Pigs are Flying

If you know me, you know that I am not a camper.  Generally I feel that sleeping at a Super 8 is as close as I care to come to camping.  Recently, however, something happened - I honestly don't know what.  All of the sudden I had an urge to go camping.  In a tent.

I didn't want to camp in the tent we owned.  (Yes, "we" had a tent.  It was used by Eric and the kids when THEY went camping.  Without me.)  That tent is small and completely unappealing to me.  I somehow knew that if I had a big enough tent I could camp.

So we went tent shopping.  We bought a tent that I am very pleased with.  It is supposed to be a 6-man tent, which means 4 people fit into it comfortably.  Besides the sleeping area it has a screened room which seemed like a very nice touch to me.  It is tall enough to stand up in, has a hinged door AND it has a light inside.  How cool is that?

To everyone's surprise, I enjoyed camping.  Very much, actually.

We brought Forrest the dog along.  He did NOT enjoy camping.  Not one little bit.  Here he is, peeking through a tent window at me.  (He was inside the tent.  If he and a human were inside the tent he settled down, but only a little.)

As usual, I found a flower to photograph.  (And the picture of Anna wading in the lake stuck here next to the flower photo.  Not sure why.)

There were 6 deer who have obviously become very accustomed to humans.  Three of them, a mother and 2 fawns, slept just behind our campsite.  The fawns napped there in the afternoon with people around!   They weren't even afraid of the dog.  Not that they should have been, but do they know that he's afraid of everything?

We roasted marshmallows, some for s'mores, rode bikes and played card games under the light in the tent.  It was a fun family time.

The ONLY negative was the bees.  None of us was ever stung, but there were lots of bees around, especially when we cooked.  But we didn't see a single mosquito so that was good.

And although we didn't see them, we are all quite certain that somewhere last weekend pigs were flying.

Prize Winning Cabbage?

Toward the end of the last school year each 3rd Grader was given a cabbage seedling courtesy of Bonnie Plants. They sponsor a cabbage growing contest every year in which 1 winner from each state is awarded a $1000 college scholarship.

Ethan set to work tending his seedling, first in a window sill in our home and then in a raised planter which Eric built.

He harvested his cabbage a couple of weeks ago and I took pictures for contest submission. According to Bonnie Plants, a giant cabbage plant can grow to over 40 pounds! I cannot imagine such a thing, since Ethan's cabbage was 10 pounds and that seemed enormous.

Kneeling behind the harvested plant

Holding just the head

Ethan's cabbage prior to harvest, surrounded by encroaching pumpkin leaves

Ethan is super competitive so let's hope he wins!

Fiery Sunrise

Last week we had a large thunderstorm. As is typical it produced no rain, it's just too dry here for that. There was, however, a lot of lightening. Unfortunately the lightening started many fires. The many fires have grown into two very large fires. Often now we see smoke billowing up from the other side of the mountains. And when the wind blows just right (or just wrong, really) the Treasure Valley fills up with smoke. Such has been the case the past two days and although I hate breathing the smoke in, it can make for some beautiful sun rises and sets.

Here is this morning's sun rise:

A very busy week in 1 short blog post

We are slightly more than 1/2 way through a much anticipated visit from some cousins.  It has been a week full of fun.

Waiting (im)patiently for their arrival at the gate.

Getting reacquainted in the back yard.

Getting reacquainted while trying to escape Mom's camera inside.

Home made Indian food at the home of friend's.

Playing X-box Kinect.

Visiting with Grandpa.

Photo composition was fabulous.  Execution was awful. Kids burned off lots of energy at a fun place called Jump Time.

Trying on clothes in search of something to wear for professional photos.  (And "modeling" the clothes.)

Not so comfortable modeling, she agree to peek around the corner for me.

On the way to the photo shoot and, as usual, trying to escape Mom's camera.

A little bribery got me a little cooperation.

One picture from the shoot.

Throw in a birthday.  I took Anna out for a birthday breakfast.  She ordered PLAIN crepes with whipping cream on the side.

And a chocolate malt.  Yes, for breakfast.  It was her birthday after all.

After a day at the waterpark we didn't eat dinner until 10:00 p.m. followed, of course, by birthday cake and ice cream at 10:30.  There were some tired, cranky kids that night!

Dinner with our Mandarin tutor and his parents, visiting from China.  SWEET old couple who had never left their hometown before.  Mr. Li wrote a poem for us which was very touching.

We took a short trip to Idaho City where we visited one of several ice cream parlors.  

Along the way we stopped to play in the river which was, honestly, the best part of the trip.

The kids found tadpoles which they told me were "stage 2".  It was too slimy looking for me to investigate closely.

I was in the river almost as much as the kids, but I had to snap a few pictures of flowers...

...and general scenery.

And I had to get some nice shots of all the kids. 

Hopefully more fun to come!

Fire Season

Here's the picture I promised last night: On my computer I can see the fire line well; I hope you can too. The fire is out today, although Boise is once again (like last summer) shrouded in smoke. I assume that means there are fires burning somewhere in the area. I truly hope the smoke doesn't get as thick as last summer. It caused problems for Ethan and I, as well as many people here in the valley.

Baby It's Hot Outside

I was dumbstruck when I looked at the thermometer in my car this afternoon:

Now THAT is hot! Also, about 5:00 p.m. a wildfire broke out somewhat near us. Now, at 10:45, we can stand in our back yard and see the fire line. It is quite a ways in the distance and I'm hoping it stays that way through the night. I took a picture but will have to upload it tomorrow.

Forrest had a Bad Day

I took Forrest to the vet yesterday because he had developed a swelling on his face. The short story is an abscess formed around a piece of cheet grass which the vet can only guess he ate. They lanced it and sent him home with an open wound. (Not something I do well with, but this story is about Forrest.) I've had to put the cone of shame onto him to prevent his scratching the open wound. To put it mildly, Forrest does not like the cone of shame. Look at this:

This is not a picture wherein I captured him in motion. No, when you put a cone on Forrest he freezes in place and will not move. He won't eat or drink or lay down. Honestly, he won't move a muscle! Poor Forrest, he had a bad day. And he's likely to have a few more while we wait for his wound to heal.