Nature update

Once again long time no blog. We are hanging out here still in Avery. We all have our own jobs to do around here at the lodge and it’s pretty fun. From time to time we get cabin fever but when that happens we go for a nice beautiful drive of the St Joe’s River Rd towards Montana. Or up into the mountains and look for sheds. My new favorite hobby is to find photograph waterfalls and there are sure a lot around here! The wildlife around is so abundant here. We have seen Bears, Mountain Goats, Mule Deer, Whitetail Deer, herds of Elk. The one thing we have yet to see while we’re here is a Moose, but I know there here. And oh my goodness the Humming Birds are everywhere, I have never seen so many, you can actually be filling up the feeder and have the birds swarming around your head. And Butterflies too……just beautiful. The kids are loving it!!!

Another beautfiul day in paradise

The weather has so turned the other directions and now is warming up and not a cloud insight. LOVE IT!! As do the kids, that means they can get out more for bike rides, hikes and fishing. Yesterday the girls were making friendship bracelets to send out to almost every female they know....LOL And our little Scientist Savannah has been nothing but trying to come up with new inventions on paper over the last several days.....it's cute to see but on my goodness she is getting obsessed with it and asking everyone for something that could help here.....funny!! As for Tristian he has been working for Jamie doing lawn care here around the lodge and we have been cleaning up the cabins for the upcoming visitors. This next weekend is Memorial Day Wknd and there is a very large breakfast called "The Fisherman's Breakfast". So we are getting things ready around here for more grounds. Also my sis will be out here that weekend as well.....WHOOO HOOOO we all miss her very much and the kids are super excited to see her! As for Trinity and Savannah they are still waiting for the Coffee Shop to open so they can help out there but for the meanwhile they were helping up wipe down the cabins. And poor little Sierra kept telling me as I was cleaning..." I don't have a job"....and she was so bummed I told her not to worry soon enough she'll have a J.O.B. "Your job is to be a kid and to go play". She said "ok mom, I'm going down to the playground". It was pretty cute and on she went along with her little brother who is almost 3......OMGoodness that's another story.

This is pretty much all for now, I am going to try to just upload some pics onto another blog here....bare with me....lol

I'm still here!!!!

Hi Everyone!! It's been so long since I have been able to get on here and update so I will do my best today to sum up our trip to date.
Let's just say it's been alot of fun and has also had it's challenges. Let's go back to the day pulling away April 29th. For one we were very loaded....even more then we should have been. The neighbors across the street where we lived had to come watch us hook up and then pull away to make sure we could do it....LOL!! Well we did. Our first stop was to Kellogg Idaho and the Mine Country. When we got on the highway leaving Coeur d'Alene we got about 3 or 4 miles up the highway (mountain) and we lost power on the truck.....YES we did!!! I thought I was going to puck. Dave did very well we got it pulled over and it started right back up. Come to find out when he puts his hand threw the steering wheel to turn on the flashers he bumped the keys and turned off the truck while driving. THANK GOD! We were all praying the whole way up to the pass. But as we kept driving we found the suburban having a very hard time getting up the hills and pulling the trailer. So when we got to the top Dave pulled over again made sure the electric breaks were plugged in right because when we were coming up the highway the breaks kept kicking in. So come to find out that there was something wrong with the flashers and the connections to the trailer breaks.....they as in the flashers kept putting the breaks on when we were trying to get up the mountains. Just imagine that....it was fun but it all good now!!

We finally got to the Campsite that we were going to stay at. It was great there and the kids had alot of fun. Toured mines and learned alot about the mining community. We took them down to the Sunshine Mine where the worst Mine accident happened in the US back on May 2nd 1972. So as for schooling the kids they have wrote essay's about Mining, Gold, Amethyst and Garnets. Which we found all of those precious stones. Dave was quite proud of the Gold Mining, he did very well. We stayed in Kellogg for 3 days then headed down to the St. Maries area.

