Halloween 2012

In the little town not very far from the farm they do this thing called "Trick or Treat Main Street." It is usually set up the Saturday before Halloween. The town shuts down main street traffic and the store owners pass out candy to the kiddos.

 My sister Alicia joined us this year with her 2 kiddos dressed like an OU football player and a cupcake. So cute!

 To freak out my teenage daughters we dressed up in our barnyard animals outfits and told them we were ready to go. They were not impressed :) Mission accomplished!!

 Tiana was a cute clown she wore her daddy's big shoes which she did a good job at not falling down I was impressed.

 The milkman was able to come out and go with us thanks to our favorite employee Kim. Yay!!

 Taryn loves the fact that she is taller than I! It makes it hard to get on to her when she towers over me. Pitiful!!

 Alicia had a great time she thought that was awesome that you could go and get that much candy by just walking up and down a few blocks. I didn't realize that the milkman had put some rabbit ears on us.

 I hope you all have a safe and happy halloween tonight and remember don't eat all of your candy in one night!! :)

Family Fall Party

When I was first married the milkman's family always got together every month that their was someone's birthday to celebrate. As everyone's kids have grown up and we have gotten busier we still celebrate birthdays it might just be a few of them together. We were so far behind for this birthday party that we had to go back all the way to my brother-in-law's Phil which was at the end of July! We also celebrated my sister-in-law Marlene which was the end of August, the milkman's mom and our son which was in September. It's crazy how time flies!

 So, we threw together a wiener roast out at the barn. It was nice having everyone there. Alan, Marilyn and Jason couldn't make it because they already had plans for this night but we will catch them next time.

 Kyler loves to help take care of baby Garris. Melissa had him in his Halloween costume his was a giraffe. So, so cute!

 When we get together there is always yummy food especially my mother-in-law's potato salad it is oh so yummy!! I know where the milkman gets his cooking skills.

 One of my favorite parts of the evening was how the cousins all visited and goofed off I love to hear them laughing and joking around. It makes my heart happy!! Happy Birthday everyone I hope you all have a great year.

Girls Night Out

I kicked off the weekend by hanging out with some of my "peeps". We were celebrating 3 of the ladies birthdays for the months of October and November.

 The party was held at Monica's house. She is always such a gracious host and adds special touches that  this farm girl never thinks of.

 The food is oh so de-lish!! Yolanda makes the best Asian Chicken salad, Tammy brought homemade chicken salad on homemade wheat rolls, Debbie made spiced fruit in the crockpot and Monica made cheesy potato soup. Oh man I knew I should have wore my "Thanksgiving pants" Ha! Ha!

 We loaded Tammy and Cindy up with gifts and we were bummed that Sarah couldn't make it. She was at the state volleyball games for her daughter. I totally understand just missed her. We had a great evening lots of chit chat and tons of laughter. Thanks Monica, I had a great night and it was a perfect way to kick off my weekend.

I got in!

This summer one of our Bull Reps came through and told me about a program the Holstein Foundation  has called Young Dairy Leaders Institute or YDLI for short. The young part was pushing it but I will take it Ha! Ha! It's a program where it helps you hone your skills as a leader and advocate for the dairy industry. He said I should apply. So, I did. It was a little bit of a process. I had to fill out an application, answer 4 essay question (which I am thankful for the editing help) and get 2 reference letters. I pulled everything together and put it in the mail. Over the next 2 months I didn't hear anything and found out that there can be hundreds of applicants apply. So, I decided to forget about it. But when I went to the mailbox a few days later there was a letter saying I got in!!!!!!!

 I am so excited!! So, at the beginning of the new year I get to travel to New Mexico and attend the conference can't wait! I love a new adventure!!!

Fall Planting

Kenton and I saw the weather report on Sunday and thought we had better get the bulbs in ground. So, we worked 2 days this week after school getting it done.

 These are just some of the bulbs and bags of mulch that we used. I love rubber mulch it holds up so nicely in the heat and wind that we have here in Kansas.

 Kenton is Mr. perfectionist, me on the other hand I just want to slap it in the ground, cover it up and be done. He wants to make the ground level and everything is square. He always does an amazing job.

 When my Pa-paw passed away in April some dear friends gave us this tree in honor of him. Kenton and I thought we needed some flowers to come up in the spring around it. We found this wooden border at our favorite store Menards. I think it adds a nice touch.

 We didn't get everything done any to soon. This morning we woke up to rain and it is very cold its  crazy how the weather can change that fast. I can't wait until spring to see how our planting skills play out.

Fall Tour

The last school tour came on Monday. It will probably be the last tour for this year just because it starts getting to cold. It wasn't a big group a few of the families were down with sickness. The milkman always does a great job at explaining the ends and outs of dairy farming. 

 The kids always love to swing on the swing in the hayloft. And of course every tour is completed with

 what else but some homemade chocolate chip cookies and yummy milk that Kim helped me serve. It was a good tour. I always enjoy getting to know new people and seeing how everyone can't believe how big a milk cow is. If you want to set up a tour we will be starting them again in the spring so just leave me a message and I can get that scheduled for you and your group.

Pumpkin Waffles

 My family loves anything pumpkin. A couple of years ago I ran across this recipe and they loved it so I have been making it every fall since. It is super easy and so de-lish!

3 1/2 c. milk                                  2 T. baking powder
1 15oz. can pumpkin                     1 t. baking soda
3/4 c. oil                                         2 t. cinnamon
4 eggs                                             1 t. nutmeg
4 1/2 c. flour                                  1/2 t. salt
1 c. brown sugar                            1/2 c. mini chocolate chips (optional)

Mix all the ingredients up, cook them in your waffle pan and enjoy! 

Wiener Roast

 Friday night we had a thank you wiener roast for all those that helped with last weekends sale and wedding reception. It was a perfect night for it. 

 I told everyone to bring wiener sticks if they had them and Jeremy brought his, which cracked me up. They were wiener sticks redneck style :) Love it!!

 This was the whole group that made everything possible. I had an awesome team I couldn't have done it without them. I just want to say thank you again for all your hard work. Ya'll are amazing!!

 The milkman and I love to play universal Uno or fast Uno as some people may call it. It is so fun to watch the new people try to catch up. We had a great time and alot of laughs at my expense I'm not sure how that happened ha! ha! Thanks again for a great evening I appreciate you all so much!