What a quote!!

You cannot do a kindness too soon, for you never know how soon it will be too late.

-Ralph Waldo Emerson

Sometimes in life....

Sometimes in life, things that make us the happiest, are the little things... that we don't even realize are occurring at the time! What a special moment this was, and you can see how special in Andrew's eyes! This photo was not staged, not set up! His face says it all! He is holding Hannah Elizabeth Blankinship, daughter of Chris and Jenniffer Blankinship, Cushing. Chis is Paul's brother, so Hannah is Andrew's cousin! Enjoy, the rest of the pics will be up later on!

I wanted to share this with family, as it is very special ..... about Fred O Shaklee, Harold O Shaklee's father!

From: Jerry and Connie LaGrow
To: Stan and Ann Shaklee

Got your email and will forward what I know later this weekend. Grandma's father's (Isaac J. Ward) barn is still standing east of North Enid. When I was a child he had this huge draft horses. His house was built back into a hill. You went in on the ground level and went out the back upstairs. There was a large wooden slat hammock swing between two trees in the front on the west of the house. I don't remember how old I was when he died but I do remember him and going to his house. Grandmother Shaklee (Ida Edith Ward Shaklee, Fred O's Wife, and Harold, Don, Mervyn, and Thelma's Mom) was the oldest of 4 or 5 girls and one brother. Grandma Edith was Grandpa's second wife. His first (Jessie L.Stebbins) died in child birth and her baby is buried in her arms in the cemetery in Enid. I have found the grave! Gm. had one sister that looked like her, Alma, she lived in Yukon and was probably closer to her than the others. There was Aunt Ethel, Aunt Maud Johnson, Aunt Mae, and Uncle Fred. Gm. loved to quilt and always had a quilt in her living room. She was the janitor of the Methodist church for years after Grandpa died and she lived in a house in Jet. She was a member of the Saline Lakeside Home Demonstration club. She was known in the church for her hot rolls and in the family for her macaroni and cheese. Gm. was a supporter of Oral Roberts and I took her over to the prayer tower once and she was awed by the sight of it and put her hand on the wall and said, "And to think that I helped build this with my offerings." She took a lot of flack from the family for her belief in his miracles.
Gm. also bought a lot of the small hymnals in the church with her tithe money. I saved one back for each of my kids with her hand writing in it. Gm.'s faith in her Savior made quite an impression on me! I can remember staying all night with she and Gp. and they always had their evening devotions before retiring to bed together and knelt on their knees beside their chairs for prayer.
She had one other child just slightly older than me but died when she was 5 years old. Her name was Mildred and is buried beside Gp. and her.
I will try and get some more information and mail it later. I hope this is what you kinda of wanted. I'll get her birth and death date later. If you have any information you could share with me I would appreciate it also about her or Gp. *Connie

*(LaGrow, Harold Shaklee's brother Don's oldest daughter, and Granddaughter of Fred O. Shaklee. Rec'd on 12/10/2004.)

Kaitlyn withdrawal time... yucky feeling... no Kaitlyn!!

