An update and few overlooked activities........

 

 

 This past month has been a hard one.  Toby's boss and golf buddy passed away on October 11th.  Tob was able to go to Louisiana for the funeral with 4 other employees which I think helped immensely with the healing process.  We wish everyone was able to go, but they are planning on having a memorial here sometime soon to honor Bart and bring some closure.  We also have one of Barts best friends living with us for the time being.  He's pretty great I have to say and besides barking while I am trying to sleep during the day he has very few flaws.

 

Meet Sam.  Sam will be with us until his mom is able to pick him up and take him to his new home.  He is an 8 year old border collie mix and LOVES to hike and run, so we get along just fine.  His dad use to run with him every morning at 5 am before work.  Now that he is with us, he has to wait until noon when I am good and ready, but he's adjusting and is getting along great with Barley.  In fact I think Barley is learning a few manners from the old lad.

 

  The great thing about Tob's job and the people he works with is how everyone comes together during tough times, it's truly an extended family.  So during the past month I have gotten quite a few opportunities to hike and visit with some of the other wives.  It's been therapeutic on my end as well as theirs I think.  Sam was well known and loved at work and in the community by co-workers and friends and will be missed when he leaves, but we are all enjoying our time with him.

 

 

 My first time up Copper Creek Canyon with Eve-line and Jennifer was a little chilly but absolutely gorgeous and did not disappoint.  The fall copper colors I am sure is where it obtained it's name.

 

Moving on, or back I should say, to Shaun and Amy's wedding.  I realized I never posted pictures of the beautiful flower girl!  She looked so grown up in her dress.........

 

 but wasn't much for posing for photos.

 

 

 I have gotten to spend more time with Eve-line (the wife of Tob's engine assistant) this year as well and have really enjoyed our visits and hikes together.  She's a great mama and packs Sasha her beautiful 2 1/2 year old with her any time she can.

 

Just couldn't leave this one out.....These two were bonding the night before Tob left for Louisiana.  Barley is quite the snuggle bug and we sure are attached to him.

 

 

 Now lets think WAY back to August..........Ok you there yet?

 

 Lex and her friend Anna did their first quilting class.  They spent 2 hours a day for a week working on a quilt with 2 other girls and their fabulous instructor Joann.  Lexy's is about a twin size.  She did an extra border and made hers a bit bigger than everyone else, which of course was more time consuming.  The only down fall of the class was the girls didn't finish their quilts so that left the mom's to help.  Since I have NO clue what I am doing, I am grateful for my friend Leslie who does and is helping us with Lexy's too.

 

 

 They aren't quite done yet but getting closer and I promise to post closer pictures of the finished product when it's complete in the upcoming weeks, months or year...Hopefully sooner than later, but we'll see.

 

 Ahh, then Halloween.  Nojah and I dressed up at the last minute.  This is the 2nd year I have had Halloween off from work so I thought I should participate in the fun.  I pieced together a gypsy outfit with Lexy's size 7-10 tights (up to 75lbs)  It was quite the sight watching me get them on and a friends earrings and heels.  Nojah became a basketball player after practice, Lex  called herself the wicked witch of the east or west (can't remember) and Tob quickly transformed himself into Boba Fet a bounty hunter from star wars.

 

I wish I would have taken pictures of the bus.  Lex decorated it and we rolled in style with a wig with devil ears, a tail taped on the hind end, and Halloween pumpkin lights, spider webs and spiders throughout the interior.  We threw a bunch of good friends in and enjoyed a couple of solid hours walking from house to house collecting treats.

 

So there you have it in a nutshell, life here in rural America.  Hope everyone is having a wonderful fall.  We got our first snow and sledding day mid October but now we are back to 50-60 degree days.  I love fall but sure am looking forward to winter festivities as well.

