The Muench Bunch

In  December when I visited Alice, she started showing me certain things around her house that she wanted to make sure I saw and knew they were special. She showed me a chest with several quits. Some she knew were Kingsbury and some she wasn't sure how old or who made them. I have very little information and  I wish I knew more. The blue one is the only one that I know was a Kingsbury quit, probably Alice's grandmother made. I love these quilts and knowing there is a history tied to the Alice in them. I took each one to the dry cleaners and had them cleaned and one needed a little repair. I chose the blue and white one to stay on my bed for awhile. When I was a little girl playing at my Grandma Edna Wahlert and Grandpa Marvin Wahlert's home, I had a doll I liked to play with. I knew she was my Aunt Alice's doll from when she was a little girl and that made her extra special. I used to get to take her out and dress her up. I was very careful with her. She had arms and

Special dogs leave forever paws on your heart. Jake will never forget his little guy, Rosco. They had a bond and only got to to spend a year together. A boy and his dog are a special thing.

We were getting ready for church when I heard shouts about Rosco. I caught bits and peices about Mercedes, Rosco, and car. It didn’t take long to figure it out. I was still in my pajamas, threw on a pair of boots and a coat and ran out the door. Jayden was shouting and running towards me telling me Rosco was hurt, hit by Mercedes car and may be dying. I feared the worst and was scared of what I would find. I told Jayden to grab a   blanket. I found our neighbor standing on the road and Rosco in the ditch. He was sitting halfway up looking at me in the cold wet grass. With a blanket, I scooped him up and covered him. It was rather cold outside. I carried him into the garage and set him on some old pillows. He seemed alert and acted like himself just something was hurting and to me it seemed to be a leg. Rosco does not care for flies and is constantly trying to catch them in his mouth. His head was up and he was snatching at the fly around his head.   This seemed like a very good sign.

A week after my Aunt Alice's funeral I met with Dad to sign lawyer papers as the co-executor. Wade met us for lunch and had brand new rims and giant tires in the back of his truck that he just purchased. He was proud to show me what he would be putting on Alice's truck which Dad will start driving. He also went and added chrome. He  was given Alice's SUV and horse trailer. Alice probably thought it would be nice for Wade to have a trailer with an air conditioned living quarter for the county fair. I knew Wade would not need two horse trailers and other than the county fair it would probably not get much use, so I asked if Jayden could use it while in Oklahoma. We don't want her taking the big Bloomer and our black trailer doesn't have any air conditioning or living quarters. It would be a nice small size and just right  and hoped we could temporarily borrow it.She would not use it for the summer months when he would need it. I had a feeling Wade would sell it the

I thought her plan was a bit crazy, but when she is determined, there is no stoppping Jayden. She drove her two horses Astro and Joker down to Missouri a 3+ hour drive each way into the middle of nowhere for a barrel race. I questioned why she needed to go, what was the urgency and why she couldn't just wait for one closer to home? There are barrel races everywhere, just wait a week and find one close to home. She decided she was going and needed to run her horses. It was a lot of work, lots of driving, and lots of her own money spent. Both runs went poorly. I often wonder if she will ever decide it is too much. Not yet anyway, she is young and chasing her dreams.

Last year we tried to have the boys from Jake's youth group out, unfortunately it didnt work out. It was very disappointing and Jake was a little hesitant to try again. After talking with his youth group leaders, I talked Jake into trying again. We live so far out of town and you just dont know what kind of turn out to expect. The leaders helped coordinate rides and make it possible. They thought it would be a great year end get together. Almost the entire group came out to spend the evening at our place. I grilled hot dogs and hamburgers and had lots of chips and pop. Later in the evening they made smores. We had saved up our brush fire for a giant bon fire, had a fire pit in the backyard, and just let the boys be boys. The youth group leaders had a game of capture the flag using the front yard and backyard. We also let the boys double up and take rides on the 4 wheeler and saddled up a horse and gave pony rides. I led the boys on horses, some had never been on a horse. It was a l

I dont take the time to blog much. It's been a busy time as is every season of the year. Here is some of what has been happening lately. Last Wednesday I helped Jayden move out of her dorm.  She has been so helpful. She has helped take Luke to his horse project meetings. She picks up around the house, helps with meals, makes grocery store runs, and does errands. It is so nice having her home. She also bring so much silliness and laughter. It is nice after the daily grind and refereeing the boys. The weather has been the worst this entire year. We get one sunny warm day that might hit upper 60 to 70's and then we get frequent cool 50 degree rainy windy days. Mark is beyond happy that he got all his crops planted and can sit back and watch it grow. I am so glad and thankful too. He pushed hard,  he went long hours and didn't stop until they were done. I do however feel bad for those still waiting on sunshine and dry ground to get back in the field, which is the majority. E

