Giggles

I love to hear this kid laugh!! He sounds just like Zach! I was just looking away and looking back fast and saying, "Boo!" He thinks I'm hysterical. I can't blame him. :)

I met the Governor!

I had a great time out with the girls at our monthly Valley Republican Women's Club meeting. This month Governor Sean Parnell and Lt. Governor candidate Mead Treadwell were in attendance. Before the meeting Gov Parnell came over and introduced himself to all of us and when we mentioned having questions he sat right down and talked to us for several minutes. (I can't believe I did't get a picture! Duh!) I was very impressed with him. He really fights for Alaska and her citizens.

This was the first time I had met Mead Treadwell in person, but he has my vote! He was articulate and didn't pull any punches. I can tell that he is a great candidate for the conservatives!

Ready to Go!

Kyler is so ready to crawl! He is rockin' back and forth and has started to dive forward ending in a face plant! He must be eager to run around with the big kids!

Zach's Kindergarten Picture

I know I'm biased but this kid is so handsome!

These school pictures actually turned out well! Zach is really proud, too, because he picked the pose and can still do it on command.

Rhiannon Does Her Own Hair

A conversation this morning...

Me: Okay, Rhiannon, let's do your hair!

Rhiannon: I already did it!

Me: Oh! It's beautiful! Let me brush it again and we'll get a headband.

Rhiannon: Okay! I got my hair wet.

(I am noticing that it is, in fact, slightly wet on the ends of the front.)

Me: How did you get it wet?

Rhiannon: The toilet.

And it's only 8:15 in the morning....

New Hair Cut

So today I cut all my hair off and went short again. It's so liberating! So easy to do!

I love it, I love it, I love it!

Gettin' Chilly

We spent some time out in the yard the other day just getting everything buttoned up before the snow comes. The kids still love the swings as you can see. Kyler's a big fan, too!

Wait for it...

I'm not sure where she picked this up, but it's so funny. When Rhiannon has the hiccups, she'll come and find me and say, "Wait for it..., wait for it...**hiccup**"

What a goofball!

Phone Call to Santa

So, Rhiannon, Kyler, and I went to Wal-Mart today to buy a game. Normally, I avoid the toy section like the plague, but since that's where the games are I was stuck. So, Rhiannon was eyeing the "pink" isle while I picked out the game. As we are pulling through, she is pointing out things she wants as I am making a mental list for the upcoming holidays. She really wanted this certain princess dress and I told her "not today, maybe you have to ask Santa for Christmas."

I smiled to myself as I watched the following:

(Rhiannon raised her hand to her ear like a phone)

Rhiannon: Hello, Santa?

Santa Voice: Hi.

Rhiannon: Can I have a pretty princess dress?

Santa Voice: Yes.

Rhiannon: Thanks.

Hilarious. Of course, it was so quiet that had I been distracted I would not have noticed the conversation, but it was so cute!

Annual Hay Ride

9/25/10

Every year one of the firefighters hosts a hay ride out at his elk ranch.

Here we are riding on the hay out through the ranch.

Zach got the opportunity to feed the horse a carrot. Having never done that before, he was a little nervous about the horse getting so close. He was brave though and had a great time!

Rhiannon was tearing into this hotdog! Between the hay rides and the trampoline, these kids were hungry and exhausted!

On the way back from one of the hay rides, a bunch of kids jumped off the trailer to go jump on the "marshmellows." Zach thought this was a great idea! The kids were playing tag while running on the rows of hay bales. What fun!

Rhiannon was disappointed when we didn't actually produce any marshmellows for her to eat. When I told her I didn't have any, she replied, "But marshmellows are good for my tummy!"

New Chairs

I have taken on a new project. I have begun, with Cameron's assistance, to reupholster our kitchen chairs. I think they are turning out very nicely if I do say so myself.

Pyrah's Pioneer Peek Farm

9/17/10
In Palmer (about 30 min drive from Wasilla) there is a really awesome U-Pick farm in the shadow of the Chugach mountains, where we can go and pick our own vegetables. Below the kids are collecting some fresh red potatoes.

Look at the size of that cabbage!!

Kyler in His Saucer

Kyler loves his saucer. It gives him a great view of the rest of us! (He's just over 5 months here.)

Glenn Beck

GLENN BECK!! WHOO HOO!

Some friends and I went to seeGlenn Beck on 9/11/10. All I can say is AWESOME! Sarah Palin opened the show and they announced...that in 2012...they will...be....voting.

I would go to the show again in a heart beat!

We had a great time!! Some one was sitting in our seats and the usher told us to just find some other ones, so we went and sat up near the front. Right On!

Boston

8/28/10

Kyler and I escorted Chloe to Boston this fall. She is attending college there and we were lucky to go with her as she got settled.

Kyler was so excited for his 1st flight! Kyler in our hotel, getting all comfy.

There is a wicked cool Bamboo Sun deck in the middle of Chloe's dorm building. Sweet, right?

Poor Chloe had to haul her brand new dorm bedding collection all the way down the street. But, she was a real trooper!

Some how, Chloe managed to get a HUGE dorm room all to herself! It's practically a studio apartment!

Kyler and I were just hanging out at the hotel, hiding from the oppressive heat.

