The Muench Bunch

This was our night to go to the Dayton Labor Day rodeo and I did not want weather getting in my way.  Friday’s rodeo was held in pouring rain, and we didn’t go Saturday, so today was our chance to go. Allie came back for the weekend and tonight she wanted to join us and go to the rodeo. She came to the house awhile to see everyone.   On Instagram, Jayden has been following Fallon Taylor, famous NFR qualifier, PRCA barrel racer, and former model. She gives me almost daily updates on what Fallon is doing, where she is hauling, what she is selling, her latest fashion line, her horses, etc. You get the idea, she is a huge fan. Around 4:00 Jayden ran in to tell me Fallon posted she is on her way to Dayton. The excitement began. I told her to print a photo of her in case we can find her and get an autograph. Jayden texted Makenna, who was just as excited and ended up going with us. We were on a mission to find Fallon, but we had to be cool about it. The whole family got to the rodeo groun

Allie made the long 6 hour trip back for the weekend to see friends and family. She came out to the house to see us and the kids. We got some photos and as you can see, Miss Jayden has caught up in height with Allie. It was great to see her and I think she is doing well. She is working at O'Reiley's and a convenient store. She went to the rodeo with us.

At the young age of 3, Jayden sang her first solo in church. She was adorable and could sing so sweet and cute. She sang “Oh, how I Love Jesus. She was pretty good for a little one, singing in tune. She loved to sing and was always singing at home while playing. She could learn lyrics to a song in no time and still does. She sang at my childhood church. At the age of 5 she had memorized and could sing the Star Spangled Banner. She sang it at a Flag ceremony and then at the Bill Riley talent search in Ogden. She was on the song list at church to sing twice a year and she continued to sing up until we left the Stratford church in 2010. Jayden has an wonderful voice when she would  sing out at home and just amaze me. In public she sang great, but was much more soft and shy. I loved to hear her memorize songs on the radio and sing out, especially worship songs. In 3 rd grade Jayden was chosen for the Midwest Children’s choir through her school and her music instructor had her try out for

 The Spillman’s invited our family over for dinner. The plan was to be outside and enjoy a fire, BBQ, and visit. About a half hour after arriving, the rains came down. We couldn’t help but think of all the Dayton Labor Day weekend  rodeo fans, competitors, and serpentine riders. What a miserable night for them as the rains continued most of the night. We enjoyed wonderful food, Steve smoked ribs and grilled chicken, and Michelle made wonderful beans, noodle salad, and potoato salad. The kids had fun being together. We all watched a movie about Temple Grandin. We am so blessed to have friends to get together with.

 I have been trying to get the kids all into a regular schedule with bedtime 8 for Luke, 9 for Jayden and Jake. Morning wake up 6:30 for Luke and 7 for the others. It has been going fairly well, but now for the loops and hoops. Wed. nights we are going to start getting home at 10PM. It will be hardest on Luke, so for the remainder of the school year, I am letting Luke sleep in a little in the morning and driving him to school late around 9. That gives him an extra hour and a half to sleep.

 It was finally here, The Boone, Farm Progress Show. They hold it every other year and the boys look so forward to going. This year Mark was at the Salford tent with one of his own Salford Strip Tills. He is doing very well with his Salford business. He is a good salesmen and what stands him out from the rest, he can testify to using the equipment and getting results. The boys went with Grandpa Orrie bright and early in the morning. Mike and Tony were with them too. They tagged along and got to ride the golf cart. Jayden and I got there later at 10:00. It turned out to be ok weather because it was overcast. We walked around saw some drones, corn oil, and horse buildings. We had a steak sandwhich for lunch free through Agrigold. We got some little free knick knacks, then headed home early afternoon. In the evening, Luke went to his first  AWANA in Ames. It was a brand new church, with new kids and leaders. I stayed with Luke the whole night. He is not shy and jumps right in with the k

We officially started the kids first day of homeschool. Mid morning Grandpa “Po” called and took the kids to show them a Drone flying over the fields taking pictures. The kids were in awe. I am excited for a new year of school, hoping and praying for a good one. Jacob likes to try my patience, sits upside down in his chair and writes his letters so I can’t read them. In the afternoon Jake mowed the entire lawn. When Luke got off the school bus we had horses saddleed and waiting. 4 horses, 4 people, Jake rode Tex, Luke rode Winnie, Jayden on Ace, and myself on Traveler. We rode the grass waterway. It was a nice end to the start of school.

