I smell Quail...

Taylors first official hunting trip...

Her new friend and hunting buddy, Chip.

He is very handsome and quite the hunter... he taught her everything she needed to know.

She was a filthy muddy mess when she got done, but flushed out 4 quail and picked up two. We are so proud of her, she was really getting the hang of it.

Then she came home had a much needed bath, and has been totally out the rest of the day.

More Grace!

Brynley Grace!

Our Oregon Duck friends had their baby on Monday.

She is such a cutie and has the most beautiful skin!

The kids let Jacob hold her the whole time.

 They absolutely adore their little Sister.

She slept until just before we left.

Then she was awake and at only 3 days old and she would follow our voices when we talked to her.

 Totally turning her head to find Jacob when she heard him too, she is so alert.

Another Duck, straight from heaven!

Grace...

This quote exactly sums up everything I wanted to express in my word of the year!

I sooooo needed this today!!

It's almost poetic how it came to me.  My VT partner and friend, reading her daughters blog who is one of my dear blogger friends, who had a link on her blog where this was posted, and any coincidence that the blog has amazing inspirational photography and writing that just pulled me in and reminded me of things I love and things that are important to me, and gifts I have been given that should not be wasted.  He knows me, He puts these people in my path so gently, He knows what they do for me, how they make me feel about myself and about life,  He knows when I will grasp something, when I will understand it.  He knows when I am feeling inadequate and need His grace!  And he never ever forgets about me!  Wow, I stand all amazed!!!

.

"Sometimes grace manifests as synchronicity-its energy brings together people or events in a soothing, helpful, or dramatic way when you most need it and least expect it. At other times grace is the energy that suddenly illuminates us with understanding, allowing us to see what we had not been able to grasp before. Grace can also lift us into an altered state of consciousness in which we feel suffused by an unfamiliar energy -an indescribable combination of love, hope, and fearlessness." ~Caroline Myss

Family Night with the Missionaries...

Monday night with the missionaries!

 Pizza, Aunt Carolyn's Chocolate Fudge cake... a big huge hit!

And some competitive dice games, so fun! 

Wrapped up with a little scripture and a lesson we all learned some new things about fasting... like apparently in the Hebrew language they didn't have a word for many, so they used the word they had for forty.  So when we read about Jesus fasting for forty days... it meant "many" days.  There are other references to forty in the Bible that make so much sense if you read it as "many".  I didn't know this.

We love having the missionaries over and Jacob had an opportunity to ask them LOTS of questions and grill them on their experiences to date, and he had a fun time battling and looking up things in his new scriptures with them.  Love it!!

I am sooo proud of my strong silent mysterious man for waiting to turn on the "big game" until after they left... he really really wanted to stretch the rules and kept saying if we just had the tv on, it wasn't like they had any control over what members do... that THEY weren't breaking the rules.  They were not convinced with his justification, and I am sure would have said goodbye really early if we had been watching tv while they were here.  He refrained and it was worth it to have some peace and quiet while they were with us.

Gamers...

I found this picture on my camera, I had forgotten we had taken one from our game night with friends on New Years Eve.

It was a crazy, fast, fun, competitive game night.  We turned in before midnight, like "old" people should.  But had a really fun time with our friends.  It's almost time for another game night people!

YW Vollleyball...

Well we didn't have a huge turn out of girls to come play volleyball Saturday, but enough to go have fun!

(wow, don't make me pull out a recruiting skit to try and show you why you should come play on our team... bump, set spike... I know I can find something cute that will rhyme and be super silly involving pigtails and knee pads).

 

 

 

 I had fun playing with my new camera lens.  But it was like learning how to use my camera all over again.  Back to the drawing board.  So hard to learn how to get enough light in the gym.  And freezing those action shots... well I just need lots more practice.  But oh so fun!

 

I love being with the girls, they are so kind.  They are good to each other and patient to teach the younger new comers.  Fun Saturday morning, a good time was had by all!