Winnie is 9!

 Due to scheduling conflicts, we divided up the family birthday festivities. We hosted the Grovers for a birthday dinner on Sunday, October 3. Then we had the Scotts over on Sunday, October 17 for more birthday fun (and apparently I didn't take pictures that day). We also had a Yellowstone Bear World coupon that needed to be used before the end of the season, and since Winnie didn't have school that day, we went Monday, October 5 and counted it as birthday festivities as well.

Winnie opening a unicorn slap bracelet from her parents.

The family watching Winnie open presents. She also got a giant Star Wars popup book and cash from Grandma Susan and Grandpa Dennis and a Rainbocorn from the Wildes. (She also received Milky Ways and Milk Duds from the Scotts and a children's novel signed by the author from Grandma and Grandpa Scott).

Winnie's reaction to the Rainbocorn.

Breaking open her pinata.

The colorful abstract cake Ana decorated for Winnie.

Winnie and her cake.

Winnie opening her big birthday present from the family: a hoverboard. She paid for half of it.

The hoverboard. It has a Bluetooth speaker and lights up, so Winnie wheels all around the kitchen/living room listening to her music.

Andrea and Winnie on the Ferris Wheel at Bear World.

Winnie and Miriam posing on the bear bench.

Winnie petting the pigs in the petting zoo at Bear World.

Miriam and the doe in the petting zoo.

Hike #12: North Rainey Creek Trail

We were supposed to be checking out a new trail. We accomplished that, but not the trail I had planned on. 

I asked Grandma and Grandpa Scott to accompany me on a hike to Spencer Peak on Friday, September 24. Instead of hiking the 5.3 miles out-and-back to a summit, we hiked over 5 miles along the North Rainey Creek Trail. It's tricky because there isn't one trailhead at the parking lot. There aren't two trailheads at the parking lot. Apparently there are three. And the turnoff to Spencer Peak is kind of hidden. So while we didn't make it to the top of anything that day, we did enjoy a trail and honed our creek-crossing skills.

Mom and Dad at the trickiest creek crossing. It looks like this trail is often used by horses. The horses would have no qualms with crossing this creek. We had to go off-trail a little ways to find a good place.

Eating lunch and enjoying the view.

Group selfie on the way out.

Hike #11: Lower Palisades

The kids were in school. Seth was at work. My parents were working at the temple. But I had a whole day with nothing on my schedule, so I brought Peach and my bear spray with me to hike the 9 miles to the lake and back on Wednesday, September 15.

With one ear bud in to listen to my book, a schedule to keep (I wanted to be home before the girls got there) and no one to adjust my speed for, Peach and I made the hike in 3.5 hours. We didn't eat lunch at the lake since it was close to 10 when we got there, but we did take some time to eat a few snacks and get in the water (Peach, not me).

Creek selfie.

Peach at the lake.

Puppy kisses at the lake.

Peach headed up the trail with beautiful fall foliage in the foreground. For most of the hike back, Peach let me lead.

Hunting camp

We weren't able to spend our usual Labor Day weekend at hunting camp. Me catching COVID put a big ol' fat damper on that party. So we took it easy at our house instead and went to hunting camp a couple of times to try and make up for it.

First trip: September 10-12

On Friday, September 10, Seth, Miriam, Winnie, Peach and I drove the trailer up to camp. Bekah and Ana stayed for the homecoming football game. (Rebekah didn't have a choice in the matter since she was performing at half time.) They joined us in time for lunch on Saturday. We had camp all to ourselves that weekend. Then we drove home Sunday, September 12 in time for church.

Miriam playing checkers with Andrea in the trailer after getting it parked and set up on Friday, September 10.

Winnie climbing in the quarry on Saturday, September 11.

Four girls at camp and a fire on Saturday.

Ana getting ready to drive on forest roads.

Three girls and a dog headed out on a road hunt.

Seth and Bekah geared up for the evening hunt on Saturday.

Second trip: September 17-18

Seth and Rebekah headed to the forest for a quick weekend of hunting while the rest of us stayed at home and tended to some responsibilities here.

Bekah and Seth on the hunt on Saturday, September 18.

With some more arrowheads.

Third trip: September (20-)25

Seth spent the week of September 20 at camp with his dad, and the rest of us joined them that weekend (hence the parenthesis in the heading).

The bear print Seth found in the snow while hunting on Tuesday, September 21.

Seth and his parents out on the hunt on Thursday, September 23.

