HGTV Casting Call!!

It's actually surprising to me that I am trying to communicate with HGTV right now because I am currently very mad at both Jen Hatmaker AND HGTV!!

We have been looking for a new home and property for a while now and never really had the itch for renovation until we started watching Jen's show "My Big Family Renovation".  Suddenly really crazy things were coming out of our mouths like "maybe we could do that" and "that seems like fun"!  The universe was also ganging up on us because at about the same time we accidentally, suddenly, maybe a little on purpose came across a 10 acre farm house that could end up being perfect for us.  The house and property definitely need some serious TLC; things like new floors, new fixtures, new appliances, and new walls and stuff!! ;)
The location is great, the property is big, and the contractors are telling us it has "good bones"!  So, despite the very clear warnings of how hard a complete farm house renovation will be and how much work will be involved, we have decided to go for it!  Lord help us!!

Currently, we are living in a rental home in the middle of Austin.  In our home there are two adults, three children, one Great Pyrenees autism service dog, four rescued pitbulls, two more dogs, two goats, five chickens, three ducks, and a dove!  BURSTING AT THE SEAMS IS AN UNDERSTATEMENT!!
 


If it's not clear already, we are animal people!  We have an "un-official" animal rescue that we call JPW Rescue Ranch.  We hope very soon to make it an "official" rescue organization!  This new property is just what we need to make that happen!
The story of our rescue ranch started a couple of years ago when we came across an abused pitbull and her litter of puppies that were all about to be euthanized just because of their breed.   After bringing home 11 dogs (1 momma and 10 puppies) we got a crash course in the sad world of pitbulls.  Despite their bad reputations, they all turned out to be sweet and wonderful dogs.  Unfortunately most of the people who wanted to adopt them were absolutely terrifying!  And to make matters worse, 8 of the puppies came down with parvo, which they picked up during their time at the Galveston animal shelter (a well-documented horrifying death camp for animals).  More than $10,000.00 later, we managed to save all but two of the puppies, and we found good, loving homes for most of the survivors.  Overall the experience changed our lives (while emptying our savings) and our dream of an animal rescue ranch was born!  https://www.facebook.com/SafeinAustin

We have since taken in and rehabilitated many abused, abandoned, or misunderstood dogs and litters of puppies.  Most have gone on to other forever homes, but some have been too damaged for outside adoption and they found a forever home with us.

And our rescues are not limited to only one species.  We have also wound up with a one-eared goat named Prancer, her best shy little buddy named Mr. Gray (who we saved from ending up as cabrito), a dove, several chickens, and even three ducks!

Technically, we have three children, but Angel actually makes four!  Angel is Jackson's autism service dog and she goes everywhere we go!  She joined our family two years ago.  The day Jackson met Angel our world changed for the better.  I can't put into words what their relationship has done for Jackson and for all of us.  She is amazing.  He is amazing.  The two of them together are unstoppable!
Obviously, autism and service dogs hold a HUGE place in my heart.  I hope that my future will involve helping to train service dogs for kids with autism and other people that can benefit from these amazing dogs.
You can check out Jackson and Angel's story here- https://www.facebook.com/SnugglebugsAngel

So now, let me introduce you to the entire family!-


David - He may look like a bouncer, but he is actually a hard-working patent attorney who loves taking care of his family, spoiling animals, and Georgia Bulldog football!   David is a partner in a local IP law firm, but he spends most of his time working for first-time inventors and small businesses--in other words, clients who don't have much money!

Jamie- Besides the animal rescue, Jamie owns and operates her own business,  JPW Endeavors LLC, which is the home of the Straw-lution Straw (the first ever "straw that goes in, but doesn't come out"!) The Straw-lution Straw was invented, patented, manufactured, and is now distributed world-wide by Jamie herself!

You can check out the Straw-lution Straw here:
www.strawlution.com
https://www.facebook.com/Strawlution

She also homeschools her three human children and does training with the four legged ones!  Jamie loves to dance, anything outdoors, and most of all being a mommy!

James- Nine years old, loves skateboarding, football, and all things video-game related.  He secretly has the biggest heart and all the animals know it!

Jackson- 8 years old, has Asperger Syndrome, LOVES dinosaurs, superheroes, drawing, and sharing his knowledge of autism, service dogs, and animal behavior with his peers!

Angel- 3 years old, a Great Pyrenees, and Autism Service Dog for Jackson!