Knew it was too good to be true, however, we will make it through this tough time. I know many of you are concerned about our condition, may have written in about it, talked with your family physician about our condition for us, studied hours on line looking for an answer, yet... we are starting to feel the pain really well! Yes, there will be no Kaitlyn this weekend. We will not get to see her for the first time on the weekend in 3 weeks!!! We will survive. We will endure!! We will pull through!! At least, we think we will!! What a day yesterday was... too. Jake off to help Uncle Mike. Ann kept Andrew, and he was a trooper! He really plays well by himself, and loves to watch the "good" cartoons on tv. He missed his Jake; however, he said "I can find those computer games, Grandpa", and I answered....... RIGHTTTTTTTTTT!!!!!!!!! Later on, we had one of Grandma Moffat's Awesome HOMECOOKED meals... the kind that sticks to your ribs... haha like I needed it!! He cleaned up his plate, and then reported "I have long legs Grandpa", to which I replied, they only match the length of your tongue! Andrew's tongue was touching his nose the day he was born, I could not believe it.
Been working on some special Christmas projects. Not sure how special to others, but very special to me. I try to get up about 4 or so each am 7 days a week and have been doing this for about two months. It has taken me much longer than I thought, and been much more a labor of love and very rewarding for me. I have learned many things from this adventure, things I did not know throughout my 57+ years of life on this earth. Will write about this after Christmas.
Sorry, side stepped Andrew... haha.. Later in the evening Andrew's Grandma Joan and his mom Heather dropped in to pick him up, and, yes, my arm was twisted.. by Andrew's smile, as his cousin Hannah was with them, and I snapped a pic or two..haha, or three!! Will put those up later on today.
With Jake gone, our home is very quite!! And ole Marvin, our new yellow kitten that I named (sigh, can you tell...haha) is also spending the night at the Perkins Vet Clinic. Jake and Ann decided he needed to become a "nice" little boy kitten, so they took him to be ...... fixed!..... and also get his shots and his front nails removed. Glad my Great Grandma Moffat loved me enough not to "fix" me...hahaha... shu........ Goodness, don't tell her I said that! Anywho... Ann picks up ole Marvin this morning, and I bet he is ready to come home. Jake will be coming back tonight or in the am. One never knows with that boy when or what! He informed Ann and I he is never going to leave home, will stay and take care of us till we need help, then leave!! Little does he know how fast time will fly!
Now back to the original statement.. Kaitlyn is not coming up today.. darn... That pain is starting up again!! Jon, Randi, .... Kaitlyn.... haha... It really is awesome to have kids so close... all of them!!
Will try to update family birthday calendar with all the additions as I get them in. Sorry I missed Ky's, but did remember David and Kent Siegrist, and Austyn and Randi's this past week.
Have a great day everyone! We have a lot to be thankful for, but especially for this fact... God loves us, each and everyone! And in this season, we celebrate the love and birth of our Saviour, Jesus Christ, let's keep that in the front of what we are doing! Because he came, we are...! The celebration of the birth of the Saviour who gives us Eternal Life is awesome considering what HE gave us in return... Eternal Life everlasting, and forever!
Ok...off of soapbox, and no more sermons.. or rantings!!! Enjoy the day... it's gonna be awesome!!

Ky Shaklee turns 24 ..... or did turn 24 last Monday, Dec. 6th!

Ky, I messed up bad!! I had your birthday in the computer as june 12 instead of Dec 6... I was close! I have 6/12 instead of 12/6!! Guess it's an age thingy!!
Happy belated Birthday Ky!! Hope it was real special and you had a great day! May you have many many more! Hope you're having a great time in your new home in Nashville!! Tell Jade and Julia hi from all of us, too!!

Hey guys... Look who showed up in my email this evening... Really great to pop open the mail and discover a pic of family. This was taken at Ward and Melanie's Association Christmas Party. Thought we would pass it along and thank Melanie big time for sending it along!! .... Well my ole helper is off to Jet to work on fence with Mike on the land up there for a couple of days.. geeze, I might have to get off my large tail end and work.. oh no@@!!!! Enjoy... haha.. Oh by the way, a big happy birthday to another cousin.. Cousin Kent Siegrist has a big birthday in a few hours, and then all day Friday... Happy Birthday Kent, and many many more!! later guys..

Remembering a man.....

The best portion of a good man’s life: his little, nameless unremembered acts of kindness and love.

-William Wordsworth

Happy Birthdays go out to David Siegrist today and to Kent Siegrist on Friday.. Happy Birthday, Cousin's!

Wanted to send a shout out to my cousins Kent and David Siegrist this week. Today is David's big 44 birthday, and Kent's big ole 47th bithday is this coming Friday, December 10th. Hope you guys have a really special birthday and many many more. Please keep us up to speed on your dad's treatments in Californina, please?? Again, here's hoping from all of us to you two.. have a great birthday!! David in the center of Siegrist family photo and Kent to his right, our left. Enjoy!

Special neighbors, The Kastl's celebrating 60 years!

We wanted to send a special shout out to Payne County Cattle Producers and farmers Emil and Pauline Kastle on their 60th Wedding Anniversary! Congrats to you all. You have a lot to be proud of!! and we are proud of You all! The south side of the section we live on was part of the Kastl family. Emil's mom lived on it when our family purchased it from them in the summer of 1960. On September 1, 1960, we moved to Stillwater from Yukon, and began farming and dairying in Payne County. Emil's mom lived in the home now owned by Marilyn. They milked cows in the barn that is still standing and cooled milk in the stream behind the barn. They live about 1 and 1/2 miles south of us on Brush Creek Road. They have a nice family, and have worked hard with their farm and have a really nice operation. You can buy Kastl's Quality Beef, Stillwater Grain Fed online and through Oklahoma Food Cooperative.

