Our Buffalo Gap Village Visit

Colton attempting to be a cowboy!

Somebody got caught.

I love these little pants... the bottom fabric is from Tyler's grandma from the 70's! and I made them for Kellen when he was little, and now Soren is wearing them, and almost grown out of them!!

One with the earth.

my musical girl

For some reason, I love this picture... blurry I know.

Kellen's favorite place there... he loves trains.

I can rope (I actually did it twice, and got the steer) with a baby on my back. I'm that good!

Nice Little Sunday Balloon Chasing

Today:
Tyler: What do you want to do today?
Me: I don't know. Any ideas?
Tyler: How about Buffalo Gap? We didn't really explore there last time.
Me: Sounds good, let's go.

Another 2 hours later, after we finished hanging out and gathering things for the excursion... we weren't sure if we were excited about it or not... 

Heading off base, we spot a hot air balloon. We tried to guess it's colors and what not. And luck would have it, we headed towards it! Then in front of us is a truck with gear in it, and on the side says some sort balloon chaser on it, and they turn into a parking lot... so we do to. We watch the balloon in amazement (it was really close), and we ask the "chasers" if they are going to land soon. They said sure thing, and they ask, "Do you guys want to help bring it in?"

We look at each other, not really knowing how to react, or if it is something we really want to do... They we say "Sure!"

So we follow.

It was a test of patience.

They thought they would land in one spot, and then they couldn't for one reason or another.

So we followed.

Then finally, it happened! So we stayed back, then they invited us up close, and Colton and Ayla both got a turn to get inside of the basket and PULL the lever that makes the fire! They were scared, but pretty amazed at the same time! It was so fun.

Then Tyler helped get the air out and roll it all up, and it fit in a bag the size of a small coffee table. It was pretty cool.

This was Soren's job the whole time!

Yeah, it was an hour out of our other excursion, but it was SO cool. I am so happy we said "Sure" to balloon chasing. If you ever get the chance, you won't regret!

A day in the rain

The kids having some fun during a rain storm last week. Or maybe the week before that? They all seem to run together after a while... They were having so much fun! I am not sure why they laid down in the water, but it sure looked like they had a bunch of fun. Oh, to be a kid again.

Part of our Austin trip

This is the house we stayed at while in Austin.

It was beyond AWESOME!

This was one of the doors on the front porch that led to the living room.... I would say that this house is a place I dream about someday living in. It was that nice. A dream house, I say.

How sweet are these two?

These stairs led to our family bedroom... which was so cozy. There were old double doors on each end of the long room, and opened they let in a wonderful breeze.
Awesome, I tell you.

Here is the upstairs "family room" with the two models. The huge windows let in SO much light.

So throughout the whole house, beadboard (what you might think of as the boards that go halfway up a wall) was on the ceilings.... it looked fantastic.

In this right hand corner of the pic is a chaise lounge... Kellen slept there and LOVED it!

The most awesome old bathroom sink! I really want one in our future house in the "kids" bathroom. I loved that it had three spouts for the kids and one drain. It was perfect.

Looking from the bathroom into the bedroom.

Oh, and the beds were VERY comfy. Even with being super sore from the Tough Mudder, we slept like rocks!

Off the back part of the wrap around porch. The kids had a fabulous time running around the whole house over and OVER again.

Even Soren was loving it. Which was tiresome.

Tyler really wanted to fish... too bad we left the poles at home.

The master bedroom, and its wonderful antiques.

My parents said it was very comfy, and the only complaint was on the last night, and the wind was howling... they said it was pretty noisy.

Something I would be willing to live with. Promise.

Part of the living room.

There was a TV here, along with a DVD player... but no cable and no WiFi, much to my father's dismay!

Here is the rascally crowd! Kellen was not wanting to have his picture taken at all.

And it was cold.

If you can see... Colton is wearing Tyler's special Tough Mudder headband... the kids loved them.

Plus they kept their ears warm!

On the back stairs of the house.

We had a couple people over for dinner the night we got into town, and had a great time bbqing up some chicken and enjoying the beautiful sunset.

The front of the Pond House....

Absolutely beautiful.

Even with the scorpion we found, the mud daubers (we think), and the dead mouse under the sink (in a trap). Those are just things that occur out in the country.

We loved every minute of it!

More to come on the Tough Mudder and how much fun that was (and the week working up to it!)!!!

Mesa Verde National Park, Colorado

Mesa Verde was a wonderful place. It was amazing to see what the native people made and how they lived. The cliff dwellings are truly amazing! The kids were fascinated with the houses in the rock. We camped one night in the campground, and then headed to Moab.