Ride Like the Wind

Living on a ranch sure has it's bonuses. Josh and I like it because we live on a quiet street, we are surrounded by land and beauty, and our neighbors live at least 1/4 mile away from. Our boys really like it because we have a ditch that is used for a lot of fun activities, hills for sledding and slip & slides, old historical spots for playing fort in, and lots of area to roam freely on ATV's.

 

As parents of 4 boys, we are so privileged to live on a ranch. It provides many opportunities to teach our sons how to work, and it gives them just as many opportunities to play. There are year-round ways to work and have fun--but our favorites are in the summer, when we take advantage of the cool ditch on hot days, and the chance to go on 4-wheeler rides on cool evenings.

 

On one such evening at the end of May, we went on a family ride to our cousin Janoa's house, which is 4 or 5 miles away from our home. All the boys put on their new helmets they got at Easter, and got their ATV ready. We have accumulated so many motorcycles and 4-wheelers over the past few years, that everyone has something to ride PLUS there's a few extra!  

 

Josh rode a 4-wheeler and I rode a motorcycle with the boys along the drive. Even Shorty came on the ride with us (he's standing in the photo next to Ammon), running all the way to Janoa's house. We were completely surprised that he would (and could) go that far with us. Since I was at the tail-end of our line of riders, I watched Shorty's back legs try to keep up with the speed of my boys riding. It was hilarious to see! I laughed so much on that ride! We stopped at Janoa's house for a while, visiting with her, and Shorty drank lots of water and cooled down, before we headed back home. It was a nice family ride together!

 

Ammon has a new love of motorcycles, beginning last summer. He always preferred 4-wheelers until then, but he purchased a small motorcycle last summer from a golfing friend. He enjoyed riding with his dad, and his friends, and he grew to love motorcycling more than 4-wheeling. This summer, Grandpa gave him a little bit bigger motorbike as trade for Ammon changing pipe for him all summer. He likes the extra power and height that this motorbike has!

 

Jonah's 4-wheeler is one that Josh purchased from one of Jonah's friends. The younger boys were always taking turns on the 2 smaller 4-wheelers we had, so Josh knew that we'd need to get another one so that they could all have their own. Sometimes this 4-wheeler does strange things, and it seems to be not working more than it is running. Jonah started out riding his 4-wheeler on our ride, but then it died, and he ended up riding the rest of the trip with Josh on a 4-wheeler. It was already starting to act up before we even left, which is why he has a grumpy face in this picture:

Micah's 4-wheeler is a loaner one from Grandpa T. One of the two 4-wheelers that the boys rode on last year was really small, and Grandpa thought it would be better to have a little bit bigger 4-wheeler for the boys to ride, as well as any other grandkids who came to visit. Micah loves this 4-wheeler, and rides it quite often. He enjoys going fast down our driveway and rides it fast down the lane. It makes him happy, and he has no fear when it comes to speed. Good thing he wears his helmet!

 

Kanyon has really enjoyed riding 4-wheelers this year. He rides one that we've had since Ammon was younger. Beginning this spring, he was riding his 4-wheeler almost every day. He liked riding it down the road and around the gravel pit and up the driveway and in Grandpa's field. He loved roaming and feeling like a free spirit while driving it. Like Micah, riding the 4-wheeler made him SO happy! He's had to be grounded from it a few times, though. He's gotten in little wrecks 3 times on the road--driving into the ditch or into a fence. He also has gone places on it that he didn't tell us, and we didn't know where he was. One time when I told him that he ALWAYS needs to tell us where he's going first, his response was "Well, Shorty knew where I was!".

 

Josh has passed on his love of riding ATV's to the boys; he's enjoyed riding motorcycles and 4-wheelers since he was little. Even the motorcycle accident when he was a teenager, which caused him to have paralyzed vocal cords, didn't stop him from riding or hinder his love of riding. I'm so glad that we have the 4-wheelers for our boys to learn to ride and the space for them to ride them often!

Sad Day

About 24 hours ago, one of our family members died. It was our dog, Shorty.

(in October 2012 after we'd just gotten him)

 

 (in May 2013, one of his last photographs)

We'd had him for 8 months, and we'd all grown to love him. Even me: the dog-hater (due to traumatic events that happened to me with dogs in my childhood). It was our first experience with ever owning a dog, and it all ended so tragically. In fact, it all happened so fast, it's still unbelievable that he is gone.

