tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-82461155280520720112024-03-13T16:19:09.444-07:00Jim and Amy's TrailerJim and Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09024939374181244742noreply@blogger.comBlogger31125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8246115528052072011.post-31382351329345687762010-09-03T21:28:00.001-07:002010-09-03T21:36:15.656-07:00We're Back! (and as mediocre as ever!)<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/TIHLQbt4wiI/AAAAAAAAAYU/SVyID00vdX0/s1600/Triumphant+Return+to+Blogging.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 340px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5512910902056763938" border="0" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/TIHLQbt4wiI/AAAAAAAAAYU/SVyID00vdX0/s400/Triumphant+Return+to+Blogging.jpg" /></a><br /><div>That's right folks - hell has frozen over!! We're back! It's been over a year since our last post, and this year has been an eventful one! Our goal is to make bunch of new posts over the next few weeks to bring you all up to date on the vapid and boring details of our life - so this is your chance to escape. No, I'm serious, go now - you'll thank me later!</div><div></div><div></div><div> </div><div> </div><div>All kidding aside, we have a lot to catch up on, so bear with us if the things we post happened a while ago - we'll eventually make it to the present!</div><div></div><div></div><div>Special thanks go out to Dan and Tanya for their gentle reminders that it has been an obscenely long time since our last post.... We're working on it!</div><div></div><div></div><div> </div><div> </div><div>Thanks!</div><div></div><div></div><div> </div><div> </div><div>- Jim and Amy</div>Jim and Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09024939374181244742noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8246115528052072011.post-85451130920148065102009-03-01T19:24:00.000-08:002009-03-16T17:44:57.771-07:00Goofy Gracie and Looney Lily!!<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SatSBdkPaOI/AAAAAAAAAXw/OjyfskW6pME/s1600-h/IMG_5683+copy.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5308426770856241378" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 267px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SatSBdkPaOI/AAAAAAAAAXw/OjyfskW6pME/s400/IMG_5683+copy.jpg" border="0" /></a> In a recent post, Amy and I detailed a trip we went on where we visited with both our families. This time, when my parents flew into town, they decided to bring two of my nieces (Grace and Lily) along with them so they could spend time with their paternal grandmother (are you lost yet?).<br /><br />In any case, Amy and I got to spend some time playing and goofing around with the girls, and we thought we'd share a few photos of my beautiful nieces.<br /><br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SatSA2mC0oI/AAAAAAAAAXo/zfXTlIRlpj4/s1600-h/IMG_5664+copy.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5308426760394822274" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 254px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SatSA2mC0oI/AAAAAAAAAXo/zfXTlIRlpj4/s400/IMG_5664+copy.jpg" border="0" /></a> The girls decided it would be fun to dress me up, tie me to the chair, and put a braid around my head that they decided was my "girl hair". I was really at their mercy.....where did they learn to tie those knots???<br /><div align="center"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SatSAqQ9V7I/AAAAAAAAAXg/grnjBcB4Tls/s1600-h/IMG_5670+copy.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5308426757085157298" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 267px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SatSAqQ9V7I/AAAAAAAAAXg/grnjBcB4Tls/s400/IMG_5670+copy.jpg" border="0" /></a>Lily, plotting what she can do next to torture her foolishly permissive uncle.....<br /><div><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SatSATPYKTI/AAAAAAAAAXY/jvCf3CEAUWY/s1600-h/IMG_5671+copy.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5308426750904510770" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 267px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SatSATPYKTI/AAAAAAAAAXY/jvCf3CEAUWY/s400/IMG_5671+copy.jpg" border="0" /></a> Could a girl with this <strong>angelic</strong> face be capable of wrong??<br /><div><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SatR__4HBPI/AAAAAAAAAXQ/hYABcBYSYLw/s1600-h/IMG_5682+copy.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5308426745706644722" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 267px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SatR__4HBPI/AAAAAAAAAXQ/hYABcBYSYLw/s400/IMG_5682+copy.jpg" border="0" /></a> Sorry Grace, but we <strong>KNOW</strong> that the kind of behavior that <strong>YOU</strong> are capable of!!!</div></div></div>Jim and Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09024939374181244742noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8246115528052072011.post-75986238170363561752009-03-01T19:08:00.000-08:002009-03-02T11:54:30.353-08:00Skiing, Skittles & Super Soft Snow!!A few weeks ago, we took a little week and a half trip south. We spent time in Idaho Falls, Logan, UT, Salt Lake City, and Nephi, UT. When you add up all the driving, we spent 27 hours in the car.<br /><br />But that's beside the point - the truth is, we had a great time! We got to visit with Amy's Grandma and Aunt, Uncle, and Cousin in Idaho Falls, my brother, his wife, and my baby nephew in Logan, my parents in SLC, and we also got to see Amy's Dad and Stepmom in Nephi.<br /><br />Phew!! We really should have taken more pics, but we were having too much fun to get the camera out very often. However, we did get a few pictures while we were skiing with my family in SLC! The amazing part was that this was essentially Amy's first time downhill skiing, and she picked it up almost immediately!! We had a great time, and we hope we can go again before the snow melts!