holes...openings...pits

Not sure where to start with these random little stories, but they're kinda unique and interesting so I wanted to share them. Here goes...

One day my mom was mowing the yard and the next thing she knew, a hole opened up beside her threatening to swallow up her and the lawn mower. That may be an exaggeration, but basically the covering over an old hand dug well finally rusted or rotted through after who knows how many years. No one knew the well was there till then (the landlord's parents lived there since 1925 and never knew about it so it must be about 100 years old). For awhile my parents weren't sure what to do with it, considering all the big snakes living in it! They didn't want to just fill it up because what if the snakes decided to move 15 feet to the west and live in my parent's house instead?

If you can allow yourself to look past the snakes, the well was actually pretty cool. It was lined with rocks the whole way up and 42 feet deep.

Can you believe this is right next to the house?

After making some calls, my dad filled it according to the government's recommendation for pollution control - by layering chlorine, sand, dirt, bentonite for a plug and then dirt on top. As for the snakes... hopefully they don't come back and see that their home is gone and try to inhabit the nearby house!

Also this year my parents discovered another hand dug well out in one of their pastures. It wasn't lined with rocks or bricks so maybe the people started digging and then changed their mind. Who knows but the hole is big enough a cow could fall in! They've placed a temporary covering over it but will use the tractor to fill it with dirt soon.

The last pit for discussion is a little different. A few weeks ago there was a strange acting cow out in the pasture that would not leave a certain area. As my mom and dad came up close to her they found a natural hole in the ground (about 6 feet deep) with a spring running under it, that a calf had fallen into and his mother wouldn't leave him.

Dad assessed the situation while the worried mama stood by.

You can barely see the little white foot down there. The baby was down at the bottom and around a corner.

So close!

A job well done!

"Thank heavens! You need a bath, son!"

No more of that nonsense!

all american girl

Haven't thought of anything too exciting to blog about lately so thought I'd start with a little picture update. Actually I did think of one interesting/unique topic to share about... maybe tomorrow...

So on to the photos...

Nyla enjoys listening to / watching Daddy play his new guitar. (She's wearing a hand-me-down raincoat and rain boots she was trying on at the time.)

I thought she looked cute in this next little ensemble so had to snap a few... She's trying on some fatbaby boots that came from the same friend as the raincoat and boots. I just love hand-me-downs. She was standing at the stairway calling for Daddy to come up from the basement.

I love this next one... Just look at that physique!

This might be sad, but I’m thinking this is the dirtiest she’s ever been thus far in her life. Now that she can really play outside (old enough plus decent weather), she’s been taking baths everyday for several days in a row now instead of the usual every other day routine she's had most of her life.

We've definitely got to get this girl a sandbox!

I thought I was becoming desensitized to the amazingness of the green astroturf covering our front porch. But now to see it up close in these photos - yikes! Hopefully we can get it ripped off this summer, but I've been saying that for a few years now...

goodbye winter

As we are in March now, I am officially saying "goodbye winter." I don't know if it's really leaving, but I'm saying goodbye anyway. I'm ready to move on. This year more than ever.

So as we go on to the next thing, I wanted to share a few more photos taken this winter that didn't show up in any blog postings.

This is Nyla's babysitter, Mrs. Work, and the other kids that go to Mrs. Work's house. The oldest two girls are at school all day so it's just the four little ones for the most part.

The next one's blurry, but it's a picture of Nyla outside a little beauty shop right before her first real haircut. I had cut across the back of her hair a few times to ward off the baby mullet, but she got her first real trim about a month ago at Family Hair Affair in Quinter.

Over Valentine's weekend, my mom and dad stayed with Nyla at our house while Tyler and I went to Denver. My dad was asleep during the the next two pics so he didn't even know about them till my mom showed him later. :)

Nyla had on sunglasses too but she was sort of over it about the time my mom whipped out the camera.

For some reason this outfit kinda tickled me when Nyla wore it to church so I had to snap a couple pics of it. I don't know if it's because she looks like a big girl or what... The skirt is so pink, girly and frilly too, compared to what she normally wears.

For those that didn't know, yes she is a thumb sucker... but only when she has her "gee gee" (green blanky).

And now, again I say, GOODBYE WINTER!

a perfect 10 (fingers and toes)

A wee bit of heaven drifted down from above,

A handful of happiness, a heart full of love.

Precious and priceless, so lovable, too,

The sweetest little miracle, Macy, is you.

Last week Nyla and I got to make a quick trip down to Garden City to visit little Macy and her mama, Amanda.

Amanda and I have been friends for 27 years and were reminiscing about a picture of me holding Amanda soon after she was born (we're about 2 years apart in age). So we decided to attempt to recreate that with a picture of Nyla holding Macy. :)

It didn't turn out exactly like what we had in mind, but close enough!

Nyla thoroughly enjoyed hugging and patting and playing with the "baby."

Little girls are bundles of sweetness and brightness and fun, the beauty of springtime, the warmth of the sun.