It was Edward's birthday (my father-in-law). They live just across the ditch from us, and we were going to have an outdoor family BBQ for him. Shorty was still learning his boundaries, and he hadn't yet mastered being at outdoor family meals without jumping up to eat and snatching food, so Josh put Shorty in the kennel he'd just purchased and finished putting together the night before. It was a 10x12 chain-link, metal kennel that Josh put in a shaded area by where we park our trailers, so it would be far away from the backyard where we eat and where the kids play. Shorty doesn't like being tied up--he'd already broken 2 of our reinforced leashes, so we wanted him to be in an area that was far away from us when we were entertaining outdoors. Shorty always howls and moans and whines non-stop when he's tied up, and it's hard for us to hear, which is another reason why we put the kennel in a spot that was further away, so we didn't have to hear him as loud.

In the middle of dinner, Shorty showed up. He'd bitten through the metal fence until he created a hole big enough for him to get out. We were shocked. Jonah took him back up to our house, and tied him up by the swingset, where we listened to him howl the rest of the meal. Kanyon took a plate full of steak bones to him, to help him feel better, but he didn't care about the meat or bones, he just wanted to be near us.

(these photos were taken after dinner--about 10 minutes before the incident)

After dinner was over, Edward opened his gifts, and then we had dessert. When we were all done eating, the boys went up and let Shorty loose again. He immediately ran down to where we were. Uncle Tim gave Shorty his leftover steak bone, and Shorty ran under the table where the dishes were and started chewing it. (You can see the table in the photo above--between where we were sitting & Grandma's van). I called the boys over and the 3 older boys started carrying the dishes and food pans on that table back inside Grandma's house. Instead of helping, Kanyon decided to lay on the ground by that table and he watched Shorty eat his bone. He was giggling and laughing at Shorty because he was chewing on it with such ferociousness. Shorty had started becoming territorial with his food, and he must've felt like Kanyon was a threat, so he sneered at Kanyon once. Shorty has sneered at us like that before when we has had certain foods, so we know to not grab at or take away the food from him when he's like that. After the dog sneered at him, Kanyon turned his head to look at the boys going into Grandma's house, and Shorty lunged forward right then and took two bites in Kanyon's face.

Kanyon fell backward and started screaming. Josh and I were still at the dinner table, and thought he'd just been scared. Uncle Tim was standing by him, and calmly said "Um, it's pretty bad". Josh ran to Kanyon, where blood was covering the lower half of his face. Josh could see distinct bite marks, and blood was running out of all of them. He picked up Kanyon and rushed him up to our house. The dog ran under our table and was sitting by my feet. I slapped his butt 4 times, and told him to get out, but he wouldn't. So then I grabbed the dog by the collar, lifted him out from under the table and into the air, kicked his butt, and screamed at him to go away. He ran off, and I went up to the house to help take care of Kanyon.

Kanyon was laying down on the couch and had blood all over his cheek, nose, and mouth. It was difficult for me to see where the blood was coming from exactly. Josh took a cold wash cloth, and began cleaning up all the blood. He grabbed a few ice packs, told me to apply them to Kanyon's mouth and cheek, and then he said he was going to kill Shorty. Kanyon was uncontrollably howling and sobbing and was in a lot of pain. I gave him some ibuprofen, and began applying the cold packs where his face was already swelling.

Josh went out the front door, just as the 3 older boys entered through our back door. I told them all to stay inside because Dad was going to kill Shorty. Jonah went straight to his room. Ammon screamed at me before going to his room. Micah stood by the glass door, looking outside, and he said "Dad has a pistol" before he went to his room.

As I was washing the blood from Kanyon's face, I discovered every entry wound he had: the longest gash was on the left cheek near his ear, the deepest gash was right under the right nostril of his nose, the most painful gash was under the right side of his bottom lip--it had gone clear through into his mouth, and the last gash was actually INSIDE his mouth on the left side of his bottom lip.

I didn't understand how there were marks on his face in different spots like that. I later learned from Kanyon and Josh, who'd seen it happen from where we were sitting, that Shorty bit Kanyon first near the ear because that's the angle that was closest to the dog when Kanyon's head was facing away as he looked at his brothers. Then in an instant, Kanyon turned back towards Shorty, and Shorty bit him again in the nose and mouth. There are teeth-grazing marks all along his left cheek that were between Shorty's two bites.

