The Cuttest thing in the World....

(Zoe) is Ike. He is adorable, furry, cute, loving, and loyal (well, most of the time).Plus picture perfect!

With our new camera I couldn't help myself so here are some more: 









And this is from when Michael came back wearing the new "stylish" hat we gave him:

Relaxed and Happy

(Zoe) Today was a relaxing day for us. All day we crafted our Christmas presents and played piano, (well, I, that is, played piano), and had fun. Christmas is edging nearer and nearer and I wanted to finish all my presents by the end of November but it does not look like that is going to happen. But then, while we were crafting, Dad came and told us that he had just been talking to Michael and that Michael was coming to our house on Wednesday! This day was just getting better and better! And then, to finish off the day, Dad said that we are watching a movie tonight! Relaxation and Happinessation here I come!

Missing the Slobber

So..............at the end of August, the B's took two full weeks to traverse California - seeing more of it than ever before.  We started in Vancouver, WA, driving the I-5 corridor clear down to California wine country and enjoyed a brief respite from the yellow line syndrome.  After being refreshed, we headed south a bit then west to the Pacific.  Continuing south along the coast, cutting east through L.A., turning south again and east another little bit until Escondido!  Catch our breath!  Sightsee.  Gather hugs to last 'til Christmas, then about face.  Drive north through Anaheim, veering east to Visalia, over and through Sequoia N.P., then up to Yosemite N.P., back out to Redding and home via the I-5.  Whew!

Here's a few of the particulars along the way:

We hoisted the cartop carrier onto the Jetta and filled both to the hilt.  Needless to say, the big dog wasn't able to take the trip with us. (see title)  At 4ish in the morning, we pulled out of our driveway.  At 6ish that evening we pulled into my sister's driveway in Napa.  It was great to be able to see her hometown and spend time with her & her husband!  We toured some fabulous wineries, tasted several delicious local wines and saw some lovely country.  The Jelly Belly Factory was a delightful tour that had been promised since '06.  :)  And, of course, we had to have In and Out burgers.  Although they weren't as noteworthy as I had remembered.  While we lounged in the comfort of their beautiful and inviting home, Rolf bbq'd some scrumptious tri tip & chicken, and we ate yummy champagne grapes & pistachios, along with a plethora of other fineries for the palete. Andrea shared stories of her youth in the church & school at St. John's - just a few minutes from her home.  The beginnings her folks gave her in our Lord have formed her loving heart.  And now we are truly sisters, eternally!  What a blessing to attend worship services with her here on earth!  She & Rolf were currently fostering two adorable kittens, Leo and Cleo, which gave us quite a show.  So cute!  Rufus didn't seem too impressed (their dog).  And, Dudley, the true cat of the house, did his best to ignore the whole thing.


Rolf and Andrea deserve the Host & Hostess of the Century award!

These photos are not from the bzillion we took on our new camera - unfortunately.  At this techno-challenged juncture, this is all we can retrieve for your enjoyment. 

books & movies

(Zoe)  The word 'sick' is not a very pleasant word. When I think of it I imagine barf and all sorts of gross stuff. But, on the bright side, if you're lucky you might just get to watch movies all day. However, that did not happen with me. I have only watched three movies so far (but there is always the hope of one tonight!). Plus I was put to work on school (OK, only a little, tiny bit but it still counts). But, overall I guess it was OK because I got to read 2 books and have already started on my third. And I am glad that I got sick after Cider Saturday and not before (we did take pix but have not downloaded them yet...coming soon)! No worries, however I am on the mend and will be back at normal (boring) school, hopefully tomorrow.

Autumn

(Zoe) Autumn has arrived and it has been a while since our vacation. We will eventually post something on our blog about it but for now...

Autumn is a beautiful season (personally, I think Winter is much more fun). We just finished unloading and stacking three cords of wood that Dad got off craigslist so I think we will be warm when it starts getting colder, which it already has. Almost every day now is cloudy and cold, which I hope is a sign of snow. But Autumn also brings school with it (bum,bum,bum). On the bright side, on Saturday we are going to the Terry's house and celebrating Austin's 11th Birthday, which is actually on next Thursday.

California... Here we come!!

(Zoe) Thankfully, with careful planning, we are soon going to be in California!!! We are going down there mainly to visit Zack and Jess, and our Aunt Andrea and Uncle Rolf,  but  we also will be doing many fun things like going to Disneyland, The Jelly Belly Factory, The San Diego Zoo, and much, much more! Hopefully we will have time to post on our blog during the trip. With Dad's new Nikon D5000 Camera, there should be plenty of awesome pictures.

The 59th Year of His Life....

(Mattea) Yesterday, we were able to witness the 59th birthday of my Dad. 59 years old! Wow! Happy Birthday Dad!! :) This is quite a special year of his life... Because of his family.. Yesterday, there was at least a card or a call from every single one of his kids.

-Zack & Jess sent Him a wonderful, creative birthday card, that came on the very exact date of his birthday.~

-Cali left him a note on our office door explaining how she had forgot her card at home, but still wanted to let him know that the Terry/Eddie family was so grateful that he was their Dad/Grandpa.~

-Zoe and I each made homemade cards for Dad.~

-And also, Michael (who is more like a brother to Dad than a child), called Dad the day of his birthday.~

What a wonderful thing to know.. That your kids (and grand kids) remember your birthday-a truly special day of your life, and not only remember, but call and/or write to let you know that they love you and are extremely happy that you are their Dad/Grandpa. That's Awesome! ..and all of Dad's kids (and grand kids) did just that! Thank you guys!!! It really did make Dad's day even more special! :) He appreciated that very much!!