We have been asked by all sorts of people to come and talk about autism, service dogs, and dog behavior!  Jackson loves sharing what he has learned and even made up a game to play with the crowd.  He tells stories about how he taught himself how to read when he was two years old and could count to ten in six different languages, but didn't know how to talk to his family at all.  He explains how Aspergers gives him super powers like being super smart and having heightened senses. He gives examples of how we need to have open hearts for everyone even if they are different and that sometimes people need some extra care even if you can't see tell by looking at their outsides! 
Talking to people about Autism, Service dogs, and dogs in general is something we do as a family and it makes me one very proud Momma to see my children making a difference with those around them! <3

Jovie- 7 years old, loves dancing,swimming, and coloring.  Horses, dogs, and pigs are her favorite animals. Her favorite color is purple, and she's really good at using her sweet freckled little face to get herself out of trouble! ;)

Cameron- The oldest and wisest family member!  She is Jamie's shadow and has been with her through everything for the past 15 years.  She is amazing with ANY animal that is brought into her home and has shared a food bowl with everything from puppies to lizards and bunnies!

Sisco- Three years old and the only male dog of the house!  He's also smaller than the mouths of all of the female dogs! He's got a bit of an attitude, but you would too if you were constantly concerned about getting stepped on by a TON (ok, only about 400 pounds) of females!

Duchess- Our four-year-old Momma!  Duchess was severely abused before she was rescued.  She was locked up in a box and hidden under a tarp and wood pile, while being bred over and over again so her "owner" could sell her puppies.  She is the most thankful and loyal dog you have ever met, and she instantly takes on the mother role for every rescued puppy we bring into our home.

Kim and Jill- The TWINS!  They were two of the puppies from Duchess' litter that we rescued.  Kim and Jill were the last two puppies that got parvo and were the worst cases.  By the time these two girls got sick we were Completely. Out. Of. Money!  Austin Pets Alive helped us by providing all the medicine and tools we needed to keep the girls alive at home.  We injected fluids in them ourselves for days, along with all of their medicine.  Once they were healthy, we could not find anyone that wanted black, female pitbulls, other than the monsters looking for fighting dogs (or bait dogs).  Plus, they are so bonded to each other that we don't think they could ever be separated.  Now, Kim and Jill are our nanny dogs!  These big scary looking pitbulls are as sweet and gentle as can be to all the puppies we bring into the house!

Sunshine- The newest member of our family!  We just recently rescued Sunshine and another dog named Chloe from an abandonment situation.  Chloe was pregnant and the two of them had been on their own for some time.  Sunshine was horribly weak, beaten up, and wounded because she had been acting as the protector for pregnant Chloe, her only friend.  She's still a young dog, but now has extreme arthritis and a partially torn acl.  Because of everything Sunshine has been through and due to her injuries, she will be spending the rest of her life with us at the rescue ranch where she will be spoiled and loved and have nothing to worry about!

Prancer- Our sweet one eared goat!  We brought Prancer home the day she was born and her momma decided she only wanted to feed her twin sister and not her.  We bottle fed her and spoiled her rotten (like we do most our animals)!  She now has no idea that she is a goat, and if we let her she would happily live in the house with the rest of us!

Mr. Gray- Is our shy guy!  But he keeps Prancer company in the goat yard since she is not allowed to live in the house where she wants to be!  He is also really good friends with Princess (a chicken!) and loves it when she sneaks over into the goat yard!

Princess- our oldest and strongest hen!  We believe she is part ostrich because of the huge eggs she lays!  She loves pasta, but has now been spoiled to the point where she will only take the pasta when given to her by hand, one noodle at a time!! ;)

Rock and Spike- our two bearded silkie roosters!  These two boys don't mind sharing the responsibilities of a rooster and are able to take turns crowing throughout the entire day and night!  Our neighbors are not all fans of these two sweet boys, hence the need to get out to the farm house ASAP!!

Pocahontas and Snow White- our two bearded silkie hens!  These are the sweetest, softest, and most motherly of any chicken you will meet!  They will let you carry them around like little furry handbags for as long as you want and when they are brooding, they will take on the mother role to any eggs that needs it.  (Snow White is currently sitting on two silkie eggs and a duck egg.  The duck egg is almost as big as she is!!)

Donald, Daisy, and Ming Ming (aka- the ducks!)-  They are loud, messy and desperately need a pond because two baby pools are not doing it for them!  Or us!!

