LET THE RACES BEGIN!

The annual pinewood derby came around and it was so fun to see the boys getting excited and bringing all of their cars ready to hit the track! It was very competitive and there were lots of cheers and some sad faces. Overall it was a very successful event with pizza, some fun racing and car shaped cookies to end the night. Everyone received an award for their unique cars!

PINEWOOD DERBY BOYS

Congrats boys! Carter won best paint job and Zach won best spoiler on his car. Aaron took lots of time to make their cars just right and after many spray paint cans, tape and some frustration they came out pretty awesome! They had a fun time racing and learned to be good sports when they didn't win :)

BRIDGER LESSONS

I am one proud mom!! I think the best part.. or one of them, of being a mom is seeing your children learn new things and finding so much joy in accomplishing something. I was hopeful for Zach that he would enjoy it so he had something for himself that he could be excited about. He took to it right away and has quickly advanced. He loves it so much that on his way down he likes to pump his fists in the air :) And Carter is a rocket snowboarder. He loves to go straight down the mountain without turning. I hear turning , or carving, is hard on a snowboard so maybe he will pick that up. They are having a blast up at Bridger mountain and have 3 more lessons to go. Go BOYS!

winter in montana

We finally saw a snow day here in Montana! All winter I have been asking "where is the snow?"

For one day it snowed all day so I headed out to take a few pictures around town to show all of you the sights that are around town. The top photo is a pond in town next to a great park that borders the yellowstone river. And the next picture is the yellowstone river from the park. The last picture is a walk from my house down the road. I love this beautiful country!

HAPPY 9TH CARTER!!

Carter is an amazing blessing in our lives. He fills our life with loads of energy, sports, funny noises, and tender hugs. He was born with a head full of dark hair and a sweet smile. Where does the time go??

He loved the Mario Kart game and we all had a fun night of championship racing! The boys loved to laugh at how "bad" I was at the game and how much I screamed. Zach said.. "Mom, remember this when you are getting mad at us for screaming when we are having fun". Good point Zach.. Screaming IS part of the game :)

Chico Hot Springs Birthday

We took Zach and Carter out of school a little early and headed down to Chico Hot Springs for some fun swimming in winter! There was no snow falling on us but the temperature outside was 30 degrees and dropped as the night went on. The pool was perfect!! It was so fun to swim in the warm springs with no chlorine to hurt the eyes! And part of it was a large hot tub too. We had so much fun playing marco.. polo.. doing hand stands, and the boys love flipping into the water as Aaron launches them in the air. It was a blast! So family.. There is something fun to do in the winter just down the road in Paradise Valley. People from all over come to stay here, its been around for ages and it is a great spot to soak and enjoy the beauty of the mountains. Come visit! We hope to have snow falling next time!

SUNDAY EVENING FIRE

I can't begin to explain how very scary this fire was. We were all sitting in the family room when Carter came running in yelling.. FIRE! Aaron jumped off the couch and ran to look and all he could see was a wall of flames on the other side of our fence towering about 7 feet tall. He yelled to me to call 911 and I quickly rushed the kids outside to the garage away from the house to keep them safe and out of the wind and smoke. The wind was possibly 40-50 mph. In moments like this you quickly think, what should I grab from the house? I only managed to take outside some photo albums and scriptures and I knew I needed to get out there and fight the fire. At this time Aaron was working on the keeping the fire from the barn which was full of hay and outside the barn were piles of old hay, grass clippings, and branches that were all aflame. I grabbed buckets of water to put the fire out which was now in our yard and to wet the fence down to try to keep the fire on the other side of the fence. A policeman showed up quickly and we grabbed my fire extinguishers and continued to work on the fire to keep it from the house. It was such a whirlwind of activity its hard to describe it all. I had one moment to check on Carter, Gavin and Maggie in the garage where we said a heartfelt and pleading prayer to our Father in Heaven. Zach was such a hero, he was working with me continually bringing buckets of water to defend the house. All in all, five fire trucks came, an ambulance and many big SUV's of emergency workers and it was finally put out around 6:30. It had started at 4:50. The policeman awarded Zach a badge for his bravery. When it was all over we were exhausted with smoke filled lungs, tired bodies and a sense of deep gratitude for the miracle and pray which was heard and answered. We all broke down as we offered a prayer of thanks for protecting our home and each other. When things like this happen we have the opportunity to realize what is most important in our lives. I am so grateful for this gospel and for my family.