I took these photos after Kanyon had calmed down--you can see the first (and longest) bite mark near his ear, and the teeth-grazing marks along his cheek here:

 

The 2nd bite, and deepest one is mostly visible here. The wound that bled for 6 hours is right under Kanyon's nostril. Beneath his lip is the tooth mark that went all the way through his lip.

 

The exit wound for that under-lip bite mark is inside the mouth on the left side towards the middle of his lip (it's hard to see here--but there's a bump that is visible in this photo). The last bite mark is on the right side of his inner lip (the white part that's visible here). His mouth was open when Shorty bit him the 2nd time.

Josh returned back to our house minutes later, and reported that the job was done, and that Shorty would never hurt Kanyon again. Josh had found Shorty back under the dishes table, still chewing on the bone. He carried him away from our house behind Grandpa's shop, where the boys wouldn't hear the gun shots or see him being killed. It was difficult and emotional for him, to carry the dog through its final moments of life.

After he completed the task, and came inside, he asked all the boys to come out of their rooms, and he gently talked to them about what had happened. He explained that he knew what they were feeling, because he'd experienced what they were going through when he was a boy and a dog he loved was shot by his dad, too. He told the boys that this was necessary--that we couldn't keep a dog who bit the children who loved it and took care of it. He told them that he would always choose his children over a dog, and that we couldn't keep it as part of our family anymore after it so purposefully attacked Kanyon. He spoke to them about what would happen if the dog had bitten a friend's child, and having to pay for emotional and physical damages, or that if this had happened in city limits, the dog would have to be taken away and killed. He talked about their feelings and that he was sorry that it had to happen and that it wasn't Kanyon's fault. It was a very sensitive family meeting.

Shorty was a good dog, and we'd all loved him. We already miss him. We miss hearing the sound of his collar ringing as he walked around the yard. We miss seeing him run up to us when we came home. We miss watching him chase the butterflies and bees in the yard. We miss having him follow us around on our 4-wheelers and motorcycles. We miss his companionship, and the way he guarded our yard and chased off the deer, skunks, and raccoons. We miss not having him roll over to be petted constantly. It's very sad to know that Shorty, who's been a part of this family for 8 months, is now gone.

But, we also know that we couldn't have kept him any longer. We wouldn't be able to trust him, and we would always be afraid of having him around our children and others. We don't want our children growing up to be afraid of dogs, like I was. We are so grateful that Kanyon's wounds aren't worse. We are so blessed that his beautiful, precious face is not disfigured. We weren't willing to take the risk of having that happen by keeping the dog. But because we all loved Shorty so much, it made it that much harder to put him down for good.

Today, we woke up without a dog. Today, Kanyon can't eat because his bottom lip is so swollen, and it still hurts him. Today, I have been crying and grieving. Today, the boys are processing their feelings and speaking about their emotions. Today, Josh is trying to heal, and he is already thinking and talking about getting another dog.

End of School

One of my 5th grade student's gave me this bouquet of flowers the last week of school as a thank you for being a teacher. I was so honored. It was the first time I've ever received flowers from a student, and I was so touched by their generous gift and that they even thought of me. 

Ammon has had an awesome 7th grade year. He received 4.0 GPA for the whole year, and we are so proud of him for it! He loved English, History, and Math, but struggled with Art/Health and Science. P.E. and Band were easy classes, and he enjoyed the academic break they gave him each day. He still participated in G&T (Gifted & Talented), and his teachers spoke highly of him at Parent Teacher Conferences. He competed in 3 school sports this year: Cross Country, Basketball, and Track, and had practices most of the year after school. He played with the Pep Band at sports games, and attended Clinic & Festival with the concert band, too. He has a great group of friends, for which we are so grateful! We are so glad that he had a great year!