I took Luke to his appointment to have his bump on his collar bone looked at. He has had a tiny bump for about a year and claims it bothers him (or in Luke words, fathers me). The doctor thought it would be a good idea to check it out. Luke had to have a CAT scan. I was afraid he would be scared and would cry having to have an I.V. in his arm. he did so good, held still, didn't cry and was very brave. The whole appointment lasted maybe 10 minutes. Later we got the results and it is something to do with the thymus. The doctor said it should go away as he gets older. Mark took Jayden out to the Western Edge to pick out a new pair of cowboy boots. i had him take her because it is too hard for me to buy a pair when I see the price tags. She got an adorable pair of nice boots to wear with lots of outfits. She is pretty excited about them too. The best part, she is wearing the same size as I am, so now we can share all shoes.  

 Jacob started off the week setting his alarm for 6AM to wake up and go help Dad. He has been getting up early everyday this week. He has helped clean out grain bins, mow, and help at the shop. I think he is secretly hoping he can just work and not start school. Jacob is always ready with his tools. He wears a belt with his pliers in his pouch, pocket knife, cell phone and sometimes tape measure. He  doesn't leave the house without them anymore. He also has turned into a wrangler jeans fan. These jeans seem to fit his slim figure the best and they are made heavier than any jean out there. That way the knees in his jeans last a little longer. However, he seems to go through a pair of jeans or two per month.  

 Over the last week, Jayden has been to Karen’s four different days. She has canned numerous jars of peaches, then it was pickles, and today salsa. She has been working hard with her Grandma. The boys got in on a little of the pickles and peaches, but for the most part it was all Karen. Today the Anderlik’s brought all the tomatoes and were supposed to help with the salsa. The arrived at 7PM just in time for the salsa to be finished. Jayden said she diced 150 tomatoes. Karen never slows down and I know she has to be hurting with her bad shoulders and hands. I know how hard it is on my back to do that kind of stuff. She is a trooper. I think it is wonderful that Jayden can help her Grandma and is learning an almost forgotten tradition, canning. These is just a sample of the variety that she has canned.

Today was Luke's first day of first grade. It is bitter sweet sending him to school. I love having him home and now that I am homeschooling I feel a little guilty sending him off. I have looked at the pros and cons and prayed about it. At this point and time I feel that public school is a good fit for Luke. The elementary teachers are good, he is learning, he has friends, he is very social, and he likes it. He looked pretty cute this morning all ready to get on that big ol bus. He has a neat bus driver that is very kind. Mrs. Axness is his first grade teacher and he is excited to have Jane, Devynn, and Alex L in his class.

 Dad ended up back in hospital. He was having excruitiating pains. They admitted him and ran lots of tests and put him on heavy pain meds. Luke, Jayden and I went to visit. We made a stop at the gift shop and found a sock monkey and attached a balloon to him. The kids tried to bring a little sunshine and cheer grandpa up. He thought he was doing so well. One step forward and three steps back. We are praying they can figure out why he has pain and he can be on to recovering soon.

 I took the kids to church and Burrs while Mark went to a Ranch Rodeo. He had several roping friends ask if he was going to it. He enjoys the competition and the camaraderie. He had fun and roped well. He has been dealing with pain in his back and hip all summer, so we will see how he feels after the day. 

