Since it's 10-10-10, I was inspired to make some sort of top 10 list.
10 of My Favorite Things..... (in no particular order)
*A warm and meaningful hug from Larry or the boys. *The smell from my grandparents farm in Ashton, ID. It's a mixture of trees, flowers, mountain fresh air and pine. *Remembering something from my past that makes me smile, especially if it includes my late brother. *Packages in the mail. I love it when it's delivered by hand, it feels like I'm getting an unexpected present. *Finding money in some old pair of jeans that I haven't worn in awhile. *Saturday mornings when we sleep in, the boys crawl into bed with us and snuggle. *Spectacular sunsets or sunrises, we get them a lot here. I love them even more when I happen to have my camera on me. *Road trips and vacations. *Holidays, I love them even more when the whole family is together. *A good book, one that keeps me from leaving my chair.
I got this recipe from my family reunion and we make it once in awhile, it's easy and is better than running out to buy a bag of Gardettos.
Pretzels with a Zip
1/2 cup popcorn oil
1 pack of ranch mix
1 tsp dill
1 lb bag of pretzels
Mix first 3 ingredients in large bowl, dump in the pretzels and toss to coat. Let them sit for a couple of hours, stirring occasionally to re-coat. Ready to serve when the shininess of the oil goes away (about 2 hours).
I took some time to put this together, it is of the program my mom and I were interviewed for in January of this year, click here if you missed that post. My heart breaks every time I read a story of another child who is lost because a bully steals their will to live. Bullies are thieves, they steal souls and happiness. I am hoping this program will teach parents to take bullying seriously. If your child comes home and complains about a bully at school, do what it takes to make your child safe. Schools have an obligation and more than 40 states have laws to protect victims of bullies.
The full program is 45 minutes long and you can find it on the E! Network (a cable channel), it probably comes on at least once per month. Sometimes more if there is a related story that makes the national headlines.
While we were on vacation in Idaho, we visited Mesa Falls. There was a water fountain which offered a wet surprise to anyone who got a drink. The boys had fun with it.
What child doesn't love balloons? Ever since the boys were little, they got excited about getting balloons. Imagine seeing a giant hot air balloon take off right in front of you, needless to say, they were SO EXCITED!
We got up early this morning and drove to a nearby city so we could see the balloon festival. I went yesterday and wanted to share the experience with the boys, I knew they'd love it. I wish I had seen their faces when the first one lifted off, apparently people were taking pictures of the boys as their mouths hung open. After watching a few take off, they joined me at the bridge to watch more hot air balloons as they dipped into the river. They were nearly jumping up and down with excitement, people around them couldn't help but smile at these two excited boys.
Here are some more highlights....
This one is 100% legit, Larry saw the original with his own eyes. I just happened to be in the right place and at the right time.
During the last week of August, we traveled to Idaho for our vacation. We go every year to spend a week with my sweet grandma in Ashton. I always look forward to spending time with her! My aunt also lives there now that my grandpa is gone, she takes care of grandma so we don't have to worry about her being all alone. I decided it was time to get some nice photos of grandma.....
This year we brought Tabitha along, she is Larry's 15 year old cousin who didn't really get a vacation this summer. We also had the opportunity to meet a new member of the family, Helaman. He was born in July to Tara and Gnanam and he is cute! He was blessed on the weekend we were visiting.
Part of the tradition of being in Ashton is that we visit Yellowstone (which is like Disneyland for a photographer). Here are some highlights.... click here to see the best of the best on my flickr page.
Every year, we hike in Yellowstone. Normally we hike to the top of Mt. Washburn, but this year we decided to visit Meriman Falls. The only problem is that we didn't know the trail very well and missed the turn off at some point. So we hiked 4 miles and didn't have much to show for it. We called it the 'hike of disappointment' as a joke.
