Winter Images

We decorated our gingerbreadhouse last night.
I use the term "decorating" a bit loosely but you get the idea!



And finally, after much anticipation, the snow arrived last night.
Not much hope of getting a lot of school work done today with a 4 foot mound of snow outside so we decided to make the most of it and enjoy it while it's here.

Part 2 - The Charlie Brown Christmas Tree

This is the OTHER tree we cut down over the weekend...

The ugly, stunted, dwarfed, bedraggled one that we have put in our school room.

This is our Charlie Brown Christmas Tree.

And we LOVE it :-)

The Christmas Tree - Part 1

So I have a question........

Why does a fir tree look so small out in the forest....

...BUT...

You get it home and its E-NOR-MOUS?



We took a hike up to our acreage and cut this one down to use as our Christmas tree this year. Some friends came with us and the one they cut down is even bigger!!!

Thank goodness for vaulted ceilings :-)

Lucky

Lucky

Really...crazy lucky.

For so many, many reasons.

Here are just a few that I have been reminded of this week....

1 - That I have a great family....One that will travel the long distances between Australia and the United States to visit us.



2 - That I have children who "GET" how lucky they are and who want to make a difference in the lives of other children who are less fortunate than themselves. (More on this one later)

3 - That despite the fact I am a summer girl I never tire of seeing the constantly changing seasons and enjoying all the fun that goes with them.



4 - That my 40 year old body can still hang together after a bit of exercise....and ...

5 - That I have a nice neighbor who took me for my first ride on my road bike and didn't mind that I slowed him down like a rock.



6 - That there are so many exciting things on the horizon for my family and for me. Even though we are headed toward the end of 2009...( I know...where did it go?)...2010 is going to be GREAT! :-)

3 Boys.

3 boys....

1 hose...


Oh...yeah....summer's here.

Ode to Spring

Nothing says spring like the first dandelion. Just in time for the first of May.

100 posts....and a little giveaway!

These pictures are primarily for family and friends back in Australia who for the last few months have been experiencing record temperatures, bush fires and generally sweltering conditions. On our side of the pond we are also poised to set records...here in the wintery Pacific Northwest we are only an inch or so from setting the record for the snowiest winter ever...(well since they started keeping records anyway!).



We took the kids away last weekend for a ski trip to Schweitzer. Such an awesome place even if you're not much into skiing. The little village on the mountain offers a movie theater, coffee shops and some great restaurants. The outdoor hottub where we stayed was a favorite of the boys...Matt and I enjoyed the ski in/ski out location of our hotel. When the kids got tired they headed back to the hotel while Matt and I had a "ski date" and spent an hour or so skiing....just the 2 of us...Awwwwww!



I have to say though...we were a little nervous after hearing about all the bad ski karma that also went on that weekend. What with Natasha Richardson's tragic accident and then that family ski trip that turned to tragedy after their plane crashed in Montana. I am pleased to report that we survived our weekend unscathed and I have vowed to buy helmets for myself and Matt next season.

Anyway...this being my 100th post...( I can't believe I have had so much to say!)..I am celebrating by offering a little giveaway! A set of Lemon Dingo standard size labels with your choice of icon, text and color to the winner.( Check out all the designs at www.lemondingo.com ). To enter just leave a comment on this post between now and March 31st and my high tech number drawing system will reveal a winner! Good luck and thanks for sharing the blog journey with me :-)

Mother Nature's Jewelry Box

The pictures in my blog have definitely shown a preoccupation with snow this week.



Up close it is so beautiful and delicate. It reminds me of jewelry...



As if Mother Nature was getting all dressed in her finest to welcome winter.

First Snow

The first snowfall of the year is always exciting. This afternoon we got our first taste of the snow. While the kids were diving into their snow gear I was grabbing my camera and heading out the door.
And of course with the first snowfall comes the obligatory snowball fight. This snowball was aimed at me and I am a little surprised to see just how much Jack's aim has improved since last winter!

Sunday S t i l l -ness

I have been quite remiss the last few days...neglecting my blogging in an effort to get on top of preparations for the holidays. I did get a few things squared away...I ordered my christmas cards, started my Christmas shopping, did some baking, put some finishing touches to some handmade knitted gifts and submitted a painting to an art competition. Also this week my daughter was performing in the Missoula Childrens' Theater production of Hansel and Gretel so there were a lot of trips to and from rehearsals and then performances. By Sunday I was starting to feel a little like a whirling dervish.

So I had to stop....and just enjoy the peace and s t i l l -ness of Sunday.

Thinking about Christmas

I need to get organized and start thinking about getting my Christmas cards written.



I leave it to the absolute last minute EVERY year.



So maybe this will be the year that I will be super efficient and get it done early...maybe!

Missing Summer Already

The rain just won't quit.
Its not even December yet and I am missing summer already!

The Lake....


Swimming...



Boating....



Playing around....



Goofing off...



Having fun...



Making smores...



I am usually a rain peson but now we are heading into our second straight week of non stop rain I'm looking forward to seeing the sun again

Rain

Just another gray old day.

Halloween Adventures

The weather was wonderfully mild last night as we ventured out with some friends to take the kids trick or treating.
I really thought I'd take a whole lot of pictures. I had this idea of getting the kids and their friends to pose under this giant inflatable haunted arch that we have outside our front porch but in hindsight I can see this was doomed to failure. They let me snap off a few quick photos at the door and then they were all off running in all directions. We spent most of the time herding them to the side of the road and avoiding oncoming traffic.

My friend Dana challenged me early in the night to a photo dual. After lying on someone's cold, damp lawn to get this picture of Jack I conceded defeat in preference to not catching pneumonia.

Even hubby got into the Halloween spirit..(pardon the pun!!!) and dressed as a biker. He had been to the Halloween store for some accessories and picked up some plastic "bling" and tattoo sleeves. He was disappointed to find out from the children that bikers don't wear bling...he might have to save that for next year and be a rapper. My eight year old son has taken possession of the tattoo sleeves remarking that they are the coolest thing he has ever seen. I am thinking that this does not bode well for his teenage years.
Finally after it was all over it was time to sort through their candy stash. While the others were sorting according to what candy was their favorite my five year old was color coding his candy. Sometimes the mind of a 5 year old can be boggling! Happy Halloween.

Anyone Know a Good Dentist????

So this is what happens when Dad brings home faux teeth from the Halloween store!

Fall Foliage

Just playing around with some pictures I took yesterday. Having fun with different treatments. Seeing the colors and light change . Always something new and different to enjoy.

Chill in the Air

Early morning frost dusted the lawn this morning. Winter is definitely on it's way.

Getting geared up

Today we headed out to this little local ski store to gear the kids up for the impending ski season and I couldn't resist getting the camera out and taking a few snaps. The store had all these really fun touches....all chairs were either made from old skis or were old ski lift chairs. The kids enjoyed testing them all out in preparation for the real thing.