Violet Sparkle

For the last two weeks we have been enjoying a new family member...our new puppy Violet!  After we lost Ralph last year our remaining dog Brewster has been lonely and sad.  He needed a friend!  So even though our home life is FULL, we took the plunge and added just one more.  Penny was super excited, mostly because this one is a girl.  We let her name the puppy, and she decided on Violet Sparkle.  I think it fits...what do you think?  

Such a sweet girl!

Brewster is thrilled!  These two never seem to stop playing together!

Yes, this puppy is like most puppies...she's a stinker!  I admit we are maxed out with three kids, a dog, a house-training puppy, and chickens, but the time will fly as it always does...

Easter at the Ranch 2015

Happy Easter!  This year we continued what has seemingly become a tradition.  We spent Easter at the ranch!  Ma-Mas invited her family to spend the holiday with us, so we got to spend time with many aunts, uncles, and cousins!  The weather was a little soggy and humid but it didn't dampen our fun!  Since so many people joined us this year, our party of five opted to camp out which worked out great and was super fun for the kids.  We spent the weekend visiting with family, taking walks around the ranch, enjoying the wildflowers, and getting dirty.  We colored eggs on Saturday night and the kids had a blast hunting eggs on Sunday morning.  Such a fun weekend!

I wanted to do the cliche mom thing and get an Easter picture in the wildflowers...this was our best one.  

Ellie was sooo not into the photo shoot, and the other two were intent on being goofballs.

One I managed when they didn't know I was still taking pictures...

Doing what he does best at the ranch...having fun and getting dirty.

Ellie's second Easter, but the first one where she could participate!  She liked finding eggs!

Checking out big sister's basket...

Happy, dirty, egg-finding princess.

Life on the Farm

Somebody besides the kids have been enjoying the playhouse...

Thankfully Spring is here and we have been spending some time outdoors!  We don't live on an actual working farm, but it is starting to feel like a funny farm for sure!  We spend a lot of time enjoying our little plot of land with yard work,  rock-moving, cactus-killing, chicken care, gardening, and just plain playing and running around.  With three kids, NINE chickens and a dog we stay pretty occupied and entertained!  We couldn't have anticipated the dimension that "farm life" has added to our lives, but add it has.  I couldn't help but want to document some of the scenes we've had before us in the last week or so.

Ellie has discovered her love for the outdoors...and the indoors of the playhouse.

Penny likes that the chickens are all girls...

Except SOMEBODY has been cock-a-doodle-dooing...
We recently had a chicken run off and we couldn't get her in the coop for the night.  The next morning, I went out early to let the chickens out, hoping it would lure the missing chicken back.  Elsa, whom we THOUGHT was a hen, started calling for the missing chicken, hence I heard the first "cock-a-doodle-doo", confirming our suspicions of a rooster in our mix. (The missing chicken, Peck, came back by the way.)

I am not much of a gardener but it's on my list to change that!  We finally got our vegetable garden in last weekend so we'll see how I do.  (Luckily the hubs is a little better at it than I.)  Since I can grow almost nothing, I couldn't help but be proud of these green onions I grew over the winter.  Seriously, who knew they would do that???

The babies of the family...Emily, Apple, and Peppa Princess

Baby meets baby.

Coop in the coop.  We love watching him love the chickens!