 

Cross-Country

 

 7th Grade Basketball Team

Track

Jonah and Micah had a good year in 3rd grade with Mr. Lund as their teacher. It took a couple months for them to get settled in. They got A's in all their subjects, made new friends, and finally stopped getting into trouble! Jonah accidentally broke one of the school's windows playing kickball last fall, and Micah had a few behavior problems that Mr. Lund brought to my attention--including a report where Micah wrote 30 times on a paper "I will follow {stupid} directions the first time I'm asked". And then he got in even more trouble for interjecting the word "stupid" every time he wrote the sentence. I was grateful they had Mr. Lund, because he's very patient and is very organized and is a great teacher. As a class, they got to do some fun activities--like create homemade instruments, and make gifts and deliver them to the senior care center, and earn extra recess each week. Also, I was able to volunteer in their classroom once a week as a guest reader, and I read three of Roald Dahl's books to their class this year. I really enjoyed having the opportunity to read to them each week!

 

Their last project of the year was Idaho animal reports--Jonah had the coyote.

 

By default, Micah's report was on the Painted Turtle--it wasn't his 1st or 2nd choice, but it was a very interesting animal to learn about!

 

This is the class with their homemade instrument projects--Jonah made a guitar out of a shoe box & rubber bands and Micah made a xylophone out of paper towel rolls & spoons.

Kanyon survived his Kindergarten year! He struggled at the beginning of the year with everything new--he does so well with routines and schedules, and has a hard time with chaos and new places and new people. There was a couple of times that he had full meltdowns, and was sent to the time-out room in the office and was kicking and screaming and crying and banging his head and throwing things and ripping up papers. It was difficult for me to see him like this at school. It took us a while to understand what was throwing him so out of whack that he would become so upset. I know I mentioned it in a previous post, but doing drawings during art time in addition to high noise levels in the classroom both really bothered him. I spoke with other special ed. teachers, to refer him to get extra help, but he didn't really qualify because he's so bright and intelligent, so we needed to help him learn to deal with his behavior problems in the classroom instead.

It wasn't until about mid-November that he started improving and doing better. He would still have times where he refused to do drawings, or times when he tried to do his letters so perfectly and would make a mistake and the eraser didn't take it all away and he'd get frustrated, or when the classroom noise was too much, that he would have mini-meltdowns and struggled to maintain his composure, but it was SOO much better than it was at the beginning of the year. I'm so glad that he improved over the course of the year--at one point last fall I considered withdrawing him from school and quitting my job and homeschooling him. I didn't know what else to do to help him! It really helped that Josh was able to pick him up during the winter months and bring him home, because Kanyon had very calm afternoons and he started getting in a daily routine, and school became much more manageable for him then. He also started making friends, which isn't easy for him to do, and a little boy in his class named Keagan was such a good friend for him--he was kind, and patient, and easy to get along with.

Kanyon is very smart, and Mrs. Foote said he always did the calendar time the best--he remembered the days, the month, and the season better than any other student. The lady that comes and does the letter & sounds testing also told me that Kanyon had the highest score of any other Kindergartener this year. He also LOVES math, and really excelled at it. He really enjoyed library time, because he got to check out new books, and he like coming to Music class, because he has a talent for playing music and singing. I think that knowing his strengths helped us to encourage him, and to keep his focus on the positive side of Kindergarten, which also helped him to succeed this year!

 

Kanyon & his buddy Keagan

 

The last week of school, Mrs. Foote's afternoon & morning class came at the same time--there was a lot of little students in one room!

 

 

Next year it will be Ammon's last year in the middle school, Jonah and Micah's last year in the elementary school, and Kanyon's first year in all-day school! My boys are growing up so fast...it's hard to fathom!

Kindergarten Graduation

Kanyon graduated Kindergarten! Since I began teaching music, he's my first child to participate in a Kindergarten Graduation program (I began half-way through Jonah & Micah's 1st grade year). So this was extra special for me, and I felt really involved in the whole process this time, knowing that it was the first AND last time that my child would be in it.

I like to make personalized decorations for the stage for every production. In preparation for the Kindergarten Graduation musical program this year, I created a banner. The "graduation" part I made for the program last year, and the "Kindergarten" part I made new this year. Unfortunately the extra blue paint in the teacher's cupboard this year didn't quite match the blue paint from last year! Other than the blues not matching, I thought the banner looked pretty good! 

