summer so far...

A synopsis in photos and words from the last month or two : )  


Oh, goodness.  Time flies when it's summertime.  But for you, a recap:

:: Father's Day: my aunt and uncle paid us a visit.  In Yellowstone they had seen nearly every animal there is to see , but not a moose.  Lucky for us, on a post-Father's Day Dinner drive we spotted a bull by the road.  There was a quiet bouquet of tourists standing around snapping photos.  At first, the moose was behind some willows and Juniper didn't see him.  But oh, man, when she finally realized what we were looking at she yelled, "WOW!!!"  Everyone burst out laughing and one man said, "That's what I thought but I wasn't going to say it!"  We are still laughing over that one.

Don't laugh at my man.  You'd look like that too if you were trying to wrangle a moose-excited toddler.  


:: Day with Dad:

Our little mushroom hunter learned to spot the well-camoflauged morel.

Side bar to the present moment: note her right hand...that month of dandelion-picking is not winning Juniper any brownie points with grandma's pansies.  


:: July 4th we headed north to visit the cousins,

Baby Sam.  Juniper has been way, crazy, into baby dolls...all of whom are named "Baby Sam".

As well as some old friends (and their new one).

Turns out, Livingston, Montana has a really kick-ass Fourth of July parade.  Floats from all over the state, old women twirling batons and really old men dressed as clowns.  Juniper (once she woke up) was enthralled.  Owen was trying his damndest to beat the older kids to candy.  

Juniper applauding.  


My brilliant idea (and there was no talking me out of it), was a visit to the hot springs.  But oh my, 90 degree hot springs on a 90 degree day = hot, sweating preggo mama and two lethargic, dehydrated toddlers.  (But I think Sam enjoyed it.)  

Juniper and Owen counting roses.  

Multiflora roses, Juniper, Owen, Baby Sam and Aunt D.  

:: Back home we've been working on the house (tile in kitchen, dining area and now master bathroom is DONE!!  Oh...except for grouting.  

View from our upper-deck; sounds fancy...it's not, but it does have a killer view.  We've spotted elk, mule deer and mountain goats so far.  Note to potential house-guests: this deck is off the designated guest sleeping quarters.  Sorry, no bed yet.  We'll work on that after we move in.   

 Mudroom is still a work-in-progress.  


:: Aside from home remodeling and swim lessons and play-dates, I've had to learn something new this summer: how to be a backyard mama.

Last summer, we camped, backpacked, day-hiked and day-hiked.  This summer, that kid-pack waist strap ain't going around this belly.  That rules out mom and daughter day hikes.  And any day my man has off, we're working on the house. But Juniper has adjusted well to the lack of far-flung adventure, opting instead for Osa's old pool in the backyard.

:: My man is optimizing what little time he has at home...

My husband has always done the night-night routine with J bug.  Here he is showing the three books he deems, "The Knock-Out Special". 


:: Also, after a day of pounding nails into hickory, we brought Juniper and celebrated 8 years of marriage, 11 years together.  (Wow.  Has it really been that long?)

Despite our busy summer, my man never fails to deliver wildflowers to yours truly.  


:: I am writing this from The Land-of-Plenty.  Juniper and I flew in to Grandma's house early, early Wednesday.  More on our visit here...soon I hope!  I have high hopes of reigning in some of my blog slack while visiting relatives.  No phone calls to make, not so many clothes to fold...you know.