Snowball, AR

Where in the heck is Snowball, AR??? Most people have either NEVER heard of it, or have seen the sign for it on their way from Marshall to Harrison on Hwy. 65. I've even heard some say, "I've always wanted to go to Snowball." My aunt and uncle own land in Snowball. It's a tiny town with one Pepsi machine, but it is beautiful!

My dad and I wanted to take the kids to float the Buffalo River, so my uncle said we should just spend the night in Snowball and float the following day.



My uncle has built a barn like no other! It is huge. The entire top is a floored loft...it's more like a living area. There are two sets of french doors on each end with a deck overlooking the property. The lower level of the barn is not enclosed except for an area for the horses. The rest is basically where they keep supplies and such. It's very cool because they have a fridge, an old gas stove, and even internet access. What more could you want?It's got "amenities", yet you can "rough" it as much as you want! Wednesday night we built a fire and made S'mores. The sky was beautiful. We could see the milky way...and more stars than I've ever seen. We also saw a lot of meteors! It's was cool because they were so easy to spot and I think each of the kids saw at least one. When we were finally worn out and the kids were asking to go to bed, we climbed the stairs into the loft and slept on cots and mattresses. We had fans going, and the temperature dropped as a storm rolled in. It was great!
The next morning Grandpa made breakfast: bacon, eggs, and pancakes. We waited anxiously for the storm to blow over. There were lots of tears, because it didn't really look like we were going to make it to the river.



As the rain died down we went out in search of the horses. Jacque has five...two of which are rescued mustangs. They are all beautiful and the kids were in heaven. I tried not to be a nervous wreck. The horses names are Stormy, Bailey, Dakota, Ranger, and Strider. Jacque also has three donkeys. They are so cute! The horses were very attentive because they were hoping we were going to feed them. I've never seen them so friendly. It was fun!






I must've caught Stormy right after he had taken a bite of grass! I thought this picture was hilarious with his tongue hanging out of his mouth.

Finally, the sun came out and we decided to brave the next storm front and head to the river. As we were leaving, the horses surrounded the van. They were trying to eat the cooler and rummaging through the trunk. They had their heads inside the van just trying to find something to eat! We laughed and laughed! We can't wait to go back to Snowball in the fall.
THE END

Climb Ev'ry Mountain

The kids and I spent some time in Little Rock with my family this week. We went to the Little Rock Climbing Center. It was sooooo fun!! The girls have climbed before at Lewis and Clark, but the boys and I had never done it. I first took a $5.00 and 5 minute course on belaying. Which as the man so nicely put it, means I am holding the rope for the person climbing and basically supposed to catch them if they fall...yeah....that made me feel real safe for my children, "Just climb this huge wall honey, mommy will catch you. I'm certified and everything!" I just tried not to think about my inability to really catch them if they fell.

Kess, the adventurer was the first to go up. She quickly scaled the wall (by the way, that is a giant peanut by her left arm...not really sure why.) I'm still learning the ways of the climbers.

Colin and Connor were next to go up. They didn't make it very far up the first couple of times. They did great, but they were a little nervous about being up so high. We kept encouraging them to go up a little higher. I couldn't understand why they would quit when they were doing so well and were so close to the top. Well, when it was finally my turn and I got to the top, and then looked down...it all became very clear!

WOW!!! It was so high up, then I realized I was being held there by a rope, and that I would have to go down eventually. Of course, my dad being the funny guy he is....let me go down a little "extra" fast. He thought it was quite funny...I was not amused!

Rhiannon was a very determined climber and she enjoyed tackling the more challenging climbs. She did very well, she just wasn't quite tall enough for some of the reaches! We were all very sore and exhausted when we left, but we had a great time! Now if only we could find some good walls in NWA......