A lot to catch up on ...

It has been a long time since I last posted on my blog. So much has happened, so this post is rather lengthy. These photos are in no particular order:

 

 

Mom, Kim, and I went to the Double JJ Ranch for a day of horseback riding as a belated birthday gift for Mom. It was so much fun, although it took us a few days and lots of ibuprofen to walk normal again. Cantoring through the forest was an awesome experience!

Mom and her horse
 

This was my yummy "new" recipe that I was going to try out. I put it together the morning of the Double JJ adventure ... I seared the roast in butter and seasoning, cut up potatoes and carrots, and put it into a crockpot. It smelled heavenly, and I couldn't wait to get home and taste the savory meal. Unfortunately, the circuit breaker had popped sometime while we were gone. When we arrived back home after being gone all day, I opened up the lid and discovered that the food was definitely not warm. Due to the risk of food poisoning, my beautiful roast went into the trash. That was a bummer. As a result, there is no new recipe on this posting.
 

In the last month, we lost one of our Rio Tetras. He was one of our starter fishes, so since mid-May when we started our aquarium, we've now lost 3 starter fishes. Considering that we still have some starter fishes left, I'd say we're doing pretty good!
 

In the last month, Blake lost another tooth!
 

There was some more algae growing in my tank, and it appeared that it was more than my shrimp and flying fox could keep up with. So I purchased a Plecco from PetSmart in Grandville.

He appeared to be a very lazy fish, as I never saw him work on the algae. I read online that pleccos are nocturnal, so I chalked it up that he was sleeping or relaxing during the day.

Unfortunately, three weeks later, he died. I was devastated. All this time I called him lazy, and we're thinking that he may have been internally sick without us knowing it. It was my first fish that died that wasn't a starter fish, and I cried my eyes out. I don't know why I was so emotional with him, as he's only a fish. But his death hit me hard.

My hubby was very encouraging during this time. He said this was a "Make a Wish Fish", in that he was sick but nobody knew it. The fish's last wish was to go to a good home with friendly fish to die. And that's what he did. That story made me feel much better.

Also in the last month, Mom and I went to Artprize to see Uncle Stan's art exhibit, "Meadow Winds". He didn't win, but was able to sell his exhibit to a Ripley's Believe It or Not museum for a nice sum. In the picture is Uncle Stan, Aunt Sandy, my Mom, and Aunt Corine. They are my Mom's siblings and it was nice to see them all together.
 

My pictures are a little out of order, but here are 11 Mollies that we donated to Petco before the death of our Plecco. Our Mom & Dad Mollie fish keep reproducing (as a matter of fact, a day before we donated these fish, she just had another baby who was rather excited to go with his other siblings on this field trip!) Now we currently have 5 Mollies in our tank, along with 4 shrimp, 3 neon tetras, 4 cory catfish, one rio tetra, and a flying fox.
 

In the beginning of October, Holland hosted their annual fire truck parade. It was a cold and rainy morning, but luckily we found a parking spot right on 8th St so we could watch the parade from our car!

At the fire station, they had all kinds of fun games and activities for kids and adults. Here is Blake playing a fishing game.
 

He got a big tootsie roll!!

Blake checking out an ambulance with his friend Jacob.

The Park Township firefighters did a car extraction, showing everyone how they use the Jaws of Life for car accidents. They tore off the windshield, the roof, and the two side doors. It was pretty cool to watch!
 

Blake & Jon enjoying the view
 

My two favorite boys!