Cantelloping

First- Let me start off by telling you the what a lope or gallop is.
It is a 3 beat gate where basically, to put it simple the horse is running. You can have a fast lope (run) or a slow lope (canter).

Tonight Dakota and I were talking about barrel racing. She asked me if Boston was a barrel racer and I told her yes. Then she said," I am a barrel racer, too." We talked about different horses that she barrel races on and then the topic came to BJ. BJ is a super big and super fast paint horse that we all rode when we were kids. I am sure some of you might remember him from back in the day. Anyways she told me....."Remember that time that BJ was cantelloping with me?" All I could do was laugh....then I called my mom, so she could share in the laughter. All I could think about was running fruit. I am sure, unless you know horses, it won't make sense to you, but I still chuckle when I think about it!

I thought I lost you!!!

Yesterday I had to help out at the saddle shop, so I took Oakley to my parents for a nap and some quality Grandma time. I laid him down for his nap and headed to the shop. When I got finished a couple of hours later I went to get Oak. As soon as I walked in the door, re ran to me screaming "Mommy, Mommy.....I thought I lost you!" He then gave me he biggest hug ever! It is moments like that that make me grateful to be a mother! I love it!

Snips, Snails, and Puppy Dog Tails That's What Little....Girls.....Are Made Of!

Dakota is so girly girl sometimes it scares me, but then she is so rough and tumble like on of the boys, it really makes for a great mix. However you can really imagine my excitement level when I went to get her from Grandma Boomers house the other night and we couldn't leave until she watched her new puppy(along with the rest of the puppies) loose their tails and dew claws. She came home from Grandma Boomers proudly sporting a baggie full of fresh puppy dog tails! They have been living in my freezer and for some strange reason I don't dare let her open the bag. To be honest....I kind of expected this with my boys, but for some reason not with my girls!

Lagoon

We made the annual trip to Lagoon this last weekend and depsite the hot weather, overpriced tickets, and tired kids we had a really good time. Dakota loves Lagoon, while Oak isn't quite sure what to think of it. I think my favorite part of the whole day was cooling off in the lazy river! I was in overheat mode and it really hit the spot for me. We loved it and I am pretty sure we will be bouncing back soon!

I had to laugh at this ride the kids were on because Lagoon must be having a problem with children under 54" in height putting out their smokes before they get on their rides! I just found it funny.....Let me know if you find it funny or odd yourselves!

Bethers Family Reunion

James' family had a little reunion a couple of weeks ago. It was filled with camping, rodeos, smores, lots of yummy food, a crash car derby, some fair days, a candy dig, and James the "donkey whisperer"! Dakota's minature donkey had a baby and that was also one of the "amazing" highlights of the weekend. It really was no bigger than a very large dog!

We had a blast and got to see a lot of James' family that we don't normally see!




















































And now for all of your viewing pleasure........drumroll please.......James the Donkey Whisperer!!! We really thought James was going to get bucked off, since he hopped on a wild donkey. He didn't though, and he even got brave enough to do some fancy tricks!

The Lake

We haven't had too much time to enjoy the lake this year, but we finally were able to break the boat out and we really enjoyed our time there. Oakley is like a little fish and we really have to watch him because he not scared of the water at all! Dakota, on the other hand, gets pretty nervous to try anything other than ride the tube or play on the beach. We did manage to talk her into laying on the knee board and going "very slow". She had fun, but wasn't a big lover of it. All in all, we had a lot of fun at the lake and wore the kids right out!

Mount Rushmore

Here are the pics of Mount Rushmore! We loved it here and would love to go back and stay a week, just so we can check everything out!

Oh sweet, a family picture! Don't mind me, I slept in the truck the night before and hadn't showered, brushed my teeth, did my hair, or put on deoderant! I wanted to die, but we have to make sacrifices sometimes to keep our kids happy!


























We had to take a little break before we started the up hill climb on our nature walk. There was only 250 stairs to come down and go back up. It was really hot and I think James a little worried it was going to send me into labor!!!

























































This restraunt was so disgusting and expensive, but the kids loved the horse, so at least it was entertaining!

What we've been up too.

