More About Mackay

For those of you who were wondering where we go when we are here....in Idaho.

We go to Mackay to see some really cool things.

We have our own campground in front of the neatest cabin!  I am not kidding, it is the neatest!

It is an original cabin from a long time ago.

It sits at the front of the property that my brother owns.

It houses antiques from another era.

It also houses birds and spiders and even skunks.

Yeah, skunks.

They live under the cabin.

But they don't bother us.

Isn't this just the coolest thing ever!!

Inside one will find old potbelly stoves, trunks, and lots of old stuff covered with dust.  I just love it!

 

Out front of the cabin is an old mining car.  The kind that used to carry stuff from the inside of the mountain, and it would roll down some tracks, carrying the stuff from inside the mine.  Then some guys would unload the mining car and send it back up some tracks to get some more stuff from inside the mine.  It worked all day and it worked hard.

But now it is layed (or laid?) to rest in the sunshine and shade for the remainder of its life.

It is cool, huh?

And we parked our 5th wheel right in front of that old cabin.

I think I could hear that old cabin speaking to me in the night.

It said things like, "Get that giant piece of tin outt'a my sight.  You are blocking my view".

DH said I was hearing things.....little does he know ;)

 

My last born daughter found some living creatures under the eve of the old cabin.

She grabbed her camera, and snuck up on those creatures.

Do you wann'a know what she saw?

Yeah, I knew you would.

You are like that.

 

That mama bird is feeding 4 little ones. 

Three of them look pretty good, but one is really scrawny.  I am worried about it.

They get fed all day long.

Mama goes and gets worms!

She just drops those worms, without even being chewed up, right into the babies mouths.

It is amazing. 

Those babies know what to do with that live wiggly worm.  They swallow. 

Bingo, that worm is gone!

All day long that is what the mama does.

And the babies cry, "No, mama, don't go, we are still hungry!"

Mama says, "Don't be frett'en, I'll be right back with another serving.  Now, shut up and go to sleep!"

Well, maybe she doesn't say that last part.

Ain't life just grand.  There is a plan, or things like this wouldn't happen.

The end, for just today.

Me

Mackay, Idaho

Do you know where Mackay, Idaho is?

Do you know where my baby brother lives?

Do you know if there is a golf course in Mackay, Idaho?

Well, that is why I am here, just help you find the answers to some of life's hardest questions.

I will answer all of those questions.

Mackay, Idaho is in Idaho.
Mackay, Idaho is where my baby brother lives.
My baby brother lives next to the golf course, which is in, you guessed it, Mackay, Idaho.

Earlier this summer we packed up 3 of our daughters, a grandson, several (4) dogs and parked our 5th wheel on the property my baby brother owns.

We just wanted to go camping!

The water is so high everywhere, and the mosquitoes are so thick they can carry a small dog away, and people just "wann'a get outt'a town".  Especially me.  Because living in a population of 50,000 people can just drive one crazy, at times.  The streets are crowded, with 11 cars within sight! 

So I said to DH, "Honey, I am just going crazy around here.  Let's go camping."

DH said, "Huh?  With 3 daughters, a baby grandson and 4 dogs?  You wann'a take them in our 5th wheel trailer? ......  This house isn't small enough for you with all these extra bodies and canine?  You wann'a do what?"

Me: "Honey, I just wann'ta get outt'a town."

DH:  "OK, I'll do anything for you dear, anything, I'll do anything, anything, for you!" *singing*

Well, he wasn't exactly singing. 

So we called my baby brother.  We asked him if he knew anywhere we could get our 5th wheel into to camp.  ......   He thought and thought........ Then he reluctantly invited us to park in his yard if we were desperate.  We could go out on the 4 wheelers, we could go for a ride up the Mine Road, we could go and look for animals, we could have a good time in Mackay.  He is such a great brother.  I knew he would know just what to tell us.  That is why I have a baby brother.  So I have someone to turn to when I need answers in life.  He knows all that kind of stuff.

Now, my brother has a name.  It is Kelly.  Although, I give him lots of other names...Like, well, because my life may be in peril I will tell you that another time.  For now.  I am gonn'a let the picture speak for me.  After all, a picture is worth a thousand words. But he is a wonderful baby brother, and has taken good care of his big sister all of his life.

So, we went and spent the weekend with them.  In Mackay, Idaho.

I think this girl had fun.

She would rather spend her summers in Juneau, Alaska.  But, she also likes Mackay, Idaho.

She wears a black t-shirt sometimes.  It has a logo on the front, which says "Perks Bar, Mackay, Idaho".  Sometimes she can be a real redneck!  But, man do I love this child!  She is my last born!

My brother has a last born, too.
His name is Kayden.
Kayden is somewhere around 16 years old.
He is so dang sweet.
He drives now.

He loves living in Mackay, Idaho.
He has 13 kids in his grade at school.

