Havin' a Good Ol' Time!

Well, life has been treating us well here. We've kept ourselves pretty busy lately and we're enjoying it.

Carli's little buddy J. came over to play one night and this is how it ended - watching Lady and the Tramp with matching pillows, blankets, drinks and snacks. Life was pretty calm.

Because it has been so warm out lately, we figure that means it's warm enough to go swimming. Well, it's not. Logan a.k.a. "The Polar Bear" thought he'd like to go for a dip...

He quickly changed his mind and moved over to the hot tub with this little lady.

The day ended in some sun-bathing from our teen-wanna-be. I have a feeling I'll be getting that facial expression from her for years to come.

We had some friends over last weekend and found a few surprises throughout the night, including the girls in the box,

and the combined efforts of all of the kids in Carli's room. Quite a masterpiece, huh?

We went to the zoo with friends on Friday and Carli had a ball. She especially liked hugging the "aminals".

Maybe we should have named her Bindy.

I almost had the best shot with Carli and J.'s bums and feet sticking out the back of the big pot. Unfortunately, you can hardly tell that he is in there with her. (Look for the little feet poking out.)

Our little hatchling.

And in keeping with tradition, we had to strike a pose in the turtle shell.

Carli's been talking all weekend about how she got to "pet the soft rabbit and the soft guinea pig."

For Logan's birthday I bought tickets to a rodeo and the Lady Antebellum concert. It was so much fun. We saw some awesome competitors, a bullfighter get thrown 12 feet in the air, Whiplash the Cowboy Monkey, and of course an excellent performance. Now we are looking forward to the family coming into town for Thanksgiving next week. I love this time of year when we get to see family. And especially for this month when we think about gratitude more often. I really am grateful for so many things and have been struck by how much we have that we don't think about often enough. Also, how sometimes the things we really don't feel grateful for (trials, hardships) turn into our greatest blessings. Be grateful!