Sitting at the Cross-Road of Catch-Up or Keep-Up

It's been quit some time since I MADE the time to journal or blog (or both) so I find myself sitting at a cross-roads.

I have already passed The Land of Infinite Laundry-four bulging laundry baskets are staring me down via the rear-view mirror, and now I find myself sitting at the
 junction of "Catch- Up" or "Keep-Up."

I have never been fond of this dusty intersection!

Do I spend the next hour- the hour I am evading the demands of motherhood, in preserving glimpses of the past or carry on and write about what's fresh and present?

There was quit the age differene between #1 and the rest of the  students

Writing about the past  would cover the tale of when #2 surprised me with his first  quail at 7:30 a.m - before I even had breakfast!

Then there's content I want to write about when we took #1 to his required hunter's safety field-day test. 
The event  forced us to take a rewarding day out as a family, and although I was a little begrudging of the inconvenience, I am grateful now that we took the day and let it lead where it did. 

Time stood still for just a moment right here  What a sight this would have been a hundred years ago. 

We found ourselves in Oatman, AZ on our way home, leading us to then find the "wild"goldfish pond.

 

In November we made a run to New Mexico 
to visit family for Thanksgiving.  

I ended up with an ugly- no, more like a horrific- bruise on my rebuilt knee that almost made me believe we were close to rebuild number three! Suffice it to say Ray and I don't make good partners in a three legged race.

 

My mom, my "little" brother (he's 27 and stands taller than I, but will always hold this title), and our grandma came for a week over Christmas. 
 My poor brother came asking his sister to give him some cooking tips, instead he got the nephews and a rabbit and me nowhere in sight. Thank goodness for Youtube is all we can  say there!  He and the boys found a video and cooked it so I didn't have to. Mom win, and it tasted darn good too.

The picture doesn't do justice to the situation. 

 Oh! Then there's the time when someone bucked out their first horse while someone else got bucked off theirs. Bet you'd never guess who lost his seat. 

And then there's the time....Oh shoot,  I best stop thinking or I will be committed down this path.

These two LOVE training their horses. Well, their horse and Dad's project. 

The above listed events make up a short list- no, a microscopic list- of the things that have kept me from finding or making the time to write. Oh the joys in reminiscing.....But I just can't. Time is still a'tickin'.

I have the last three or so days of events to record, and although I would love to write more about the above, I have to chose to keep up and write about the present while the feelings are fresh and the images are more crisp and clear.

 Plus, these laundry baskets are threatening to multiply in less than an hour people! I can't afford a trip down memory-lane!

So keep up! I've got to make this short and sweet. 

I am exhausted y'all, but even as an exhausted mom, I am a very proud mom!

I have kept one boy alive for ten years!

This kid scored 100% on the written AND the practical 

Can I get a fog horn to celebrate this victory and a box of tissues to mourn the speed in which this child of mine....no, no, ALL these boys of mine are growing up!
 I mean seriously!

🎵Sit tall in the saddle, hold your head up high.  Keep your eye fixed where the trail meets the sky🎵

#1 turned ten and #4 turned five just a week ago!  I have to admit,  I thought the hardest part about parenting would be having all these babies at my feet and in diapers!
 Boy was I wrong.

The adage that "it get's harder as they get older" is smacking me between the eyes!

You see, I thought the adage was a myth, and an old wives tale without merit! I mean, how could life be harder than living with a newborn, an 18 month old, a 3 year-old, and a 4-year old?! 
 Well it can!

watching their brother shoot

They get LOUDER! They get MESSSIER! They get BRAVER! (And with that comes STUPIDER! And although that isn't a word, it fits here too well to care.)  They get SMARTER and more COMPLICATED  to understand. (Don't ask me to explain. I don't have the slightest clue to succinctly do such.) AND....and they get SMELLIER! among other things. 
 We are just now entering the land of extreme emotions and if you could see my face you'd see quit the frown. 

You know, I want to say that challenging the thought that nothing could be harder than the first few years of motherhood almost makes me think I asked this to come about. 

 I mean, it is almost like praying for patience ya know. 
AND might I add that NO-ONE told me NOT to pray for patience until it was too late? 

 Yes,  I prayed for patience five years and eight months ago........ 

Do that math. I was out numbered and over whelmed and thought that the virtue of patience would help my predicament. Are you laughing? If you are not, just know I had only three boys when I prayed for patients! Bet you cracked a grin now. 

 I find it funny now, but I sure didn't then.


We found some eggs while putting up the horse shade. 

Well...aside from the blessing of having had birthdays to celebrate I am excited to say that my older two have officially started their own beef business! 

Yes, they want to have their own heard and they made a plan over a year ago on how to accomplish this. Seeing it come to fruition makes me such a proud mom!

You see, they were given a dogie (pronounced d-O-gE) in exchange for their help on several round-ups late in 2018. After several 16 hours days they owned him outright, and when it came time to sell him they would have a choice to make so before that day came they made a plan. 

 They made the plan to use this beef as a means to get the money needed to buy two more beef, and start a business.
The plan was to sell one, then reinvest all the proceeds and buy two, then sell two and get three and so on. This all sounded well and good but I wasn't sure if they would be able to stick to it once they had the money in hand. 

I mean, one's a saver, the other is one hard core spender on anything shinny that can hold an edge or go BOOM. 

I am happy to report I was wrong and I am smiling as I type it. 

Today (well, Saturday since I am on day three of writing this saga) they walked out the door with hundreds of dollars in their pockets and determination on their faces, and they came home with  two Black Angus steers.
The cards fell just were I was hopin and we count ourselves blessed to have great ranchers in our area who are eager to support our boys' entrepreneurial adventure. 

Introducing Minie ( pronounced Mine-E) and Moe.  

Minie is in the front weighing in at 340lbs. and Moe is the "chunk" at  460lbs.

Yes, you read that right. in 2018 the boys named our a beef Eeny- the little bull they just sold,  and a heifer Meenie (she grew into her name 100%) with every intention of naming their next two Minie and Moe.  They had it all worked out and I just cringed, but we let it roll. 

This was Eeny late November 2019 

Well,  now that it is a year later and they are a year older they want to change their minds. Not happening!  I suffered through a year of calling out Eeny and Meenie looking forward to the day of Minie and Moe and they aren't quitting on me now. This was their name game, I am just holding them to it. 

 It's  my job... I am teaching them about follow-through. 
* insert a sweet motherly chuckle here*

Oh, and as a side note, I hear that #3 and Dad are buying a third beef and will be calling it Tiger. 
However,  the rancher has to go catch it by the toe and bring him to us- he wasn't to be found when the boys went out to buy him. 😂 * I am cracking myself up over here! But this is a true story

Oh boy. The days are long but the years are short. I don't know what more we can add to our crazy little life out here, but we sure are keeping things real. 

* It took me over a week to finish this darn post. Why have I not learned to lock myself in my closet to write?!

** Most pictures go with the content, but some were just too perfect and priceless not to share.