Montana in the fall

So, we just got back from a fun and relaxing trip to Montana. My cousin, Lori, and I decided to take a trip to see our families in good old Simms, Montana. We packed the four kids in the car and away we went. The drive wasn't too bad, but about 10 miles from Simms, both girls started chanting, "Grandma's house, Grandma's house", it was hilarious. For the first time, I didn't take a million projects to work on while I was there so it was all play, no work!!

Brooklyn and Beckham warmed right up to my parents. We drove in the yard and they were out on the porch waiting for us. My dad was doing a goofy dance, I guess that's where I get my weirdness, jk. My mom brought out a big basket of balls and we all ran around and played on the front lawn. The kids really needed it after the long drive. We got settled in and the kids slept really good that night.

The next morning, Saturday, was sooo nice. My mom and dad got the kids up and dressed and fed and had already gone for a walk when I got up. I went outside to see what they were up to and I could tell that I was going to want to be outside all day. Not a cloud in the sky, no wind, perfect temperature, silence and the smell of fall.

The kids were having a blast exploring and my dad came over to tell me that Brooklyn has taken a liking to grasshoppers. On their walk to go get the newspaper, they kept seeing grasshoppers, she decided to stop and talk to one and then the cat came by and ate it....she got so upset and was almost in tears and my dad had to say that the cat spit him back out. She was ok and found another grasshopper while my dad crossed the road to get the paper with Beckham. When he came back Brooklyn said, "I caught one Papa", and she was carrying two rocks pushed together in her hands. She showed him and there was a half smashed grasshopper just about dead....he tried not to laugh and just said "oh neat".

catching a grasshopper

showing it to grandpa

trying to feed it

So the rest of the morning was spent outside playing with grasshoppers, she would catch them and put them in a basket and then they would jump out and her and my mom would laugh, we had a regular flea (grasshopper) circus on our hands. It was really gross but so fun to see how sweet she was to these gross bugs. Beckham was having fun with the cats and following them around and petting them and can now say "meow". He would get so excited to play with the cats, it was so cute. I would really love to get one right now because they are the perfect nanny for the kids. We would bring the cat in and the kids would follow it around and play for hours with it, it was so cute. Anyway, Beckham saw Brooklyn catching bugs and he decided that would be fun and he saw a big black beetle on the ground. He totally grabbed it and picked it up and showed it to me, my dad and I had a pretty good laugh.

playing with the cats

Beckham's beetle

So now that we are done with the gross part (my kids seem to do some gross things, the last two times we were in Montana, they caught snakes!). Now we are onto something better. So I always go on and on about how beautiful my parent's land is and that Chris and I want to have a cabin there some day. Well Montana in general is just a gorgeous place, Lori and I loved driving over and seeing the fall colors in the canyons. My dad's farm was changing as well and here are a few shots of the farm's beauty. The kids loved going down to the farm, one night we went out into the hays fields,rode on the tractor, played in the barn and in the cattle shoot. The kids had a blast.

Brooklyn pretending to be a cow

The view from my parent's house

another view

sunrise out my bedroom window

Phantom of the Opera....finally, a date night with no worries!

So, when Chris' mom came to visit, she was so nice to schedule her visit around when Chris and I wanted to attend Phantom. When Chris got his job at Perkins, they gave him a congratulatory gift of $200 to do whatever he wanted with. We decided to go to Phantom and a nice restaurant. So, in addition to not having to pay for our night out, we didn't have to pay a babysitter either! I had been so nervous leaving Beckham a few times with me still nursing him and him teething, it was nice to know we had a family member there who knew him, it made Chris and I both relax and enjoy our evening.

We went with Kim and Brett Ottley and had a blast. We ate dinner at Purple, a very nice restaurant downtown where Chris went with his "snobby" crowd all summer for lunch.....(they aren't snobs, it's just a joke between Chris and I that he has his normal life and his fabulous snob life). Chris ordered a lamb burger, Brett got wild boar and Kim and I both got lobster mac and cheese and we're here to say it was the best mac and cheese we have ever had and we'd get it again. (well maybe not, if I had to pay for it $$$)

We headed to the theatre and the show was awesome! I love the music from Phantom, it reminds me of high school, we sang some of the music in choir and played some in band. It was a really fun night and Kim and I were both able to dress up and look nice while we made our husband change from jeans into dress pants and they complained a little after seeing a guy in dress pants and a wife beater, ha ha, it was funny. There were a lot of unique styles at the theatre from jeans to tux's....we were right in between.

