Applelicious!

After 6 really long months of trying to be patient as wind, water, and critters of ALL sorts played havoc, we have finally harvested our FIRST apple off our apple tree.

I never knew how much went into growing an apple until now. When our tree was covered in blossoms this spring, we were so excited. Then came.... The Birds! Waxwings! They began eating our blossoms like they were going out of style. We thought for sure it would be another fruitless season. However, the birds managed to leave the very bases of the blossoms, so they were able to pollinate and form fruit. We started with over 100 teeny apples on our tree at the beginning of the season. Then, Texas' famous spring winds began to blow. We watched sadly as our tree was blown and twisted all over in the wind. When all was said and done, and the winds began to calm, we were left with about 30 apples, still holding strong to their branches. Next came... the bugs. I do not think anything grows well in Texas because of the bugs. Our apples were sizing up so well. But, you would see a perfect apple one day, the next it would have one small hole, then the next it would be brown, shriveled, and mush! Yuck! We treated our remaining apples for bugs, then came the Mocking Birds. We tried everything to get rid of the darn things. Foil, Loud Noises, Brie running out there all day to scare them off. They were bound and determined to finish off our apples. When we went on vacation, we were pretty sure there would be nothing left. However, when we came home, it was a splendid sight. Only a few were left, but they looked AMAZING! In all, we harvested 6 apples. Not even enough for each of us to get our own, but we still had pure joy! What a feat we had accomplished. Maybe next year we will have that large harvest we were hoping for. Apple pies, Applesauce, Baked Apples. Yum! Just maybe.

Our Trip to CA

This year has been quite a slow year for trips, compared to last year. As our summer drew near the end, Sam & I decided to attempt some kind of trip with the family. We initially wanted to visit our friends, who just moved to VA, but they still were in temp. housing and trying to get as settled as possible. So, instead we chose good old California. The kids have been bugging us on when they would get to see my brother and his family, so we thought it would be a great get away. We were very pleasantly surprised. Alex did amazing on the drive. Even in a very squashed van and almost an entire day wasted in Gallup, NM. fixing bad tires, all the kids did Fantastic. We took 3 days going so we could stop at the Grand Canyon on the way. Only Sam had seen it before. It was incredible! I was really sad to see how terrified Brianna was though. We found that she has a very legitimate fear of heights. She wanted nothing to do with looking out at how large the canyon was. While we were in AZ., we also visited the Grand Canyon Deer Farm. We actually went there before going to see the Grand Canyon because Nate really wanted to see some deer. After we went to the Grand Canyon, we realized that we did not need to visit a deer farm to see them. We were able to see lots of pretty incredible deer and elk inside the park. The kids were thrilled!

Will NOT be our next Christmas Card. Getting 5 kids in the picture is about impossible.(Especially if the lady taking the picture doesn't know you have five kids and is from Spain. :) )

Great pic if we could just photo shop Sam in with us.

The kids had to have a silly picture.

A few of the Elk we saw. They even followed the street signs. :)

Alex getting licks from the camel at the deer farm

Next, it was on to CA. Everyone was so excited to see Uncle Eric, Aunt Niki, Tim, Jacob, and Savannah. We went to the Santa Ana Zoo, Disneyland, the beach, the LA Zoo, to Poppy & Mimi's several times, and just had a blast. Nate and Brianna went with the boy to Jujitsu a few times and Nate went with Tim to a swimming safety course for Boy Scouts. There was not a dull moment and the trip of 2 1/2 weeks went by way too--- fast! We cannot wait to see everyone again hopefully soon!

Sweet Savannah

"Drivin' " at the Santa Ana Zoo

Cooking Crabs & Shrimp at Mimi & Poppy's

Disneyland Day

At the LA Zoo
(Was not a fun outing because we kept getting attacked by bees. )

Nate Gets His Webelos Badge

We are so proud of Nate! Tonight he received his Webelos Badge at Pack Meeting. He has been working so hard. Even though he gets discouraged sometimes, he has stuck with it and completed all his requirements. His last award to get in Cub Scouts is his Arrow of Light. Hopefully that will happen very soon. Way to go Nate!

Nate getting his awards

The "Party" afterwards

Welcome Baby Miller

We are so excited Sam's sister Emily and her husband Dusty had their first baby today!

Miller Kingston Heath was born at 8:00 am weighing a whopping 10lbs 1oz and was 21"long!

Such a beautiful baby! Way to go Emily & Dusty! :) Our kids are so excited to have a cousin close by!

We cannot wait to share our family gatherings with him!

Can't Stay Gone for Long!

Our good friends that are moving to D.C came back this week to visit on their way to their new home after vacation. We were thrilled to see them again. It has been only a month, but I sure missed them! It is going to be a hard transition when they are gone for good. After this visit though, I realized that distance will not end our friendship. We are just too close. Tonight was their last night here, so we thought we would say farewell with a bang. 1 hour before showtime, we decided to visit Medieval Times together.

We had such a great time. Some of our kids even thought it was better than Disney World. (I don't know about that, but it has been over a year since that trip. They forget easily.)

Their poor daughter seems to get nervous with change and ended up getting sick during the show. She was fine after that, at least until we brought them to their hotel. It will be a big adjustment for their family, but I know they have prayed about it and know it is what's best for them. I am so grateful to have their examples of faith for our family. I am so grateful that we have been blessed to know them and share so many good times with them!

A.R.T.

Brianna and several of her friends have joined together to form a club with the purpose of looking for lost animals and reuniting them with their owners and "rescuing" sick or injured animals and getting them to facilities to be treated. They call themselves the Animal Rescue Team. It is still very new, and they still have several things to work out to make sure everyone stays safe in the club, but I am so proud of her and her friends for coming up with an idea and carrying it through to do good for others (and animals). The club recently found this dog and brought it to the city animal shelter where it was reunited with its owner within a few hours of arriving. They were so excited for the happy ending!

Ever seen a rabbit molt?

Yeah, me neither! That is why when we got up this morning, we were a little panicked about Pepper's all of a sudden loss of hair. Poor guy! All his flecked fur is coming out by the handfuls! I thought he was really sick, but Brianna looked up his symptoms and we had a good laugh knowing it is a natural process for him to possibly drop all his fur. (It sure makes a huge mess though!)

The Hardy Family