Camping

This July, we took off on our first camping trip in over a year. We had a blast!!! We stayed for three nights and four days at a small campground above Grangeville. We normally do not stay in campgrounds however, we were short on time and so we didn't want to travel too far away from home. The kids had a blast riding their scooters and we loved the peace and quiet of the outdoors. I wish every day could be a camping day :)

A Surprise Guest

Imagine this setting...last night, I'm sitting in the living room, watching tv, munching down on some lemon cookies when Bradley comes in from outside with a sand bucket in his hand. I can tell there is something in it and he says..."Look what I just found in the garage?" Instantly, I'm thinking it's a mouse or some other hideous creature that likes to lurk around in dirty places. I can't believe he brought it in the house. He starts walking to me and I yell at him to get away because then I'm thinking...maybe he is trying to scare me and he brought a snake in the house. Of course, I'm sure he's smarter than that because if that were to happen, he would be packing his bags and moving out immediately...nope, better yet, he would be leaving and I would pack his bags and send them to him! I gather that he was sensing all this emotion from me so he said, "Calm down, it's just a frog...but look at the size of it!" I could tell from the shadow in the bucket that it wasn't anything small...you know, like those little tiny frogs that always seem to be around. As I got up to look at it, I realized that it looked more like a frog you would see at my parents' pond...a stow-away maybe?? But, seeing as it rained all day yesterday I'm sure it just got confused and as for being in the garage....it was such a large frog, maybe it was going in there to feast on whatever food was on hand. Anyway, I took a couple pictures of it to share and just to let all of you know, this wasn't one of those small buckets. Oh and by the way, Brad did suggest that it was big enough to cook and eat....EWWWW!! Don't worry, he let him go in our neighbors' back yard.

A Peaceful Evening

As most of you have probably figured out, my parents have a wonderful array of animals and insects which inhabit their property. It is the MOST wonderful place to take pictures and all due to my mom's garden and landscaping. It really has brought all the animals, birds and insects back. I had a little lull in my day today and decided to take the kids up to see their horses and take the camera as well. It was such nice weather and really good lighting. Also, today I captured a butterfly and if you look closely, you'll actually see it sucking from the flower. And for those of you who might be interested, I added an updated picture of the little Robins...I think they might even be leaving their nest during the day too but I'm not quite sure.

Chico (Jordyn's horse) & Dusty (Jeylin's horse)

Jordyn petting Chico

Jeylin petting Chico...Dusty is still a little skiddish

The Butterfly

One of three Robin babies

Just a darling picture of Jeylin that I couldn't pass up

I hope you all don't get tired of my posting so many pictures, especially ones of animals and insects. As I told Brad's sister today (see comments from "At Last!" post), I probably wouldn't be posting so many stories or pictures if I was at home. It's just that my mom and dad's house has so much beauty and majesty to it and it's also a place where my kids can just be kids and not have to be stuffed inside because it's too hot to go outside. I just LOVE it up here. Well, I hope you all enjoy!

At last!!!

I finally got the pictures I wanted. I snapped a few of those elusive hummingbirds this morning! So, here you go, hope you enjoy.

Nature Shots

Here are some nature shots from my parents' house. I've been trying to catch a hummingbird but so far, they have escaped me....maybe later though :) Anyway, above my parents' motion light on their garage, a robin had three babies. I have pictures on my computer at home when they were only about 1-2 days old....they weren't very cute then though, they had no feathers and their eyes were closed and looked like large black spots...almost like they had been in a serious fight. Now, about a week later, they have feathers and are starting to be a little more vocal and fun to photograph. I almost snuck one of the momma feeding them today but the baby monitor made noise and scared her away...guess I'll have to try again tomorrow. The other pictures are of a butterfly I caught in my mom's flowers...I think the one of it alone on the flower is my favorite. At then end, I decided to add a picture of Jordyn doing her chores...getting the eggs from the chicken coop. We average about a dozen a day and she loves this job! Well, hope you all enjoy!