Today was the last of the “Match of the Broncs” series and probably the last we will be part of. Mark and I were the arena helpers along with the help of Spillman’s. It had rained the day before making the ground conditions ideal. Earlier in the week when the girls practiced it was dry and so hard. The serpentine girls performed and are looking better all the time. Sadly there is a lot of drama among the girls and they seem to be divided right down the middle. It takes the fun out of it and puts tension in the air. We just try to stay out of it and be kind to everyone. Jayden competed on Ace in barrels and had the run of her life. He ran perfect. She lined him up and pushed him through. He wrapped each barrel so tight I know she touched each one. She lost her stirrup, but picked it up while kicking to the third barrel. He ran home and she had a 17.80 second run winning the barrels. She ran against the tough girls and won. Cheyenne took second, then Makenna. I was so happy and excited.

The boys went to the fair with Mark. It sounded like they enjoyed their day so much more than when I took them. They said Dad walks slow and mom walks way too fast. They had a slow pace day and got to see everything they wanted to, especially all the farm equipment. It was a rainy day and they had to use their umbrella.

Dad found out he had prostrate cancer early in the summer. He had to weigh out his options of what to do. In the end he chose to have it completely removed. The surgeon would use robotics to perform the surgery. His surgery was expected to be at 10AM. Mom really didn’t want anyone waiting at the hospital, so I showed up around 10:30. Turns out he went in ahead of schedule and was in the recovery room when I arrived. He had been in the recovery room some time and I could tell mom was trying not to worry. After a prayer and short time, the doctor came in with updates. The doctor was very positive about how everything went. Alice arrived too and we waited in Dad’s room. The hospital has a brand new wing and the rooms are large and so nice. I visited with Dad, gave him some goodies and treats. He was able to talk, just pretty groggy. Then I went on home so he could rest. This photo is taken the next day and all seemed to be going well and he was ready to go home. In the evening, the  

This year we did not participate in the" Little Hands on The Farm". Instead we showed some first timers around. My good friend Carolyn had never been to the Iowa State Fair and did not want to conquer it on her own. She asked if we would show her and her kids around. I thought of all the highlights and tried to get to as many places as I could in a short amount of time. My pace was fast and we covered a lot of ground. My parking was not exactly ideal and we ended up walking 6 blocks to and from the car on very tired feet. Some of the highlights were; Little Hands on the Farm, butter cow, largest of all the livestock animals, 4-H exhibits, and horse show, . Jayden got to see her "Stars For Troops" display which earned her a blue ribbon. The weather was nice for the fair, plenty warm, but not terrible hot. 

8/10/14 It was a weekend at Brushy Creek. I planned the weekend thinking of my Dad. He is going to have prostrate surgery this this week and I wanted to do something fun with him before. I know his recovery time won’t be fun and he will be limited on what he can do. He likes to trail ride, so Brushy Creek seemed the perfect place. I thought why not make it a weekend camping trip. Dad was on board for the idea and had the hard part of bringing the camper and setting it up. I loaded the truck to the max and took the kids Friday afternoon and met Dad and Alice. We set up camp in the new Equine campground and found a cozy little corenr with a nice shade tree. Jayden and I thought the hitching posts were the coolest part. The Horses hitching post was in a secluded area in amongst the trees. The weather all weekend was amazing, stayed around 78 and overcast. The sun was never an issue. We relaxed in lawn chairs, the kid rode their bikes, and we fixed supper over the fire. I brought the foi

Jacob convinced Grandpa, that rather than destroy the old shed, he wanted Grandpa to salvage it and renovate it. Jake said he would help. The shed was something Dad and I shingled together and got for my cats and dogs when I was in high school. I had it all set up for cats to live inside with a cat door and dogs with a kennel run and two divided sections with dog doors. I loved my pets and to have a home just for them was the best thing when I was growing up. I had several litters of golden retriever puppies ( and one litter of mixed bred-oops!) born and raised in that shed. And of course numerous kittens over the years. Jacob was eager to help Grandpa fix it up and he learned to hammer. At another day, Luke got to help Grandpa drive in some nails too.