Cute Critters are in 3D

On the way into the soccer fields last night, this darling little child says to me, “Mom, I want some food. Can we please go to the Confession Stand?”

Yes. She wants to go to the Confession Stand.

One green, one blue, and two red snow cones, two blue power-aids, one bottle of water, and one diet coke later, I make it out of the there.

I’m out 12 bucks. But as I try to balance 4 drinks, a fold-up chair, and my purse, I think to myself, “That was the easiest trip I’ve ever made to the Confessional.”

Participating in Wordless Wednesday

and at 5 Minutes for Mom

We started the year with the kids being on time for the bus. For weeks they never missed it. Oooh! I was so proud of those usually sleepy little children!

Then routine began to set in. And slowly but surely they began to miss the bus in the morning. Guess who has to drag her butt out at the crack of dawn to the car to take them when that happens?

Chew got it!

It’s bad enough having to get up at 5:30 for the bus. But c’mon. They can get up when I wake them up. Heck, they can at least get out of bed within 15 minutes of being awakened, or take fewer than 20 minutes to find their shoes! One would hope.

A mother can dream…

For the longest time I couldn’t figure out a deterrent for missing the bus. (Lame, I know. I’m new at solo parenting and my migraine meds cause mental dullness. The kids love it! Not only do they have me outnumbered, but their IQ points are double mine these days.)

But after at least one of them missing the bus the last 5 out of 7 days I’ve finally figured it out. And the kids are so pissed!

From now on – you miss the bus –> ONE HOUR of SCOOPING POOP on the FARM.

From now on they can each miss it every day as far as I’m concerned.

Nuff Said.

This was my first year to be preparing for the first day of school by myself with my four kids so I was a little nervous about how it would go.

The kids love for me to make “farm waffles”, so I woke up extra early to make those for them. “Farm waffles” are waffles from my special waffle maker that make “farm shapes” like a barn, a cow, a pig, and a chicken. (We wish it had an alpaca shape, but oh well.) The barn (above) is the biggest so I think that’s the one they like best. I use Pioneer Brand Baking Mix – the Buttermilk kind with melted butter in the batter and a dash of vanilla. They are delicious!

The kidlets all got ready on time. Notice that it is so early that the light is on behind them in the house. Why we have to get up so early is hard to understand…

The little ones were so excited for school to start that they ran ahead to go meet the bus. They blurred out of my focus. Whooosh! They were happy for school to start!

I was too….

- until I realized that I would lose my friend, Sleep, with this new schedule.

*Sigh*

She and I had gotten so close this summer.

Oh well. Now that the kids are back in school – it’s time to get reacquainted with my friend, Productivity.

What am I getting myself into?

This cute story was shared with me by my friend Valerie Newell from Crown Point Alpacas in New Hampshire.

Spring shows are coming up. Time to start thinking about halter training. If you have kids, letting them come up with ways to make it more fun can make the whole process more enjoyable.

It was a beautiful winter day, and early in the morning with the sun shining…I heard my little girl having quite the talk with Curious George. “George, would you like to come and meet the alpacas and help us train them for the show? You are always up for a challenge and something fun and exciting? So what do you say?”Apparently George agreed because I saw them both bouncing happily as they headed out to meet the alpacas.

They each got their turn with the halter and the leads. “George thought it was so much fun.” It was truly a great day, it was very apparent that  George and Annie felt proud and happy at the end of the day as they walked the newly trained “Snowman” together!

And as a mom, when all is said and done there is nothing like a happy kid, a happy monkey, and a trained alpaca!!

P.S. Thanks so much to Valerie for sharing this cute story with us. If anyone else has interesting/cute/helpful alpaca things they would like to share, feel free to email me with them. I am always looking for great items to publish.

Participating in Wordless Wednesday

Our Great Pyrenees Livestock Guard Dogs are good with kids

I don’t know who was happier to have the kids at the barn this weekend – me or the dogs!

Aza loves a belly scratch!

One guilty secret that I have is that I don’t have my kids help me with the farm every day. They do help, and they know how to do many chores, but during the summer – I let them sleep many weekend mornings rather than roust them out of bed to do farm chores.

When we home schooled there was more time for the kids to be involved with the alpacas. All of my children have helped halter train alpacas, and have showed them in Performance Obstacle Classes. My oldest has even shown in Championship Halter Classes. But now that they go to regular school they barely have time for homework and enrichment activities during the week.

Recently a Twitter friend suggested that I put the kids to work digging ditches and putting up fencing. Now he may not have realized how old my children were (6-12), but when I read that I thought, “Man, my kids have it good.” Too good?

This weekend I had two eager helpers and we had a great time doing alpaca chores. Our livestock guard dogs, Joy and Aza, were happy to have the kids around to play with. My son filled up lots of water buckets while his sister enjoyed playing in front of the fans. (She also filled up the feed buckets.)

The kids never miss a chance to play in Mom’s office at the barn. They love the little finger puppets made from alpaca fiber. Those puppets, paper and pencils can keep them entertained for hours. My barn refrigerator door is filled with sticky-note artwork.

The verdict? "It has gnats," to quote the scientist.

As a parent I struggle with the questions – How much work is too much for a child to remain a child?  How much work is not enough for a child to develop a good work ethic?

I guess every family has to determine how much they should make their kids do with regards to work/chores.  All my kids do chores, but I have to admit…sometimes I like to go to the barn to do the chores myself to get away from the chaos in our busy home with four children and numerous pets. The alpacas and the barn are so peaceful…sometimes that is just what I am craving. A few minutes away. Where it’s quiet.

But this evening when my son said to me, “Mom, I want to help at the barn every time! It’s fun!” -  it was music to my ears! What a joy, sharing the alpacas with my children.

I’d love to hear your thoughts. What do you think about children and chores?

Spears Kids Show Off Their Ribbons!

The Fall Alpaca Show Season is getting underway. I have always loved going to alpaca shows. It gives me a chance to see how our breeding program stacks up against the rest. There are usually seminars where you can bone up on your alpaca knowledge. I love having the chance to visit with old friends and meet new alpaca breeders. Shows are a great networking opportunity and lots of fun.

My children and I are pictured above from last year’s La. Deep South Alpaca Show. Last year I decided to do more Performance classes. These include the Obstacle and Showmanship classes. The kids and I worked to train these alpacas for the Obstacles. Each of the four children worked with an alpaca and trained him to go through some obstacles. The younger three all won blue participation ribbons, and the oldest won a blue ribbon in the obstacle competition. My blue was for showmanship. A fun time was had by all!

Find an alpaca show near you. Read A Beginner’s Guide to Showing Alpacas by Alpaca Farmgirl