Aside from a very very busy rodeo week, where Oakley may or may not have been kissed by a queen and still gets excited every time he thinks about it, we have been on the run. We really haven't accomplished anything, but we have managed to follow James around for work, so that we can see each other once in awhile. On our last trip to North Dakota, we decided to take a day and do something fun with the kids. We ended up in South Dakota(very hot and very tired) at Mount Rushmore. If you haven't been there I suggest you go. We had a lot of fun and would like to go back and stay for a week since there is so much to see and do in that area. We are doing well, I hope and pray that this pregnancy is starting to level out. Thank heavens for the Bionic Band! It is my life line right now even though most people think I crazy for thinking so. This kids are all doing well and James is finally able to work around the Vernal area more! Anyways, I will probably just post a bunch a pics and break this all down into a couple of posts. Hopefully you don't get bored looking!


We went fishing at Spring Lake Park. Didn't catch anything, but the kids had fun fishing and playing on the nearby playground. We had a hard time getting them in the truck to head home. They were having way too much fun.






























We also got to go the the county fair while we were in Williston. Depspite the weak number of stock show animals, the fair was pretty good. There were a lot of cool activities, but the kids loved the carnival the most! Especially these big balls that you crawl around in, while they float on top of the water. They also loved the petting zoo, it got Oakley all trained up for the Neola Rodeo bunny chase!

Man boobs????

I think Oakley has a bad case of the man boobs in this pic. I had to post it because he will kill me one day for it and it is my right as a mother! Truth is he really doesn't but in this pic he has more cleavage than I do being half way through my pregnancy!

A boy and his best friend

Oakley has really gotten into playing with dogs lately. Everynight we have been letting Gibbers off her leash and Oakley chases her around the yard until she sits or lays down, so he can climb on her and ride her like a horse. I LOVE IT!

Drumroll Please???

Alright the moment you all have been waiting for is finally here. The verdict is in and we are excited to tell you.....

We are NOT having a girl. This one is ALL BOY!!!!!!















We polled our families and I would say that it was about 50/50 on what we were having. There were a lot of people out there that wifhed we were having a girl. Dakota being one of them, but even her guess was right on the money!

I'm back....for a minute!

I can't believe it has been over a month since my last post! Wow.....where has the time gone? At least I get to share some good news with you! The Bethersbunch is getting a new addition! (which is the reason for my lack of blogging lately) Well when I have more to post I will try to get on it. For now this is just going to have to do!

Add another Notch to the belt!

Can you believe four years ago people were driving through a blizzard just to come eat some of the best dutch oven cooking ever and to celebrate one hoe down of a hitching! Thanks honey for 4 years and for all the years to come! Love you!

Rounding up strays!

Pictures are courtesy of the 6 year old little girl that rules our world!


This weekend we went up to Idaho and spent some time with James' family. While we were there Grandpa Bethers noticed that there was a calf running around without a mama down by the river, so the boys went and checked it out. Sure enough the mama had died and was frozen (standing up) in the creek, so that means that little calf had lived on its own for most of the winter. That is AMAZING!

We figured we had better round it up before it got too weak and ended up like it's mama, so the guys saddled the horses! (Don't they look like a bunch of county workers?)

















Then they inspected their work! Nothing like admiring your hard manual labor!


















Then we headed to the river to find the little guy. The snow was pretty deep in some spots!
















The calf must have been chased my coyotes or mountain lions because it knew to stay in the trees as much as possible. The only way we could get it out was to plow through the thick branches and hope you didn't get knocked off your horse. Cam and Clint stayed up on top and told us where to go so we could flush it out.














While we were rounding up strays Dakota stayed busy taking random pics of everything around her at the truck. This is what happens when you let your six year old run the camera!









































By the time we caught it (which wasn't very long) it was too weak to walk so James and I had to drag it out by it's feet. Once we hit pavement, it was more than ready to be loaded in the trailer.















The boys loaded it up and took it to the barn. The pics ended here because Dakota set the camera down and jumped on the horse to go for a ride....


However.....Buckwheat/Jackson is doing well! He is happy and healthy and has most of his strength back!

While my better half was out.....

James has been working really hard the last couple of weeks, so while he was out I finished our bedroom! YEah!!!! This has needed to happen for a long time. 1. Beacause it was depressing. 2. Because it was the only bedroom we hadn't done a major overhaul on. 3. Because it was killing my allergies!

So here is a look at the Before: Basic nasty, dirty white walls, with nails popping out everywhere. Lets not forget the NASTY popcorn ceiling.















































Here are pics Mid Process. I had to scrape all the popcorn off the ceiling. Texture (Mud) the ceiling and the walls, paint, and put trim up. It was a whole lot of manual labor!







































Finally, the finished product (well almost finished....the new bedding set is on backorder ans we still need new carpet)! James was very surprised when he got home, so it made my sore muscles worth while!