OUR BACKYARD

This post is for our other brother Matt (S.) This is our backyard. And this is how the boys play in our backyard. It's a big yard, hundreds of acres big. You need to come visit so you can play too. There's lots to do in these parts. Don't be a strange stranger. Get over here!

Nanno & Senna

What can I say? My kids are pretty good buds. They even bathe together and get sick together. At one point, while they were sick in their bean bags, I walked in and they were laying there holding hands. They keep me smiling and bring so much joy into our family. I love you, kids!

Easter Sunday 2009

Here's a few of our Easter pics. Jim, Rhonda and Brandon were here celebrating with us. The kids had fun looking for eggs, but had more fun eating candy. Because that's what Easter is really all about.

4x4

Tagity tag. This is my fourth pic in my fourth file.

Tanner was staying at his Aunt Kami's house while

we were at the hospital having Sienna. The kids

were playing with shaving cream. So fun. In this pic

we have; Cameron, Sheldon, Kaci, Cloey, Tanner

and Lincon. I now tag every sad soul who reads

this blog.

Pokin fun at Pokey.

SMILE, YOU'RE IN POCATELLO.

When you drive into Bigfork, I think their sign reads something about Bigfork being a slice of heaven or heaven on earth, something close to that. Not here...."Smile Capital" U.S.A. . Who knew? How do THEY know? And what is the actual percentage of smiles per capita? Don't get me wrong, I have already grown to love it here... a.k.a. Smile Capital, Idaho. I think from now on when someone asks where I'm from, this is what I'm going to tell them. I better find out what the other towns around here are known for, cause then I can say, " It's just 45 minutes south of High Five, Idaho."

Monty, my Monty.

My life with my sweet, sweet, Monty: The day I got Monty was the same day as Uncle Val's funeral. Since then, Monty has gotten me through an unhealthy marriage and a divorce. I then moved to Coeur d' Alene and Monty made hundreds of trips between there and Bigfork. Some of those trips were with Whitney; toe prints on my windshield & getting stopped several times for construction while belting out tunes to Garth and Ms. Benetar. My first six years in Idaho, Monty drove me to work at the Golf Course everyday. Monty even made a lot of Utah trips. One trip was when he pulled a U-haul to move Mom to St. George. We then met Brady and he fell in love with both of us. Monty loved his new Dad, cause Brady took such good care of him. Monty has brought two babies home from the hospital and since then has grown to love the flavor of Goldfish and animal crackers. His last big trip was moving this family to Pocatello. I have laughed and cried with Monty for the last 13 years. My family and friends all knew my car as "Monty" and I appreciate that recognition, as silly as it sounds. He has been a huge part of my life and he will be missed, dearly.

Lava Hot Springs

We went to Lava Hot Springs a few days ago and it was a total flashback. Ya know....to that one time we were there. It was nothing like Syme's or Wild Horse, but it was fun and relaxing.
I know ya'll loved Nanno's long hair, but you canNOT tell me that he isn't one handsome little dude. Okay, Matt, this one's for you. I think that is THE motel. Oregon Trail Lodge. Well, it was the only one that resembled the infamous.... You know what I'm talking about. Picture it...Sicily, 1922. Oh, not that. Picture lattice instead of iron bars. Which I think they may have put in after Matt"The Mouth" Nelson left town. :) I guess you may remember mo betta.

Home Sweet Home

Well, here it is. Our new home. Only a one car garage, but that's all Lucy needs. This pic I took, overlooking the city, is what's on the other side of our fence. A complete drop-off down to the road below. I've always wanted to hike to the top of a nice, big precipice somewhere and watch the sunrise. HA! This picture was taken from my dining room window....while still in my robe. YESSSS! The last picture is just my kids hanging out next to that complete drop-off down to the road below. Oh yeah, where's Waldo?