We got home and the kids were in bed, as well as our babysitter, thanks mom!!

Brooklyn's first day of school

So we aren't exactly doing preschool, but the community center offers little classes that are much more affordable than the preschools around here and Brooklyn was ecstatic to go so we signed her up. It's an ABC class and it's great because at the same time her class is going on, there is toddler play time in the gym. So Beckham and I get to go in there and play with lots of toys.

The night before her first day, she put out her Hello Kitty backpack for the backpack fairy. The next morning, her first day of school clothes were in the backpack along with her shoes, a bow for her hair, pencils, paper, stickers and a treat. She was so excited and wanted to get dressed right then. When it came time to go, we took a few pictures and headed up to the community center. She went right in her class and sat at her chair and was ready and excited.




Beckham, Grammy and I played in the gym and had fun, Beckham was so cute checking out all the toys. When the class was done, we went in to pick up Brooklyn and she didn't even notice we were there for quite some time. Her teacher said she was really good and they had fun with her. She didn't want to leave, she gathered her papers and said thanks to her teachers and we went home.



That afternoon was her ballet class, she was so excited after having her cute dance class this summer. She dressed in her hot pink tutu and went to class. It was so fun to watch her, she concentrates so hard. Chris was there at the end of her class when they do a little routine and she saw him and her face lit up and she said "Daddy, watch me!" It was so cute to see her twirl and balance and the best was watching all the little girls look in the mirror while holding onto the bar, so fun!!!

Grammy came for a visit!

Chris' mom came up a few weeks ago to spend some time with us and relax. We had a lot of fun and the kids enjoyed having her here. We played at the parks, went for walks, went to the aquarium, rode the water taxi, went and got milkshakes, went shopping, you know all the fun stuff you get to do when grandparents come. It's always fun to do these things, but it's great when someone visits and you get to share it with them. Brooklyn loved showing Grammy all the things she could do and they had so much fun playing. Beckham especially enjoyed reading books with Grammy. He would go get a book hand it to her and then turn around and back up into her to have a seat and read, it was so cute. Here are some pictures of the aquarium and the water taxi. We all had a fun time, and it's so fun seeing Beckham's reaction to things as he gets older. There was also a street fair going on outside the aquarium, and Brooklyn got her face painted. It was a beautiful butterfly, she loved it! We were also able to go on a hike that Chris and I have wanted to do for over a year. We love rattlesnake lake, a little lake about 30 miles east of Seattle and we go there often to get away and play. Well we wanted to hike the ridge that overlooks the lake so we did it and it really wasn't that bad. 2 miles up and 2 miles down carrying the kids, but it was beautiful and well worth it. We would like to live near this town once we are ouy of school, isn't ir gorgeous The view of the ridge from the bottom And Chris and I are still kids...we dared each other to jump in with all our clothes and race out to a big stump....Chris just about chickened out when I totally went for it, making him have to do it....it was fun and it felt great! Back at the house with the bird Beckham and his book buddy Guess what Brooklyn is going to be for halloween?? But she says she is a good witch, not a bad one At the park having fun And a cute little video of Beckham riding a horse, what a stinkin cute kid!

just goofing around

Man I love being a mom!! It has it's challenging days but my husband and kids are my best friends and I just love it! My days get busy with all the things I do, but some of the moments in those busy days when we just relax and be silly are the best.

Here is Beckham's new trick with the bird...walking around the house with it on his arm. He is so careful, it's cute!



Here are Brooklyn and Beckham kissing...awwww!


Karaoke Time.....high school musical songs of course!


And the new red tv (as Brooklyn calls it) she loves to watch movies with Beckham on the little tv, they are such cute friends!


Hide and Seek anyone?? Brooklyn is great at this game and one night we were being silly and I put her up on the fridge before Chris came home from a meeting. Beckham just thought this was great and Brooklyn was so excited to hide up there. When Chris got home I told him he had to find Brooklyn and so he asked Beckham where she was, not knowing that Beckham understood very well and pointed to the kitchen and ran over there and then pointed to the fridge and yelled. It was so funny that he was so excited to show daddy where Brooklyn was and he clapped and laughed.