From our home to yours...

Just Dance

The girls recently borrowed "Just Dance 2" for the Wii from my mom.  They keep telling me that "Just Dance" is so much better, and way more fun, but I'm pretty sure that this version is pretty fun as well.  I was getting my rapper moves on earlier while Kriss Kross was having me "Jump, jump."  Talk about bringing back the memories.  My best friend from middle school and I used to listen to that song all the time, and even considered going as Kriss Kross (backward overalls and all) for Halloween one year.  Can't you see it?  Two white, teenaged girls dressed up as black male rappers.  I think the only thing we would have had in common would have been the backwards clothing.  Anyway, thanks for a little trip down memory lane, Nintendo!

{Beauty...}

I picked up this little beauty at Goodwill tonight.  I have great plans for her to store my craft stash.  After I give her a little facelift, of course.  Stay tuned.

Rainy days and Mondays

So, today wasn't rainy, but it was definitely a Monday, filled with all the usual highs and lows that Monday brings.  On the upside, it's a short week at school this week, so it's a 4-day weekend for me!  I didn't sleep very well last night, though, so this morning was a bit of a struggle.  Right now, my kiddos are getting ready for bedtime prayers by doing gymnastics in the living room.  Over the weekend, while I was having fun at my library conference (yes, FUN, for all you doubters out there), the kids and Jon roamed around Spokane and Jon introduced them to some of the finer points of the area, including Manito Park, Northtown Mall, Riverpark Square.  I think the kids are becoming a bit more acclimated to the idea of the move, which is good.  They keep asking if they can try new activities when we get there, instead of Irish Dance.  I understand where they are coming from, but it breaks my heart that they don't love Irish Dance as much as I want them to.  So between finances and childrens' wishes, we will have to see what kind of compromise we can work out once we are actually in Spokane.  I so want them to continue with the dance; it is such a good physical activity, and the automatic sense of community is fun.  But I don't want them to end up hating it because I made them do it, either.  For now, we are continuing with Irish Dance in Missoula, and I hope that in the few months we have left here, that it will become more and more something they love.  One of the dichotomies of being a mom: wanting to give them everything they want, while at the same time knowing that giving them everything they want is not what they need.  Ah, the joys of parenting.

It's been a bit of a flurry of posts here the last few days, which I love.  I'm trying to make time to post more often, but don't be surprised if it slows down a bit; we picked apples last night at Dad's, which means we have a lot to do this weekend.  (It's a really good thing it's a 4 day weekend!)  I'll leave you with these fun pics of picking apples yesterday:

{Yum}

There's not much better than hot carmel-y goodness when you have to drive to into Spokane on a foggy Saturday for a conference!  Such a yummy treat!

Perhaps...

I've been attending a library conference the last couple of days, and it was very, very good.  I realized that I am still learning about a lot of things, but also in many ways, I've been doing a pretty good job of what I'm supposed to be teaching as a 21st Century Teacher-Librarian.  And that's exciting, and confidence building.  Its kind of like when someone tells me that my kids are such good kids (which of course, I know, but I am biased) and I feel gratified that maybe in all my blundering through this thing called parenting, that perhaps I am doing something right after all.

Jon and I took a drive up to Greenbluff today after the conference finished up, and then went to a Junior Tackle football game.  Me, being the crazy football fan that I am, realized halfway through yelling, "TAKE HIM DOWN!!!" that perhaps that wasn't appropriate for Junior Tackle.  We're supposed to be positive at this level, right?  Oops.  Just keepin' it real here, folks.

Some of my close friends know that I've been struggling with not having enough time to deal with some of the thoughts I've been rolling around in my head.  Some of these thoughts are my own struggle of knowing whether or not I have something to offer with this little blog, or if it should just be a more family oriented update of what we've been up to.  But lately, I've been thinking that maybe I really do have something to offer this blogosphere out there.  I'm not always the most crafty, or the best photographer, or the most organized, or the best cook, or the best parent, or the most faith-filled woman out there.  But I do have real experiences, real friends and real thoughts and dreams.  So I'm going to try to keep it real, and post about those experiences and reactions and fun and hard times a little more often. And perhaps that is all I need to share.  Perhaps a little bit of my own experiences will help someone else.  And maybe I'll never be famous, and maybe I'll never write an amazing story that touches the hearts of the world.  But if the story I write and the story I live only touches the hearts of my children, my husband, and even my own heart, then perhaps, just perhaps, that is enough.

