Zoo's Christmas Tree

Red Ribbons 

Green Tree

Sky Blue 

Lovely Two

Our little Neighbor

Winter is surely getting close and this little chipmunk is stashing away as much bird seed as his little cheeks can hold. The cats are so fascinated watching him run back and forth to get what the birds drop.

Hmmm, what's interesting about this….

Well, it might be that our little girl is just hanging out in the kitchen playing a game on the iPad… or it might be that this little doll has found a pair of mommy's high heel shoes to test out. 

Goodness, you sure make us smile

Fall Hike at the Gorge

Fall is not complete without a nice hike in the woods. We loaded up Pixie and the Doll and met up with  Brian and Gretchen for a little romp in the woods. We toured around the little farm house and barn. The Doll really enjoyed ringing the bell and trying to pump water out:) Then we went over to see the Chimney Rock Look out. Its fun how even in autumn there are still so many shades of green. Pixie started out super eager for the Princess trail hike but was  not able to walk herself back up the trail so mom had to carry her.

Lunch with Lola

A good book is always close at hand for this precious girl. It's so cool how she enjoys reading. I call this picture Lunch with Lola.

Pixie's First snow

Pixie's first snow. 

We like how she jumps straight up and flips around to see if there is a path to walk that would not require cold wet toes:)

Christmas card assembly begins

Once a year we enjoy writing to our friends and sharing the joy of the Christmas season by sending cards. It takes some time and a lot of effort but it's so nice to just send someone a hello. This year little Lola helped with the gold embossing. She really liked the way the powder melts into a smooth gold bell. So next, it's time to address the envelopes, buy some stamps and print return address labels… We still have a few weeks before December:)

Bella Bunny getting ready for her trip to California

We are going to have our Bella Adventures again this year. Lola has a great time creating fun things for the two of them to do and then we mail her back to California to share with an old friend. Looks like today she was enjoying Lego Town.

Climbing at Rock Quest

How has it been that we've never been rock climbing with this monkey? Oh Man, did she love it or what! She was so great at it. We made need to sign up for a pass:) 

Skateboarding at Dusk

We took the two girls out for the post dinner exercise. Lola skateboarded around the park while Pixie chased leaves. We found this place in a tree to wedge our camera for a quick family picture. It was lovely to get some fresh air.

Sunset Nature Drive

After playing at the park, we sometimes like to go for a nature drive to see if there are any deer. Well, tonight there was a number of unique creatures. Of course there were the dare devil squirrels that would just not get off the road. But most surprising was this huge opossum. It was just walking across the field. It's also lovely seeing the hawks perched on the electric wires. The coolest animal was this huge buck that just posed and posed for us to take it's picture. We like to think of how God gives us these glimpses into the joy He has prepared for us each day. Wildlife is so wonderful.

Cubes in math with Bella

Cubes!

With our math curriculum, the lessons are hands on. Today we were looking at cubes and building different structures. It's fun when it's engaging:) 

Squid dissection at the library homeschool class

Let's just say that we didn't make it until the end.

I like to offer the Doll a variety of learning opportunities. This was a great option that we knew would probably be for a glimpse of the dissection but it was great to see the rest of the science program. 

Three cheers for the Homeschool at the Library programs! 

(Mom personally found it quite interesting and liked seeing the ink sac :)

Parents observation at Ballet

 Parents have to wait for special preview days to see the progress the dancers are making, so when it's parent observation day we look forward very much to seeing the girls show us their best. It was nice to see how she has improved since last year. Way to go little Ballerina!

Cat's are not happy

So the cat's are not happy about this arrangement. We go down to see granny and leave them behind, while that little Pixie goes too! How could you! So this is their form of protest! When the suitcase comes out the cats go in:)

Pixie's grown

Our little Pixie is sure growing! What a good dog she is. 

Anniversary dinner out

 Date night with Daughter in tow: )
It was a lovely night out as a family. Generally we would have went out as a couple to celebrate, however this year we asked the Doll if she wanted to go with us. She did, it was lovely. It's been a great 11 years.