<br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5308680955543276514" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 300px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/Saw5M9UJy-I/AAAAAAAAAYI/uE2cKwbtFmk/s400/IMG_3636+copy.jpg" border="0" /><br /><div><div align="center">Jim trying to be cool with a little jump on the side of the trail</div><br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SatQbTppfVI/AAAAAAAAAXA/Np5jdvpUXbQ/s1600-h/IMG_3652+copy.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5308425015847910738" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 300px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SatQbTppfVI/AAAAAAAAAXA/Np5jdvpUXbQ/s400/IMG_3652+copy.jpg" border="0" /></a> Amy working on her turns in her "Tropical Skittles" ski outfit - this one requires a little explanation.... A local outdoors store was having a huge sale, and my dad bought these bright blue pants for my 8 year old niece - for some reason, the sizing was WAY off, and they ended up fitting Amy perfectly. As it turned out, the bright blue clashed spectacularly with her bright green coat, but at least we always knew where she was...... Amy decided that the color combo looked like Skittles tropical assortment of candies.....<br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5308677086751177330" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 300px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/Saw1rw8POnI/AAAAAAAAAYA/k4-xEDmt0CM/s400/Tropical+Skittles.jpg" border="0" /><br /><div align="center"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SatQChAPJHI/AAAAAAAAAW4/mjoji9_Zi4w/s1600-h/IMG_3642.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5308424589935584370" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 300px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SatQChAPJHI/AAAAAAAAAW4/mjoji9_Zi4w/s400/IMG_3642.jpg" border="0" /></a> Mom skiing with my niece Lily - the munchkin did great, and the proud Grandma grinned incessantly!<br /><div><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SatQCKsnovI/AAAAAAAAAWw/2TulRTET8lw/s1600-h/IMG_3643.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5308424583947723506" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 300px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SatQCKsnovI/AAAAAAAAAWw/2TulRTET8lw/s400/IMG_3643.jpg" border="0" /></a> My dad, displaying one of his trademark S.E.G.'s (S__t Eating Grin). Aparently he's quite proud of himself for being able to stand motionless on the ski hill and not fall down.<br /><div><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SatQBzifStI/AAAAAAAAAWo/Okjp9iX-Tdg/s1600-h/IMG_3604.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5308424577731218130" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 300px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SatQBzifStI/AAAAAAAAAWo/Okjp9iX-Tdg/s400/IMG_3604.jpg" border="0" /></a> My older niece, Grace, also proved to be a fast learner on skis - I wish it was this easy for me back when I started snowboarding (and snowboarding is, arguably, an easier sport to master)!!<br /><div><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SatQBQ5LK8I/AAAAAAAAAWg/ZKRqTwYRCfs/s1600-h/IMG_3660.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5308424568431127490" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 300px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SatQBQ5LK8I/AAAAAAAAAWg/ZKRqTwYRCfs/s400/IMG_3660.jpg" border="0" /></a>What trip would be complete without a "Mom, quit taking pictures of me standing here doing nothing" shot. Amy likes the fact that this picture makes it look like I'm peeing in the woods on a public ski hill.<br /><div><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SatQA7RRoYI/AAAAAAAAAWY/5JtAMY7QsfM/s1600-h/IMG_3659.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5308424562626634114" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 300px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SatQA7RRoYI/AAAAAAAAAWY/5JtAMY7QsfM/s400/IMG_3659.jpg" border="0" /></a> Amy "Skittles" MacNair smiling after a long day on the slopes!! Hopefully we'll see a lot more pictures like this as she continues to progress!</div></div></div></div></div></div>Jim and Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09024939374181244742noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8246115528052072011.post-11639986647067977982009-02-08T17:48:00.000-08:002009-02-08T18:10:26.277-08:00Winter Wonderland<div><br /><br /><div>Hey all!! Here are a few more overdue pics!<br /><div><br />This year we took a nice long Christmas vacation and visited both of our <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">families</span>. We were gone for more than 3 weeks. Well, during those three weeks, northern Idaho received <strong>5 feet of snow!!</strong> </div><div><br /><div>Needless to say, our cars were buried. We only got photos of the Forester, but keep in mind, this car was moved twice while we were away so the snowplows could clear the parking lot. The snow on the car is just a portion of what fell. I wish I got more photos of us driving <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">around</span> Post Falls - it was amazing! There were 5-7 foot <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">snowbanks</span> on <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">both</span> sides of the roads all over town - it didn't even look like the same place!<br /></div></div></div><div><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SY-PeHBFFyI/AAAAAAAAAWA/AWQ-Mb5J-6k/s1600-h/Christmas+2008+068.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5300613033880786722" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 267px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SY-PeHBFFyI/AAAAAAAAAWA/AWQ-Mb5J-6k/s400/Christmas+2008+068.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SY-Pd935kWI/AAAAAAAAAV4/44jG9amnqtE/s1600-h/Christmas+2008+069.