Take A Hike

On Monday we went on a hike after Stan got home from work. It's actually a 30 mile hike, but we opted for the first stretch which was 1.5 miles to the waterfalls.

We hadn't been on this trail before so when we got to the waterfalls we weren't really sure that was it. Since we're still in the "spring melt" time, the water is still rushing down the mountains furiously, and it all looks and sounds like waterfalls. So we got there, but didn't know it and kept going.

Finally it was getting late so we went back to the clearing we thought might have been it and had our sack supper we brought. Stan built a little fire and we roasted hot dogs too.

A guy with a bicycle. Yes. A bicycle. On the rough and rocky trail. Anyway, a guy came by walking his bike up the trail and he confirmed that it was indeed the waterfalls.

Upon exploring further...as in right next to a very steep cliff that falls straight down into the rushing water...Stan found that there were actually two waterfalls on each side of a huge boulder. Beautiful!

Of course I forgot the camera in the Bronco so I didn't get a picture. And everyone was really pleased with me when we got back to the bottom and I made them get back on the trail so I could get a fake picture of our hike.

Don't let that smooth path fool you. It only stayed smooth for a short time...then it was all rocks. Rebecca and Jessica went man-down a few times, but they were brave and only cried the last time...out of frustration.



Jessica really wasn't sad or mad or whatever. She just refused to smile. Like daddy.

And to prove that I went too...

Weekend Fun

Last weekend we made some Rice Crispy Treats and once they were handed out, it was the quietest the kids had been all day! I'm not sure why but they all sat on the floor together to eat their goodies. Funny kids.

Whatever the girls do, Jake has to do it too...so he followed right along with them.



Meanwhile, Stan was outside working hard on our fence (we saved him a Rice Crispy Treat, though).

See the lovely grey fence we had? He used a pressure washer to shine it up and we're going to stain it and make it purty.

You can tell the kids were a big help on this project.

After the kids went to bed, Stan and I sat outside and watched the sunset. I'm glad we didn't miss this one!

On The Mountain

Father's Day weekend we did one of daddy's favorite things. We took a trip up the mountains by the house in the Bronco.

So, to help you feel like you're right there with us...

Welcome! You can't really see her, but the dog (Coffee) is in the back.




Here we are up the mountain and looking down on the valley where we live.


Here's a closer view. Our house is just off the edge of the left side of the picture. Not that you could really see it anyway.

Yep, there is still snow up there.

We found a nice spot to stop and have a snack and stretch our legs.

The girls climbed up and down the hill a few times.

Until they discovered how fun it was to throw snowballs at those of us down below. (The snow was back behind the trees. Really. I know you can't see it, but it's there. I promise. Scroll back up a few pictures and you'll see.)

Every time I crouched down to take Jake's picture, he crouched down too.

Rebecca and Jake...awwwwwww

Training is over

Rebecca and Jessica both gave up their training wheels a couple weeks ago.

Here is Rebecca getting instruction from daddy. She was very determined and ready to go.

Rebecca getting the hang of it, but still needing a push:

And she's got it! She learned pretty quickly and was a good student. Rebecca tackled this just like she does (did) with most things (like potty training, reading, cleaning). She pays attention to others who are doing it, then she decides it's time for her to learn. Once she decides she's ready, she does it without much complication and she's very proficient with it.

Jessica, on the other hand, required a little more...uh...instruction. The battle of the wills - will she listen or will she ignore daddy and just do her own thing? (as if I have to ask)

It's the take-off that had her stumped. Once she got going she was gone, peddling as fast as her little legs would let her.

Of course she wouldn't listen to instruction, so she had to figure out the take-off on her own. And she did. I hope you can see her face in this picture! She's grinning ear to ear. She's happiest going as fast as she can - freedom!

Disclosure: No children were seriously injured in the taking of these pictures. (The injuries occurred later with many skinned knees and elbows...and tears.)

A Little Less Talk & A Lot More Action

That's us lately (in a purely wholesome way, that is). I'm not on here talking so much because we're outside living it.

I do have a lot of good pictures to share...but they are still on my camera and I need to upload them.

