May 21- the end of the world, or just another day-

Today I went to a funeral for a baby girl- Faith Renee Hancock- the newborn daughter of Todd and Tonya. I cant express how sad I am for them and their families. As I was driving to the funeral, in my pretty pink and green and yellow flowered dress, because they asked us to wear spring colors, I saw people all around, on their horses riding, on their lawnmowers, at the farmers market, getting gas in their 4wheelers or boats, or at a car show in down town Jasper, with a bouncy house and festive atmosphere- and I couldnt help but be mad at everyone- for going about their day and their lives, while quite a few of the people of this town were going to a cemetary to lay a baby to rest- the hardest thing a family can do- We were going to witness it, we were going to share it in, and these people were just going about their lives like nothing had happened.
I was SO mad at them. And I was jealous- A beautiful spring day, and I was going to witness every parents worst nightmare. Be a part of every grandparents worst day. And they were enjoying life, or going about their mundane chores like someone's world wasnt ending.

And then I realized, we all do it- every second of every day- there is someone with their greatest triumph and someone suffering their greatest loss- while we are whooping and hollering and having a blast, someone else is sad and lonely and desperate for the hurt to go away. So, try to remember that- sometimes the lady in walmart who runs out in front of you with her buggy isnt doing it to be rude or disrespectful, she is just thinking back to watching all those pretty pink balloons lift off from a sad muddy graveyard and float to the heavens with a prayer for a baby who never felt the sunshine.

The service was beautiful, heartwrenching and touching. I pray I never have to watch another man carry his baby's casket into a crowd of people to be put into the ground- But I also pray that I get to witness the love and empathy that I saw today for the rest of my life.
What these parents did for us, their friends and family, to allow us into their most sacred and heartbreaking time is beyond words. I will never be able to repay them for teaching me the true meaning of life, love , and Faith- for sharing their joys and heartbreak with us, through pictures, blog posts and facebook-

Now, as a Christian I dont believe today is the end of the world- But, if it is- I know I saw the purest love today that there ever has been. Love that is born the second parents realize a million in one chance has happened, there is a life growing, for them to nurture and love- THAT is pure love- to love something that isnt even here yet- to anticipate it, to long for it. And true grief is to have it taken from you before you can enjoy it.




That being said- Is it supposed to be at 5pm central or eastern that the world ends? cause its already 3 here and I got alot to do and need to know if I only have another hour.....


In true Byerly fashion, my kids enjoyed last night- just incase the end IS coming-

See, we are the type of family that really does try to stay quiet, and keep to ourselves, and we work hard at not causing drama- or excitement- BUT, it seems to find us- no matter what- Just a simple BBQ? let my kids come over- one will fall in your swimming pool and try to walk on the bottom.
Having a nice family reunion? some kid will make fun of one of my kids and then someone ends up with a bloody nose and whining about 'that mean byerly boy'.. We just attract situations- most of the time, NOT even of our own making. We are just in the right place, at the right time, and BOOM- we are a headline- AGAIN.

My sister in law came and got them and took them to her moms pool hall- its in a tiny little town north of here- Before they left I made them put on decent clothes, and told them "DONT be rude, please be good, and DONT insult anyone- alot of my clients are from Pineland, and they ALL know you are my kids- even if YOU dont know them!"

I didnt mention anything about enticeing K9 units or being involoved in a manhunt-

I have GOT to learn that I need to quit telling them what NOT to do, and only tell them what they CAN do- (its the buzzard catching thing ALL over again- )

so anyway- as I hear the story, this is what happened. They were all playing pool, when my sister in law gets a phone call from her daughter- she is dog sitting the K9 for the police department- at the policemans house.

my neice needs a lighter... to light a candle.. well sister in law, being the astute person she is, knows this is bunk- BUT, heads over there anyway- well it WAS bunk- Come to find out- the policemans house sits on an airstrip- and planes DO use it. well, As my neice is in the house, some guy from out of state, lands his plane and then walks in and closes the door- like he owns the place- the Dog went on full alert, and the man left. BUT- and this is where my kids become involved-- When my sister in law gets there, with my so far, well behaved children in tow, the resident police officer comes screaching in on two wheels, with a few on duty buddies. (my kids got so excited at this point of the story that I pretty much had to get the rest from my sister in law) - I heard 'dust flying everywhere' 'two wheels' , 'like on TV' etc etc....

