Wordless Wednesday…

Remind Me Why I Spent Money on Bunk Beds…

Every night as I go up to bed I am never sure where I will find the kids sleeping. Sometimes they are all in one bed and sometimes they aren’t in beds at all!

I love when I find them all in Sissy’s room because I know that means she was reading to them:

Jackson’s room is a very popular stop. Half the time he encourages it and they stay up way to late playing. Other nights he locks his doors to keep out nighttime visitors. Usually, it is Will I find in Jackson’s room because they are my night owls while I will find Ashton and Wesley up playing long before the rest of the house. On this night I took a picture because they were both snuggling their stuffed dogs. Every night I still find Jackson snuggling his Sparky is like a gift because it seems he is growing up way too fast!

All this just goes to prove my case that we should just throw them all in one room and use their bedrooms for other things!

When You Spend a Lot of Time in Time Out…

You have to find a way to entertain yourself:

Big Haps in the Dodd House...

Part of being this wonderful man's wife is possessing the ability to be extremely excited when dead turkeys and deer show up in the back of your man's truck, always photographing them, eating them for every meal, hanging on the edge of your seat to hear the 45 minute play by play of the big kill, and patiently chasing the kids on Sunday morning while he tells it again to every man in the building (OK, so I don't do so well with the last one).

Do you want to know a secret?

I love every minute of it. Maybe not every minute when he falls asleep all afternoon because he got up so early or when I never get to sleep in on Saturday or when he gets home hours after he said he would... wait, where was I going with this?

Oh yeah, I love my hunter. No, really. I love that he is so incredibly passionate about something. I love that he's passionate about something that has been important to my family for generations. I love that he is passing that passion on to our next generation. I love that after days of working at a stressful job and being a very involved father he has this safe, wholesome way to unwind. I love that he says his favorite part of hunting is sitting in nature marveling at the Creator. I love that he is never closer to his God than when hunting. I love that God has gifted him with many hunter friends who are godly influences. I love that God has placed us within a church family where they embrace hunting and the pastor calls him every time he sees a big buck. I love that he has a secret dream of a way to use his passion for the glory of God's kingdom and as an evangelism tool.

And most of all, I love that in 2 years all 4 kids will be old enough to go with him, and I will be making up all those Saturday sleep ins I missed!

So, as the rest of us feel fall approaching and get excited for beautiful leaves, football, pumpkins, and my birthday (maybe that's only me that gets excited about that one) my man is getting the itch feeling deer season around the corner. I absolutely groan and will dread it, (have I ever told how I once missed my own birthday dinner becuase I was helping him track a deer) but I have to admit to loving it for him as well. Besides, I can always get him to do lots of honey do's on Saturday afternoons- if he stays awake.

So there's my secret. Don't tell him or I will lose all honey do leverage!