Austyn Lee Moffat had a big number 5 Birthday party last night at his home before the OU Super Victory! What a great time had by all. Again, we are so lucky to have everyone close enough to be able to get together. We all know that as the family grows and gets more involved there will be less and less time for such deals, but for now.. it is awesome! Austyn had a good time and I think he and Andrew played quite well, especially when no one was around!! Happy birthday Austyn! love you bunches... many many more!!

Want to not miss out on that important date???

Do not know if it is widely known, but one can join the yahoo site and then sign in to our family calendar and find anyones birthday, and have it send you reminders of the event at different times ahead of time so you will have a little help remembering... Just click on our family calendar link on this site and it will help you through the process.

I am sure I am the only one who can not remember things, but just in case... sometimes a little help never hurt anyone!!

Later.. have a great day, and enjoy the roses!!

Happy Birthday Randi!!!

And while we are at it... the newest mom in our family, and mother of the most fantastic Granddaughter in the World, Ms. Randi, is celebrating a big birthday too. Randi's was on December 3rd, yelp, yesterday! Happy Birthday Randi.. love ya bunches and hope you had a great day. See you all later on today!!

Happy Birthday Austyn!!

Austyn turned 5 December 1st, and TODAY, we celebrate his birth. I am fired up!! Get to see his new toy that is as big as his home, he called on his bday night and was really excited about a big new toy he got that goes with Power Rangers, I think... I am not very versed in toys so bare with me, haha... Think it was a big space ship or plane.. anyway.... I get to see it tonight and play with it if I can get Jake away from it...haha.. Big party at Phil's this evening.. and then, we will watch, or some of us will watch OU beat Colorado, and win the Big 12 Championship, and then, only one step away from their winning the national championship in College Football... Stoops may be the highest paid coach in all of college football, but stop and think for one second what he could earn in corporate america! We are lucky he loves kids!! and education... and winning, and discipline... He walks where very few men ever walk, or even would walk if they could. Can you imagine the pressure.. whew!!!

This is the mighty monster Jake at Kansas City Royal. We showed there several years and got the kids always made the sale there, even Jake!! Jake even got on TV at this show, as he was the youngest in the ring at the time and they were taking a video for the KC news, and he was being a boy, enjoying things and looking around the and next thing you know, he was hugging the neck of his calf, loving on him, turning around with the steer backwards in the show ring, talking to the folks behind him and it was soooooo cute, they filmed it and next am, after we arrived back at the steers at 3am, we set in the truck and watched on the tv the film of "the cute boy from Oklahoma who loved to show!"

Jon is below and this is Heather Ann. She could out show 'bout anyone in showmanship and won lots of honors with her animals. She would honestly disappear in the show ring! She was awesome to watch show. I remember Denver, when her calf won it's class and she was the third calf in the sale order, i asked her what she was thinking in the showring while showing,and she remarked rather casually... it was cool to be from Perkins Schools and be standing in that spot!

Not sure this will work but am going to try. Here are 3 pics from our familys past. We lived on the road for almost 8 years on weekends. We had as many as 12 steers on feed, and lots of lambs and pigs over the years. Each kiddo showed at some time, and showed all species. I do not have pics of Phil in this deal, but he showed as well, just not at the big shows like we learned to do after he started, but he had the Supreme Champion Angus Heifer of Oklahoma at the Oklahoma Junior Angus showed when he started with a heifer we raised by accident.. haha.. long story. Enjoy the photos.. more coming later as I get time.

Amazing what one will find if one just looks around... haha, especially my office!! Here is a pic of 4 generations of the ole Moffat's. Me, Dad, Austyn and Phil. Austyn's Birthday was Dec 1st, and we will be celebrating it tomorrow night, before the big game!! Go Sooners!!! Ok, I know, enough of that...haha. The saga of stan... Jake continues to work me butt off!! Yesterday he and I went to Mom's to load up some new babies to take to the vet clinic to work and you know what. The old baby sitter cow who was watching the babies while the rest of the herd came in, decided the young babies did not need to go to town.. haha, so she stayed in the pasture and just smiled and continued to eat hay with the babies while the rest of the cattle come into the pen, and of course I am sure she really enjoyed watching Jake and I make fools out of ourselves to them, thinking we could out smart them. Long story short, calves 1 - Jake and I - 0! So we stopped that deal, picked up the new tag for the dually, then tired to get a haircut, but my barber now has banker's hours. Geeze, and he used to make fun of me and my hours!! I came home and worked on something I am trying to get done for kiddos for Christmas, and Jake changed a flat on the hay truck, went to Perkins to gather mineral and we decided to try some of the lazy man's feed, feed in a tub, for the weaned heifers, so he got two of those to try. He feed, and came home. He has been such great help this last summer and fall, I will truly be lost without him. He really loves messing with the cattle. I think he has us moving back into the club calf market. We are supposed to go look at some young bulls at Alpha Angus Ranch today for the heifers this spring. Also thinking of maybe trying AI or ET on them. Just not sure. We also need to chase some replacement bulls for cow herd but think we will get some cross breds, probably from neighbor who has the best in the world, or so it seems! They sure look great and don't have to drive around the world looking!! I also uploaded an album yesterday of Siegrist and Snethen items. There are tons more, these are some of things out of the one book I brought home. Will try to put under the pics the comments about what the pic shows. Can not hardly wait to eat dinner with Austyn tomorrow night celebrating his Bday, big number 5! Happy Birthday Austyn!!

