What's that?

We slept in a little late a few days ago.

It has never been as "worth it" as it was that day!

Bump doesn't really like to repeat the things that we TRY to get him to say.

If he wants to know the name of something he will ask and then will say it back to us. But, when we try to get him to say something... thank you, you're welcome, please, my turn, good morning, i love you, etc. - forget about it!

Well, the other day, as Pops, Bump and I lay there with the sun coming in the windows and us all stretching out and laying quiet, I heard the BEST thing EVER!

In the soft quiet morning voice of a two year old boy, "Ah yuv you MawMaw."

Oh... "I love you, too!!" I think that my eyes were a wee bit wet, yes.

These photos of Bump were taken this past fall during harvest out in Grandpa's cornfields in Nebraska.

Being Replaced.

The other evening, I was sitting on the couch and realized I hadn't seen the dog for quite some time. The kids were all in bed and Pops hadn't gotten home from his meeting. I was kind of puzzled, because my dog always seems to be a heat seeker and wants to sit right by my feet, tucked in a ball right next to me, or right on top of my lap (she thinks that all 65 pounds of her is a lap dog ... it was easier when she was so active that she never could hang onto a pound, but that is not the case any longer!), especially in the later evening hours.

Since I was concerned that she was "stuck" somewhere since she cannot see to find her way around the house very well, I set out on my search...

It didn't take long to discover that I had been replaced!

It is apparent that the bed share was mutually agreed upon. SOMEONE had to lift the covers to let the OTHER something get underneath them. It was a cold evening... I bet they were both happy for a little extra warmth. And it warms my heart to see that Branch cares about this old dog!

7 Quick Takes - (volume 8)

--- 1 ---

Welcome home! This is our new home... (The black square in front of all the windows is a sand pit/box, I think, but, we won't tell the kids!!) We are loving that big wrap-around porch! We have our big dining table in the front there with all those windows and enjoy a sunny morning breakfast watching all the birds at our feeder - cardinals, bluejays, finches, sparrows, woodpeckers and we often see hawks and an owl or two, but they don't stop by for seed!! The little "blip" of a second floor is a finished walk-up attic that Pops uses for his office. We are still working on "settling in" but it is feeling homey anyway!

--- 2 ---

We really like this additional bonus feature...

Just to the west of the house is this cute cabana with a nice little bar and a cozy little HOT TUB! Pops and I have indulged in a hot soak several evenings and look forward to a few more - it has been a nice way to talk without all the interruptions of regular life (read: children)!

--- 3 ---

With all the new and updated pictures of the family being posted around here lately, I thought some nice pics of our ol' friend would be nice. I need to choose ONE to put on the sidebar - have a favorite of these four??

--- 4 ---

Branch wanted their hair braided this morning. I said sure. She wanted more than one braid so that it would stay all together as it dried throughout the day and overnight so that she might be able to have "curly hair" the next day. She wanted to do something interesting - how's THIS for interesting!?! - Thanks, Great Aunt Carol for the crocheted flowers!! We find lots of ways to put them in the girls' hair!

--- 5 ---

This little pistol wanted bangs yesterday, she wanted them pronto - I didn't have time. She got some fringe today, this morning before my eyes were even fully operational. Near lunch time, I "fixed things up" a bit. (Although I do have to say that she didn't do all that bad of a job, all by herself! Just a touch up and I trimmed the rest up, too... only one strange spot that is a bit spikey at the top of her head. It was NOTHING like that one time... you know: THIS ONE)

--- 6 ---

I love it when they get along! Some days these girls are arch enemies. But, today? Nearly all day - L.O.V.E.!! They giggled and carried on playing all sorts of girl things... Smiling mamma.

--- 7 ---

I thought I would revisit this old thing that I used to do on Fridays... I was looking through old pictures and couldn't resist! So, here we go - focus on a little magic and go back to look at some magic from the past!

It is hard to catch this kind of picture anymore. You know, as we get older, we are so much more aware of ourselves - and the camera. So, when I saw this photo... I just smiled from EAR to EAR. Look at the joy on that boy's face!! I can't recall the last time I had my camera out and he was willing to let go and just laugh!! Maybe I have my camera out too often? Maybe he is just becoming a moody pre-teen? Yikes... I hope to see more smiles and laughs in pictures. I need to come up with something better than, "Smile!" or "Say, CHEEEEESE!"

