The Dudley Bunch: Wild Kingdom

May 20, 2008

Wild Kingdom

It is wild kingdom around here.... between the baby bunnies living under our deck in the backyard, the stray wild kittens we were bottle feeding, and my kids....it is a zoo.

Luckily the kittens were only ours to bottle feed for 3 days, and then we adopted them out...however Mama cat (a wild one that loves to give birth at my house), showed up again 2 days ago with 2 more kittens....same litter. She is very smart and we have been unable to catch or trap her, but this is the second time she has left me kittens in about 4 months. Apparently cats are like rabbits. Which brings me to my other wildlife issue: Every few months we get a new batch of bunnies living in our backyard. Truth be told, I love them. They are so cute and they usually disappear shortly enough. We live in the foothills and not too many baby animals survive the coyotes, badgers, owls, and neighborhood dogs. So we enjoy them while they are here. The kids enjoy seeing how close they can get to the bunnies before they hop away.

So aside from the animals, the kids are keeping me busy. Tatym had her ninth birthday on April 23, and Josh had his 7th on May 18th, so we have been busy with birthdays. I haven't been feeling great, so it was nice that Grandpa and Grandma Dudley were here for Tatym's, and Grandma Francis was here for Josh's. Dairy Queen made the cakes...nothing fancy this year. But the kids had a great time and I am always amazed at how quickly the time goes.

I am definitely happy to be through the first trimester. I have managed to go 4 days now without throwing up...now that is something to celebrate.

10 comments:

jenniho ♥ said...: K - Cool birthday hat! Your kids will always remember their Birthdays and the ridiculous hat you made them wear. Todd's Mom always made a b-day crown out of tin foil. - still does every now and then for his special day! - J; May 20, 2008 at 5:59 PM
The Dudley Bunch said...: I know...isn't it fun. I will hopefully have pictures from 1-18 with that awesome hat...nothing like photo humiliation to bond a family together.; May 21, 2008 at 6:29 AM
The Stones said...: love the update kara. way to go! your kids look so old in those photos. we see you every day and yet they really are growing up way too fast. love you
ash; May 21, 2008 at 9:52 PM
Jaime said...: Kara, Holy cow Josh looks like a spitting image of your Dad in that photo. Okay it is a little wierd but I still think of Tatym as a baby with chubby cheeks. Can't wait to see you. Two weeks and counting. WTG on the throwing up!
Love ya
Jaime; May 22, 2008 at 2:03 PM
The Stones said...: Hey there... did you catch that? I logged on twice before commenting. I'm blog stocking... keep your eye on me. Call me tomorrow and teach me how.
ashlee; May 22, 2008 at 11:21 PM
The Stones said...: oh, and comment on my page. I'm dying! I want someone to leave a comment. I don't even care that you live next door. Start commenting or beware of my polls;)
ash; May 22, 2008 at 11:23 PM
aubri said...: Hey where did get the SWEET hat? I showed the bunny to Mazi, she now wants one too!; May 23, 2008 at 1:09 PM
The Stones said...: hey, do me a favor and check out Shelby's page through tyler and karleen on my page. it's enlarged. how do you think she did that?; May 25, 2008 at 1:22 PM
The Stones said...: thanks for the pix!; May 27, 2008 at 8:14 AM
Sweetarita said...: Kara that hat is sooo great!! I love that idea. I will have to go out and look for some thing like that to humiliate my children!! Totally awesome! Hope you are still feeling well and I have to say I LOVE DQ!!!; May 30, 2008 at 6:44 PM

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Our Story...the short version

Tim and I met in 1994, after his mission while I was in University in Lethbridge. After breaking and entering the Prince of Wales hotel that was under construction in the middle of February, we started spending a lot of time together. ( If you need more info about our meeting/breaking and entering...call me). Tim left that summer to go to Kansas City to take some science classes for Chiropractic school. While he was gone, he managed to get another girlfriend. Needless to say, we went our separate ways...and I was a little bitter. I guess he liked me best though, because for the next two years, he called me anytime he was home on semester break. Eventually he wormed his way back into my heart, and the rest is history. We married in October of 1996, and have been blissfully happy ever since. He is truly one of the best men I have ever known, and a great husband and father. That isn't to say he never drives me nuts...I am only human after all.

Family Vacations

There is nothing better than a family vacation. We have made it a huge priority to take vacations as a family. Not all of them are extravagant. In fact, some of our favorite memories are our trips to Alberta, or to the mountains a couple hours away. But one of our family's favorite destinations is Cancun, Mexico. What's not to love...the beach, ocean, food, and company is always outstanding. We went again last fall and had a blast. The kids were all at ages where we hope they will remember it. We had so much fun playing in the sand, and just hanging out together. The kids all got to swim with dolphins, and I was happy to be the photographer...in fact I may have gone overboard with my 500+ pictures. Here are a few of our favorites. Happy Memories.

Sisters

I have been blessed with 2 sisters. I didn't always think that was such a treat, but as I have gotten older and hopefully wiser, I have come to realize that sisters make the best friends. There isn't anything...(and I mean anything), I won't talk about with my sisters. A couple of years ago, we started having our "girls weekends", and let me tell you...that is fun. Undoubtedly someone is always nursing or pregnant, but it is still a blast. I was even lucky enough last year to be part of Kami and Tonya's births. I have always wanted to be on the other side of labor, if you will, and just be there as a support. Kami gave birth to Kiyomi in February, and Tonya to Walker in July, and I was there! They were both so amazing, and it was so cool to be part of it, and I am grateful I was in a position to go. Anyway...I love my sisters! Blood and all the others I have adopted to my heart over the years.

Family

Not only are Tim and I lucky to have our sweet kids, but we are blessed with great parents, siblings, and nieces and nephews. It is funny to see how big both families are getting. There are soon to be 24 grandkids on Tim's side, and soon to be 13 on mine. It is so much fun to get together with them whenever we can, and our kids have such fun when they are with Grandparents or cousins. It is a real blessing to have so many people who love you, love your kids, and are involved in helping them become the great people you want them to be. I don't think there is any way we can overestimate the value of such support. I am especially grateful that family is always there in the tough times, even more than when it is all fun. Just want you all to know how much we love and appreciate you all, even if we are too dumb to say it very often. There you go...a full serving of cheese. But I really do mean it all!

The Dudley Bunch