After a brief stop in Branson, MO to see our dear friends the Duttons, we made our way down to Rosebud, Arkansas ancestral home of Bapa Sherwood. :) My dad was actually born in Arizona, but a few weeks later his family moved to a farm in Arkansas where they would work hundreds of acres and raise 14 children. They lived in a little trailer which has grown over the years through self-built additions into a big house. I loved bringing my boys to the place where I spent many Spring breaks and summer vacations as a child. The boys slept in the bunk room where my dad slept as a boy and where I used to sleep when we visited. The gigantic table is the same, the chalkboard wall in the hallway, the old hammocks and tire swings outside. This place is a trip down memory lane. We had a great time at the reunion and the boys especially loved participating in the Sherwood family rodeo. A big thank you to all of my extended family who opened their homes and hearts to us and made us all feel right at home even though it has been years since we've been down. They are Southern hospitality at it's best. Okay, enough chatting, here is the barrage of pictures from our time on the farm.
The boys got to ride miniature horses, courtesy of uncle Gary, and ride on four-wheelers.
They also climbed and tunneled through stacks of haybales stored in the barn. Benjamin got stuck in between to bales at one point which was very traumatic, but he recovered. Here they are in the bunk room.
I always loved the stirrup steps to get up to the next bunk. I wish you could see my dad's and uncles' names all painted on the frames of the beds. If I'm remembering correctly, six of the boys shared this one little room.
During our stay, the boys and I did a lot of stomping around in our boots. Too bad we can't get Marc to wear any. We're still working on it.
The rest of the pictures are from the rodeo. Elijah won the roping for his age division. I made it through the first round for the adults, but then had the unfortunate experience of roping myself instead of the dummy on the second go around. I am not a natural. Gina, my Jewish sister-in-law, on the other hand could probably go pro and this was her first time touching a rope. Both the twins did some calf riding. They each stayed on for about three seconds. Benjamin spent most of his time building sand castles. The content of said "sand" is questionable. Tobias just wanted to climb the fences and sit with Bapa. We all had a great time.
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