A First Class Scout!

Last night was Deven's Boy Scout court of honor where he received the patches for everything he's earned since their last court of honor. He has gone from the rank of Boy Scout through Tenderfoot and Second Class Scout and is now the rank of First Class Scout. He also has earned 7 new badges for:
Swimming
First Aid
Emergency Preparedness
Environmental Science
Community Citizenship
National Citizenship
World Citizenship

He has been a busy boy!

Jaws of Life

Harv and I spent our Saturday training with the "Jaws of life". We got to help turn an old station wagon into a stylish convertible! Ok, maybe a not so stylish convertible. Whatever the case, you can't beat cutting up cars into little pieces for a stress reliever. Definite road rage relief!

School Pictures are here

Here they are, in all their glory, Deven (age 11) and Sierra (age 9).
They go in phases with one being taller than the other but right now they are running about the same height so I get allot of comments about them being twins.

Happy Halloween Mateys!

Yes, it's still called Halloween where we are (not a "Harvest Festival" or some such thing like that) and the kids still get to dress up at school and even get to parade through downtown where the community lines the street to watch.
In our neck of the woods trick-or-treating is not really an option in most neighborhoods since your nearest neighbor is usually 10 minutes away. So we drive 20 minutes to take the kids "down town" where they have an area that is blocked off to traffic (about 6 square blocks) for the kids to go house to house (even the local businesses give out candy). There is also a Halloween carnival at the fairgrounds that is an option for some.

We all made it through unscathed, with the only complaint being tired feet, and a couple of pieces of candy before bed seems to cure that pretty quick.

Come fly away...

last weekend while I was off at a "pioneer training" weekend Harv took the kids to our small local airport for the annual fly in. The kids got to participate in the Young Eagles program which introduces kids to the world of flight. They got a tour and explanation (inside and out) of a Cessna 205, as well as a 25 minute ride around the scenic Mariposa foothills.

My how you've grown!

Remember these precious little babies?
This is Mystic (Brown) and Charger (White)
when we 1st brought them home at about 10 weeks old.















Well, here they are today at 10 months old.
They weigh about 80 pounds each and they're
not done growing yet, just look at those paws!

Labor Day Parade

This is a shot of us in the annual Labor Day Parade.
I'm driving the 1st white vehicle with Sierra along to work the lights and siren. Next is Harv in the red engine and if you look real close you can see Deven riding on top behind Harv's head.
Most of the Mariposa County equipment is white (as you can see down the line) but Harv's station has one of the last red engines left in the county so it's really sticks out.

This is a close up of Deven from the local paper up on the red engine. Sierra would of been there too but it was 107 degrees out there and 15 min. before the parade she got a nose bleed that didn't want to stop. So, the poor child was doomed to ride with me in the air conditioned truck covered with ice packs. ( luckily it stopped as soon as we started rolling)

Slow news day

I'm the one in yellow putting on my gloves.
This car veered off the side of the road and took a header straight down a 60 foot embankment.
They were VERY lucky in that the guy in the photo was the most injured of the 4 people in the car and although it looks bad, he only had minor cuts and bruises.
But they will all be feeling it in the morning.

Boy Scout Camping Trip to Iron Lakes

This is just a short note because I wanted to post some pictures of Iron Lakes where Deven and I went camping with his boy scout troop. To get there, we went to Bass Lake and turned north. The closer we got the worse the roads got. We actually drove to about 200 yards from the lake but my jeep saw some of the first true 4 wheeling it has ever seen. I wanted to get a picture of the jeep with only 3 wheels on the ground but I was afraid to get out of the car. Deven swam most of the time we were there but there was also some hiking and fishing. We are looking for more places to go and I will keep you posted.

She finally did it!

Sierra has been wanting to get her ears pierced for over a year but has never been able to get past the "But, it's gonna hurt" part. I always told her when she asked (over & over & over again) that it felt like pulling a loose tooth. There would be an "OUCH!" then it would be done. That was enough to make her want to think about it for a month or so before she brought it up again. Apparently, the fact that she was going to be the big "9" the next day was a turning point for her.

