Timber!!!

Here's our Christmas tree also, but it is not in the best shape right now. Yesterday, when Brian was at the shootout and I was home with just Sam, the darn thing fell over. I sat at the base of that tree holding it up for about five minutes pondering what the heck I should do. I couldn't get it screwed into the base any better, and I couldn't reach the phone to call my neighbor for help. I finally just sucked it up and got a face full of pine needles in order to reach the other side of the base to screw it in more. Needless to say there was a huge mess, and the decorations just did not look as good as before it fell over. Amazingly enough, only one ornament broke.

Hello Santa!!

I took the kids down to the "Jingle Bell Hike" at Cam-plex park last weekend. We actually skipped the hike because Sam was still sleeping at the time, but we made it in time to sit on Santa and Mrs. Claus' laps and give them the Christmas list Ainsley had made. Then Sam and Ains each got to decorate there own Christmas tree cookies. It was a good time for everyone, except for my car which got a broken tail light and cracked bumper as we were leaving. :-( Oh well, it's just a car.

The 2008 Christmas Tree Hunt

We took our annual trek to find the Griswold, I mean Hokanson family Christmas tree on the day after Thanksgiving. First we swung up to the Mistletoe Ranch in Hill City to get a Christmas tree permit, and Gramma and Grampa Taylor bought the kids an ornament each. Then it was on the snowy trail to locate the perfect tree.



We tried out a new spot this year and found a beauty right beside the Mickelson Trail in the Black Hills. Our niece and nephew, Ashlynn and Jonathan, got to come along as well since they were staying a few days with Gramma and Grampa. We got out the sleds and the kids had lots of fun being pulled down the trail. It was tons of fun, and I'll think we'll probably have to head up there in years to come as well.

Halloween (finally)

Here we are halfway through November, and I'm just now getting the Halloween pictures posted. So goes my life. We had a"twinkle" princess and her frog for Halloween this year. They were awfully cute. I found a princess dress with LED lights on the front of the dress, she was so excited and told everybody about it. Unfortunately, the batteries died on Halloween day, so the twinkle princess didn't twinkle. She didn't care though, she was focused on the candy. Sam did surprisingly well keeping his costume on also, he seemed to even enjoy it after a while.




Have you ever seen a frog eating a dog down by the bay........................ :)

Here are some other cute pictures. Enjoy!!

Fall

I love the fall. Except the wind, which is currently blowing garbage cans all over the neighborhood. But fall is just such a time of anticipation. We've had a very busy time. Thank goodness Brian is back from hunting. Even though he didn't get an elk, he's got two little animals around here he can help chase.

Ainsley is in full swing in preschool, dance class, and gymnastics. She's so darn cute in her little leotards. We had her birthday celebrations a few weeks ago. I can't believe she is four years old already. The weekend before her birthday, we went to pumpkin festival with some of her little friends then had food, cake, and presents at our house afterward. On her actual birthday, so chose to go out to Hong Kong's for her birthday dinner. She had cupcakes at preschool the next day. We went to the aquarium in Denver the day after that, then had another little party for her down in Laramie. So it was really more of a birthweek than a birthday.

Sam's been very tired but very patient through all Ainsley's activities. He had fun during her birthday week as well. He especially loved the aquarium. He run up and down the windows in the panoramic shark tank room, saying "WOW, WOW, WOW" over and over. Too cute. He's had a cold, is getting several teeth in, and is just getting over a little stomach flu, so he's had a very long autumn so far. We're hoping he gets to feeling better so he can enjoy the outdoors a little more.

As for me, I've been fighting tooth and nail to maintain the order of the house, but I'm loosing the battle. Oh well. It's clean enough I guess. :) It's just hectic around here with a sick kid.

Well, I suppose I should get back to my battle. Enjoy the pictures!

Busy time of year

Sorry about a delay in posting. It seems like this time of year is so busy I can't even think straight. Lots of thing have been going on. Ainsley has started preschool with Miss Christine, and also has started dance class and gymnastics lessons. It's keeping us busy, but better to be busy than bored.

Sam has been busy too. He started walking (finally), and is very proud of himself. He's such a big boy now. We're slowly transitioning from two naps to one also, but it is going to be a very, very slow transition. He loves his sleep (and I can't complain).

I've been a hunting widow for the majority of the month. And when he's not hunting we've been in Laramie for football, or he's been working. It's been a lonely month. Brian just left last night for his second ten-day stint in the wilderness of the Sierra Madres. I will be starved for adult interaction over the next week and a half, so give me a call. Fortunately, MOPS (mothers of preschoolers) has started up again, so I get some adult coversation there.

Anyway, no pictures this time because Brian has my camera. I'll post some over the next few weeks, and update you on his hunting results.

Yellowstone trip

I know, I know, it's been over a month since my last post. Let's just blame it on technical difficulties.

We just got back from our almost annual trek to Yellowstone yesterday. It was a ton of fun, but tiring at the same time. We stayed two nights in Silver Gate, MT and did our sightseeing around Yellowstone on the first two days. The kids loved Old Faithful (or "Old Fateful" as Ainsley calls it), and the Artist Paint Pots were also a crowd favorite. We saw lots of buffalo, a few elk, two black bears (both pretty much just black dots far, far away), and we were very close to seeing a wolf for the first time.




