Daniel grew up in Gold Hill and played all over the hills and river there with his childhood friend Ryan.  Time goes by, and kids grow up,

get married, have kids, and move away!  But, if you are really lucky, they keep in touch!  And, even more lucky if they bring the wife and

kids to come back and visit!  We got pizza and Popsicles, and met at a park where the kids could run, and we could chat!  It was a blast,

but the best part was the pictures to help us remember.  When the day comes that our kids have kids, we will have the photos to remember

this hot summer day, full of nostalgia!

Ben helps himself to some cups and bottled water!  Drool, anyone?

The kids try out some daring play ground equipment, and go for a run!

Safe with Daddy

The slide was a blast!  Perfect for races!

Everyone has a blast getting into the picture!  It was great fun, and we were all sad to see them leave!

This is the sort of shenanigans that go on when I leave the kids at home with Daddy!  Yup, they might never get dirty if it were not for their Dad!

Here is Ben, demonstrating the proper way to drink from the sprinklers! 

The girls water the strawberry plants, and the flowers.  Maybe, for the first time in weeks!

I focus on the inside of the house and it's occupants!  The only time I take a break is to sleep!

They do look like they have had fun though! 

Maybe next summer the lawn will still be alive!

Or, we will keep mowing the dandelions!

The other day I took a Netflix movie to the post office after dropping Anna off to school, and lo I saw fall!

Yes, all over town your could see leaves of every shade littering the ground, and smell smoke from chimneys,

ripe apples and pumpkins with candles sending their warm welcome smell into the air.  When I was in college I

had a crush on a guy from Alaska!  We were out in the cool fall air, studying for some test we had and I began

to go on about all the lovely things fall reminded me of!  Then I asked him what memories of fall he had!  He

laughed and said that fall didn't remind him of anything, in Alaska they have 10 months of winter, and two of

spring/summer!  No fall at all for him to recall!  How sad!  I am glad we live here in Oregon where my kids can

have a blast exploring all the fun of this special season.

The leaves on the ground by the Post Office were so lovely I went and got Ben and Kate and came back with them

for a fall photo shoot!  The leaves were wet from the fog or the sprinklers, but it didn't slow us down!  Ben

did have a moment where he wanted to lay down like Katie but found the cold, wet leaves too slimy for him!  " Bleck", he said!

Then he tried to put them back on the tree!  He did find some he really liked!  And Katie had to

bring some home in the car.  I think they are still in there now.

Aren't big sisters the best.  You better agree with me, or else!  =]  Besides, you know I'm right!

What a cute kid!  I took them home and cleaned them up with a warm tub, fresh clothes and hot chocolate!   Then we snuggled up in my bed and watched a movie

on Netflix!  And we turned up the heater!

My kids have it so good!  Don't these kids look hungry, sad, and uncared for! ; ]

 Yes Ben, those are shells!

Ben gets down and dirty!

Katie makes a "sand angel"!  This may be why it takes 2 days to get the sand out of her hair and ears!

This one just made me laugh!  This is why she had a sun burn in a place I didn't

think to sun block for her!

Here I think Anna has sea shells, or maybe a new addition to the sand castle!

My kids here are out running the waves, and trying to keep their pants dry!

I love this shot complete with their reflections on the wet sand!

Anna looks like waves are the most amazing thing she has ever seen!

And here to round out the set, is Ben with yet another stick!

It really was a fun day! 

Daniel helped me down load all the pictures form the digital camera, my phone

and his phone!  We found a lot of overlapping stuff that I had already blogged about!

Darn it!  But here are some good shots from the face painting at the hospital!  Cool, hu?

This year Anna thought it would be fun to be a Jack-o-lantern because she has missing teeth!

She wanted me to paint her face, but I was short on supplies and know how!  So I painted a

paper bag with acrylics instead.  She loved it!  She also loved the bat she made in school and

it went everywhere with us that night!

Katie, as always wanted to be a combination fairy and princess!  We just watched the latest

Tinkerbell movie which may have influenced her!  

Our ward did a Chili dinner before the traditional "trunk or treat", but they missed the mark a

bit with me by serving it outside in the dark, cold, rain standing up!  Here I am on a busy street,

in a crowd of people from various wards in costume, with my kids in costume eating corn bread and chili! 

That was a real balancing act for me!    But the kids had fun and afterwards I took Daniel and Ben home

and took Katie and Anna on their first ever real Trick-or-treat!  We went to the neighborhood where some of

our friends lived and where I used to deliver papers!  Anna got worried that we might not find our car again,

and Katie's bag got "too heavy", and I was sore, but we had a good time!

I am not sure if this guy was thrilled that I took his picture but I had to document the event!  It is a good thing

the girls have an extroverted mother or they would never get this experience!  Dan had no desire!

After we sorted out what we wanted, we "sold" the extra along with some other random candy we had

to a local Dentist for $1 per pound which he then sent on the our troops in Iraq!  Less sugar in my house,

and I used it to buy some jewelry supplies and made the girls some more bling!

Here they are all worn out from the nights adventures! 

Happy Halloween!

 Here is the only one of Ben I got!

It's lousy, but here he is!

It used to be all you needed was a hose and summer was perfect.  I think I even remember

an occasional Slip-N-Slide, but we were fine with the ditch or the sprinkler (or a pond, or a river, or a resavore..).  We didn't know

any better!  We had never seen a spray park!  Some time last summer, or the summer before

they began sprouting up all over the valley!  Some small and simple for the toddler, some bold and crazy

for the bigger kids!  Now we have Two in Medford, one in Central Point, one in Ashland, and one in Jacksonville!

We love all of them.  It is a bit tricky knowing what to bring, and how to dress the kids.  However, the kids get wet

and run wild with very little concern for wardrobe requirements, or changing rooms.  Ben even gets in on the action

in his usual fearless way!  Sometimes, like these pictures, we take the opportunity fully dressed!  My kids have it so easy!

It is a good thing it is so hot that the kids and the car seats dry rather quickly!  Just wish I could figure out how to work some

soap into the mix!  Oh, well!  Dream on mommy.