The boys were gone on a Boyscout camp out so my Mom, Sierra and I were going to hit the road for some girls only birthday shopping when Sierra said "Can I get my ears pierced while we're out?". Since this had happened a zillion times in the past I just said "sure" and didn't give it another thought. Then she asked again at another store, "Do they pierce ears here?" so I told her we could check into it at the mall, but again, I was sure when we got to the "But it's gonna hurt" part it would be dropped again. We got in the mall, to the store, picked out the studs, signed the paper work, and she was in the chair with little purple marker dots on her ears when she started to get nervous. I told her to just do it and get it over with because you could see in her eyes that she was not gonna last much longer and she started with the "wait... not yet... just a second" and then BAM! It was over. (Thank God) She was very brave and now is an expert on cleaning and turning her little pink gemstones.

Camp Grissom 2007

Wow, where do I start? We had 10 people (all related in one form or another) 3 cars, 1 National Park and 4 days to cram with tons of fun. It was wonderful!

We went to Kings Canyon / Sequoia National Park where we stayed at the John Muir Lodge in Grants Grove. We hiked, rode horses, hiked, played games, hiked, did some spelunking (cave exploring), took lots of pictures, hiked, did some scavenger hunting, and then hiked some more.

It would take me hours to include everything that went on so I'll just give you the highlights.

We hiked to visit all the important Giant Sequoias like the "General Grant" tree that is the earth's second-largest tree. It is 267.4 feet tall, 107.6 feet around and is about 1,800- 2,000 years old. We also visited with "General Sherman"," The Sentinel" and the "Fallen Monarch" which used to be the local hotel, bar and restaurant back in the early days.

We went to Crystal Cave for some Spelunking. It takes about 25 min to hike down the steep 1/2 mile trail to the spiderweb gate at the opening of the cave. You then take a 45 min. guided tour through the 48 degree (year round) cave. Not a trip for anyone with claustrophobic tendencies. Some of the formations are absolutely breathtaking. It's very damp inside and you can hear the constant trickle of water as it continues to flow through the caverns just as it has been doing for hundreds of years. You also can get an occasional drip on the head from the stalactites still forming above. It's so amazing in there that you forget about the steep 1/2 mile hike (all uphill this time) back to the parking lot.

We (all 10 of us) also took a horseback ride through the trees.
Our trusty steeds carried us through the forest over all types of terrain and even through the middle of a fallen tree. We treaded on single file for more than an hour (although my behind swears it was much longer) with only the occasional stop for a horse to take care of "Dust Abatement" or "Soil Rejuvenation" on the way.
It was so serene along the way that you could almost imagine yourself as one of the early settlers packing everything you owned on to your horse and setting out to look for that perfect spot to start a new life.
Our thanks go out to Computer, Streak, Willy, Baker, Rosie, Chip, Lucky, Befuord, Levi, and Roper for the wonderful adventure.
Some of the most memorable events of our trip were the scavenger hunts. Paul and Carrie (Harv's Uncle and Aunt) devised 1 hunt for the kids and 1 for the whole gang.
The 3 kids were each issued a notepad, pen and a key chain size digital camera. On the notepad was a list of things they needed to "acquire" such as; a bug, running water, a fallen sequoia, lichen, etc. Staying true to the "Take only memories, Leave only foot prints" philosophy they could take a picture, make a sketch or document the time, place or any details of the sighting. They had all day to "capture" everything on their list while we went exploring through the park. The hardest part was keeping track of the camera and notepad while switching from car to room to bathroom, and then back to someone else's room or car. In the end they learned allot, had allot of fun and even got to keep the cameras! (thanks P&C!)

The other hunt was for the whole group. We were split into 2 teams of 4 and again had a list of things to find with our digital cameras. This time however, the items on the list were not as self explanatory as on the kids list and we had a 35 min. time limit.
We, as a team had to first decipher what the thing was before we knew what to look for. We needed to find such things as a "rainbow bee" (which happened to be a Fresno Bee newspaper box that had the word "Bee" in 4 different colors). Also a "Ursus americanus protection device" (a bear proof food box) and a "liquid temperature regulating device" (an ice chest)

When it was all over, the teams were separated by only 1/2 a point, the winners were named, (named Tina, Sheila, Deven and Alex that is!!!) and the ribbons were presented at the awards ceremony that evening. We all had such a good time that I'm sure this will be talked about for years to come.