After Yellowstone, we worked our way south through Grand Teton NP (spotting a few moose along the way), and down to Jackson Hole, where we stayed with our friends Rob and Katie, and their daughter Kasey. Ainsley and Kasey had lots of fun playing on the trampoline, and swimming at the rec center. Rob and Brian took on a 14 mile hike up to Lake Solitude, and we're tired but triumphant when they returned. It was lots of fun, thanks again, you two, for letting us stay with you!!






Next on our trip, we took a quick detour back through YNP because of construction on Togwotee Pass, then made our way through Cody, and down to Thermopolis where we got to swim in the mineral spa at our hotel. It was a relaxing end to our trip.

WDA in Jackson

We made a trip to Jackson this past weekend for the Wyoming Dental Association meeting. Unfortunately, Brian spent most of his time in meetings and continuing education, but we still had a good time. The weather was beautiful in Jackson, and Jackson itself is always a beautiful place to visit. We stayed at Rob, Katie, and Kasey Carr's house and dog-sat for them while they took a trip to Vegas. We did a bit of shopping, a few luncheons and dinners, and mostly just jumped on "baby" Kasey's trampoline. We also got lucky to be there when the Japanese Fire festival and children's festival were in the town square of Jackson. Ainsley got picked during a Japanese drum performance to go beat on the "Sumo" drum. She did great, and it was really cute watching her smacking a drum that was quite a bit bigger than she was. Poor Sam was pretty much exhausted the entire trip, but he was a trooper.

Black Hills Weekend

We spent a fun weekend camping in the Black Hills. We packed in a lot of activities, and exhausted the kidlings. We went to see Thomas the Train in Hill City, drove through Custer state park, stuffed our faces with ice cream and home-made taffy in Keystone, and took another trip to Old McDonald's Farm. It was a really fun time and the weather held out, which was the icing on the cake. Here are some pictures of Sam's first ice cream cone, and Ainsley on the "train" at McD's farm.

My yoga buddy

Here are some pictures of Ainsley helping me do my yoga on the Wii Fit. She's pretty good, huh?? We're having a lot of fun with the Wii Fit, and let me tell you, it's a workout. Here's some pictures of the kids squishing their faces into the netting we have around the railing. They like the laugh they get from it.

Ainsley's Recital

Ainsley had her recital yesterday. It was very cute, but I volunteered to be a "stage mom", so that kind of hampered the day. I was frazzled after trying to keep eight little girls entertained for two and a half hours in a small room with about fifty other girls in it. It was fun overall though.

Ainsley's "Graduation"

Ainsley finished off preschool for the year. She "graduated" with flying colors. She is a very smart and well-behaved girl and we're very proud of her. I just wish she could behave as well at home as she does at preschool. The pictures are of her and her teacher, Miss Darylene, and of her and her two best buddies Sydalee (in purple) and Jade (in pink).

We also had our last day of dance class yesterday, and her recital is coming up next weekend. We're going to be scrounging for things to do since all these activities take a break for the summer. I really wish it would stop raining for a day so we could at least make it to the playground.

Sam had his one year check-up today. He's an even 20 lbs. and 30 inches. Long and lean, just like his sister. He's seems a lot heavier than 20lbs. My left arm and wrist hurt a lot of the time. Don't worry though, I'm getting stronger with my Wii Fit. (I highly recommend it to anyone, it's a lot of fun and quite a workout)

Well, I should have some more good pics after this weekend. We're headed to Robyn Peterson's wedding reception. Ainsley is the life of the party at weddings, so it should be fun. Check back soon!! Sounding off.

Sam's First Birthday!!

I can't believe my little boy is one year old already. He's growing up so fast, and is already starting to look like a "big boy". We did the cake and presents thing with him tonight. Ainsley helped decorate the cake with sprinkles, and she was very proud of herself and very excited for her brother's birthday. Sam didn't eat a single bite of cake, only a bit of frosting. He instead chose to squish his cake into oblivion.

We had a very fun trip to Old McDonald's Farm over the weekend. Sam was so excited to be able to pet a bunny and see all the other baby animals. Ainsley had a great time on the pony ride and train ride, and we even got to hang out with the Havener clan. We all had a blast, and can't wait to go back. Enjoy the pictures!!

First Post (5-16-08)

Hello all, and welcome to our blog. I'm going to try to keep up with posting, but I am a procrastinator, so bear with me.

A little synopsis of our life to start I suppose. Brian and I have been married for almost six years now (June 1st). Ainsley came along in October of 2004, followed by Sam in May of 2007. We're just taking things day by day now, dealing with a crawler trying to learn to walk, and a little girl who is way to independent for her mother's "control freak" nature. That's us in a nutshell, so onward we go.

We're off to Rapid City in the morning. Sam is going to a year old on Monday, so we're spending the day at Old MacDonald's Farm to celebrate. He seems to really love animals (his first words other than Mama, Dada, and Ainsley were "bear" and "bunny"), so we thought that he would have fun there. We already know Ainsley loves it there, so it will be a treat for her as well. I'll learn how to post pictures, and put some up of our trip in a few days. Hopefully some good ones of him stuffing his face with cake as well. Check back soon!!