My Little Graduate

William officially graduated from Kindergarten! He has made tremendous progress this year. We are so proud of him.

Hip-hip-hooray!

"Up on the Housetop"

I should never be surprised with the life Lincoln leads; however, I just can't help myself! I was weeding in the front yard this morning. I decided to check on the kids, since they were playing out back. Well, well, well. Where's Lincoln? I'm walking and I hear a faint call (from some lofty height). Is it an angel? A talking bird, perhaps? No.

It's Lincoln...on the roof of our shop!

How did he do that (you may be asking)? Well, he climbed on top of our motor home, which sits on the backside of our shop, and then hoisted himself onto the roof. I couldn't help but take a picture, praying that he wouldn't fall to his death. I was too surprised to be angry, it was almost comical. I was flabergasted. No wonder Lincoln's favorite animals at the zoo were the monkeys- he's part monkey!

Just another moment in the Lincoln saga.

There's more to come; of that, I am sure.

City vs. Country

Don't get me wrong. I love a big city. I love the energy. I love that everyone has someplace to go. I love that there is so much life happening all around me. Diversity.

However...

My soul loves the country. My universe is in perfect harmony out here. I know that peace, a soul-peace, can be found no matter where you are, but there's this freedom--like a big, full, deep breath--that I haven't found anywhere else.

My uncle has a farm/ranch that we love to visit. For the kids, it's all about the bulls. For me, it's a taste of my little fantasy of living on a ranch (an almost-cowgirl). There's something about smelling hay, walking on dirt roads, or yes, even manure, that's so, I don't know, natural, organic, wholesome.

Now, if I could just talk Ben into getting us some horses...

Surprise!

We had such an unexpected surprise on Saturday. We decided to run up to Yellowstone for the day, hoping to find some great trails to hike. As we were driving to the park, Ben's parents called. They are currently serving a mission in Billings, MT. They were heading to...Yellowstone for the day! It was so fun to tell them that we were doing the same. We met up with them at the northern end of the park, since it was in their mission boundaries, and spent the afternoon walking around, visiting, and eating ice cream together. We loved it, the kids loved it, Mom and Dad Carter loved it. We were so happy to be together!

Yellowstone was awesome. I think I saw more animals than I've ever seen before during one trip: bears, elk, buffalo (lots of babies). There were herds of them. I think they were more visible due to cooler, springy weather. We usually visit Yellowstone more in the summertime. It was a great day, and, we all came home completely pooped.

I love these little glimpses of summer-fun-to-come. I'm so excited for the kids to be out of school so we can just play, and let the sun wear us out. Popsicles, sprinklers, BBQ's, sunsets, picnics, late nights, sleeping outside...oh, I just can't wait!

The Zoo

Brigham's First Grade class went to the zoo for their end-of-the-year field trip. We made it a family affair. Our zoo is small, but we had a great time, and nobody got lost! I think there were about 50 billion other schools there, too, so the zoo was a people/animal zoo!

My favorite exhibit was the monkeys (monkies??). Ben loved the otters. Brigham loved the lions and tigers, Will agreed. Lincoln loved the monkeys, too. And, Annie had a love-hate relationship with the petting zoo. Needless to say, the kids were happy and definately ready for bed that night!

If you want a good laugh, look at the last three pictures. Take note of William's gradual bodily-decline, slump, call it what you will. His face in the first pic is hilarious as you watch him tip, tip, topple. I didn't realize what I'd captured until I looked back on our pictures of the day. Made me smile.

Bear World 2009

Every year the Kindergarteners go to Bear World. Will, Lincoln and I braved the wilds this year. It was a fun break from regular life and the kids loved seeing and touching the animals.

Did you know that the chances of having an albino elk are 1 in 6,000,000?

Did you know that the gestational period for bears is only 2 months (how woudl that be)?

Did you know they birth their cubs while hibernating and go back to sleep right after they're born (how would that be)?

We had a great time together. Lincoln was awed by his first bus ride. He tried to put his whole body out the window, before I saved him. Will didn't want to sit with us on the way home. It was all about the friends. He's growing up.

Strip Tease...

We haven't made it home from church yet, without the kids stripping their Sunday duds faster than I can blink. It cracks me up.

"Keep your pants on," has a new literal meaning to me.

Oh, and Lincoln left a trail on the way to his room. I bet Ben would sure like it if I did that.

Crazy for Her...

Sometimes, Annie gets a little crazy on us. It's adorable and endearing. I love that she's young enough to not care about being lady-like or proper. Sweet, sweet girl.

Sunday Saunter...

We had the most beautiful Sunday! We're surrounded by country roads, and chose to take the "road less traveled," for all you Frost lovers out there. We found a canal, threw sticks, aka boats, and tried to sink them with rocks. No surprise, the kids' feet found their way to the water. There were trees on someone's property and every one of them had a cool little face on it's trunk (just like The Wizard of Oz). If you didn't look hard, you'd never know they were there.

We visited with neighbors and even had a dog follow us home. Sometimes, these farm dogs scare me. They're so big and they come bounding towards you, like they're not going to stop. I just never know if they're going to attack or not. Paranoid? I always think in my little brain, "show no fear, show no fear." Haven't been attacked yet!

There's something extremely satisfying about walking with the ones you love, with no particular place to go.