First Snow!

This will be short, since I'm still coming out of the haze after getting a wisdom tooth dug out. Hopefully it will be coherent, too, but if it's not just look at the pretty pictures. Tooth came out fine, just having a hard time with the recovery period. It still hurts too much to go without drugs, but the ones they gave me are REALLY strong and I'm getting sick of being a zombie all day. So far today I've avoided the pain pills, but I don't know that I'll make it much longer. Starting to eat slightly more appealing food again, but still can't have any of the good stuff. God I want a pizza!
In other news - First snow of the year! We actually got an inch or so a couple days ago, which melted, but last night we got about four inches and now it's coming down again. We all got out for a little bit this morning to play in the perfect packing snow. Kirsi was more concerned than anything else, but Jimmy and Molly were thrilled. I'm losing brain power, so I'm just going to put up some pictures and sign off.
Oh, and before anybody panics - NO we didn't get a new kitten! That's one of Nana's foster babies, just about 5 weeks old. Jim's very sweet with them, and the littlest one decided he made a great bed!

The Floor Show & Halloween

Sorry it's been awhile between posts - the computer has been getting moved around while we work on our big project. Dad gave us the world's most awesome early Christmas present - brand spankin' new laminate floors! Squee!! They're absolutely gorgeous, and the house smells 100% better now that those nasty carpets are out of here! This should make it SO much easier to sell the house.
The Friday before Halloween I went to Scarywood (the Silverwood theme park runs as a haunted park all through October) and got the pants scared off of me several times. I had a blast, even though some of it was really hair-raising. Adrenaline rushes were plentiful. The Blood Bayou haunted house was really terrifying, the zombie train was hilarious, and I rode the Tremors roller-coaster in the dark, which was mind-numbingly scary. Not to mention hard on the neck *ow* They run one of the other coasters backwards in the dark, but after Tremors I didn't think my neck or my nerves could handle that.
The kids had a great Halloween too! Jimmy stayed out trick-or-treating for a LONG time, and got a pretty respectable haul of candy. He loved his tarantula/skullface costume! Kirsi vetoed the trick-or-treating, but had fun hanging out at Aunt Mary's house with the women:) She ate candy, cuddled the stuffed bat that Nana gave her, and made herself adorable.
Hope you all had a great scary night too!

Heading into Fall

We've had snow on the mountains already, followed by a week of gorgeous Indian summer, leading into the current pouring rain. Nothing major to report, only small doings. We bug-bombed the house and took the kids up Dawson Ridge while the foggers did their thing. We had beautiful weather. Jim and Chris played with the paint-ball gun, Kirsi wandered nearby, and I took off in search of photo-worthy views. When we got home we got to watch Sophie attack the tailpipe of the van - I was shocked and appalled, but Chris informed me that she does this on a regular basis.

I have a new camera now, so my best shots are no longer marred by lens spots. I'm very happy with it, although I'm still learning the ropes - not helped by the fact that some small child ran off with the owner's manual.
Kirsi's talking more clearly and using more words. She's especially eager to imitate her brother, which Jimmy thinks is pretty cool. He's doing great in school and waffling over his Halloween costume. And I did a new painting. Guess that's it for now.

School!

Just a quick one again, I'm heading out to an SCA event as soon as Chris gets home. Jimmy started 1st grade on Tuesday, and is VERY happy with his new school. The hours are long (8:05 - 3:52, silly time to ring a bell...) but he adjusted to it very quickly. The first day tired him out, but now he's doing just fine! He loves his new teacher, Mrs. Katz - who, with Jimmy, is teaching her third generation of Hubbell children! He's made a lot of friends already, and is really glad to be back.
Kirsi's doing great too! She likes to help me around the house, and is getting really good at entertaining herself when she gets bored with me. She misses Jimmy during the day, but luckily it doesn't make her crabby. She's trying to help me style her hair with a little-known beauty secret - pizza sauce!
We've got someone coming to look at the house this weekend - fingers crossed, AGAIN!

