Back to School

Monday night before school started we had a bit of frozen yogurt with the grandparents.  A summer tradition we love! 

The first morning of school the boys sat at the bar and chatted with Mike and me. 

And then came the photos....so many photos. 

They're so handsome!

Josh is as tall as my chin!  

So happy daddy was in town this year! 

I love taking pictures by this tree.  Josh and the tree are both growing so fast. 

Pretty sure this was the first day of 1st grade...tiny tree, no houses in the background, and no teeth in the smile. 

Luke's shirt says Volbeat on it.  :)

Tough guys

Sweet, forced smiles. 

And he's off!  We live only 2 blocks from CJMS, so he can ride his bike to and from school. So much independence!

Luke was not happy to pose in front of the Emily Dickinson sign.  It's a tradition I'm not ready to give up!

My sunflowers went nuts this year! 

Tuesday was gear pickup day for football.  These two handsome devils. 

The week flew by, and then we were at the lake!  Dad and this old school coffee mug sure area  good match!

This picture makes me happy.  It's all of our parents in one boat watching Luke surf.  

The boys did their first night swim.  This is crazy this is crazy this is crazy!

Ruby likes her people close to her and on dry land, so she was happy when Josh got to the ladder. 

The kids wanted to do a Cinco -- five water sports in one weekend.  They surfed, wakeboarded, waterskied, kneeboarded and tubed.  

Josh was doing Switch riding (even got up twice Switch!), and jumped the wake!

The boys loved their RC boat off the dock.  It was fun to watch it zip around the water. 

My smiling parents!  Yay!

The smoke was THICK Sunday and Monday.  The state is on fire. 

Sunday night we took the kids tubing and Mike and I took our first ride together (ever??).  It was a lot of fun and we didn't even get hurt. :) 

I love this picture because Luke is loving it, Josie looks so scared, and Josh is goofing off. 

Sunday night we had a low country boil, and Luke LOVED it.  He ate a zillion shrimp and loved everything dipped in butter. 

We don't have a campfire for our annual campfire Luke on Dad's lap photo, but we sat around the campfire ring. 

A week at the lake

Monday morning Mike and I made the patio our office for a little while.  I could get used to that!

Mike Sr made us some eclipse safety devices using cardboard and welding lenses. 

We started viewing on the deck...

And moved to the boat when the eclipse got more complete. 

A panoramic view of the lake.  The picture doesn't do it justice. 

Family swim!

Luke got chilly after he surfed so he got cozy in the Rocky Robe.  

The boys are good enough boat drivers now that they can pull Daddy.  I'm so impressed!

The valley was so clear, it was just gorgeous. 

Someone's pretty excited about water skiing! 

Wednesday we went to Kalispell to work on a table that my dad made into a coffee table for us.  He found a dining room table and we cut it down to coffee table height.  I loved watching him work in his garage, he was so in his element. 

Wednesday night my parents stayed down at the lake with us, so Lily and Ruby got lots of bonding time.  

Thursday we painted the table a pretty red.  The boys helped with the final coats. 

Friday we saw a frog on the deck, and this guy on the screen door.  

He was huge!

We rented a paddle board for a day, and Josh loved it almost as much as Ruby did.  

Josh was doing yoga on it within minutes of trying it out.  That kid's balance is amazing. 

This is just a fun picture of Ruby jumping off the dock.  

Luke got a chance to knee board on the 20+ year old board.  He loved it!

Saturday afternoon John, Dacia, and Rylan joined us again.  Rylan wasn't too sure about it when people fell while surfing/skiing. 

I just could not get over how clear and beautiful the water was. 

Rylan looks like he's levitating!  He liked sitting in the kayaks. 

We got a boat lift for our boat, and it needed some tweaking.  Good think we have Mikey around! 

Just floating through the days...

Someone was very happy! 

Just a picture of the incredible color of the water in the wake.  

I love this smile!
Mike brought his "real" camera for a little surf session on Sunday.  We got some nice facial expressions and personality capturing photos. 

The T pose is his go-to.

Heading up the wave, tongue out of course. 

Concentration!

And, not so much concentration.  Goofy! 

Working hard. :) 

He's pretty serious.

Until he's goofy. 

I love his sweet face.

Till next week!