Stay tuned.

A little road trip

So, I'm spending this weekend at the WLMA (Washington Library Media Association) Conference in Spokane.  After day one, I feel good about how I do my job, and what I'm focusing on teaching my students.  I know that there is room for improvement, and I've gotten some good ideas about how to move forward.  So that's been encouraging!

Yesterday, the kids and I drove from Missoula to Spokane, which is the first time I've driven that stretch on my own.  It was a good time, and the kids enjoyed Swiss Rolls and other sundry snacks on the drive.  Panda Express for lunch and dinner with friends....  Yes, we live the good life!

For those of you who may be wondering, the creative itchiness that I was experiencing last weekend, did result in creativity happening.  I took a page from my friend Jami's notebook, and created a fabric leaf garland to go on my mantle.  It was fun, it looks great, and it satisfied that little itch....

This week promises to be busy once again.  Thursday and Friday are MEA days, and since I'm here at the WLMA conference, I won't be needing to get PIR hours, which means NO SCHOOL and a 4-day weekend!!  My dad says the apples are ready, so the plan is to cook, cook, cook and cook some more!  I can't wait for the smell of apples to permeate my house again! I'll try to keep you posted in the meantime!

'Til next time,

Mrs. Meek

{Creativity}

My fingers are itching to create...  So I'm glad that I have some time this weekend to spend some creative energy!  I'm not sure what exactly I'll be working on, but there will be some creative fruit from this weekend.  There will also be some homework and housework that gets finished up as well.  I am looking ahead to next summer already, when I will be finishing up my Master's coursework, and moving forward into the next season of life, which will include a move to Spokane!  It's scary and exciting!  We are probably going to pick apples this weekend as well, so my kitchen will turn into an apple processing plant over the next few weeks.  Apple pie, applesauce, dried apples, apples to freeze for later...  So much fun, and such wonderful days to make memories with my kids!  Here's hoping for time over the next few days to let the creative juices flow!

Seasons...

Over the summer and last few weeks, we have been making many preparations in light of our upcoming move to Spokane, Washington next summer.  We have our house listed on craigslist, we have been finishing projects, we have been cleaning like maniacs, and we have begun packing things away to declutter the house for showing.  All of it has been a good process, because we have realized how much "stuff" we can do without, and we have become better at keeping things put away in their places.  Time is always short, though, so the blogging has fallen by the wayside, as has my crafting.  I keep reminding myself that there is a season for everything, which is what has been getting me through the last couple of weeks when I have felt the great desire to craft and write, but have literally had zero time to do it.  Getting back in to the swing of school and work and making everything ready has taken all of my time.  I finally had a couple of minutes here tonight to pop on and do a quick update post!  Speaking of seasons, Fall is finally here, Grizzly Football is back, and Saturday is soup day!  I planted mums for the first time ever, and my trees are losing their leaves.  It won't be long before it is winter all over again, and I'll be wishing for a beach somewhere.  We had two showings on the house over the weekend, and both seemed very interested, so perhaps this season of life will come to a close soon.  For now, we wait and pray for God's timing in all things.  So that's it for now, until I have another few minutes to devote to a quick blog post, or perhaps a little more time to even post some pictures....  We will see how this season shapes up.  Happy Fall!

A few short days

In just a few short days, our fabulous summer will come to an end. It has been very fun, filled with travel and family and excitement. I will be very sad to say goodbye to Summer 2011; it has been a good friend to me. But, there is a time and a season for everything, and this is our last week of summer. So we will say "adios" with a fond wave and wonderful memories and look forward to the new challenges that this coming year will bring.

Whirlwind summer

Well, this summer has certainly flown by.  I can't believe it's been 2 months since I blogged!!  I had every good intention of posting regularly through the summer, and then I was busy with classes that consumed a lot of my time, Jon and I went to England for our 15th anniversary, we were home for a couple of days and then headed to Celebration Northwest in Silverton, Oregon for the weekend, and since we got back from that have been busy painting and getting our house ready to put on the market, hopefully by the end of the month.  It has been crazy!  Anyway, before you all decided that I had just fallen off the planet, I figured I better get some pictures up from our trip.  I'm going to attempt to embed a slideshow here, let's cross our fingers that it works! I'm sorry that there aren't very many captions...Google said I had exceeded my limit when I tried to add them. So anyway...here are the pics from our England trip. We had an absolute blast!!

School's out!

For the summer!

(Everybody now!!)

