Camping 2010

I've always liked camping and wish we went more but for some reason the only time we ever actually make it out is for our annual camping trip with my brother Keith and his wife Natalie. So here it is, a mess of pictures from our 5th annual Morgan/Shideler camping trip.

It started out like this: Happy kids on the drive to the camp site.....for the most part. Very little crying. Thank you portable DVD players and Dora!

We got there on Friday and after discovering that all 4 campgrounds in the area were full we ended up camping in the forest. Very peaceful and secluded, but on the downside there's no water or bathrooms. :(

On Saturday we started the day with a Hike up to see a nearby waterfall. It was named for a lady who hiked up the area , fell, survived the fall but froze to death before help came. Depressing! Ava was very enthusiastic about the "stairs" and surprisingly walked almost the entire way herself....VERY unusual for her.

There was a creek on the way up so we let the girls play a bit. The water was too cold to play for more than a minute though.

Just a cute picture of Sadie on the trail.

And of course, a picture of the waterfall.

Next we went to a nearby ghost town called St. Elmo. There wasn't a whole lot to look at but they are still kind of fun to see.

The best part for Ava was the bridge in town. We spent most of our time here.

Ava and Mom posing by the creek.

Chris helping Sadie play in the creek below the bridge.

Ava's new favorite past time.....throwing rocks off the bridge into the creek.

Later in the afternoon we hit up the Mt. Princeton Hot Springs Pool. It was fun, until I slid down the stairs, dropped Sadie completely into the water, bruised up my forearm, tailbone and toes!

Ava was a little cold after she got out of the water so we put her in a cocoon to warm her up!

Okay, I take it back. THIS is Ava's new favorite past time! She found a dirt pile near our campsite and it occupied her for hours! She got so dirty. But hey, what is camping for if not to get dirty!

I have no idea what she was trying to do here but it sort of reminds me of an animal digging them self a hole, if you know what I mean.

Sunday morning when we were getting ready to go, Ava still wanted to play in the dirt so we put her dirty clothes back on and let her have a go of it again.

It's a good thing we were headed home because a bath was definitely needed!!

Saturday night roasting marshmallows.

It's a good thing I put this picture in or you might not have believed that this was a camping trip with anyone else.

I think she likes it.

We ended the camping trip by stopping on our way home at a River right by the road so that Chris could do some fly fishing. I think he was down there for less than a minute before he came up to the truck to show off his catch. He made several more after so I guess it was a good place to stop.

Good times! Looking forward to next years trip!

Sadie Turns One

I know I'm a few weeks late but here it is anyway:

Sadie turned one at the end of last month. sniff sniff. My little baby is growing up so fast. sigh.

I did take some pictures of her little birthday party but she was in a bad mood that night and the pictures really aren't anything special......Sooooo.......

Instead I am posting some of her 1 yr old pictures taken by my friend Steph. She did a great job and they are so cute! I wanted some of the girls together as well but by the time we got to that Sadie was not cooperating at all! Ava, however, is my little model and was more than happy to pose so Steph took some of her too.

Cute, right?

Happy Birthday Sadie! I love you!

New Toys

This is our "Lake" as Ava calls it. A small man made dirty pond that the cows drink out of from time to time. The new toy is actually the little boat. I have no idea where it came from (Chris found it somewhere on the ranch) but it works....and Ava loves it! Showing off her rowing skills!

Our second new toy is the Trampoline. Ava loves loves loves it. Even Sadie has a good time on it.

And last, but certainly not least (especially in Chris's eyes) is the Motorcycle. Chris has been saying for as long as we've been married that he wants one but I adamantly refused to give my consent. As a way of negotiating him out of it I said that he could buy one but however much money he spent on one I would go spend on clothes.

So what does he do? He goes and finds this old thing in his parents shed and gets it working again. Too bad. I was really looking forward to that shopping spree!

Luckily it isn't street approved so he only uses it on the ranch.

And speaking of using it for the ranch....I mentioned to Chris a few days ago how sad it was that Blue didn't get to go with him anymore because he is always riding his bike instead of taking his 4-wheeler. Chris's reply: "He rides with me on the bike." I had to see it and take a picture to believe it! But here it is. The dog riding as a passanger on a motorcycle.

What We've Been Up To

It's been a (long) while since my last post of any real significance so here is a rundown of what we've been up to!

1. Ava and best friend Oakley hang out and watch on "branding day". 2. We learn that Daddy has an inner sidewalk artist in him.

3. Ava learns to paint fingernails.....sort of. (zoom in for a better view)

4. Mom learns that Ava can't be left alone with the cereal box! (You think the couch is bad, you should have seen the floor!)

5. Ava finds out how much fun it is to play dress up. And apparently learned how to strike a pose!

6. On the ranch it's "take your daughter to work day" everyday!

7. Aaawww. She' just so cute. And needed some blog time.

8. Mom tries to learn, yet again, how to drive stick. (not pictured). And by the way, it is extremely difficult to learn in a truck! I'm just saying.

9. Mom learns new ways to keep the kids entertained.

10. Ava in gymnastics doing "donkey kicks."

11. Ava's favorite thing in gymnastics: "the bar"

12. Ava gets a medal for doing so awesome in gymnastics!

13. Ava and Oakley pose with their medals.

14. Sadie learns how to eat an ice pop.

Also not pictured: Sadie learns to climb the stairs.

SWAGGER WAGON

Yeah, I drive a Swagger Wagon. And proud of it!!

Someone really should teach this girl some manners!!!

It's scary being a parent

Remember This?:

Three weeks ago Sadie got sick and ended up in the hospital with RSV bronchiolitis. This past Sunday, less than two weeks later, I could tell she was sick again. By Monday I knew it was not good. Sadie had a 103.2* temperature and was coughing bad. She was also breathing fast, but I had a previously scheduled 9 month appointment on Tuesday so decided I'd have the doctor check her out then. We came home with this:

An inhaler and plastic spacer for her breathing isssues (wheezing), cream for her exzema, and cream for a diaper rash turned yeast infection. They checked her oxygen level while we were there and said she was doing fine and also checked her ear (she had an ear infection with the RSV) and said that was fine as well. Wednesday I felt like she was getting worse. By Thursday her breathing was so fast I thought I must be counting wrong. I decided I'd better take her in again. We came home with this:

Her oxygen was REALLY low this time. A lot lower than with the RSV so they immediately got her on oxygen. They also found that her ear infection was back so we came home with more antibiotics for that. Not to mention we did an X-Ray which was the most horrible part of the whole experience. The contraption they use for infants literally looks like a torture device!! (If you want to see it go HERE...I laughed when I saw this picture because the kid looks like he's enjoying it but believe me when I say that for a nine month old it was torture!)

We had a follow up appointment today and came home still on oxygen AND with a diagnosis of Pnemonia.

Needless to say the last month has been very hard on Sadie and myself. Hopefully this is the last of it. They gave her some very strong antibiodics that will hopefully take care of the Pnemonia and ear infection at the same time. Please keep her in your prayers! She needs them!