That tells you a lot about Mackay, doesn't it!!

This is next to my baby brothers house.
That tells you about Mackay, too.
I don't get to have one of these next to my house.

Although, this morning I had 3 eagles soaring above the field in front of my house.  They were screeching!!  I love eagles!  Especially bald eagles.  They are the symbol of our country.

With a symbol as majestic as an eagle, I say "God Bless America".  And "God Bless Mackay, Idaho!"

Comments??? Anyone????

I just don't get it.

I write, erratically, I know, but why doesn't anybody leave any comments?

I think I will have a contest.

If you leave me a comment and suggest what I should do for a contest, you will automatically be entered. 

I am going to make something, like, ...knitted dish cloths, or a fabulous fabric book, or a gift card, or something like that.   I know, I am following in the footsteps of The Pioneer Woman, my BFF Blogger.

So, this is the deal.
Some have recently told me that they can't leave a comment.
My Web Browser Specialist is responsible for that.
Maybe this will get her attention and fix the problem.

If you want to email me...... tawnhuntid@yahoo.com

Then I will know if this is a broken comment section, or if someone is just tooooo shy to leave a comment.

Come on everyone!  Talk to me!

I will talk to you, too.

Love,
Me

Why Today Is Extra Special

Why today is extra special.

1.  My husband got up when his alarm went off at 5:30 am.

     And I didn't.  I was sleeping, he was going fishing.

2.  It is pouring rain.

     There are few things in this life that I cherish more than a rain storm.

3.  I have a covered deck.

     I love to sit outside and listen to the rain.  Now, I can sit outside and listen to the rain and stay dry under our covered deck.  It has 2 sky lights in it, so I can see the rain on the roof, or lightening, or whatever might be on the top of the deck since it is see through.

4.  Norman fertilized the grass on Saturday.

     Although we ran a watering cycle on Sunday morning, and had a few sprinkles during the day, it was nothing to what we are getting this morning.  It is pouring, and has been for hours.

5.  I get to stay in my nightgown longer today.

     I am a much happier person when I get to lounge around in my nightgown in the morning.  Several hours is what my body requires.  When it is raining, and DH is MIA I can.  This is worth getting out of bed for.

6.  My cousins wife's MIL is in town. 

     That makes her my aunt, and I adore her.  She lives is Arizona, where rain is scarce, and it is hot.  She deserves a break today, so I am glad she gets to enjoy a down pour while she is visiting.

7.  I think the smell of baking bread and cookies is priceless on a rainy day.

     When it is stormy I will be in the kitchen, if at all possible.  The oven must stay on all day.  Today it is possible.  Raisin bread, white bread, oatmeal chocolate cookies, and a marinated pork loin.  If I can bring myself to go outside (that won't be hard) I will raid the garden and get fresh herbs and lettuce and spinach.  I need a salad to off set all the baked goods.

8.  Naturally curly hair loves rainy days.

     I have what it takes to look like I was living in the 1800's.  They didn't use hairspray, or mouse, or root lifter, or products like that.  They went natural.  On rainy days, so do I.  But, I refuse the corset.

9.  It is an easy day to take a nap.

     Somehow, rainy days make the time slow down.  The clock doesn't move as fast.  I have fewer deadlines in my brain.  I actually take the time to smell the roses on rainy days.  Naps usually find the time to arrive sometime during the day.

10. A good book is dusted off and opened.

     I love to read.  I don't take the time to read as often as I should or could.  I spend much to much time on the computer reading blogs, facebook, emails, news, weather reports, headlines, political trash and .....  I would rather read a good book on rainy days.  There is something liberating when you lick your finger and turn a real paper page.  I love to see the book covers get a little wrinkled and tattered from use.  That means they were loved.  The book is not new, it has been used.  It reminds me a lot of myself.  Yep, I love a good solid, fat, wrinkled and tattered book.

Hope you have a wonderful day, too.

Love,
Me

The Frame Photography

It has been many years since our family has had professional photos taken.

Recently I had all four of my children home for a few days.  It was wonderful.  Oliver and Kattie and Asher live in San Diego, so to get them here at the same time wasn't easy.  Tyia and Nikki live in our sweet town now, but they aren't off work at the same time, hardly ever, so let me again express how unusual it was that they could all be here at the same time.

So, on that certain day, I brainstormed, and knew we needed to get pictures.

I started calling around to get some prices.  Boy, professional photographers aren't cheap, nor are they spur of the moment.  I posted on Facebook, "help, I want our family photos done, and it has to be today. Does anyone know of someone who is available?"  At that point I was willing to spend the money to get someone.  We were running out of time.

My dear friend, Connie, called me and said she would call around for some referrals.  I was so happy.  Then she called with a couple of names.  So, I jumped for joy and called The Frame Photography.
Bree Anderson was the photographer.  She has a partner, her name is Kacey.  They were darling.  Darling!  And they both dropped what they were doing and met us that evening.