School's out for the summer!

Thank you, Alice Cooper, for providing schoolchildren and teachers everywhere with the anthem of summer.
Lots of projects on the books for this summer, and lots of trips, too, so stay posted for some pics!

Come rain or come shine

It seems that everyone is having crazy weather this year.  For Missoulians, the big catch phrase has been "Flood Watch."  Between rain and snowpack melting and then more rain (which leads to more snow in the mountains) and then 80 degree days which leads to more run off....the Clark Fork is at just about the highest I've ever seen it.  We've been driving down to a local bridge to keep up on the situation.  Here are some pictures:

Notice the line of wire cages and rocks here.  It's important for later.

Notice the distance between the water and the bridge.  Again, important.

These pictures were taken on 5/17/11.  The river was very high and running fast.  The next pictures are from today.  It is crazy.

Distance between water and bridge.

Note where the wire cages are now.

Crazy stuff.  We have a couple of streets that have flooded in town, and people are pitching in to help sandbag.  I'll leave you tonight with a pic of how someone is making the best of an interesting situation...and something I never thought I'd see in Missoula, Montana!

Surf Missoula!!

Looking ahead, looking behind

Well, here we are, it is the end of May, and today is Memorial Day.  It's a day to remember those who have served our country, as well as a long weekend for me and the kids and time to enjoy our family.  Last week, we enjoyed end of year music concerts and recitals.  Looking ahead, we have only eight days left of school!  Then, it is summer!  Today felt like a bit of what I hope to look forward to this summer; some relaxation, some projects, some gettin' things done.  I worked out, did laundry, and watched a movie.

We had our friends the Easterbrooks with us for most of the weekend as well.  We went to a birthday party, where the kids all got to ride horses.  We enjoyed pizza and apple crisp.  We had to drive the neighborhood searching for 2 children, who, thankfully, were found quickly.  Ah, the joys of parenthood.

Looking ahead, it's hard to believe that in a year (or a little more), we will be moving our family to Spokane, WA.  Most of you already have heard this news, but if it's news to you, you can find out more about it over on Jon's blog.  Our plan is to move to Spokane sometime during the Summer of 2012 to start a church.  It's a big undertaking, but we are excited and confident that God has called us to this move.  I've already begun the mental planning stage.

Looking behind, it's also hard to believe that I'm finishing my 4th year working at Target Range.  It's truly been a rewarding, challenging and fulfilling experience.  I am daily challenged and amazed by the kids I work with.  I'm looking forward to one more year, and the new challenges that it will bring with it.  But first....SUMMER!

We have a lot planned for this summer, and I know it's going to just fly by.  Irish Dance camp, 4th of July, a trip to England, Celebration Northwest in Oregon, Silverwood with the kids, Scout camp, fair week, the Farmer's market, hiking the M, Lake Como and lots more...and it all begins after just 8 more days of school.

Goodnight all!

as usual...

As usual, it's been way too long between blog posts.  A lot has happened over the last month or so, but some of it will have to wait for me to share it with you.  I had a wonderful Mother's day, we BBQ'd with the Johnson side of the fam, after a yummy lunch at Cracker Barrel with the Meek side.  My last project for my class is due tomorrow, so that is almost finished as well.  I can see summer coming and it has my name written all over it!  I can't wait.  I do have a lot to share with you, but I also have a bed that is calling my name.  So, this is it for this little random post.  Be on the look out for more to come!

Just a little update...

Okay, so I'm WAY overdue for a blog update.  My sincerest apologies.  We returned yesterday from a loverly ( if not way to short) trip over to Post Falls, yet again.  Donald and Jen were having a little shindig for Jen's birthday, and we decided to show up.  Actually, Donald asked a couple of months ago if we would plan to come over for her birthday.  How could I refuse?  The look on her face when she opened the door was priceless!

Things are moving along here at our normal breakneck speed.  We had an excellent Spring break, a trip to Great Falls for the Montana Shepherd's Conference, which was a much needed get away to just refresh and refill with God's Spirit!  We are getting to the point in the school year when things are beginning to wind to a close.  Awana finishes this week and next week is our Scouts Court of Honor.  Sometime near the end of May, we will have a violin/piano recital and Irish Dance will finish up for the summer.  My class is almost done; there will be NO FINAL, for which I am doing the happy dance.  And there are 6 more weeks of school until Memorial Day and then just two 4 day weeks of school after that, and then....SUMMER VACATION!!!

