First Snow in Boise

Right before school got out for winter break the snow came down... Even in Boise,Idaho. The kids & I we're shocked because we we're told by the locals not to expect snow in our front yards. It wouldn't stick around and you could only see it on the mountains surrounding Boise all winter. The kids saw the snow and had to go play in it before it disappeared for sure.

Oh What Fun!!

We took the night from activites so we could decorate our home for Christmas. The kids shared one gingerbread house this year and it turned out to be quite cute. Sage decorated most of the house, Katy decorated all the trees and Nolan was in charge of eating the green frosting and decorating one side panel of the house. It was fun to see them working together without "fighting" much!! Later in the evening Katy asked if we could eat the gingerbread house for Christmas breakfast.

After the gingerbread house was complete we decorated our tree. Sage was so meticulous, Katy wanted to do all the Disney character ornaments & Nolan wanted to help by lumping the small ornaments on top of the branches, he had to "do it by hims self".

Katy did it!

Good Job Katy Bug!

Katy has been swimming at the YMCA for the past two months and she's passed the Guppy level class. She is officially a " Minnow" which means she gets to make the big jump to the big lap pool. As a Minnow she will learn: turns front to back & back to front, whip kick, elementary back stroke, sitting kneeling & standing dives, survival float 3 min, front crawl 20 - 25 yards, back crawl 20 - 25 yards, shark circle and a few other techniques. After Minnow she has three levels left until she is eligible for the swim team. We are so proud of her and she loves it. I think we finally found the one sport she loves and feels comfortable doing.

Happy Birthday Nolan Hunter

Nolan turned 5 years old on November 12th. He was so excited the morning of his Birthday because he knows he's "Bigger" now. He asked when he could be 7 like Katy.
We went to the Discovery Center with Nolan's Preschool and had lots of fun! There was so much to do there we need to go back and explore again soon. I made his favorite dinner, spaghetti & garlic bread, then we ate chocolate peanut butter ice cream cake from Cold Stone. Nana & our friend Dave came over to wish Nolan a Happy Birthday too! Aunt Susie, Sam & Jack called to sing Happy Birthday to Nolan - he loved that since Sam is his buddy! We also went to Madagascar 2 and Nolan was so excited to hear the "I like to move it move it" song he could barely remain in his seat! We had a great day and he can't wait for Madagascar 2 to get to Red (Target) so he can bring it home. He doesn't realize that won't be until Spring. He'll have to settle for his new DS game instead.

What's Happened? Sage's team Won that's What!!

Sage's soccer team, Les Bois Samba, won all three games during the Gem State Challenge Soccer Tournament in Boise. When they went to the final game there was no score so they were forced to go head to head in a shoot-out. Sage's team won 2 - 0 in the shoot-out which put them in 1st place for Gold in their division. The other
U12 Ginga team won Silver (you see them in the group pictures in black & white) These two teams have been practicing together all season in order to prepare them for next year at the U13 level when it's 11 v 11.


Just when Sage was missing her friends and didn't think she would see them for a long time. Sage saw her friends from Coeurd'Alene at the Gem State Challenge Soccer Tournament in Boise. We spent some of Saturday afternoon catching up and she & I went to their Sunday morning game to watch them play. It's really too bad we didn't get a chance to play the Coeurd'Alene Sting team. I know it would've been a great game to watch & play!

Linder Farms

We made our way to Linder Farms so the girls could pick out their pumpkins. We also hit the pony rides and the petting zoo. Nolan loved seeing his favorite animal again Beba the Zebra!! All the kids had fun riding the horses and feeding the animals.

Fun Times at the YMCA

We joined the YMCA!! Sage loves the climbing wall and Katy & Nolan are still a little scared but each time we go they climb a little higher so that's a positive. After climbing we went to the indoor pool and slide. The kids and Nick swam while I looked into a swimming league for Katy and I set myself up with a trainer. It's time I get my fat butt into shape. I'm not having more kids and I'm not getting any younger so it's time to get rid of the extra "baby fat" that's been lovin my midsection!! The kids had a great time with Dad. He's been gone quite a bit lately for a bird hunt & work so the kids were missing spending quality time with him. Nolan seems to be attached to Nick's hip lately. When Nick is home Nolan wants to be near him all the time, male bonding I suppose!

