rain

we have been having some serious rain, so i have been trying to provide outlets for this kid's energy level - inside. one method - how many laps can you do around the house! works great.

siblings

so this started as sweet. i always kiss the kiddos toes, not sure why, so rowe wanted to give chap's toes some kisses. this lead to a hug, then a kiss - we are working on chap with her open-mouth kissing, then we went back to a hug, bear hug that is, and then it went south quickly. let's just say that chap is not a wwf fan:-)

telluride

been trying to organize some pics and ran across this one of a trip to telluride. such a gorgeous spot.

readin'

a second child to the "t," chap wants to do whatever her brother is doing & so now if the house is a little too quiet, i can usually find them both in front of the bookshelf. this afternoon, rowe took his nap earlier than chap, so i think she was reveling in having the reading chair and all of the books to herself. i can understand chap, i'm a second child, too. please note again, the circle of drool on her cute new top from the stacy girls!!! we love the clothes, by the way! SO stinkin' cute!

smilin'

some new ones of droolie magee. surely there are some teeth to warrant all of that drool. although at this point, chap is not deterred by her mere two teeth. in the last pic you can really appreciate the drool:-)

pups

sweet ole pic of char pepps. old girl is gettin' up there. she and i are both hitting those scary 30's :-)

last

i can't believe it, but we had our last kid's rodeo of the summer this morning. only 6 more weeks of the season. crazy. so here is 'ole rowe, helmented of course, watching the poor goat get man-handled one last time:-)

logan

this is chap's new boyfriend, logan gibbons. such a cutie. robin overhead the 'boyfriend' comment and made sure that logan knew that luke, her luke:-), had first dibs on prom!

dandelions

rowe blowin' for all he's worth

shoes

how stinkin' cute are these shoes. one of the waitstaff girls found them for chap & i just can't take them. she loves them, too. she won't nurse with these things on, too distracted.

storm

trying to find another shot & found this old pic of a late summer storm. hopefully this won't be us for a while. please, don't snow until september, please.

family

we've had a sweet week this week with momma lee & aunt suz being here. the kids & andy & i were loved on well & we truly appreciate you all making the trip. here we are taking a surrey ride, with no horses, inside the barn:-)

11

happy 11 month birthday, a little late, little one. also - chapin told me to tell you thanks, aunt suz, for taking such good care of her up at steakride:-)

helmet

every thursday, every rodeo, the ski helmet makes an appearance.

goat

chap made a new friend at the kid's rodeo this week: mr. goat. i think she was a little more impressed with him than he was with her. i think he realized a bit too late that an 11-month old is a bit more gentle than an 11-year old ripping tape off of your tale. he looks a bit distressed out there, don't you think:-) damon, the head wrangler & rodeo announcer, always jokes that we had a 'goat-interpreter' for the first rodeo & that mr. goat just really wants all of us to know how happy is to be a part of this rodeo & what a joy it is to be able to provide memories for these kiddos:-)

history

my office day today so i am working on some postcards for the ranch and found this prize. i'm not sure you can appreciate it if you haven't been here, but this shot is circa 20's. truly wild. the old lodge was just gorgeous ( the bigger two story building with the wrap-around porch). the vast majority of these buildings are still in use, which is wild as well.

kids

andy has been taking all of the department pics for the ranch christmas card this week. here is the kid's department: ranch kids, nannies, & kid's counselors!

tossed

this kid loves gettin' tossed

wild

here's a pic of andy's favorite wild flower on the ranch - fireweed. this is mainly for my wildflower loving mom and grandfather:-) while i'm at it - good luck with your wildflower hikes at the swag this week, mom & pa!

blue

my little blue bird

puddles

pics of mud puddles, as promised.

similarites

it is so strange the similiarites of our little ones. i know this is a pretty common favorite of almost any 1 year old, but still, nature v nature is just such a wild thing. i'll have to hunt down the pic of rowe drivin' at this age, but i think it looks almost EXACTLY like this one.

new

the dogs have found a new favorite spot: rowe's bed.

lovin'

it really is amazing how much your heart can actually love

jumpin'

big and little love some jumpin'

another

the big one swingin'

swingin'

i know, enough already of these swing shots, but i just can't help myself. i mean, come on:-)