They Got Their Chance...

...to rescue us that is. And boy was I glad! Tommy did not believe that the girls had seen a "huge snake". I don't think the boys believed them either. Those of us that saw their pale faces and their little trembling selves did though. We all chose to believe that the snake was just passing through and not living in the bush outside of our garage or we would not have wanted to go outside ever again :)

We were sitting in the garage yesterday evening watching heavy rain fall as a storm passed over and discussing our disappointment of another game cancellation. All of sudden, my husband's clip board full of game plans goes flying along with his lawn chair and he jumped back, I mean jumped in between me and a huge snake that came out from under the bush just outside of the garage. After a second to collect himself, he did grab a hockey stick and thankfully Jacob was not afraid to help and the two of them wrangled him into a bucket. Jacob was very brave, and did not seem afraid at all. He is the one in the video picking up the snake, playing with it, and then putting it into the bucket. He watched a LOT of Crocodile Hunter growing up and loves Survivor Man too.

Now much to my disappointment, we could not kill a "good snake". So, after tiring him out and letting everyone inspect it as much as they cared to, everyone (except me and Rose) took him to some nearby woods and let him go. Hopefully, never to return. Please don't tell me if you think it's possible that a wayward snake can find his way back "home" . You know like the stories you hear of dogs and cats traveling miles and finding their way back. I really wish the poor creature no harm, I just don't want to share my yard with him ;)

And like any good homeschooling family, we did some research about local snakes. We discovered that our snake is a rat snake. The only kind of snake in Virginia that grows over six feet in length. If your curious and want to see lots of neat snake pictures check out The Virginia Herpetological Society. Even the pictures give me the "willies".

Rose walking....

Rose just started taking steps about a week and a half ago. She has been so determined to walk and walk fast! I have felt sad for because she falls hard on her bottom A LOT. It's another benefit for baby that she is cloth diapered 99% of the time:) I love these videos because she has that baby tucked under her arm. So sweet! (Thank you, Elizabeth , for the baby doll:)

They watch and mimic our behavior. Let us always be showing Christ -like behavior for them to follow...We can be so careful to protect them from outside influences and miss completely the greatest influence that they are watching most of the time.

I've been reminding my older kids lately of what I call "the trickle down effect". If they are bickering or picking on each other. It's not good enough to say "Oh, I was just kidding." The damage has been done. The little ones are going to treat each other the way we treat each other.

11When I was a child, I spake as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child: but when I became a man, I put away childish things. 1Cor. 13:11

My Barking Fat Baby With One Tooth!

Yes, you read that right. Rose has a tooth and can bark!! Hey, when your this adorable, any trick is cute. A couple of weeks ago she could say Ma Ma and Da Da. This was soon to be replaced with barking, something Daddy likes to teach all the babies. I always think its going to scare them, but they LOVE it! She loves her Daddy and barks to get his attention...their love language, I guess:)

Rose is Four Months Old

Rose is a very happy baby, as you can see. She smiles a lot and is very talkative. She is friendly with everyone and is not afraid of people she doesn't know. Life is fun with her because she giggles and kicks and squeals! Rose is quite "grabby". She tries to get ahold of anything within her reach especially if you are holding something.

Current Statistics: 15 pounds 11 ounces, 25 inches long, 17 inch noggin' with a little more fuzz than last month, 0 teeth ;)