One weekend I went in and did the whole stage set-up: moved the risers, added the partial walls, hung up the banners and large crayons, and figured out how I was going to place the kindergarteners on the stage. I did it differently this time--utilizing the front steps in addition to the risers for them to stand on, to give them more space on stage because there's a lot of kids in this age group that require extra space around them. I like to have the students be the focal point in the shows, so during this progam, I sat by the keyboard to the right and in front of the stage.

There were 60 Kindergarteners this year, and Kindergarten Graduation is always the most-attended show that I put on. I had 190 chairs set up in my music building. I went in to work the  night before the program, and spent an hour getting stacked chairs out of the small closet, and then setting them up. Just getting them out of the crammed space took a lot of time, and in an hour, I was only able to take out half the chairs needed! Here's a photo of the closet after I took out one stack (of the 4 stacks on TOP of two rows!).

I took a break from it, went home, and then came back an hour later and enlisted the janitors' help to finish setting up the chairs! It always goes by so much faster with multiple people working together!

We had one practice with all 3 classes together--because the afternoon class came in the morning with the 2 morning classes the day before the graduation. They practiced wearing their caps and we ran through the entire program for the first time just like we'd be performing it the next day. It took about 35 minutes, which was pretty good (long enough to make it worth coming, but short enough that they kids can stand long enough before having to use the bathroom!). The program centered around the theme "what I learned in Kindergarten". The kids sang 9 songs, there was one poem with students playing instruments, and I spoke in between each song about things the students learned during the year.  I snapped a few photos during the rehearsal. Ms. Jane joined us for one song--she is a fabulous volunteer who goes into classrooms each week and sings songs with the students while accompanying them on her guitar. 

These were the 4 students who played shaped-instruments while I recited the poem "Shapes" by Shel Silverstein. The students had an audition day, and these were the best listeners & rhythm players: Keegan, Matthew, Kanyon, and Charley. Kanyon got to play the "rectangle" (wooden block), but he told me that he wished that he got to play the "square" (cow bell) instead.

The Kindergarten Graduation was on the morning of Wednesday, May 22. There has never been a higher attendance for any one of my musical programs before--there were about 250 people that came that day! It was exciting to see the room overflowing with people! When the students walked in and onto the stage wearing the caps & gowns, the room was filled with awe and emotion. I loved being present and feeling the mood in the room!

 

Kanyon was so happy to be graduating from Kindergarten! It made my heart happy to see him that way!

Each song that the students sang correlated with something that they learned during the Kindergarten year that I spoke about in the narration part of the program. For example, I told the audience they learned to say the Pledge of Allegiance, and learned the words and meaning of the song Star Spangled Banner, then they sang the song called "Red, White, & Blue".

The students sang "Alphabet Song" and used sign language for the letters after I told the audience how learned to say letters, sounds, and words in Kindergarten. (thanks DannerPhotography for the pic) 

One of Kanyon's favorite songs in the program was "Days of the Week" to the tune of "Addams Family". They sang it after I told the audience about the rotation schedule the Kindergarten students have for each day of the week, between going to Library & P.E. & Music & Centers or Art.

We did the "Shapes" poem after I told the audience that the students learned about shapes & patterns & sorting during the year.

After we sang our final song "Kindergarten", the students moved their tassles from the right to the left. Then student said their name in the microphone, walked down the aisle, and exited the building (where they returned back to their homeroom classroom to return the cap & gown and pick up their backpacks & wait for their parents to pick them up and take them home). While they were walking down the aisle among the audience, I told the crowd what each child had told me they learned in Kindergarten and also what they loved about going to school.  I don't have a photo of Kanyon's portion (it's impossible to direct the program and take pictures a/o video of the show! Josh tried really hard to get images I requested, and he did a pretty great job. Thanks, Josh!), but another parent sent me a copy of the photo they took of their child saying their name...

After all the students had left the building, the audience was excused to go pick up their child. I walked back to the school to go take pictures of Kanyon in his cap & gown, but he'd already taken them off and was waiting by the door for me to pick him up. He refused to go back in and put the clothes back on. Thankfully, in the packet that his teacher Mrs. Foote had given him with his diploma & report card, she'd also included a photo she'd had her husband take of each of the students wearing a graduation cap & gown, so at least I had one good photo of him.