Bree asked me a few questions of what I would like the pictures to look like.  I didn't want the "studio" look.  I like spontaneous, and texture, and "outside of the box". She knew what I was saying.  She gave me a couple of choices for location.  I chose the outside barn look.  There is a big red barn, a really old big red barn, just about a mile from our house.  She has taken photos there before and so we settled on that one.

I texted all my kids with the message. "7:30 pm.  Family photos.  White shirts and jeans." I knew it would be tough.  Nikki works until 7:00 pm on the other side of town, so she would have to hurry.  I layed out a couple of white shirt options for her to try, and she would meet us at the location.

So, we quickly got our clothes picked out, did what we could with our hair, and headed to the location.

During the late afternoon on  that day the wind had been blowing pretty hard.  The western sky was getting dark with big rain clouds.  I said more than one prayer that the weather would hold off for us. As our time for the photo shoot approached the wind calmed down, and the harsh sun was behind the clouds.  The lighting for outdoor pictures was very good.  I said another prayer of Thanks!

We started with Kattie and Asher.  Wow, they looked so beautiful against the red barn, the weathered wood, the tall weeds.  I loved it!  It was just what I wanted.

Then Nikki arrived and we started mixing us up in groups.  We started laughing, and Bree brought the best of us out.  She was so cute and relaxed.  She told us over and over how easy we were to work with and how beautiful our family is.

I wanted to adopt Bree, too.  She was just like one of us. Kacey had to leave early so Bree was on her own.

It was the most fun we had had together in the last few days.  We laughed and helped each other, and really enjoyed it.

I have a big Family Tree Picture that has space around the tree for about a dozen photos.  I am going to fill those spaces with black and white photos, and frame the colored ones to display in my home.
I love everyone of the photos, and Bree made it all the more special.

 The next time you need a photo shoot, I suggest The Frame Photography ~208-757-1686 and talk to  Bree.  You will enjoy the experience as much as the results!

Love,
Me

Family Pictures With A Red Barn

I won't be saying much today.

I am going to let the picture; who is worth a thousand words.

This is the second daughter I gave birth to.  She gave birth to my grandson.

I have four children.

Everyone of them are beautiful adults, who I am so proud of.

I would bet my life that this mommy feels the same about her child.

Yeah, that is a safe statement.

He is darling!

It just doesn't get much better than this.

Like I said, I am so proud of these kids.

We had so much fun!

We laughed, and tried to be ourselves.

And........................

I will share more at another time.

Stayed tuned.

Love, me

Feeding The Baby Adventure

My grandson was here a few weeks ago.
He charges my battery.

He also exhausts me.

But he is worth it.

Meal times with my grandson are really a......"for the birds"........"for the dogs"..... "a hoot ".

Let me show you.......

Zoey is so gentle, as she licks the sticky, grimy, greasy, slobbery fingers.
Zoey eats as much as this guy does.
In fact, all the dogs do.

They gather, waiting............waiting................waiting.

Some of the dogs keep their eyes on the floor.  Just waiting for the tidbits to fall to the ground.  But, if they are really hungry, they put their paws on the legs of that little boy, and lick whatever they find that has landed in his lap.  It is usually a feast.  The bib is just there for show.  It is really not effective against this pack.

This boy doesn't mind the dogs germs.  I think it is more flavoring, a new seasoning, or more moisture to the morsels he is shoveling into his mouth.

The nice thing about this boy, is he doesn't even mind which hand he uses....

Remember, the right hand fed Zoey.  Then the right hand fed the boy.  But, wait, there is more.....

...........the left hand works quite nicely, as well.

He doesn't care.....

Right hand, left hand, both hands, dogs, food, slobbers,.............he is really easy to get along with.

Then he fools the dogs, and drops the food off the other side of the high chair.

They don't care if it is hamburger, sting beans, pasta, they really don't mind.

Left hand, right hand, which one should I use?

Intsy weensy spider climbs up the water spout,
Down came the rain and washed the spider out,
Up came the sun and dried.........

Well, he does THAT, too.

Like I said, He Melts My Heart!

Then he is done!

Finished!

The end of the meal, as far as he is concerned.

.................... Until he discovers the hole in the bar (that is trying to keep him in the high chair one more second....)

Whalla!

I heard him yell, "puppies, come...there is more!"

And the puppies ran, with their toenails sliding on the slick tile flooring, as they tried to abruptly stop under the source of more food.  Which happens to be anywhere near the high chair.

Yep, the puppies were there to scarf up every morsel.

That little boy emptied out the pocket of his bib, dropping each morsel of food through the new hole and the puppies were grateful.

All was good.

And I didn't have to mop the floor.

Kisses and hugs my little man!!
How I love you!!!!

*smack* I kissed you last!