Rain Gutter Regatta

For pack meeting in September Scotty had a Rain Gutter Regatta. He was pretty excited to make his boat with his dad. He decorated it himself and named it "The Cross Bone"! He took second place.

His sisters were there cheering him on. Haley was actually the photographer that night, so she took all the pictures but this one.

At the end the dads wanted to race. Scott was in Utah hunting so I got to join the fun. I did not do so well, I lost every race. Definitely not my sport!

Scotty and Matthew are good buddies. When it was their turn to race each other it got heated. Scotty pulled out a win at the last second. There were no hard feelings, thank goodness. They were both good sports.

Here is Scotty with his Cub Master, Brother Snow.

James can't wait until his turn in about 8 more years~

A Daughter of A King!

Haley attended a Stake Activity Days activity entitled, "A Daughter of a King." It was a full day of classes and activities that taught them they are truly daughters of a Heavenly King that loves them and they have the potential to be princesses in his kingdom. This is one truth that Haley has a testimony of and for that I am so grateful. She is a special daughter to me. She has such a strong sense of right and wrong. She knows what the spirit feels like and has had several choice experiences with it at such a young age. It was fun to watch her share what she learned in front of her peers and radiate the glow of a daughter of God!

First Day of Preschool

Marianne started preschool this year. I was not going to put her in because she was still 2 when school started and she just seemed too young. But Kim Bishop, the fabulous gal that heads up the preschool co-op I have been in since Scotty said I needed to put her in and if I didn't she would be bored. I am glad I listened. She absolutely loves it. In fact she gets mad most mornings that she does not have school because she wants to go everyday like her brother and sisters. She seems to have grown up a whole year this past month and a half. I have mixed emotions about it. I love that the temper tantrums are fewer and far between, but it saddens me that my baby girl is turning into a real person and growing up. Life is just breezing by way to quickly.

Labor Day!

Some friends of ours invited us to go hiking the morning of Labor Day. Scott was working that day to earn extra money to pay for his upcoming hunting trip, but I convinced him to go in a little late so he could come with us. We went to Red Rock Canyon. It was a gorgeous morning, with a layer of cloud cover that kept it from being too hot! When we were done, we wondered why we don't do that more often.

The kids loved climbing on the rocks and exploring. It was fun to watch them. It did get a little crazy once in a while making sure we new where all 9 of them were. That is a lot of kids!

I loved this picture of Marianne and her daddy. She stayed by his side most of the time because she was afraid lizards were going to get her. I had told her we were going hiking and going to see lizards. I thought that would be exciting, she had the opposite reaction. She was terrified the whole time. I am not sure why.

James was a trooper too. He loved just hanging out, taking in the scenery. It was a great adventure.

Hey Dad...

....I think its time to get up!

I Love this Girl!

This is my sister. Isn't she such a fun mom? That is her oldest son, holding her. She left him behind at BYU when her family left for Singapore last month. She misses him dearly.

I love my CUTE sister Rebecca dearly. Unfortunately I have not always been able to say that. I was able to spend a lot of time with her this summer and for that I will be forever grateful. For some reason we never got a long growing up. Maybe it was because we are so different, maybe because I was a brat and I was always secretly jealous of her, who knows. Now I wish we could go back and enjoy that time, appreciate our differences and be best buds. I guess it is never too late.

I just must have had to go through different experiences in my life to realize that relationships and family are really the most important things in this life. So, I am grateful that we can be good friends now, share bits of wisdom on parenting, housekeeping, decorating, etc. and just enjoy each other, even if it has to be through skype (she lives in Singapore). I look forward to her phone calls on Sunday evenings, they are a highlight of the week. I am thinking of her tonight because her husband just got called and set apart as the Bishop of her ward. I know he will do a fabulous job and she will be a great support to him. But I also know that added weight she will carry at home as a mother, housekeeper, and wife. So my prayers are with you! I wish we lived closer and you could use my shoulder to cry on!

James says, "I...