Summer promises to be very, very busy as well.  Jon and I are planning our trip to England, Lucy will be leaving (for which I am NOT doing the happy dance), we are planning an Irish Dance day camp, there are summer festivals and City Band concerts and hiking the M and Baskin Robbins or DQ (maybe Big Dipper) and hiking trips and perhaps a little camping.  A trip to Oregon for Celebration Northwest, and as many trips to Spokane/Post Falls as we can possibly squeeze in.  Gabe will go to Scout Camp again this year; he is very excited.

Speaking of Gabe, he recently achieved his Star rank in Scouts and is now working toward Life.  For those that don't know, the ranks in Scouting are Scout, Tenderfoot, Second Class, First Class, Star, Life and Eagle.  Jon and I are so proud of Gabe and his accomplishments.

So there is my "brief" update.  I will be posting again soon!  Sleep well, blogland.

Keepin' it real...

We spent the weekend in Idaho, with our loverly friends, the Easterbrooks.  I didn't want to come home.  I love my job, I love my home, but can I just say that my weekend away was absolutely wonderful?  Little bits of my heart have taken up residence in a small town in Northern Idaho.  As we exited I-90 on our way there, I breathed a sigh of relief, because part of my heart was home.  Not so much in the physical place of Post Falls, but in the wonderful friendship that we have.  Jen, Lucy and I went into downtown Coeur d'Alene where we found this wonderful shop.

We also found this stuff, which was a little crazy....

But mostly, it was awesome.  I loved every minute.  And Lucy even found some English sweets, which she was very happy about. 

 Jon led worship at Prairie Avenue Christian Center on Sunday morning.  We enjoyed pizza and a couple of games of Dominion (our new favorite game) before heading home Sunday evening. 
And another small part of my heart stayed behind.

A bowl full of lemons.: Silhouette GIVEAWAY!!!!

A bowl full of lemons.: Silhouette GIVEAWAY!!!!: "My new Silhouette SD machine finally arrived and I'm dedicating this week to my Silhouette creations. I'm also giving away a Silhouett..."

Head on over to A bowl full of lemons to check out this great giveaway!  She also has some great organizing tips!

{ teenager }

When I woke up this morning, my whole world changed.

My son is now a teenager.  There is no turning back; we've officially entered into a new phase of life.  I'm excited and nervous at the same time.  These are uncharted waters we're venturing into.

Happy birthday, my boy!  I love you so much!

{ 3 precious days }

In just 3 precious days, I will wake up and be the mother of a teenager.

I am freaking out a little bit, here.

Someone hold my hand and tell me it's going to be ok, please....

{ Feeling like Supermom }

Remember that post last week about relaxing over the weekend?  Well, believe it or not, it actually happened.  The paradox is that I was really, really productive last weekend as well, and yet I was very well rested and relaxed by the time Sunday evening rolled around.

Friday night we had dinner with friends at Carinos Italian Grill, which is always a treat!
Saturday, I got up, went grocery shopping and did a few other errands, came home, baked the lasagna that's on the menu for later this week, baked up some chicken for another recipe that's on the menu this week, did laundry, made the girls' handcrafted Valentines (they helped), figured out how to use my digital scrapbooking software, read a book, and digiscrapped a couple of layouts.
Sunday, we got up, went to church, came home, finished the Valentines, did more laundry, digiscrapped some more, did my little DIY project on my skirts, the kids gave the dog a bath, and read some more.

All in all, a very nice, relaxing and productive weekend!  So nice!

Happy Valentine's Day!

I saw this cute idea on another blog, and I had to make them for the girls' class Valentines.

It's a little hard to see with Michaela's, but she is holding  the smarties in her palm.  I'm so happy with how they turned out!

A quick fix...

At work, we have ID badges that we wear.  Mostly, I think it's a great thing.  It helps with safety for the kids, and helps me, as a staff member, to know who is in the building that is supposed to be.  I just have one teensy, weensy little problem with them.  We had to choose between a lanyard style that would go around our necks, or a clip style that we could clip to a belt loop.  I chose the belt loop style because I don't like extra things around my neck very much.  This, then, is what caused my problem.  The problem:  my skirts don't have belt loops!
So, I came up with a solution.
The clip:

The solution:  Ribbon!

The process:
First, I cut a small length of ribbon to attach to the inside of the skirt.

