THE RODEO.......

We had such a great July 24th... Colton was entered up in the St. Johns Rodeo on Thursday..There is a video below of his Steer ride. He took 2nd place!! And he won $60 dollars. He is so exited. After that we headed to the ranch.

Here is Kallie she spent all day on the pony riding around. She didn't want to enter in the barrels, but after we got there she was so sorry she didn't so she might do Eager days soon..

Cade spent most of the day roping this "girl bull" She was a little girl who I think might have been dropped off at the rodeo by her parents and left, she played with Cade all day, We bought her food and drinks when she asked, and I didn't see her with an adult at all, o'well. She put up with Cade all day. Cade also told us on the way to the rodoe that morning at 7am that he had a sucker in his nose. We didn't pay any attention to him he was in the back of the suburban and who knows what he was thinking. BUT... at 7PM he sneezed and out came a snotty puffy 1/2 inch long sucker stick. Go figure...He had that thing up his nose all day. He was happy roping his girl bull and drinking coke all day, so I guess the sucker stick didn't bother him.

Here is Colton before he rode...

Here is the video...watch the whole thing it is so funny...

WHAT A 2 YEAR OLD WILL DO FOR A COKE......

Last weekend we told Cade that we would give him a coke, his own coke, all to himself. IF he let Josh shave his head. At first he wasn't sure about it.

But then he felt it and really thought it was funny. We think he has a real future as a Rodeo Clown..

And now it was all worth it....1 whole coca cola classic to myself!!!!

This is Milo a new really nice cat at the ranch. He spent the whole day in the back of a horse trailer being pulled around by a toy truck.

Look Out for Joshua D on the Pro Rodeo Circuit...

The Wild Horse Race was the event. If you don't know what this event intales, look on you tube under wild horse race, you will see. But I will give you a brief description:

FIRST...You have a 3 man team...I prefer to highlight number 170...He is looking great and ready for the action, out side the Prescott 4th of July Rodeo. He is entered up in the event for the first time, in what just happens to be one of the most popular rodeos of the year. And he drove his rodeo truck...

NEXT...there are 8 teams of 3. Each team has 1 wild bronc horse. The team has 3 jobs. man #1-holds onto the rope on the broncs halter. man #2 is called MUGGER...(Josh). man #3 has to saddle the horse while the mugger holds/contains the horse by trying to hold him still with his bare hands. Then the rider has to get on the bronc, and ride him to the other end of the arena, trying to "steer: the bucking hourse in between the fence and a barrel. All 8 teams and their broncs are let out at the same time, so it is basically mass confusion...Here they are getting ready...

Here is the action...Josh held the horse like it was no body's business...then the rider went to the end, the horse was bucking so hard that the rider couldn't get him on the correct side of the barrel. They took 2nd, because of that, but they were by far the fastest...Josh is the one holding the horses head.

He had a great time, and has had many offers to be on others teams, they were all so impressed that it was his first time, they didn't even believe him...I think he really has a future... Look for the 3 man team of Clint Lilly, Brady Peters, and Josh Smart, at the upcoming summer rodeos. THey will be an UNSTOPPABLE team...

Josh's Crazy Nicknames For Us...

This subject has come up alot lately, and since my camera has been broken, I thought I would blog about it, using some older pic's...

OUR NICKNAMES... We will start with me since I was the one named first, my name was MISTY DAWN NEAL, but....when Josh and I started dating 12 years ago, for no apparent reason he started calling me LaRae and I have been Larae ever since. I have looked into this extensively, and there is no ryme or reason for the name. No ex-girlfriends were named LaRae or anything, but this is what I am called. Now, some friends call me that and if you ask my 2 year old what my real name is he will say "LALAY". I think it's cute.

Next is COLTON JOSHUA SMART... he got the nickname Smoker, I don't even remember why, except his little friend Daisy Peters always called him "Moksers" and somehow from that Josh called him Smoker... He now answeres to Smoke and Smoker Joe...GO figure.

Next, there is the light of my life..KALLIE RAE SMART. Josh called her SUE, or SISTER SUE, since the day we brought her home...I call her Sue La Rue.

This guy is a whole other story.
His name is CADE EMMETT SMART. From about 3 weeks old, Josh started calling him TUD. It has stuck. I rememner when we moved into the Vernon Ward about a year ago, he was always playing or getting babysat at the Hunsakers, another family in the ward. There was a little girl named Holly, about 4 then. I came to pick up Tuddy one day and she said "oh man Sister Smart...does Ted have to leave so soon?" It was so funny. We have had friends over and I have told Colton to go find Cade and they have said "who's Cade?" We just explain that Tud is just a nickname for Cade.. The name TOTALLY fits him.

Our newest addition now 7 1/2 months is
KHLOE LARAE SMART...(notice the middle name, Josh insisted on it) This is BIRDIE. Looked just like a little baby Bird, she was soo skinny with the skinny, just born baby legs, and would look like a bird trying to get the worm from her mama when she would get ready to nurse. Cade calls her "Birdie Girl". Except when he's mad. Then he says..."aww man birds, why you mess with my stuff ike at"... Yesterday we had our neighbors over for dinner, and she called Khloe Birdie. Cade quickly said her name is K H L O E.

We love Josh and we are so thankful to have such a great daddy and honey. We all love our nicknames and think it is fun to have them. Josh is in Prescott right now at the rodeo being a contestant...I'll blog as soon as I get the pictures back...