catching up!

Autumn was BUSY... the blog has been forgotten between work, gardening, picking and canning, yard work, pre-school (on a side note, auto-correct wants me to change that to pee-school, it will also accept ore-school...), hunting, football (well never mind the football, Vikings are being, well Vikings so the next game I'm looking forward to is Diamondbacks vs Cardinals in April), trick-or-treating and other such fun Fall activities.

Here's a quick wrap up before we dive into Winter. I hope you enjoy the pictures. 

We're looking forward to a blessed Christmas and a Wonderful New Year and hope for the same for all of you out there. 

Usually the girls are great about sleeping in their own beds. Tonight was not one of those nights... Madison took the floor.

Zoie stuffed herself in the corner of the bottom bunk.

Audrey was stretched out on the top bunk.

1st day of Pre-School (2nd year)

The 1st night with their new kitten, Cadence.

...at the Car Wash.

I told them when they were done the Excursion and the Jetta could use a bath too.

Jumping in the leaves at Grammy and Grampy's house.

About this time I was up on the roof blowing leaves out of the gutters... being a grown-up stinks!

Krista took a great picture of Zoie. I'm not sure if you could capture an expression of more carefree happiness.

They're off to the races!

Riding the "train" at the Pumpkin Patch.

Selecting the perfect pumpkins.

Kids with cameras... again

Just a few more pictures from the "kid's camera". I love the pictures that our girls take and to think about the perspective and then to see what they see is important enough to document is interesting. I had to exclude A LOT of kitten and My Little Pony pictures. Next was random photos of the floor, ceiling or fingers. Madison usually is behind the camera so most of the pictures are of Audrey or Zoie. Here are some of my favorites that they've taken over the past month. I haven't cropped or altered any of the shots.

Audrey trying to impersonate her dad.

Audrey having a conversation with Princess Celestia.

Excursion

Zoie showing off her ghost.

Audrey hard at work at the craft table.

Working at the craft table.

Zoie and dad in the kitchen.

Zoie looking quite pleased with their new kitten, Cadence.

Zero deciding between a ball and a pony.

Audrey and Madison at the craft table.

Madison in what I believe is a self portrait.

...and the close up.

The girls made a crown for Jack, the kitten that Zero rescued.

Audrey and Jack.

Audrey and Cadence.

Zoie and Cadence.

Zoie and Jack.

Doll, no... Pony House.

Audrey in the dress-up clothes with Jack and a pony.

Camping Again!

August 16th we packed up and headed for Bozeman. This time we had reservations for a campsite near Hyalite reservoir! Our campsite was not the prettiest but it was near a creek and close to some trails and the lake. We lucked out and had some fish "donated" by a retired gentleman (and disabled veteran) who lives in Florida but spends the summer months in Bozeman. His landlady doesn't want him cooking fish in the house so he usually does catch and release, but in this instance he gave us his bounty. That is part of the fun of camping is meeting people whom we would probably never come into contact with otherwise. The people who were camping next to us thought the girls and Baxter and Zero were adorable. They had a couple of small dogs that they let the girls come over and play with. We fished, played in the stream, ate roasted marshmallows, played in the lake and hiked to another waterfall. This ended up being the last camping trip of the summer and we all had a great time.

Playing in the creek.

Madison and dad fishing.

Zoie and Madison playing on the shore.

Madison up on the "jumping rock"

Glow-sticks at the ready.

...and JUMP

JUMP

JUMP!

Crashed out in front of the campfire.

Madison in front of the waterfall.

Zoie

Audrey

Krista, the girls and Baxter down below.

What a site!

Zoie fishing.

Riding the rock in front of our campsite.

..and lastly a "music video" featuring Audrey and Zoie with a rendition of BINGO.

Goodnight Rush

In October of 1996 Krista and I picked up our 1st "kid" from the shelter... today she left us. I could go on about all the silly things Rush did, the quirky behaviors, or other fond tales but I won't. I'll just say that she was special to us, and she is missed.

Krista and I decided to let the girls say goodbye and come down to the ditch bank to be there as we buried Rush in a spot close to where Opus is buried. That was the hardest part about today. Rush wasn't a cuddly cat, but she tolerated the kids and their attempts to carry her around sometimes. But as Krista carried her body across the field the finality of death and the realization that she would no longer be around set in. Today was the first day in 48 days that we saw precipitation in Billings. It was cloudy, cold and rainy... a melancholy day. It was heartbreaking to hear the girls ask questions like.

"Rush won't meow anymore?"
"Why did she die?"
"When will I die?"
..........there were some questions that made me just about laugh and some that left me grasping for the right words to say. We discussed life and death at a 4 year old level for a bit and we cried a bit. In the end we all decided to be grateful for the time that we have and to enjoy it while it lasts.

Kids POV

While we're awaiting a post from Krista about their 1st sleepover at Erma's house (twins, triplets, Erma and Krista... what could go wrong?!?) I decided that I would post some pix from the girls... from their point of view. They got a hold of (with our permission) our older digital point and shoot, and we let them go nuts. Things to be learned from this experience? I cannot put this plainly enough.. it's like having the paparazzi around, nothing is safe and nothing is sacred. Mommy getting out of the shower? Check. Zoie going potty? Check. Daddy wearing his Vikings shirt and sporting a mustache? Check. All very embarrassing. I've taken the liberty of getting rid of all the blackmail photos, except those which I may be able to extort money from later.

All the photos were taken by Audrey, Madison or Zoie, I didn't crop, enhance or otherwise alter any of the shots. 

Ponies!

Zoie walking towards the camera.

Madison with Blue Dottie and Red Heart Dottie.

Madison with Horsey and Blue Dottie.

Madison... I think.

Zoie pretending to nap.

Audrey with a Mona Lisa-esque expression.

Audrey and Grammy.

Outside.

Flowers.

Puddles the Poodle.

Fluffy.

Dottie.

Rainbow Dog.

Mom and Dad in the kitchen.

Shoe!

Zoie and Audrey on the swing set.

Zoie and Audrey on the swing set.

Audrey

Audrey