Roller Skating Fun ~

 After all the hard work selling cookies this last weekend, we decided it was time for the girls to celebrate, so a bunch of the girl scout troop met up at the Rollerland for some skating fun!

 Living in the mountains, sidewalks are pretty scarce, so this was a first time skating for most of these girls.  But no matter how many times they fell, they kept getting back up to try again!  And they continued on with a smile on their face!  Jordyn won this glow stick necklace playing a "lights out" game, which made her the last one on the skating floor.  All her friends were cheering her on, and she was sooo excited!  In fact, we all had a great time, so im sure we will visit again soon! 

 Here are a few shots of our cookie booth sales this weekend.  On Sunday we had a booth at the Trading Post and sold 101 boxes...then on Saturday we were at the King Soopers and sold 124 boxes!!!  Well done girls!

 And the best part...Jordyn's Godfather, Donovan, stopped by and bought over a case of cookies!  Thanks for stopping by Donovan...it was great to see you :) 

Hope you all had a wonderful weekend!

Back in Time ~

We went to visit an old friend of the family today, to say hello and sell him some girl scout cookies.  His house is way off the beaten path, so im pretty sure he doesnt have too many visitors.  Visiting Mike is like stepping back in time, in a wonderful way!  His house was built in 1910, and its like taking a trip to the old west.

Mike lives a very simple life...when we stopped by, he had just finished baking a fresh loaf of bread and had beans simmering on the stove (and what a gorgeous stove it is...dating back to the 1920's).

He has no television and no electricity, though he does have a few gas lights in his home and solar power in his shop when he needs it.  That little radio on his table is about it as far as modern conveniences go (though he did add indoor plumbing for a shower, toilet and sink). 

He has a piano, a banjo and a guitar when he wants to jam...but he is an incredibly skilled craftsman and makes beautiful things as well as being the neighborhood handyman.

When i first met him, i wasn't quite sure what to think...we had a very unusual conversation about history, and he was quite heated and opinionated about something that we strongly disagreed upon...but i figured it was a small community, and it was best to just let it go.  Im sooo glad i did, because ive met a really interesting character that tells the best stories and just adores Jordyn.  After all...we're all a bit quirky :)

Jordyn loves visiting Mike too...she thinks his house is really cool, sort of like a museum.  I had never seen his bunk house, so we checked it out while we were there.

The brass bed in this room dates back to 1842 and comes from Birmingham, England.  He has another brass bed in the main cabin from 1890, but this one had an adorable quilt on it too.  See those curtains...Mike made those out of the flour sacks he buys to make his bread.  There are a couple bags sitting on the table in his kitchen (in one of the top photos), and i was sooo happy to see that he uses the bags for other things as well.  waste nothing.  I obtained a few of these flour sacks from him and hope to make a little something out of them in the future.

Meanwhile, it was getting late, so we took a quick swing out in the yard, and then sold Mike a box of Samoas :)  Thanks for the fun Mike!  Have a fabulous weekend!

Happy Valentine's Day ~

 Happy Valentines Day!!!  Jordyn is dressed in her new outfit from Grandma Kristi...between all her grandmas, i never have to buy her any clothes ;)  She is posing with her beautiful bouquet of flowers from daddy...oh, and the box of chocolates from daddy too.  Then it was off to school where they had a bunch of valentine activities planned for their school party...

 Once she got home, she got to open the rest of her Valentine goodies...including this movie shes been asking for for weeks...Ice Age - Continental Drift.  Happy Valentines Day Jordyn...We LOVE you!!!

Safe Travels Phil ~

Our cousin, Phil, is being deployed to Afghanistan today.  My Aunt Gwen had a going away party for him on the 2nd, but i thought i would save the blog post for today.  This is his 4th deployment, but the first time he has left from his hometown, so we all wanted to send him off with lots of hugs and love!  I think his family appreciated it, usually they do it all alone, and i can only imagine how rough that must be.

Jordyn made him a special card, that read, "thank you for protecting us!"  Phil promised her he would take it with him, and take a picture of him holding up her card when he got over there.  Jordyn was happy to know her card would go with him, and gave him big hugs!

Then it was time to dip into the cake...somebody get those kids some plates!  :)

The cousins all had a great time together...the old and the young!  The kids played out in the yard until the sun went down...

while the adults gathered, where else...but in the kitchen!

There was music, laughter, pillow fights...

 

more laughter, and even a few tears....but a good time was had by all!

On the way home, Jordyn was very concerned with Phil going away, and had lots of questions for me that were so honest and sincere.  She wanted to know why there were wars, and why people had to kill each other.  She also hoped Phil stayed safe and was sad to see him go.  She decided she was glad her daddy did not have to go to Afghanistan.  I agree sweetheart...i wish none of them had to go!  Be safe Phil...we love you!

A Sweet Dream ~

When i picked Jordyn up from school the other day, her teacher showed me what she had wrote for her assignment that day.  My heart was filled with joy and love!

It reads...

"I have dreamed that I would be a great artist because my mom is one of the greatest.  Mom draws nature and the seas.  I dream of being just like her."  

Thanks for making me feel soooo special sweetheart!  I love you to the moon and back!!!  xoxoxo

Cookie Booth Fun

 We had our first booth sale today, and the girls had a blast!  They danced around with the signs, singing about cookies and having a ball. 

 The weather was gorgeous, so we set up out front for the first few hours to enjoy the sunshine...and let me tell you...we had a line forming before we even unloaded the boxes out of the car! :)

 By the evening we sold out of Thin Mints, Do-Si-Dos and Tagalongs, so it was time to call it a night.  But it was a good night indeed, and we sold 176 boxes!  Way to rock the cookie sales girls!!!

Goodies From Grandma ~

We received a package in the mail yesterday from Grandma Barbara...inside were two new valentine outfits (shes modeling one of them here) and this pink, big-eyed monkey!  Jordyn has informed me that Squirrelly is thrilled to have a playmate...as is Jordyn :)  Thanks for the goodies mom...oh, and take a look at that jack o lantern smile...yep, she lost another tooth last Friday!  Im guessing the tooth fairy must be getting awfully low on Sacagaweas!