Crabby Friends

These are our little pet hermit crabs. The kids got them for Easter last year (two of them died and were replaced soon after we got them!), they've almost been alive for a whole year! They stay in their shells most of the day and move around at night, but today they were all out climbing around and looking so cute ( in a tarantula cute sort of way), I had to take a few pictures.

Tiger, Ben's Crab

Sweet Pea, Heidi's Crab

Mr. Crabs, Williams Crab

Tiger and Mr. Crabs climbing out of the water dish

Tiger and Mr. Crabs (aren't they pretty, I decorated them myself!)

My Sweet, Sweet Sister

How did you know? I was having the most aweful day! You are so precious, thank you!

Proverbs 31:30-31

"Charm is deceptive, and beauty does not last; but a woman who fears the Lord will be greatly praised. Reward her for all she has done. Let her deeds publicly declare her praise"

Thermopolis Wy

The kids and I ventured over to Thermop this week with the Shaffers. Beth and I took the kids to a Women of The Rockies Art Exhibit (Really small, not totally worth the drive!), we shopped around downtown, ate lunch at McDonald's (kids choice of course!), and went to Hot Springs State Park. We walked around the springs, across Swinging Bridge (we saw and otter climbing around on the rocks below, he was too fast for my camera!), and drove up to see the buffalo. It was a nice break to get out of town, even if it was only for a few hours!

On Swinging Bridge

L-R Benjamin, William, Olivia, Victoria, Heidi

Like Father, Like Son

William is growing into quite the outdoor enthusiast! He went ice fishing for the first time recently, and he loves to check out all of the ducks and geese that John brings home from hunting.

T.R. and Daddy

Benjamin's First Day of School

Benjamin started Preschool this month at Children's Resource Center. He's going 3 mornings a week, and he gets his speech therapy during that time. He is shy, but he loves going! What a big boy he is!

Nana and Papa come for a visit

Nana and Papa came for a visit recently. Papa kept all the kids entertained by making paper airplanes and hats out of the newspaper, and we all celebrated Papa's birthday early with a strawberry banana cake!

Papa Benjamin and Heidi

Papa and the boys singing Christmas Carols

Happy Birthday Papa!

Benjamin in his paper hat

Aargh, Me Hardies!

Aargh! Happy Birthday Benjamin! Despite the snowy weather keeping a few party guests from making it to Worland, We had a swash-buckling good time with all our scurvy friends! Ben had a Treasure chest cake filled with yummy treasures, and enough pizza to satisfy even the hungriest sea dog! Our good friends the Degraws, Jenks, and the Fortins, along with Grandma Shade helped us celebrate.

John, Ben, and Lacey

Tyler, Lacey, and Benjamin

Tyler and Ben- Amber and Andy

X marks the spot Matey!

Santa Makes a Special Trip to Worland

After our time of celebrating, we made it home to Worland. Santa made an extra special trip on Saturday night to make sure we all got something for being so very good this year!

T.R., John, and Heidi

Benjamin and William

Christmas in Casper

We traveled to Casper Christmas Eve and stayed until Saturday. We opened presents with both sides of the family and stuffed ourselves with yummy food!

Papa and Alyssa

Alyssa- what a cutie!

William, Megan, and Ben pretending to take a nap!

Nana and Papa got the boys cap guns, they were super loud and smoked when you fired them.

William and Emily

Heidi sitting in the baby's high chair, and drinking it's bottle!

The trigger was hard for Benjamin to pull, he was making the most hillarious faces everytime he shot his pistol! What do you get when you cross a Texan with a Wyomingite? One crazy litttle cowboy!

William got his favorite movie RV, he's ready to go RVing all around the country with unlce Rob now!

More funny Gun Faces!

Grandpa telling William about the pictures in the hunting scrapbook John and I made for him.

Christmas Hangover

Christmas is done, WHEW! The kids are coming down off of a week long sugar high, and mountians of presents, back to the grind!

Heidi
Cousin Emily

A Trip Down South

The kids and I made an unexpected trip to Texas before Christmas. My grandad passed away, and we drove down in two days (19 hours each way, and 6 hours round trip to Monahans). The kids were such troopers, the dvd player broke in Colorado, and Ben got carsick in Amarillo (We littered a car seat, pillow, clothes, and a thousand wipies- "Don't Mess With Texas" doesn't apply to throw up!). It was so worth the extra effort to take them. They got to meet so many special people for the first time and see special places from my childhood. If you were praying for us, we could tell! Nothing had changed much, everyone was a little bit older, but still the same- we had such a wonderful time catching up with everybody.

Uncle Joe, Dad, Uncle Scott, Nanny

L-R Cousins Drew, Katie, Bubba, Megan, Suede, Stetson,
Blake, Nanny, Me

Megan, Mom, Dad, Me, Bubba

Nanny and Dad having a wheel chair race with the kids!

Papa, Benjamin, William, and Heidi

Willam playing Christmas carols, this looks just like a picture of Stephen at Sweeetwater when he was a little boy.

William and Papa cut down some mistletoe, he was catching everyone with kisses!

William and Katie

Kissing Suede, what a Shirley, kissing his cousins at a family funeral!

Nanny and William under the Mistletoe

When I was a kid, everytime the family got together, everyone played music and sang. It was so much fun to do it again, especially for my own kids to take part. We sang every Christmas carol we could think of!

William wrestling with uncle Joe

Benjamin, Papa, Heidi, and Bubba

Nanny had a litter of kittens hidding in the wood pile, the kids had so much fun playing with them. Heidi was talking to John on the phone, he asked her what she had been doing, all she said was "meow, meow!"

Papa and William got Grandad's tractor started, but it wouldn't roll because it had a flat tire.