Next, I sewed the bit of ribbon to the inside of the skirt:

Here is the loop with the ID tag attached (you can see that it folds over the top of the waistband):

And here is the loop neatly tucked back inside the waistband, unseen, for the times when I'm NOT wearing my ID tag:

So there was my little 10 minute project!  I hope it inspires you!

A little relaxation?

It's Friday, the weekend is here, and I have almost zero plans!

What? you say...  How is this possible in the crazy land of the Meeks?

It's an anomaly, it's true, but I plan to enjoy every. single. second.

Dinner at Carinos with friends tonight, crafting with my girlies tomorrow, church on Sunday and a lazy afternoon...  Sounds like bliss.  I'll let you know if it all works out.

At some point I have to go grocery shopping, but we're not talking about that.

Update on the car...

Last night we went car shopping, and came home with a new (to us) Honda Odyssey!  It's a 2003, has heated seats, leather interior, is GORGEOUS(!), has a DVD player, and all sorts of other fun stuff.  It's very nice to drive, and I'm enjoying it a lot, so far!

The good, the bad, the ugly

The good:  The old van is dead, so I get to shop for a new van!!!

The bad:  The old van is dead, so I have to shop for a new van.

The ugly:  Car payment, after 4+ years without one.

I'll keep you updated on what we find!

A change of plans...

This weekend, we were supposed to travel to Bozeman, MT for Gabe and Bethany to participate in the First Lego League robotics tournament that is held every year.  Both of their teams worked really hard all fall to prepare for the competition, which includes programming robots, preparing a presentation for the judges, building robot components from Legos, and then actually performing missions with their robots.  It's a pretty fun event for the kids, and they were really looking forward to it.  Jon, Michaela and I were looking forward to the pool at the hotel and a possible tour of the Gibson Guitar factory.

The proposed timeline:
3:30-4:00:  I would get off work and head home, we'd pack up and be on the road by 4:30.
5:00:  We would drop the dog at Papa's house, grab Mickey D's and be on the highway no later than 5:30.
8:30:  We'd be checked into our motel, changed into our suits, and headed down to the pool and hot tub before getting to bed....

Then, LIFE happened.

The actual timeline:
4:06pm:  I left work and headed home.  Just a wee bit late, we can still hurry up and be on the road by 4:45....
4:30pm:  I arrive home, we finish packing, and are out the door by 5.  A little late, but so far so good.
5:15pm:  Jon drops me at Target, so that I can grab the dog food while he goes over to Wendy's to grab the people food.
5:25pm:  I am finished at Target and waiting outside, and as I'm trying to get something out of my eye, my contact lens (I wear semi-rigid gas perm lenses) pops off my eye and onto the concrete sidewalk.  A really nice woman helped me look for it for about 10 minutes, but it was gone forever.  This should have been the first indication that things were going badly.
5:45pm:  Give up the search and head for my dad's house.
6pm:  Drop off the dog and get on the road.  All is going swimmingly, with Nutty Bars, Ding Dongs, Wheat Thins and Easy Cheese, when...
sometime after 7pm:  The oil light comes on in the van.  Okay, not a super big deal...EXCEPT that Jon had just filled the oil a few days ago...
Luckily for us, we were only 9 miles outside of Deerlodge, MT.  We pulled in, bought some oil and topped it off...only that didn't fix the problem.  The oil light was still on.

To make the rest of this long story short, we ended up staying overnight in the Deerlodge Rodeway Inn (which was less than a block from the gas station, thankfully!), got a really great rate due to our situation, and were helped out by family and friends in our efforts to get the van (and us) back to Missoula today.  We tried all avenues to get the kids to their competition, but came up dry.  As a mom, I felt pretty helpless and pretty discouraged, but there comes a time when you realize that despite your best efforts, you aren't going to be able to fix the situation, so you'd better just make the best of it.  We spend the rest of the evening watching Disney channel and letting the kids chow on the snacks.  Michaela got to experience a 4B's restaurant for breakfast this morning (loved it!), and my awesome friend Brooke came out and drove us home.

There are still a lot of things to think about...How much is this going to cost?  Is it worth it to fix it?  Did we stop before the engine was damaged?  Is it time to think and pray about a new vehicle?...and yet we find ourselves feeling so thankful tonight for wonderful friends and family who came to our rescue, and for a great God who allowed this to happen not at the top of Homestake Pass, but just outside of a town that has cell phone service and a gas station, motel and restaurant right off the interstate (quite literally!!  You take the exit and it's all RIGHT THERE!).  For small miracles such as these, and the larger miracles of love and support, I am thankful.

