First day in Houston

Even in TX Lil'Bug finds the fantastical. This is a faerie egg. If anyone knows what it really is, please comment. We're bringing it back to Iowa so I hope it isn't a super invasive alien destructo egg.

My beautiful cousin C.. Her Mama is dying and she is the absolute example of kindness and grace under fire. I hope she doesn't mind me posting her picture, but Lil'Bug picked it out and said C. is an angel.



My cousins have an awesome sense of style and humor. Blueberry is the 4th gnome.

God bless you all. If you have a chance, hug the people you love and hold them close.

Henderson, Texas- An Unexpected Stop

My girls. I love them so much. They were troopers for true. Here Lil'Bug and Blueberry were writing notes to A and L of Sugarcreek farm to let them know they are ok. You know, since I was posting to FB and blogging the same.



My Dad is calling the deer Micheal Jordan because of the "hang time".....we had come to a complete stop when 3-5 seconds LATER the deer landed on the windshield. God bless the engineers who came up with the type of glass windshields are made of. I don't know of the picture shows it well, but the glass was caved in almost to my Dad (the driver) and the impact also made a good sized hole through the glass.

Look closely and you can actually make out the outline of the deer...um, twice- once on the hood and once IN the windshield. There were also hoof prints on the roof.

We are so blessed. This could have been a tragedy to pile on top of the suffering and sadness our family is already weathering. By the grace of God it was not. God blessed us again when, after driving the back roads the mile from the hotel to the collision center, a gentleman followed us into the shop. He said he was the owner of the local Saturn dealership, he saw our out of town plates, and he wanted to let them know that he has all the parts we need in his shop right now. He said he'd just order replacements for what he needed them for so we could have them. That saves us a little bit of time. He offered us a ride to Houston too, but we were just too many with too much luggage to make that work. The collision shop ladies were wonderful too: they made my kids comfortable, arranged for a rental car for us, gave my Dad a ride to it 30 minutes away, and were just all around nice. The shop was tidy and clean. The insurance claim went smoothly too. These are all little details compared to the fact that we are all unscathed, you know?

That said, all is well. I have to stay in Texas until the car is done and then we'll get a rental to Henderson and pick it up. For the trip home I think we will stop and not drive through deer country at night, you know? I am thinking we will stop and see Great Grandma in KC, MO too. Maybe go to the zoo. So I'll just need an overnight stop between Henderson and KC. Maybe Dallas? Maybe Arkansas? We will just roll with the waves and put our trust in a higher power.

Sad, and we're in Texas but Not at our Destniation

We traveled quickly to TX, carpooled with my dad to make the trip 1 day instead of 2. Shared driving. We had an interesting encounter with a Walmart in Arkansas, let's just say there was blood in the bathroom and I just hovered and went so I wouldn't wet myself. Back on the road through country with closed gas stations after midnight. Wonderful time until......we nailed a deer, I think it was a buck- seriously. Who needs deer season right? Ok. No cell signal, heavy fog, smashed up windshield. 12 miles to nearest town. 12 miles took 30 minutes.

So we're stuck in Henderson, TX. With a beloved family member dying 200 miles away and we need to be there. More importantly my dad needs to be there. We're going to try and sleep at this nice hotel, get a rental, find a State Farm Agent, and just make it work. I might just be in Texas for longer than the week I planned. Maybe all my online TX unschooler friends can come visit me? LOL. Goodnight and Godspeed.

See you Later Gator, Birthday part 2

Birthday surprise. We told her the garage door was broken and she'd have to help Dearest fix it.
She'd been helping him all week, so she thought it was pretty normal.

And.....open.

Glee!

Of course then I told her it was for her to do pig chores. AND SHE BELIEVED ME! Oh no. I had to quickly run over and tell her I was joking. I hated when my family used to tease me like that, I feel so bad. I am a bad mommy.

But then she got over that, accepted my apology and played! She's going to test drive it today since the batter had to charge for 18 hours. Whew. Yesterday we got home late and the coyotes spooked her a little. So today my little swamp elf gets to take off in her Gator. Nana and Pawpaw are totally awesome. Thanks!