Kiddos Homecoming

My babies are finally home, which means my heart is home. <3

They got in last night and Sam and I spent the evening marveling at how much they seem to grow and change after not seeing them for a little over 2 weeks. I giggled as I watched Molly run and chase the kitties with her pony tail swaying to and fro and delighted in Anthony's stories of hippos pooping in the water at the zoo and looking at the stars while camping.

Tomorrow we are taking them to a county fair a few towns over. I'm SUPER excited! Our friends are playing music there, so hopefully we'll be able to stick around long enough to hear them. Either way it's sure to be a good weekend. 

With love,

Mama Hauck

Murder Mystery Train Ride

Saturday Sammy and I accompanied a few other friends on the Mount Baker Railroad Murder Mystery Train Ride. On this particular ride, you are fed a 4 course meal over the span of 2 hours. You reach your turn around and are able to get out to stretch your legs. You get back on and head back, enjoying a murder mystery show. A total ride of about 4 hours. 

It was great! What makes this so special for Sam and I is that some of our friends are the actors! We have 3 friends...Ben, April, and Joe who put on this show (along with the other actors) every Saturday, sometimes multiple times a day. They are all hilarious and it was nothing short of spectacular to see them in action. 

We boarded the train at 5:30 and sat at our own table across from a few of our friends, Mariah (Ben's wife), Beth, and Ryan. Sam had never been on a train before, so it was a special treat for him. The sun was shining and the views were beautiful. Sammy and I ordered a bottle of wine and I also got a lemon drop. Soon enough we were being served salad and bread with butter (the butter was AMAZING, lol). We each got fish for the main course. I wasn't too keen on it and had wished I had gotten something else, but I ate it as I was hungry! It took about 2 hours to reach our turn around spot where everyone was able to get off and take a 15 minute break to stretch our legs. This is where the actors are waiting and board the train. 

We got back on and were served apple crisp and coffee. Then the real fun began! The actors came out and did their thing and interacted with the crowd. We were sitting at the tables smack dab in the middle of the train, so most of the show was put on right in front of us. It was hilarious watching our friends act and we all just died of laughter. At one point Joe sat down next to me and was asking me who Sam was to me and who was better looking, him or Sam and then gave me a smooch on the cheek, haha! April told me I had better watch it and lay off her man cause she had a big gun, where upon I flexed my "guns" and told her mine were bigger, lol. Ben was ragging on the train passengers getting them all riled up and everyone was just roaring with laughter. It was really fun to be part of the show like that. It's all improvb, which makes it even better. In the end we all had to try to guess who killed the one gal. It was pretty dang fun and I'm so glad we had the opportunity to do this! All I can say is BRAVO!

In the winter the Mount Hood Railroad puts on a Polar Express show. I think Sam and I are going to take Anthony and Molly on it! It sounds like tons of fun and I know the kids will have a blast!

With love,

Mama Hauck

Bacon

I had a pal ask me to take some photos of bacon. An odd request, but I happily obliged. Apparently it is to be a gift for a friend, lol. I <3 bacon.

My kiddos come home this Thursday. I'm really looking forward to it!! I miss them terribly, but I've really been enjoying my time without them. :) Besides, they're having a blast! Camping, swimming, parks....FUN. I think it's just as good for them as it is for me to get a break and spend some time out of the normal day to day routine. I'm fortunate enough to have a Mama close enough (12 hours away in CA!) and willing to take them for a good time. Sammy and I have taken much time to relax and spend with each other. Lots of yard work, little projects, sun bathing, going for walks, netflix movies, etc. etc. Not to mention our trip to the OR coat. This past Saturday we did something super awesome and went on the Mt. Hood Murder Mystery Train Ride. I'll explain that with photos and stuff hopefully tomorrow!! We just had another load of lumber delivered today, so work is slowly but surely continuing on the barn. I keep forgetting to take a photo of the progress to show yall, but promise that I will soon! I'm getting really excited watching it come along and can't wait to get Nik in there.

Speaking of Nik, guess what happened to my horsey sometime during the night. Give up? Poor guy got a lip full or porcupine quills. :( I didn't even know we had porcupines around here, but I suppose I'm not surprised. I had to go out and sweet talk him this morning with some grain, tie him up to a tree, and use pliers to yank 7 quills out of his poor bottom lip. I tried to use my hands, but he wouldn't hold still and I kept loosing my grip or getting pricked myself. So out came the pliers. That was NOT fun.....for Nik or myself. The quills weren't outrageously big. I called my neighbor Leonard and he showed up once all was said and done and said it must have been a little porcupine cause the quills would have been far larger had it been a grown adult one. It still sucked regardless of the size and I can tell you I would not want to be on the receiving end of those suckers. *sigh* Alls well that ends well. Nik will be alright.

With love,

Mama Hauck