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5300613031426363746" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 267px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SY-Pd935kWI/AAAAAAAAAV4/44jG9amnqtE/s400/Christmas+2008+069.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SY-PdjsSknI/AAAAAAAAAVw/q_LHaKI62g4/s1600-h/Christmas+2008+070.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5300613024398348914" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 267px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SY-PdjsSknI/AAAAAAAAAVw/q_LHaKI62g4/s400/Christmas+2008+070.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SY-Pdf8E21I/AAAAAAAAAVo/Af2ncnghjY4/s1600-h/Christmas+2008+071.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5300613023390817106" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 267px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SY-Pdf8E21I/AAAAAAAAAVo/Af2ncnghjY4/s400/Christmas+2008+071.jpg" border="0" /></a>We also got a few photos of the falls across from our apartment - it's a beautiful sight to see them all covered with icicles and snow. </div><div><br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5300613739470471794" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 300px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SY-QHLixQnI/AAAAAAAAAWI/W6Oc6mvZwJM/s400/falls+park+winter+002.jpg" border="0" /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5300613741660896610" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 300px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SY-QHTtAfWI/AAAAAAAAAWQ/lLyHEtuV6YE/s400/falls+park+winter+001.jpg" border="0" /><br /><div><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SY-PdcQ3LcI/AAAAAAAAAVg/rHHiX73835o/s1600-h/falls+park+winter+003.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5300613022404259266" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 300px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SY-PdcQ3LcI/AAAAAAAAAVg/rHHiX73835o/s400/falls+park+winter+003.jpg" border="0" /></a> </div></div></div></div></div></div>Jim and Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09024939374181244742noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8246115528052072011.post-4122673728642286132009-01-28T16:56:00.001-08:002009-01-28T17:33:17.918-08:00The Hiawatha TrailOkay, this post is <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">LOOOOOONG</span> overdue, but I felt that it was worth putting up, even out of sync! This summer, during Mom's visit, we took her on a bike path called the Hiawatha Trail. This is a beautiful stretch of abandoned railroad that travels over and through the Idaho wilderness. The trail you ride on has been cleared of the old railroad ties, but you get to go through 5-6 tunnels carved through the mountains and over 7-8 wooden trestle bridges that span some pretty big canyons. We had a fantastic time, and thought we would share some pics!!<img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5296514665737325378" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 300px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SYEABr7ri0I/AAAAAAAAASc/7TaPXjZAfrw/s400/Hiawatha-Moms+031.jpg" border="0" /><br /><div align="center">Starting off from the Parking Lot - what's with the long sleeves, isn't it still warm outside?</div><div align="center"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5296514665118077010" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 382px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SYEABpoCkFI/AAAAAAAAASk/sMqvMuRdtDo/s400/Hiawatha+001+crop.jpg" border="0" />One of the first things you do is go through a 2 mile long tunnel. <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">You</span> need a headlamp to be able to see where you're going - in the middle of the tunnel, you can't see daylight from either direction and the temperature hovers around 40 degrees!!<img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5296514678708053826" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 300px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SYEACcQJJ0I/AAAAAAAAAS0/lgjMjfKlPlE/s400/Hiawatha+010.jpg" border="0" />The light at the end of the tunnel....<br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SYECGhgzvXI/AAAAAAAAAUM/iL3lYDxYQ1M/s1600-h/Hiawatha+011.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5296516947862863218" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 300px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SYECGhgzvXI/AAAAAAAAAUM/iL3lYDxYQ1M/s400/Hiawatha+011.jpg" border="0" /></a>Mom and I heading out onto the first trestle bridge<img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5296514671488660546" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 300px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SYEACBW59EI/AAAAAAAAASs/qeR5qsa1KdA/s400/Hiawatha+007+small.jpg" border="0" />Taking a breather before we head into yet another tunnel - note the sign that says "Turn on Lights". If you forget, you'll probably crash into the wall.<br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5296515499372402850" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 343px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SYEAyNdxWKI/AAAAAAAAATM/2KVN-twFx-w/s400/Hiawatha+014+copy+small.jpg" border="0" />Mom and I one of the longer trestle bridges<br /><br /><div><div><div><div><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SYEAy4jVHiI/AAAAAAAAATc/Xu0ogLTZs1w/s1600-h/Hiawatha+024+small.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5296515510938443298" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 300px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SYEAy4jVHiI/AAAAAAAAATc/Xu0ogLTZs1w/s400/Hiawatha+024+small.jpg" border="0" /></a>Amy made the mistake of looking down..... The trees look kind of small from 220 feet above the ground.