Mighty Hunter

 

This year Nojah was able to hunt under the youth mentorship program which was really cool.  This meant that he got to hunt with dad and fill Tob's tag so the cost for Nojah to hunt was nothing and the experience he had being out with his dad, uncle and cousins was priceless.  From what I was told he calmly shot this guy from 165 yards on his first shot while he was eating breakfast.  He then took another shot while he was running and put him out of his misery.  2 great shots for a 12 year old with a big gun and not a bad first kill.  So in the upcoming weeks and year we will be feasting on deer hamburger, sausage, and steaks and sharing some with Toby's grandparents and his brothers family as well.  The best part is Nojah got his first deer on the morning of Shaun and Amy's wedding and arrived just a 1/2 hour before the ceremony was to begin.

 

and good thing at least Tob was wearing camo.  He didn't stand out too bad.

 

 

 

He actually kind of blended in and the mountain man appearance and blood on the pants were just an added bonus. We were super happy Nojah got his first deer and they made it to the wedding. It was a great day.

Congratulations to my big brother and my new sister in law Amy!  

We wish you many happy years together!

RIP Lucky Duck

Lucky Duck C.

August 14, 2012 (adoption day) to September 22, 2012

We have had yet another upset on the "farm".  Saturday evening after a run we came home to find these two sweet babies of ours snuggling together between the fence.  We put Lucky away for the night in the kennel and brought Barley inside.  The next morning about eight I sent Lex outside let baby duck out and feed him.  She went out and came back in screaming hysterically with tears streaming down her face "Something ripped my ducks head off and he's dead".  Honestly it makes me a bit queasy reliving the moment.  Anyway I went out to check out the situation and she had relayed the correct information.  Baby duck was indeed dead and his head was indeed missing.  We think a raccoon pulled off his head through the kennel during the night but we aren't for sure.  It was a pretty gruesome site and now we are doing the best we can to protect our chickens since we know we have some beasts roaming the neighborhood!

Room for 2? Or not......

 Meet Barley.

 See Barley's Bed.

 Look how good Barley shares with Lexy.

See how Lexy doesn't share with Barley.

Maybe Barley could teach her a thing or two after she wakes up!

Fair 2012

 

Looks like I have forgotten to post about a few big events in our life.  

This past year Lex joined the Bouncing Chickens and Crowing Rabbits 4-H club and intended to show a chicken, but it died, so then she intended to show her new chicken and it died so this April she brought home Medusa her prized Guinea pig and showed her at fair in the small animal competition in August.  We spent 4 full days at the fair grounds starting at about 7am getting the guinea pigs cage set up and cleaned each day to 5pm each night.

 

Nojah spent time with his friends and I didn't see a whole lot of him unless he wanted money.  Lex equally enjoyed catching up with her friends and showing off her guinea pig.  Over the course of the week we learned what fair was all about, and we liked it.

The small animal competition was on Friday Aug 10th and lasted all afternoon.  It was long and hot.  We watched both 4-H and FFA show their chickens and rabbits, and enjoyed watching Lex show the only Cavy and Zyler the only duck. 

All the kids did a great job answering questions, controlling their animals, and making good eye contact.  The judge gave Lex rave reviews saying that even though she had the only cavy she would show very well against other counties in her junior class.  Medusa is a long haired Abyssinian Cavy and are usually more difficult to show according to the book and she may have been the most compliant/calm animal on the table during competition.  We were very proud of our little piggy and kudo's to Lex for all the time she spent the month before fair handling her, studying and getting to know her stuff.  The only question he asked that she couldn't answer was ......What is the gestation period of a guinea pig?  Lex's answer was Um, I don't know what that is. :-) 

Because she took champion in showmanship of her guinea pig, she moved on to what they call all around. 

 

 

All-around is where the showmanship champions of all the different animals (chickens, rabbits, guinea pigs, ducks, etc), get to compete for showmanship of ALL the small animals.   It was pretty cute watching Lex try to show a chicken and bunny and answer questions as well as watch the other kids try and manipulate her guinea pig.  She showed well but didn't know her chickens and bunnies very well but it gives her a goal for next year :-)  To be all-around champion.

