All I want to know is...

...who has been eating my chocolate?!

I have been busy.....making cards, wrangling children, school pictures, hoarding chocolate, reading other blogs....family history type stuff.....not really doing anything about it other than plans, but that's a start, right?!

I've been in a writing funk and more of an information gathering mode as of late. Oh, and that guilt imposed by dirty bathrooms and floors has been filling my mind instead of anything blog-worthy!

More fun coming when I get my ducks in a row. :)

ps....I didn't take that blurry picture....I stole it from google images....that was easier than pulling my bags of chocolate out of hiding, pulling the camera out, transferring images, and trying to not let the kids see the chocolate or their hiding place in all of that chaos. Whew!

**Roseola update: at day 3, all the "coco pops" went away, and Ellie is Ellie again!

I have to laugh

I think it's funny that no one has commented on the fact that my two year old is playing with poker chips and face cards in the picture below....such a stellar parent!

Or has someone turned me in to CPS anonymously?! ;)

Isn't she cute though?! That picture was taken on our trip to Colorado. We stopped in at a "Pioneer Town" that included a fun street of different businesses, including the Lizard Head Saloon. The kids thought that filling the glasses with poker chips was a blast.

As for Miss Rosie....wow, her "coco pops" are even more impressive today, including up onto her cheeks. Fun times!

New kid.....

Normally, we call this one Ellie.

Today, we have changed her name for the next day - to possibly a week.
Her alias is Rosie.

Rosie Lola....

...as in roseola! (Click on above pictures to really take in the glory of it all!)

She calls them her "coco pops". (Her adorable way of saying polka dots!) Now I understand why her fever didn't subside after we started antibiotics for her double ear infection....poor kid!

On to other fantastic news....it isn't summer here today. At noon, it was blowing, raining, and 45 degrees! Yeah, that would be 45 degrees. Even my husband, who had opened the windows to let in the "cool", decided it was now too cold and closed them up! :) By this afternoon though, the storm had blown through....sun shining, temp warming nicely into the 60's(downright balmy!), and we got a nice view of the snow topping off the mountains around us.....

nice...

Happy September 1st!

A Little Freedom: Take 2

Jared finally reached his long awaited first day of Kindergarten! Whoo-Hoo! He woke up this morning so excited, and we counted down the hours until it was time to leave. (He's in the pm class). We had some lunch, daddy showed up to help escort him, and off we went. Jared proved to be just like Nicole, in that he could've cared less that his parents were there. I was trying to tell him goodbye and give him some last minute instructions, but he was so preoccupied looking around and doing his puzzle that I don't even think my words went in one ear to go out the other....they just flew off into the air, completely ignored!

Jared and his teacher

So now Ellie and I are on our own for three hours a day, five days a week! Of course, it is during naptime, so she'll be involved in that many days, but on days that errands have to be run, she will be my little helper and it will be fifty times easier than it's been in years! :) I don't think she was bored at all with them not home. She does a great job entertaining herself when they are home anyway.
Before long, three hours had passed and it was time to pick them up. Jared was excited about his day, and had fun. He was already talking about how he was happy that he gets to go back tomorrow. It's going to be a good year!

...'Til we meet again...

Last Sunday my Aunt Marie, one of my Dad's older sisters, passed away. She lived a long full life, and will be greatly missed.

Jared, Ellie, I, and my mom are off for a very quick trip to Vernon, AZ for her funeral and time with family. We leave this morning and come home Sunday.....I hope we and the kids survive the 20+ hour drive! ;)

My cousin Bradi, who is much better with words, left this wonderful memorial on her blog.

Bradi mentioned a few of the things I remember about Aunt Marie....like the fact that the poor woman did not inherit the tall gene that pretty much EVERYONE else in the family did...she took after her mother and was on the short end of things....but she wasn't short on listening to people, which isn't a strong family trait! I didn't see my Aunt Marie often due to moving away from the home state of AZ and not being able to attend the family reunions and weekends at the ranch. But when I did see her, she knew who I was, and asked about me. I appreciated that so much. It's hard to be a member of a large extended family, many that spend a lot of time together, and still feel part of it when your visits are few and far between. But there are many in our family, Aunt Marie included, that didn't let you forget that you were as important as any of them.

She also told great stories. I think that is the thing that makes me the saddest as the older generation passes away.....so many stories go with them and are gone. I regret so much not bugging my dad and recording his thoughts. I came along after both my grandparents were gone, so I don't have memories of them. I got a few details out of my dad of his growing up years, but he really didn't talk about it much. My cousin Kevin is really trying to get some things recorded, and I applaud his efforts, and hope we can all benefit from it. We really do have an incredible family heritage to continue to build upon.

Thank you, Aunt Marie, for being a part of, and helping to build that strong heritage. You will be missed.

Aunt Marie is the older girl on left.

Aunt Marie is the older girl on the right. Check out the little boy in the suspenders on her right....no that is not my son, but it is his grandpa! I gave birth to my own father....