Nolan's Class goes to the Pumpkin Patch

It was a cold day for the pumpkin patch. It's been in the high 30's in Boise lately plus with the winds, we all froze as we under dressed to go to Linder Farms. First, we took a wagon ride around the farm. We saw the corn maze, pumpkins, straw maze barrels for the train ride and ponies, a zebra & baby camel (that can't be legal!). The barrel train rides and pony rides weren't open but the preschools were more into running through the straw maze and getting their pumpkins. It was a good quality time experience for Nolan and myself. We are going back this weekend so the girls can pick out their pumpkins... Maybe we'll even do the pony & barrel train rides and eat some mini donuts too. Good family experience. I love fall! If only they had apple trees!

Katy's Mini-Marathon

Katy's school is putting on a Mini-Marathon. How is works: during first recess on Monday's and Friday's the kids run around the school yard and every lap they get a punch on their punch cards. Every three laps equals one mile. Most kids run the full mile durng recess and they are so excited to get to the 5 mile mark because they get a star on the gym wall and a little foot for their punch cards. They also get recognition at miles 10, 13, 15, 20 & finally 26. The program will continue through October and start again April - June. The fun part for me is I go volunteer on those days and punch cards while encouraging kids to keep it up. Katy likes when I volunteer at her school, it seems to pump her up and she runs faster so she can complete her mile.

Visit to the Nature Center

We had a day off soccer so we decided to go explore more of Boise. We ended up at the Boise Nature Center. The kids are all familiar with the animals found in the wild (thanks to Nick's great knowledge, wisdom and love for the outdoors) but it was neat to see the kids get to touch & feel the owls, mountain lions, moose, deer, all types of birds (ducks, quail, pheasants, grouse, etc.) ,see and get in a bear's den, know where bats hang out, what types of fish to look for in lakes and rivers, there was so much to see. Nolan loved watching the fish, Sage loved it all & Katy liked seeing the beaver's dam and watching the fish in the little lake. After the Nature center we went up to Bogus Basin for a nice drive and to check things out for when winter hits. You can mountain bike & hike up there now.

Nolan's visit to the Boise Zoo with his Preschool Class

Sage & Mom go to Seattle

Sage & I went to Seattle for the Starfire Labor Day Cup. Les Bois U12G won 1 and lost 3. It was tough competition and our girls aren't used to playing 11v11. Those Washington girls must eat a lot of apples - they were huge!! It was a great learning experience for all our girls. They want to go back next year under the U13 division and pound those Seattle girls!!! Here's a pic of Jason Vittrup (One of Our Fabulous Coaches) giving the girls some inspiring words of wisdom trying to take their minds of their loss - God Love Him!!

I also took Sage to the Space Needle before we met up with her team & coaches. We had lunch at the Sky City Cafe. The cool thing is, the floor of the restaurant rotates so you see all of Seattle by the time you finish your meal. The views were pretty beautiful and Sage loved the big city. It was fun just spending quality time with one child, we must escape again.

After we returned home Nick was ready for a break so off he went. I spent the afternoon with Katy & Nolan. We went outside to play with bubbles, paint with water colors, juggling soccer balls and shooting some hoops.

We moved to Boise!

We moved once again!!! We are hoping Boise will be our final destination.. We also moved Gretta to Boise(Nick's Mother). She's is living at Life Care Treasure Valley and feeling better, playing bingo, walking a lot more and venturing out on field trips with the Life Care Staff. She likes to treat the kids to some candy from the vending machine when we visit.

We have made good friends in Coeurd'Alene and will miss everyone. We are also excited to be on this new adventure. We will be 8 hours closer to family in California and Boise has a lot to offer our very active family. We've been filling our summer exploring rivers & lakes looking for the best fly fishing spot and we can't wait the go explore the bike trails and ski this winter.