Leonardo- our dove!  This sweet guy recently lost his buddy.  Doves live in pairs, so we are currently looking for another white dove to hang out with Leonardo!  What would be even better is to not bring anymore animals into this rental house and get a nice big dove area built out at the farm house!!

As you can see we have no business being in a half acre lot in the middle of Austin!   And these are just the "children" that LIVE in our home full-time!  Remember we have other dogs, litters of puppies, and odd assortments of animals coming in and going out all the time!

Here are some pictures of our current house!

 The Chicken coop and run are in the back corner of our yard.  You can see by the picture that there is a HOUSE about 20 feet to it's diagonal and another one immediately to the right of it!  (Remember when I mentioned some of the neighbors are not fans of the roosters?!)

Some pictures of the front of the house!  Yes, we are right next to our neighbors and yes you DO see a pod and a camper in the driveway.  I wish I could say they haven't been there long..... but that would be a lie! :/







This is the Art room/ Homeschool room/ My office..... it's embarrassing!  Kind of looks like we should be on a hoarding show as opposed to a renovation show!





And the embarrassing continues in our spare room!  It's an extra space that was added onto the master bedroom of the house.  We used it as a dance studio/party room a long time ago, but it is now part closet, David's office, and dog room!

We live in Texas and with all the dogs we have at our place at any given time, they need a place they can come inside and get away from the heat.  So..... they go in through the window!  Yes, we built them a step ladder up to the window, and we are the CRAZY people air-conditioning the outdoors so that our dogs can come in and cool off when we are not home or busy.  In our defense, we tried putting a dog door in the window, but the big dogs knocked it out almost immediately!  (When you are in a rental house, you have to make do with what you got!)

I wasn't joking when I said David shares his office with the closet and the dogs!!  He is a partner at Abel IP, (http://www.abel-ip.com/) one of the largest Intellectual Property firms in Austin, and works from home A LOT!  When he does, he has all three of his computer monitors set up on a folding table.....right next to the dog food tubs in the room with the window wide open!!  INSANE... I know, but there is no room for an office for him, and we just keep rescuing animals!!! ;)

And here is our lovely living room!  It's also the playroom, more of my office and homeschool space, and the dog hangout!  The dog area in the spare room is small, so when we are home we ALL hang out in here together!  You can see the large amount of dog beds everywhere!  The renovation will DEFINITELY have to include an actual family room (for humans only) that does not have to be covered in hair, slobber, and sometimes "stuff we shall not mention" at all times!

The Farm House!!

And here are some of the little farm house we are trying to buy!  Our renovation plan includes knocking down a wall to open up the kitchen/living room areas!  Complete kitchen and bathroom renovations. The entire house will get new floors and paint! A total makeover to the outside of the house, including decking, paint, and landscaping.  Plus, we plan to convert the three car garage into a guest and rec room, along with a pool house bathroom!  The house does have a pool that is currently a frog pond, and a giant two story workshop/barn that will become the garage, dance hall, and all the storage we (and our animals) could need!!

It's really super hard to see the outside of the house because it has been completely 

swallowed by the vegetation around it!

You have to look really hard to see it, but when we get the trees trimmed and some
landscaping done we are going to have an AMAZING hill country view!!

Thanks so much for checking out our story!  We would love to join the HGTV family, if you think you can handle all of us! ;)

So many of my friends thought we needed to respond to this casting call!  A couple of them felt they needed to say a few things--you know, just so we are not the only people telling you, we are awesome and stuff!! ;)  Here are a few things they wanted to share!


"Hi HGTV,

First of all, Jamie is totally unique and absolutely one of a kind.  I have never met anyone like her.  She is seriously one of the best mamas I have ever met.  She is totally self-sacrificing and one hundred percent committed to the well being of her absolutely adorable children. She is always the mom who goes waaay above and beyond on every school project, art or sewing project, party, and everything in between.  All of our friends are continually in awe of her talents - no kidding, she is the one I always call on to help do my kids' school projects or to put together party favors or to plan the whole party!  And what's also funny is she is the kind of person who thrives on last-second deadlines, always waiting until the last possible moment to pull an all-nighter to finish the (insert name of cute costume, poster, school yearbook) and blow all of us away with her creativity and talent.

