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Friday, November 6, 2009
Oooooh It Was Spooky
We started out on Friday, Oct. 24th right after school. It was a cold, rainy day up at the pumpkin patch. There are several pumpkin patches up in this area, however, there is only one road leading to them and on a Sat. or Sun. it takes hours just to get there. Along with one other family, we were the only ones in the patch that afternoon. The kids got just the pumpkins they wanted.
The kids spent the night with us and we made Halloween cookies the next morning. Yummmm.
Grandpa and Bryson getting started on the pumpkins, Sun. Oct. 26th. We were at Marc and Sara's house for a great dinner too.
Here are the "Goo Girls." Both Rylee and Jouzie loved the squishy stuff.
Bry is taking his time to do a really creepy, spindly spider.
Jouzie had help from dad to trace on her pumpkin face. Now she's carving away.
Marc did a great free-hand draw for Rylee's pumpkin and now she's getting it carved out.
Cody had the biggest pumpkin and also the thickest. It was almost impossible to get a knife through to the inside. We found out that maybe bigger is not always better -- but he'll get there.
Taaaa - Daaaa. All done and very proud.
Halloween night was kinda cool and quite windy. Rylee is very thin, but with all her warm clothes under her cheer leading costume we nick-named her a "chunky" cheer leader. Jouzie was all white as a ghost and Cody loved being scary as Jason. Lots of fun and tons of candy.
The kids spent the night with us and we made Halloween cookies the next morning. Yummmm.
Grandpa and Bryson getting started on the pumpkins, Sun. Oct. 26th. We were at Marc and Sara's house for a great dinner too.
Here are the "Goo Girls." Both Rylee and Jouzie loved the squishy stuff.
Bry is taking his time to do a really creepy, spindly spider.
Jouzie had help from dad to trace on her pumpkin face. Now she's carving away.
Marc did a great free-hand draw for Rylee's pumpkin and now she's getting it carved out.
Cody had the biggest pumpkin and also the thickest. It was almost impossible to get a knife through to the inside. We found out that maybe bigger is not always better -- but he'll get there.
Taaaa - Daaaa. All done and very proud.
Halloween night was kinda cool and quite windy. Rylee is very thin, but with all her warm clothes under her cheer leading costume we nick-named her a "chunky" cheer leader. Jouzie was all white as a ghost and Cody loved being scary as Jason. Lots of fun and tons of candy.
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
Almost Duuuuun
October 20th or soooo . . . up go the walls.
Goofy . . . but great workers.
Trusses next. Glad I'm not walking around up there.
Roof on, door and window in, and now the hardy plank siding.
Painting and then a little bit of shingle to go above the big door and we'll be all through. For those of you who know what our house looks like you will notice the resemblence. This is a requirement by the community architectural committee. All out-buildings must match the architecture of the house. We could have done this a lot cheaper, but of course it wouldn't have looked as nice either.
Next week . . . pumpkin patch and Halloween pics to come.
Goofy . . . but great workers.
Trusses next. Glad I'm not walking around up there.
Roof on, door and window in, and now the hardy plank siding.
Painting and then a little bit of shingle to go above the big door and we'll be all through. For those of you who know what our house looks like you will notice the resemblence. This is a requirement by the community architectural committee. All out-buildings must match the architecture of the house. We could have done this a lot cheaper, but of course it wouldn't have looked as nice either. 
Next week . . . pumpkin patch and Halloween pics to come.Wednesday, October 14, 2009
Construction -- Again!
Arn has decided he needs an additional garage for storage and cars so we are building in the only space available. Unfortunately it's hard to see, but this pic is taken from the front porch and the construction is up against the trees straight back almost in the middle.
Pulling out stumps, digging ditches, filling dirt, and doing all that prep stuff.
The contractor came and framed and poured in the same day. Things are moving right along.
Pouring.
What a neat finisher. Problem was the temps were too cool and the concrete wouldn't set up so they ended up brooming it, covering it with huge sheets of plastic and now they will be back on Tues. to build. They say they will be done in four days. Arn tells me this is the end of construction -- I'm going to hold him to that.
Pulling out stumps, digging ditches, filling dirt, and doing all that prep stuff.
The contractor came and framed and poured in the same day. Things are moving right along.
Pouring.
What a neat finisher. Problem was the temps were too cool and the concrete wouldn't set up so they ended up brooming it, covering it with huge sheets of plastic and now they will be back on Tues. to build. They say they will be done in four days. Arn tells me this is the end of construction -- I'm going to hold him to that.
Guess Who's Coming to Breakfast??
Monday morn the 12th I looked out the side bathroom window and spotted a baby moose. I ran and woke up Arn. It wandered away, but after a few minutes, Arn was in my computer room and started hollering that there were two in the front yard -- get the camera!! These babies came right up to the front window to sample the plants -- which they spit out.
