New family pictures

Thanksgiving day, I made the family dress in like colors before going to Nana's for lunch. Then, Brittany and Kira followed us home and snapped a few quick shots of us along the wooden fence in front of our house. I was glad to get some new family pictures. Thanks Britt and Kira!

Veteran's Day

Papaw Ray had a big time this Veteran's Day. He started his morning off at NBES eating breakfast with Lucas and I and attending the program there. Then, he went to BCHS for their program where he got to see Cody decked out in his ROTC uniform. Also, the weekend before Veteran's Day, there was a Veteran's Parade. Papaw Ray drove his S-10 while Pete rode along. Cody marched with the ROTC and Lucas rode on the float with the cubscouts. I'm glad Papaw Ray had a good Veteran's Day with his family.

The daschunds came home!

A couple of weeks ago, I suggested Pete bring Scooby and Heidi over to the new house. The next day, he called me as I was driving home from work to let me know not to run over the dogs. After a nice clean bath, both Heidi and Scooby were snuggled up on a pillow in front of the fireplace and feeling right at home. I'm so glad we brought them in. I was a little hesitant about bringing them in but they have done really well. They are a joy to wake up to and to come home to. Lucas plays with them constantly. I got the sweetest shot with him and the dogs. I'm glad they are finally home.

Dreams do come true...

Cody and Pete went hunting this past Saturday. It was the first day of gun season and a day that will live in infamy for Cody. He killed his biggest buck yet, a 9 pointer that field dressed at 185 with a 17 inch spread and one drop tine. I wish I had been there. Yet, at the same time, I'm glad he and Pete have that memory of "Dad and son" time they will always treasure. I know the day was just as special for Pete, as it was for Cody.

A family of bicyclers!

Pete and I lucked up and found two used bikes at a pawn shop. I was so excited to have bikes but not have to pay a fortune for them. Pete and I had to do some minor work on them but after several hours, the boys and us took a late night ride to see how all our bikes would do. After a good night's rest and a big breakfast, we all packed up and took off for Mammoth Cave on Friday of our Fall Break. We had a great trip! We rode about four miles round trip and noone got hurt. Lucas did a great job to have only rode a bike for a few minutes. He was fixed up with his helmet and pads. Plus, every little bit, we heard his bike bell. LOL! I was glad Cody enjoyed it too. We had a picnic in the park. However, it only lasted about 5 minutes since the yellow jackets were trying to pack our food off. I'm excited we have found something we all enjoy that is healthy for us and outdoors. I look forward to our next bicycle trip.

EFY is awesome!

Cody went back to Bloomington for EFY this year. The theme was "Courage to Stand Strong". Cody had a blast and says he's headed back next year to Bloomington. His counselor this year was from Bulgaria and a returned missionary. Cody said he couldn't have made it through the week without him. Thank you Ivan! Cody loved the dances and said his favorite day was Thursday because of it being so spiritual. Cody got the chance to talk Sunday and tell everyone about his experience at EFY. He did a wonderful job speaking. I was proud. He had courage to stand strong! The pics are of his room mate, Rob and the boys and girls in his group.

Lucas goes to camp!

Lucas just recently joined cubscouts. He has only got to do one activity with his troop. This past week was a day cubscout camp. His troop didn't actually participate but informed us about it. So, I decided to let Lucas try it out. I took him down Monday and spent the day with him, since we didn't know anyone at first. After that, Lucas was ready to go the rest of the week on his own. He absolutely loved it! He had several buddies before the week was through. It was extremely hot and he fell asleep on the drive home several days, but he was still sad to see the week end. He earned 2nd place in B.B. Gun in his den and accomplished several things that will help him move along in cubscouts. I am so proud of him and glad he had such a good experience with scouting. I hope to see him earn Eagle someday!

Vacation 2010

We decided the best vacation for us this year was to stay at home and do things we normally can't fit in. So, we vacationed for three days. No work and all play! We went to the Louisville Zoo, the Patton Museum, the drive-in, antique shops and swam in our new pool. It was nice not having to pack and unpack and travel very far. It was all we needed this summer since we invested in a pool. Cody loved the museuem since he's totally into war history. Lucas had a ball at the zoo. He had been asking for monthes to go to the zoo. He even got in free because he read six books. He said his favorite part was when Daddy tricked Mommy into getting sprayed by the dinosaur. :) He said his second favorite part was when Daddy got pooped on by a bird. :) Thank goodness it was his hat though. My favorite part was watching Cody be such a good, big brother and them getting along so well. Enjoy our family vacation pics!