Jamie loves her children dearly and has the literal patience of Job.  She also loves my kids like they are her own and would do anything for our family.  She has been completely supportive of our three adoptions and has bailed me out countless times on watching my kids, running an errand, or basically anything that I need help with.  She is a totally giving friend.  She and her super fun unschooling kiddos do things spur of the moment and out of the blue like go on a camping trip to the beach, a cross country trip in an RV, or put together bags of essentials to pass out to homeless folks.  Nothing she could ever do would surprise me. 

Now, let's talk about the animals.  YIKES.  The lady loves her animals.  She may be a little nutty, for realz. Recently she and David and the kids found a huge snake in the backyard, and he picked it up gently, put it in the car and they all took it to a nature preserve to let it go free.  WHAT?!  That's crazy talk!  Plus the goats, chickens, ducks, turtles, pit bulls, and tons of other rescue animals you find there.  You see, Jamie really does have a heart of gold.  She is a rare gem, and her kids and family are all pretty amazing.  You just have to meet them. They all have that inner spark, star quality.  They are all performers, naturally.  And they are all really in need of a farm house renovation for their animal rescue and all the fun and crazy kids that spend so much time at their home! 

Please let me know if you need further dish on Jamie Wallace.

Best,
Bethany Smith"



HGTV,
    I am very proud of my daughter, she is simply amazing.  She is a mom who puts everything ahead of herself.  Very determined to do what ever it takes to help her family.
   She has home schooled her children now for four years and I will be honest, it was a bit disturbing to me at first because Jamie was never, let's say a "studious" type person growing up.  However, I listen now to my grandchildren and I am truly in awe.  They are much further along then many children their same ages.  I remember during a visit she asked if I would help the boys with their history lesson.  I thought "I can do this, it's second grade for heaven sake".... Oh boy! Nope!  I had to say "how about I help Jovie'!  She was in Kindergarten at the time!
   Jamie is very creative in how she teaches it is not simply memorization but a unique way of looking past just academics and incorporating life lessons as well.
   Jamie and David are teaching the children to love all things especially animals.  They currently have a small heard of animals and I am so excited for them to finally have an opportunity to move to a place where they can nurture their love for animals even more!  I like the fact that it is teaching the kids responsibility and the love of the out doors.  So many children are addicted to computers (which are great) but are sometimes lost to the real world around them.  My grandchildren are privileged to be exposed to both.
  Both Jamie and David have HUGE hearts.  Not only are they willing to take on rescue dogs they are willing to help whoever is in need.  Jamie had virtually brought strangers in to live with them because they had no where else to go.  She didn't really have the room but she made it work.  Again it made me uneasy knowing she had strangers living with her, however it also taught me a lesson in trust and faith and what I was even more proud of was it taught my grandchildren to accept every person not matter who they are.  This also teaches them how to take care of each other as well.
   I have so many stories I could go on and on with.  Helping homeless people.  Having the kids pass out food and hot chocolate in the winter.  Jamie creating contraptions to help a newborn goat who was crippled at birth to get around.  She carried that thing everywhere, like a baby!  Even did a cross country road trip (to go help her father) with her kids, and the goat in the passenger seat next to her!
   I hope you consider helping my daughter with her renovation.  I can not imagine someone more deserving.
Sincerely,
Karen Shives
MOM

Hi HGTV!

Love all your shows!  I am a Realtor ® in the Greater Austin, TX area.   I have known David Griner and Jamie Wallace for several years now.  They are wonderful caring people.   I have witnessed first hand the tireless work they do to help save animals (especially pit bulls) from kill shelters and other situations which would put an end to their lives.  Their “pets” which include chickens, goats, ducks and whatever else needs a place to live are just as much apart of the family as the kids are.  The kids are also growing up to be loving compassionate humans beings and you can already see a love for the outdoors, animals and adventure in each one of them.  The kids are easy to talk to, smart and fun to be around.  Jamie is passionate about starting her rescue ranch and this farm house project is just what they need!  David is very much a country boy who got stuck in the city and he is so caring about every creature, he did not even kill the snake that got into their current chicken coop, even after it bit him several times….now that is compassion for all creatures on this earth. 

Not only am I their Realtor®, but I am also their friend.   David and Jamie are the kind of people that help others in need without any hesitation.  They have come to home at night to help with sick foster kittens and have always cared about me and my family, even when times have been hard for them.  They are fun, they are a bit crazy, they have a great sense of humor, they are passionate, they are emotional and they would make for great TV.  I watch plenty of realty TV shows to know that they would be an incredible choice for your show and the home is perfect for what you are looking for. 