Quick one today! We took the kids to the county fair this weekend - they had a lot of fun! Kirsi got an inflatable pink pony, and Jimmy joined in the chicken chase. After having to wait up well past bedtime for it to start, he was pretty upset when he didn't catch one. But he's feeling better now. He's also decided he desperately wants to raise pigs and cows.
We found a home for Chris's rabbit with a girl who's starting out in 4H. We're all glad to have her go somewhere where she'll get lots of love and attention.
My attempts at giving Kirsi a new hair pattern are still not going well...

Summer's Almost Gone

I'd like to say we've been in a mad whirl of healthful outdoor activities, but to be honest I've spent the last two weeks hiding inside where there's air conditioning. It's HOT! I had another bout of heat exhaustion (I'm told it's not a heat stroke until you reach organ failure) at an SCA event two weekends ago and am once again dealing with the agony of my body trying to reset it's thermostat. I'm miserably hot during the day and freezing my butt off when the temp drops by five degrees in the evening. But I'm still alive and functioning, and perfectly thankful for that fact.
School starts on Sept 7th, and I finally got all of Jim's school shopping done. He's gotten almost three inches taller this summer, so new pants were a must. He's really excited, and isn't at all concerned about moving to a different, much larger school. I got him into the class I wanted, with the teacher who seems like the best fit for him. And his cousin Colton will be in the same class!
Kirsi's talking, climbing, and learning new things every day. She finally seems to have reached an understanding with the animals, and usually refrains from body-slamming or carrying them around by a handful of fur. My efforts to tame her hair continue to have little effect. Damn Hubbell hair pattern! ;)
Chris finally got ahold of Metal Masters, and it turns out that the opening in the Residential department was an entry level position - wouldn't pay much and he's way over-qualified. So, no job = no move just yet. Still no more bites on the house.
One beautiful niece arrived yesterday - Addison Jean Covington, who is just as gorgeous as anyone could wish! Our other niece still has awhile to bake, but will no doubt be just as wonderful as her cousin. The kids had fun helping us pack the family cradle to send to Lori. Oh, babies! How exciting! But I'm glad my sisters are having them and not me;)

More July Craziness

I love this guy's shield - "STOP Don't Hurt Me!"



The three amigos reunited (and a little drunk...)


Our little family trucks along through the summer... Jimmy is sort-of-kind-of doing better in his swimming lessons - taught by me this year, although if he can learn to stop panicking when the water hits his face he can go to regular lessons next summer. He's learned to blow bubbles in the water, and doesn't get nearly as upset when it splashes his eyes. We're working on remembering two things; "Stay calm" and "Deal with it." Next up is the back-float, which we tried a few days ago and Jimmy definitely didn't like. Kirsi has a little pool floaty, and LOVES the water.
Kirsi's talking more and more. She says, 'bye, hi, daddy, mama, brother, kitty, out, up, okay, num-num (food), belly, tickle-tickle, cup....' I'm sure there are more I'm forgetting, plus several animal sounds. She's also turning into a climber - yes, Mom, I hear you saying, "Payback."
We took a trip out to Libby two weekends ago and went disc-golfing at the course there. Apart from Jim getting bored and me almost whacking an older gentleman with my driver (Leaped over it at the last second) we had a very nice time. We took the kids to the playground there after, and finally got home well after bedtime and VERY tired.
My life is currently a whirl of horses and SCA - Carole's last week, SCA last weekend, starting at Carole's again tomorrow, SCA the weekend after next, then Carole's again when I get back from that. Whew! At least I'm making enough money with the horses and the SCA merchanting to pay for my trips. It's worth it to get to see my SCAdian friends - Viva los tres amigos! And I'm getting some great pix!
Chris has been busy, and is finally getting used to working full days again. SO nice to actually have some work coming in again! He's gaming with the geeks (love you guys) again, so he's getting relax time too.
Still no word on the house or the job, but we've got our fingers crossed.