Earlier that day Evie was playing Never Enough from the Greatest Showman over and over again. I caught her intentionally (?) singing super off key. Then she and Terry proceeded to put on a show for me. We love this video.
A week or so later, on July 12, we made our annual trip to Sioux Park pool.
Little Dwidge
Samuel
Evie
Haircuts were had before we went to the pool. Although they look so cute with their long hair, they sweat like their daddy, and it gets all wet.
Who is that child?
In lieu of a summer job, we just tried to keep Noah busy with odd jobs (It wasn't enough. He needs a job next summer.). This day, July 13, he and Terry got up crazy early and helped Ed and Sue load up a trailer and truck of hay for their horses. Twice.
It was *pouring.* The radar often looked like this during the "summer" of 2019.
Low clouds and rain on the interstate heading north.
Puddles and running water everywhere at the ranch.
The kids all played on the Nintendo Switch while we waited out the rain.
It did eventually quit long enough for the sun to come out and for us to take some updated family pictures.
Just us.
Just funny us.
Of course we had to wrangle some chickens while we were out.
Expert chicken wranglers.
A couple of cute little boys.
I mentioned in my Badlands hike post how there was clover absolutely everywhere. This picture shows what it was like.
We did manage to shoot off a few fireworks before it started raining again.
The chicken laying a balloon egg was a bit lame to watch but it was still funny.
It poured again on the way home.
The rain and video of the littles' favorite firecracker, the parachute guys. They both shot into the field because on the wind and Terry went out there (in the extreme mud) to fetch them.
Three days later on the July 7th, we went out for round two. We had bought all the fireworks in a soggy tent while it poured and by golly, we were going to use them. After we held some chickens that is.
My favorite tree in the fading light.
Just about time to start.
Time!
Though we set off some parachute guys already before I guess we had more.
Noah
Evie
Samuel
Ezra
Daddy helped all the kids except Noah. I was the photographer.
Chilling with Gramma.
Getting darker.
That's the good stuff.
I had so much video but shaved it down to these three videos.
Back in November, my parents had the brilliant idea of putting Luna in underwear and shorts when she was in heat. It was also during that time that I began attempting to find a stud for her so we could do puppies once, just for the experience. Her heat was so dang long that I hoped I could work it out quickly. Unfortunately it didn't, but I did end up with a contact. I advertised on a couple of Facebook groups and then on Craigslist. One person did end up calling me after her husband saw my Craigslist ad. I told her I'd contact her when Luna next went into heat. She even texted me months after getting a new phone to make sure she's be available.
Fast forward to July and Luna went into her third heat.
I contacted Candice right away! These are the pictures she had previously sent me. Ray, her dog, is on the left. His father is the gray poodle and his mother is the Mini Australian Shepherd. So, he's an Aussie Doodle. I had wanted a mini poodle but this was the closest I could get. He was such a great dog though!
We lined up a meeting on July 1st at old Storybook Island.
He was a very good boy. So friendly, with a soft coat.
He was extremely interested in Luna but she would not let him near her. She's try (and succeed sometimes) to nip at him, telling him to stay away. Here he had just jumped away from her, ha ha.
They are pretty much the same size and weight, 27 pounds. We hung out for an hour or so and nothing happened. It was too early in her cycle.
Candice brought Ray to our house on July 6th and things looked promising but nothing happened.
Here are a few video clips of those first two meetings.
Finally on July 11th, it worked. They connected. I have pictures and videos that make me laugh but I won't actually post them. The whole thing is hilarious though.
Such a good boy! He made it happen! Only because Luna let him though. 😂
We had them over again on July 15th because I had heard from my breeder and research that one pairing is sometimes not enough. It worked again.
After that I was hoping for some immediate signs of pregnancy like weight gain. She didn't have any until about halfway through her pregnancy (only nine weeks total), so we had Ray over one final time.
It was passed the opportune time though so we just had to hope it worked. It did! Luna had seven puppies on September 11, 2019...but I'll share those posts for later. Doesn't Ray look happy?
I originally started this blog at the dawn of social media, in 2008, after we moved away from home and the second of four children were born. I wanted to share and keep track of our lives. I wanted a record and I loved it. I lost hope, ten years later, of ever recovering from a mountain of puppy pictures and I gave up writing. But now, in 2026, we have moved to Taiwan to be missionaries and I have resurrected my blog. I have always been an archivist and now endeavor to keep another record...and perhaps share my Eva-thoughts, here too.
