Musings from the Ozarks

Prairie Day

by Joshua Trask

We started out bright and early to the George Washington Carver monument for the Prairie Day. When we got there we got in line to see all of the animal skins. They were cool. Fox, badger, bobcat, wolf, otter, skunk, weasel, rabbit...almost every kind of animal skin was there!
Next we went to the fire rescue station. It was a little place where they told about Smoky Bear. They had a bunch of gear for fighting fires.
We were accompanied by two families that we know and surrounded by a ton of people that we didn't know.
Then we went to see the live animals. There was a turtle and a prairie king snake. Mom freaked out about the snake!
We looked at all of the plants and held Monarch butterflies. We saw them all hatching out of their cocoons.
We then went to the Junior Ranger Station. They gave us little books to fill out.
We went to see the old fashioned toys. My favorite was the "ball in cup" toy.
Then we went on the trail to George Washington Carvers house. We met Ashley's English teacher there. He was cooking a bunch of yummy food and he wouldn't let us eat any of it!
At George Washington Carver's  house we listened to a lot of old fashioned music like guitar and banjo.
Back on the trail a seven foot black snake crossed the trail and Mom freaked out even MORE!
We went back to the Junior Ranger Station and all got Prairie Day badges.
After we left we had a fun time eating at Braums. It was a really great day!

Trip to the Little Grand Canyon

by Levi Trask

Our whole family went on a looonnng trip and we finally made it to the Little Grand Canyon. The first trail we went on was a trail that brought us to a look out place so we could look down at the cave. Then we went on another trail and it led to a stream. We all had fun climbing up a trail that led to a big rock. Then we went on a long dirt trail, we saw a rabbit on the trail. It was really cool seeing it. We were wanting to go down to the cave. We thought we could get down to it by going to the parking lot, cutting through the woods, and going down the ravine. But Elias came running saying he knew the way to it. We jumped the fence and hiked through the dry creek bed. We finally found the cave. It was HUGE!  We had to go through a dark place to make it out the other side. We made it to the little cave. It was filled with sinking sand type mud.
After we left we were starving so Dad took us to Colton's Steakhouse. It was filled with all sorts of animals hanging on the walls. We ate a bunch of delicious food. It was awesome!
We got home at midnight. Joshua was so annoying taking up the whole seat because he fell asleep.
But it was still an awesome day!

A Big Explore

by Elias Trask

We went on a big exploration. We walked for hours until we came to a path. We sat down and drank our drinks, but I couldn't sit down because Joshua and Levi disturbed a hive of hornets. We ran until we came to a cow pasture gate. We climbed into the field and were looking for a trap that had been there before. We couldn't find it. Joshua and Levi said they saw the cows, I didn't believe them. Then I saw the cows too and got scared. Our dog Koda came chasing after the cows, I climbed the fence because I was so scared. Levi saw a bull. We all got out of the field and ate apples. We walked and walked to a pond. We shot our guns but we didn't shoot any bullfrogs. Levi yelled, "a badger, a rabbit, no a fox!" But it was none of those. We actually don't know what it was but whatever it was, it was weird. It left too quick to see what it was.
We tried to get bullfrogs but still couldn't. On our way home I lost my shoe in the mud. So I walked the rest of the way with one shoe and a sock. We finally got home and I took a bath.

A note from Dylan

Hi! Hope you are doing good! I am! I have been busy with cleaning, making breakfast, fixing the mower, mowing, riding horses, helping dad do bodywork and painting on cars trucks and tractors, school, working on my truck some and driving it, and playing my guitar! I've learned quite a few songs on my guitar that I can sing to, and it's allot of fun! Summer sure seemed to go by so fast! I'm excited that falls here! I'm not really looking forward to winter though, although it shouldn't be too bad! When it gets a little cooler we are gonna go fishing with our neighbor in his boat! That'll be fun! Well, I hope you have a good day/night! 

-Dylan

The Squeal
by Ashley Trask

The squeal usually does not come in the early morning hours while it is still cool. It may come in the late morning though, as the sun begins to shine bright. It may come at any hour of the afternoon. During the hottest part of the day one can be sure of hearing the loud bothersome sound. It may burst forth in the evening as well. A person can never be quite certain when it will shout the squeal it has been holding back. The squeal has caused people to jump a little and give the double look. They look to see where it came from and soon find out. Once they do they scurry away as fast as they can. This disturbing squeal is actually a sound of relief to the owners of what is producing the squeal. To the owners of the squealing contraption it is a sound for which the aching ears rejoice to hear.

Might the reader be curious as to what the squealer actually is?

Too bad, I am ending the story here.

Just kidding. The crazy squealing object is my Dad's car, a Nissan Sentra. The air conditioner compressor will not stop attempting to quit on us. So, when the car squeals it means that the compressor is kicking back on. At times we go to great lengths to hear that squeal. Once it does let out the giant squeal we sigh with gladness because cold air blows through the vents onto our sweating selves.

The Horse Whisperer

by Paige Trask

It was a very busy Saturday, but we were all looking forward to one thing, The Horse Whisperer Event! We got everybody ready to go, and we were off!! When we arrived we got seated in the bleachers, and then went and got some food! It was absolutely delicious, ESPECIALLY the snow cones! :) And we all got like 3 cans of soda, which isn't very normal for us. Anyways, on with the show....or, uh, story. We got to jump in the bouncy houses, and we had a race in a different bouncy house too! That was fun. When we got back to our bleachers, which Dylan had saved for us, the sun was just setting. It was so beautiful! Then the Horse Whisperer man came out. He lunged his horse, then saddled it, and finally started riding. Each thing he did, he explained in a spiritual  manner. He rode bridle less, and said that it was like putting your trust in God. It was all really neat! We all had such a fun time, and got little cowboy New Testaments. Elias really liked those, because he wants to be a cowboy!
Anyways, that's all I could think of, so I really hope we can see ya'll soon!

-JoKeS-

Q. Why did the chicken cross the road?

A. To go to your house.

Knock, knock.

Who's there?

Did you already forget? The chicken of course!

Q. What stops then goes then stops then goes?
A. A blonde at a blinking red light.

Q. What is green, red, and black and goes 200 mph?
A. A frog in a blender.


Must Do Autumn Activities!

"Autumn, the year's last, loveliest smile."
-William Cullen Bryant

Buy pumpkin spice creamer and use it in your coffee. It's delicious. The end.

Breathe in the cool, crisp air and feel cozy in sweaters.

Listen to the sound of leaves crunching under your feet.

But pick up a few colorful leaves for collecting before you crush them to pieces.

Bake a pumpkin pie.