If you've enjoyed these 7 Quick Takes, maybe you'd enjoy more here!!

It's Hard Work!

This is Jan 2nd - around 6 PM.

It was chilly in the house since the doors were open nearly all day as boxes and furniture were carried into the house.

The two youngest must've worked the hardest... since they crashed first!

We had to wake them up to take them to supper and the hotel... they were less than thrilled!

Our poor old dog... she is 95% blind (we THINK that she can see extreme contrast of light and dark), she is going deaf, she has arthritis, hypothyroidism, skin problems, lumps from here down to there... and she was forever in the way and was constantly "lost". She finally got comfortable on this love seat only to be shoved over by these pesky children! Sheesh...

Quite a fun life we have offered her from her beginnings running loose and wild near Pontiac, IL on I-55!! She turns 11 next month. SOME people around here are thinking about a new dog - others? Not so much. She is still a happy dog - but she's got some aching old dog in her!!

Wordless Wednesday

Cleaning House

Spent some time fixing the look around here. Thoughts and comments?? Let me know what you think! I will probably continue to tinker and work the rust out. I figure it might help it feel more fun and exciting to get things posted! Anything to get that shot in the arm I need!

I am planning to put this picture as the header...

If I can just figure it out!! It was so long ago that I did the last layout, that I will have to really work at this to get it figured out! So... stay tuned! Our friendly family faces will be posted a bit larger, I believe!

So, what has this treehouse family been up to for the past 2.5 months?!!

We (obviously) visited the photography studio! We stayed for a while with Pops' folks in Nebraska, we stayed with my folks in Illinois for Thanksgiving (and a rousing fun time on Black Friday was had by my mom and I!). Pops worked in Kansas, Texas and Georgia while we stayed back and visited in November. Pops and I took a 4 night trip to Las Vegas to attend several performances of the National Finals Rodeo. We stopped back in Illinois to pick up all the treekids and headed to Nebraska, where we were "treated" to spectacular temperatures below zero... to the tune of NEGATIVE TWELVE!!!!! One-Hundred Sixteen this past summer in Oklahoma, -12 in Nebraska in December... before winter actually arrived. Nice, the weather and those lovely temperatures in Oregon are most definitely missed!! Anyway, after a short stay in Nebraska, we hit the road for about 2 weeks of fun in Kansas and Oklahoma. We spent Christmas with Pops' side of the fam and then hit the path back to Illinois for a bit of Christmas fun (a few black friday gifts were waiting behind at Geemah's house!!) Then, we made a quick decision that fell in our laps rather suddenly to move into a temporary rental residence in Oklahoma! So, we packed up all our worldly belongings in our RV and a BIG moving truck and with the help of my folks we loaded and hauled all of us off to an acreage in North Eastern Oklahoma. The following two and a half weeks were spent cleaning, unpacking, putting away, moving and putting in a new place, falling over in excitement over forgotten toys and laundry. OH, and more laundry. It has been wild and hectic and TONS of fun! I will get on the camera and get some pictures out from Christmas and will try to get some of our new home, too! BUT, for now... I'm gonna be thrilled to be all hooked up to internet and look forward to hearing from all of you!!

hugs from an "Okie" (NOT from Muskogee!)

UPDATE: Well, I figured out blog headers! Thanks to: Sarah @ Clover Lane who wrote about how to do it when Photoshop isn't an option for ya! Woohooo!!

Happy Everything!!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Merry Christmas!

Happy New Year!

Happy MLK Jr. Day!

Happy ALL holidays...

that I have missed in the past 2.5 months (and JUST IN CASE... Happy Valentine's Day!).

Excuses, excuses... I know. I will fill in some of the details soon... Life has been a-changin' for our family! I was busy with holiday travels and family visiting and then things came up and I didn't make time to check in and say howdy.

Oooops!

Well, NOW I have an internet connection that I am hoping and praying will be reliable! (We got an AT&T 4G air card... know anything about these little ditties? I have about 30 days to decide and return it if it isn't working out... fill me in with any good info!)

This is the set of pictures that I had HOPED to share at Christmas!

I loved the black and white - but the red background is nice too... enjoy! It is Monday... look for me again on Tuesday - we'll see if we can't make a habit out of this!! ;)