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But . . . . . . when they went for my baby tree I went outside (in my nightgown, 18 degrees) to chase them away. They barely acknowledged me, but they did wander off. Both tagged, 112 and 113. Never saw mommy and haven't seen them since.
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But . . . . . . when they went for my baby tree I went outside (in my nightgown, 18 degrees) to chase them away. They barely acknowledged me, but they did wander off. Both tagged, 112 and 113. Never saw mommy and haven't seen them since..jpg)
No -- No -- No -- Not Winter Yet!!
Well, even if there's none of that white stuff on the ground yet -- we've had temps in the teens at night. Arn had some huge chunks of wood and Marc has a wood burning stove so they spent a Sat. morning chopping and splitting.
Ta-Daaaa. Nice pile. That will keep them warm for a good long time.
Ta-Daaaa. Nice pile. That will keep them warm for a good long time.
The Vacation
Mom went to San Diego to spend time with Gary and family on Sept. 16th. and we left for our excursion on the 18th. Our first stop was Leavenworth, WA. A quaint Bavarian village about half-way between us and Seattle. We spend 2 days there and then went on to Seattle. Here we are taking a ferry across to Bainbridge Island to (after 20 years) revisit a winery that we found out no longer existed. It was still fun and a great (windy) ride over and back.
After a full day in Seattle, we were on to Vancouver, BC, site of the 2010 Olympics. We took a trolly around town and then dined outside. The whole trip had temps in the high 80's with no rain. It was gorgeous.
Good luck to the Olympics. Here is a sample of downtown Vancouver streets. Very narrow with bike riders and walkers everywhere that ignore cars or actually challenge them. It's frightening to drive in this city.
One of the gagillion rocky mountains we took pics of. The scenery driving from Vancouver to Banff was breath-taking.
This was the view from our room in Banff. We took 2 days getting there and then spent two days touring the area. Fantastic!!!
Yes, we went horseback riding and to prove it we had to have pics taken. We took a two hour ride up into the hills which were very rocky and challengingly steep even for the horses. Boy was I sore.
Remarkable beauty at Lake Louise (not me). As you can see the color of the water is amazing and enhanced by the crystal snow and ice in the background.
Taking a drive in the early evening -- searching for sightings of wildlife we came upon this gathering of mountain goats (sheep?) just wandering down the middle of the road. We pulled over and they came up to the front of the car expecting us to feed them. A definite no-no.
We had just about given up hope of seeing any other animals when we came upon 3 female elk feeding off the right hand side of the road. We stopped to take pics along with another car in front of us. As we were sitting there -- from an abandonded camp ground on the left was a high pitched squeal and out charged (literally) a bull elk. He ran across in front of us -- charging the females. This time of year is rutting season. This pic was the best I could get cuz he kept in the bushes -- but he was beautiful and we were trilled at the size of him. Look at that rack!
We came home after 8 days on the road (and very little sleep). We took side trips around here and then mom came home on Sat. Oct. 3rd. She had a great time in San Diego cuz Gary told me so. Unfortunately mom doesn't remember. Thanks to Gary and Linda for letting us get away and rested.
After a full day in Seattle, we were on to Vancouver, BC, site of the 2010 Olympics. We took a trolly around town and then dined outside. The whole trip had temps in the high 80's with no rain. It was gorgeous.
Good luck to the Olympics. Here is a sample of downtown Vancouver streets. Very narrow with bike riders and walkers everywhere that ignore cars or actually challenge them. It's frightening to drive in this city.
One of the gagillion rocky mountains we took pics of. The scenery driving from Vancouver to Banff was breath-taking.
This was the view from our room in Banff. We took 2 days getting there and then spent two days touring the area. Fantastic!!!
Yes, we went horseback riding and to prove it we had to have pics taken. We took a two hour ride up into the hills which were very rocky and challengingly steep even for the horses. Boy was I sore.
Remarkable beauty at Lake Louise (not me). As you can see the color of the water is amazing and enhanced by the crystal snow and ice in the background.
Taking a drive in the early evening -- searching for sightings of wildlife we came upon this gathering of mountain goats (sheep?) just wandering down the middle of the road. We pulled over and they came up to the front of the car expecting us to feed them. A definite no-no.
We had just about given up hope of seeing any other animals when we came upon 3 female elk feeding off the right hand side of the road. We stopped to take pics along with another car in front of us. As we were sitting there -- from an abandonded camp ground on the left was a high pitched squeal and out charged (literally) a bull elk. He ran across in front of us -- charging the females. This time of year is rutting season. This pic was the best I could get cuz he kept in the bushes -- but he was beautiful and we were trilled at the size of him. Look at that rack!
We came home after 8 days on the road (and very little sleep). We took side trips around here and then mom came home on Sat. Oct. 3rd. She had a great time in San Diego cuz Gary told me so. Unfortunately mom doesn't remember. Thanks to Gary and Linda for letting us get away and rested.Thursday, September 10, 2009
1st Days
Remember your first day of kindergarten???? I'm not sure I do, but here's Jouzy ready for her first day. Their school had a two week program where the new kids went every morning for a couple of hours to get use to the teachers, and learn the halls and activities so they were totally ready when it came to their first day.