Micky (note the cheesy smile and the Easy Cheese in the background)

Nice.  Everybody is chillaxin'.

My sweet, yet disappointed, girl.  Such a great sport about the whole thing.

{ Birthday Parties }

Sunday was Bugsy's 8th birthday!  Wow, how the time flies.  It seems like just yesterday that I was blogging about the day she turned 5 and I would be sending her off to school in the fall.  Now she is a super smart 2nd grader who is at the top of her class.  On Saturday, we had some of her sweet friends over for a hot tub party and yesterday our family joined us for cake and ice cream.  She was very blessed and received many great presents!  Happy birthday, Bugs!!

Lucy!!

So, in all my blogginess, I haven't even posted about a pretty big change that occurred in our family recently.  We have an English intern staying with us for 6 months.  Her name is Lucy and she is a super sweet girl who has come to us from Hope Church in Orpington, UK.  She's here to intern at the church, to learn to be a worship leader and maybe get some songwriting tips...and in her spare time, to be a big sister to our kiddos and a fun part of our lives.  We are loving having her here so far!

Waiting for baggage claim at MSO, just after she arrived

a new semester

A new school semester began today!  I am excited and nervous.  I'm taking library administration, and am very excited for the class, but a little nervous as to how it's going to add to the already hectic schedule around here!  It's one step closer to being done, though!!  Which is wonderful!

Organization projects

I've been an organizing fool around here!  It's so fun, although I'm not so organized that I've been taking before and after shots or anything like that.  Today, however, I organized my closet, (and got rid of a TON of stuff), my dresser drawer, my filing drawer, our business documents, and have been shredding papers like a mad-woman! In some ways, it feels like I've been in a mess for a few weeks now, but my 52 weeks of organization list is being checked off at a pace that is faster than one per week, and that tells me that my mess is progressing from mess to marvelous!!  For the first time EVER, I'm prepared for my paper organization for the coming year, with file folders already labeled and everything!  I'm so excited!!  I've begun working on reorganizing my "Kid paper" storage, but need to have time to go looking for some large binders.

These two blogs have been inspiring me, check them out if you get a chance!

www.abowlfulloflemons.blogspot.com
www.iheartorganizing.blogspot.com

Here's to a happy and organized home in 2011!!

Mrs. Meek

{Birthday month}

January is the month of birthdays for us.  It all begins with my cousin, on January 9 (he is 30 this year!).  On the 16th, we have mine, followed quickly by my friend Renee on the 21st, my neice on the 22nd, my cousin's daughter on the 25th, Jon on the 26th, and Michaela on the 30th!  It is a crazy time, but so much fun!  I love birthdays!! 

Speaking of birthdays, I got 2 new pairs of shoes for mine!  Did I mention that I love birthdays?

A great idea!!

Ok, I'm going to have to try this!  My friend Jami just refinished some bar stools, and it's very similar to something I've been looking to do in my kitchen.  I have just one bar stool, and am looking to get more.  Her idea is so cute, that I just had to share it!  I guess I'll be looking for some used bar stools at garage sales this summer.

Some new stuff

As you can see, I've changed the layout of the blog again.  I've also added a page that I'm calling, "My Montana Kitchen."  You will find some of my favorite recipes there, and I may also post recipes from friends (always citing my source, of course!).  I hope you enjoy the new look.  If you try my recipes, I hope you will let me know what you thought of them (and how your kids liked them, too!).  I know that I sometimes struggle to find kid family recipes that will also please my husband, who likes very strong flavors, so when I find a good one, I like to hang on to it!

Have a great day!

And more...

 We take this picture every year.  Our kids and the Coty kids.

We started out with stair steps, but they seem to be evening out...

Birth order: Colton (14), Gabe (12), Cayla (11), Bethany (10), Cortnie (9), Michaela (7)

Beth is now taller than Cayla, and Mick is definitely catching up to Cort.

 Our three on Christmas Eve at "the Christmas House."  We saw so many friends there after church!

 Christmas morning, opening her stocking...

 Gabe, Christmas morning

 Bethany's new Griz socks!

 Mick got new boots!

 Hmmm...What's in here?

 Cool!  My very own camera!

And Gabe got one too!

Unfortunately, I ran out of batteries when I went to take pictures later when my family was here.  I'll have to get some from my mom, and hopefully will post them later!

Happy New Year!

Christmas pics