<br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5296515518035110786" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 300px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SYEAzS_Tq4I/AAAAAAAAATk/LxEtsgTPNc0/s400/Hiawatha+038.jpg" border="0" />Idaho has plenty of trees.<br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5296516959549593474" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 300px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SYECHNDJF4I/AAAAAAAAAUU/6GT9FEfI0Ns/s400/Hiawatha-Moms+101+small.jpg" border="0" />A beautiful valley - it's really neat to get a birds eye view like this.<br /><div><div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5296516944508894402" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 300px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SYECGVBKPMI/AAAAAAAAAUE/J2JHcNCxwV8/s400/Hiawatha+036+small.jpg" border="0" />After lunch, we took a short rest on one of the bridges. "Amy, let us sleep!!"<br /><div><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5296515505386825250" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 300px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SYEAyj3uJiI/AAAAAAAAATU/KBy0WjNqJBQ/s400/Hiawatha+018+small.jpg" border="0" />Me standing on a trestle bridge with the largest bridge visible in the background. We are pretty high up! But, alas, the end is near....<br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5296516477422504402" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 334px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SYEBrI_FidI/AAAAAAAAAT8/WFa5tYIMm-0/s400/Hiawatha-Moms+124+small.jpg" border="0" /></div></div></div></div></div></div></div><br /></div><p align="center">We ran into a bunch of chipmunks while we were waiting for the shuttle to take us back to the parking lot. These chipmunks were trained con-artists - and fearless!! I actually got this one to come up and take a nut off the toe of my shoe. Cute little bugger!</p><p align="center">All in all, we had a great <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">time</span>, and we hope to do it again next summer!</p>Jim and Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09024939374181244742noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8246115528052072011.post-58086895024522303832008-12-10T21:29:00.000-08:002008-12-10T22:20:54.116-08:00Old Trucks and Odd Ducks<div><div><div><div><div>This year we decided to be grown ups and send out Christmas cards. However, we needed some awesome pictures that make us look cool and hip, so where did we decide to go take them?<br /><br />A Lumber Mill.<br /><br />That's right, Ladies and Gentlemen. We went ot a lumber mill. And we rock.<br /><br />Ok, not really, but these old vintage water trucks are literally three blocks from our apartment. They are castoffs of the lumber mill and we have been meaning to take some pictures of them for a long time. Well, we finally did, and we even managed to put ourselves in the pics (thanks to the magic of timed photos). So forgive the two people uglying up the pretty old trucks. I swear, we're not some kind of ridiculous narcissists, we just wanted to share some of the pics.....<br /><br />Amy worked these over in photoshop, and I think they turned out -pretty well. I think we could totally be models in the JCPenney catalog (well, if I was hotter, maybe!!)<br /><br /><div><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SUCsvXBIDsI/AAAAAAAAARY/sWqI1wSgiyg/s1600-h/Christmas+card+photo+2008+023+edit+5+copy.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5278408692910788290" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 267px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SUCsvXBIDsI/AAAAAAAAARY/sWqI1wSgiyg/s400/Christmas+card+photo+2008+023+edit+5+copy.jpg" border="0" /></a> <img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5278412309669496530" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 267px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SUCwB4fmRtI/AAAAAAAAARw/KIts--nT1uc/s400/Christmas+card+photo+2008+036+edit+3.jpg" border="0" /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5278412317772779202" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 267px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SUCwCWrkjsI/AAAAAAAAAR4/0SvNoaP2FLU/s400/Christmas+card+photo+2008+036+edit2.jpg" border="0" /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5278412320614502658" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 390px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SUCwChRF0QI/AAAAAAAAASA/kZvbbnnydCw/s400/Christmas+card+photo+2008+020+edit.jpg" border="0" /><br /><div><div><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SUCsult1XgI/AAAAAAAAARI/Z8ONErax-QQ/s1600-h/Christmas+card+photo+2008+016+edit.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5278408679676534274" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 267px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SUCsult1XgI/AAAAAAAAARI/Z8ONErax-QQ/s400/Christmas+card+photo+2008+016+edit.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SUCsuez2a6I/AAAAAAAAARA/e3GKPpgQPaw/s1600-h/Christmas+card+photo+2008+010+edit+3.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5278408677822720930" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 267px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SUCsuez2a6I/AAAAAAAAARA/e3GKPpgQPaw/s400/Christmas+card+photo+2008+010+edit+3.jpg" border="0" /></a> <img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5278413353256467762" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 267px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SUCw-oKHvTI/AAAAAAAAASQ/4Rc5BDOYlJ4/s400/Christmas+card+photo+2008+033+edit.jpg" border="0" /><br /><div><div><div><div><div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div>Jim and Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09024939374181244742noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8246115528052072011.post-11241614146487660642008-12-02T17:24:00.000-08:002008-12-02T17:42:56.498-08:00Some Old PhotosAmy and I were looking through some old photos we have, and we got a kick out of these ones. They were taken at a Latin themed (that's politically correct <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">English</span> for "Mexican") party my roommates and I threw back in the day..... we used to celebrate <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Cinco</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">de</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">Noviembre</span> because it was exactly six months from <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">Cinco</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">de</span> Mayo, and it always seemed <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">like</span> a good time to have a party!