Our Vacation To Eagle Crest

We just returned home from spending 5 days at Eagle Crest. It was a much needed vacation. Scott has been gone a lot with either traveling or hunting so it was time for some relaxation. We really enjoy staying here. It is about 2 1/2 hours away in Central Oregon. The weather was beautiful - in the 70's! We spent a lot of time outdoors (mostly swimming) but also spent a day shopping at the outlet mall in Bend, went to see High School Musical 3, and enjoyed taking some walks. It was so much fun spending quality time with each other and not worrying about the daily routine at home.

Here is a picture of the condo we stayed in.

Our "traditional" breakfast here is Belgium waffles with homemade strawberry jam, bacon (or sausage) and eggs! At home, we are usually running around in the morning getting ready for school so breakfast is usually quick. Cold cereal, eggs, or frozen waffles.
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Every night we play a game. Some of the kids favorite games are Life, Kids vs. Grown-ups, and The Price Is Right.

The first thing we are asked every morning is "When are we going swimming?" They both love to swim. There was an indoor pool and an outdoor one. They both loved going to the heated outdoor pool especially at night. We would spend a few hours there swimming, then getting in the hot tub, swimming, back in the hot tub, swimming - well, you get the idea!

Probably one of the highlights of the trip were the deer. They were so tame and cute! They would come right up to us. Scott (the hunter) wished he had his gun. Me, on the other hand, was glad I had my camera. "Quick, shoot a picture!"

One morning after breakfast, there were 5 deer that came up to our back porch. The kids were so excited. I know we are not suppose to but we quickly ran inside to get some food. As long as we were feeding them, they hung around. We were hoping they would come back the next morning. Caleb was saving a waffle for them but I guess they had a better offer somewhere else.

One of Caleb's favorite activities is the play with his "mote" control cars. He loves the one that Aunt Donna and Uncle Dave gave him for Christmas. He tries to drive his monster car over daddy's small car (the one Lindsay is driving).

Caleb is on a basketball team so Scott & Caleb took some time to practice with Lindsay joining the fun.

And finally, at the end of a long day, Lindsay's favorite thing to do is to take a big bubble bath. This night, however, we put too much bubbles in the water. So after relaxing for awhile, she headed for the shower. There was no way she was going to get all those bubbles off of her in the tub.

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Well it is back to school and work. We wish we could have stayed longer but everyone would have been too far behind. Plus, Zeke missed us! It was a fun time. I am so thankful for my family and I love them very much!

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-Natalie

Happy Birthday Dad!

Since we were gone, this festive picture is a little late. We are glad that you had an enjoyable day. Wish we could have been there to spend it with you!

We Love You!!

-Natalie, Scott, Lindsay & Caleb

A Day At The Pumpkin Patch

We went to the pumpkin patch today with some members of our family - Great Grandma, Grandma Vicki, Aunt Anette, Amanda, Rachel, Aunt Karen & Carlos. It was a beautiful day. The weather was nice - not too cold and thankfully it was not raining and muddy. Lindsay, Caleb, Rachel & Carlos each had a chance to drive the tractor for our hay ride to and from the pumpkin patch. Each child picked out a pumpkin and of course most of the adults had to carry them back because they were too heavy for the kids to lift. The kids also enjoyed playing on the hay bails and going through the corn maze. After going to the pumpkin patch, we went out to dinner at Izzy's. It was a fun day. Too bad Scott was not with us (yes, he was gone again - home one week and gone the next). This time he was off hunting with Grandpa Ken and his friend Kendal. Luckily we are able to text each other while he is gone. So far, no luck with finding an Elk.

Enjoy the Pumpkin Patch scrapbook!

-Natalie

Lindsay's New Haircut

Lindsay FINALLY decided to get her haircut. Scott & I would constantly suggest that she get her hair shorter but she wanted to have long hair. Before school started both Lindsay & Caleb got a haircut and she ended up getting an inch cut off. I have to admit, I was the same way. When I was younger, I too would end up only getting an inch off as well. I would come home (from my next door neighbor, who cut hair) and my mom wouldn't believe that I actually got a haircut. For Lindsay, I think she finally changed her mind after having so many knots in her hair and the daily struggle of getting them out. I also told her that I would take her to a really nice salon instead of one of the cheaper, more convenient places. It is now much easier for her to manage and she can still wear her hair in a ponytail. We think it looks really cute on her!

-Natalie

Lindsay's Virtual Makeover

Well, thanks to Aunt Sarah's idea, Lindsay & I had fun tonight looking at different hairstyles on the Taaz Free Vitual Makeover site. Lindsay enjoyed choosing the following styles and colors for herself:

And Finally, A Glimpse At A Possible Look Into Her Near Future Wearing Make-up

No - I did not put make-up on Lindsay. You can choose to add different make-up applications to your picture. Lindsay keeps telling me that it is my turn. We shall see. I think my hair only knows 1 style. Straight with bangs!