To our extended family....

Mom sent home some more things for me to look at regarding the Snethen family that she has. I will try to get them scanned and post later on in the week, or over the weekend. Some really neat things, I think.

To the immediate family, I have a copy of the tape of Grandpa Siegrist and his stories of coming to America, etc. plus some other neat things to add too...

Jake worked me too death yesterday,

And I am tired!!

Jake and I sorted, moved, culled, and gathered up cattle in the am and hauled feed and mineral in the pm, then starting feeding, but that continues today, plus we have calves that need worked and are taking them to OSU Vet Clinic to be worked. Wish it was to Perkins Vet Clinic, but t'is not. If Jake keeps this up, he will make a hand out of me yet!

Then tomorrow we need to go look at bulls in the am and work on books in the pm.
Oh, my gosh, I am starting to sound like my mom...oh my goodness!!! haha... love ya Mom!

Jake and I gathered up lunch and ate with Grandma too. One of those brown bag deals from Sonic... Not nearly as good as Mom's cooking, but when we walked in at noon, she had not started lunch, and it looked pretty bleak for us to get lunch...haha.. so we did second best deal. We thought we'd get mineral at the Coop in Perkins, but they were out... I honestly do not know how that place stays in business. It's the darkest business in Perkins, and not very clean and they show zero respect for their customers.. almost like you are interrupting them when go there.. as you can tell, I hate going there. Enough on that!

Well, to start off today, the old farm feed wagon, Dad's ole rusty gray ford 4 wheel drive pickup has a flat on the front, so we get to fix that, and then it's off the circus called life.

smiling... wonder how Heather and Paul's new pigs are doing...hum. They got a couple to feed out and Andrew does not want to eat them cause he likes them... oh my!

I was going through some old family photos, so in the next week or so, as time allows, I will get more online of the kids showing their animals.. that was a big part of our lives, along with all the other activities.. but we loved our gypsy weekends.. In those days, one really worked to show cattle, etc. I am sure they still do, but in those days, one stayed up late at night cutting up sisal rope into fine pieces, gathering up all the needed supplies and you really dressed a calf, adding hair and fiber where needed and taking away where it was not. In some ways, I think a kiddo learned a lot more about their animals, the animals faults, etc and how to fix it and the next time they needed an animal, they remembered and looked for one without so many faults to correct... thinking out loud... kids would say I am rambling now.. so I'll sign off..

Have a great day, and enjoy the roses!!

What a wonderful day it has been with all the sunshine, after the "lil" ole snow storm we had. It has been many days without sunshine, and now... it's peaking through.
Andrew had a doctor's visit in OKC this am and Ann and Jake went along and with Heather and Andrew to get his ears checked after his surgery. All is A OK! And he is doing quite well. They ran by Farmers Grain in Edmond to get bird feed for Ann's Quakers and her wild bird feed. Our "out side" birds eat as well as we do, haha!!
Ann put up a little train that she got several years ago for Christmas in our living room and Andrew found it today and played and played with it. Our home really looks nice as Ann has done a great job (as usual) decorating it up for the season.
We ended up having a great long Thanksgiving … We ended up having three special meals with most of the family at each… wow, what a deal! But, I think Ann was ready for it to be over and get Christmas underway!!
We received a special note from our niece Cortney Shaklee, in Florida, who just got back into the country. She and her mom went to Italy for some R and R! They had a really special time and truly enjoyed the trip. I can not wait to see the pictures of their trip. What a wonderful opportunity to spend that much time with your family, and see the Old Country in the process.
About it for now. More later! Enjoy the day!