We were pretty darn proud of her, she thrived and absolutely loved it.  Next year she is hoping to do dog 4-H, show lucky duck (If I don't kill the duck first), show both guinea pigs and raise a sheep in the back yard for next year.  Very ambitious little thing isn't she?  Although I have to say all summer, especially since going to fair, she has yet to really complain when asked to take care of any of her animals.  She just does it.  She's growing up.

My Cup of Tea

So climbing mountains may not be everyone's cup of tea, but it's mine.  I wish I had one picture that could show a 360 degree view of what I see when I am up there.  Every peak is different looking down into different drainage's, lakes, and across to different peaks.  This particular view is of the Hurwal Divide as well as Chief Joseph.  The rock formations, vast colors, and spectacular views never cease to amaze me.  Earlier today I was on top of Sacajawea, the highest peak in the eagle cap wilderness sitting at just over 9800ft high.  It's about 13.5 miles give or take, round trip with 4700 ft of climbing for a mere 1/2 hour rest soaking it all in and eating a tasty PB&J.  For me, it doesn't get any better than this!

4 days, 3 nights Exploring New Places

 We left last Thursday morning from the Bowman trail head up to John Henry Lake.  The morning was brisk and chilly with frozen fingers.  The cold feelings only lasted about 15 minutes up the 7 mile trail, before our first break with sweatshirts being removed and candy snacks taken out to munch on.  We went with the Olson clan again and our friend's Jen and Adam's dog Friday.  We have missed having a dog and she needed some play time so we brought her along.

 We ate lunch in brownie basin looking up into this saddle where the kids are standing.  This is about 5 miles in and 7800ft, the last climbing they would have to do before descending into Wilson basin and JH lake.  They were tired but still plugging along.  Our original destination was North Minam Meadows but it was 10 miles in and the kids really weren't into passing up John Henry Lake on the way by so we thought we would check it out.

 

 and it was beautiful, so we set up camp.

I mean who could resist throwing off your pack, putting on flip flops and knowing you have nothing to do but this for 4 days.  I LOVE IT!

 I had bought these pink floaties for this reason and Nojah did not want to pack his in.  Because I KNEW he would want his sisters once we were up there, I was just nice enough to pack his for him (In his own pack).  He wasn't impressed when he found out, but he did enjoy it and carried it back home without any complaints.

We explored a very cool mine.  Still intact with boxcar rails and all.  I am normally apprehensive about the kids climbing around in very old holes in the ground, but this one was great.  I am still trying to find some history on it but haven't had much of a chance yet.  I think it's one of the most intact mines left in the wilderness.

Inside the mine.

 Boxcar rails.

 Typical lunch/breakfast/dinner scene

 Comparing finds during a scavenger hunt Jennifer put together.  I was so glad she had done this because it took up about 5 hours of the day and was super fun for the kids.  Nojah and Sarah found a grasshopper for fishing and Lex and Katie made a worm because they couldn't find anything.  But they were proud of it.  Lex swam across the lake in her underwear on her floaty to the island where she had remembered a feather when that was one of the things they were suppose to find.  It was great fun watching them come up with things.

 

 On the last day we hiked to over look North Minam Meadows.  The meadow was a 3.5 mile hike downhill and we weren't sure the littlest of them 8 year old Sarah would be up for the whole 7 mile venture before returning the next day so the girls and Jennifer opted to turn back at the overlook.  Nojah and I took the opportunity to hike down to play in the Meadow for the afternoon.  I always love the one on one time with my kiddo's and he is turning into quite a little mountain goat with few complaints when it comes to hiking, so the 3.5 miles with 2000ft of elevation gain getting back to camp was a piece of cake.

