Present time. The important part. Ok for Nathan blowing out the candles was the important part. Gotta love a 4 yo.

Big soft cuddly dog. Bigger than Nathan. He loves sleeping on it.

Umm, grandpa, Uncle Marc - that's my toy. Can I have my gun. Please. Really it is my toy.

Ahhh -a gun. Now what do I do with it?

The gun was actually so hard to cock back that Nathan would press it against his chest to get it done. Felt sorry for the little guy but he would have no help! Thank god his daycare didn't ask about any strange brusies on his little chest.

Oh and the kids had a grand time when Nathan shot a dart on to grandma's fan blade. They all took turns trying to shoot it off. Nathan got the closest - ROFL!

Nathan's birthday is actually August 5th and my brother's is Aug 9th. We decided to throw a belated party for them both. Ok so it was more Nathan's party but Marc got some cake too and his name on it. Nathan just likes to blow out the candles.


Sharing candle blowing time

Spongebob - I want spongebob. Don't care about the cake at this moment.

had to blow them out again all by himself.

The family is all there but , hey, check it out a spongebob cake! Nathan Nathan - you need to look at mama while she is taking the picture. Nathan - oh well, never mind.

This is what happens when you come home from China with a new daughter, start school for everyone, get your youngest into Preschool, have doctors' appts for the newest one plus IEP meetings, and dental appts. Yes, you shave your dog down and discover that she is quite pregant not just fat.

The kids are thinking we need to keep another puppy or two from this litter. Oh so funny those kids. I keep telling them 6 is enough.

How a fire starts by lightening in the Idaho hills. This was started by a very fast moving storm. Lightening is pretty cool here but the breeze took the fire to 2000 acres in no time.

You can see how breezy it is from the cool hair styles.

The fire is just on the hill on the other side of our little valley. Just means more smoke for us.

Bubble bath - Nathan style



Yes, we were using his bubble machine. It was sitting on the toilet and facing the bathtub. Nathan thought that was just the bestest.

First day of School!

So do you think there is any indication in these pictures that we live in a rural area?! :)

Girls set off to school. Fang officially becomes Callie (per her instructions - she likes Callista but prefers Callie) and enters the 4th grade with a smile and a wave. Sarita enters the 6th grade. Last year before Jr High. If she needs a booster seat still can I keep her in elementary?

Getting off the school bus after a grueling half day of school.

Sarita stops to check the mail while poor Heather (the bus driver) waits

That looks like a happy face!

Sarita's birthday party - the aftermath

Sarita's 11th birthday. She loves a party especially ones where she gets the gifts.

Sarita's birthday cake


the kids and grandma - she can handle them


Sarita making a wish


Kids all helping cut the cake which means they are telling her which piece they want


me (rebecca) with most the kids

Sarita and Katelynn ..

Marc (off to side), Shane, Sarita, Katelynn, Dallas ..


Think Uncle Marc is a High School Musical fan?


Sarita is ...


Shane loves the ice cream

TA -travel approval- received today to travel to China to pick up Callista (Fang). we will probably get our CA date confirmation early next week so can come up with a real schedule at that point.

Hmmm what to do on a hot day? What to do?

Check out the players:


And see below for the results ....

Swim Lessons for Sarita basically involve playing in the pool for 30 minutes. She already knows how to swim and quite well. A big difference from her first summer here where she loved going in the water but was scared to death at the same time. I think I spent two months with her attached to me at various body points that first summer.

Then she started swim lessons. Levels 1-3 the first year. Level 4-5 the next. Then she took level 5 again this year. Level 5 is the level where we all know the kids know how to swim but they want an excuse to swim every day for two weeks. So they teach them different swim competition strokes - breast, overhead crawl, butterfly, etc etc. Also, they teach them how to dive. I will say that Sarita definitely got the dive down and she could put half a pool length between herself and the other memebers of her class with the crawl. But she was beating herself up because she just could not figure out the butterfly. But voila! her instructor told her she knows it she just needs to practice. Now what kind of stupid thing is that to tell a kid? I mean now she wants to go to the pool every day. No, not to have fun but because she needs to practice. Yeah right.

The fourth of July 2007 - let's recap. Since my mom's birthday is the 3rd of july we tend to celebrate both events at the same time. This year we did something a bit different - at least for me. My brother wanted all the kids there for fireworks so instead of going earlier in the day so I could get back and feed the horses we went later and I fed the horses first. The day was supposed to hit about 105 degrees.

We got to my brother's house by 7pm after picking up Dakota, Dallas, and friend Austin en route. Had barbecue and the kids (even Nathan) played in the pool that all of them except Nathan are outgrowing. It is still big enough for some fun though and all the girls spent most of their time there while the boys spent their time on the trampoline. Nathan had a grand time in the pool and made everyone happy (hee hee hee) by insisting on being naked after going poop after dinner (yes, I cleaned his bottom very well). He spent another 45 minutes naked in that pool with Katelynn. We are all used to him getting naked and running around but Shane and Katelynn were a bit taken aback at first then got used to it.

Best time - my brother Marc brought out the big guns - super soaker!! Nathan loved loved loved it. He ran around squirting everyone. Then Marc got out his. He really sokaed everyone and Nathan did not like it one bit when he kept getting him wet! How dare he??!! So, of course, mom had to help poor little Nathan out by advising him to sneak up on Marc when he was busy trying to soak the other boys. Now picture this: Marc is squatting down under the trampoline and aiming up from the bottom to catch those boys as they jumped, Nathan sneaks right up behind him, aims, shoots, and soaks Marc's bottom with one mighty pull of the trigger. Marc reacted quite well. Nathan ran and hid laughing uproariously.

Then I had to have the super soaker fight with Dakota since he was picking on Nathan. Nathan thought that was hysterical too. So did my mom and sil, Vera. I got, well, soaked. But I got Dakota even wetter because he used up all his water before I did!

Then the fireworks. As per Sarita - the best 4th ever! Marc had a lot of fireworks as did his neighbors. Then the parks started lighting up theirs and you could see them all just sitting in Marc's front yard. Then there were the many "illegal" areial fireworks going up here there and everywhere. You so cannot ban fireworks in Idaho. People love their fireworks here. Fortunately, I do not believe fires were started so it all turned out ok. I must say there is a lot of smoke on those streets when everyone gets done though.

We got home by midnight and had the kids in bed and passed out by 12:30. So hate having the 4th on a wednesday. Had to get up and go to work the next day - ththpppphhh!!

Oh and I believe that my mom has now convinced Nathan that everyone in the USA celebrates her birthday in a big way.

Adding to the menagerie. The neighbor's new little pygmy goat decided she liked hanging with my horses instead of theirs. So now she has moved in and made herself quite at home. So far the dogs are a bit confused by the bounding like a springbok but the horses seem to take her in stride.

BTW - she has moved in with Chance (my stallion). She likes to sleep in his paddock. I think he thinks we gave him a new pet.