Minton Homecoming

This past Sunday, our church held a homecoming and special tribute for my grandpa. He turns 99 this Sunday. He's lived almost a century! Not only that, he was still driving himself to church a couple of months ago. A few weeks ago, he fell at the station. It's really gotten him down. Thank goodness he didn't break anything though and was able to attend church Sunday and even speak, and boy did he speak. We heard lots of stories. Then, Uncle Evan said a few words. Lastly, my brother, David spoke. His talk was wonderful and touched everyone. Speaking of everyone, we had almost 150 people there Sunday. It's been a long time since we had that many at church. I was so happy to be there with so many family and friends. It was awesome to have Pete's grandma and mom there too. I had the best weekend with my brothers' families too. David and his family came down on Saturday and spent the night. The kids played wonderfully and I enjoyed visiting with David and Ammie. Ammie and I stayed up until 1:30 going through pictures and talking. After church and potluck, we all went to the cemetary and took some flowers for Dad's grave. Then, we all went back to our house. They stayed until almost seven. Lucas had a blast with all his cousins. He didn't want them to leave, me either. The only thing that could have made the weekend any better was to have Christi, Lance, Rachel, and Eli with us. Christi had to stay home with some of the kids who were sick. That was a bummer, but I completely understood. This weekend was definitely one of the happiest moments of my life. Grandpa is definitely going to leave a legacy behind because I think the Mintons are awesome!

Going Huntin' with Dad

About two weeks ago, Lucas got to go huntin' with his Dad for the first time. He was so excited. Cody was supposed to be going but wouldn't wake up from a nap. So, when Dad asked Lucas, it was all it took. Lucas got busy putting his camo on. Then, of course, he had to ask if he could shoot too, instead of just watching. Dad told him he'd have to get a bit bigger before he could shoot a turkey. They didn't get a chance to shoot anything or see anything. However, Lucas came packin' back a cow skull, which he referred to as a "T-rex head." LOL!

Our other child

About once a week, we call up my cousin Leslie (more like the sister I never had) and say "When's Carter coming over?" Our whole family has completely fallen in love with the most beautiful red-headed boy that ever lived (no offense to his Uncle Daniel). Carter usually spends the night on Saturday and we take him with us to church. Cody loves to get him dressed on Sunday mornings. The boys actually fight over who is going sit by him in the van. They absolutely adore him, almost as much as Pete and I do (Cody's sitting here and didn't agree with the last part.) Carter loves the outdoors, so he fits in perfect at our house. The boys each have a riding toy that they race up and down the sidewalk on. Carter's usually giggling the whole time. Needless to say, the younger boys always need a bath come nighttime. Pete and I are "Uncle Pete and Aunt Kissy" (When Leslie was little and I babysat her, she couldn't say my name and it came out kissy. I always thought it was the sweetest, so I had to carry it over with her little one. It does sound kinda cheesy, but it has meaning.) I could go on and on about Carter but I'll spare everyone since I'm hugely biased. But if you start seeing lots more family pics of us with a red-headed baby in them, you'll know we didn't adopt and not tell anyone.

Cody's 15!

Cody turned 15 last week. I can't believe he'll be driving in a year! His best friend, Jordan, came home with him after school and we all went to B.G. Pete met us at Pizza Hut, Cody's favorite place to eat. Then, we all went to see "How to Train Your Dragon." It was a really good movie too. Cody's main gift was an ipod, which he got a week early. He has been downloading apps ever since. I'll be glad when it gets old, hopefully it will. He also got a Nashville Predators shirt, John Bytheway CDs, and a guitar book. Happy Birthday Cody!

Easter

The week before Easter, Lucas had his best buddy, Trenton, over to spend the night. We picked up Carter on the way to go Easter egg hunting. Cody helped Carter hunt eggs while Lucas and Trenton were busy filling up and dumping everytime they got their basket full. They loaded up on eggs and candy. The Easter bunny was there too. I had no luck getting the boys to get their picture made with him. Oh well, glad I brought my camera along to take a snap. I took a video of them hunting too. I had fun taking the four boys.

Easter Sunday, Mom and Carter had spent the night with us. The Easter Bunny left him and the boys all something on the front porch. Carter got a camera to take pics like his mommy. Cody got a ipod case and guitar string and Lucas got a bunch of "How to Train Your Dragon" characters, a shirt, a book, and school set. Then, we all went to General Conference at church. We went by Mamaw and Papaw Moore's after church. I hid eggs for Lucas to hunt there. Then, he had to hide them for me. I always love Easter, especially when the spring weather is here.