It's a Date!

This pretty gal has been a guest at our little farm.

She's on a quest for motherhood and is dating our mini stud. ::wink::wink::

I feel the need...

Moms!

Are you having a rough week?

Kids whining all day? Endless bickering and arguing getting you down?

Are you pulling your hair in an attempt to anesthetize your mental state?

If an overdose of the darkest chocolate available has failed to bring relief, and a bubble bath has only left you wrinkly.... If shopping only increases your blood pressure while decreasing your account balances and you've already spent time with your favorite equine... Your therapist is out of town and you don't drink lest you add to your problems with another strong addiction (remember the chocolate?)...

I may have another solution for you!

SPEED!!!!

NO! I'm not speaking of drugs folks! ... remember, you don't need bigger problems! LOL

I'm talking speed!!! Legal speed!!!

That's my dad! He's screaming around an "S" curve in second gear while racing against the clock.

This is AutoCross!

And this is FUN!!!

Filled with adrenaline! It's a closed track with a set course. In this case, each driver is on the track alone... only him, his car, and the clock running. The goal... get around the course in as little time as you can. Hit any cones or drive off the course and seconds are added to your final time. You want to be quick, smooth and clean!

And THAT is ME!!! Yep! Also racing against the clock... also around that "S" curve... but not screaming quite like Dad!

Racing against myself and the clock... My first time was 56.13 seconds. My best time was 48.37 seconds.

and it was a BLAST!!!!


I didn't kick many butts...best time for the day was 44.84 seconds... but that's not because I wasn't trying! (The average best time was 48.42! )

Fragile

A young teenage boy is riding his bicycle. To where? I don't know. Apparently listening to his ipod, he was possibly in his own world with a favorite song in his ear. It was a great summer day for a bike ride. And then....

...he crossed the road without looking... or listening. In a moment- gone!

A man is going about his afternoon doing his job, I imagine. He's driving a heavy tri-axle dump truck loaded with gravel. Tons of gravel. I don't know what stresses his daily life holds but I know the nature of life. They are there. It was a great summer day even if he had to be working. And then....

...a boy on a bicycle turns right into the path of his truck. In a moment! There's no time to stop, 'tho he tries. The truck screeches and leaves a black path of rubber before stopping in a soy bean field.

It's not the opening for a novel. It's a true story that transpired just yesterday afternoon. It was around 2:30. The girls and I were checking out some groceries at our local small town IGA. We heard the sirens from the fire house across the street. Looking out the glass windows that are the front of the store, the cashier and I saw several emergency vehicles go screaming around the corner heading south. Both of us were concerned. Something told me that whatever call for help they were answering was BAD. The cashier expressed the same concern. I told her that it causes me to pray hard. She agreed.

As we pulled out of the parking lot, I glanced down the road headed south and saw the lights south of town. That feeling still lingering... it's BAD.

Today we got hay. We purchase hay from a gentleman who has become a dear friend to us. He and his family are wonderful people who are like extended family to us. He asked if our girls rode their bikes much... "yep"... "On the road?"... "no. Around the yard and on the driveway.".... He was sitting at the intersection waiting to turn when the boy crossed right in front of the gravel truck. A witness to that horrific event. He did not sleep well last night. Shaken to the depths of his soul is not an exaggeration.

Fragile.

Life is so very fragile.

In a moment, EVERYTHING can change.

Yesterday, our sweet Hair-Tied-In-Knots was pushing a bicycle over a landscape timber.. just to get it to the other side so she could ride it. It bounced up and attacked her. Her poor sweet smile was now covered in blood. I still don't understand how that thing did the damage that it did to her mouth. It was just one of those things... a freak thing, I guess. But she's now worried about smiling and someone seeing her bloodied, torn up gums. Her teeth are sore and she suffered some chips. It hurt and still hurt my mommy heart... and Gram's heart... and GDude's heart... and Daddy's heart --- Probably not as much as her mouth hurts. But chipped and bloody... we still have her here with us.

Oh Lord! Be quick to comfort that boy's family! Give them peace that ONLY You can give. Be with that man who was driving. Be with our dear friend who witnessed the accident. Give them Peace... Comfort... and Your Love!

It was a great summer day!

In a moment...

FRAGILE!!

Camping

Summer Reading

It's that time of year... time to ESCAPE!!!

This time, I had to escape via some great summer reading. So I hit my favorite book source and picked up several titles I'd been wanting for a while and couple that I stumbled upon in the process. And when they arrived, I ESCAPED when time presented itself.

Usually when I go on one of my book ESCAPES, I really do just put everything aside and bury my nose in a book. Life has been so busy, so crazy and has had some unique stressors lately that haven't allowed me to simply be buried. But between the busy, the crazy and the stress... I dove into my books.

I have two more to go and may find time to actually bury myself in them this week... I hope! But the two I read were good reads... one was soooo good that it deserves a plug here.

"The Shack" by William Young.... this is a fantastic work of fiction! It is a story that grabs you deep in your spirit. You will be riveted... you will cry... laugh ... and be moved. So if you're looking for a great read, I highly recommend this one!