We went riding up in the mountains Father's Day weekend and had a good time. The kids started swim lessons today. We've been giving the outside of our place a nice little face lift. And we actually have to, you know, mow the yard and stuff.

After Stan gets home this afternoon we're planning on going on a little hike a few miles from here. We'll stop at a waterfall and have a sandwich supper and then hike back out. So the kids are all napping right now so they'll have all available energy to spare. They'll need it.

It will be a 3 mile hike round trip. We plan to do a lot of hiking this summer so this will be a good one to break us in on.

So, I haven't forgotten you. I'll be back posting some great pictures in the next day or two.

I'm all over it

BooMama is hosting a before and after segment on her blog in July. So I thought I'd be rather industrious and join in.

I'm already in the process (yes, still) of that whole garden makeover thing. So, joining this before and after deal was a pretty easy decision...since I dont actually have to come up with something new...and I'm more than half way finished already!! Wooo Hooooo!!!

I know I just posted an update on the progress last week, but here are/were the goals:

1) Remove the rock from the flower bed (since it was, you know, a rock bed to begin with)
2) Replace the weed paper.
3) Bring in the soil pep.
4) Buy more flowers.
5) Decide how to arrange everything.
6) Plant, water, watch them grow.

I can already say that this has been kicking my butt more than I expected. Whew, that's a lot of work!

Hopefully by the end of July I'll have everything in and it will be blooming nicely for the pictures.

If you want to see more before and after plans, check out BooMama's site.

Jake and Daddy

Stan's favorite place to be in the living room is stretched out on our extra long sofa. He piles up the pillows behind him and has his paci remote control ready to flip channels at the first sign of a commercial (maybe he won't read this post...or maybe I need to fix his favorite dinner tonight; he doesn't like it when I call the remote control his pacifier).

He also has this super ability with his eyes where they look closed, but really they are open. So, when we think he's asleep, he's really not. I'm sure he used that to his advantage when he was in school. But that's beside the point.

Jake's favorite thing to do is act like he's playing somewhere else in the living room, not paying any attention to daddy. Then the second daddy gets up and walks out of the living room, Jake runs as fast as his little legs can paddle and he can't help but giggle the whole way. He climbs up on the recently vacated sofa and lounges back in the exact same position as daddy. If possible, he secures the remote control as well, but sometimes he's too busy giggling to himself to remember it.

Here's the culprit now:



Soon daddy comes back to "discover" someone is in his spot. And Jake can hardly contain himself in that little body for all the excitement. Notice how he spreads out his arms and legs to make himself as big as possible. That's his natural survival instinct kicking in.

But of course daddy will share.

Want another chance at Skizzer???

Skizzer is up for another chance to win! Jenni at Conversations With My Hairdryer won my drawing for the book and now that she's read it, she's having another fun giveaway...but with a twist!

She's starting a fun game with it, so if you'd still like to get your hands on Skizzer go check out her site and follow along!

Summer Reading

Here is my summer reading list. Some of these books I'll read for book tours and post reviews (marked with *). When I post a review I will add the link next to the title below. For the other books I'll add comments about what I thought of them.

I'll add to this list along the way, but here is what I have so far:


Shiloh Autumn ~Bodie & Brock Thoene Mixed feelings on this one. It's really good and very well written (both historically and in style), but the time frame is around the Great Depression, so I found it to be a little...depressing, naturally. Just when you think it can't get any worse, it does. But I also gained a greater appreciation for the people who lived during that era and what they went through.

* Skizzer ~A.J. Kiesling Click here for my review.

The Scarlet Thread ~Francine Rivers Pretty good, but I didn't like jumping between two different stories so much. Kind of hard to get into, but I liked both story lines.

Alaska Twilight ~Colleen Coble Good story, but I also had a hard time getting into this one (could have just been timing). I do recommend it, though.

Redemtion Series ~Karen Kingsbury with Gary Smalley: So far I really like this series. It's encouraging how good can come from bad and shows the fruit of turning to God.
- Redemption
- Remember
- Return
- Rejoice
- Reunion (putting this one off 'cause I think it's going to be sad)

Heirs of Montana Series ~Tracie Peterson: I've only read the first book, but I'm hooked. It starts during the Civil War and follows a family on the trail to Montana. Very real, but not depressing. Looking forward to the rest of the series and Peterson's other books, too!
- Land of My Heart
- The Coming Storm
- To Dream Anew
- The Hope Within Loved, loved this series!! Highly recommend!


