sierra vista trip

we finally were able to get down to sierra vista a few weeks ago and it was awesome. my mom is working at ft. huachuca for 6 months, so we went to visit her.

there really is a lot to do in that area. we started with an innocent hike in ramsey canyon. my mom hikes there all the time and it also happens to be the hummingbird capital of the world. so we thought we would check it out.

there were all kinds of things to explore. here, they were checking something out with daddy.

beheaded bug. kind of pretty against the brown dirt. what?

here's the whole gang. ready to start up the trail.

well. well. what do we have here? do you see what i see?

let's get a little closer. as in why don't you start walking towards us and literally cross the hiking path right in front of us.

ok. kids. hike is over.

let's walk slowly/book it back to the car.
this was actually the second bear my mom saw on that hike. my mom and the 3 older girls got there before us. they had hiked up a bit to explore some abandoned houses on the trail. they were playing on a tree trunk and heard some rustling right behind them. out popped a cinnamon bear. my mom swiftly got the children outta there.

because of all the recent fires, there have been more appearances of homeless animals.

we decided to stay close to the nature center and explore the beauty around there.

this little tree frog nestled himself against the nature center all day.
D liked this abandoned house and wanted her picture taken by it.
after our hike provided to be a little more dangerous then we had anticipated, we decided to do something more sensible. like take all the children deep into a mine. you know, the kind you can't get out of until the tour is over.

it started out pretty fun. we got to wear some serious mining gear.

here are noni, D and S. notice how packed together the train was. just after this picture. the tour guides came around and told my mom to scoot forward, they were going to make space for another person who couldn't find a spot. while we felt bad for the ginormous guy, they would have been pressed tightly together for the 2 hour tour. it was the funniest/most uncomfortable thing ever.

she said "no!" and they finally found a spot for him by his wife. which was all around better especially considering the circumstances.
you may have mistaken her as a regular old miner if the sparkle shoes hadn't given it away.
most of the group ready to go on an adventure!
here we are at the first stop. later, we realized that this was plenty. we would have been happy to stop right there.

when we first entered the mine, they stopped at 100 ft. and announced that if anyone wanted to get off, this would be the time. speak now or forever hold your peace. well, we had barely even entered, R was a little antsy, but we thought that once the train got moving, he would fall asleep.

we were wrong. at the second stop. R hated it. it was terrible. he just needed to get out. so the guide said that P could walk out with him. it was quite the sight. to see him starting to walk into this dark hole with a baby in his arms. and just the flashlight that they provide you with. yikes. a little disturbing.

we felt better that he took the baby out. then we went into the next stop. at this point, it is pitch black and freezing cold. the kids were over it. they kept saying they wanted to go out. there was no turning back at this point. not fun. as we were heading to the back of the crowd, we noticed another mining car pulling up. we just imagined P having to flash his light at the oncoming car. there is no way the car could miss him, it would just be a matter of how they were going to get around each other. again, very disturbing.

finally at the next stop, the kids were miserable. noni and i started to get a little slap happy. we were definitely over it too. there was nothing we could do to speed this thing up and we just wanted it to be over. we ended up all laughing and staying at the back of the group. but we weren't the only ones, lots of other people were cold and over it too.

we decided it was a great experience, but WAY too long for a family with little kids.
downtown bisbee was really cool. there were lots of people dressed as pirates for some reason.


next stop. tombstone. it was really touristy, but fun. the kids loved the street shows and gun fights.

learning all about wyatt earp.
we stopped for ice cream. these were the biggest scoops ever and they were only $1.55 each. my mom and i decided to get a scoop too because they were so big. we got a different scooper and his scoops were not even close to as big as the kids. disappointing.

we had to get an old time photo.... when in tombstone.
the drive back was beautiful. if you haven't been on this road trip before, i would definitely recommend it. the weather is so much cooler and the scenery is amazing.
this picture does not do justice to size of these dust devils. they were huge. we felt like storm chasers.

baby dominik!!

a few weeks ago, i got to celebrate, with my friend liz, the awaited arrival of her first baby! it was very exciting. Liz is very crafty and made all of the paper chains. they were adorable. and her friend made a cake to match the paper we used in the decorations and on the invite.....

it.was.amazing.

and tasted even better.

i may have dove into it later that night and continued to eat until it started to come back up. tmi? i couldn't help myself. it was beautiful and such a waste to throw it away. but i finally made myself put it in the trash.

