Just ginning

December has just begun, and we've already ginned 25,000 bales!! This is a great season and we've ran really well! We are soooo thankful for such a great run, but I have to admit I'm getting worn out and am starting to look for that last bale to come through.

Tac is a mess. A big one. He gets whatever he wants, when he wants. Just yesterday, Dan was teaching him to throw rocks and Al was teaching him to climb the antenna. Al is also teaching him that naps are bad and so are vegetables. I have this vision of a few years down the road, people seeing us coming and turning around and running. DISCLAIMER--- I take no responsibility for the monster in the making. I feel like I'm fighting a losing battle.

In the last couple of weeks, Tac has decided that crawling is for babies and that Daddy is waaaay cooler than Mom. I have to admit it kind of hurts my feelings.... especially when he walks over to Al and then turns around and waves bye to me. See ya Mom, I'm going with Dad. It's like he's not even a baby anymore.

Also, in my last post I forgot to mention that, thanks to Tac, Al and I both have new phones. Mine was salvageable, but unfortunately Al lost all his numbers. So, if you haven't talked to Al in a while you might text or call so he can restore your number.

Below are a few pics of life with the Crisp's here lately:
Happy Turkey Day!! We shut down Thanksgiving and spent it up at Duck Creek. We had such a great time and didn't want to come back to the gin! To top it off, Dad caught 2 catfish and got a buck!!

Tac "helping" decorate the tree. We only had to throw away a few broken ones.

For those of you who don't know much about a gin, the ginner carries a stick in his back pocket so he can poke at the cotton that gets bunched up coming down the gin stand. Tac has seen this done a time or two and thinks he knows how. He also loves playing in the cotton from the overflow (below).

A couple more that Crista did.

Don took Dan and I up in the helicopter to take pictures of the cotton being stripped. There were modules as far as you could see in all directions. It really looks beautiful from the air.

Taegan loves being naked. He peed on the rug shortly after this. It's like having a puppy. I didn't rub his nose in it though.

Tac really loves Jose. They have lots of fun together.



Landree came to see us one day. Aren't they cute together? We're setting up an arranged marriage.

Al had him convinced there was something underneath the bed. No wonder he thinks Al is more fun than me. I could never think of some of this stuff.


Happy Halloween!!!

Tac was a moose for Halloween. He really liked holding the pumpkin. The candy wasn't too bad either.

Ginning season is here!! We've ginned almost 5,000 bales already and the gin is running really good. The weeks leading up to start-up were a whirlwind and I was really dreading getting started, but I have to admit it's nice to be in a routine finally. Something exciting we have this year is a new website for the gin. If you have time, go to http://www.punkincentergin.com/ and check it out.
Tac is going to be completely rotten after this gin season. Everyone that comes in the office either brings him something or plays with him. And, he thinks that everyone that walks through the door has to hold him. It doesn't matter if it's a customer, truck driver, or one of the gin hands, he crawls up to them and holds up his hands until they pick him up. And if there's not someone there to mess with him, he's got Dan taking him out to the gin or out riding on the golf cart. What a stinker.


Here's a few pics of some things going on with us lately:
Tac has his very own jersey that he wears to all the games. He' s #3 just like Dad.
This was at homecoming. Denise even made him a little garter to wear and it was really cute.

Al and I each got an antelope this year. His was in Borden County and mine was up near Panhandle. I know what you're wondering--....... his was bigger.

In Odem at Nana and Papa's house. He loves his Papa.

In San Angelo at Mimi's on the way to Odem. That's a really long drive for little man!!

Working on the place at Duck Creek. Tac always wants to help Dad, and sometimes I think Tac really believes he's helping.



It sure is a good thing we had someone to sample our dirt for us before we put in the water line.

This year marked Al's 10th year to own the gin. We went all out with a big party out in the gin. Some of the party attractions included: the world champion chuckwagon, a bounce house for the kids, live music, family portraits, and lots of door prizes. The party went really great and was a lot of fun. Thanks for celebrating with us!!

