Walking

Every weekend we try to find a new place around here to explore.  We have been wanting some walks closer to our home and are finding a little success.  We miss some of the walks so much in Ohio.  But we are finding some beautiful things here.  It's so funny to me because when I was in Ohio I would hear all the time how there can't really be beauty without the mountains.  And now I am closer to the mountains I have people ask me if I miss the beautiful fall in Ohio.  I suppose it's all in the eye of the beholder.  While I definitely miss the beautiful leaves in Ohio, I can definitely see there is great beauty here as well.  It really has been fun to explore a little bit and find new places and things to do.  It is one of my favorite things about moving somewhere new.

We had a picnic lunch this day.  Was it Taco Time?  Why yes it was.  That place is my achilles heel I tell you!

 They had a great horned owl and hawk on display.  It was neat to see the birds up close.  They said the owl is pretty aggressive so we didn't get too close.  I don't need an aggressive owl attacking me.

 The lake was behind us on the walk.  The girls were troopers.  They only complained like six times while walking and Audrey only had to be held for about half of it.

 You can even see a few yellow leaves in the background!  I have actually been excited to see some pretty leaves out here.  The weather has been fantastic too.

 The Lily.

 This was the day of the infamous Buckeye game.  Glad we pulled off that win in overtime!  It was a nail biter.

 A lady offered to take a family picture of us.  She took several and mentioned that maybe we could use one for our Christmas card.  Well 9/10 of them were not good at all but this one isn't too bad.  We are all looking at the camera which in and of itself is a minor miracle.

 We had hot chocolate and pumpkin bars that night with our little fireplace going.  Doesn't that just make you feel all cozy?  Fall is so great.

 Even Lily got to join in.

 We also went on a drive to a little town by the Snake River and found a park.

 My big almost one year old.  She is an explorer this one.  I turn for a minute and she is gone.  I have to watch her very carefully right now, she's getting too fast!

 Julia swinging on the monkey bars.

 Lily has been so afraid of getting tossed, swings, vacuums, etc.  She's a little bit of a nervous thing.  But lately she has been overcoming them.  You see her face isn't of pure terror.  We are making progress.

 I get to spend quite a bit of time with Audrey and Lily when Julia is at school.  Audrey was ready for preschool one day and needed me to take a picture.  She's getting the pose down.

 I swear Lily looks just about as big as Audrey in this picture.  I had a couple of friends tell me that they think Lily looks more like Audrey.  I don't think she looks much like Julia or Audrey.

They Say It's Your Birthday...

Well the big seven happened.  When I turned seven, my mom took me to get my ears pierced.  So I offered it to Julia and she took me up on it.  She was pretty nervous but didn't even shed a tear.  She chose pink studs and looks so grown up.  She has been thrilled with them and has very responsible about keeping them clean.  I'm just impressed she still went through with it when I warned her that they shot them in her ear with a little gun!

 She decided to go to the pumpkin patch to celebrate the big seven.

 We bounced...

 and bounced some more...

 The girls saw how tall they were.

 A bun gives you an unfair advantage Audrey.

 They were particularly stoked to go inside "The Creature" and explore.  It was extra for this attraction and so we just sent the girls and sat out with Lily.

 That turned out to be a mistake.  Apparently it's dark in there and difficult to find your way out.  After it had been awhile I stuck my head in and heard "Mom!  Mother!  We're trapped!"  Eventually they found their way and many a tear was shed.  I don't think we'll be doing "The Beast" any time again soon.  I believe some of Julia's exact words were, "We were going to die!  We couldn't find our way out!  I don't ever want to go in there again!"

 We rode in cow trains...

 And swung on the swings.

 Where's Audrey?

 There was a hayride to the pumpkin patch.

 There was a little girl on the hayride whose mother had bought her cotton candy.  The little girl decided she didn't like it and the mom offered it to my girls.  You've never seen two girls nod their head yes as quick as these two.  Cotton candy?  Why yes please.

 Finding the perfect pumpkin.

 Success.

 Happy Birthday to my sweet Julia.

Julia at seven:
Is enjoying first grade very much and has easily made new friends.
Always gets her homework done on the bus ride home.
Is really enjoying piano lessons.
Loves art and colors constantly.
Is reading chapter books and though it takes some prodding, enjoys it for the most part.
Loves watching movies.  If the tv is on Julia is there.
Loves playing.  She is still very much into Littlest Pet shops, Ponies, princesses you name it.  I hope she keeps her imagination going for a long time.
Loves to run and be active.
Enjoys singing and dancing but not in front on anyone.
Is good at being a friend to everyone.
Loves her sisters so much.  She really was made to be a big sister.  She adores Audrey and Lily.
Gets very grumpy when she's hungry.  We often hear, "I'm starving!  What?!  Am I just going to starve all day and you're never going to feed me!"  She keeps things interesting that's for sure.
Doesn't love getting up early but never complains about going to school.
Is very responsible.  I don't have to remind her to do her homework or practice her piano.

We sure love you Julia and hope that your birthday was all you hoped it would be!  Thank you for being such a sweet girl and bringing so much joy to our home.

Drive, Drive on Down the Field...

We are still cheering on our Buckeyes from here in Idaho.  I am amazed that even all the way here in the west, whenever we wear our Buckeye clothes we get a random "O H" from strangers.  Of course we reply with a resounding "I O!"  There are Ohio State fans everywhere.  Maybe it's because they are awesome.

 I told them to kiss Lily.  Apparently they heard "squish" Lily.

 This girl is looking so grown up to me lately.

 After a grueling soccer game.  Julia scored a goal again at this game.  She is getting better and better.  She gets really tired though.  Whenever the coach asks if anyone needs a break Julia is first to volunteer.  Sitting in a comfy seat drinking water sounds more appealing.  We've had to tell her that when the coach asks if anyone needs a break she doesn't need to volunteer EVERY time.

 This girl loves to crawl in the grass and cause all kinds of trouble.

 Julia took a picture of us.  I think it's okay for me to appear in the blog once in a while.

 We went back to Evanston this last conference weekend as the girls had a couple of days off from school and it was Carli's baby shower.  We headed down to "the pit" to roast hot dogs and marshmallows as an early birthday celebration for Julia.

 The food was yummy and it was so pretty out there.

 Brooke got her hair cut and it is oh so cute.

 My dad.   He's been so busy lately.  We were glad to have him around as much as we did.

 Julia blowing out the candles of her pumpkin pie.  I didn't even know she liked pumpkin pie but that is what she wanted and a spoiling Nana and Papa give the girl what she wants.  We have always been far away for birthdays so it was pretty fun to have some cousins around to celebrate with.

 Audrey and Jenna giving the thumbs up.

 Funny Grady.

 I love spiderman Max in the background.  These cousins played hard all weekend.

 And a new development.  Lily is no longer terrified of the swing!  Instead of shaking, turning bright red, grunting and utter panic she swings peacefully and even gives a smile every once in a while.  Yay Lily!

And as if this post wasn't awesome enough the girls did a cheerleading routine after the football game.  I see great things in their future.  Great things.