Scenes from October

Warning: Photo Overload

The "chill in the air" went from an excited, anticipated feeling, to a shock, reality feeling very fast. While we have enjoyed some beautiful, "perfect" fall weather, for the most part, I think it's a reality check that we are moving full force into a season that I have come to dread...winter :( While October kicked off with a big snow storm and several inches of snow, it's followed that up with weather in the 60's. And, although sunny, usually we are accompanied by sweatshirts and pants, along with mid-day hot chocolate!
Here's what we've been up to so far this month :)

The first snow!




And of course all the fun had at parks (which are my least favorite thing to do! I know, I'm a grouch, but parks aren't relaxing for me. It's always trying to lift here or get kicked in the head by a swinging child on monkey bars, or constantly being nervous Kade will end up with a broken bone!)


I call this picture "my life on the run"!

Also NOT a big fan of these chairs! Not sure if it's because I, myself, cannot tolerate anything that goes in circles, or if it makes me so worried they spin uncontrollably fast, and how great can that be for their little brains!

My little climber


Kade loves to swing

And this little monkey LOVES LOVES the monkey bars. This is actually at our little tiny swingset in the backyard. But she had Mike remove everything from this side so she can go back and forth. She's had blisters for awhile.


Nature adventures to the mountains and greenbelt
Course he's trying to climb this tree




This is for you Jennifer ;)

Trip to the Apple Orchard
Good news is, my kids love apples, especially Kade. Bad news was, he was sure his Papa was there and followed this not-super-friendly "grandpa" around so I spent most of my time prying his juicy hands off the imposter "Papa". That and making sure he only ate apples that were off the tree, not already half eaten, and tossed on the ground :)





A week left in October and it's insanely hard to believe! Reagan has been loving her dance class, my PE teaching hasn't been as terrible as I thought (although challenging!), the business is gearing up for the insane season, we are heading to Island Park next weekend, Halloween, a visit from my dear friend, a girls getaway at last, Thanksgiving, retail insanity, and Christmas will be here before you know it! Where, oh where, does time go!

Sunday Afternoon Adventure

Who doesn't absolutely love beautiful scenery?! Mother Nature has a way of taking your breath away. Another spot we'd heard a lot about and wanted to see for ourselves is Palasades (Swan Valley) Wyoming. Took just over an hour to get there and well worth the drive. It was so beautiful. The foliage is starting to turn, the lake there is huge, huge and beautiful as well. We stopped a few times to get out and check out future camping/hiking spots, and can't wait to try the water next summer (if maybe the bears aren't out and about like they are this year!)
There are so many fun and interesting places close by and we love scoping them out and having us some family fun.



Soaking in the sunshine and drawing pictures

At first I was impressed that Mike reached into the stream and caught this fish! Then I realized it had reached the end of his tunnel and was searching for the light! I also learned something I did not know, and that was the fish is red because it was dying, and that fish apparently return to their place of birth in order to spawn/die. Who knew!

Kade's reaction to the fish ;) He would scream like a little girl and hide his head when Mike got close with the fish

But...he was sure happy to be roaming around in the outdoors, getting dirty, throwing rocks in the water, climbing on falled trees, and enjoying nature

Hold Tight Little Man...

Throughout life, one does not miss any chance to hold onto the things that are really precious, if one is truly wise.

Why We Love This little Guy!

Little man Kade, aka the terror, the taz, crazy little dude, and the monster, is officially 19 1/2 months old and boy do we LOVE him! Insanely, insanely stubborn, opinionated, crazy quick-tempered and bossy, yet sweet, super duper silly, lovey, and a cool little guy. He absolutely refuses to drink milk out of anything other than a bottle (so yes, unfortunately, he's still taking one). He'll push the limits as far as he can (like he knows that he can go to the very, very edge of the driveway and toe the line between the cement and the road, but hey, he's not IN the road exactly and he looks at you exactly with that written across his face).
He is a crazy, picky eater. One day loves something, the next day, physically dry heaves if you feed it to him! He knows what he wants and is very persistent until it's given to him (mostly out of frustration to divert his attention or because he's extrememly loud and nutso until it's given to him). I've had some of those "moments" in the grocery store when he's THAT kid screaming insanely and people are giving me "THE LOOK" (yeah, I know, you've all done it or seen it and given the look...so have I, and I'm now on the other end of the spectrum!) He's hell on wheels this little guy. He wants to do everything the big kids are doing and doesn't doubt he can! He has crazy strength and can climb on or up pretty much anything. He loves to hang. Hang on monkey bars is typical, but he'll hang on the table, the stair rail, the towel rod, the closet bar, etc....His wonderful napping schedule has gone with the wind and it's been a struggle to get him down lately but he'll nap a few hours in the afternoon at least so Reagan and I can have some one on one time to work on homework, a craft, or just veg. But he's like myself and his sister, quite unpleasant to be around if at all tired.
He's been slower to talk than Reagan obviously, but he's got some good language going on now. His favorites are sissy, mommy (which applies to both Mike and I), hewwwoww (hello), papa papa(which he always whispers), oovie (movie), wooee (woody), (yesee) Jessie, cheese, side (outside), shoooos (shoes), icccce, uh oh I deed it, oh gwoss (which is usually used to describes bugs, anytime he lifts the toilet (he he), and if you get a boogie outta his nose, and HEY! HEY! (which he says loudly and usually while washing his hair, changing his bum, or trying to get him to do something he doesn't want to do). He's very polite though and always says pleeessss and tank u. He'll now repeat a lot of words you say so that gives us hope that one day he'll start forming sentences;)
He loves, loves to dance and has music in his soul (like his sis!). He loves movies, getting dirty (pretty sure he's never clean and his clothes are always stained), playing with rocks, running anywhere and everywhere, jumping on dad, pestering sis, and eating anything chocolate. He's got great coordination with things though. He can put the ball on the tee, hold the bat properly, and whack the ball off. It's been a crazy ride already and 100% opposite of the way Reagan was. But he's 100% boy and boy oh boy do we love that!!
Pointing and saying "shoooeeesss"