IT'S A GIRL! (Girl Scout that is)

On June 6th Sierra had her promotion ceremony to celebrate bridging over from a Brownie to a Jr. Girl Scout! She has earned all kinds of badges this year and attended lots of events. (Not to mention selling 180 boxes of cookies!) She's planning on continuing in the fall, as long as it doesn't conflict with playing soccer. Way to go Sierra!!!!

Camp Green Meadows

We have been so busy around here lately! Last week it was time for the 3rd graders to go to camp and I got to tag along as a chaperone for the 2 day 1 night event. Sierra and I spent the day hiking and learning about nature and the Mewok Indians. We did Indian dancing, face painting and even ate a bug! In the evening we went on a night hike and had a campfire where we sang songs about "scat". Ahhhh 3rd grade, it doesn't get much better than that.

Graduation Celebration!

Castle Dearing proudly presents:
Tabatha Ann Nolen
(with her Dad Hal (my brother) and Mom Donna)
We are all so proud of her! She's not only stunningly beautiful but an amazing person as well! She's planning to attend Bible College for a year and then possibly go into nursing if nothing else strikes her fancy first. Congratulations Tab!

We're still alive!

I know, I know, I have not been keeping this updated as often as I would of liked to but life got in the way and I haven't had much time to sit in front of the computer lately.

There is so much going on lately I can hardly keep up with it all but here are some highlights!

MARCH:
Sierra was student of the month for February!
Sierra and I went on an overnight trip with the Girl scouts (more to follow)

APRIL:
Deven was Student of the month at school!
My parents went to Hawaii to celebrate their 42nd wedding anniversary!
Both kids went to the dentist and there was only 1 cavity (we won't mention any names)
Deven's class went to a Civil War reenactment camp to learn about the war.
Harv was promoted to Capitan at his Fire Station!

MAY:
Harv turned 44!
Deven's class went to the NASA Challenger Space Learning Center (more to follow)
My puppies now tip the scales at over 55 pounds each! (more to follow)

Houston, we have a problem...

Deven's class has been very busy lately. Last week we took a trip to the Challenger Space Learning Center in Atwater, CA. It was really fun!


The kids got to re-live the challenger mission (as it was meant to happen) from the viewpoint of a mock space shuttle and mission control.


They all had their specific jobs to do from communication, data, life support, remote and so on.


They had to keep in constant contact with their
counter parts on the ground who were answering their questions and monitoring their progress.

At one point the kids in the shuttle had an airlock emergency that set off alarms and a count down with only 2 minuets of air left to fix the problem! Luckily, the kids in Mission Control were able to walk them through the fix and all was well.

A Civil War in our own back yard

In April, we had a group come to town that did Civil War reenactments. They set up huge camps with over 100 people on each side in period costumes with horses and cannons to actually reenact the battle each day over the weekend. It was quite a sight in our little town.

The best part was the day before the battle when Deven's 5th grade class got to tour the camps and learn allot of "behind the scenes" information. They got to talk with the people in charge of communications and found out how they sent messages across the battlefields.
They learned what it was like to be a medic on the field and got to see 1st hand the tools that they used. They were amazed that they were more apt to cut off a limb than to "waste" the time to try and save it.

We were able to speak with the ladies in camp that described what their day was like and the clothes they wore (and made). The kids could not believe that they were treated like 2nd class (or lower) citizens just because they were women.
It was a very interesting trip.

Long Barn Trip

I got to go with Sierra on a Girl Scout adventure in March. We went to a place called Long Barn which is about 2 1/2 hours from here in the Stanislaus National Forest. We shared a room with 7 other girls and 1 other mom for the evening where we ate and played games till all hours.

The next day after breakfast, we went ice skating for a few hours and then headed off to Columbia National Park (just above Sonora). We spent the rest of the day there wandering through the old gold mining town where we had lunch at the local saloon and even did some gold panning.

