10 month Tootie!

-standing up

-taking 1-2 steps

-climbing up whole flights of stairs

-talking lots of jibberish

-eating TONS and not wanting bottles as much

-starting to hold your own in Cade's wrestling matches

-we love you being chubby and cute!

Elk Camp Revealed!

As one of the first of two girls allowed in this place, I am here to document what "Elk Camp" is really about.

You see, normally it is like a black hole that sucks our husbands away for a while, leaving us home with kids, and a greater-than-normal work load. We hear a few stories about an occasional kill, or funny "boy" stories, never really knowing what they experience.

I am here to tell you... I can see how they get addicted.

There are some factors that just plain are not fun (I've heard about these):

-The 4.5 mile bike ride in. Doesn't sound too bad, right? Well, did I mention that you are pedaling all your gear in a bike trailer, in the dark, through snow, rain, wind, and 1,000 ft. of elevation gain?

-Setting up the tent, in the dark and rain, through stage 1 hypothermia.

-scattered sleep (partly because of being sick, but also because you have to wake up to stoke the fire every 2 hours, or you freeze.)

-packing out anywhere from a 50 to 150 lb. pack up 1,000 ft. of elevation gain in 1 mile in the dark. Oh, and then biking the meat out 4.5 miles and then biking back in uphill 4.5 miles.

Which brings me to my next point-

How absolutely AMAZING of an experience all of this can be.

Now, these are the things that you can never know unless you experience them first hand:

-The pure elation, excitement, and genuine camaraderie that comes with a kill. (Good job Nikell...and Brett!) It is the experienced teaching the inexperienced. Elk are very unique animals and it is a great accomplishment, even moreso than I imagined. It is a group effort all around and it is a lot of work, but nobody complains. It's sensational.

-The peace and serenity of being in the woods from sunup to sundown. Watching wildlife and listening to the God-made sounds (especially an elk bugle. It is majestic!). It gives you time to really think about the ones you love and the things that are important to you. You forget the business of the world you left.

-It brings you back to the basics: FOOD, WATER, SHELTER, and WARMTH. It makes you realize the work our pioneers went through and helps you appreciate our many, many luxuries. It makes you want to eliminate some of the things you don't need as well.
-And lastly, it never EVER gets old waking up on top of the world, and watching the sun rise.

I guess what I learned is, it's a lot more than just "elk hunting".

I can see how they get addicted.

BOO!

The 3-eyed green monster, Cade!

The little monkey, Jay!

The oldschool tennis player, Jon!

and his 80's fitness girlfriend, Brynne!

2 adult parties, 3 ward parties, lots of candy, fresh scones and two scary movies later, we say goodbye to Halloween!

Out of Nowhere!

We go from scribbles and squiggles, to people....with hair!

Go Cade!

New Kicks and Cookies

I went to the shoe-store to get some work shoes and Cade found these shoes and fell in LOVE with them...

all by himself.

I couldn't resist. :)

Every time he wears them he says, "I wuv my new white shoes, Mom."

Also, we fed the hungry and made decorate-your-own dessert!

Cute cheesey grin...

First Snow!

You read that right.

My Running Partner

She always wants to go (no matter the weather), never complains, and pushes my pace. Thanks for logging lots of miles with me through the years, Zoey.

You're a girl's best running partner!

Me and you, girl.