a new pet for x-mas?

leah has been begging for her own pet.
she really wants a hamster for christmas.
growing up i had hamsters, as did scott.
they were so much fun for me ,
i had all the tubes and balls and exercise wheels,
all the gear.
im just afraid the little girls will be too rough
and get bitten,
or accidentally let it out of the cage
to be prey for jager.

scott and i have been thinking maybe a ferret.
i really dont know much about them
besides being stinky,
and hiding treasures around the house.
i have learned that they can be litter box trained,
and roam the house freely and are very playful.

we have a cage in the garage that the guinea pigs (long story) once lived in.
we have also found some pretty enticing deals on craigslist.
so we wouldnt really need to spend a lot on stuff.

please let me know what you think.
do you have a ferret?
know someone who does?
how are they with kids and a dog?
does the sex of the ferret determine its temperament?
should we buy a baby as apposed to an adult?
any advise would be much appreciated.
thank you.

p. i. to the E!

made my first pumpkin pie from scratch.

cant wait for it to cool so i can dig my chompers in.

i wont be making pumpkin pie for thanksgiving, ill be making an apple pie or 2.

so i figured id make 1 today.

alphabet art

a few christmas gift ideas i have up my sleeve. my step-dads side of the family, i really dont see all that often. i have never even seen my step brother, step sister, or step cousins childrens bedrooms. nor do i really know enough about their personalities to pick out the perfect toys. these prints are absolutely adorable and im sure will go with their bedroom decor. i have picked out letters from lindsays alphabet series. g for gabby, c for camerin, and the t's for tommy and trina. lindsay is running an awesome sale on her prints until today! so get a jump on it. @ www.lindsayart.etsy.com

its about time...

i havent blogged in over 2 months. whew, so much has happened. i guess ive been a bit too preoccupied with- well im not really sure. but from now on i will try to update with all of my everyday silly stuff that goes on around here.

sooo, on with our familys most recent news. scott shot his first deer! as a promise to my dad scott vowed to hunt with him this fall and bring leah along. my dad cant shoot a rifle this year due to having his chest cracked open and all. so they drove up north saturday, ready for opening season to open at dawn the following morning. so they geared up in their camo, guns, and orange hats, climbed up the tree blind on the land that my dad and his friend own and hunt on.

9am scott sees a doe, gets a clear shot straight to the chest and goes for it. BOOM! as it was told to me, the deer sprung up on her hind legs, gave out a ghastly grunting moan, and flopped to the ground. leah was ecstatic. coolest thing she had ever seen. i was sure she was going to be super freaked. nope not her, she wanted to see the brains. she cant wait to hunt herself when shes 12.

the next morning, my dads friend greg shot a deer. apparently he shot her through the back thigh and out the front shoulder. needless to say she didnt flop on the ground like scotts doe. she ran off leaving the slightest trail of blood. leah the bloodhound tracked the trail while everyone walked behind her. when my dad told me this, i kinda thought that really they all tracked together, but no. as scott even said later, leah was absolutely amazing and tracked the deer up and down ridges until she found the kill. she rocks.

so here we are with a freezer full of venison. i cant wait to cook some up!

congrats leah and scott, im so glad you had a fun and safe weekend.

so heres a video of the kid dragging the doe out of the woods.

todays picks

i havent mentioned much lately about my garden. well here is a pic of todays picks.

yellow zucchini, carrots, concord grapes, eggplant, chili peppers, green zucchini and not yet ripe tomatoes.

anyone ever seen carrots like this? pictured is only 3 carrots. the roots are shooting off all over the place. crazy.

baking and such

yummy appetisers the kids and i made today.

french baguettes that i baked this morning, lathered with homemade pesto (basil from the garden), then sliced fresh tomatoes (from my and a friends garden), then topped with mozzarella. holy yummyness!!!
homemade cinnamon pecan swirls, inspired by candle photo and scent.

dude

im absolutely spent!
what a weekend.

bypass

this morning after my dads tests we were informed that he needs tripple bypass surgery. the surgery is set for 7:30 am, so scott and will be there at about 6. i am a complete wreck. i dont think ive cried this much...ever.

surgery

my dad is going under the knife tomorrow. apparently the bottom of his heart isnt working quite right. doctors at troy beaumont will be giving him a heart cathetarization, which (depending on wat they find) may lead to more surgeries. making me a bit uneasy.

he and his mom, granny are coming for dinner tonight. i cant wait.

please send your prayers

crunch!

so today...

i loaded the car with kids, put the car in reverse, when a huge hornet came in the passenger side window straight at me. so i opened my door; as it was coming straight for me i got out. (mind you i\the car was still in my driveway next to my house\front porch). so when i opened my door and got out, the car rolled backwards toward the street ... Read Morecatching my door in the rungs of my front porch, tearing and crunching the door backwards. doing so also caught the faucet for the hose ripping that off. so water is spraying out like crazy, and my yukon is rolling toward the street. i lose my flip flops and run back to my car full of kids, swing my leg into the rolling car and slam on the brake.

so my door is broken.

not totally, but enough to pay a $500 deductible, and not opening more than 8 inches or so.

bummer.

*no kids or hornets were hurt in this ordeal*

ye ole blog

has been very neglected these recent weeks.

we are super busy with summer and im really not taking as many pics as i would like.

maybe in a few days ill post something supa-dupa fly!

happy birthday charleigh!

charleigh jane is 4 today. were about to get ready for the zoo. its been a while since weve been. im sure it will be great.

4th anual pig roast

was a hit. good food, drinks, friends and family.

zucchini

2 princesses with a ginormous zucchini.

bread that the girls and i made last night with the zucchini.

by the way...

that last post was my 100th! woohoo. so heres a crazy happy chuck face for ya.

zukes from my yard. weve been eating tons every day lately.