* Calico Canyon ~Mary Connealy (2nd book in a series) Click here for the book tour post Oh! I really liked this one! Grace has been through so much, is it ever going to get better? I could feel her frustration when dealing with all those boys and I got really tickled how Daniel tried to avoid her and also when she finally learned about adulthood. Can't wait to read the other books in the series!

* Wiser Than Serpents ~ Susan May Warren (3rd book in a series) Click here for my review

* Love Starts With Elle ~Rachel Hauck (2nd book in a series) Click here for the book tour post Didn't get a chance to read this one yet. BUT! There will be another tour for this one in October and I'll definitely have read it by then. Cant wait! I also want to read the first book, Sweet Caroline, first.

Try Dying ~James Bell This is the first book in a series. I got it because I'm scheduled to review the second book, Try Darkness, and wanted to be caught up. This is the first time I've read this author. I liked his writing style (written in first person) and really enjoyed the humor/sarcasm throughout, even though it's more of a suspense book. It was a definite page turner, but didn't necessarily "keep me on the edge of my seat." It's also not a "preachy" book, which is nice. The Christian theme is more subtle. I recommend it and am looking forward to the next book.

* Try Darkness ~James Bell Alright, to be brutally honest, this wasn't as good as the first book. The story was interesting but it wasn't as suspenseful. It was more of a casual read and not as much the "page turner" as I hoped it would be. I still liked the humor/sarcasm and I'd recommend it. I guess I just expected more. You can check out the tour post here (but I didn't finish reading it in time to post my thoughts on it until after the tour was over).

* Finding Stephanie ~Susan May Warren (3rd book in a series) Click here for my review.

* Twice Loved ~ Lori Copeland (1st book in a series) Click here for my review.

Before the Dawn ~ Carolyne Aarsen (1st book in a series) I received this book because I'm doing a tour for the second book in this Guideposts series, Sweet September. Honestly, Before the Dawn was not a huge page turner. Maybe because of the storyline...kids loose their mom and move half way across the country to live with their grandparents and all the emotion and frustrations involved. It wasn't bad, and the characters/situation were well developed. I just thought there could have been some more interesting twists included.

* Sweet September ~ Tricia Goyer (2nd book in a series) I'll post my review of this later in September, but I enjoyed this second book. I liked how it branched out and included some mystery and even a hint at a possible romance. But that's all I'll say for now. ;o)



* Books that are part of a book tour. See links for reviews.



Be sure to check out more Summer Reading here:

~ Jenni at Conversations With My Hairdryer



If you have a summer reading list or would like to start one just post it on your blog and let me know. I'll link to your blog!

My Baby is 7!

Rebecca's birthday was pretty mellow. The kids were still taking turns being sick, daddy just got home from being gone for a week, and mommy was exhausted. Thankfully, we'd already decided to just do a family party and not invite friends. Whew!



But she had a good birthday, anyway. I can't believe she's 7 now!



We always let the birthday person pick the meal they want and Rebecca chose fish sticks, mac and cheese, and crescent rolls. Probably not the best choice for kids who had been having stomach issues for the past week, but we suffered through it. (It was a nice break from the BRAT diet...bananas, rice, apples, toast.)



Next she opened her presents. Had some trouble with one that came from Tennessee...apparently they use lots of black duct tape to secure their packages. :o)







She got lots of fun stuff from everyone. Somehow most of the pictures I got have Jake's little swirly in the foreground.

Rebecca wanted a panda bear cake. I'd been sick too and my hands weren't feeling all that steady but somehow it turned out ok.

In case you noticed...they aren't wearing the same clothes now. By the time we ate and opened presents it was bedtime so we postponed cake, and probably good that we did because Jake and Jessica both got sick again that night.

So they were really excited when we finally did cake...two days later. Oh and the panda bear isn't bleeding...she chose strawberry cake.

The girls were so happy, they did a toast.

I'll post more pictures in a slide show on my sidebar soon. Be watching for the June slide show!