Weekend Getaway!

I had the chance to go to Sun Valley with my mom and sister this last weekend. We decided to meet up there for a little getaway. While we were there we participated in the National Multiple Sclerosis Society fun run/walk. My grandma Josephine Luman died in her early sixties from MS. I was only 2 and so don't have any memories of her. We talked about grandma as we walked and I learned a lot about her. She taught school with her sister in a two-room school house in Kansas after high school. Later, she joined the army where she was a dietitian and also where she met her husband. She was an intelligent lady which explains why my mom is also very intelligent. It was a fun time even though it rained on us most of the way. Besides the fundraiser walk we did the usual "girly" things. We went to the spa, did some shopping and saw the movie "The Women".

Here is the 3 of us before the walk (and rain) started.

The mountains were beautiful! This picture doesn't do them justice. Thank you mom and Laura for a great weekend! Debi and Anjela--we missed you! There's always next year!

Pocahantas

Isn't every girl a princess? This was a fun quiz to take. Thanks Brigit for sharing! I am questioning its accuracy because I don't think I really fit the description--do you?

Free-spirited and wise. You have a strong passionate spirit that touches and changes all who know you. The wisdom and common sense that you have is really what guides you through life. Even so, you also have a very playful side that loves adventure and excitement.

What princess are you?
http://www.greatestjournal.com/quiz.bml?Q=16354

September Birthdays

Nate had his fifth birthday on Sep. 4. He and a neighbor friend are playing with the bubble BBQ he got. The kids had a great time making and then chasing the bubbles.

Brayden turned 10 on the 12th. We took a group of his friend to Green Canyon to swim. He has some really great boys for friends. They had a blast swimming. You can imagine the "chaos" at the pool with 6 boys playing football in the water. Sorry if any of you were there and got totally splashed!

Nate starts Pre-school!

Where does the time go? Nate was SO excited to start school this year. It really made him feel like one of the big kids. I love how his back pack is almost as big as he is! I asked him how it went when I picked him up after the first day. He said, "they had snacks!" like it was the most wonderful thing in the world. He is such a fun boy!

Labor Day in Jackson Hole

We had such a good time over Labor Day. We took the kids to Jackson Hole and did some fun things.

You can't go to Jackson with out taking a picture of the group under the antler arch. The sun was shining right in our faces as you can see from some of the expressions. I am so grateful to innocent bystanders who will take a picture of all of us.

Our first stop was the Bar J. It was raining so we were really glad that everything had shelter. Even though we've seen the show and eaten the food many times, it still is a great night--we laugh over and over at the same jokes!
We stayed at the Best Western there. We hit the pool and hot tub before we checked out.
We walked around downtown Jackson and decided to stop and get an old time photo of the family. I snuck in a picture of my own of us getting ready. From now on Brett is known as "cowboy dad".
Here is Zach and Haley getting on the ski lift at the alpine slide.
Here is Zach on his way down the mountain. What a great idea! They loved it!

Its so nice to get away on a "mini vacation" every now and then. Its nice that we have so many great places to go that are just a couple hours away.

Back to School!

A big day at our house today. The kids started school again. I think we were all ready for school to start again.

This is my attempt to be a fun mom and have a cute treat for the kids when they got home from school.

The kids thought that I should have my picture taken, too, since its kind of back to work for mom--making breakfast. No more sleeping in for me while the kids help themselves to sugar-loaded cold cereal.
Zach is definitely ready for band class to start again. Those trombones are so loud!
Haley all ready to go! Favorite thing about the first day of school: "recess" Worst thing about first day of school: "practicing lining up" Brayden--Favorite thing: "lunch" Worst thing: "I don't think there was really anything bad"
Zach-- Favorite thing: "going from class to class instead of staying in the same class all day" Worst thing: "riding the bus"

It was an overall good day for everyone. I enjoyed the quieter morning and getting a lot more done than I do with all the kids home. Here we go with another school year!

Our Last Hurrah!

We had our "last hurrah" before school starts with the kids this last weekend. We took them to the Riot Zone since that's where they've been begging to go all summer. Usually as school gets close I feel like we didn't get to play as much as we'd like. But, this summer we played and played and we took full advantage of it--it was a great summer! Brett and I had a weekend getaway to Newport, Oregon 3 weeks ago. This was our third consecutive year to go--we love it! Thanks mom for making that possible by watching the kids! Of course, I forgot my camera so no photo highlights of the trip, but it was great! Here are some of the Riot Zone highlights.
Brett, Zach, Brayden and Haley played mini golf. Congratulations to the low scorer--Zach!
Nate and Kacie cracked me up when they put on the jousting head gear. Nate, you are so strong!!
Ok, I will admit, the go-karts were really fun. As you can tell, I am having way more fun than Kacie is!
Brayden was the awesome climber of the day! He made it all the way to the top only to find out that the bell at the top was broken and so no siren to go off telling the world of his achievement.

Nate and Haley are on the go-karts. Nate LOVED the cars and even passed Haley. He was so funny to watch.
Brett took Kacie for a ride, also--yep, I definitely had the most fun!
Nate and Kacie had a fun time jumping and playing on the inflatable toys. It was a fun family day!:)