There was no big excitements with pulling the trailer this time...again Thank God!! We got to Huckleberry Camp Ground and stayed there for a full week and for the whole entire week (not joking) it rained and stormed the entire time. So there was a lot of close bonding time and schooling.....we were able to do some fishing with the kids here and there but not much. Then after staying there for a week we packed up and headed East towards Montana but not after a bunch of mishaps, first one of our cats got lose and wouldn't come back, then as we were all hooked up ready to pull out our oldest son found something on the ground and threw it in the trailer but NEVER SHUT THE DOOR and we didn't notice it,....(bad parents on our side) then about 5 miles down the highway we blew a tire on the trailer....omgoodness does it ever end......that's what we were all wondering. But Dave did his magic and now are at Avery. A very small mountain/river old logging town. It is so beautiful here that Dave now doesn't want to leave. We are staying at http://www.averyid.com/ if you would like to check it out for yourself. We also got a system going here, we don't have to pay the rates here because we are going to help him with the lodge. Dave is going to work with him to get the cabins finished. So we have full hook ups plus no fees.....so for those who don't believe God does answer prayers!!! Not sure how long we will be here we just know we're in no hurry to pack it up again any time soon.

Sorry these pictures aren't in order off the blog but at least you get something to look at....lol

I am posting a bunch of pictures or as many as I can. And in no particular order because I don't know how much longer I'll have this Internet connection. I hope you all enjoy and I will be back on here just as soon as I can.

Been a busy week!!

Omgoodness I can't believe it's been a week since I last posted anything. We have been extremely busy here with cleaning our house up, renting a moving truck so we didn't have to run 100 trip with our suburban and then a number of trips to the dump. S if all goes as planned we will be pulling out of here tomorrow early afternoon. We have one more trip to the dump and one more trip to the storage unit and then we're DONE!!!! It's been a lot of work but will pay off at the end.

I was down for the count yesterday spending almost 7 hours in the hospital with you guessed it another migraine. They did the usual "Carol Cocktail" which I hate because it makes me feel extremely yucky on top of being in so much pain. I was vomiting so much and wouldn't let my husband leave the room like he usually does but I was for some reason scared. I just felt very weird. So they finally knocked out all the pain and I started to feel better came home and started right back into the cleaning mode. First starting with the windows...then moving on. Today we have been on the go since about 6am and Dave has finally got me to stop and said enough...... Yes I finally listened to him. I am now sitting on our air mattress typing this and watching TV.

I still have more homeschooling things to do online. I don't know how much Internet connection we will have so I am copying and paste as much as I can. The first place we're going is going to be in Kellogg which is only about 35 mins from here but we have yet to tour the Gold and Crystal Mines there, so that's what we're going to do. Then from there we will probably head towards Central Idaho...more to come on that later.

The kids are all so very excited about our new adventure. They keep putting in there opinions with where we should go and what we should do and yeah and of course Savannah is telling me what she wants to learn about. It's fun to see the excitement from them. I just wish other people that mean the world to me would support us in this......maybe in due time.....

Still going strong

Everything is sold that we needed to sell. A wal-mart trip today and got all the cleaners that we need to clean this big ol' house. We started in on the kitchen all is done in there except the floors. The bathroom is all packed up just needs to be cleaned. I don't know why I feel like I have to post our chores and our to do list here on my blog........Maybe it is so I feel organized or helps feel like we're actually getting somewhere with this adventure. Whatever it is I feel like I have to document so I will do it on here. We got a storage unit and this weekend we're getting a big truck to take all our stuff to it. Then the big cleaning starts. Meanwhile our Suburban is hopefully getting fixed this Friday. We have been waiting days now for the parts to fix it. It really stinks because we can't travel or even pull our travel trailer until its fixed.

The kids are all so very excited. It looks like the first stop for us will be in Kellogg to the Silver Mines. We are planning on staying there for a week or so. I'll keep you all posted as I know more. And of course pictures will be posted!!!!