Sage started Middle School this week and loves it. She just wanted a locker and now she has two... It's the gym locker, we forgot about Gym! She starts her day at 7:30am and she is taking the following classes: Advisory (Home Room teacher), 7th Grade English, Writing Composition & Pre Algebra classes, World Civilization, Art, PE & Home Ec which is now called Exploring Family and Consumer Science - she's still going to learn to babysit, sew and cook. She is going to be playing her violin in the school Orchestra this year which she is excited about since she's been playing for 4 years already. We are in the process of finding her a private violin teacher as well. She isn't to fond of the keyboarding class only because it's a repeat from last year. She's met a couple of people in our neighborhood, has made a good friend at school and likes all the girls on her soccer team. We went to Spokane two weeks ago where her soccer team took 1st place in the NW Cup. We are on our way to Seattle this weekend to try and repeat a first place win at the Starfire Soccer Tournament. Mom & Sage will be going solo to Seattle so we can go to the Space Needle for lunch and check out Pike's Market before we meet with the team & coaches. Sage has never been to Seattle so it should be FUN!


Katy started 2ND Grade in a year-round performing arts school (which basically means they have extra Art & Music classes along with the regular curriculum) on August 13Th. She loves school so it wasn't a big deal for her to start earlier than her siblings. This school and its track will definitely benefit Katy with her academic learning style. She does get all of November off and she's excited to spend alone time with Mom.

She is playing soccer with the Les Bois Youth Girls League and its 5v5 this year. She is starting to feel more confident on the soccer field especially after the Sting Soccer Camp she went to in Coeurd'Alene this summer. She also had her first violin lesson with her new teacher. Things were a little rusty but with a little effort and a lot of listening we'll be back on track... Katy has discovered a passion for swimming. She loves to jump & twirl into the water and has learned to float on her back with ease and never wants to be without her swim goggles. We are going to look into the YMCA for a swim team. She may be the next Olympic Swimmer, you never know!!


Nolan thinks of Boise as a vacation spot. He keeps asking to go the other house... He hasn't realized that we aren't going back to the only house he's ever known. The Coeurd'Alene house!

Nolan has loved the swimming pool that is directly across the street from us. It meets is sensory needs and he is more calm after a good swim. He doesn't like to go under water yet but we tell him it's part of swimming and take him under anyway. He is speaking a lot better and making 4 -6 word sentences. We are so proud of his development, considering he's 4 1/2 and didn't start speaking until last year. He just started the public preschool in Boise where he will get socialization, classroom structure and speech & occupational therapy for his Sensory Integration needs.

Big day on the Clark Fork

Hey everyone!

Before we moved to Boise we decided to spend the weekend at the "river house" in Montana. As you can see I out fished Nick once again!! I love doing that!! Then with Nick's assistance, Katy caught her first Rainbow Trout. She didn't want to touch it of course but she sure wanted to hang out with Dad after that to see if she could catch the bigger fish... The kids love being out doors, as Nick would say it! Nick is teaching them to value of getting away from everything and enjoying nature. We saw lots of dear, Osprey and Bald Eagles too - the kids thought that was pretty cool!

Hello "Middle School"

Where has the time gone? Sage just graduated from Elementary School this month. I can't believe my baby is now 11 years old.. Nick, myself and Grandma went to her emotional graduation ceremony. She will miss her grammer years, her friends and wonderful teachers but she is a blessing and will do well anywhere she goes. I proud of the person she is becoming.. Way to go Sissy!! We love you so much - Mom, Dad, Katy & Nolan

Spring in Coeurd'Alene Idaho

Spring started just right with Sage's 1st soccer game being played in the "SNOW". Sage was in the goalie box freezing her behind! This was Sage's last game playing goalie. The remainder of the season she played center... It did warm up and Sage's team won 7 of 8 league games. Way to go Sting!! They topped the season by winning first place in 3 out of 4 tournaments. Most importantly their team won 1st place in the Coeurd'Alene Hot Shot Tournament. What a great season girls!! Thanks to the teams fabulous coaches everyone on their team scored a goal... Good Luck to all those players trying out for their U12 spot.