Happy Thanksgiving!
Have a wonderful week as we remember the blessing God has given us!
Love,
Sarah

I was in the house when from out back the hollar rang out "Quick! Grab the camera, and Rebecca come see this! It is sooo funny!" Well, who wouldn't drop and run? As you can see below our cat found a comfy place to sleep. We couldn't decide if he was enjoying the view of everyone (You could spy on the other cats from up there) or he got stuck somehow. This is on the south side of our house. He is sitting on the living room fireplace chimney.

Love,

Rebecca for the Herd

To the "Challenged"

Hello To my fellow Challenged!



Here is a thought......



With all the holidays coming up we tend (yes, even me. ;)) to forget what it is all about.



Thanksgiving: A time of celebration for the Pilgrims.

What were they celebrating? This was their time to give Thanks to God for helping them survive the harsh winter, and for giving them a bountiful crop.

So, what do we celebrate on Thanksgiving? Do people even think about it as THANKSgiving?

Lots of people, sadly, celebrate by watching their football team play a game. Some just like the food and the parades, but don't really know why they celebrate, other than the stuff they learn in school that has nothing to do with God.

Today, we live in a sad nation. "One nation under God" isn't what everyone thinks about when they think about the USA. Let us give thanks to God for letting us live in this free country where we can celebrate however we like, worship however we like, Homeschool if we want to, etc. Let us also pray for all of those people out there that don't really know what life is all about. Let us pray that God will touch their lives and soften their hearts towards Him. Let us be good examples of Believers.



Christmas: A time to wish and hope that Santa will come down your chimney, right? WRONG!!!

CHRISTmas is a time to remember that our dear Savior was born and came to the earth to save us, these sinners that we are. We are celebrating that God loved us enough to do that!

Sure it is fun to give gifts and such, but lets remember the REAL reason for the season!! :)



How is everyone doing with their challenge?

Love to all,

Sarah The Challenged

Learnin' experiences

Well, friends, it has been awfully cold, but I braved the weather yesterday to work with "my baby". :) I was able to put the halter on her for the first time yesterday!! She tossed her head a bit and didn't like it, but she didn't give me any trouble. We worked in leading sections of two to three steps in between me telling her "good girl". I think she enjoyed me scratchin' her on her favorite spot more than anything!! :) Then today, I bundled up and went out again. Apart from almost being blown down in the wind, I made the ten steps to get to our corrals. Freckle hardly recognized me at first, as I was all bundled up. After she realized it was me, I put the halter on her again and was able to lead her the entire way around the pen, only stopping once half way through to let her know that she was a good girl. :)

Every day I am able to lead her around larger areas. She is rather smart (bragging again) but gets easily scared fairly by things she has never seen before, as I found out the other day while I was leading her. :) A tumbleweed next to the fence stirred in the wind, and she bolted. I had to let go of the lead rope. After reaching the other end of the pen, she ducked her head and came back to me. I let her know that she was OK, and then of course, she had to see what scared her. She felt rather silly when she found out what it was (I could tell by the way she was blushing. ;))

Now I have to tell some of the irritations of training a baby horse. :) First, I was offended when she wouldn't let me come near her when she was first born. After a month I was able to walk right up to her or she came to me. Then I worked with her (picked up her feet, rubbed her tummy, tried to touch her face, etc). She was fine with picking up her feet, but she didn't like it when I touched her tummy. (She tried to bite me). So we had to learn that you can't bite. :) She is making great progress each time I'm out there, and I enjoy watching her learn.

Freckle was very cute the other day. We had penned up the horses for a couple of days and had just let them out. We kept Leo, our oldest horse, in so that we could fatten him up. Queenie was out in the pasture already, but she heard me pouring some cubes into the metal feeder for Leo and came trotting back to the house. Being the kind hearted person that I am :), I decided to get some cubes for all of them. By the time I came back out, Queenie was already in the corrals, but Freckle had stayed back out in the pasture. She was quite a distance out, so I whistled and called to her. She lifted her head and came running!! Now, I don't know if she was coming to me or if she just realized that mommy was far away, but I do know that she is one smart little girl. (and I still think she was coming to me. :)

Queenie has been rather jealous about every one paying attention to her baby instead of her (she used to be the "baby" until Freckle came along!). In fact, the other day she blocked me from going any where until I scratched her! HA! She is rather smart. :) I guess I can see where Freckle gets it.

Alright, enough of the bragging. Just trust that I am enjoying her immensely. :)

Love to all!

Fiddlin' Girl

Happy Birthday to my Young Man

It's official. I can no longer call Joshua my little boy - he is now 13 years old, and in our home, he has become a young man. We are so proud of the man he is becoming. He loves God and strives daily to become the man God wants him to be (even when it's hard). He has grown into a young man that shows hospitality to anyone that knocks on our door - he always has a handshake and hug for anyone that lets him. He loves to be outdoors just enjoying the space or visiting with the horses or cows or cats or chickens. He is the first one up in the mornings (usually) and is ready to greet everyone with a smile and a kind word. I can't begin to count the number of times he's opened gates and broken ice to be a good steward of the animals God has given us as well as to serve Mom or Dad - and he does it without complaining. When I say it's time to dump trash, he quickly grabs his gloves and starts loading stinky bags into the back of the truck without grumbling a bit, and he always assists the trash guy in unloading. I could go on and on with my "bragging", but I think you get the point. He is proving once again that becoming a teenager is not a bad thing. We have heard so many comments from folks that we'll have another teenager in the house, and we rejoice. It's not a bad thing. Instead, it's such a precious time to watch them grow into their own. I am looking forward to seeing how Joshua continues to grow in his areas of interest. It won't be long before we'll have a plane flying, blacksmithing, gunsmithing, taxidermist working on motors - and as long as he stays the loving, kind, welcoming young man that he is now, we will be thrilled. No matter what he does become, we will always be proud and blessed to call him son. We love you!!!

PS - a little bragging time - this is the deer that he shot in Tucumcari last weekend. It's a 9pt deer with a 30" spread. We will again be eating venison for his birthday dinner.