Risk and Safety

~One of those old time good and scary slides

 that they don't make anymore~

 

I like old playgrounds.  They have fun things to play on-

teeter totters, merry-go-rounds, scary slides.

All the new parks have little playsets that are fun for a

little while, but get boring pretty soon.  The swings are

too short, so you can't swing high anymore, the slides

are short, so you don't get that thrill in your stomach

as you go down.  You know what I mean.

 

What's up with all this safety stuff?

Do we really need a babysitter telling us whether it's

too risky to ride my bike without a helmet,

have a trampoline for my kids to jump on,

or let my kid play football because he might get a concussion?

 

Part of growing up is learning about risk and reward-

if our kids aren't allowed to take risks,

I wonder what the consequences will be when they are adults?

 

Will they ever achieve much in life?

It's risky to start a business,

be a policeman or fireman,

or even have children!

 

I don't know, it's just something I wonder about.

If kids are just told all the time,

"Don't do that, you might get hurt!",

how will they learn?

 

Of course, as parents we have a job to protect

our children, but it just seems like it's been taken

way too far lately.  You know?  People just want

to keep their kids "safe" inside the house playing video games.

 

Just my opinion...

Turtle Eggs

 

Last night we had fun watching a painted turtle lay her eggs in our yard.

 

 

First she dug a hole with her back legs, alternating feet so that

the hole would be perfectly shaped.  And when she had dug as

deep as she could reach, she started laying eggs- we watched

and counted and she laid 11.  Then she carefully scraped mud

back over the hole.  You can see the eggs in the photo below,

they aren't very turtle shaped, more oblong than I figured they'd be.

 

She did all this without ever turning around to look at what

she was doing.  It's really amazing how God makes them

know what to do.

 

Later I looked up online how long it takes them to hatch,

and it takes 10 weeks.  Quite a while.  And the temperature

of the ground determines whether they will be boys or girls.

Interesting, huh?

 

But God made the earth by his power;

he founded the world by his wisdom

and stretched out the heavens by his understanding.

Jeremiah 10:12

Memorial Day

This is the 13th Kansas Infantry that fought in the Civil War.

The man who built our stone house was a part of this group.

This photo was taken in 1864 in Arkansas.

 

Thank you to all our soldiers who fight to keep us safe!

Hooray for the last day!

~PD at his track meet yesterday~

 

I'm so glad it's the last day of school!

No more quiet mornings, drinking my coffee

and thinking through the day-

but that's ok.  I love the relaxed atmosphere

that summertime brings,

no homework, peer pressure, or grades to worry about!

I hope you all have a great summer~

and enjoy those kids- they

are only around a short while.

 

Sons are a heritage from the LORD,

children a reward from him.

Psalm 127:3

Little Miss A

I don't know if you remember, but back in January I mentioned

a little girl, named A, on the blog.  She is about a year old and the cutest

little girl you ever did see.  We actually first heard about her in October

of last year, and submitted our homestudy for her then.

But when T and J's Best Interest Staffing (BIS) meeting was

scheduled first, we had to decide to say no to A, and yes

to T and J.  It was hard for us to say no to A, but our social

worker thought we had a lot better chance of being selected for

T and J.  Well, as you know we were not chosen for T and J,

so after discovering that last week, I asked our social worker

if it was too late to still be considered for A.

She checked with A's social worker, and no, it wasn't too

late!  So we are now waiting, once again, to hear when

the BIS meeting will be scheduled for her.  From our perspective

our chances are not real good for getting her, they are also

looking at 3 other families.  But it just seems like she

would be perfect for our family...

If God wants her here, she will come!

Now faith is being sure of what we hope for

and certain of what we do not see.

Hebrews 11:1

I would have loved you

All our waiting to hear if we were selected for T and J,

two sisters who we heard about back in January,

finally ended today, but it didn't end how we had hoped.

The social workers selected the other family for the girls.

We are so sad and disappointed, but-

As for God, his way is perfect;

the word of the Lord is flawless.

He is a shield for all who

take refuge in Him.

Psalm 18:30

We would have loved those girls,

but for some reason we don't understand,

God has a different plan for them.

Thank you so much for praying for us and them-

I feel a little bad that we keep asking for prayer

for adoptions that don't work out-

but we really do appreciate you and

all the support you've shown us through this process.

What now?

Our Mother's Day Adventure

For Mother's Day my family took me on a little adventure...

we visited Coronado Heights, where Coronado stopped on

his way through here in 1541,

saw these funny mushroom rocks,

and had a cookout at the lake.

It was a fun but windy day-

but then what else is new here on the prairie!

I am one blessed mom. (:

Happy Mother's Day

~My Great-Grandma, Grandma, Mom, and me~

 

Happy Mother's Day!

 

I am so thankful for the wonderful mom God gave me!

She is so patient, kind, and loving-

and is a great example to me!

Dry fields

 

We have had the most beautiful mornings lately,

but it is so very dry, especially for spring.  The

wheat is starting to head out and the corn is coming

up but without rain there won't be much of a crop.

I have been watering almost constantly, trying to

keep the garden and trees alive.  There are some

chances for rain over the next few days though,

so we are praying and hoping God sends us some

moisture soon.  There is one thing about farming

that is different from most other jobs, and that is

how totally dependent on God you are- He alone

makes it rain, makes the seeds grow, and brings

the harvest.  And since he is always good, we know

he will give us what we need- whether that

is a bumper crop or not!

 

As the rain and snow come down from heaven,

and do not return to it without watering the earth

and making it bud and flourish,

so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater,

so is my word that goes out from my mouth:

It will not return to me empty,

but will accomplish what I desire

and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.

Isaiah 55:10-11

Happy May Day!

~Happy May Day!~

 

I just came in from pulling a few weeds, and was

so happy to discover my irises are starting to bloom!

They smell so good.  Since I can't leave a bouquet

of them at your door, I gave you a picture. (:

 

With all the stresses of adopting we've had lately-

I was reminded of this quote I found on Pinterest

a while back- isn't it great?

 

 

I don't have my tomatoes in yet, but hopefully we

can get to town and get some this week yet.

I hope you're having a beautiful spring day,

wherever you are!