One neat surprise at the party was the presentation Al's parents made to him. Ten years ago, Al took a sample out of the very first bale he ginned and sent it off to have a miniature bale made out of it. He then presented it to his Papaw Crisp. Al always wanted Papaw to see the gin run, but he never made it, so this was Al's way of sending the gin to him. At the party, his parents presented the bale back to Al. Papaw Crisp died 2 weeks later.

Al also made a special presentation to our #1 man- Jose, for 10 years of working for him. Jose is amazing and I often wonder how other businesses make it without a Jose to keep things going.

Mama's recipe box. Lots of fun.

Life at the gin office.

I finally figured out how to post a video clip. I hope it makes you smile.

Happy baby.

Well, I guess summer is officially over and we've had our last hoo-ra until after gin season. The end of the summer included a trip to Lake Brownwood for the Gray family reunion, another visit to Concan and the Frio, a few days in Leakey at the deer lease, and several short trips up to Kent Co. to work on our place. We now have running water and electricity up there which is very exciting! Now we're super busy trying to finish all our taxidermy work and get the gin ready for the season, and all is well.

I love being a mom. Every day is a new adventure. Each morning I wake up and wonder what he'll find and try to eat that day. Taegan is now 8 months old, has 2 teeth, and seems to keep a constant knot on his head. I know all babies are busy, but he does seem to be bent more like his daddy. Watching him play is so funny because its almost like he's in a hurry-- like he's got to finish looking at that book and move on to the next toy before he gets behind. We have 2 major wrestling matches a day: one in the morning getting him dressed and one at night putting his pj's on. It kind of reminds me of when I was little trying to get Barbie into a new swimsuit. Only with him you can't hold him upside down or take a leg off, and he's constantly moving in the direction I don't want him to. If ever you see him naked just know that I lost the wrestling match for that day.

I'm also amazed at the amount of talent babies have that they aren't given credit for. It's like baby magic or something. For example, those chidproof medicine bottles that I can hardly get open, he blinks and has them open with pills all over the floor. (Don't worry, he hasn't swallowed any) Or how I could've just swept and mopped and 3 minutes later he's got a new dead bug. And like the empty lotion bottle I had put in the trash (because it was empty) he manages to get out, get it open, and cover his shirt in lotion. And then there was the other day when i leaned over the sink with him on my hip to wash his paci off, and in .0032 seconds he was able to grab my toothbrush, cram it in his mouth, and spit up at that precise moment. You can't plan that, it's just raw talent.

at the family reunion

Loyd, Laveda, Nathan, Randon, and Paxton. We had such a great time with them! Our prayer is to raise Taegan to be the kind of person these boys are. From the looks of his disposition here, it doesn't seem too promising. :(

Al and his mini-me.

We celebrated Dan and Patsy's 50th wedding anniversary at Concan. What a great heritage they've created. It was so fun having a big group at the Frio this time!

Don't know if you can tell in this pic, but Tac came back from the Frio with a little tan!

at the deer lease

We like squash.

Al was building some steps for our camper. Even when we're on vacation he never stops working.

We loooove that baby in the mirror.


Well, this doesn't seem to be the summer for pets around the Crisp home. We got home from our travels and found the pond drained, all the fish dead, and my ducks Cecil and Wilma completely mutilated. I'm talking a head here and a foot over there mutilated. Maybe it was a fox or a bobcat. If we can catch whatever it was, you'll probably see a new mount at our house. Ducks really are cool pets to have and it's pretty lonely without them now. My cat is the only thing we have left, and I'm thinking we may need to get out the holy water and sprinkle it on her to ensure she makes it to next year. Isn't it ironic that the one animal that Al wanted dead the most is the only one we have left?

These are more pics that Crista did for us and they really turned out great. Tac is 6 months and Brittany is 12.

Go Raiders.

What a stud.

The toilet is our new favorite place

Zeb stayed with us over the weekend while Kanyon and Erika were gone. Tac loved having a puppy to play with. They played with all of Tac's toys, traded pacifiers, and even shared a can of Alpo. Mmmmm.

Al and his cook team out in the gin cooking for the Livestock Association Pickup Raffle. Al built this 10 foot long grill especially for this occasion 5 years ago when we started doing this cook. The guys seasoned and cooked a whopping 600 steaks that day and they were all yummy!

Out at Duck Creek working hard!

Watermelon is yummy..... and messy.