White Dove

This is a white dove that walked up to me and was slightly injured. We answered its plea and saved it by relocating it to a tank where the dogs don't hunt. :)

A Season of Progress

I am so very grateful to God for the fullness of this season in our life. 

Take a look . . .

We connected with our family! That is me with my 93 year old Grandaddy, Dad, and brother, Chane.

This one has everyone - including my husband, Robert, step-mom Ellen, and sis-in-law Anna.

We celebrated our new grand baby on the way and our kiddos becoming parents with a "Cute as a Button" shower! Here are Erin, Landon, me, Robert, MawMaw, PawPaw, and Julie.

Miss Sweetpotootie Williams could not wait to see us all, so she arrived six weeks early! This is Mommy & Daddy's first time to see her.

David had his first skydiving experience! He's a natural.

. . . BUT he will never be able to outgrow his brother's beard and stache. :)

. . . BUT he did kill a rattle snake that was reared up to strike him. 

Quick-Draw Dave

This is our third batch of barn swallow chicks this season.

Robert inherited a very special dog whistle from the wonderful people who own this ranch. 

With the help of my step-mom and brother, I saw a picture I haven't seen in a long, long time 

- me & Daddy. 

This is our sweet babies' first family photo. They are so precious.

Mr. Boerjan, the Senior Ranch Foreman. and I dressing in a similar vein and working toward a similar end, as usual. 

The first time the quail let me pet them.

These are flowers from my son, David, and for no reason but just because. Just look at those colors.

The girls learn to do this both in the ranger and truck upon hearing us say "Load up!" Pretty cool, huh?

Robert gets a nifty vacuum prosthesis (details in a former blog).

We celebrate the Fourth of July by buying three rebuilt bikes in Austin and ride them on the ranch. Yes - Robert rides the bicycle with his prosthesis! Now, that's liberation.

Our lil sweet potootie is growing! And SO cute!

We do much landscaping and maintaining of landscaping and learn a ton about it.

We have surprise visit from precious family - Aunt Donnie & Grams.

We travel to South Texas to stay with Mr. Boerjan and pick up some heifers so we can breed them here.

We tame Francis, the donkey. The Boerjans call him Moses, so Francis-Moses.

David and Robert learn to rope with a lariat.

David and I learn much about edible plants from this expert.

I find a rare bloom just outside our back door and on this random cactus that is growing in an unplanned spot - those are always the best - the things you don't try to grow. God is showing off with this one, and the bloom was gone by that evening.

Robert figures out a way to get that left leg and his "goofy foot" into some water so we can tube the San Marcos River to celebrate our 25 year wedding anniversary early.

Robert & I with my bro, Chane, and son, David in San Marcos, Texas to celebrate.

Across the street is the old Aquarina Springs theme park I went to as a child and to the right is the boat I rode on for a tour. We all took a glass bottom boat tour of the beautiful springs, but on a new boat this time. 

This is David and Chane in the San Marcos Methodist Church where our Great Great Grandaddy Leslie Cooper and Grandma Margaret Hanson Cooper worshiped and served.

We were able to visit our family's grave site.

San Marcos is so beautiful. It was very special to tour it and to see the place where Dad and Grandaddy grew up. 

 Pictures of us in my classroom with a hat from where it all began twenty five years ago . . . Burger King. :)

David raced the Miata at the newly built Circuit of the Americas and took me for a spin on one of his six heats. Very big adrenaline rush.

We did much dirty work, but even that is rewarding when you look at the life it sustains and how nice it looks when you're done.

There is so much beauty out here. See the butterfly in the middle?

And more work to be done in between the moments of stillness.

This is our prize bull showin' tail.

This is how Robert looks after moving quail from one pen to the other. Hah.

PawPaw and lil sweet potootie cuddling.

The house full of music, pets, and our grandbaby - aka Heaven.

Grams holding Sweetpotootie. 

Chane & Anna holding Sweetpotootie. 

Our Family, including some of our furry friends

Landon & Erin learn to rope with the lariat. 

David poses so his grandma can see that he has, in fact, cut his hair. 

Rat killin' - don't mess with the quail house.

It's harvest time - tunas/cactus pears. 

Here is another gorgeous butterfly - they are everywhere here.

These are some of the thousands, and I mean thousands of honey bees that were coming to this Mexican Sage bush every morning. The sage bushes were some of the few things with so many blooms in the heat and drought, so we had what looked to be an entire hive drink on them until the blooms faded. The humming sound was incredible.

We cleared many dead trees and limbs. That felt good - kind of like cutting your nails - instant results.

We groomed some of our sweet little hunting cockers again, and they appreciated it in this heat.

I officially overcame my fear of cattle, as seen here. They know when you're at peace.

More of our beefy babies. 

We hatched over forty quail and have had all but five survive so far.  

They're called buttons. Now, I know where "cute as a button" came from - they are so adorable.

Like a boss, Josh mans the Ranger.

My sweet Mommy treats me to a pedicure, and we have a nice Girl's Day Out.

Robert and David find one cabin available, called Robert's Cabin, and book it for a last-minute father-son trip to beautiful Como, Colorado.

 

The views and the fishing are rare.

Meanwhile, back at the farm, Samson has crowned himself king.

A selfie worth a thousand words.

Another picture worth a thousand words.

And yet another one... thank You, Lord, for the miracles of life and love that we have today! 

Someone recently asked us, "So have you all had any regrets about the amputation?" Heck, no. Our life is richer and fuller than ever...thanks be to God.