There's Nothing Like Family

Here are a few of my favorite photos from our precious time together over the week of the 4th...

 The biker gang...

The guys left EARLY for several mornings to fish.  This was the first morning right when they returned.  Grandpa is showing off Evan's fish...

  

And then Evan showed it off too!  :)

 

 

 The kids called this "going blue-gilling"  Lots of action here!  Half the fun was riding out to the dock in the back of Grandpa's pickup.

 

 

 Mattie had a few quick cool-off-swims in the Mighty Missouri - Chilly!  We toured the powerhouses you can see in background.

 

I got to spend some quality time with my little niece, Maya.  She and I made this SandCastle Courtyard together...  complete with landscaping.  Maya was under doctor's orders not to swim, so I lucked out to have this time with her....  I'd rather build a sandcastle than swim in the lake anyway!!!  

 Here we are - the whole crew...  We are so blessed!

Yard Birds 101

It's kind of a standing joke around here that I want chickens and my DH doesn't.  It sounds like I'm not the only woman with this issue.  :)  Anyway, when we got home from our trip, we discovered that this lovely pair of guineas had made themselves quite at home in our yard.  Hubby said to the kids, "Mom has wanted chickens for so long that finally the chickens had to come to her!"  I guess it's not quite like having my own chickens (they aren't even chickens for goodness sake!), but we have really enjoyed watching them poke around the yard....