I remember crying at Ammon's Kindergarten Graduation, and getting teary-eyed at Jonah and Micah's, too. I thought I would be the same way for Kanyon's, but directing the program forced me to keep my emotions in tact. At one point, right before Kanyon said his name in the microphone, my throat got all choked up. He said he learned his letters and his favorite part of school was music (I swear I didn't coerce him into saying what his favorite part was!!).

I was so proud of him for making it through his Kindergarten year, which started off very challenging and difficult for him. He was able to improve his behaviors at school throughout the year and learn to cope with his problems better. I can't believe he's already done--I swear once they graduate Kindergarten, the rest of the school years seem to just fly by. My baby is growing up, and he's so happy about it that it makes it hard for me to not be happy for him, too.

End-of-Year Assemblies

At the last assembly of the year at the Middle School, Ammon was given the 7th grade student of the month award. He got a certificate, a medal, and a T-shirt. His teacher said he was a very likable student with a positive attitude, he always excelled in the classroom, and he had great sports abilities. Ammon always hopes that he'll be chosen at the monthly assemblies, and was glad to finally receive the honor at the final assembly.

Ammon also received an award for 100% attendance for the entire year, and was given a gift certificate to the Bakery for his reward.

 

 

At an assembly during the last week of elementary school, Jonah and Micah both received Terrific Kids awards for getting straight A's on their latest report card. They each received a certificate and a pencil. This is a photo of all the kids in their 3rd grade class who received straight A's. Jonah is on the last row, far right, and Micah is also on the back row, third from the left.

They also both received awards for 100% attendance for the entire year, and were given gift certificates to the Movie Theater as their reward.


The final assembly at the elementary school was on the day that the Kindergarteners were gone on their field trip, so they missed it. At that assembly, Kanyon was announced as one of the five winners in the school for bringing in the most box tops during the PTO's last contest. Kanyon won a gift certificate to the swimming pool as his reward. He was so happy! He loves swimming!

End-of-Year Events

3rd Grade Track & Field

Each spring, the elementary P.E. teacher hosts track & field days for students in 2nd-4th grade. I took a half day off work to see Jonah and Micah compete in the 3rd grade Track Meet. They were each in 4 events. Micah did the gunny sack race, and ran the 200m and 400m. Jonah was in the 3-legged race with his friend Mason, and also ran the 200m and 400m. It was a beautiful afternoon, and it was relaxing to sit and watch the kids participate in the events. Mr. Baker, the P.E. teacher, had the high school P.E. teacher and lots of her students helping, so it was very organized and was over in about 2 hours! The boys did very well, and got 3rd or 4th place in each of their events or heats.

High School Spring Concert
The Spring Concert included choirs and bands from Middle School and High School, as well a joint song with the community choir. It was longer than usual, but the students did a great job. Ammon played his trumpet with the Advanced Band and they performed 3 songs. Ammon has enjoyed being with the older high school students in band class, and they sound so well together! When we first moved here, the high school band was so puny and small and weak-sounding, and Mr. Anderson has really built up the band program, which I'm so grateful for now that my own child is involved in it. At the spring concert, Mr. Anderson also gives out awards; Ammon received the award for "Most Valuable 7th grader" as voted on by his peers.

 Elementary Art Show

Each spring, students have the opportunity to display artwork at the Salmon City Center for a few weeks. Then each elementary class walks there and looks at all the artwork that is on display. Out of all my children, Kanyon hates artwork the most. His brain thinks logically, not creatively. He doesn't like drawing or coloring, and often times when the class was working on art projects (his teacher Mrs. Foote LOVES art and is an excellent artist), he would have a meltdown. The way he views things in his head never comes across the same on paper, and he would have a mental block and stop coloring or drawing. He came home with a lot of unfinished drawings. Because we know and understand the way his brain works, we didn't make him feel bad about it. We made him finish the projects that were graded on, but otherwise we didn't. He used a combination of materials to create his picture for the art show: pencil, crayon and watercolor paint. At the bottom is dirt and grass, then a blue area on the lower left is water and the red squiggle is a water snake. The brown triangle is a tepee. At the top is the blue sky, a yellow sun, and gray clouds. It's kind of a messy picture, but he was so proud of his completed project! He got to take a walking field trip with his Kindergarten class two weeks before the end of school to the Art Show at the City Center on Main Street to see his art. Jonah and Micah went with their class, too, and saw Kanyon's work as well as their own art there!