A quick update on all the kiddos. Tristian is feeling and sounding much better and is just finishing up his meds and Savannah her ear is all better now she to is still on her meds. As for Trinity she is still having some trouble, she has a followup appt with her dr. this Friday and they are probably going to refer her to the specialist here or at Childrens in Spokane. We've been blessed that the younger two haven't gotten sick so I think we're all over the crud. Off to bed for the night.....well actually going to get ready for American Idol!!!!

Its gorgeous out today....blue sky, warm and the sun is out birds are singing. I am pretty sure that I have our Kitchen Nook sold along with our Couch and Loveseat. People are coming by this evening. Please say a prayer that they sell and soon. We first were selling them so we could by a generator for our trip on the road but now it is going to the Suburban. We just found out that its going to cost over a $1000.00 dollars to fix it. So here I sit bummed and stressed out. I should be out enjoying the wonderful day that it has turned out to be. Why does it seem that when things seem to be going good for us something bad always happens??? It makes me wonder why I even try sometimes.
We have another kiddo sick, first it was Tristian twice, then Trinity and now Savannah. I was hurting so bad from my head last night that Dave ended up taking Savannah to the ER for me. She had another ear infection which I think this makes number 3 in 6 months. The only two left to get sick is the youngest too. I hope that they don't!!! It has been a rough Winter in our house with colds and the Spring hasn't been very nice either. Hopefully we have seen the end of the yuck around here.

Well as I keep thinking of all the bad crap that keeps going on. I need to realize how lucky and fortunate I am to have what I have. There will always be challenges in life and I need to learn to live with them.

As I sit and finish this blog up I am watching one daughter paint my toenails and another daughter waiting to paint my finger nails. Even with all of this crazy unpredictable life I still love it.

Counting down the days and more......

So we have just over a week left to get everything done before we hit the road. Its coming along pretty good, but still seems like there is a lot more to do. I have a long list of items for sale on Craigslist and we have been having great luck with selling our things. We have a stack of boxes that are ready for the storage and we're filling up the trailer. Its fun decorating and finding where everything is going to go.

The weather has been starting to be more and more like Spring around here. Its just beautiful here with the blue sky especially after a long cold winter. Its to bad that all the kids cant go outside to enjoy it. I was back in the ER with Trinity last night with a very bad kidney infection. So she has been in her room relaxing for the most part today. The Dr's have sent her urine out for more cultures at an outside lab. We have been very blessed that she hasn't had more kidney issues then she's had. When she was born we found out that her kidneys were different from each other which means she is more prone to infections. I have prayed that this is just a regular or so called normal infection and that it doesn't lead to more problems with her kidneys.

I tell ya what it's always something going on here either good or bad, its always something.

To you know who........

Why does one not care enough about himself??

Why does one not want to change things that are slowly killing him??

Why does one not care enough for his family to stop his addictions??

Why does one not care to stop??

Why does one not care??

What will it take for him to realize......

To realize what he has to lose......

To lose what truly matters......

What matters is that he should care!!

Does this ever end??

Another bought of sickness is going through our house. This time its Tristian again....well I should say still. Almost 2 weeks ago as you might remember we had one of dear friends kids and they had the crud the first couple of days they were here. Well Tristian got a nasty cough and a a high fever as well but it went away for the most part. A little cough remand but nothing that we couldn't manage. So this last Friday he was complaining of having a really bad headache. This continued over the weekend and this after not being able to sleep much, he was in the kitchen holding his head and just started crying. So I ran outside and caught up with Dave before he pulled out of the driveway. He stayed home from work so he could watch the little two while I took Tristain straight to the ER. After tests and xrays we found out he has Pneumonia and strep throat. So needless to say he's taking this week easy and I hope his fever will go away very soon.

I can only hope and pray that this doesn't hit all of us. Since we have so much to do this month.

Little of this a little of that.......

How do you tell a 2 year old that his infant Seahawks hat doesn't fit him anymore???? He just doesn't get it and won't give it up.

He keeps trying and trying to squeeze it on his big ol' head.

