Best Buds

 Bridger's family is moving to the west side of the state soon.  Ramsey is heart-broken, as Bridger is a "brother from another mother" and one of his best friends.   We've gotten to see him a few times this summer.  We're hoping this won't be our last!

...not a lot of pictures from this 3-day visit, but the boys did a lot of outside play (water fights!!!), tent/fort-making, and light saber battles (of course).  

While he was here, Bridger tried (and LOVED) some new foods again; tomato soup and fried walleye (at separate meals of course)!   :-)

Sidenote:  Bridger JUST turned 11 a few days ago.  Geez these kids are growing!    

And, note to Ramsey... swallow your food before you try to smile! ha!

Just Some Ridiculously Cute Pictures of Boy + Dog

 Nuf said.  Beautiful summer evening, playing outside.  Adorable kid, adorable dog!!  :-)

This puppy loves ALL the scratches!!!

The Pine Cone Kid

 While Ramsey is getting a little older, we try to find more chores for him to do.  Some get him outside more, some "build character" (hehe).  Some can be super fun!

The yard had been overrun with pine cones from our Ponderosas and other evergreens, so Eric gave Ramsey the task of picking them up from our back yard.  Ramsey wasn't thrilled at first, but I think he did have a little fun.  After all, he had good company.

I spied on him a bit to make sure he stayed on task!

He was pleased as punch when he filled up his first bucket.

He made more trips until he filled the lawn bag half full.

He was pretty darn proud of himself.  Now... I wish I had use for all of these.  Taking them to the dump/landfill seems like such a waste!  Craft projects awaiting??!?!

Father's Day Q&A with Ramsey

 HAPPY FATHER's DAY to our special Daddy!  We love you!

So... the day was very uneventful.   Connor had taken a road trip with his friends to Minnesota, so the three of us chilled at home!  

Sooo... on to the Father's Day Q&A with Ramsey!

1) What is something Daddy always says to you?
"He calls me a mouse".

2) What makes Daddy happy?

"Me listening because whenever I don't listen, he gets real angry... like 'Baldy'. Baldy slaps his ruler if you get a question wrong."  (Daddy doesn't slap btw!)

3) What makes Daddy sad?

"I don't really know.... but definitely if one of his parents died."

4) How does Daddy make you laugh?

"He just....does! He calls me nicnames."

5) What was Daddy like as a little boy?

"He played Space Invaders, just like I do!"

6) How old is Daddy?
"He says he's 50.  He is.... in like a month."

7) How tall is Daddy?

"I should just measure him because I really don't know!"

8) What is Daddy's favorite thing to do?

"Call me nicnames, I think."

9) What does Daddy do when you're not around?

"I don't know because I don't see him doing it!!  I would guess he sits in his chair and watches how to 'get that money' all the time."

10) What is Daddy really good at?

"Making up nicnames for me."

11) What is Daddy not very good at?

"He's not very good at avoiding getting bitten by horseflies while swimming."

12) What does Daddy do for a job?

"Easy!  Polygraphs."

13) What is Daddy's favorite food?

"Uhhhhh.... whacky wafers?!?"

14) What makes you proud of Daddy?

"When he gives me an opportunity to swim."

15) If Daddy was a movie or cartoon character, who would he be?

"Han Solo."

16) What do you and Daddy do together?

"When you are gone, we go swimming."

17) How do you know Daddy loves you?

"Because he's in my family.  I'm his son.  He tells me he loves me."

18) What does Daddy like most about Mommy?

"He calls Mommy a 'sexy lady'."

19) Where is Daddy's favorite place to go?

"The police department because he has a lot of friends there."

20) How old was Daddy when you were born?

"7-49 = 42.   Daddy was 42!  I mean 49-7!"

21) If Daddy would become famous, what would he be famous for?

"For making everyone laugh because that's what he does to me."

22) How are you and Daddy the same?

"We both have the same hair and we're both the same gender."

23) How are you and Daddy different?

"I'm 7 and he's 49.  When I was a baby, our hair color was different."

24) What is your favorite thing to do with Dad?

"Swim!"

25) What's your favorite thing about Daddy?

"He helps me reel in fish."

Jango, The Happy Retriever

 When my bestie (Shana), Ramsey, and I took Jango into the water last week, Jango cried and cried and was so [seemingly] scared of the water.   He finally flopped around, making huge splashes, then retreating to the shoreline.  I even tried holding up his belly so he could get the idea of swimming, by paddling his paws.  Still scared, I decided it'd be best to hold off.  At the time, I hadn't thought of bringing his throwing duck into the mix.  *head scratch*

On Sunday, it was hot... and a perfect afternoon for a swim.  We all went out to enjoy the water, Jango included.  :-)

Eric brought the duck, as incentive (this dog LOVES to retrieve/fetch, like a good lab should).   And, it worked!

His need to get the duck easily surpassed any initial fear or uncertainty of the water.  He "learned" to swim in a matter of seconds; the innate wonderments of what's bred in him to do, by nature!

Ramsey loved it that Jango was in the water.  His best buddy was now a swimmer that he'd be able to play with for years to come, enjoying our wonderful lake.

Ramsey tried racing puppy to the duck, to no avail.  Jango was fast!

Eric threw the duck for Jango for [probably] a good 45 minutes before he decided the pup needed a break.  However, Jango acted like he would go all day.    Eric found it "funny" that I had reservations about the pup being a water dog!   

