Christmas 2014

We were hoping that Alan would be able to come with us to MN, but that didn't work out this trip. He got stuck at Ashley Lake waiting for some pickup parts. We ended up leaving the evening of Christmas day. Should've packed a supper with us 'cause not much is open that day :), but a gas station supper worked for us. We drove through the night and the girls slept great. Stopped at Northern Tool in Fargo and loaded the van up some more. Ate breakfast at Sonic and headed on down the road. Got to Mom and Dad's mid-morning on Friday. Settled in and had a great time with family. Andy's were gonna join us, but sick kids changed their plans. Mom, Drina, Rodney & I saw in the New Year playing games. We left Friday evening and had pretty decent roads for the most part. Around Miles City the roads became yucky. Quite a few vehicles in the ditch around Billings. Had breakfast in Livingston. Got home late morning Saturday.

sleepover with clancee! bella was gonna join in, but she ended up getting sick and megan had to come get her.

silly girls

auntie drina made some paint for these two

grandpa harlan with 3 outta the 18

drina hooked a sled up behind her horse april and gave the kids a ride

this is the way you do it, drina

a clean playroom!

December 2014

Howdy from MN!

Just a dusting of snow here and a "bit" chilly. Kids have been staying inside most of the time, but this afternoon my sister Andrine pulled them on a sled behind her horse. That made their day! All us kids weren't able to meet up this time (missing you Andys, Alvins and Alan!), but the girls are having fun with the cousins who are here. Not sure what we would do if we had another 10 grandkids here. The 8 here expand the walls. :) We stayed home a few days at the beginning of Rodney's school break and Rodney put tin on the chicken shed. We left for MN Thursday (Christmas) evening and drove through the night. A lot less stopping with the girls sleeping and they sleep really good in their car seats. We could've gotten here for breakfast Friday, but Rodney wanted to stop at Northern Tool in Fargo and that blew some time. But it was good to stretch the legs at that point. We're planning on leaving early Saturday morning. We'll see how the return trip goes during the day. :) Rodney starts school the 5th. Not sure where December went, but we enjoyed a few Special Meetings and a little snow off and on. We made it to Belgrade, Butte and Twin Bridges. We had a night with Devin and Robert before Twin and a potluck that Saturday afternoon. Enjoyed some time with Dale and Bonnie at Fairmont Hot Springs a couple weeks ago. We got fish for daughters; sure had fun swimming. Girls are doing good. Janell is rolling both ways now; no keeping her in one spot anymore.

One thought that was shared at Specials was about the sun/Son. This time of year, the earth is starting to turn back towards the sun. The sun is the center of the universe and everything revolves around it.

Happy New Year! May this one be the best yet!

'Til next time-

Rodney, Amanda, Hannah, Nicole & Janell

hard to capture the beauty of a full moon

little toes peekin'

graduated to the big crib

first pony tail

happy birthday to me!

hannah's snowman of the season

hair with a mind of it's own

Thanksgiving 2014

Spent in Kalispell. Brists welcomed us to their place for the day. Alvins, Dianne, Doug and Mary, Jewel, Glen and Tanya, Laura, Tess and kids, Susan, Kracks and us. All the (older) kids (15!) had fun playing. We went back up to Alvins on Friday so Rodney could help with the barn wood cutting. Weather was a bit wet (rain in November?!), but they got some cut. We took off Saturday afternoon and headed to Helena for the night, enroute to Townsend for Special Meeting. Had some dicey roads, but we made it.

A few pictures- forgot to get the camera out Thursday until the evening-

what kids can do to a room in a minute

Friday-

teacher beth reading to her students - such good attention they have

took a walk in the drizzle to see what the guys were doing

November 2014

Howdy-

November was a month spent on the road for Rodney. After returning from National FFA Convention in Louisville late Sunday the 2nd, he had some days to get ready for the John Deere Ag Days in Bozeman the 13-15. He put on the mechanics contest that Thursday there. The kids did well; placing 2nd in mechanics, 5th in livestock and 5th in parlo pro. They went to the Bobcat football game that Saturday afternoon. The girls and I went over there with him, but didn't stay for the game. It was cold and snowy. That following Tuesday morning, the 18th, Rodney and a couple other MAAE officers flew out to Nashville for the National Ag teacher convention. He enjoyed his time there and got a few new ideas for school. He came home late Saturday night. Our FFA Alumni held their annual auction that Sunday. Dale and Bonnie came down for a couple nights at that time. Then it was Thanksgiving break. Rodney had a half day that Wednesday, so we headed to Kalispell for the holiday. Sorry to miss out on the family time in Fort Benton, but we enjoyed our time with Alvin and Danica and the gang. Rodney helped Alvin get some lumber cut for the barn they're building. We got to join the Ashley Lake friends for Thanksgiving at Rob and Tess's. We left Saturday afternoon and headed to Helena to spend the night with Dale and Marie on our way to Townsend Special Meeting the next day. It was rainy for that Thursday and Friday, but on Saturday it turned cold and snowy. The roads weren't the greatest, but we made it. Not much else happened this month. Had some snow off and on. And some cold. The beginning of the month was warm for November, but that changed over night it seemed. We sold our calves, except one that is here at the place, and one open cow. We still need to bring the rest of the cows home from the pasture. Rodney was able to fill his deer tag. There had been some nice bucks come through our pasture, but never when he was home. Well, one Sunday morning there was a 5 point (that would be a MN 10 point) that was tempting him as it stood in the pasture for quite a while. We've heard that we need to remove our temptations, so...that buck has found his way to our freezer. :) The girls have enjoyed the snow. We haven't been able to make a snowman yet like Hannah wants, though. Janell has rolled over a few times. She's still a smiley happy baby for most of the time. Hannah knows how to write a few words and can recognize a few others. She's got quite the memory on her. Nicole is surprising us on how many letters she knows and she can even write a few. Not sure where she's picking that up. We got rid of our dog to the neighbor, that's where Molly wanted to be anyway. She's going to see if she can make a cow dog outta Molly. The girls don't seem to mind, as the cats are around more now. I better clock off before this gets too much longer.

'Til next time-

Rodney, Amanda, Hannah, Nicole and Janell

sunday mornin' cuties

Janell loves her bath:

sleeping beauty found her thumb

it snowed!

whoa, it's cold out here

Oh dear...

The girls were playing:

N- "It's time to go to sleep."

H- "Mom, I'm 18. I can do whatever."

Hannah observations:

"When I'm a mom, I'm not gonna have any kids."

"I was born back in the old days."

"Mom, apparently I'm a princess."


And a Nicole story:
We received a popcorn tin in the mail at Christmas time and after opening it and seeing what it was, the girls were ready to dig in. Since it wasn't the most opportune time for a snack, I told them that they needed to wait until bedtime and they could have it as a snack then. Nicole leaves and comes back shortly with her jammies on.

Must be bedtime when you get your jammies on, eh?

Laundry nowadays

I sure wish I knew what was clean and what was dirty before I put the girls' clothes in the washer. They tend to go through multiple changes a day, multiple times. When they're playing and it's nighttime, you need to have pajamas on. And then it's time to get ready for meeting and you can't wear the same outfit you had on before. And then you're going on a trip so you need to pack a bag. And then...

Oh well. Job security for the laundry lady. Wouldn't want to put her out of a job.

:)