June 2021

This month school is out and we are headed to Montana!

1. Stopping at a rest stop scenic overlook
2. Beautiful statue of indigenous woman at the rest stop in South Dakota
3. Brendan enjoying IHOP pancakes
4. Emily at our campground
5. Enjoying the campground pool

On June 11 we went for our first Montana hike.  We drove up the road towards the St. Mary's Peak but because of the rough road and potential snow stopped a ways before the trailhead.  We walked up the road and hiked on the trail until it got too snowy.

One of our favorite places is the Lee Metcalf National Wildlife Refuge.  We made numerous trips to enjoy the scenery and look for birds and animals.  

Mill Creek was our hike for June 13.  All of these valley hikes are incredible.  

We found a rubber snake across the trail and had to admire it before putting it off to the side so it wouldn't get stepped on by other hikers.  This was at Kootenai Creek on June 16.

June 17 was another fun day. We drove up to Salmon Lake and spent some time in Missoula. The kids were fascinated by the surfers in the river and the hang gliders over Mt Sentinel.

We enjoyed playing disc golf while we were there.  Spiritwood and Blue Mountain are Steve's favorite courses.

The kids and I tried our hand at painting at a local sign/craft shop.  They turned out great!

This is Glen Lake on June 23 (happy birthday to my Mom!).  We also went to the unnamed lakes up above - one lake feeds into the other.  They are gorgeous and it was well worth the extra effort!

We went for an evening hike to Bass Creek on June 25.  

May 2021

 I received a gorgeous bouquet of flowers for Mother's Day!

For my birthday, I received some money and decided to treat myself to a cut and color at an upscale salon.  

At the end of the school year, Emily finally got to meet her teacher, Mrs. Delorey, in person!  She was excited since she really loved her teacher.  

We used Emily's second (and final) trail ride in May.  I went with her.  It was a two hour ride, but I felt like my body handled it a little better than the first ride.  We really enjoyed it!

April 2021

April means Easter and egg decorating!  And then, of course, hiding eggs (which I am happy to let Brendan do these days) and watching Emily find them in the morning.  She knows the Easter bunny isn't real, but she still enjoys hunting for Easter eggs.

We were able to schedule a playdate with Emily's friend Jane, and they had a picnic on the front lawn.

Emily did her nails in leopard print and dressed up to match them!  I put on my leopard mask so we could be twins.

Found this beautiful dress on clearance - of course she had to try it on and model it!

March 2021

 March weather was a lot kinder to us than February.  Emily had a Girl Scout meetup at the Botanical Gardens in Fayetteville.  While the girls did their thing, Brendan and I wandered around.  I used to take Brendan and Emily there when they were really little, so it was neat to revisit!

Emily won a STEM kit from school.  She was very excited to see what was inside!

Our Chinese magnolia tree is blooming, so I asked Emily if she would do a little photo shoot in it.  She was happy to oblige.

Since we're still in virtual school and stuck at home, we decided to have some fun and dress up for St. Patrick's Day.  Aren't we festive?

Emily got gift certificates for trail rides as a Christmas gift.  Emily, Brendan, and I used one of them.  We had fun - I was sore the next day though!

For some reason, Emily really wanted to try a coconut.  So, on my trip to the store, I decided to get one.  Best $2 I ever spent - she was entertained for hours!

Emily, Steve, and Brendan playing in the front yard.

Brendan has been artistic this month!  Here is a pencil drawing and a painting that he did this month.  He is talented!