Family Pictures

Our friend, Stephanie, took our family pictures this year.  

Her budding business can be found here.

We managed to get a foggy day with lots of ice and snow... and behold the result!

Status Symbol

As our family was driving down the freeway a few weeks ago, Shane and I notice a conversation in the back seat that involves bowel movement.  Somehow a very interesting topic to the young generation.  And Aidan pipes up in his loud, yet squeaky voice:

"My poop is curly!  Sometimes it makes a C... or even a G!"

I suppose as the youngest, you will try anything to improve your status.

At least we were all together as a family making memories, right?

Julia Turns 8!

Happy Birthday, Julia!

A little late to posting, but it was a special day!  We were snowed in.

Although Julia's birthday is not always on Thanksgiving, she is still our little "thanksgiving girl"!  She was born on Thanksgiving in 2005.

This year, her dream was to get the Kaya doll and her extended family surprised her with a few accessories.  She listened to the books on CD the month before her birthday, and became even more excited about getting the doll.  Of course, she wasn't certain that Kaya was among the presents, but I think she felt fairly confident!

                                         
Her Grandma made her a lovely Indian costume, and her Nana made her a bearskin for Kaya to sleep on.  She got some winter clothes and a doll hairbrush from her brothers.

She wanted a Kaya doll cake, and as usual when I'm at a loss, I asked her to draw the cake she wanted for me, so I'd know just what she wanted.  This way, it helps her keep it simple and ensures that I don't disappoint her!

This is Kaya and her horse.

Julia and her brothers:

And Julia's birthday weather:

Bone Family Reunion 2013

Just a few shots from our family reunion this year:

We were determined to get a family photo, even if the weather would not cooperate!

We rented a house on the Olympic Peninsula, and it was rainy as promised!  We were missing one sister, but were able to meet up with her and the ever popular nephews and get a few hugs and pictures of them, too.  So here's a few shots of us as the generations keep on coming!

Time with Gma Jeanne at the Island

By the river with Brynna, Nana and Tyler.

Susan and Shane in the Ho Rain Forest.

The Hollands snuggle Kylie Rose.

The grandkids with their Bone shirts!

A couple siblings shots, minus Gina:

A quick stop at a burger joint to see Gina!

Kyle and Kane, the rest of the grandkids.

A Little Halloween Fun

This year, our Fall Celebration/Halloween went really well!

Julia and Aidan knew that they wanted to be Native Americans (inspired by the American Girl doll, Kaya, which is Julia's fav.).    Lucas wasn't sure.  But Papa came to the rescue in good time.  And I quickly got some fabric and a pattern and went to work.

The Indian costumes were pretty cool, because after I was done, the kids did some beadwork on their garments.  It allowed them to feel a bit invested, as well as give them some hand/eye coordination practice.  Inevitably, their desires are far, FAR beyond my abilities, but in this case, I could just say "Sure! Go ahead and bead a herd of horses onto the front of your shirt, Aidan!"  And after encouraging him to bead the first one in the center, I left him to realize that he just wanted one horse after all.

Lucas had the funny factor going on with his costume, and we all enjoyed both the pictures and the videos.  It was fun to walk around our country road (no street lights, and porch lights only sometimes) and see how effective his costume was.

We only got two or three batches of kids the whole night, so we had our hoard of candy to enjoy the following week.  Turned out great!

Balloon Fiesta of 2013

Finally!  This year we went to the Balloon Fiesta for the first time.  We moved here right around Balloon Fiesta season FIVE warm years ago, and only now have we attended on site.  It was pretty cool!

We arose at 4am... left at 4:15.  Headed into Abq and took a park n' ride.  The kids loved riding a bus; a rare treat for this homeschool family.  The bus was all decked out in lights and decorations which added to the sense of fun.

We arrived in the freezing cold dark (who says Abq is warmer than the east mtns?) and walked around looking at the vendors.  Finally braved the "long" lines and got hot chocolate and Breakfast Burritos.  I'm going to capitalize them, because they sent me into spasms of joy.  Apparently, they are a popular staple in this town and I've NEVER had one before!  But I certainly will be having them again, I assure you.

We moseyed around and discovered that the Balloon Fiesta is like everything else in New Mexico: relaxed and not on a schedule.  Our early arrival was all for naught.  However, we had time to get our bearings and eat these delicious burritos.  Before dawn, the balloons began to fill up, and pretty soon the action got hot and heavy!  No lie.

It seems that they like the feel of filling up all the balloons in one tiny area of the field.  It certainly adds drama!  One of my favorite balloons had some truly lovely artwork on it... I thought it was an olive oil company.  Nope, it was gin.  Oh well.  Just a few special shapes that morning; a pink elephant and the fish, Flounder, from The Little Mermaid.  Rainbow Riders are available for giving rides, but they are a sweet fortune.  So we watched the rich out-of-towners enjoy themselves.  Maybe someday, but then maybe not.  People have died...

It was a really great experience, and it even included funnel cake.  The worst part was the freezing temps.  It was so cold that moving your lips to talk was difficult.  The kids whined about going home, and eventually the lines we thought had been long quadrupled.  There is a ton of humanity cramped together.  But it was all very exciting!  And the kids loved the memory, which is often how it goes.