Out of the ordinary

We have this saying we say when things either aren't going real well or something is not turning out quite like we planned.  We call it "Making Memories."  You can bet that this is a phrase often repeated in our presence.  It's something I use to cope in various situations.

It has kind of become a joke with our camp family...after we had endured what had to be close to a tornado, then extreme flooding (which led to extreme leaking), cram camping at the state fair, camper flat tires, excessive temperatures.  All of those things we've experienced while camping are now in the books as memories.  Good ones.

Lane isn't so sure about this.

See, it's not so bad.

This year for Lane's birthday, we did something a little out of the ordinary, we sang "Happy Birthday" to him with candles in his cheeseburger.  We'd celebrated his birthday at home a day early, and we had to do something special on his actual birthday....

We sang the traditional song and Lane managed to blow out the candles, or so he thought.  He's always begging to use trick matches, so he got 'em.  He thought that was funny.



Pigs' paradise

Every evening, our pigs are let out for their daily exercise.  It may seem a little out of the ordinary to see pigs roaming around a yard, but it has become the norm at our house.  It used to be goats, chickens or horses, now it's pigs.  The bad thing is...if the pigs find a mud hole, they will not leave it alone...and they will make it bigger...and they won't want to go back into their pens.

Maybe a little odd.

We just completed Madolyn's first year of club volleyball.  It was a good experience.  I am glad it's not year-round, but it was worth it for the girls.  They will no doubt meet their next season with more improved skills.  I was proud of all of them for their effort.  In the end, they were playing as a team and having a good time.

Amazing...

In between games, when the girls weren't officiating other games, they got to relax.  You can't learn to hang upside down on railing or work on your balance anywhere.  She learned that at her club volleyball tournaments.  Well worth it, I'd say.




Makes Josie look so small.

Until the weather gets unbearably hot, we are keeping the front living room window open a little to let Sweet Josie roam in and out of the house.  (Also, until she is big enough to just be in or out completely.)  Yesterday, while the kids and I were at my niece's ball game, Sweet Josie, beaming with pride, brought her first kill in through the window to show Jay.  A chipmunk.  She was so proud of herself.  Later, she retrieved it from the yard and tried to bring it in and was met with a SHUT window.  Finally, Lane had to go out and bury the chipmunk.  Josie went absolutely berserk trying to get out the door, but she got over it.  There will be more, I'm sure.

We finally took Madolyn to her very first St. Louis Cardinal's game.  Lane had been two times, but she was never around or available to go along.  She wasn't super thrilled, but she can at least say she's been there.  She wouldn't be accepted as part of our family if she didn't root for the Cardinals.


We think we're normal.  It's everyone else that's out of the ordinary.