This is our new roof. I don't blame you if you don't see the difference
One day we had a black cat show up at our house and it was really friendly
It stayed outside our house all the time
The boys playing in the backyard with a friend
And on the trampoline with the sprinkler going
The kids were in love with this cat
They even named her Athena
Gnome?
Mason got the table ready for breakfast
Lyza made toys for the cat to play with
The cat was here almost 24/7 for a week and then mysteriously disappeared. The kids had so much fun with her.
Look at those crocodiles
Playing with another friend
We had one last trip to the blueberry farm
Lyza got her photo taken at school for her ID
And she did an orientation the week before school started
Kim took the kids to the County Fair
They got to make balloon animals
Lyza has been taking good care of her ants
Kim took the kids for a lake day at our friends' cabin
They even got to throw axes and throwing stars
Speaking of warriors, Mason made this all out of paper, maybe not the best material for armor and a sword?
We had Nixon's friends over for an outdoor movie
Nixon pulled out his own tooth
We got to celebrate Kim's birthday
The kids gave her very thoughtful gifts
And she made a delicious peach pie
The next day we went on a hike together to Evan's Landing on Lake Pend Oreille
The hike was king of backward because the first half was all downhill (hiking down to the lake) and the way back was all uphill
There were some cool guys on the trail
Show off
The kids had lots of fun playing on the beach at the bottom
We ate some snacks and rested
And I flew the drone and took some pictures
The kids loved throwing rocks into the lake
And then they stuffed rocks into each other's shirts
Then it was time to hike out
When we got back to town we took the kids out for ice cream
The following Monday Lyza started 7th Grade
Kim had her first shift at Kootenai Health (after not working for 10 years!)
That evening they helped me set up my conference table at my office
Nixon borrowed a diablo from the library and has gotten pretty good with it
Nixon is also backflipping again
The days before Henry's birthday Mason was busy making decorations
Henry got to pick up donuts for breakfast on his birthday
He got some money from his Grandma and Grandpa Keyes
He chose to go to Burger King for lunch
Then they played at the park
He had lots of fun opening more gifts before dinner
Check out his reaction to this one...
He had lots of fun playing with his new Hot Wheels toys
Then he got to do a pinata Mason made for him
Then it was time for chocolate cake
He put the candles in himself
Happy 6th Birthday, Henry!
It is hard to believe our Henry is 6!
Two days after Henry's birthday the boys took our annual backpacking trip. This year we chose to go to Roman Nose Lakes. You drive all the way up to the first lake, then you can hike to two more lakes
After a long and bumpy drive we were happy to get out and explore the first lake
There were ripe huckleberries all along the trail
Then after having lunch we strapped on our packs and began hiking
The trails were well marked
There were very nice views along the way
A little rest for these boys
We hiked to the second lake to check it out
Mason was happy to get his head wet
Then we got back on the trail
More hiking to get to our final destination
A snack break eating some Eat Mores
Getting close to the third lake
At the head of the lake there was a nice camp spot
We decided to hike further to see what other options there were. We got some beautiful views of the lake
We eventually turned back and set up camp at the first spot
Tested out the sleeping bags
Then filtered some water
Then it was time for some swimming and cliff jumping
Nixon was brave and jumped with me
The little boys enjoyed cooling off in the cold water
After that we did some exploring
Then we made some dinner
And started a fire
Meanwhile the girls were having a blast
We played some Sleeping Queens
Henry made sure to blow on the fire ;)
We all slept pretty well for backpacking. It was chilly the next morning.
The lake was beautiful with the morning light
We warmed up with some hot chocolate
Then I flew the drone
I got up high to see the different lakes
This is the one we camped at
In this photo you can see all three Roman Nose Lakes and a fourth lake (Snow Lake) to the right and over the ridge.
Some panoramic photos showing Roman Nose
The views were breath taking
We hiked to the other end of the lake to explore
Nixon and Mason loved climbing on these big boulders
Henry and I didn't go up as far
Some pretty wild flowers
After that we had lunch and took down camp
One last photo courtesy of the drone
Then it was time to hike out
We stopped for Frosties at Wendy's on the way home
Our boys backpacking trip was a success!
Here is a video of the trip
And here is one of just drone footage showing off the beautiful area
