PREPARE YOURSELVES TO BE DAZZLED AND AMAZED!!!

I don't normally like to brag, but in this case...I just have to. I undertook a VERY difficult sewing project for my sweetheart, Travis. I had to make him a costume so that he can wear it as he dives into a swimming pool for a scholarship contest. This is what I have been slaving over for the last week...

Ta Da!!! Yes, my friends. Travis is a leprechaun. And doesn't he make a great one with that red hair and beard? By the way, those are real buttons with real button holes made by my trusty new sewing machine that I got for Christmas. (I love my machine!)

Here is a nice view from the back. How do you like the puffed sleeves?

Nice stiff, high collar, wouldn't you say?

Sweet little knickers, eh? With an old fashioned flap fly. I know...I'm amazing...

Enjoying the coat tails? I thought you would.

Mom, I hope you are proud, cuz this was HARD, and I had NO HELP! (Except for Travis, but he doesn't know how to sew at all.)



And for the most recent Russell news...

HOORAY FOR UNDERPANTS!!!!!! Russell is almost potty trained! He only wears diapers while he is sleeping. He has the #1 thing down very well. #2 we are still working on.

What does Russell do with his time?

This.

And This.

And this! Russ spends nearly all of his time playing with his cars, moving them from place to place in the house, and setting them up in meticulously planned little arrangements. He takes them outside, in the dirt, in his closet, and everywhere you could imagine. He also talks to them, makes up little stories and scenarios, sings to them, makes them talk to each other, and of course, makes car noises.

Russ has been saying the cutest things as he has learned to communicate more and more. Just yesterday we told him that we were going to a BBQ, and about an hour later he said, "We going to the barbecue sauce yet?" We love our little pumpking and are so excited to have another one to join the fun!

Updates!!!!!

I'm 4 months pregnant. Sorry about the no face thing, but it's hard to get a full body shot when you have to hold the camera yourself, and you don' t know how to work the timer. We do not know what it is yet, but feel free to vote for what you think on our poll. We should find out in early September. My due date is January 26th.

What we have been up to...

This is in Yelm, WA with my Aunt Marianne. We had so much fun visiting. Woo! Hoo! Look at us ride!

This is Russell taking Kennadi on a ride! Do you see how his lips are puckered? Motorcycle noises.

I'm learning how to fly fish!! I caught about 16 that weekend!!!

Russell took swimming lessons. What a little fish!!




He can jump!! Oh, yes, can he jump!

And he makes a nice splash. He also holds his breath and opens his eyes under water, paddles and kicks, and dives for toys!

Whenever I let Russell play with playdough, he has me make a motorcycle and a "guy" to ride on it. But this time, he made me make a girl to ride behind the guy. He's got those manly instincts, I'm tellin' ya. He knows that it just makes sense for a manly guy to have a hot chick on the back of his motorcycle.

We just got back from a very LOOONG but fun trip. We first went to Idaho to spend time with my family. We went camping too. This is Russell taking a dip in Ice House Creek. I'll let you wonder how it got its name.

Russell spent most of his time in camp "driving" the four-wheelers, or atleast pretending to. What a little BOY!

Then we went to Wyoming and spent time with the Moultons. We also got to go to Yellowstone. Here is a nice buffalo for your viewing pleasure. (Actually bison.)

Elk. We saw lots and lots of elk.

The fam hanging out.

A very cool geiser. It erupts every 8 or 12 hours or something, and we just made it!

Anyway. We had fun. We are home now. Whew, what a trip. Travis is in year 2 of med school. Wish him luck!!

A favor to ask...

Will some more people please comment about Travis's fish? His feelings are really being hurt. Thanks!

Some pictures for your viewing enjoyment.

We took a nice hike to boulder cave with some friends. Here are some pics.









We had to change Russell's crib into a bed because he was climbing out of it every day. For the first few days he fell out a lot. Sometimes he woke up and sometimes he didn't. On this day, he just slid out and continued his slumber in the middle of his floor.