The best part was we got back to camp to find this man taking a nap smack dab in the middle of it.  This is the very reason why you always leave good instructions on where you'll be.  He had 7-10 miles to go to find us in the wilderness but he always proves to be a good tracker.  We were very happy to see him as this year we haven't gotten to spend much time together as a family.

 and even better he got to hike out with us and carry our tent out which lightened my load significantly.  What a good man.  He also got to listen to Alexyss cry almost the entire 7 miles out.  It just wasn't her day.  Oh well, she can redeem herself next time.  The only sad part of the story is I left my water filter of 6 years next to the lake, even after Sarah kindly reminded me it was there.  Tob thought it was not in my best interest to climb back and retrieve it.  We left notes on all the cars and at the campground and hope it comes home to us but if not I guess I will have to get a new one.

 Hope a good family finds you if we never see you again.  I would be devastated if you had to spend your whole winter frozen alongside John Henry Lake.

UPDATE:  A wonderful family from Portland re-united us and our pump.  We are very grateful and they said they tried it out and loved it.  PERFECT, they got a free trial and I got my pump back.  

We have spent quite a bit more time at the lake this year, enjoying the hot summer days kayaking and swimming with friends.  It's been a lot of fun and makes me wonder why I haven't taken advantage of this large body of water more often.  Yesterday we opted to try something new and rented a couple of paddle boards.  They were a TON of fun.  The kids were on them for the entire 4 hours we rented them minus a 15 minute lunch.  I was surprised at how easy it was to balance and paddle and I will have to admit I had just as much fun as the kids.  I kind of want one, but I am not going to tell them, because they may just talk me into it.....And if you haven't tried it you should! 

A little bit of summer

 It seems like I am not doing a great job keeping up with my blogging.  I could make up a lot of excuses but I think I will just stick to....I WILL TRY AND DO BETTER.  Aug 3, 4, and 5th the kids and I and a good friend backpacked into Maxwell lake.  It's only about 4 miles in which was perfect for getting back in time for work on Sunday.  It wasn't really where I wanted to go, but the kids did and I am glad they chose it.  Couldn't have been a better escape.

 The kids brought one collapsible fishing pole which quickly broke with the reel falling into the glacial icy lake.  After much determination and some irritation on her part this little girl alone had it fixed within a half hour or so while the rest of us bailed and said good luck.  I am kind of proud of her because I am pretty certain I would have quit :-)

 The next day we had an off trail route using the map to find Catched Two lake.  It's a beautiful deep lake that has no trail to it, making it that much more enticing to see.  Because we didn't have day packs with us it was a much shorter hike to climb to the peak above the lake than to try and get down to it.  We were still out 4 hours as it was.  As you can see it's steep.

 Nojah and Lex were both a little nervous sitting on the edge.  The rock I am sitting on did appear in person that at any second it may tumble down to the bottom of the lake, but I made them come sit for the picture anyway, because that is the kind of mom I am.

 I have been to this lake once a couple years ago with sandy via a different route and it is probably one of my favorites.  However it's about 1 mile in on the bottom trail and then 1 mile up off trail with 2000-3000 ft elevation gain, so a little steep, but SO worth it.

 

 From the top we had AMAZING views of most of the wilderness and all the peaks.  These pictures don't do them justice and only show a few of the more popular ones we saw, but I thought I would share.

 Snack stop

An evening at Jackson lake.  While Lex and Jennifer were sleeping, Nojah and I went for a hike.  It's always good to get some quiet one on one with each of the kids.  It's moments like these that are priceless.

 and moments like these as well.  :-)  Good Morning Lex

 

There were beautiful flowers with fishing bait all over them.  Apparently this is what Maxwell fish eat because the ONLY fish Lex caught was with a lady bug.

By Sunday morning we were aching to stay but both had to get back to work.  The hike took us 3 1/2 hours on the way in and 1:45 on the way out.  I wasn't nearly as generous with the breaks the 2nd go around.  It was great fun and we are looking forward to another great backpacking adventure next weekend!!  

I love summer!!