Monday, October 29, 2012

jack-o-lanterns!

Well, the snow is all gone... but it was a good preview of what will soon come!
So our weekend was spent pretty lazily getting ready for the next season:
we tried on snow gear, got our ski passes made, put away the bicycles in the shed and fenced our little aspen tree in the front yard to protect it from the deer!
We were also planning on storing the trampoline for the season - but the boys must have sensed something was up because they ended up spending a beautiful afternoon jumping, flipping and playing on it! Maybe next weekend...

One thing we did accomplish yesterday was carving our pumpkins!
Hamp and Sam designed and scooped their own (but mom & dad wielded the knives!) and were so pleased with how their jack-o-lanterns turned out!
Looking forward to Wednesday....


note:  those are flames around his eyes... not eyelashes!
don't know which face is crazier!

Thursday, October 25, 2012

first snow - the good, the bad and the ugly!

the GOOD

These boys were so excited about getting outside in the first snowfall of the season!
It wasn't much but it was enough to justify pulling out the snow clothes and boots, and enough to make a few strategic snowballs!

Oh, and the other really good thing about the first snow in late fall is waking up this morning to see a  backdrop of perfect Colorado blue sky and all the tree branches covered in a layer of white... while some still have their golden leaves hanging on!








the BAD

Ugh. The only unexpected negative from the weather was the fact that the door handle on my car was frozen shut this morning and when I tried to pull it open, it just fell off into my hands!!! ooops. That and all the snow clothes are now scattered all over the living room floor! But that's an easy fix...



The UGLY

No, my dog is NOT ugly! (In fact, I think he's very beautiful!!!)
He is even more beautiful in the snow - which is why I was so excited to get a picture of him standing majestically on the back deck:

However, he got so worked up about the snow outside that he ran crazily around the back yard, jumping and flopping like a kid in... well, new snow!
An although he was not ugly while he was playing.... 

... I DID happen to capture this moment!!!!!!

(oh man, I laugh every time I see that! What a funny pup....)

Saturday, October 20, 2012

flag football

We moved right out of soccer season in September to flag football in October!
Hamp has been playing on a 1st - 3rd grade team and has thoroughly enjoyed being the high man on the totem pole this year! We've had fun watching games and hanging out at the park during practice - Sam and Gabe both like to come play at the park, too!

best part about Rec League flag football: 50-yard line seats!


He still has his moves - although I'm not sure Jay Cutler is really any longer the relevant comparison! - and below are my favorite pictures from a couple of his games so far... he seems to love to get that hand off and take it all the way to the end zone!

As always, I love to watch him and cheer him on... and he loves to play!
I hope I get to see many more of his touchdowns!

Thursday, October 11, 2012

a day up-river

Last Sunday  (our last day with Mojo & Dado)  took us all out of town and into the Forest for some hiking and sight-seeing in the Flat Tops. 

One of our favorite destinations is Trapper's Lake - and this trip did not disappoint!

Though it was a bit chilly, the sun was shining and the lake was lovely. We had hamburgers at the Lodge and then played around a bit outside... even took a moment for a family picture!




Then we were off to see some wild life!
The plan worked out great - to get down off the Flat Tops around dusk so as to catch the elk coming down for water and possibly a little action with one of those good looking bulls!

wait - these were not the "cows" we were expecting to see up here!
ah, yes - here are the elk cows and their calves!
and one of the few big bulls we happened to see!
bonus: we glimpsed this gorgeous creature on the way home, just before dark!


Probably the best wild life we saw all week though were these two, freckly, dirty little scoundrels who love each other dearly and make everything a little more fun!

Monday, October 8, 2012

a fun-filled fall visit

Look who joined our adventures this week!!!!



What a wonderful fall visit with Mojo & Dado!
It was great to have them come be a part of our daily lives for a while - not only did they get to come to Flag Football practices and play dates at the park, but Mojo visited both boys' classrooms and we all bundled up together for the big MHS Homecoming football game on Friday night!

Of course, there were also many fun backyard moments - like art projects with Mojo:



 And of course, football with Dado:


How great that their visit coincided with Homecoming week - 
which included a parade and pep rally on Friday afternoon!



Hamp got to ride in the parade on a float promoting the Rec Center's Junior Musical production (he is a Wickersham Brother in Suessical... can't wait for November!)



Hamp & cast mates!



Sam and Mojo sat to watch the pep rally, where the band played, the cheerleaders shouted, and the sports teams fired up the whole crowd of students and community alike!





Though their whole trip was cross-country, we were so happy to have them stop in little ol' Meeker for a bit of family time! The boys were naturally thrilled to have their grandparents around to play with, Jason was happy to have Dado as a partner in the local golf tournament (!), and Gabe was excited that Mojo wanted to walk with him on the trails in the mornings! As for me, I was (and always am) so glad that my parents visit and show such care and love to my family.
They are always welcome on our adventures!!!









Speaking of which... there was one more day of photos to share! Coming soon...