Home, Home on the Range!

The ranch house! We LOVE this place.



Griffen and Lisa making hamburgers for dinner! Yummy, they were good!



Griffens very own burger.



Lisa and Griffen. When you see one, the other is never far behind.



Avary making pancakes for all :) and loving every minute of it!



Lisa taking everyone for a ride!



Craig and Jackson playing darts. I must say, Jackson had two Bullseyes!



Griffen and Avary pretending to drive.



My handsome man.



Me and my other handsome man! What a lucky mommy I am.



Griffen and Avary holding on tight for our jeep adventure!



I mean really, need I say more? How much fun can one family have?



Griffen meeting Peppy the horse!



Avary and Andrea collecting eggs from the hens! Avary was a little weirded out by this.



Craig and Jackson going on one of their many quad rides.



"Wanna take a ride on my Big Green Tractor!"



Jackson riding the mini-motorcycle. I know, no helmet. The thing was barely charged so he was in no danger :)



Aunt Andrea being the mini-motorcycles battery for Avary. Now, that's love :)



Craig and Jackson rehearsing the rules before shooting clays.



Avary and Griffen handing out ear plugs. Wearing these reminded me of G and A's newborn days when Craig and I would wear ear plugs around the house just to have some quiet time.



Jackson was all smiles all week!



Craig shooting clays. He is GOOD!



The audience!



Griffen on the quad. He rode on this so many times, he had a raw spot on the inside of his leg. Still didn't slow him down.



Lisa teaching Jackson about shooting clays.



I got a turn shooting too! Now, that was fun! I even hit a few!



Another great trip to the ranch!



This place just makes us all smile. I don't know what the kids were more excited about, Disneyland or The Ranch! It truly was a great week away. It's so neat to be able to sit back and watch the three kids explore and learn so much. It helps that aunt Andrea and Lisa love to teach and get down and dirty with everyone. From collecting eggs from the hens, seeing a brand new baby goat, riding quads, going on an awesome jeep adventure (even with a wind-chill), and shooting clay targets, it was so fun.

This time around it truly was 'The Happiest Place on Earth'

All three were like, "seriously, we have to stop and take pictures with all those rides waiting for us?" Me, "Yep!".



Uncle Brian, Aunt Gia and cousin Kaycie. Bri, we missed you :) and us of course!



Avary and Griffen playing instruments in Tarzans tree house. I wonder if Tarzans real things were chained down......:)



Griffen next to Indiana Jones' Jeep! Sorry for the angle. Avary was making it known to the whole place that she was HUNGRY!!






Griffen loving the Tea-Cups!



I think the sun was starting to get to Jackson at this point.



Avary got to meet Minnie Mouse!



Oh, I love this handsome guy :)



Craig and Avary riding a roller coaster (You'll have to trust me on this one. I couldn't get a close-up).



All smiles after the roller coaster. Yes, even Craig.



I think the sun was starting to get to Griffen at this point :)




As many of you might remember, we tried to go to Disneyland last November with Craigs sister Andrea. As soon as we walked in the gates both boys started vomitting. Disney strongly dislikes people puking in their beautiful landscaping. We were gladly given a raincheck and used it this last week! This time we got to go with Craigs brother and his family from Denver. We all had a BLAST! It was a rather mellow day (Disney standards), which for us ment no long lines. We got to go on everything our littlest hearts desired. It was definitely a vacation the kids will remember for a very long time and I think even the big little kids as well!

Our Chalk Family Portrait

Avary was super proud of her drawing of our family, so we had to share it :) And no, we don't usually make her wear her helmet when she plays with chalk. Although, some days it's not a bad idea around here.

Racers, start your engines!

Not a fan of loud noises!




Jacksons car is the yellow one with red flames.


Griffen loved cheering on his big brother.


And the crowd goes WILD!




This weekend was Jacksons schools first Pinewood Derby. It was a little hard to get him interested in it, but as usual, once he got going he was full speed ahead (get it?)!! He brought home a 'kit' (a piece of wood and some wheels) and that was it. The rest was up to him and his awesome imagination! He and Craig drew it out and decided on an aero-dynamic shape along with the design and put it all together. He didn't finish with any record breaking times, but he did reach the finish line each and every time. With all of his buddies there, also racing their cars, he was all smiles all day long :) I'm sure this won't be the last derby he will be a part of.

Going to the zoo, zoo, zoo, How about you, you, you?

I just have to say, Really, a cement slide. I know it's cool, but you can almost hear the jeans getting holes in them as all the kids slide down. I had to try REALLY hard not to be the crazy mom yelling, "Get off the slide before you ruin your pants."











This morning we woke up to beautiful blue skys and not a thing to do. So, we went to the zoo! It turned out to be a great day to go. Every animal was out and about, except the ant-eater who was in hiding with her newborn! We just about had the place to ourselves. After making the rounds there we went and had a picnic lunch and layed in the warm sun next to a pond full of hungry, but polite ducks. Even with Griffen complaining in my ear that, "We can't have a picnic without a picnic basket," it was very relaxing. Griffen and Avary sat there talking about why zoos don't have pigs and what their favorite animal was. It was a great day :)

This should be interesting......

So it has happened. At 3 1/2, Avary has learned how to ride a bike without training wheels! I'm not sure how I feel about this one, well I am, but anyway. She already walks around fearless. Put her on two wheels with a cul-de-sac full of innocent bystanders and watch out! We have to remind her quite often that she can't fix her hair while she is riding anymore or pretend to be on a cell phone. She has an issue with trying to put her hair behind her ears (yes she wears a helmet) and bending her head to the side as if she is talking to someone on the phone. Like I said, this should be interesting. She loves to be able to say to Griffen, "I can ride a bike with no training wheels!" Griffen being Griffen doesn't really care. Anyway, we are super proud and very impressed with her determination.

And The Award Goes To......(drum roll please)

Jackson Young! At todays award ceremony Jackson received the Science Achievment Award! We are so very proud of him and all of his hard work he put into his Comet Power Point Project and earning almost all 4's(A's) on his report card! He makes it look so easy. We love you buddy :)

Avary, "Wait your turn boys. I am sending an email."

So sooner than later we are going to have to splurge and get two more DS's. One just isn't enough anymore. There is always someone waiting to 'play' with it. Last time it was Avarys turn she kept telling me she was sending an email. I asked if I could see it and this is what it was! I was super impressed and had to share! I guess she isn't just a pretty little face :)

Avary and The Chipmunks!

Every once in awhile Avary just can't stand the temptation to shake it! She totally gets this from her dad. At any given moment with just the right song they both just bust out the moves! (Quite funny if I say so myself) This was one of those moments after watching her favorite show Alvin and The Chipmunks!