Kyler and I spent out last day in Boston touring the North End and the Freedom Trail. Even though it had cooled a bit after the hurricane passed, it was still quite hot for our tastes. Here is the statue of Paul Revere. I love the history of this part of the city. It was really interesting.

We actually had some great flights home. Kyler is a great little traveler and charms all the flight attendants.

We actually got a whole row to ourselves on the last leg up to Anchorage. Score!

Zach's 1st Day of School

8/26/10

This is Zach's 1st day of kindergarten. He is so excited! Me, too! It's ALL-DAY Kindergarten! :)

The Torres Moose

8/21/10

Our friends, the Torres', got a moose this fall and we were able to help process it.

The men deboned the meat and us women-folk washed and separated the meat.

Thank you, Rosie and David! They were so gracious and shared the meat with us.

Moose meat is so delicious!

Pretty Hair

8/20/10

Rhiannon called me in from the kitchen. She said, "Look! I made my hair pretty!"

She had used hand soap to make her herself beautiful. What a crack up!! And, as you can see, she was thoroughly proud of herself!

Swing Set

8/20/10

Nani and Poppy have outdone themselves this time! The kids LOVE the new swing set! They are out there swinging all the time. Kyler really enjoys being outside as well. He just loves to swing almost as much as the big kids!

Our "Lazy Lizards"

8/18/10
The kids LOVE to practice their "kids yoga" and makes forts with the yoga mats!

Just enjoyin' life!

Look at this cute kid!! He's pretty adorable if I do say so myself! Kyler is just over 4 months and growing a ton. He's 14 lbs now. His eyes are a stunning blue -- I hope they stay that way.

I have nothing outrageous to report. We are getting ready for Zach's first day of kindergarten in 2 weeks. He's pretty excited!

Rhiannon is just as excited and says she's going to her "pink" kindergarten. She is totally "girl."

When she changed out of her jeans and put on a skirt, I asked her why. She said, "because I'm a pretty little girl." How can you argue with that?

Summer is Busy!

Ok, so I have gotten a ration of crap from my "wonderful" friend about my lack of blog updates. So, I have finally made myself sit down at the computer while all the kids are entertained. (I actually just had to get up and attend to one. That's why I don't blog often...)

So, we are having a great time with family this month! My mom and my sister, Chloe, have been here about 2 weeks and my Grandma is here for a week. My step-dad, Greg, just arrived today. They will be here for another week and a half before returning to Taiwan where they live. Kyler is completely spoiled with attention. But, I guess that's not such a bad thing at his tender age of 3 months.

Cameron and Zach went dipnetting with our great friends, The Wolfes, and had an awesome trip. In addition to good company they came home with about 40 fish worth of red salmon filets. Whoo hoo!!

Kyler 10 Weeks

Kyler is now 10 weeks old! He is growing fast and changing noticeably every day! Here's a video from today. He is so engaged, he really responds when people get close and talk to him.

He's about 10 lbs now and 23 inches long. He sleeps well at night but not quite all the way through yet. Zach and Rhiannon love on him all the time and he's pretty patient with all the attention. He just squeaks and squeals at them. They love it!

Soccer

Zach started his first year of soccer on Tuesday. He had a blast! He seems to have a natural sense for this game. It will be fun to watch this season. He is #9. His team is the "yellow" team. I don't think they pick names just yet. Can't wait for the first game next week. What fun!

Kyler's Blessing

On Sunday, we blessed Kyler during our ward's sacrament meeting. It was so nice to have great family and friends take part with us.

Cameron and Zach went up to bear their testimonies and Rhiannon said she wanted to "talk." She was so determined! She got in Grandma's face and said said very clearly, "I want to talk!" Alas, we did not give in. I guess we'll end up getting up with her next month so she can "talk," too.

After the blessing, we had a BBQ and invited our friends join our family for some great food. We had hot dogs and Cameron's now famous "fire house" chicken. My wonderful friends brought delicious sides and we just chowed down! I am so grateful the weather cooperated. It was warm and sunny the whole day! (It was even a bit too hot for some of us cold-weather folk!)

All in all, a great day!

Grandma & Grandpa Visit

We are so excited to have Grandma Geri & Grandpa Brent up to visit us! As an extra added bonus, Aunt Deanne & Uncle Jeff flew up as well!! What fun!

We went out to Whittier, AK for the 26 Glacier Cruise on Saturday. It was a bit rainy, but the weather cleared just enough by the time we made it out to the glaciers. Surprise Glacier did not disappoint with 2 huge calves!! Way cool! We saw tons of otters and sea birds, but that was about it for wildlife.

Zach's Pre-School "Graduation"

Zach had his pre-school graduation celebration tonight. It was so cute! The kids sang and received their certificates. All of the kids received an additional "character trait" award.

Zach was given an award for his "encouragement" towards other students.

Here is Zach with his teachers, Mrs. Huey & Mrs. Moore. He really loved going to school with them these past 2 years.

Fence Project

We've had a fence in progress for a couple of summers now. We've had the posts up (all 85 of them!) for a while. Cameron and a friend we able to attach the 2x4s last week. I hope he'll get to start on the pickets very soon!

I am so excited that it is soon to be completed!

Rhiannon was "helping" to measure the boards!