All my best,

Lu Ann Reyes, REALTOR®                      

Dear HGTV,
    Jamie and David need your help!  After personally watching their children and their animals consisting of ducks, chickens, doves, a tortoise, goats, and countless dogs and puppies, they all just need a little more room!!  This lovely mother works full time not only to homeschool her children, run an company, and also provide for all the animals. 
This family being animals lovers is an understatement!  With your help, this amazingly incredible family, who I have the honor and privilege of knowing, would be able to go above and beyond what they are already doing!  Please help make their dreams become a reality and help them renovate their new home!!
Brittany Brosnac

The Nothing place....

Yesterday was a hard day.  I was sad.  Really sad.

I wasn't sure why I was sad.  I didn't want to be sad. But I couldn't figure out how to not be sad.

Robyn Williams committing suicide has touched and effected us.  All of us.

Those of us that suffer from depression are dealing with so many feelings.  Complete and utter sadness for the loss of such a great man, is a given.  Fear because his death reminds us that no amount of money or fame can fix a heavy heart.  Even.... understanding; not in a way that justifies what he did, but an understanding of the fight, of how hard it is, of how deep and overwhelming the nothing place can be.
 
Most of the day yesterday I sat. Or stood. Or stared.   The dialogue in my head was things like "you have a ton of stuff to do. Let's get up and work on it", "Everything is ok right now, you don't have to be sad", "look at your kids playing, your animals, your home, there are horrible terrible things happening to other people.... please just Stop. Being. Sad."
Then I looked on FB and was reminded it was my friends birthday and I had promised her a fancy card!  Motivation!  I told Jovie, and together we started cutting, folding, and coloring!  Jovie looked up at me and said "this is fun, Momma", and I smiled back!   "SEE", I told myself, "nothing to be sad about!"  We spent an hour and a half working on the cool flip up birthday card and I didn't feel any kind of sad!
Then we drove it over to her house and gave her the card and hugs, and I got crazy amounts of licks and loves from one of the puppies from our last rescued litter, and it was all Awesome!  No sad.

Then we came home.  The kids went their separate ways and I was looking around at a house that needs serious work.  I didn't have anything to make for someone, I couldn't find a reason to create, a way to give a piece of my heart so I could get something back in return.  Suddenly, again..... I'm drowning in SAD.

Let me take a minute to explain  what "Sad" is to someone that struggles with depression.   Sad is scared, sad is feeling alone, sad is feeling lost, sad is so so incredibly dark.  And sometimes your standing in the brightest light and it's still insanely and unexplainably dark.  You heard of having a knot in your stomach, right.  Well, this sad is having a knot in your heart.  It's a feeling of being suffocated even though nothing is touching you.  Its hard to breath.  It's hard to be.

Making a card for my friend is no significant thing.  I wasn't delivering a big fancy birthday gift.  Just a simple made with paper, crayons, and elmers glue card! But I knew regardless it would make her smile.  It would show her she was loved, and Selfishly.... it took away my "there for no reason" sad.  You can't give someone something without feeling joy in return.  No matter how insignificant it might be sharing, creating, giving a piece of your heart to someone else makes them happy and in return makes you happy.   While we made it, on our way to deliver it, while we were there.... the sad was gone.

The problem is the Nothing Place.   The problem is the times where you don't have anyone to give a piece of your heart to.  The nothing place is where you are, when you are no where else.   Your body is somewhere but your heart is lost.  It's alone and overwhelmed and Oh My Gosh your heart is so incredibly strong and stubborn and no matter how long you tell it to not be sad.  It's just sad.
THIS is depression.  This is a disease.  This is hard, and exhausting, and frustrating. 

I suffer from this disease.  I all too often find myself alone in a place full of life, love, children, friends, and animals.  The nothing place can be anywhere.   I always find my way out of the Nothing.  Sometimes it takes minutes, sometimes it takes days.

I've armed myself with the tools, and love.  I hate the nothing place.  I hate it so much.  I have so many people and animals that love me unconditionally and would do anything for me and yet, out of nowhere and completely unexpected, the nothing will wrap me up. And, once again, I have to fight to breathe.

Robin Williams was, as far as I can tell, a generous, selfless, giving man that loved nothing more than to give laughter and love to everyone he met.   He was so so incredibly funny.  He was over the top, so much energy, how does he do it, someone take away his caffeine for crying out loud, Funny!! 
But when he wasn't giving.  When he wasn't touching other peoples hearts with laughter and love;   Robyn felt sad.  Robin couldn't find his way out of the nothing.