Already in my new classroom.
First soccer practice. Jouzy is in a fall league where they are all just learning.
Kick it to the coach!!!! Grandma and grandpa can't wait for the first game.
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Already in my new classroom.
First soccer practice. Jouzy is in a fall league where they are all just learning.
Kick it to the coach!!!! Grandma and grandpa can't wait for the first game..jpg)
More Grandkids
Since many of you have never seen or haven't seen them in a long time I thought I'd include a pic of Mike and Lischa's Kayla and Aaron and Kim's Allison. Allison is 11 months and walking all over the place. I believe Kayla is four and a big help with babysitting. These are Gary and Linda's grandkids and if I got Kayla's age wrong I'm sure I'll be corrected soon. They are precious.
Happy Birthday
Rylee turned 7 on the 3rd of August . . . but because Sara's parents were coming into town we celebrated her big day on the 15th. The day didn't start out so good as it was cold and raining and altho' her party was not a surprise -- her gift from us was and we so hoped for a nice day. Here she is opening a card that Jouzy made for her. It was adorable.
Oh boy, a new back pack just in time for school -- and stuffed full of all kinds of good stuff.
Yeah! a new dress. Great colors too.
"Yep -- I've been needing a new bike helmet cuz my other one got broke." Goes good with my new shirt too.
"WOW!!! Look what I got . . . now I don't have to ride Cody's old boys bike anymore." "Thanks grandma and grandpa for my new Hanna Montana bike. Cool!"
The rain cleared up just in time to take a spin outside and show off the new wheels.
"Ok, ok -- if I have to I'll stop long enough to blow out candles so everyone can eat some cake, but don't ask me to take off my new helmet!"
How cute is Joyzlynn???
Relaxing and enjoying every minute of it. The dinner was going to be just hamburger and hot dogs, but then Sara's mom brought fresh chickens from the farm and a salmon that she had caught so we grilled it all up and it was super delicious. Sara and her mom did most of the work so, as you can tell, I took advantage of doing nothing.
Awwwwwwwwww! How sweet. Finally!!!! a good picture of grandma. She enjoys relaxing too.
Oh boy, a new back pack just in time for school -- and stuffed full of all kinds of good stuff.
Yeah! a new dress. Great colors too.
"Yep -- I've been needing a new bike helmet cuz my other one got broke." Goes good with my new shirt too.
"WOW!!! Look what I got . . . now I don't have to ride Cody's old boys bike anymore." "Thanks grandma and grandpa for my new Hanna Montana bike. Cool!"
The rain cleared up just in time to take a spin outside and show off the new wheels.
"Ok, ok -- if I have to I'll stop long enough to blow out candles so everyone can eat some cake, but don't ask me to take off my new helmet!"
How cute is Joyzlynn???
Relaxing and enjoying every minute of it. The dinner was going to be just hamburger and hot dogs, but then Sara's mom brought fresh chickens from the farm and a salmon that she had caught so we grilled it all up and it was super delicious. Sara and her mom did most of the work so, as you can tell, I took advantage of doing nothing.
Awwwwwwwwww! How sweet. Finally!!!! a good picture of grandma. She enjoys relaxing too.
SURPRISE!!!!!
It's impossible!!! I can't have a son who is 40!!!! Uggggggggh -- hard to beleive. But . . . . . thanks to Marc's 40th we had a great surprise party in their back yard. His actual birthday is on July 31st, but because Uncle Gary and Aunt Linda were in town from San Diego we had the party on the 18th -- knowing Marc would never guess what was going on. Here he is arriving on the back deck, overlooking the yard where we had everything set up.
Cute hat! He suffered thru all the degredation we could dish out.
Here's most of the crowd. It was a beautiful day -- 110 degrees in the shade. It was boiling.
FOOD!!
In case you don't blow up this picture to read it better it says "Older Than Dirt" and the words are sitting in a pile of edible dirt!!! Great fun!
More fun with the crowd. Somewhere in there you can see lots of Marc's friends along with Gary and Linda, Steve, Kim and Jouzlynn, all the grandkids along with Sara's brothers and sisters. Grandma is in there somewhere too. It was a great day.
Cute hat! He suffered thru all the degredation we could dish out.
Here's most of the crowd. It was a beautiful day -- 110 degrees in the shade. It was boiling.
FOOD!!
In case you don't blow up this picture to read it better it says "Older Than Dirt" and the words are sitting in a pile of edible dirt!!! Great fun!
More fun with the crowd. Somewhere in there you can see lots of Marc's friends along with Gary and Linda, Steve, Kim and Jouzlynn, all the grandkids along with Sara's brothers and sisters. Grandma is in there somewhere too. It was a great day.
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