Because we didn't get the chance to see any bears in Yellowstone, we decided to visit Bear World. The kids love the petting zoo at the end. Jared and David figured out a way to hijack the little machine that had food inside (sort of like a gumball machine, except there was pet food inside). Well, the turkeys know that these machines produce a treat and they eagerly waited for the boys to get food out of it. Jared and David both tried to run, but the turkeys were faster. At one point, David just threw his hands into the air like he was under arrest.
David makes new friends wherever he goes...
And so does Larry....
Jared told me he had been waiting his whole life for a ride on the tractors, I think they both agree that this is the reason they love the farm so much. They also got to help rebuild the old chicken coop. There's nothing like good ole fashioned hard work!
I took a couple of pictures of the old homestead. My grandpa was raised next to this grain house, it sits less than a mile away from the current house. 'Bird Rock' is also nearby, it's easy to tell why the local people call it that.
On the way home, we stopped in Mountain Home to visit the Air Force Base. We met up with our dear friends to have lunch and spend time with them. We found our old house, it was empty. I'm pretty sure they plan to tear down this house within the next couple of years, many houses in that neighborhood are empty. It was David's first home and we have a lot of fond memories.
My brother, Jared, would be 25 years old today. I miss him! I can't help wondering what he'd be like today. Would he be married? Have a job? Have kids? Where would he be working right now? What would his hobbies be? Of all of my wishes, having him back trumps them all.
Larry has found that he has a real passion for all things running. He said that he wants only things related to running if I ever need a gift idea for Christmas or birthdays. I'm so glad he found something he loves, this will keep him healthy and in shape.
This last weekend, he ran with a team of 12 people in the Cascade Lakes Relay. It took 36 hours to run 216.6 miles. They ran on dirt, through the dust of traffic, on pavement and over hills. It was a tough course, but they finished well. Can you imagine this view?
The fresh air and cool breeze was the perfect setting for a run! One of our team members even had a stream waiting for her to jump into when she was finished.
Larry was really proud of his shirt and medal, I think he wore it all the way home and brought it to work the next day. Running 20 miles in one weekend is something to be excited about, I sure am proud of him!
As I was drying my hair with the blow dryer, Jared stood nearby with a little smile on his face. I figured out that he really liked the warmth from the blow dryer so I pointed it at him and he turned in slow circles while giggling with pleasure. David heard the glee in Jared's voice and ran to share whatever it was Jared liked. Soon I had two boys turning in circles to enjoy the warmth all over. It's as if I've pulled a warm fluffy blanket out of the dryer to wrap around them. Is there anything more wonderful?
A couple of weeks ago, I got a call from a dad who needed me to take pictures of his daughter who was not expected to survive for very long. She was 8 months old and she was okay to travel so they brought her to me. The session went well, this sweet angel was so patient with me as we got the images that we wanted. It's always extra hard to work with these babies who are still hanging on because I hope by some miracle that she'll be cured. It's so heartbreaking to hear the news later. The only comfort we have is that she passed peacefully in her sleep.
It seems like my angels come in pairs, I had two last September and they were only a couple of weeks apart. The second one needed his photos taken on Sunday morning (July 4th) and it was my hardest session ever. I won't go into detail, but it will probably haunt me for a long time. Although the session itself went well and I got the images I wanted, it was more about the condition of the baby when he's been gone for awhile. I will only post a picture of his little feet, this is the eighth angel I've met and this one has broken me. I will need a long break to bounce back, thankfully there are a couple of other volunteer photographers in this area who will step in for the next angel.
As always, a sweet healthy baby is the best therapy for me. My dear friend (we go waaaaay back) brought her little newborn over to me today so I could play with her. It always makes me feel all warm inside! I caught the sweetest little expressions, I think it really really helped me. She is super cute!
Here are some random pictures I took on the 4th of July and sunsets. This area has the most amazing sunsets, I really missed them when I lived in Tacoma.
It's been a busy two weeks for us. Jared is in summer school to help him improve his reading skills, David and I get to spend more time together and we all find ways to fill in the free time so we don't go crazy.