phantom limp

today L had her 9 yr. well check at the pediatrician. she is growing perfectly and is a delightful child. she recently has become interested in crutches and breaking her leg.

a few months ago, another child she knows had crutches and she thought it was the coolest thing. she regularly asks for crutches and to break her leg.

today at the dr., she explained that around a week ago or maybe it was the night before, she couldn't remember, her leg cracked several times and pain was shooting up her leg from her foot when she walks. the dr. did a thorough hip and flexibility exam and said she looked really good. we were relieved.

while walking into school, she held my hand while dramatically limping across the parking lot. i asked her if she was ok and why was she all of a sudden limping. she explained that she really hurt her leg and doesn't think she will be able to join in p.e. today.

hmmmm.......

i felt bad and couldn't tell if she was really in pain. my instinct was telling me that she was just really trying to get out of p.e. and hoping for use of some school crutches for the day... but i wanted to give her the benefit of the doubt.

i kissed her goodbye and she hobbled out the door to her class. i peeked out the window to watch her hobble across the courtyard, but just as she started to turn the corner... her stride returned back to normal.

i think we'll just take it easy this weekend and i'll have some cookies and an ice pack waiting for her when she gets home from school. she also mentioned that she really wants to go ice skating after school too tho.

recently...

this one had her first day of 4's preschool... marking our 7th year as a family at the school. she was pumped and had a great day, she is also the only girl in the class as of now. 2 teachers and 7 kids. i expect them to be reading and doing calculus by the end of the year.

pdubs was on his way to kingman, i think, when out of nowhere some huge rocks flew into his window. he was so shocked and pulled over. he had to call a tow truck and be towed all the way back to phx and get a rental car while the truck got a new windshield and hood. so scary. thank the heavens above he was ok and not hurt. makes you realize how fast things can happen and how fragile we really are. and also thankful for good insurance. we switched to geico and they really are good :)

the eldest took a movie-making class this summer at the apple store. she really enjoyed it.
this poor baby not only has mostly girl toys but even girl pacifiers. at least he has boy clothes :)
this one likes to cook...
good morning!!!
still cooking.....
now that's better....

gift ideas...

just in case anyone was wondering what to get me for labor day.....

first day of school 2011

yes. for some reason this is the best back to school shot we have. not our best year for back to school photos, but despite that fact, we have a very happy 6th, 4th and 1st grader!!! S is in the same class, but is enjoying her new role as 6th grade leader in the classroom. L and D both moved up to new classrooms this year and both seem to love their new teachers and classrooms.

and off we go.

GREENergy

S, our little entrepreneur, always has some idea kickin' around in that head of hers. her latest creation is GREENergy. a homemade, organic fruit and vegetable juice. labeled and packaged in a really cool bottle that is included in the purchase :) she was really excited and proud of herself when the finished product was displayed on the countertop.

alyssa, my neighbor, of chewylou designs, gave her this awesome shirt :)
she really worked pretty hard perfecting the taste. we had several trial sessions until finally she was pleased with her product and had recorded the ingredients. daddy helped her make the label and viola!

last week of summer 2011.

well this week sure had it's highs and lows.

i heart my neighbors :) i am so grateful for them and their support and wisdom.

as we got in the mindset of returning to school, i found myself really trying to soak in these last few lazy days of summer.

i am going to miss slow, nude mornings.
i am going to miss the children spending many hours playing pretend (& fighting) in the basement. poor kit with her wonky eye. i think auntie sarah needs to get back over here to fix it. she's super good at stuff like that.
i am going to miss the children sitting around the computer for hours listening and then re-listening and then listening again to songs trying to memorize all the lines.

i love you like a love song baby.

i guess i'll even miss the panic calls to anyone who has a pool every afternoon around 4pm.

w.i.t.c.h.i.n.g.h.o.u.r.

i love this :)

ummm....

who knew pulling out the fan and pumping up the music would make the kids beg me for photo shoots?

little S's big trip

natalie and i decided to take little S and A on their own big girl trip... now that they are the ripe old age of 4.

S was dying to go to the american girl place. so we packed them in the car and drove over to LA for some tea and doll time.

A picked out kit to be her doll.
sitting at the tea with samantha.
after their fill of doll heaven, we sat and played and enjoyed an outdoor concert. california weather is so awesome.


all the excitement really tuckered her right out.
out for a fancy italian dinner...
S fell asleep on the way home too. it was so delightful spending so much one-on-one time with her. i love that girl :)