A City Life For Me

While Ben replaces the staircase at home, we came to visit Grandma & Grandpa in Pittsfield.  We enjoyed a beautiful fall afternoon at the local pumpkin patch, Whitney's Farm .  All photo credits go to my talented sister-in-law Meredith! There is a petting farm area.  Elaine loved on the horse a lot! The boys discovered how to hang upside down... Bean bag toss On top of the tractor. Too many pumpkins...too many kids...too few parental hands! Oh my!  I love this picture!  He wanted to carry his own pumpkin so badly! She wanted to pose.  So nice to have a kid that likes to get their picture taken! He's smiling! Henry-Man Not so thrilled with his picture... Little feet I love this one! Elaine and Grandma!

Ever since we have been living in this tiny town of Mountainville, NY, a lot of people pull down our driveway looking for the state park.  Schunnemunk State Park.  It’s actually the mountain behind our house (and there is I-87 between us and the mountain), but a lot of GPS have the coordinates wrong.  We decided we should check it out before moving back to the city.  We had a nice day and the kids were itching to get out and move, so we took a hike down the trail in Schunnemunk Mountain State Park .  It was mostly cow pasture and field that we walked through that day, but we found a great clearing for kite flying.  We came back a couple of days later for a picnic and kite flying day off of school, and then we hiked farther up the trail and crossed the train tracks.    Selfie with Henry during lunch :: These two!  Their imagination!  They were riding a horse together, and Nehemiah kept falling off the back! Let’s Go Fly a Kite! Amtr...

On one Saturday, my parents took the kids and I to hike Devil’s Head to the Fire Lookout station.  It is the only one of seven original fire lookouts still in use in Colorado.  We hiked this as kids, so it was fun to take my kids back.  They got very distratected  by the sticks and stones, but we did make it to the top!   I love the mountains! My parents and the granddog, Sadie At the top of the fire lookout station. Can you see the city of Denver? After hiking to the top and back, we drove down to the South Platte River so that we could have a picnic and swim.  It was a little busier than expected,  but the kids enjoyed the water.  When we were finished I sent Elaine to get in the van first.  She started screaming, so I investigated.  I found a baby garter snake slithering away.  Nolan chased it across the road, and Grandpa (the snake guy) helped to secure it.  Once Nolan touched it and didn’t fall over dead, all the...

After Yellowstone and a meeting in Wyoming, Ben took the kids and I back to my parent’s house in Denver.  We stayed there for a month while Ben went and had some meetings in California alone.  We had two reasons for splitting up:  first, we couldn’t find housing for all of us in CA, and it would be very costly to live in a hotel for a month; and second, because Ben needed some time alone to write his doctrinal papers for ordination.  The time in one place gave us some stability, and the kids were even able to take swimming lessons! Idaho potato fields Pinedale, WY. Playing soccer with Uncle Wesley.  Soccer is his game – he was thrilled.    Grandma made the Grands these adorable pool noodle stick horses! Cow Appreciation Day at Chick-fil-A!   Elaine set up a school and thoroughly enjoyed teaching Aunt Jo!  She enjoyed her authority a little too much, perhaps – complete with rules! Fire breathing dragons!  (Toilet paper rolls and t...