-Natalie & Lindsay

Cousin Rachel

Scott's cousin, Rachel, loves to come to our house and spend the night. Lindsay and Caleb love to have her over too. I enjoy it when she is here. She knows where everything is and is such a big helper. It is also nice because she is a peacemaker between Lindsay & Caleb. They all love to play their Nintendo DS games, play Wii, enjoy stories with their American Girl dolls (without Caleb) and play hide and seek. Rachel is 11 and is in 6th grade. They are such good friends!

-Natalie

While Scott's Away ... We Will Play!

Scott is on a business trip to Washington D.C. and Denver. He left early on September 28th and will not be home until the evening of October 8th. For me, this is a long time for him to be gone and I miss him a lot. It was a long time for us to be separated when the kids and I were in Ohio and I am now complaining about 11 days! I know that my brothers travel a lot, so honestly, how you do it Heather and Sarah? I really admire you. Is it hard for you too or are you use to it?

This last weekend, the kids and I decided to have a fun night out. We went bowling, hung around an arcade watching Caleb play some games, went to dinner, spent some time at the mall and at Target. It was a nice break for us especially after a long week. This year, both of our kids, especially Lindsay, are coming home with a TON of homework! Lindsay spends so much time on it since she has quite a bit to do. So Friday night is finally here and we decided to go have some fun.

Lindsay Bowling

Caleb Bowling

Caleb decided that he wants to be an OSU Beaver fan for Halloween. Here is a hat he is wanting for part of his costume. What do you think Scott?

We also went to the Hallmark store in our mall. On a certain day, once a month, they have their own version of the Webkinz Wheel Of Wow! Here you can win prizes (and nice ones too!) Lindsay spun and won a free Webkinz seal. Caleb spun and won a Webkinz magnetic bookmark.

Another thing I have been doing while Scott is away, is spending a lot of time on the computer. YIKES! The kids go to bed and there is nothing on T.V. that I want to watch. So the computer has been keeping me entertained. Well, I found a new, really fun site! It is Scrapblog.com. Here you can make scrapbook pages on your computer. I have never been into making traditional scrapbooks. I truly appreciate them and all the time and love that is put into making them. I guess I did not want to go and buy all the paper and gadgets and then find a place to store them but this site is so cool and it is free! You can choose from pages that are already made or you can make your own. You pick your background paper, stickers, add photos, embellishments and more. I have made a few so far and this is the Halloween scrapblog that I made.

If you have some free time, check it out. They have a video that will show you how to make a scrapblog. It is a fun site to use. Enjoy and let me know what you think.

Off to get some sleep!

-Natalie

Fall Is My Favorite Time Of Year

Click On The Picture To Enlarge

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I cannot believe that fall is finally here. I love this time of year. Even though I am sad that the kids are back to school, it is an exciting time with the season changing, and holidays approaching. The kids are thinking, and keep changing their minds, on what they want to be for Halloween. Even though Lindsay is getting a little bit too old to go Trick or Treating, and the fact that she does not like candy, she still wants to dress up to pass out treats and also for her party at school. Looking thru pictures, I found some of the kids from past years. Lindsay has dressed up as a Teddy Bear, a Strawberry, a Steelers Cheerleader, a Ballerina, Hannah Montana, a Kitty Cat, Magenta from Blues Clues, Peach from Mario, a Baby, Cinderella and Snow White in no particular order. Caleb has dressed up as a Dinosaur, a Boxer, Buzz Lightyear, Mario, Luigi, Dash from The Incredibles, and a Football Player. Hopefully they will make up their mind soon so I don't have to wait until the last minute to put costumes together. Halloween will be here before we know it! Have a great month!

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-Natalie

"My Fish Died"!!!!

As we were rushing to get ready for school this morning, Caleb came to me 10 minutes before the school bus was about to arrive, very sad! "My fish died"!! (I know, it is only a fish but to an 8 year old, this is devastating). I felt bad because I felt sorry for him but at the same time, he had a bus to catch. He was looking all over the house for an empty Tic Tac box. I told him a while ago that when my brothers and I were little and one of our fish died, we would take a Tic Tac box, place the fish in it and bury it! A perfect size don't you think?! Well I told him I would look for one while he was gone and for him to try and not think about it at school.

When he came home from school, he was fine. He wanted to know where the Tic Tac box was so he could put his fish in it. He then dug a hole in the backyard, buried him and put a octopus figurine on top.

But then, as soon as he was done, he found a new pet. On the fence was a praying mantis. Lindsay helped him catch it and he is excited to look at it for a day or two (before we let him free)! I don't know what we are going to do when Zeke kicks the bucket. I mean, lets face it, he is getting up there in cat years. That will not be a good day, week or month for the kids!

Caleb With A Pretend Sad Look On His Face Standing Next To The Octopus

-Natalie