One evening last week...

As I drove home from Helena last week, these elk were standing along the road.
They are there pretty regularly, and aren't too skittish of vehicles.

I always wish I had my camera with me, and this time I was lucky--it was with me.

Dog Days of Summer

It was pretty warm last weekend in Belgrade. The boys decided to go to the local pond and cool their feet.

Tyler was ready to swim even though his diaper was soaked with pond water and he didn't have swim trunks on.

Tyler Loves the Fair

Luckily we had Matthew to ride with Tyler at the Fair. Otherwise we adults might not have fit on with him. Poor Matthew had to ride kiddie rides, but he never complained!

This must've been a tough turn to make cause all the kids were keeping their eyes glued to the wheels.

Pure Joy!

He really liked the whale ride, but his favorite was the helicopter. I guess we should have bought an arm band but $25 was just a little too much for us to pay at this time!

This picture makes me think that they are just out for a Sunday drive... enjoying the breeze.

Tyler wasn't the only one who went on rides...

Matthew and Curt nearly had their heads whiplashed off in this one..

Cool Dude in his sunglasses.

Shawn proved to us all that he would go on a scary ride with Matthew (while wearing a cowboy hat).

Then after he got off it he meekly said "I almost threw up."

Ate, Drank, and Were Merry

Ok, so we did more than just go out to breakfast last weekend in Bozeman.
(yes, that is Tyler using a spoon to get jelly out of the packet).

We also went to a Mud Bog! It was hot, boring and long. But that was just my opinion of it. At least we also enjoyed other parts of the Fair, like the rides and petting zoo.

More photos to come....I have a few to share.

An evening walk

After all the work and chores we've been doing, we decided to take a night off and go for a drive and a little hike. Tyler fell asleep, so then when we woke him up he wasn't too thrilled about having to walk. So he was carted around most of the time.

We looked at the flowers and grasses, and looked for animals. None showed their faces though.

Shawn took an "artsy" photo....

I did a little "trail yoga" in the fading light...

And then we headed back down the trail. I love summer nights!

A Workin' Weekend

We ended up spending all weekend painting the exterior of the house. It was really not all that fun, but the results are great. Hopefully we move before we have to repaint again!

Then, after we were done putting band-aids on our blisters, Tyler and I went out to work on another chore-weeding the garden.
Tyler is somewhat helpful. I thought he could pull the weeds I pointed out, but he ended up just pulling everything he could reach.

He had a treasure to show to Dad.


Look, a RADISH!!

On the most recent hike with the school kids, we learned about amphibians. A little lake nearby had tadpoles and snakes, and Laura was able to catch a toad for everyone to look at.

Tyler was able to go on this trip, and he really enjoyed being with the "big kids." He was really paying attention and and learning.

Or maybe not....

Weekend

Saturday I went to Missoula to go to the Farmer's Market and buy some things that just can't be bought in Helena.
I met up with my friend Meg and her kids, and we walked all around town.

Ashley liked the stairs.

I forgot that some of the buildings in downtown Missoula are very unique. Meg pointed this one out. Mmmmm....coca cola
I bought 1,500 ladybugs while I was there. When I got home to Lincoln, Shawn helped me release them. They immediately started mating, which I suppose is a good thing although during all this mating there was no aphid-eating. Which is why I freed them from captivity.

The next morning the breeding frenzy was over and a lot less aphids were hanging around. Hopefully they were eaten and the ladybugs were reenergized after all that procreation.
Little monkey boy Tyler got his annual "summer buzz."
A special thanks to Shawn, for going ahead and doing this without asking for my help (or notifying me that this was even going to happen).

He likes to squat down and point the ladybugs out to us. Over and Over. And then a couple more times. And just in case we missed it the first 13 times, he points them out again.

Lettuce Give Thanks...

For sunny days and crop-growing weather....


...and "get outside in the heat and get sweaty" weather! Finally!!!

Relaxin' at the Cabin

After the hoopla of the 4th of July parade and hot dog sales died down, we left home to go to the cabin at Rock Creek for the weekend. It is much quieter there and perfect for kicking back, reading a book, and relaxing.

Some people preferred to stay active while there...

Shawn took me fishing one evening and I caught this little cutthroat trout. It was a cool, rainy weekend but we had a great time.

Hot Dogs and a Parade

This weekend is always a pretty big one for our town. For the 4th of July, there is a two-day Rodeo, parade, flea market, and a few other events.

Our Community Garden capitalized on all the visitors by selling hot dogs as a fundraiser. It was a first time for all of us, and we did pretty well~in 4 hours we made a few hundred dollars to put into the Garden's meager bank account. (we haven't started to break ground yet...)

I got to break away for a while to watch the parade go by with the family.

It started out sunny but a wall of clouds quickly moved in.

Tyler and his best babysitter buddy Ellen tried to stay warm during a lull.

Next year maybe Tyler and I will ride my horse! The guy we bought her from said she is usually in it every year. If only I had known, I could have ridden Blondie through town with the other horseback riders!


Poor little wet kid. His lips were blue and he was shivering but he would not let go of a ball he was given, and he REFUSED to leave the side of the road. I had no idea little kids got so much candy. Shawn and I did all the work chasing after the goodies and making sure he didn't run out in traffic. It rained hard for about 5 minutes and then was only about 55 degrees. This 4th of July weekend was NOT HOT.

Kids in the Woods

Just some more photos of my trips taking kids to the woods! I'm not in any photos but I promise I will be one of these days...