HAIR TODAY, GONE TOMORROW

It was a bittersweet farewell. I had been talking about it for a while but was too afraid to say good-bye to my little rockstar. So one night, at dinner, Brady just said, "Nanno, let's go cut your hair." That's all it took. They shut the door on me and I had to wait patiently while my little boy became a little man. I wish I had the video camera set up so I could go back and watch the transformation. Brady told me that when Tanner first saw it he said, "I look like Ayden and Jack!" (As I'm writing this, he really does look like Ayden. He's wearing my dish cloth as a cape. Soon he'll be wearing underwear on his head. We love you, Ayden.) It's amazing what a hair cut can do for a person. He's a totally different kid. I think he feels like a normal boy. Although, sometimes he says, "I miss my big hair." Maybe I'll just start over and let this cut grow out. :)

Assume the position

Can you believe these two? I don't know what to say other than they like to watch T.V. at Ashley's house together. I wonder what they're watching. If it was up to Sienna they would be watching her favorite movie, Cars. I think Brady had the remote that day, so they probably are watching cars under a different name, like; Overhaulin or Barrett-Jackson or Pinks or pretty much anything on the Speed channel.

Our final good-byes

Here's a few pics from the going away to Pocatello party. We all ate a great steak dinner at Brady's parents house. We then congregated into the living room where we played catch phrase. Fun! Ya'll should have seen Mom trying to get us to guess the word straw. That was NOT a straw she was smoking. Watching her just made the rest of us get the munchies. Thank you to everyone for the fun party and for all your love and support through this move. I would also like to thank the academy...

Peace Out, Post Falls

My sincerest apologies to everyone for not updating this blog sooner. Just a quick update on our move; we moved. Actually, it went pretty smooth. Brady brought the U-haul home Friday morning and with the help of family and friends, we were completely moved out by 5:00 on Saturday night. Thanks to all who helped. We can't tell you how happy we were to leave when we did. We pulled out of town on Monday evening and on Wednesday, Ashley called with the news of the record breaking snow fall. Wow, that was close! I just have to point out the "Idaho zebra". (read u-haul truck to learn more about it) Who knew? I lived there eight years and never once saw a zebra. Oh well. We miss you all and hope to see you real soon.

WARNING! CRAZY MAN ON THE LOOSE!

WARNING!!!!! BEWARE OF MISSING MAN!

It has been brought to our attention that there is a missing man originally from the Post Falls, Idaho area. He has been missing for close to five weeks now and some folks say he is crazy and warn that we should all be on high alert. This self-proclaimed "family man," has been sighted in none other than Pocatello, Idaho. Why there you ask? Well, THAT is our first clue that he has gone mad. This man answers to the names, Bubby, Bubba, BubzNubz,and Nubbins. Bubby was well known in the Post Falls community for his involvement with the local gang called The Graffiti Kings. We believe that Nubbins left town with nothing more than a spray can and a dream. Bubz was recently caught in the act by the Pocatello local news station, attempting to "spray paint" his way into a job with the new Costco warehouse. You can view this sad, pathetic display by going to http://www.localnews8.com/ and watching the news coverage entitled 'Costco store opening may hurt local businesses'. When asked about his father, the man's three year old son responded simply by saying, "I think my dad's gone crazy." A quote taken from a hit song by Eminem. We have included some pictures to help in identifying this wondering, lost soul. He may be wearing a disguise as in some of these pictures. Apparently, this mad man likes to play "dress up". Which is our second clue that he is really nothing less than deranged. He is seen here pretending to be 'diaper head man', and in one picture, that was taken at the local hospital (if you know what I mean), it appears that he is saying, "Look at me, I have cucumber eyes." He may also be dressed as a large, human sized, Q-tip or even playing the part as Harry Dunne from the hit movie, Dumb and Dumber. His family misses him dearly and just want to know that he is safe. If you have seen this man or know someone who has seen this man, please contact us at 1-800-867-5309. And that is how the cookie, crumbles.