Geodes

Emmy bought the kids some special break-your-own geodes. SO cool and definitely a good activity. Ben helped a lot, as the rocks were a bit hard to break, but it was such a cool experience for the kids. Especially for these two kids who love collecting rocks so very much. :-/

Meanwhile, Walker was over playing choo-choos in the "rock quarry." 

Funny. This is him saying "cheese."

And in this picture, I told him to laugh. I think I got a better smile! :)

This is a very typical position for Walker to be in when playing with his trains.

Hi, Buddy. :)

Lainey is always asking for people to come look for rocks with her. And Colorado is filled with rocks. You can only imagine how many we have collected.

"Nook (look), Sissy! I found a berry bootiful (beautiful) rock." (We have found many many bootiful rocks.)

I love Walker's little feet. I can't help it. I tease him by asking if I can eat his toes, and he always says "no" because he wouldn't "have any more toes" and he wouldn't be able to walk. ;)

See? They are just cute. Especially his little toe that is not like the others...he does his own thing!

Last one of the cute feet.

This picture makes me laugh! Love these two!

Lizard Hunting

Two highly-trained, top-notch hunting dogs vs. one lizard. And the lizard beat the odds by escaping! Clearly, these dogs need to brush up on their skills... ;) 

Muddy, Wet, and Chilly

That was our ATV adventure in a nutshell. Muddy, wet, and chilly! :) But fun, nonetheless!

Cows kept getting on the trail. They were stubborn and did not want to move!

muddy

more cows :)

gorgeous Aspens

me

Ben

Such a cute picture of my three favorites. :)

Bat Hunting (and Some Terrible Pictures)

My parents had a bat living in their house for about four days. No one could ever find him or get him to go outside. Every night he came out of hiding at about 8:45 p.m. We determined that one of his hiding places was behind this skull hanging on the wall...between the wall and the wooden mount. Anyway, here are a couple of pictures of us "hunting." Ben bravely took the broom while the kids and I hid in the stairwell. ;) 

blurry kid picture on the stairs

another blurry kid picture

The rest of the story is... the bat, who supposedly "never goes downstairs" somehow got into our bedroom (which is downstairs) and started flying over Ben while I was in the bathroom getting ready for bed. Let's just say the scene was one of the funniest I've ever witnessed. Ben hiding under the covers, bat swooping and flapping and flying back and forth, me frozen in the doorway trying to decide what to do. So, I closed the bedroom door, left Ben, and I ran to get my dad - out of bed - and together, the three of us (with Ben still in the bed under the covers) managed to force the bat out of our bedroom door (it leads to the patio outside). Amen. He's gone! And unharmed. :) Win-win!

Colorado... We love it here!

We left for Colorado on Saturday. I ended up sitting in between these two to put out the recurring fires. Lainey, our content one, was happy to just do whatever. She was easy. Walker was under the impression that once we reached the airport in Dallas (DFW) we would automatically be in Colorado and see Emmy and Tuck. So, as you can imagine, every step until we actually arrived was a bit challenging. He is not patient and not content to do whatever. ;) Anyway, here's a shot of the two of them just before takeoff! :)

In the airport, Lainey spotted two military men. She immediately said to me, "Mom! Look! It's two Ghostbusters!" I think - at that moment - I experienced failure as a parent. We need to do some educating...about our soldiers...and the amazing sacrifices they make for our country.

Walker is washing the jeep with his water bottle...good luck, Buddy. :) 

Big wheels rock. Period.

And yes...helmets. These kids go fast and far. Helmets are necessary!

Tuck invented a bungee-cord system of taking them up the hill. It worked well!

Walker helped draw the finish line. The rule goes, as soon as you cross the finish line, you have to put on your brakes (feet down). Lainey even drew stick figures to help define boundaries. If you touched a stick figure, you lost. It actually was helpful because these kids went SO fast...we were afraid they were gonna roll down the hill! 

the hill

Walker considered each trip down the hill a race. 

And a couple of videos for your viewing pleasure...

Updates from my iPhone

Walker calls these shoes his "super-fast shoes." That's their whole name and their only name. And he can run super fast. His goal would be to beat Lainey in a race. Truly. He strives to do that every single time he runs. Even if she's not around. He's a determined one!

One day, shortly before we moved (end of May), Jessica and Kelley took the kids for the morning so I could pack! Thank you to my sweet friends!

Walker and his friends...Clayton, Connor, and Jake.

And, I took this picture last week from the comfort of our covered patio. A major thunderstorm rolled in...and it was so nice to experience it without getting wet. :) 

And that's all...next post: Colorado!

A Successful Tuesday

Walker had his first visit to the dentist yesterday! Look at him! He's not crying!!! No tears. I'm still a bit shocked. It helped tremendously that Dr. Ty has LOTS of trains in the waiting room. It's wonderful! Both kids got good dental reports (whew) and I'm just glad that experience is over and done with. :)

 As a reward, we went to the pet store. Lainey's holding a little hamster here. And Walker's holding his Suddery Station. As usual, he has a train or a train accessory in his possession at ALL times. 

Lainey would have liked to have taken this dog home. We also saw a snake attack a rat and eat it. Being fascinated by that type of thing, I watched most of the process! Lainey and Walker watched, too, but they were just as fascinated with the live crickets in the aquarium next door. ;)

I always wonder what they talk about when I'm not around. Who knows. I also think Walker is totally naked in this picture and Lainey just has on her undies. Pretty shortly after this picture was taken, I looked outside to see them jumping on the trampoline. Without a stitch of clothing on their bodies. I am sure our neighbors are super happy that we've made ourselves at home here! :)

Here's an example of the random things that Walker puts into his boxcars. Tiny rolls of tape, a bunch of googly eyes, a few foam stickers shaped like frog heads, and a leaf or two. He loves having his boxcars carry "code" (coal) and it cracks me up when he tries to say coal because it always has a "d" at the end!