Life is Getting Back to Normal

Yahoo! Momma is doing so much better so off to the mountains we go!   We had a wonderful time hiking the Butte in Palmer last weekend. 

It's even more fun when we can share our adventures with good friends.

My favorite part of the hike was probably when I asked the kids to grab a handful of leaves and throw them up into the air.

The pure joy on their faces just warmed my heart. I love being in the outdoors and so thankful my children share the same joy.

Papa has been so busy with school and coaching both football and wrestling right now.  The football team plays tonight in the semi-finals.  Should be a very exciting game for them!!  I love that in this picture even the dog was snuggling - okay she really just wanted the blanket, but still so cute to see everyone snuggled up to watch a movie together.

This little man... where is the time going.  I snapped this picture as I looked at him and realized he's going to be starting school next fall.  He's growing and changing so much these past few months.  He is so full of deep honest emotion (i.e. - we've got a temper we are learning how to manage) - and his creativity in building with whatever he can get to stack on top of each other.  He definitely is the typical boy in the fact that the more wrestling we can do the greater love he feels.  He likes to look at car license plates and decide how fast they can go - basically whatever numbers are on the plate is your top speed! Ha...  At his daycare/preschool he has shown a new interest in the globe and geography.  So much fun to see him growing into this new stage of development. 

When your mornings start like this - how can you not have an amazing day! 

October skies are always so magical. 

Shingles Stink!

This is me the past 3 weeks  - sigh... I'm too young for shingles, but the reality is that if you've had chicken pox, then you can have an episode of shingles at any time.  First week, felt like I was fighting the flu but never had a fever. Second week, painful rash appeared- so thankful I was seen by the doctor on day one of the rash and the antiviral medicine prevented the rash from blistering too bad. Very deep nerve pain all through the upper right quarter of my body - it even hurt to breathe.  Third week, fatigue set in and I was sleeping almost 15 hours a day!  Finally, today - my skin is still sensitive to touch and I'm achy - but I have energy back and the deep pain is gone.  Thank goodness because now I have a deep chest cold and I think I may have died trying to cough or sneeze with the initial shingle pain I had.  It's hard on the family when mom goes ill for so long - but so thankful for Papa and the kids taking great care of me.  Not to forget some amazing friends who have been bringing us dinner for the past week.  

I just have to show this was the inside of the doctor's office.  I went to a general family practice place and I thought how ingenious to organize medical supplies - tool boxes!  

This time of year always displays some amazing sunrises and sunsets.  The days are getting shorter and the temperatures are definitely cooler!

We've had a few visitors in our yard as the seasons are changing...

It was very exciting to listen to the bull try and call in the cow. They must have hung around our house for a good 20 minutes before moving up through the neighborhood.  It was all amazing until the bull starting eating on my rose bush - then I had had enough - ha,ha...

Thankful for these fall sunny days - so the kids could get outside and burn some energy while I was able to rest and recover.

For my mental sanity - I did get out to Eagle River Nature Center and took a short, flat hike on the trails. What a beautiful place we live and I'm so thankful to call it home.