Children of DC & Ethel Nicoll, 1978
back: John, Kenneth, Guy, Cap
front: Joyce, Phyllis, Marie

July Recap....Sliding Rock

For years we've been talking about going up to a place my husband frequented during his teen years. For a while the area was closed off, but now there is a gate that allows hikers through. It's an easy hike. Apparently, the land below it was being readied to be subdivided, so there are asphalt roads all the way up. There are even fire hydrants, water and sewer lines ready and everything, but the plans to sell lots are no longer happening.....too bad, I kept telling Ron it would be such a beautiful place to live.....oh well, we wouldn't be able to afford the lot, so it's okay!

We hiked up the roads to the end of a culdesac, and then followed the little footpath about 200 yards to the prettiest waterfall and pool. There was no one else there, so we had it all to ourselves. Ron was the first to take the plunge, then Riley and I followed. We finally talked Nicole into it, but Jared was a no-go. Ellie was too little to begin with. The rock climbing involved in getting to the top is a bit hairy, but Nicole was able to handle it barefoot, so it is doable. It was so odd sliding down the falls. The rock wasn't as slippery as you'd think, until you got going down it. It took Riley a while to find her "line" so she wasn't bouncing all over. The pool at the bottom was waist deep, but that water was so shockingly cold I couldn't catch my breath once I came up.....brrr! Thankfully it was a warm day, so once I finally recovered and got my heart beating again the drying time was short. A fun way to spend a morning! We'll definitely go back.

Ellie was a happy hiker as long as she had her kitty and bottle of water.

Sliding Rock

Ron was first to go, and first to recover from the cold water!

I hiked up there, so dang it if I was going to miss out on the fun....check out the zoom on the right. Yeah, that would be sheer terror! (You should hear me on roller coasters!) But I did do it twice!

Riley bouncing around, and Nicole did it too...with Dad's help! (click on the picture if you want a closer view)

As we hiked down, we were glad we went up early and had it to ourselves. We passed two other families and two groups of teens on their way up to play. I guess it's a popular spot in the afternoon, evening and weekends. Our choice of Friday morning was perfect!

July Recap....Jared's Birthday

Okay, I'm a bit behind in the blogging department.....I'm missing stuff from July! I guess it's just a sign we've been having too much fun?!

I wished Jared a Happy BDay, but never shared Bday pics....

We didn't have a friend party, and honestly, it's because his behavior in the weeks and days prior to his bday didn't warrant it (I am such a mean mom....) He did however, request a pinata. So during the family party that evening, we did the pinata thing. The kids thought it was great, of course!
1. Jared taking a whack at it.
2. Nicole trying to kill it with an overhead beating. For a girl, she's rough!
3. Ellie took a turn without the blindfold.
4. In the end, Jared did it in....basically by hitting it so hard that it ripped off the hanger. So Ron helped open it up and dump it for the kids to collect the spoils!

Enjoying his presents.
1. Jared thinks Transformers are great, but can't really transform them...and dang, they are difficult! Good thing they come with step by step instructions for me! And I'm in trouble if I lose them.....the instructions that is...
2. Jared loves money. This is what he did with the cash Grandmommy gave him....laid it all out on the ground for ease in counting it.

Jared and the Speed Racer cake he chose....why Speed Racer? We have no idea....He's never even seen the movie! Just a kid thing to do.

A Little Freedom: Take 1

Riley and Nicole started back to school today...9th and 1st grades, respectively.

It really seems like yesterday that I was walking Riley to her first day of 1st grade.....now she's a freshman?! Whoa! And can you believe it? I actually caught a smile?! Cute kid. Riley has Seminary now (released time from school to take a religious class), she also is taking Algebra 2, Painting 2, World Civilizations, Biology, Advanced Choir, Advanced Spanish(3rd year), and Honors English. Go Riley! :)

Nicole was so excited for 1st grade. The kid is just excited about school and learning. I hope her enthusiasm never wanes. She was happy that she and most of her kindergarten friends ended up in the same class. I was excited for her to start on this new adventure of 6 hours of school....but torn as well! She grew up so fast. I of course got teary as I walked out of the class and Ron laughed at me and asked me why in the world I was crying about more freedom....I wasn't! Those tears would be for joy....my tears were a mixture of pride and sadness that my babies are just getting old so quickly. It was fun to pick her up, she bowled me over with a big hug and was most excited about the fact that she had three recesses! :) I found it interesting when she told me that during her 3rd recess, she and her friends were pretending to go on a rocket to visit the moon, Venus, Pluto, and back to Earth.....funny that they decided which specific planets they were going to visit.

**Stay tuned for "A Little Freedom: Take 2" next Monday when Jared starts Kindergarten.**

We are back.....

Once the above list is checked off.....I can blog again.

I have been reading though...and enjoying. Life will return to normal soon, and I have lots of fun to share!

**make your own post-it here! **

Gone 4wheeling! Be back soon!

We're off tomorrow for the beautiful state of Colorado! We can't wait to enjoy the quiet beauty, cool weather, and fun times.

Hope everyone has a great week! I'll be back for more fun the week of the 11th...I'll blog then if I can fit it in between dentist appointments, haircuts, and back to school stuff....whew, I need a vacation just thinking about it. :)