Halloween 2011

Wes an Tim enjoying their caramel apples...

pumpkin carving...

mama's baby Dino...

my four candy collectors

Weston's 9th Birthday

This year we decided to do something really fun. James and I rented out the gymnastics center for the birthday party. The kids had a blast! There were games, large rope swings, a large trampoline, zip line, bounce house, and free reign to all the gym equipment. I made Weston a dinosaur land cake which was all edible except for the Dino's. It was fun to make.

Cant believe my eldest is already nine. He's already wearing my shoes and up a little past my shoulder in height. I have a feeling I'll be the runt of the family once all have grown.

Apple Cider

My brother-in-law Ian borrowed his parents cider mill for the weekend. We all got together at James' Grandfathers place and picked a truck load of golden delicious apple straight off the tree. Cleome, my mother-in-law, made us salmon chowder, corn bread, and fresh apple crisp. We all had lots of fun. There was about 30 gallons of cider made that day. My family made off with 5 gallons which we will be enjoying this Thanksgiving.

The Taste of Summer

Apple butter. The last jam we will make this summer. It is quite the cumbersome jam to make too. After picking, slicing, boiling, smashing, stirring, and stirring, and stirring for hours, you get to enjoy 10 jars of it. Perfect jam for fall. Nothing says fall like pumpkin either. The two go hand in hand really. Pumpkin pancakes with home made apple butter and a dollop of whip cream, oh my, I can see my waist band expanding already.

Milton Freewater grows the best blueberries in the world, I think. Sweet, almost huckle berry flavored. We have made many crisps, smoothies, muffins, and pancake topping with blue berries. We really can't get enough.

Apricot jam. My favorite! Weston and I fight over this one too, making sure the other person doesn't take the last drop. James, he likes to add pineapple to his apricots. I must admit, I like it too.

Alli in Grandpa Clark's orchard picking cherries. I freeze these for the kids so they can enjoy them through out the year.

Strawberry jam. I made it all by my self this year. It came out delicious and beautiful in color. We also made cherry and blackberry jam. Both of those turned out amazing too. So, these delightful treats should help fight the winter blues. Good-bye summer...already looking forward to seeing you next year.

Camping Near Mt. Rainier

This was our annual church camp out. They chose a beautiful camp ground near Mt Rainier call La Wis Wis. We set up our tent next to the hazy blue river on top of a soft pile of sand. It wasn't as "rugged" as my husband would have preferred, but it was fun to socialize with all our friends.
There were a couple trails off the road near our camp that we took on Sabbath. Like this little pretty waterfall that the kids enjoyed playing in. The water was ice cold, but that really doesn't stop most kids from getting in.

My beautiful baby girl enjoying the water. And yes, momma let her play in her underwear. Hehe!

Sleeping next to the river also made it peaceful for sleeping. Love the sound of rushing water. That and the feel of my cozy sleeping bag.

Baby Rowan slept well. Of course momma dressed him in fleece with 6 blankets for a bed. ...Cute lil'guy, love his lil'raindeer hat.

...and of course, when your a kid, you gotta torment the wild life.

Alli's 4th Birthday

Oh yeah, we had fun! It has got to be so awesome having a birthday in the summer. My birthday is smack in the middle of winter. I always wanted to some how change my birth date to one of those hot summer days. Playing in the water for a child is just one of the high lights of summer. When I look at the picture above, I can still hear the little squeals.

Bought Alli a little kiddie pool. She and her friends have much fun in it. The little girl next to her is a neighbor just two houses down. Her, Alli, and Claire can create quite to ruckus in the pool.

Alli wanted butterfly cupcakes this year. It wasn't my best creative moments, but the cake was tasty.

Just before we opened presents, Alli went into her room and put on her princess Bell dress. She loves to play dress up. She even received a Cinderella play dress for her birthday, which she wore around the house after the party was over.

This picture says it all for me. That's exactly what I wanted to do after all was said and done. ...precious Rowan baby.

