It's a bear's life

After an adventure-filled weekend in Kalispell, Montana, I finally have a chance to sit down and update! First, a funny story that could only come from the land of Wagner in the beautiful state of Montana...We were driving back from Kalispell where Bo had announced a rodeo, when he suddenly made a different kind of announcement - the call of nature was upon him. (Basically, he just had to pee). Both of the kids were sleeping in the back of the truck we had borrowed for our journey so we decided to just pull off the side of the road at the first available clearing. Keep in mind it is pitch black and going on 10:00 at night. As the truck slows to a stop I look up just in time to see where my husband has parked us - right underneath a friendly sign welcoming us to "GRIZZLY ENCOUNTER!" Nope, not kidding. We were at the entrance to what I can only imagine was a Jurassic Park-type arena where cuddly little grizzly bears are just waiting for a midnight snack. I pointed this out to my husband, with a VERY CALM tone of voice I might add. Needless to say, we didn't stick around long enough to encounter any grizzlys this time around.

We are really looking forward to our trip back home again!! We will leave one week from today, July 3rd, and leave on Monday, July 14th. Not excited about the humidity again but we ARE looking forward to the air condition (our house and van are currently sans air).

The kids are doing great and staying healthy. We are so blessed to have time with our kids and (usually) are able to look back on the day with a grin over all of their silly antics. Landon's nickname of late is "Chili Chomper"...not sure where that one came from but he did try to steal his sister's PBJ sandwich yesterday at the park. That kid can EAT! Juliana decided her bathing suit was a little too restrictive last week at a water park so I finally knew how it felt to be THAT MOM that everyone is laughing at (with?) as her kid streaked across the field.

Well, better run - kids are awake! Can't wait to see everyone soon.

Merrily we roll along...

We had an exciting day at our house a few days ago - Landon rolled over for the first time! We almost missed it in the chaos that sometimes reigns, especially in the evening when Juliana is getting cranky (okay, I admit - I'm cranky too) and we're trying to get dinner somewhat arranged. Landon was laying on a blanket on the floor on his back, and I looked over just in time to see him trying to get his sweet (albeit chunky) little self rolled over onto his tummy. You can see in the pictures how he started out pretty happy but got quite annoyed when he realized he was STUCK on his tummy!

We are going to Kalispell, Montana, this weekend with Bo as he announces a team roping. 6 hours in the car with the kids should be an adventure, but we're glad to see another part of the state.

Hope everyone has a great rest of the week! Can't wait to see everyone over the 4th!

SERIOUSLY!

Okay people, let's have a little weather recap. Apparentley all of you East Coasterners (is that a word?) have been suffereing from a tiny bit of a heat wave. Maybe your noses are a little sunburned from playing outside all day, and maybe you had to use just a tad more deodorant than you would have normally applied. Let me give you a little perspective - today, in Billings, Montana, United States of America, the high is FIFTY TWO (52) DEGREES! Did I mention the 50 mile an hour wind gusts? Oh, yeah - that's right. Bo wore a sweater yesterday. I am not kidding. A sweater.

In spite of this news, I have to look on the bright side. Our house and our minivan are without air condition at this point, so we are not roasting. That's good. And, let's see...I haven't had to really wear shorts yet this summer, so I don't have to obsess over my ugly kneecaps! (No, seriously - they're ugly). It's all good...I have been assured by many homesteading Montanans that this is NOT normal and we are actually over 20 degrees below normal for this time of year. It will get warm and sunny and beautiful..one day. (Just keep saying that with me...)

Enjoy whatever weather you've got for now! Miss everyone!

-Brooke

I have WHAT?

This morning I woke up with a new illness to add to my repertoire - mastitis! For all of you menfolk reading this I will spare you the details, but for any woman out there who has ever suffered from this terribly fun ailment, I know you are cringing right now. I basically feel like I have been hit by a Mack truck going 85 miles an hour, down the interstate, carrying a load of bricks. My wonderful husband came home from work after I called him with a 101.5 fever. I was going to try to tough it out but I didn't think it was the greatest idea to stay at home by myself with two kids when I was feeling so rotten. I have some wonderful green sulfa-smelling antibiotics to keep me company so hopefully this won't last too much longer.

Everyone else is doing great. Juliana is already talking about how excited she is to visit the beach when we come home in July - we just wonder, is the beach ready for HER? Landon is (we think) trying to get some teeth in so his little cheeks are just as rosy red as they can be. He is starting to reach for things and pull tight, which makes big sister very upset when it's her hair that's in his path! It's so fun to see how different their personalities are, but how similar they are starting to look.

Well, better run for now. Hope everyone is doing great!

love,
Brooke

Here's some updated pictures from Bo's tummy time - I mean LANDON'S! Also, funny story about Juliana - her latest "thing" is to come out of her room at bedtime and say "My blankie is broken!" What do you do with that? Tonight she's on for a new record...we said "goodnight" for the first time at 8:00, and her blankie has been broken for over an hour now. If she comes out one more time that old blankie is in BIG trouble. I'm sure we'll laugh about this one day...right?

Enjoy the pictures!

-UPDATE: My computer is not wanting to publish images right now...I'll try to get the pictures up later! Sorry!