What a cutie!

The moon came out at the water park.

Well, we got a group of buds from the medical school together to go on a little outing today. We drove up to Moses Lake and went to the water park they have there. We had so much fun, but we forgot to take our camera, so...sorry. But I do have a horrifying story to tell you.






See this little surf ride? Looks fun, doesn't it. Yes. It is fun. But there are some risks that you should know about before you attempt to surf on one of these. No, that girl is not me. But I was just like her today at the water park. Surfing away and having a blast...until disaster struck....


After falling off my surfboard I flipped over on my back with my feet pointing up the hill. Big mistake. The water shot up the back of my swim suit bottoms! I ended up kneeling at the top of the surfing simulator with my pants halfway down my rear! The worst part was that there was a rather large audience of people watching me surf, including many strangers and several of Travis's medical school chums, and I mooned them all! When I finally got my pants all the way up (a full five seconds later), I apologized to the entire crowd amongst their laughter and at least one video camera that hopefully didn't catch the incident.


The only other person that I know of that had such a wardrobe malfunction on the surfing simulator was a chunky little 8 year old boy. But that little boy and I had a lot in common as we were shrouded in humiliation and shame for the rest of the day at the water park.

To take a break from studying, we took a drive up to Bear Lake to fish. Travis was the only one to catch anything and boy was it a monster!!!!! Shortly after this picture, the fish jumped out of his hand and into Russell's face. He did not like that much.






That didn't dismay him, he went up again on Saturday to celebrate being done with his first year of medical school. He has been slowly accumulating fishing gear over the last couple of years. He took his float tube for its maiden voyage and it payed off. Almost every cast had a bite and he brought in about 30 rainbow trouts. He took his limit of five home to BBQ and eat. It was good eating.






Most of them were only about 12 inches long but one of them really was a monster.




16 inches, way to go Travis. And congratulations on finishing your first year of med school.

Back to my cowgirl roots!

So...I went to Idaho Falls for Memorial Day weekend. Travis couldn't go, but Russ and I went. And it is a good thing that I did because my poor dad really needed help on the ranch. We had a lot of brandin' to do.

Here is a little branding tutorial for all you city folk:






First you chase a group of calves into a small pen. Once they are locked in, you find a few good ones to separate from the group. You gotta do whatever it takes to get them to go into the chute, and believe me, they do not want to go! It is hard work. Sometimes you can just chase them in, but sometimes you have to pin them up against the fence with your hip and grab their tail with one hand and ears with the other and force them to go in. But watch out! They kick!! Very hard!!
One kicked my right in the stomach. And my nephew's shin got a good thump too.






Once they are in the chute, you have to push your hip into them so that they don't back out. It is better to be right up against their rear because it doesn't hurt as bad when they kick as it does when you are a foot or two away. This part can be gross because sometimes they go to the bathroom when you are pushing them forward. Ewwwww!





This is me trying to pass my time-tested techniques on to my nephew, Tyson.






Sometimes they get turned around. Then you have to either let them out and try again or figure out a way to flip them over in a 1 foot wide space (which can be very difficult).

Then my sister-in-law, Lexy, opens the gate to let the calf into the "machine." (I can't remember what it is really called.) Now I have to go back for more calves.

Once they are inside, the machine is cranked shut, and the calf is flipped over on his side. My dad is getting ready to vaccinate it.

My brother, Logan ropes the calf's leg and yanks it back so that he can't thrash. You can't really see it very well from this picture. He is in the striped shirt.

Then my brother, Darin, brands the calf. It moos a lot, but it's okay. When it is over, the calf is released and it trots out of the machine and back to its mother. My brother, Beau, is there too, and he has some job, but I can't remember what it is.

Russell came over to watch and was really put out when he got a little dried dirt/manure in his sandal. I think that he just made it worse when he plopped down and tried to get it out.

A hard day's work on the ranch!