Immunizations

Yesterday Cailin and Colten both got their Kindergarten immunizations. I know its a little late for Cailin. I didn't realize she didn't get them in Nebraska because of the move. Then a nurse told me that Colten could have his when he turned four. So I had them be brave together. And brave they were! I think it's harder to watch your kids get shots than it is to get one yourself. There was only one nurse, (because we live in a small town and they travel up from Ennis once a week.) so Colten got two and Cailin got three. The first one's were ok, Colten cried on the last, and Cailin didn't want anything to do with the third- she cried too. Those MMR's are stingers and they're still complaining about them tonight. I don't remember getting any "you were such a good patient" prizes when I was a kid. The prize was a cool band-aid like Tom and Jerry or something. Heck this lady gave them a book, a sucker, and a sticker for each shot! Maybe we , or I should say, other people give our kids way to much! Oh well.

I watched in amazement as Kiley learned that she can grab things with her hands today. Then I laughed when she couldn't figure out how to let go and it was attached to something. She's found her voice and would rather bite on her hand than suck the binki anymore. Tonight is the second night in her own room, in the crib- finally!

Colten's 4th Birthday!

Colten's Birthday Cake

Daniel happened to get the afternoon off so we went to Bozeman and let Colt spend some of his Birthday money from his grandparents- he bought a big front end loader to match all the CAT things he got for Christmas. So, thank you to grandparents, you should've seen how excited he was to pick it out all on his own! Then we went to dinner at "Famous Daves". They have a great bar-b-que. The kids and I had ribs and Daniel had the brisket and chopped pork.

Kiley

Kiley is such a good baby. She is sleeping through the night, (still in the basinet though). She is very patient even when it's time to eat. She travels well in the car, and even puts up with Cailin and Colten being silly on both sides of her! Today we took Colten out to dinner for his Birthday and she was great. We never even thought about doing that with Cailin and Colten. She looks a lot like Colten did at that age.

Cheap, Easy, Fun

When I was a kid we would play "dominoes" forever and ever at my Grandma and Grandpa Armstrong's house. They had this cement basement that was painted red, and we would divy up the playing cards (which were bent in half). Then we'd stand them up fairly close together and meet at some point. The lucky person got to be the one to knock the first one down. It's pretty cool to watch. So I bent a bunch of our cards we never use and wala! Instant fun! Be careful though, the look on Cailin's face in this picture shows that there was an accidental bump!

I helped Colt set these up.

I Love My Kids! And Great Deals!

I've got the greatest kids. Don't get me wrong, they have their moments. Today we were at Wal-mart and they had a big sale on the Valentines leftovers. We don't get our kids much except at Christmas and Birthdays so I got them each a stuffed animal, (and only paid two dollars!) They were so shocked! I let them carry them around the store until we checked out. It was the easiest trip to Walmart with 3 children I've ever taken! I also stocked up for next year. When we got in the car Cailin said "Mom, why did you buy these for us?" I said "Because I love you, of course!" With a smile on her face she said, "Oh, thanks." Then we went to Livingston to visit a friend and her kids. When it was time to clean up Colten jumped right in and cleaned up better than I've ever seen. We had to make another stop at Walmart to pick up another goldfish because Colten's died and I was afraid the other one was going to die because it was lonely. (Seriously, these fish have personalities!) So after we got the fish and paid our 15 cents we got in the car again and Colt said "Thank you so much Mom for getting me a new fish, I was sad that Tractor died." I said "Your welcome, what are you going to name your new fish?" He says, "Tractor.... no, Snowplow!" Kiley did really well travelling too. It was 3 hours round trip, plus two trips to Walmart.

So because I got such a good deal at Walmart and my college roommate has this "All Prepared" link, I've become more concious about buying things on sale. Some people have been posting the great sales they've hit so here is my picture. Most of this is for next year's Valentines.

6 stuffed animals, 4 picture frames, 4 t-shirts and a 24 pack of Fun Dip for $10.65

Peeking

The other morning after taking Cailin to school I put Kiley down in her car seat. This is what she looked like! What a cutie!

Scardy Cat Fraidy Cat

When we moved here in September there was a mother cat with two wild kittens. Somehow she died and we left food out for the kittens where the dogs couldn't get it. They are still wild. They do come around when they know there is food. Daniel and I named them last night. The puffy one is Scardy, and the slick haired one is Fraidy. This picture also shows off Alma's shere SIZE! I wonder where he came from. We got him from the Humane Society 4 years ago.

Calin's Splish Splash Dance

Here are some pictures of Cailin doing her cheer dance to "Splish Splash". She had a lot of fun and was so cute! They performed at a pep assembly, so I was able to get some pictures!

Cailin Wants to be a Cheerleader

I actually knew this was going to happen to me. When I was in high school I really didn't like cheerleaders. Not the girl herself, some of my friends were cheerleaders, but the whole ditzy thing. Anyhow a couple years ago we took our kids to my sister Sierra's basketball game. Cailin didn't really care for the game. She was watching the cheerleaders. So when a flyer went around her little school about a "Pee Wee Pep Club" a "Cheer Clinic", she wanted to try it out. There are 6 kids in her class, only 2 girls. Her friend was going to do it and I didn't want her to be left out. It's funny, sitting here writing this I feel like I'm justifying the fact that I SUMMER have a daughter in Cheer. BUT, that's besides the fact. All I know is that she likes it, and if she does then I will support her in it. AND she IS pretty good!The saddest thing happened though. My camera has a video mode. So I thought I'd video her perfomance at the half time. When I got done I pushed the button and THEN it said "record". So I missed it! The good news is that this week they are going to perform again during a pep rally for the school. There are 100 kids in this school - K through 12. These are the two regular cheerleaders.

Calves, Calves, Calves

With 15 to 20 calves being born every day, Daniel puts a lot of time on our young colts. This is Tallywood. He is doing really well. (He is actually Cailin and Colten's horse that came from Mike Pierson's Quarter Horses. He's 3. We still have Rockwell. Daniel's best horse is Biscuit. Then we have another 3 year old- Scout, and two 2 year old fillies. One of them is mine - Lightening a lined back dun, with a white stripe down her face. We haven't been able to name the other. She's a red roan. We like the name Whisky for her, but we're not so sure that's the image we want to put across. I also like Cayenne. Any ideas?

A Very Big Cat

Need I say more?

Cowgirl Kiley - 3 Months Old

I can't believe how fast time has gone by. Kiley is 3 months old and growing so fast. She is so happy and rarely cries. She does "complain", but not for long. I'm hoping she'll be our best sleeper. I really need to get her a crib. The hand-me-down one we had didn't last. Duct tape and twine string aren't all that safe for babies! We got this baby cowboy hat for Cailin, and Colt used it too.

Daniel is happy his cows are at the house now. There are close to 700 registered cows that all have to be run through the barn after they calve. The calves get tagged and tatooed. A heifer calf could be worth close to $1400 and a bull calf could some day be worth $30,000-$50,000. Daniel takes this job very seriously, it is a lot different than the commercial cows we're used to. The kids are now able to go and feed or check cows with him, which is fun for them and a nice break for me. They have just started to calve, he got 3 yesterday.