Now on to the cleaning and packing. As I go over my to do list I wonder how its going to get done on time..... It always does it just seems a little overwhelming. After a great weekend selling a lot of stuff and running trash/garbage to the dump and then bags and bags of clothing that went to Vincent St. Paul and the Goodwill. It felt so good. We have started on the very bottom floor and cleaned the carpets and taking everything out of there, except Trinity's bed. Next will be the next level of the house (for those of you who don't know our house has 4 levels to it)....so there's still a lot to go. I got my China cabinet all packed up and all pictures off the walls throughout. I find myself not able to do a lot at one time or in a one day period. My headaches really start in full force, so I do what I can do.

empty China Hutch...that was a chore in its own.

Empty empty walls......

Our pile starts to grow......lol

As for the travel trailer we have cleaned it all out and have started putting things in there right places. Getting everything in order for schooling. That in its self is a lot of work but way worth it!! I am hoping to get the fabric this week so I can start making the curtains. Everything else is going good and the getting things done. Dave has been going over the travel trailer with a fine tooth comb, making sure everything is in working order. All is good!!!

New adventure!!!

Here's to our new adventure!! Some of you may know this but for those who don't, Yes this is soon to be our home! Scroll down to see. We have plan to be in this one for a year or so then upgrade to a new larger travel trailer or a motor home.
We have sold alot of our belongings, everything except all the beds, our bedroom set and furniture that was in our family (sentimental things). We did great in our moving sale last weekend. All the things that didn't sell we donated to our neighbor who is having a fundraiser for her church, so it went to a good cause. It felt so good to get rid of stuff that I just packed around with us from move to move. Awwww

We just picked up our trailer traveler this last week. And oh boy was that a trip of itself, from North Spokane through till I-90 then to Cda. The highway wasn't bad at all. It was the city streets and turns but we made it. Our big ol' Suburban looked like a hot wheel once the trailer was hooked up to it.....LOL

Here it is outside our front door, all 30 feet of it.



These are what I am going to make the curtains out of.

So this is where I will be posting blogs about our travels. For the first year we are going to be around this area (WA. ID & MT) because of our daughter having braces, her appts. are every 5-6 weeks so that's why we're staying close.

We will also be homeschooling all the kids which we are all excited about!! So please join us as we start our adventure on the road.

Also I am taking ideas of what I should rename my blog!!

Catching up with some pictures!!

Dear Friends..... Hailey & Hunter

Hunter, Hailey & Tristian

The Columbia River

Zachie puckering up......

Getting ready get set........

blowing momma a kiss...I love you baby!!

Kiddos again together

At Vantage with the Columbia River Behind.

Trinity, Hailey, Savannah & Sierra....all braided and ready to go out to dinner!

It's been a few days since the kids have left and I finally was able to get my camera working so I could upload these pictures of us taking the kids back to Vantage. We had fun just wished kids weren't sick like they were and the weather could have cut us a break...we got snow, rain and a very little sun. But all in all it was good!!

Big boy now!!

Let me set the stage for you: We've been working really hard the last couple days with potty training our youngest Zachie. We now have no diapers or pull ups in the house. He's onto big boy underwear!!! He wanted to call Grandma so here is how the call went from our side with what he said to her....

Z-me pee in toilet

Z-me underwear

Z-no diapers anymore

Z-I love you

Z-k byeee

Short and sweet is how he likes it I guess. Grandma was loving it and so were we. Our little boy isn't so little anymore, he's 2 1/2 and getting so big. Yes I'm glad that we don't have to buy pull ups or diapers anymore and it's like getting a raise but that just reminds me that we're done with the baby stage and there won't be anymore little ones crawling around no more baby butts to wipe...I know I know it sounds weird I have 5 and I should be thankful for that which I am VERY much!! It just reminds me that this is so final.....no more babies for me. I will be ok and with time I'm sure I will not even think about it.......

Where is Spring????

So this week that we've had not so spring weather. Where are you Spring?? Well the kids made the best of it while they were all here together. The two older boys have been staying inside because of nasty colds, but everyone else made it out. So hopefully these will be the last snow angels until next winter.

Sierra posing as usual...loving the camera.