National Fire Academy

At the end of February I attended the National Fire Academy in Emmittsburg, Maryland. It's kind of the motherland for firefighters. It's a 107 acre training center for firefighters as well as anyone in the emergency management services (FEMA).
On our way there, my 2 companions and I had an unscheduled layover in Dallas due to shearing winds and were the last plane allowed to land. All flights to or from the airport were delayed and eventually canceled. We ended up getting a hotel room (others weren't so lucky) and coming back at the crack of dawn the next day to chase stand by flights all day because a huge storm had socked in the entire Eastern 1/2 of the US. A very long story cut short... I made it there long after the 1st day of class ended wearing my "BITE ME" shirt that I picked up at the gift shop of "Joe's Crab Shack" where we had dinner the night before in Dallas so I would at least have a clean shirt(luckily, we did get our luggage the next day) What a trip!
The academy is also home to the National Fire Fighter's Memorial which is similar to the Veterans Wall. Whenever a firefighter is killed in the line of duty the flags are flown at 1/2 mast and their name is added to the the list of the fallen. It's very moving. Durring the 7 days I was there, the flag never made it to the top of the pole. In fact, in the 21 days I have spent there over the past 2 years, I have only seen the flags all the way up on one of those days.

Who's that kid?

Today I had a big "Mommy Moment". About 3 months ago my beautiful baby girl (8 years old) decided she wanted her hair cut short. NOOOOOOOOO!!!!! I vetoed that immediately! Although it is a battle most mornings with brushing, her hair is beautiful! It's like spun gold and is almost down to her behind. I started telling her that I would cry like a baby and her PaPa (my Dad) would constantly call her a boy and generally tried to discourage her at all costs. After about a month of getting over myself and coming to grips with the fact that it is "HER" hair after all, I gave in. So, we talked about it and decided that if she was going to do it, it should be for a good reason so she decided to donate her hair to make wigs for kids who lost their hair due to cancer. It took about 6 weeks to get the extra inch that she needed to make the 10" required for donation but the day finally came. So here she is, before, during and after. And... I was a big girl and didn't even cry!

Now that's allot of cookies

Thanks to many generous cookie eaters, Sierra sold 120 boxes of Girl Scout cookies in 2 weeks! On Wednesday, her Grampa Allen, G.G.(Granny Grissom),(who are visiting from Texas) and I, schlepped & sorted a trailer load of cookies for her entire troop before bringing home her cookies to sort, bag & write thank you notes for. What a day!! Now we get to deliver them and collect the money.

There's nothing more precious than a sleeping baby

The puppies are doing really well. Their names are now inked as "Charger" (Boy/white) and "Mystic" (Girl/tan) They slept outside all night for the 1st time last night and don't seem to be mentally scared by it. Now maybe Harv and I will be able to get caught up on some sleep that we've lost taking them out every 2-3 hours every night.

Typical Saturday at Castle Dearing

I just wanted to show everyone one of the things that we do on a typical Saturday.
That's Deven stacking wood in the woodshed behind the splitter and Tina cutting wood to be split. I am not real sure where Sierra is but that was true for most of the time.
And to think, I was happy not to have a yard that I had to mow. :-D

IT'S A BOY!! ( Boy Scout, that is)

Last night was a huge night for Deven. He was promoted at the Blue and Gold banquet where he was one of 2 boys (the 3rd was home with the chicken pox) who crossed over the bridge from Cub Scout to become a full fledged Boy Scout.
He was presented with an award for outstanding leadership as well as 18 academic pins and 23 belt loops for learning about many things such as computers, music, geology, heritages, astronomy, geography, maps, compasses, art, different languages and cultures, as well as about 9 different sports. He got so many belt loops that he can't fit them all on his belt! In fact, he and one other boy received an award for excellence because they earned ALL of the possible awards in those categories while a Cub Scout. And last, but far from least... he received his Arrow of Light which is the highest award a Cub Scout can receive.

Oh, and by the way, the Dearing family was presented with a patch and each member of the family received a pin for the BSA Family Award. It is for accomplishing all of the steps to become a Boy Scout together as a family.
When Deven works on a merit badge, the whole family works on a merit badge!

The Puppies Are Here!!

We brought home two new members of the family today.They are Lab and Pyrenees mix. The white one is a boy and the tan is a girl.
No names thus far, but we are leaning twords Duchess and Charger.
If you have any suggestions that go with our castle theme, feel free to let us know but keep in mind that they will grow up to be well over 100 pounds so Pixie and Tiny may not be good options.
More to follow