<br /><br />Amy <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">photoshopped</span> the photos so they looked old, and we thought they were worth sharing.....<br /><br /><br /><p><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5275369398443042082" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 300px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/STXghI0p5SI/AAAAAAAAAQI/JQGG5boiPRw/s400/Cinco+De+Noviembre+2005+006.jpg" border="0" /> Our friends <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">Jarom</span> and Seth with their big belt buckles. This one looks like it was taken in the early to mid-Seventies!! </p><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/STXgg83FtXI/AAAAAAAAAQA/La-iklcRcj4/s1600-h/Cinco+De+Noviembre+2005+009+edited.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5275369395232028018" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 300px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/STXgg83FtXI/AAAAAAAAAQA/La-iklcRcj4/s400/Cinco+De+Noviembre+2005+009+edited.jpg" border="0" /></a> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">Ay</span>!! Los caballeros locos, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_10">pero</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_11">guapos</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_12">hacen</span> la <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_13">musica</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_14">hermosa</span>! (The crazy but handsome cowboys make the beautiful music!)<br /><br /><div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5275369387665178578" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 300px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/STXgggrAv9I/AAAAAAAAAP4/ezT8DU6AFEk/s400/Cinco+De+Noviembre+2005+003.jpg" border="0" />A moment of serious consideration.... we were trying to look cool, but I'm not sure we succeeded.<br /><div><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/STXggTS8bEI/AAAAAAAAAPw/pwqKS2LJTw8/s1600-h/Cinco+De+Noviembre+2005+002.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5275369384074570818" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 300px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/STXggTS8bEI/AAAAAAAAAPw/pwqKS2LJTw8/s400/Cinco+De+Noviembre+2005+002.jpg" border="0" /></a> Doesn't this look like the kind of photo you'd see hanging in the wall in an old Saloon?<br /><br /><div></div></div></div>Jim and Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09024939374181244742noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8246115528052072011.post-62211955559799582202008-11-16T19:09:00.001-08:002008-11-16T19:59:26.225-08:00Christmas 2007!! More out-of-sync, out-of-control pics!!Yeah, we know, this happened almost a year ago... However, last Christmas (that's CHRIST-mas not "Holiday Season") we d<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">idn't</span> have this wonderfully trashy blog! Therefore, we lacked the ability to show poorly lit photographs of all our loved ones with puffy eyes, crooked smiles, messy hair, and other types of impairment not to be mentioned here!!<br /><br />I also must note that Wendy, Josh, and Dad somehow managed to avoid our camera lens.... It's not that we don't love you, you just proved to be too <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">wily</span> for us to catch!!<br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SSDkFdsU42I/AAAAAAAAAMQ/IPhC-rmjK14/s1600-h/Christmas+2007+024.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5269462346544505698" style="WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 300px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SSDkFdsU42I/AAAAAAAAAMQ/IPhC-rmjK14/s400/Christmas+2007+024.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Mom and Jim on the horse-drawn carriage during our trip to New York City. After many a mile of walking on unyielding concrete, the 15 minutes in the buggy were sheer bliss!!<br /><br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SSDkmig5C8I/AAAAAAAAAMY/veE_gaiTxLE/s1600-h/Christmas+2007+030+cropped.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5269462914774404034" style="WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 391px" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SSDkmig5C8I/AAAAAAAAAMY/veE_gaiTxLE/s400/Christmas+2007+030+cropped.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Mom with <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">the</span> big draft horse that pulled our carriage. This is New York however, so the horse requested a <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">schmeared</span> bagel and a <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">cappuccino</span> rather than carrots.......<br /><br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SSDkEzp31CI/AAAAAAAAAMI/frF_hkV1Cdg/s1600-h/Christmas+2007+021+no+skyscraper.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5269462335259923490" style="WIDTH: 300px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SSDkEzp31CI/AAAAAAAAAMI/frF_hkV1Cdg/s400/Christmas+2007+021+no+skyscraper.