We definitely have a water hound!  Next goal: dock-jumping!!!

Vacation Bible School

 Vacation Bible School was BACK on the docket this year.  Yay!  Our week was quite a bit different than a typical week.  Ramsey had to go to be EARLY, I had to drive him into church to be there by 8:30, and Daddy made trips at noon to pick him up.  LOTS of trips to town!

Each day, the kids would learn different stories from the bible.  They'd also sing a lot of the time, practicing their performance songs.  And, they had little science experiments every day, which were tied to bible verses or parables.  He had so much fun with the science especially!

Each day he came home, I ask him about his day and he'd show me what they made that day and how it related to Jesus.

As a sidenote, for the last 30 minutes of VBS, all of the children, crew leaders, and music directors would go the sanctuary for a live-stream performance and prayer time.   I tuned in every day to see what the kids were up to, trying to spot little Ramsey among his peers.   All of the songs they practiced became engrained in my head, to the point where I'd be singing them constantly!! Oye!

Here's a pic from Wednesday's live feed.  Everyone was instructed to wear their maroon VBS shirt and sing their little hearts out.  

The kids sang for either/or both church services that week (Wednesday evening or Sunday at 10AM).  We chose to attend the 10AM on Sunday.

Incidentally, Ramsey had picked up a nasty cold and was quite sluggish, but man, we were GOIN' to church!

So... here he is... not super exhuberant but he's there.  ha!  

I should have video'ed some of the other songs they sang.  By the middle of the second song, he'd perked up and was singing and dancing more.

They had a larger turn-out for the Wednesday evening performance. 

 The little boy with the red shorts was one of his best friends at his preschool.   This is the only place he gets to see him now, since they go to different schools.  He was happy to reconnect with his buddy!

Fishing Tournament

 As aforementioned, my dearly beloved was gone for a few days on a fishing trip with his buddies - to the river.

They pre-fished for two full days and then spent Saturday in search of the largest walleye there was to be had.  

For the first three hours of the tournament, the guys spent tinkering with the outboard motor that didn't seem to want to budge.  After they found and fixed the loose connection, they managed to reel in a nice amount of fish.  When it was time to weigh in (the best of 8 walleye), they had 16.61 lbs, enough for the second place prize money.

Congrats guys!

My 45th Birthday

 When hubs leaves a girl on her birthday, he'd better leave some good presents!!

Before Eric left for his big fishing trip, he brought me three dozen roses to enjoy while he was gone.  (Good job, babe.)  *wink* 

After The Girls left from their sleepover with Ramsey, my bestie Shana arrived, with arms/sacks full of gourmet foods, drinks, and flowers (daisies, chrysanthemums, with carnations and rosemary).    

We spent that night and the next full day eating delectible morsels, having a few toddies, chilling out on the dock and aqua pad, swimming with Ramsey... and we even took Jango for his first dip in the lake (he cried most of the time, so we didn't push it). 

I realize I probably should have gotten a few pictures of us two gals... who've been best friends for 26 years.   Next time, I guess.  Next time.  For a rather unusual birthday, it was a range of peace, fun, joy, and also a bit of quirk - and I'm ever so grateful to have had the amazing company.  

Ramsey's First Sleepover

 For months, Ramsey and "The Girls"  (sisters from 3 houses down Ashton and Raelyn) had begged to have a sleepover at our house.  We'd gone through so much with the renovation, I put the notion off.  (That reminds me - I should post 'befores' and 'afters' of the downstairs - ugh!!)

Eric was leaving for a fishing tournament on June 3rd, returning on the 5th, so I figured that would be a good weekend to fill up the house.  :-)   

We started the event when The Girls came over Thursday for supper.   The kids played like mad.  Then, they snuggled in to watch TV in the family room.

I spoiled Jango and let him sleep in my bedroom... on the bed no less!  (That is a first... dogs aren't usually allowed on MY bed!)   He was good company though... didn't snore too loud.  ;-)

The next day was full of Lego creations, play time outside, good snacks, and.... screaming... there was a lot of screaming!  HA!!  It was all in good fun and the kids had so much fun!    

Jango - 17 Weeks, 53 lbs!

 After a much-loved (and much NEEDED) bath, here's Jango, at 17 weeks, weighing in at a whopping 53 lbs!

And... he's still on pace to grow to 158 lbs, per one website with a puppy calculator.  I'm sure this will slow down at some point.  hehe   

Another website we go on says our puppy is overweight.  Give me a break!  This dog has barely any fat on him!  

Either way, he's our cute little stinker and we love him to pieces, no matter the size. 

Happy Memorial Day

 Memorial Day.... is about honoring the brave men and women who served our country in the military and lost their lives.   The word "gratitude" can never truly express the emotions we have for those who fought galantly for the United State of America and its people.

On this long holiday weekend, we did reflect upon those who sacrificed greatly.   And also, we enjoyed each other, the weather, and the beautiful gifts that God provides.

I had [finally] purchased some flowers (waited longer this year, due to chilly night temps), so those were planted.

We fished and hung out by the lake quite a bit.

Eric's goal was to catch a Pumpkin Seed to place in our large aquarium.

Among the plethora of bluegill, crappies, and perch, he got a cute little mini for the tank!  (Unfortunately, it didn't make it long.)

And, we had picnics, enjoying the warm sun and soaking in the much-needed Vitamin D.