Camping near Mt. Adams 2011

Our family took a little vacation to the mountains this 4th of July. James and a couple of his siblings with friends went white water rafting too. It was really beautiful. Especially the view from this trail head. It was only about 2miles long, but goodness, I am out of shape. From the top you could see Mt. Adams, Mt. Hood, and Mt. Saint Helen's. Rowan was the same age Alli was when we took her on her first camping/backpacking trip. Only 8 weeks old.

Perfect place to eat lunch. Really enjoyed my time with Clover and Eddie who came down from Bellingham to join the fun. They stayed at the campsite with me while the others went rafting. They made it much more enjoyable for me and the kids. I'm looking forward to being an Auntie again once their little bundle of joy enters the world. Rowan and their baby will only be 7 months apart.

Alli was a trooper. She walked the majority of the time up the trail, but coming down she got really tired. Uncle Ian came to her rescue.

Perfect title for this scene.

My Boys Summer Concert 2011

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kk4p5qfJuPw

Click on the link above to view Wes an Tim at there summer concert. Can you tell which crazy kid is mine? Oh yeah, the one in the middle that can't hold still, = )

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mpZmoMkaC6M Watch my 7 year old Long Board! His first day! Click on the link above.

Timmy's 7th Birthday

Timmy and Weston were actually kidnapped by their Aunt Rissa for the weekend. They made their way up to Bellingham to spend an eventful weekend with their Aunt Clover. They spent time at the beach looking at and petting the wild life there. They had a great time. Upon their arrival home, James an I planned a surprise party for Timmy. All the neighborhood kids came over for a hot dog roast with cake an ice cream. One of the presents Timmy received was from his Uncle Nate. Timmy's been asking for a Long Board (skate board) for a while now, and finally got one. He is actually doing very well on it. We plan, cross our fingers, to take the boys skiing and snow boarding this winter since the boys will be home this Christmas. The Long Boarding skills should help Tim when he begins to learn to snow board. ...it was a good birthday.

Beautiful Spring 2011

We upgraded Alli's bike today. No more tricycle. We need to upgrade Timmy's bike too. It's amazing how fast kids grow. I love being out doors with the kids, especially when it's beautiful outside. The grass is green and all is starting to bloom. Still amazed we are adding one more child to the family. More adventures on the way.

Update

So many things to update you about, but little time. My tummy has been growing and growing with lots and lots of movement. We are all getting excited about baby boy coming to join our family. In the mean time, we are all busy preparing for our new addition and loving life. Timmy lost his first tooth! There's a funny story here. Timmy was out in the car munch en on a honey stick I picked up for the kids at a health food store. He was trying to get every last drop out of the straw by running his teeth on it from bottom to the top. On his last effort to grab the last drop, out popped his tooth. James snapped a photo of him and the tooth before putting it into a ziploc for the tooth fairy. Well, the tooth fairy never made it that night. James and I were exhausted and forgot all about it! Poor Timmy awoke with the tooth still under his pillow. James made up a quick story about how sometimes the tooth fairy works over time and sometimes doesn't get to all the teeth in the world. He convinced Timmy to leave the tooth under the pillow till he got home from school. Poor Timmy. Not the best tooth fairy experience, but he got $5 which is more then a "big shiny quarter" which is what I got as a kid.

One of my best-est friends came down from Idaho with her family and visited us for the weekend. The first day I invited 20+ people over for vespers and homemade taco soup. It was so nice seeing everyone. The next night, which required some "teeth pulling." My friends husband seems to have a hard time doing things separate from his wife. But, we managed to make our get away to the nail spa and get a pedicure. Oh, it felt so good on my poor swollen feet. Then we headed over to the Thai restaurant with two other girlfriends of mine. It was delicious! We then headed back to my house and ended the night with ice cream and a chick flick. It was so much fun. Every girl needs this at least once a month.
That Sunday James and Nate made their way to White Pass. They had so much fun. The snow was great, and the weather beautiful. Wish my husband could do this more often. Need to get the boys out to the ski hill. Looks like we'll save such plans for next year cuz spring is now in the air. Whew Hew!