SO- then they go to looking for said pilot- the one who has NO clue where he is- and proceed to arrest him- well in the meantime, my kids are enjoying the crap out of this- I mean they are in the MIDDLE of a man hunt- guns drawn, full police mode- (or at least thats what they remember in their heads)-
THEN, my neice brings out the K9 dog- and proceeded to tell my intellegent but commonsense lacking boys that he only attacks when commanded by words in German.

Which leads them to attempt to say every 'germanish' word they can think of- "Schnitzel"
"Farfenugen"
"fritzgerald"
(they dont know many german words...)

All my Sister in law could think of was "OMG- what if his attack word IS "Schinitzel"?

Luckily for them, it wasnt- and soon law and order was restored to the sleepy little town of Pineland, but forever will it be remembered that was the day that the Byerly boys came to town. EVEN if they were not directly involoved!


Now, I also have to tell off on Bow- A friend of ours came over to pick something up- this is the guy who has the distinct privledge of picking up all of my dead animals and taking them to his wife who is a taxidermist- the day he had a dozen frozen rabbits all over the bed of his truck because the bag busted is PRICELESS- and he was on the porch and we were shooting the breeze when the kids dumped out some grub worms- He asked Bow if he had ever eaten one. Bow just looked at him with the 'hmmmmm- I cant remember if I am supposed to admit to that or not' look...

So then, Brett asks "have you ever ate a BBQ'd grasshopper? "
and Tom Says "no, but I've had chocolate covered Grasshoppers"
and Bow says "I eat chocolate covered Bunnies!" I guess he thinks his easter bunnies are the real thing- dipped in chocolate- which brings me to my next point- I need to make sure there is NEVER any dipping chocolate around here- as we still have a few live bunnies at the barn....

********** breaking news*********
Just overheard in my kitchen-
my nephew who is 8 is over here with Rayley and Bow, they are playing- They just came in and asked if they could have a sandwhich- I said "yes"
So, they went into the kitchen, and I hear the normal sounds- Getting of the bread, jelly, peanut butter, and setting it on the counter-
Then Masen says " So where are the sandwhiches?"
Rayley said "uhhh we have to make them"
"OH" he said-

Then, he says "so uhhhhhh where is the package they are in?" Rayley said "well there is the bread, the peanut butter and the jelly, we have to assemble it"

"ohhhhhh"

5 minutes later he says "ya know, I have never made my own sandwhich before" So to his future wife- dont let him fool ya, his aunt Michelle made him learn how- once upon a time.....

20 minutes ago they were outside playing- and in came Bow, he had a 'needle' in his 'inger'

I knew imediatly he had a cactus thorn in his thumb- Behind him came in Rayley and Masen.

Now, we dont just have cactus growing all over- BRett has a cactus garden. With maybe 3 cacti in it.
I asked "so why did you idiots get in the cactus?"
They all looked at me like a deer in the headlights- to which Masen replied "I DIDNT" all proud of hisself-

"I am not stupid, I know this is a cactus thorn, and I know it didnt jump off and attack you, so WHY did you touch it?"

Bertha Sue- in her infinate wisdom and beleif that a good excuse will always get someone ELSE in trouble says "well Masen dared us to"
uhhhhh okay-
SO, me, being me, said "well aint that just the brightest thing you have ever done?"
"well when someone dares you to do something you HAVE to do it, its the law!"
"well in that case, I DARE you to clean up the trash in the yard and double dog dare you to clean your room"
all this time I am sticking tape to Bows thumb trying to get this miniscule hairlike thorn out, while he screams-

"not funny MOOOOM" and to Masen " you butthead, your an idiot"
"well Rayley, he cant be both and let me explain the differnce to you between an idiot and an ass- see, an ass is gonna see just how much of an idiot you are- and in this case the ass won.
who is standing here begging for tape? saying they have thorns in their hands?
Right- YOU and Bow-
whats Masen standing there doing? -

Laughing at you for being an idiot.
You KNEW there were thorns, you KNEW they hurt, and yet, you were dumb enough to stick your hand in them. "

Now Masen did want to be insulted that I called him an ass- but I also explained to him that he KNEW better than to touch them, and no matter how dumb some people are, when you take advantage of that, you are indeed an ass.

Nothing to be mad about- its just kids being kids- and hopefully, kids that have learned a life lesson, again, at the hands of mother nature- and thanks to my lackluster parenting skills-

If not, Scotch tape is a good thorn puller-

Now its 4pm my time, and I either have an hour to get my toe nails painted so I dont go into the afterlife with chipped nails and am driven nuts for eternity, OR the world ISNT going to end, and I have to cook BR's supper- either way- I have work to do-