Please, please, please, if you're lost.  If you're sad.  If you can't find your way out of the Nothing.  Call me.  I need you, just as much as you need me.  I couldn't find Robin Williams in the nothing.  I didn't even know he was there.  Please, friend, tell me if you are lost in the nothing. Just typing this out, regardless if anyone will read it, is giving a piece of my heart to something else and you can't be lost in the nothing when you give your heart.  It's impossible.  I want to give a piece to you.  Typing this is selfish.  It's completely for me.  I'm opening my heart and I'm far away from the nothing. I really do, I Need you.  I don't want to go to the nothing anymore, and I'd give anything to keep you from it as well.

Keep giving your heart, or take a piece of mine.
Jamie

Kim and Jill....

Holy Cow.... this. is. hard.

This is Kim and Jill!  They were two of the babies we rescued last summer along with 9 other babies and their momma, Duchess.

This was the first litter rescue for us.  It was the beginning of this entire story.  Our inspiration to make this "rescuing thing" into JPW Rescue Ranch!   It was an education we didn't know we needed.  It was hard, it was sad, it was exhausting.... it changed everything.


My friend Dawn posted the picture of Duchess and her babies and I found out that they were rescued from a horrible breeder only to be brought to the shelter in Galveston to be put down.  The reason they were going to be put down?  The simple fact that they were Pitbulls.

I had never had a Pitbull before.  I had never really got sucked into the hype of the breed, but BOY did that change, and fast.   Duchess had been abused her entire life.  She had been locked up in a crate, hiden under a tarp, and bread over and over again.  But when we showed up to get her the heck out of that shelter, what I saw was a brave, grateful, Mother.  She was a sweet as she could possibly be and so, so incredibly loving to her babies.  When we got home, I started the rescue page on Facebook and set out to find all of these sweet babies homes.

Most of you know that story, but there is a part of the story that I didn't share.  I'm going to now.

I was nervous how to put this out there.  How to explain how extremely mad and sad it makes me without coming across as judgmental, stereotypical, or even racist.   If you know me at all you know that those words, honestly and truly, could not be farther from the truth.  I choose love.  Always.  I do not judge and I try to find the good in people at all times.  I believe with ALL MY HEART that you can love the "bad" out of anyone or anything!  I've always tried to set this example for my children.  We do not judge a book by the cover.  We live in Austin for crying out loud!  The city where the soccer moms, the punks, the hippies, the bikers, the thugs, and even the famous; get together as one community all the time!  

But then something happened that tested my faith in humanity. 

Did you know that Pitbull puppies are used as bait for fighting dogs?  Did you know that they are used as fishing bait for big game fishing off the coast?  Did you know that the Pitbull is the BREED OF CHOICE for criminals??


The FB page that I created to find these precious animals homes was suddenly BOMBARDED with messages.  I got, and I am not exaggerating, 10-20 messages or emails a day from people interested in the puppies.  The problem was.... I was literally AFRAID of these people.   Nearly every single one of them.   The way they worded their emails.  The pictures and posts on their FB pages.  These were people I didn't trust, I didn't want to talk to, and I certainly was NOT going to give them any of my puppies. 
Some of them would say "I'm coming to get three of those pits", "Give me the biggest one you got", or even "whats your address?  I am going to come take a look at those Pits and see if any of them will work for me"...... Ummmmmmm, HELLZ NO!!!  

We just had another liter of puppies at our house.  A beautiful liter of lab/catahoula mixed puppies.   Do you know how many emails and messages I got?  About 1-3 a week.  Every single one of them from sweet, generous, grateful, loving families.  Not one single sketchy email.  NOT ONE. 

I just want to scream- "It's not the breed.  It's the PEOPLE"!!!!!!!!! 

This lesson was heartbreaking.  Pitbulls are truly Amazing dogs.  They are loyal, sweet, and Incredible with children!  They've had a reputation as "the nanny" dog for a reason!  Do you know what happens when someone comes to the door at our house?  About fifty million dogs go running to the door barking and acting crazy.... all but one.  Duchess, the victim of so much heartbreaking abuse, a supposedly mean and vicious pitbull that the great city of Galveston deemed too dangerous to live, RUNS to my kids.  Wherever they are in the house, she runs and jumps in front of them.  She is their protector.  She is AMAZING! She is a Pitbull.

