Pre-Summer BBQ

I just came across these pictures from a get-together way back in May with some our dearest friends. It had all the feeling of being far away in a canyon--a running stream, wide-open spaces, a fire to roast hot dogs and marshmallows, logs to sit on by the fire and the smell of smoke in our hair and on our clothes. But we were just steps away from all the conveniences of home!

And Eli just loved those wide-open spaces!

We really did have dinner before Natalie enjoyed this smore...but doesn't she make it look so good!

A leash for Eli would have been helpful. He was very interested in the fire. Dad had one hand on Eli's shorts and one hand helping Millie roast her marshmallows.

Natalie was trying to avoid the smoke while roasting...

Alan giving Davis some roasting pointers, I'm sure.

We sure love the Bailey and Butters families. We really need to do this more often! Thanks Bailey family for inviting us to your beautiful outdoor retreat!

halloween 2009

Now that it's almost December....I thought that I had better hurry and document Halloween! Usually it begins with a morning of getting costumes ready for school, school parades and parties, then home for a few hours just to do it all over again. But with Halloween falling on a Saturday, it really made the day a lot less hectic. We filled our bellies with warm chili and rolls before heading out to fill it with junk!

Here is our very own nerd and ninja...

And our hula dancer and cute little witch...

Can't forget the carved pumpkin! Notice the singular word 'pumpkin'...just didn't happen for all of us to carve one this year, and I'm way past the guilt! But, man oh man, Eli LOVED 'helping' daddy!

We tried and tried to get that cheetah costume on Eli. But to no avail, he ended up in his moose pj's. Cute as a button and ready for bed when we were done! He really caught on to the whole 'ring-the-doorbell-and-get-candy' thing!

For being Eli's first real Halloween, I failed in the photography department. But again...no guilt. All in all, we had a great Halloween!