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br />A very large Gothic Cathedral on 5<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">th</span> avenue.... like a moron, I can't remember the name!<br /><br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SSDk6tEV2sI/AAAAAAAAAM4/xo-htQxNsDQ/s1600-h/Christmas+2007+035.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5269463261204830914" style="WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 300px" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SSDk6tEV2sI/AAAAAAAAAM4/xo-htQxNsDQ/s400/Christmas+2007+035.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Jim outside the Metropolitan Museum of Art. See, we folks from <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">Stormville</span> have some culture after all!!<br /><br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SSDk7Fv59oI/AAAAAAAAANA/RD6DCi8Ehx0/s1600-h/Christmas+2007+044.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5269463267830003330" style="WIDTH: 300px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SSDk7Fv59oI/AAAAAAAAANA/RD6DCi8Ehx0/s400/Christmas+2007+044.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Jim with a suit of Armor that must have been designed for midgets.....o<span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">kay</span>, RICH midgets....<br /><br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SSDknH1YEbI/AAAAAAAAAMg/kT4TzbgmOK4/s1600-h/Christmas+2007+075.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5269462924792435122" style="WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 300px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SSDknH1YEbI/AAAAAAAAAMg/kT4TzbgmOK4/s400/Christmas+2007+075.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br />No explanations for this one - just my wife using the camera at a bad moment! You'll note that she has managed to weasel out of being in any of the pictures thus far!<br /><br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SSDkoAbtZiI/AAAAAAAAAMw/6qRLKlVy2sY/s1600-h/christmas++002+cropped.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5269462939985602082" style="WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 372px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SSDkoAbtZiI/AAAAAAAAAMw/6qRLKlVy2sY/s400/christmas++002+cropped.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br />April and Grace on Christmas morning - what time is it again???<br /><br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SSDkELuwiwI/AAAAAAAAAL4/c_wljcqcgnw/s1600-h/Christmas+2007+016.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5269462324542999298" style="WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 267px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SSDkELuwiwI/AAAAAAAAAL4/c_wljcqcgnw/s400/Christmas+2007+016.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Maddie with her Gingerbread house - unfortunately she took out a sub-prime adjustable rate mortgage to buy it, so she lost it in foreclosure and Snow White (being of Old Money) bought it for well below market value!<br /><br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SSDkEY_0EwI/AAAAAAAAAMA/sxPRzmI-qJ8/s1600-h/Christmas+2007+017.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5269462328104194818" style="WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 267px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SSDkEY_0EwI/AAAAAAAAAMA/sxPRzmI-qJ8/s400/Christmas+2007+017.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Grace and her own lavish Gingerbread house. She decided to eat it, collect the insurance money, and move back in with her parents.....<br /><br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SSDknqiHwQI/AAAAAAAAAMo/Snemyl2AM8g/s1600-h/christmas+023.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5269462934106915074" style="WIDTH: 267px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SSDknqiHwQI/AAAAAAAAAMo/Snemyl2AM8g/s400/christmas+023.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div><div><br /><div><div>Lily and Grace dancing - I think.....</div><div> </div><div><div><div><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SSDjUdMszaI/AAAAAAAAALw/EiWv7A-EG3M/s1600-h/christmas+037+cropped.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5269461504598265250" style="WIDTH: 331px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SSDjUdMszaI/AAAAAAAAALw/EiWv7A-EG3M/s400/christmas+037+cropped.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Maddie and her <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">Webkinz</span> pet, Boo. Maddie is our resident computer genius (just slightly bested by her grandfather) and is <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">currently</span> working with Microsoft to fix the problems with Windows Vista.<br /><br /><div><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SSDjUN2abPI/AAAAAAAAALo/rD6eaHQBaDg/s1600-h/christmas+032+cropped.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5269461500478254322" style="WIDTH: 298px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SSDjUN2abPI/AAAAAAAAALo/rD6eaHQBaDg/s400/christmas+032+cropped.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br />You all may notice that there are a lot of pictures of Lily. This may not be a good thing for her, especially when she turns 16. I will personally make sure that her Prom date sees this one!!<br /><br /><div><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SSDjTidkRuI/AAAAAAAAALg/fj-Yp3-5IVE/s1600-h/christmas+030.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5269461488831317730" style="WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 267px" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SSDjTidkRuI/AAAAAAAAALg/fj-Yp3-5IVE/s400/christmas+030.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_10">Ambien</span>? Who needs that when you've got a house full of kids! Pat sleeps peacefully.....for now!!