New Orleans!!!

 I finally made it to New Orleans!!!  This has been on my bucket list FOREVER!!!  Denise, Teresa and I took our first "sisters trip" together, without husbands and kids, and we had a ball!  And after being there, I've decided it is one of my all time favorite cities in the US!  The people, the food, the music, the architecture, the culture, the color...and did I mention the food!?!  :)  Wow...we just got back and I already cant wait to go again!  In fact, we all want to go back...and soon!  We were there less than 48 hours, and yet we covered so many things!  We explored most of the French Quarter, toured the cemetery, went to Jacksons Square, Cafe DuMonde's, Bourbon Street, and everything else in between!  We basically ate and drank ourselves across the French Quarter!
Teresa scored us a room at the Ritz Carlton for free...and not only that, but we were upgraded to a suite!  Her work participates in mystery shopping, so every year she gets a free place to stay and she rates their hotel.  Well, our hotel was the bomb!  The Davenport lounge inside the hotel was a great place to wind down our evenings...we would go there and enjoy the music of Jeremy Davenport, while having a cocktail or two before heading up to our room.  Wonderful....absolutely wonderful!!!  Here are photos from our adventures in no particular order!  There was just too much going on to post it all here, so I'll let the pictures tell the story!  Enjoy!

Great Stupa ~

Our kick off for the new school year was a hike to the Great Stupa at the Shambhala Mountain Center.  It was a beautiful day, and the girls were excited to be together again!  We even had some little brothers join us too!

Most of us had not been here before, so it was a new experience for all of us!

The girls made offerings and then continued up the path!

They were very excited to reach the Stupa and they couldnt wait to see what was inside.  We circumambulated the Stupa, and then went inside.

I was so proud of our girls...they removed their shoes and quietly walked inside to explore the Stupa. Some of the kids even decided to join a man that was meditating on the pillows.  They were respectful, quiet and so sweet to watch!  They had such a nice time they didnt want to leave.

 They wrote notes to Buddha and then headed home.

 It was a great day to be outside exploring nature and another culture and the girls had a blast!

Lake Agnes and the Michigan Ditch ~

 We went for a hike at Lake Agnes today with the cousins, and it was a gorgeous day for it!  We enjoyed lunch with a view, and then decided to hike back taking the Michigan Ditch trail.

 There were all kinds of wild raspberry bushes along the Michigan Ditch, so we enjoyed munching on those during our adventure.

 The entire hike was roughly 8 miles, and the kids were pooped by the time we finished....here they are at the end of the trail being goofy :)

Anyways, hope you enjoyed our adventures!  

Cousins Fun ~

 Jordyn and Job had some laughs re-staging this photo from when they were 5 and 6 months old...enjoy the fun!

hahahahahah....cousins are awesome!

Meet the New Preschoolers ~

We have a great group of preschoolers this year!  Looking forward to another fun year!  Sharon and i are feeling much more confident entering our 3rd year, and we are excited to try some new things with the kids this year!  Preschool ROCKS!  :)

Catch and Release ~

 The river dropped quite a bit today, so it was time for Justin and Jordyn's Catch and Release tradition!  Every year some fish get trapped in our pond when the water drops, and there is not enough room or food for them to survive, so they "fish" them out and take them to the main channel of the river to save them.

 The best part is...they do it with their bare hands and a net!  

 Kato was quite interested in the whole process...

looks like they've caught another one...i think that makes 3!

 and this one makes 4! 

 Now Fuzzy begins to show interest!

  We caught both rainbows and browns...and we considered keeping a few for dinner, but thought these little guys deserved to live a little longer...so off to the other side of the island with them...

 and away they go!  

Happy trails little fish!