Sunday, August 30, 2009


There are just some hilarious moments you have to be there to appreciate. There's no way I can reproduce either the taunting or the laughter with words or pictures! I am reminded though that one way to get Leigh Anne to do something is to DARE HER!




The house we are currently in has these really deep egress windows. Leigh Anne commented that we should cover them for safety -- if one of the kids fell in they would never get out! I laughed and said that if she fell in that SHE would never get out...and then the game was on. I really didn't think she'd make it out because there's not much to hold onto but she did it. The pictures don't do justice to the white knuckles, the grimmaces or her bare feet after she took her shoes off when they kept slipping. Good thing I didn't bet her, cuz I would have certainly lost this one.

Blodgett Canyon




We wandered to Blodgett Creek this week and had a little adventure. Nice place. The highlight for Lily was "Rock Climbing"! She was pretty courageous on those boulders. I think the rest of us loved playing in the creek though!


Thursday, August 20, 2009

Rollin' Rollin' Rollin!


Lot's of new things to do here. This is Kerrigan posing in a position she's shown me a few times outside...but the smile isn't always there when she lands it on the asphalt! She's actually been doing great and is about ready be out there on her own.

Tuesday, August 18, 2009

the Cedars of Lebanon


I always thought cedars were small, scrubby little trees. I know the wood smells great but the bark seems like it's 50 percent dirt. The'yve always just been the scrawy, twiggy short trees. I've never really been impressed -- until now.
When we were up in Glacier we camped next to "Cedar Loop". It was a beautiful stroll for the family through cedars like I've never seen before. It was a walk through a forest of tall, beautiful and majestic cedars. I felt a bit like I did walking through the redwoods at Muir woods. albeit on a smaller scale. This is a little family pic of us all tucked inside one of the smaller ones.
Finally now the "Cedars of Lebanon" makes sense. I remember wondering why Solomon would want to use Cedars to build his temple. What good would the scrawny trees from Arizona be when building a temple? I suspect the cedars of Lebanon must have been more like the cedars we saw a Glacier. I suppose the men who brought them had the woodworking skills to shape them and create the pillars needed to make a beautiful temple.

Monday, August 17, 2009

FHE...again.


The highlight of FHE this week was picking flowers for Mom. We went for a wander and ended up on an old forest service road in the mountains. Not quite as scenic as last time but fun and adventurous nonetheless. It didn't hurt to see tons of deer and turkeys along the way either!

Sunday, August 16, 2009

Oh, Canada!


The best things always seem to be surprises.


We had planned a trip to Glacier National Park for a while...just never firmed up the details. When the time finally came, Don and Carolyn Callister invited us to drive right through Glacier and spend a day in Carolyn's parents cabin just north of the park in Canada. Don is a friend from BYU and I thought it would be great just to re-connect. One night turned into two and the short stop was far better than I had ever imagined.
We had arrived just a little early for the Beazer family reunion. This is a shot of the family cabin. Heber is grandpa and the center of it all there. He's got to be the most self-sufficient man I've ever met and he's got a great sense of humor to boot. He and his sons (son in-law Don included) must have put a lot of hours, months and years into building that cabin. The cabin is hand-made from logs they cut and hauled from just 6 miles away. Stripped and shaped on site and put together according to the plans in Heber's head...he says he lost the blueprints a long time before they finished up. It's a beautiful home.
We had the pleasure of being there for the beginning of their family reunion, the likes of which I'd like to see in our family in the future. Everything there seemed a lot like that hand made cabin. Love and family bonds resulting from years of had work. It was all beautiful to feel and see the family -- and it didn't hurt to be in such an awesome place!
We had a great time there. We enjoyed the creeks, the cabin, the trampoline, fishing, etc. and had a great time playing cards when the kids went to bed. It was hard to leave. I may not have the blueprints that Heber started with, but meeting him and seeing the results of his life's work certainly adds to the vision of what I'd like to build for us. I'd never been to Canada before. I'd like to go back again and I hope I can brin a bit of what I saw there to my home here.

Home Theater...modified


Unfortunately we have not found our way into a home of our own as quickly as we would have liked to. It's a long story I won't bore you with. It has made every day life interesting renting an unfurnished home -- and here's our very own home theater! The kids are amazing and seem to adapt well but they too would like to be in "Our home" as soon as possible!

Saturday, August 15, 2009

Fishin'








We got skunked but who would have known? The kids loved it. Who's the guy in the back? That's Heber, aka Grandpa. Who knows how many kids he's brought to this cove? Kerrigan climbed up on a high ledge to get more distance with her casting -- I was impressed with the climbing and the casting!



Da Bears







Here's the grizzly we saw in the morning...photo's compliments of Don. Heber spotted him and he treated us to a few minutes of watching him rooting around in the woods -- including walking across the road right in front of us. We saw a black bear in Glacier around noon but Lois tells me he's hard to find in the cell image I took of him! Either way it was a great treat to see the bears!

Monday, August 10, 2009

Family Home Evening


This was where we had our FHE. I think the picture says it all.

Sunday, August 9, 2009

Rattlesnake Creek











This is where I'm taking the fam on Sunday evening. We're going to change FHE to Sunday's and I'd like to do it outdoors while the evenings are long and beautiful. I think it will be a great way to see the area and create some great family memories. It's not actually my idea. This was my Mom or Dad's idea when I was a kid. I remember well the seemingly random places we played as a family on Sunday afternoons. At any rate, it's Rattlesnake Creek tomorrow. Here's some pictures I took there when I checked it out biking the other day.

Going for the brass ring

Kerrigan caught the ring today! We've been down to ride the carousel a few times and each time she does her best to grab the ring but today she caught it. Downtown has a nice little farmer's market, the carousel and a great, unique dragon castle playground. The kids love it and Mom and Dad have a good time too.

Sunday, August 2, 2009

Playin' in Lolo Creek







We've been stuck in the house waiting on this or that lately it seems -- just had to get out this afternoon. 20 minutes from home we found a little campground along Lolo Creek. The kids romped in the water till they were cold, wet and tired and are all sleeping soundly as I write...what a
great place. Earlier I slipped out to a bitteroot river access point close to the house but there was no beach on that side of the river. There w
ere deer in the neighborhood nearby that seemed like they lived there. Does and Fawns that stood 20 feet away from us like they were used to people being around.

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