first day.

Report from first (and second) days of school:


Up with puppy at 6:30am - I get to go out with him, because everyone else has to "get ready!!"
Madison to SHS at 7:50am, Kenna in her snazzy uniform off to Excelsior Academy at 8:05am.
  
Great!  Right on schedule..


Back home to get my other two going..


Kimbel is ready and looking cute for her first day of 4th grade and Braden, (oh so handsome) with his Ben 10 backpack.  They are ready and we are out the door by 8:40am.
Excellent!!


Where is my camera?!?  Wait.. really. Where is it?  Last time I saw it was Saturday night when I ran to my car to get it and MISSED Kelly in the dunk tank.. yes, DUNK TANK!!  at the annual hospital party.  Bummer.


First day of school and no camera. 


Fabulous. 


Oh well, I will take some tomorrow.


Yeah, right.


Just know that they looked adorable and grown up and way too big to be marching off to the world. 


9:05am:  I was in my car with a few prayers and tears.


Whew.  Back to school 2010.

Meet... Cruz.

I finally said yes. 

After much research, 

a lot of persuasion (5 against 1), 

and a little craziness..

I said yes.

Here he is... puppy Cruz.

Lesson learned:  Never say never.

Yellowstone!

Madison spent a FABULOUS week at EFY at BYU-I, in Rexburg, Idaho ~ so we persuaded Kelly's mom to join us in picking her up and headed north!  We decided to have one final fling before school starts.. 

way too soon!

 So, we rented an RV, 

loaded it up with lots of goodies and away we went!

We stopped by the gorgeous Madison River on our way into the park through West Yellowstone.

Old Faithful didn't let us down...or the hundreds of other people with their cameras ready!

Every picture was like a postcard ~ and yet, the pictures didn't do justice to the real thing.

Kimbel, Kenna, Kelly and Grandma at Mammoth Hot Springs.

Chillin' in our home away from home.

Doesn't get much better! :)

Thank goodness for my go-to guy!  

He took care of EVERYTHING!

One of the happy kids...

We spent the second night in the beautiful Fishing River area of Yellowstone Park.

The buffalo just ignore the geysers... while people are gawking at both from all angles.

Lower Falls.

My two guys.

B. and Grandma

Traffic jams... Yellowstone style.

We saw two little bears on our way down through Targhee National Forest.

We spent night #3 in Jackson Hole.

Monday we loved walking around Jackson..

a little shopping, a little ice cream.. a little more fun.

What a great long weekend.

A much-needed break from the routine.

Life is good.