Oh yes, this kid can rock pretty much any crazy do out there ;)

Celebrating 50 Years!

I don't care how poor a man is, if he has family, he's rich. ~Dan Wilcox

It doesn't matter the family chemistry you currently have, you all began with a parent of sorts!
I've talked times before about my parents and how wonderful they are. Don't get me wrong, they aren't without faults of course, as we all are, but as far as parents go, we are blessed, or lucky maybe?
My parents were married September 8th, 1951. My mom had dreams of a large family. That apparently did scare my dad at all. They were blessed (or cursed ;)) with 10 children. They have lived in many homes, and each one, creating a loving, caring, safe environment for their children. They endured a heartbreaking loss, a young son taken way too early. As a parent now, you understand the amount of loss you must feel when a child's life is lost. My heart seizes thinking about anything happening to mine. I was only 5. I don't remember a lot, but I remember the strength that they both portrayed. They were able to surround the remaining children with love and comfort.
They are blessed with 29 grandkids and 2 great-grandkids, that they absolutely love and do so, so much for! After 51 years, they continue to love unconditionally, support emotionally, and care physically for their children and their offspring. They are fantastic, and over Labor Day weekend, we were fortunate as a family unit, to celebrate my parents being married FIFTY YEARS!! What an awesome accomplishment in this day. My siblings were able to travel great distances and show my parents their love and gratitude for all they have done for us. It was a great weekend. I love my siblings. I love their kids! We may not have always gotten along, we definately all have differences, but we all love furiously, and we all care about the well-being of each our siblings!
My mom hates attention. She hates parties ;) But we pretty much forced her to stand by and let us plan an open house for them to celebrate with their community, their family, both immediate, extended, and adopted! It was rewarding to see their friends in the community come show their support and love for them as a couple. We even had them cut a cake, which I'm sure my mom was totally embarrassed by! But don't worry, it wasn't saved 51 years!
Photos from older decades always seem so distinguised to me :)



These are my moms sisters Judy and Debbie. They traveled from Oregon and Washington to be here for the celebration. My Aunt Louisa passed away earlier this year, so I think it was special for my mom to have them celebrate and remember.



You can see the love radiating from them :)

These are one of their missionaries parents who drove from SLC to show their support

Someone is lovin' him some cake!


Saturday, we all met at Steadmans. what a fun little place. Basically farmers turned their acreage into a playground for others to enjoy! There were a few water slides, a zip line, shooting area, play area, and we ended it with a bang with the candy cannon! It was super fun and the kids all had a BLAST! Ok, and most of the adults did too! We only had 2 minor skin splitting events, good food, good company, and good sun.

My mom was insisting she do the zip line...THANKFULLY she didn't let that crazy talk come to play! However, my 2 Aunts gave it a whirl.



Andrew had the best seat in the house




Ella surfin' on Uncle Gary


Let's see, combined age on these 4 tubes....geez, over 260 ;) They were crazy. They went down several times and each time they were getting ready to push off, my heart was racing!! Old people are crazy!


Reagan just LOVES her cousins. That's important to me. We didn't grow up around cousins. We had a HUGE neighborhood where we thought we were related to everyone, but you always knew you weren't really part of that unity. But we are so lucky to be in close proximity, or at least driving distances and willingness on the parts of my siblings, to get our children together to enjoy bonds and create memories. I remember being 8 or 10 and being in "love" with one of my cousins ;) Reagan has attached herself to a few of my "older" nephews at times. They are always great about it and let her hang all over them and control them for a few days!! Thanks Bart and Bear!


Some tried shooting. Check out my dad's form! And, no, I didn't hit a thing.



Pretty nifty little invention. Stuff a ton of candy into a "canon" and watch it fly. Kids went running and had plenty to rot their teeth!


When the fun was done, we went back to The Barn (a gathering place next to my sisters house), had dinner,and got a sitter for the younger kids so the "adults" could share in memories, love, and appreciation for each other. Sunday we went to my parents sacrament and had lunch at the park. I think I can speak for my siblings and say it was definately worth the travel, and time out of our personal lives to share in this special time in my parents lives. Afterall, we start, and end...with Family.