Big Boy Bed

Here's how Maximus' first nap in his new toddler bed went:

Branched Oak Training Race

Jesse had a mountain race yesterday...and we're in Nebraska...does that sound weird to anyone else? Anywho, this is the second time Jesse has ever mountain raced and guess what? HE TOTALLY WON! Like, first place in front of everyone else won!

It was technically a "training race" but they still keep results and dude, he won it! (And he was a few minutes ahead of the others!) I am so proud of him I'm almost speechless!


During the hour long race, Maximus fed Lucky (the nicest dog I've ever met) raisins and ice.

Maximus fell off his bike Wednesday. Like, ate concrete and slid down a hill type of falling. He cut his lip and now we call him "Scab Face".
He was assigned "cone picker upper" after the race was over.Nice clean socks with dirty legs.

For my Grandparents

My grandparents always had Marigolds planted along their driveway. I always thought the flowers were kind of ugly, they didn't smell good and they remind me of extreme heat. Their driveway would literally bake in the sun and those flowers would thrive.

My grandfather (the man with 8 fingers and all of them were green- that's how awesome he was) kept their landscaping beautiful. Tomatoes, beautiful flowers, the palm tree, apricot tree, carrots, onions, everything. I loved walking around with him when I was a child and delighted when he let me pull up carrots and eat them after he brushed the dirt off.

My grandmother passed in November this year. Now that they're both gone, Marigolds have become the most beautiful flower to me. I want them to grow everywhere! Here's my very first one.

Poop and Pee Song

Goo Goo

Jacqueline Margo, Jackie, Yack, Jack, GooGoo, Dis Girl, Yack the Yack Russell, Old Girl, Goog.
Yesterday Jackie was hit by a Ford Explorer. Fortunately, she's alive. We were in the backyard when she saw a Boxer, jumped the fence (Jack Russells are helicopters) and bolted after it. She was hit in the side of the head and it was a sickening thing to see. Six people witnessed it. The driver stopped. I won't go into detail, but when I approached her I almost knew she was gone.

The vet's main concern was making it through the night AND SHE DID. When I woke up, I looked over at her laundry basket (it's where she loves to sleep) and whispered "GooGoo?" I saw her tiny tail wag. She didn't lift her head, but she pulled in her front legs to expose her chest so I could scratch it. She's been walking around a little today and she even begged when Maximus was eating cereal this morning. During Maximus' nap, I held her on my lap on the front porch.

Jackie is a rescue, so we don't know her exact age. She is guessed to be around 12. She was found in a junk yard by a Jack Russell rescue group in Salt Lake City and I adopted her within the week. She was very, very ill for the few months and soon became my best friend. She has her traits- she bites her nails, sneezes constantly from blunt force trauma to her face from her "old life", she has mast cell cancer, she always has a runny nose, her tail was docked way too short (it's about 2 inches long), she's missing most of her teeth, she'll attack if you break up frozen vegetables in a bag, her favorite treat is a cucumber and DO NOT MESS WITH HER WHEN SHE SLEEPS.

I am so, so relieved it wasn't worse. I saw a UPS truck flying through the neighborhood and caught myself thinking, "what if?" I know this old lady has many more years left in her. We're the type of people who consider our pet as a member of our family. How could you not? I don't understand how people can obtain a "pet" and leave it outside or put it in a torturous dog run. Whatever Jackie's past is (all we know is that it wasn't ideal) we can only make her remaining time left perfect. Yeah, Maximus has his moments when he thinks riding her 14 pound frame is fun, but she knows she's loved. I love her. We love her. So, so much.

As I'm typing about Jacqueline, I have say, "Rest in peace, Claire". We miss you.