but they are quickly becoming so. They are also very gentle, other than accidentally stepping on someone's foot every once in a while. Both L and M love them so very much. L spends lots of time out in the pasture with them. Her time is now split pretty evenly between her bike and the goats. L helps take care of them, and in some ways, she has kind of taken charge. It has been incredible to see a whole new confidence in L as she works with them.


This is Jasmine. She is a year old, and she is a mini-nubian, which is part Nigerian Dwarf and part Nubian.


This is Daisy, who is purebred Nigerian Dwarf. She is about 3 ½ months old.


This is Brownie, also a purebred Nigerian Dwarf. She is about 7 weeks old. (And small enough to fit through the fencing. It's a good thing she would rather stay with her friends.)




All these pictures were taken within the first 24 hours of having them, and the goats were too shy to get any good pictures with people. Too bad you'll have to wait until the next time I can download pictures onto my computer to see how friendly they are with the girls now.


L said, “I have three goats. We have a chocolate one, her name is Brownie. All of our goats are girls. We have two baby goats. When you come to our house to see Daisy, you would think she is 4 years old, but really she is a baby. The mommy goat is Jasmine, she is black and white just like Daisy. I tamed them, in about two days. I like to chase them, and they like that, especially little Brownie. We are getting ready to show the goats in the fair. We have to clean them so that they look pretty so that we can go to the fair. The fair has a little maze to bring your goat through. I'm sure I'll get lost in that maze. (She says with a grin.) Brownie is my favorite, because she follows me around.”

M has helped me tons in the garden. I am sure L would too, but she is always gone riding her bike. M planted two rows of beans with me (she put all the seeds in the ground), and she helps me pull weeds, and turn the water on and off. She loves to use all the tools, like rakes and hoes. Sometimes she just stands there with me and rubs my back and talks to me while I pull weeds up and down the rows.


This picture is from our first cookout over the fire pit. Here is M eating her first s'more ever. She pulled all kinds of faces because of the mess-the strings of melted marshmallow from her mouth to her hands, and the chocolate squishing out onto her fingers. It was really funny to watch, and I was laughing so hard that she started pulling faces at me too. She only ate about 2/3 of the s'more before she decided that the mess just wasn't worth it.




Here are a few of our neighbors.


Oh, and L turned 5 in June. Hard to believe, I know. I feel like they have both grown tons in the last little while!