 

We ended up finding wonderful homes for all but two of the pitbull puppies.  Kim and Jill were the two all black pits that we had not found forever families for and quite honestly, I couldn't handle searching any longer.  It was emotionally exhausting to deal with these people.  The fear of one of my babies ending up in a fighting ring, or abused haunted me.  The stories I heard, the people that contacted me.... I was done.   I was ecstatic for the puppies that were now in amazing perfect families, and decided to announce that Kim and Jill were not adoptable.  That I had no more pitbull puppies available.   Kim and Jill would live with us.  The emails stopped.

That was one year ago.  Kim and Jill are big beautiful girls now, but still love thier momma very much (as you can see above)!  They are strong, sweet, loving Pitbulls.  They helped us so much during our last litter of puppies when the momma needed a break.  They were gentle and playful.  They were our puppy sitters.  We all love and adore them, but it's become clear that we are no longer the best place for these sweet girls to be. 
I'm literally sobbing while typing this.

 

I think it's been obvious for a while, but we just kept convincing ourselves that they were better here with us.  We have many animals here at our home.  We have a heart for the ones that have no other place to go.   Our silly goat Prancer only has one ear and thinks she is a dog.  Sunshine, is a pit rescue who is only a couple years old, but can barely walk from the abuse and neglect she endured.  Sisco is a little rescue that is afraid of his own shadow.  Cameron is a fourteen year old lab mix that was thrown into a creek and left to die as a puppy. 

We have a heart for these animals and we want to be able to care for and bring in the ones that need us the most!   We love Kim and Jill so much, but they don't "NEED" us.  They are young and healthy and the more animals we rescue the less time we have for them.  The sick and hurting animals tend to come first, there is just no way around that.   We realized that we spend most of our time healing the wounded and training the young, and Kim and Jill are not getting the attention they deserve.   They Deserve families that will snuggle with them for hours a day.  Families that can take them on walks, to the dog park and on camping trips.  Families where they can get constant attention, training, and love. 
They deserve more than what we are able to give them here, and that is so so hard for me to say. 

It's with an extremely heavy heart that I share our story, and that of Kim and Jill, and ask that you pass it along so we can find these sweet girls their "real" forever families.

How we do SCHOOL!!

Before I share the BIG NEWS, I'll remind you why we decided to look into alternative schooling!  We went to public school and really never had any other thoughts regarding where we would send the kids!  That was until Jackson started reading at three and more of his Asperger symptoms became clear!  The more I read, the more I learned how many people with special needs, especially people with Aspergers Syndrome, struggled in a public school setting.  I was also discouraged with what I was learning for friends who had been teachers in the public school setting.  I set out to find an affordable alternative!  The idea of homeschooling Scared Me To DEATH!!  I don't think there is any reason to hide that school was not really my "thing", and figuring out how to teach my kids everything they needed to know just seemed impossible!!

I instantly fell in love with the UMS model (University Model School)!  The name gives away the idea; is like college!  The kids go to a classroom (or "school") a couple of days a week, and the rest of their studies is done at home.  The kids are put into classrooms based on their abilities instead of age and all of their lessons are laid out very clearly for us to follow!

We have been attending an AMAZING UMS school for the past four years!   We have all learned so much!  Jackson was able to start school at age four and has done wonderfully!  I am constantly impressed by how much the kids are able to learn with the smaller class sizes and one on one attention!  It's awesome to be a part of their education and witness it first hand!  Because UMS is a part time school, the cost associated with it is a fraction of what private school would be and the bonus is all the extra time we get to spend together, the extracurricular activities they get a chance to do, and more time we have to take advantage of all the cool things Austin has to offer!

OK!!  Here is where the BIG announcement comes in!!!

We are opening a NEW UMS SCHOOL- 

  When I say "we", I absolutely positively do not mean ME!!  I mean several amazing men and woman that are so much smarter than I am, are coming together to form something new and innovative in the way of a UMS style school, and I will be crashing the meetings! ;)

      This new school is completely different then any other UMS school in the area!   This school will not have a specific religious association.  Three Oaks will be an All INCLUSIVE school for everyone that is interested!   Our goal is to educate children so that they can be "of the world, not just in the world"!  We want to see families of all backgrounds, of all types, of all religious beliefs, and of all ethnicities!  We want to explore and share the beliefs and values from all over the world so that our children will be armed and able to make educated decisions, not to mention be ready to face real world problems and controversies with confidence and a strong foundation of knowledge!