Hailey showing her hula skills.

Savannah hopefully making the last snow angel until next winter.

All the girls making a snowman family.

Ice cream/Picture Time.....

After dinner tonight it was time for ice cream and group pictures for the first time!! The only way to get good "normal" poses is to promise them that they get to be goofy at the end.....and this is what you'll fine...scroll down to see. We love you all!!!!

Here is where we finally took the leashes off and let them free.....LOL

Reunion

Here is the reaction of the kids seeing their dear friends from Western WA. We had Hailey and Hunter stay in the back of the burb and Dave went into the house and told the older three to go get the groceries out of the burb. And when they opened the door this was the reaction.......

They have had a blast so far. Just hoping the weather gets better this week so they can go outside and run around out there. Go away rain!!!

Hurting hurts,,,,,,,,

I am just plain angry and upset this evening. After my ex-husband moved here from Oklahoma he decides to move back after only being here for about 6 months. Two of my kids, Savannah and Trinity are taking this extremely hard. They just laid in our laps crying after he came by to say goodbye. I don't how a parent can be absent from their children's life for 3 1/2 years, then show up for 6 months and disappear yet again...... I absolutely am sicken to my bones and I feel their pain. Trying to answer questions like...why doesn't he love me?? Or what did I do wrong???....It kills me and I have so much anger towards him that it makes me sick! After shedding many tears this evening they are downstairs trying to stay busy with their friends from Western Washington that are here for a week.

Just know Savannah I love you with all of my heart!!!

And NO you didn't do anything wrong and I'm sure he does love you he just doesn't know how to show it.

Little kid time

Here are a some pictures I thought I would put up from early this week when it was cold and cloudy outside. The younger two having some quiet time with mom.

Zachie painting us a beautiful picture...and loving it!!

Sierra working in her math book ..over and over again.

Today I will be cleaning up the house and tomorrow Dave and I will be getting up early to drive to Vantage (about 3hrs) to meet up with a good friend of mine and to pick up her kids. They are also on spring break along with ours and will be spending the week with us here in Coeur d'Alene. Shannon's kids know that they are coming to stay here but ours have no idea, so it is going to be a big surprise.....it's only been 1 1/2 years since they have seen each other. So I will be posting more pics of the kids when they get here!!

Just the three of US.....

Today was a day for Zachie with Mom & Dad. The other four were with their dad so the three of us headed to Spokane to the Big Horn show at the Fairground. For those that might not know what that is, it's a Hunter's and Fisherman's dream....LOL Zachie got his picture taken with this Grizzly Bear and seen Black Bears with their cubs. He was in AWW of it all. I guess it would be alot for a 2 year old to take in. On our way to watch the Dock Dogs Championship we came up to the Trout fishing. Him and his dad had fun with that not sure which one had more fun...He did catch a trout and we donated it to a local food bank. Then on to see all the wet dogs. It was so funny to see some of these dogs try to jump for the first time, they run super fast and come to a screeching halt right at the end of the dock. To funny!!!


We tried to get him to hold his fish and he still isn't going for it.


Here's one in the middle of his jump...he did pretty good!

I can do it......!!!!!
Oh shooot...I CAN'T!!!!

Please don't be mad dad.......

Horses at play......

Dave and I went for a drive the other day to Hayden Lake. Which is about 10 miles north of us. It was such a beautiful drive with the blue sky and the fresh snow that fell that day. When we came upon these horses playing in the snow, it was so cute!! I guess us humans aren't the only ones that like to play in the snow..........

and this is just a Barn that I liked.

Frozen....Brrrrr.......

I don't know if you will believe me but this Lake is actually frozen solid. I was freaking out when we went for a drive up to hills here in town and seen a couple of Ice Fishermen out on the lake, I was wondering how in the world could someone go out onto it. Just by looking at it and in these pictures it looks like there is ice chunks but actually it is ALL frozen and it was raining earlier in the day and it's rain water on top of the ice. I just think it's crazy.......lol Not for me....I'll stay to the shoreline and take the pictures.