<br /><br /><div><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SSDjTb6iHTI/AAAAAAAAALY/vgHAFX9ljSg/s1600-h/christmas+028+cropped.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5269461487073762610" style="WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 286px" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SSDjTb6iHTI/AAAAAAAAALY/vgHAFX9ljSg/s400/christmas+028+cropped.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Evan cracked me up by telling me lawyer jokes and quoting Jay Leno!!<br /><br /><div><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SSDiyEkpQgI/AAAAAAAAALQ/zctww388eys/s1600-h/christmas+020+collage.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5269460913872257538" style="WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 267px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SSDiyEkpQgI/AAAAAAAAALQ/zctww388eys/s400/christmas+020+collage.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br />I don't know where this camo hat came from, but the kids seemed to love it. Lily spent much of the day on the phone with her agent trying to get a role in the next 'High School Musical' movie. They turned her down because, despite what she thinks, she's not in high school yet!<br /><div><br /><div><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SSDixVJ8G-I/AAAAAAAAALA/DhTJtIsjRUM/s1600-h/christmas+015+cropped.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5269460901143780322" style="WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SSDixVJ8G-I/AAAAAAAAALA/DhTJtIsjRUM/s400/christmas+015+cropped.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Diane and Dave with a bottle of his favorite drink - "Arrogant Bastard Ale"<br /><br /><div><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SSDiw6Zu_BI/AAAAAAAAAK4/n1Gvf4prwjY/s1600-h/christmas+014+cropped.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5269460893962271762" style="WIDTH: 388px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SSDiw6Zu_BI/AAAAAAAAAK4/n1Gvf4prwjY/s400/christmas+014+cropped.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Does this really need any explanation?<br /><br /><div><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SSDieTwfA8I/AAAAAAAAAKw/1npPmuoHPbM/s1600-h/christmas+013+cropped.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5269460574351066050" style="WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 335px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SSDieTwfA8I/AAAAAAAAAKw/1npPmuoHPbM/s400/christmas+013+cropped.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Thankfully Jim <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_11">Novak's</span> real "mug" looks better than the face on this mug. I'm sure Suzi would agree!!</div><div> </div><div><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SSDid4q3MWI/AAAAAAAAAKo/UWTCAj7wmaw/s1600-h/christmas+011+collage.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5269460567079727458" style="WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 234px" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SSDid4q3MWI/AAAAAAAAAKo/UWTCAj7wmaw/s400/christmas+011+collage.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Father and Mother Christmas, enjoying the festivities from the best seats in the house!!<br /><br /><div><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SSDidplTVfI/AAAAAAAAAKg/IxpU-8_sNzs/s1600-h/christmas+007+corrected.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5269460563029874162" style="WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 311px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SSDidplTVfI/AAAAAAAAAKg/IxpU-8_sNzs/s400/christmas+007+corrected.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><div>And last, but not least, Amy couldn't entirely escape the camera - here she is opening a sweet gift!!</div><div> </div><div> </div><div>We're all looking forward to Christmas again this year, and hopefully we will get the new pictures up in less than 11 months!!</div><div> </div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div>Jim and Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09024939374181244742noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8246115528052072011.post-9319441605630668112008-11-16T02:18:00.000-08:002008-11-16T10:46:16.068-08:00Random Pictures<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Ok</span>, Amy and I were thinking that we have a lot of great pictures that never see the light of day on our blog, and maybe it wold be fun to show some of them. Of course, this completely wrecks our already out-of-sync blog, but what the hey.....pictures are fun! <div><div></div><div><br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SR_8z1yrRdI/AAAAAAAAAJw/gkV-THXec8g/s1600-h/Post+Falls+03.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5269208056589927890" style="WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 300px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SR_8z1yrRdI/AAAAAAAAAJw/gkV-THXec8g/s400/Post+Falls+03.jpg" border="0" /></a></div><div></div><div>This is literally in our backyard. God bless Idaho!! You can sit by the river in the evening and watch Ospreys dive bomb for fish!</div><div></div><div><div><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SR_2EJUP6vI/AAAAAAAAAJQ/9u8HWsVuXcs/s1600-h/Osprey+at+Falls+Park+012.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5269200640127527666" style="WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 266px" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SR_2EJUP6vI/AAAAAAAAAJQ/9u8HWsVuXcs/s400/Osprey+at+Falls+Park+012.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Also</span> pretty much in our backyard (the park is about 100 yards from our door) We had an early spring this year which flooded the river, which consequently required the power company to open ALL the floodgates at the dam!! Look at all of that Dam water!! Random note - one area on my mission was so boring, we went on a tour of the local Dam on preparation day.... the sole purpose of taking the tour (also quite boring) was so that we cold use the word "dam" a lot.