When we met Dan and Angelia last Saturday for super we were saying praises and celebrating Angelia having her pre-cancerous tumors removed and all was looking good. The initial results were good and she was relieved and ready to move on with life. She told me she never wants to have another surgery in her life. She had never been so miserable in her life and got along terribly. Her medication gave her problems, she was in a lot of pain, and she had an allergic reaction to the adhesive used. She had to wear a compression bandage that had suction to it constantly. She also declined radiation treatment because her chances of reoccurring cancer were less than 10% and she felt there was so much more harm to her body if she took radiation. Initially, during the biopsy, the doctor put markers in to identify areas that have the cancer cells and the area to be removed. These markers are to be removed during the surgery. Angelia's were not. It didnt make any sense. She had a double mastectom

Jake worked many hours in the feild rolling. The roller was rented from a neighbor and was our first year using it. Jake was pretty nervous at first, worrying that he would mess up or somehow damage something that isnt even ours. It's a big weight to carry all that at a young age. He covered a lot of ground and enjoyed it for the most part. Jake went for a job interview at Hidden Acres. He was eager to start a job and make some money. His interview went well. The ladies were impressed with his clean neat appearance and his nice personality. They gave him lots of nice compliments and were excited to hire him. Jake had originally handed in an application the first of January and was finally getting an interview. Now that they hired Jake, he is also needed in the field. I tried to keep him balanced between working for HA and Mark. I would take Jake for his work days, usually 2/3 times per week for 6 to 8 hours. He did a variety of jobs, kitchen help making cookies, sandwiches, and se

Redneck Roses are a flower from your yard, the ditch, or a tree, something picked and not bought. Mark likes to bring me these all the time. I think its super cute and sweet. He usually picks something from our yard before he comes in for the night, an apple blossom, lilac, snow ball tree blossom, pink orchids. The boys have observed their dad over the years and once in awhile will bring me a flower too. The other night I was picking up the boys from a 4H meeting. Luke was walking with his friend when he stopped to pick a lilac blossom off a bush to bring to me. I am sure his friend was wondering why he was picking flowers, but Luke didn't even hesitate. I love that!

Ali's bridal shower was hosted by Blake'smom and aunts and held in the Webster City Jane Young house.   The Jane Young House was built in 1873 for Kendall and Jane Young. Young had an adventurous life as a soldier, seaman, fisherman, and merchant who made a fortune in the gold fields of California during the Gold Rush. He came to Webster City in 1859 to run “The Old Reliable Store”, establish and serve as president of the First National Bank and acquire farmland. He married Jane Underdown in 1858. He left his estate to the city to build a proper library. It was in the kitchen of this home in 1888 that young Teressa Treat asked Young, her neighbor, to donate to a fund to build a library.  He turned her down, saying the group would never raise enough money to build a suitable library. The city was therefore quite surprised in 1896 when Young left his estate to the city for the express purpose of building a library.  The house is very Victorian with large rooms and lots of vint

Soccer season seemed to come and go in such a hurry. One week practice started, team pictures taken, then games. 5 weeks of Saturday games and its over. This year Luke was on a team with kids a year older than him U12 and had Nancy for his coach. He had on very tiny girl on his team and 3 very large girls. The large girls were big and tall and I would never guess them to be 12 and younger!  Practices were held sometimes in Gowrie and sometimes in Burnside. I walked the track in Burnside and took walks around town in Gowrie on nice nights. Most of the games were during good weather and I enjoyed watching. Luke does a lot of running the field and occasionally kicks the ball. It seems impossible to make a goal for the kids with a goalie catching all their kicks. I think they won their first game. Luke seems to enjoy the sport and missed not being in it last year. He likes the game, the kids, and being part of a team. **** Team photo

I met Carmen through Cornerstone and was in her bible study group for several years. She is sweet, kind young, and is a Godly woman. I have admired her knowledge and understanding of the bible. She is well spoken and strong in her faith. She was a young mother of three young children 4 1/2 years ago when her and her husband decided to pursue adoption. I love the many adoption stories that have taken place among many Cornerstone families, adopting after having biological children of their own, and adopting from a third world country, most commonly Africa. I followed Carmen through her adoption process, she added me to her email list so I got updates. In the beginning they were matched with a brother and sister, they had gone to meet and spend time with them. It seemed as though all was going according to plan. Then, some extended family were identified and the whole process started over. Over the past 4 years, I have followed Carmen's roller coaster of a story as they have tried to

Jayden is beautiful and I have no doubt could be a model. In a way, she is. . Giving Luke the camera, she has done photo shoots with her Rocking J Co merchandise. I think these pictures are fabulous! Jayden is full of ideas and creativity. She knows what it takes to promote and advertise her business. She is going places. Proverbs 31:25  She is Clothed in Strength and Dignity and She Laughs Without Fear of The Future.