The school itself will combine the best parts of all the instructive methods instead of being trapped in one particular way of teaching!   We want to stay on the cutting edge of educational research and allow flexibility for our children who each have very different learning styles.  We want the focus to be on each child as an individual; their strengths, their weakness, and their personal way of learning.  We want to provide an unparalleled education, while focusing on teaching our children how to really "Love to Learn"!!

Among the many things that will make this school amazing; making a difference and serving our community will be a focus at Three Oaks School-  
"To meet our mission of inspiring leadership for the public good, Three Oaks School engages in a required Service Learning program that empowers our students to experience the world in order to learn from it and to be of committed and substantive service to others. Working together, Three Oaks students and teachers learn how to serve productively with partners in Greater Austin, across the country, and around the world in settings that are often unfamiliar and challenging. While learning how to solve problems as they emerge and being exposed to complex issues, Three Oaks students expand their view of themselves and the world, build empathy, independence, resilience, and humility, and come to understand that through their individual actions they make a positive difference in the lives of others." 

At Three Oaks we hope to cultivate delight and wonder. Our goal is to challenge our students without exasperating them. While we maintain rigorous academic standards, we foster joy in learning through connecting classroom efforts with hands-on activities, real-life experiences, field trips, and special academic events. Every teacher at Three Oaks School works to inspire students to pursue truth and delight in wisdom. In short, we want our children to not only learn, but to love learning.

Do you want to join us? Three Oaks is currently looking for pioneer families who are interested in building a new and unique school serving the North Austin area.  We need families to help us finalize our school's philosophy and values; and will be looking for students, teachers, and staff that want to be apart of something new and exciting!  Let me know if you are interested in more information!  Everything is just starting to come together and we would love to see more families join us on this awesome adventure!  A great place to start would be to like the facebook page, so you can get updates and information as it becomes available!

Wish us luck, as we exclusively home-school this year while preparing for the The Oaks School launch in 2015!!

Pepper's story and training... begins!!

   Pepper and Elsa snuggled up under the heat lamp at one week old!

 What a crazy couple of months it has been!  The puppies will be nine weeks old tomorrow!

When I rescued Chloe and Sunshine I had no idea what I was getting into! (But that is Always the case when you do stuff like that!)  When I say that Chloe had nine PERFECT puppies; I am not exaggerating!   For a momma that had been fending for herself for a while, and barely looked pregnant due to lack of nourishment... it's nothing short of a miracle!  They are all healthy, happy and with their forever families now; all of them, except Pepper!
    Pepper is going to my Uncle Scott who is having surgery next week and will need some time to recover before he takes on his new puppy.  In the meantime, I have begun her training.  Some extra attention is going towards Pepper and getting her train because it is our hope that she will become a service dog!  I have no doubt that between the two of us and other professional dog trainers (plus, all the advice/help I can get from my awesome dog trainer friends!), Pepper is going to make an AMAZING and stunning Service Dog!!
    My Uncle Scott was injured in the navy and now suffers with a very painful nervous system issue in his arm.  I'm not going to pretend to know exactly what it is, but I know that if anyone touches, bumps, or even brushes against it, it is EXTREMELY painful!!  
    Eventually, our hope is that Pepper will be a service dog for Uncle Scott!  Trained to be able to go everywhere he goes and always stay at his hurt arm, preventing people from getting too close! 
    Having a service animal in our family- My son's Autism Service dog- Angel, I know first hand how they can change your life and the lives of everyone around you!  Uncle Scott and Aunt Erin are already HUGE dog people (literally, they have had a house full of NEWFOUNDLANDS!!) and I just couldn't be more excited about all of this!!

    To top it off, my Uncle Scott told me a story from when he was a boy!  I just have to share because it completely confirms that it's all meant to be!!-

                          When I was like 5. I used to go up the street from my 
                     house and take the neighbors dog. Her name was Pepper!!! 
                    And when they started calling her I would put her in our 
                    mailbox. Then they would walk down the street and say 
                    Scotty, have you seen pepper? I would say no, and then they 
                    would tell me to bring her back home when I was done 
                    playing with her!!


Here is a little snip-it from today's training session!   At only nine weeks old... she's a smart girl, I tell ya!