Mango Ice Cream and Sunrises.

It has been nice to have my parents staying here.  Sure, it has not come without its bumps.  However, it has been good for all of us to have a house full.  Ms. Eason had given Sidney a bag of leftover material.  My mom has been going to town making the cutest doll clothes.

Terrell gave my dad a carton of mango sherbet ice cream.  I would not touch it with a ten foot pole.  He has been diving into it every evening.  I snapped a picture of him taking a very large bite.  The carton did not last very long.

Boise has been getting some amazing sun rises and sun sets.  The girls and I have made a habit of looking for the sun rises each morning as we drive to Terrell's.  It has been glorious!

Horses, Basketball and Growing Up.

Sidney LOVES to play basketball.  Thankfully, so do I.  We decided to play a bit of one-on-one the other night.  Little did we know, Kendall captured the fun in pictures.  

Sidney has this awesome friend Avery.  These girls seem to bring out the zany in each other!

After Sidney's summer riding lessons ended, she decided to start a 12 week horsemanship class.  She looks forward to it each week.  The crazy thing...the farm chores are one of her favorite things.  I have even noticed that she has started picking up after the dogs at home more.  Woot Woot!

Sidney had her very first babysitting job.  She and Kendall took a course at St. Alphonsus this past summer.  The neighbor asked if she could sit with her kids for about an hour.  She immediately said yes.  She was paid in Color Street nails.  Best payment ever!  She came home and promptly put them on.  She was so incredibly proud to put her babysitting skills to work.  She told us how she picked up the house and cleaned up the dishes.  I suspect they will be calling on her again!

Living the Good Life!

Kendall seems to really be enjoying her middle school years.  These are the 'farklers'.  They are amazing friends.  They are each so unique and beautiful.  Here they are at the Shakespeare Festival.

They decide to throw their friend Brookelynn a 13th birthday part.  The girls coordinate the whole thing with Brookelynn's parents.  The girls spend the entire day decorating the house and making a cake.  Finally, the time came to kidnap Brookelynn.

She was relieved to learn that her kidnappers were really her friends.

Brookelynn is the scientist in the bunch.  They made her a cute theme cake.

For those who have a weak stomach, it may be time to avert your eyes.  Kendall had a tooth pulled to make room for a permanent tooth that needs to come in.  The crazy thing is that the dentist had her pull her own tooth.  No kidding.  I actually thought that he was joking and would only have her assist.  NO, she pulled the tooth out on her own with his verbal guidance.  Crazy!

Kendall loves Pinterest, 5 minute crafts and life hacks.  All of these things she inherited from Kevin.  Some of these projects have been huge fails.  The project below was a definite win.  Two shoe boxes and two hangers later, she has a nice container to store things on her bathroom counter.

Here was one of the few cross country meets Kendall participated in this year.  Shortly after this picture was taken, she crashed her hover board and ended up on crutches.  Thankfully, she suffered no fractures.  However, her incredibly bruised hip has been very painful and slow to heal

I absolutely love this picture.  It captures the essence of Kendall.  She is such a fun loving free spirit!

Sidney Birthday Interview '11'.

This is Sidney at 11 years old:

What is your favorite color?  Mint Green
What is your favorite toy?  American Girl Doll
What is your favorite fruit?  Watermelon
What is your favorite tv show or movie?  Free Rein
What is your favorite thing to eat for lunch?   PB&J

What is your favorite game?  Skipbo
What is your favorite snack?  Chex Mix
What is your favorite animal?  Horse
What is your favorite song?  Raise a Hallelujah (Bethel Music)
What is your favorite book?  Cupcake Diaries
Who is your best friend?  Eva
What is your favorite cereal?  Captain Crunch
What is your favorite thing to do outside?  Ride horses
What is your favorite drink?  Peppermint Mocha
What is your favorite holiday?  Christmas
What do you like to take to bed with you at night?  Monkey
What is your favorite thing to eat for breakfast?  Pumpkin Muffins
What do you want for dinner on your birthday?  Steak
What do you want to be when you grow up?  Horse trainer
I am very proud because…I have started home school and riding horses.
If I were President I would…let Heather Strong let her daughter have a horse.
I am afraid to …get shots.
Name one thing you do really well?  Ride horses
Describe what it means to be a good friend.  Trustworthy, kind, honest, funny.  Being there for each other.
What is your favorite time of day?  Thursday 1-3 pm (horse lessons)
Describe your best day ever?  The first part of the day I would go to a ranch and do whatever I want with horses and take care of them.  The second part of the day, I would go to a beach to cool off and swim.
Describe your favorite hobby.  Riding horses
Climbing trees is…fun, but scary if I go to high.
I wish there were a law that said…there could be an extra month of summer break.
What makes you feel sad?  Thinking about the day Dad died.
What makes you feel happy?  horses
Pretend that you can fly whenever you wanted. Where would you go?  Hawaii
If I could choose a different name, I would choose…Nicole
Where do you want to go on vacation?  Heartland Ranch
What is your favorite thing to do with Mom?  Play basketball
What is your favorite thing to do with Kendall?  Laugh
What is your favorite memory of Dad?  One time when I was sick, he went to PetSmart to get Bailey some dog treats.  He got me a squeaky toy that looked like a stuffed animal.  He told me, "Here I got you a stuffed animal."  He did not realize I knew that it was really a squeaky toy!!!

The Year of Symmetry.

Sidney turned eleven this year.  I will call it the year of symmetry.  I will leave it to you to figure out why:).  She shares a birthday with my mom.  We celebrated at home with a delicious fondue dinner.  It was a feast, and we were all beyond stuffed.

My dad seemed to be the most experienced at fondue.

Terrell enjoyed her first time fondue ever!

The birthday girls celebrated with Rice Krispy treats.

Sidney decided to have a party at A Way with Clay.

Our beautiful friend Hayley hosted the party.  She and her mom opened this cute little ceramic place last spring.  We seem to have become regulars there.

We talked the grandma's and Mrs. Wassmuth into staying and enjoying the fun.

I love this picture of the girls and I...

...but, this is the picture I really love.  Check out my shorts!  Yes, I did intentionally coordinate with the paint color on the walls:).

I believe Hannah posed for this picture AFTER her delicious sugar filled cupcake.

Sidney had a fantastic time with her friends.

Smallcakes for the win!

Here are the cute creations, before they went into the kiln.  They were beautiful and bright when they came out.

Sidney told me that evening that this was her most special birthday party yet.  When I asked her why, she simply stated that it was a mix of people that each meant a lot to her.

First Day of 5th and 7th.

Wow, I cannot believe how fast these girls are growing up.  Kendall started her 2nd year in Middle School.  She is a big 'sevie' this year.  

Sidney started 5th grade this year.  She is attending Gem Prep Online this year.  This is a big change for us.  It has proven to be very academically challenging, but she seems up for the task.  The WIN is that she has not had a migraine in six weeks.  I will check in at the end of the first semester to see whether this move was a success or not.  For now, we will keep plugging.