Also, for Dad's birthday (since he likes Thai food a lot), we went to a Thai Food place called, "Golden Tusk". Mrs. Cole and Mrs. Tuck suggested it to Mom, so that's where the idea came from. It was the first time Zoe and I had Thai Food, and it was really good! Dad had Seafood Curry. Mom had Chicken Curry with Vegetables. Zoe had Thai Wonton Soup. And I had, Pad Thai Noodles with Pork and Broccoli. And as our Appetizer we had, fried pot stickers. Those were really good too! And Dad enjoyed a delicious Singha brew, as well.

So.... it was a truly special occasion. And a time to remember... :)

HAPPY BIRTHDAY DAD!!!

This is dad's dish...

And this is Dad... the birthday guy.... :)

This is my delicious dish! ;-)

Mom's dish...

And that's all for now folks! :)

The Week of my life.....

(Mattea) So, my first day was wonderful. I went to sleep that night praising God for helping me achieve my goal. "So here I am... the place where I've been dreaming about for months.... How amazing.... THANK YOU LORD!!!"
The next day, Sunday, was my first full day of camp. We got up at 7:00 a.m. every single day. We first had personal devotions, then flagpole assembly, after that breakfast, and so on. (Because, if I told every single detail on this blog about Awana Camp there would be no room left.)
Since Monday morning was the same as Sunday, I'll tell about Monday night.
The highlight of Monday night was chapel/worship. The pastor was Steve Pigott. He really helped me get involved. And I learned a lot. He actually lost his eye 12 years ago. He has a glass eye, and he wears an eye patch. Just a little bit of inside history about Mr. Pigott.
All the other days were basically the same, except for Friday night.. the last night...
the night that touched me the most.... (especially during the camp fire.) The sermon topic Steve Pigott preached was called, "Jesus is my life". (At least I'm pretty sure that's the name.) It was amazing... utterly amazing... to see God work in so many people's lives that night. Because I know He sure worked in mine. Because of the Holy Spirit working in my life through Awana Camp, I am growing and changing into a better person, a person for Christ alone.
After chapel, all the Junior highers went out to the camp fire right by the lake. (Since the High Schoolers and Junior highers are separated.) So, we went out to the camp fire to sit down, enjoy the fire, sing worship songs, share our testimonies and glorify God our heavenly Father. Quite a few kids became Christians that night. Hopefully everybody changed. It was the most amazing, most wonderful thing to be with fellow Christians, and super new fellow Christians serving and giving and glorifying Christ. I will never forget last week... that night... That was definitely the week of my life.

Awana Camp!!

(Mattea) During Awana last year, I worked as hard as I could to achieve my goal... to be Top Clubber so I could get a scholarship to Awana Camp. Which means going for FREE! :) And guess what? I got it!!!
So last week... I had the pleasure of going to Puget Sound Camp where Awana Camp is held. I rode with the Kieswethers up there to find that what I dreamed about for so long was actually happening. As soon as we drove into the parking lot, I was so filled with joy that I almost screamed!

I got signed in, then walked around with Claire, as she found friends from last year and I made new friends. I was so amazed... "I'm actually here!", I kept saying to Claire. It was nothing like I had ever dreamed or imagined. I was about to have the week of my life.

Animals Galore!

(Zoe) Last week when Mattea and I were at the Terry's, (because Mom and Dad were at Colville), we played with their animals a lot. Although they have only lived there for two and a half months they have...

A VERY VERY cute dog named Copper, (actually Mom and dad brought it home from Colville for them),

Freddie Eddie, The Hamster (sorry, I don't know how to rotate it)

14 Chickens

1 Moma Cat, Casey, and 5 adorable kittens

And last but not least, Turbo, Austin's Turtle

In fact, today the Cole's just gave us 6 chicks, with a warning that there might be more on their way! Which makes all our animals include...

Ike

Ashes

And 6 cute little chicks!!

Happy Birthday, Ryon!

(Zoe) Yesterday we watched Ryon, Jackson, Alexa, and Austin for a few hours. Today is actually Ryon's 7th Birthday, ( Happy Birthday Ryon! ), so since we would not be able to see them today Ryon got to open his present from us, which included Dart Tag, Colorful Bandages, and a T-shirt that had the United States on it. Here are some pix:

Ryon was very happy

Jackson in the Dart Tag outfit

Ryon posing (he loves to pose)

Summer Pictures

(Mattea) Yesterday, I was able to take some pictures of different things around the backyard... And enjoy all the beautiful things God has made.

Our wonderful dog, Ike

One of Mom's beautiful Roses.

Another one of Mom's roses.

Ike's favorite thing to do...

Our butterfly bush...

Some More Pictures from the 4th Of July....

Here's the fire... You've just got to have a fire on such an occasion... :)

And then, since there actually was people there, I took Pictures of some of those people....

Those are the firework setter- uppers extraordinaire!!!

Random people getting sparklers.. They look concentrated.

That is definitely Zoe... No doubt about that.

Michael... Eating his FIRST S'more EVER!!!!