Seth and Bekah getting a bow ready for shooting. Seth took the entire family on a stump shooting expedition.

Ana getting an arrow.

Bekah right after shooting her bow. Notice the white line on her cheek from the string.

Miriam shooting rocks. Miriam's bow turned out to have some issues, so she switched to the wrist rocket.

Checking out the target to see how everyone did.

A nice grouping.

Winnie and her BB gun. 

Bekah and Peach napping.

The fire in camp.

Seth, Ana and Bekah on the evening hunt.

Our family didn't harvest an animal, and we didn't get to partake in Grandpa's famous Labor Day weekend Dutch oven feast, but we made the most of the time we had there.

Homecoming parade

In 2019, I didn't realize the homecoming parade was something I should know about. Rebekah was on the band float, but I didn't witness it. In 2020, the parade was canceled due to rain. In 2021, I saw my girls on the parade not once, but twice. 

Ana was on the ballroom float; Bekah was on the band float. I was too slow getting to Summit Hill Elementary to see the parade there, so I hightailed it to Discovery, parked in the parent loop (a big no-no as parents are supposed to remain in their cars to keep the line moving ... but kids weren't out of school yet, so I justified my actions) and caught sight of them there. Then I went to Rocky Mountain Middle School for a second sighting.

1st sighting

Ana tosses me candy. I gathered it off the grass and handed it to the teacher of the kids who were sitting on the sidewalk closest to me.

Rebekah sticks her tongue out at me. The trombones were on the side of the float opposite of where I was at Discovery, so after they passed, I crossed the street and ran ahead of them to shoot pictures. One kid wondered who the lady with the camera was. Bekah knew.

2nd sighting

Ana and her ballroom friends.

Seeing me again.

Rebekah's expression when she saw/recognized me again.

She still smiled for me, though.

Hike #10: Menan Butte

The house was quiet for the first time in ages. All the girls were back in school, and I was admittedly looking forward to having some time alone at home to catch up on all my projects. But as soon as school started, I got sick.

"It's just allergies," I thought as I dealt with a head full of fluff and a sore throat.

"Oh, shoot. It's not allergies," I thought when I started feeling nauseous.

"Oh, no. I know what this is," I thought when I lost my taste and smell.

I went to the doctor's office, and their test confirmed I had COVID. Because Seth, Bekah and Ana are all vaccinated, the doctor said they didn't have to quarantine at home with me; they could continue to go to school and work as long as they were always masked. The two younger kids who were not eligible to be vaccinated, on the other hand, did have to quarantine.

Thus began our 10 days of being at home together with me feeling sick and tired, and them feeling totally fine (thank goodness). The girls were eager to do any online work their teachers assigned, but where the classes were just barely getting started, teachers hadn't yet posted assignments online. So we spent a lot of days just hanging around.

When I had mustered enough energy to do more than lie around but we were still officially in quarantine, we spent a morning at the butte so we could be socially distant outside for a while. Out of necessity our pace was slower than usual, but it felt good to do something.

(Miriam was a little sniffly that day, so I took her in for a COVID test. It was negative. Nobody else in our family got it. It's two a half months later; it took a week or two to get my full strength back, but I still only have part of my taste and smell. I'm hopeful that it's coming.)

Headed along the trail.

Using the chain to go up the steepest part.

Three girls and a dog on top.

Back to school

 Good grief. It's nearly Thanksgiving and I'm just getting around to blogging about this.

Ana was the only kid of ours who attended school on Monday, August 30. The district reserves this day for incoming freshmen and seventh graders who could use some time to get oriented at their new schools. So here is Ana on Monday ...

Holding up a nine for 9th grade.

... and here are Winnie and Miriam on Tuesday--their first day of school.

Winnie's four for fourth grade.

Miriam's six for sixth.

And since Rebekah had to leave so darn early for marching band, we finally caught up with her to take a "first day of school" picture on Saturday, September 4.

It's harder when you get to double digits. I promise that's an eleven and not a two.

Ana has been enjoying seminary, journalism and ballroom, along with all her core classes. Math has been moving a little slowly, so she's going to try doing in online next trimester. Winnie has Mrs. Jenkins (the third of our kids to get her) and loves going to GATE and book club and being a conflict manager. Miriam has Ms. Moore and therefore gets tons of book recommendations. She enjoys GATE and student council. Rebekah continues to take all the band classes (she was drum major this year for marching band) along with her college classes (duel credit courses and ASL through ISU).