<br /><br /><div><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SR_2DpMlLNI/AAAAAAAAAJI/NBbIIUdMgrM/s1600-h/Mineral+Ridge+026.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5269200631505431762" style="WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 300px" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SR_2DpMlLNI/AAAAAAAAAJI/NBbIIUdMgrM/s400/Mineral+Ridge+026.jpg" border="0" /></a> </div><div></div><div>Amy making faces during a hike of scenic mineral ridge. <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">Ok</span>, well, it wasn't all that scenic until we got to the top.... it was more of a hot uphill slog to a beautiful view....<br /><br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SR_8pXA5aOI/AAAAAAAAAJo/6GpjynBwvO0/s1600-h/Apple+Pie+pics+8-2008+003.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5269207876529383650" style="WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 267px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SR_8pXA5aOI/AAAAAAAAAJo/6GpjynBwvO0/s400/Apple+Pie+pics+8-2008+003.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Jack <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">Handey</span> once wrote, “When you die, if you get a choice between going to regular heaven or pie heaven, choose pie heaven. It might be a trick, but if not…<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">mmmmm</span>, boy!” Amy and I called this our "free apple pie" because Amy picked the apples for free, and we had everything else. With the cost of fruit lately, it can cost over $10 for the apples alone, so we were pretty excited about our free apple pie!</div><div></div><div><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SR_2DQuQJXI/AAAAAAAAAJA/KX8pYZlRY2w/s1600-h/Wind+Caves+24.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5269200624935773554" style="WIDTH: 267px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SR_2DQuQJXI/AAAAAAAAAJA/KX8pYZlRY2w/s400/Wind+Caves+24.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /></div><div>This is a neat picture from our summer trip to Utah. Amy and I are perched in the lofty Logan Wind caves (which, by the way, were actually carved by water....go figure!)</div><div></div><div><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SR_1Bcree_I/AAAAAAAAAI4/GMvyPTbnbEo/s1600-h/Wind+Caves+08.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5269199494273989618" style="WIDTH: 267px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SR_1Bcree_I/AAAAAAAAAI4/GMvyPTbnbEo/s400/Wind+Caves+08.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Dad and I standing by the <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">precipice</span> in <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">the</span> Logan wind caves, each of us thinking, "all it would take is a little nudge and....."<br /><br /><div><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SR_1AyqSyUI/AAAAAAAAAIw/QNkw0gprRFw/s1600-h/Utah+Trip+June+2008+025.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5269199482994739522" style="WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 267px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SR_1AyqSyUI/AAAAAAAAAIw/QNkw0gprRFw/s400/Utah+Trip+June+2008+025.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Killing clay pigeons is an old family hobby that we seldom get to do anymore. Tim and I are blasting away and hitting fewer pigeons than we would like to admit....<br /><br /><div><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SR_1AuRg7XI/AAAAAAAAAIo/tBSj-MXFVFk/s1600-h/Utah+Trip+June+2008+024+cropped.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5269199481817066866" style="WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 380px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SR_1AuRg7XI/AAAAAAAAAIo/tBSj-MXFVFk/s400/Utah+Trip+June+2008+024+cropped.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Dad, the master thrower of pigeons. He decided to be generous and did most of the throwing....probably so he wouldn't show us up too badly!<br /><br /><div><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SR_1AVIobpI/AAAAAAAAAIg/ed7ofhiocNM/s1600-h/cat+tales+with+Nan+004+modified.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5269199475068923538" style="WIDTH: 266px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SR_1AVIobpI/AAAAAAAAAIg/ed7ofhiocNM/s400/cat+tales+with+Nan+004+modified.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Almost lost in the Idaho wilderness - Mom and I exploring a trail to nowhere. This is shortly after I went bushwhacking and fell down several hills....<br /><br /><div><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SR_0_2Enr3I/AAAAAAAAAIY/gDC7rsVW5AU/s1600-h/cat+tales+with+Nan+007+cropped.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5269199466730598258" style="WIDTH: 304px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SR_0_2Enr3I/AAAAAAAAAIY/gDC7rsVW5AU/s400/cat+tales+with+Nan+007+cropped.jpg" border="0" /></a> </div><br /><div>Mom birdwatching in Idaho by Cougar Bay.... unfortunately the birds must have gone out for lunch that day....<br /><br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SR_7eq3u6TI/AAAAAAAAAJg/NGfCEtftPQI/s1600-h/Cougar+Bay+084+modified.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5269206593369467186" style="WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 319px" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SR_7eq3u6TI/AAAAAAAAAJg/NGfCEtftPQI/s400/Cougar+Bay+084+modified.jpg" border="0" /></a> </div><div></div><div>Baby geese being herded along by their mama in Cougar Bay. Aren't they just fuzzy and cute!! You can see one of them registering his displeasure with being prodded along....<br /><br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SR_6LjUjNmI/AAAAAAAAAJY/mcU6RQNq6fg/s1600-h/Heron+Eating+A+Fish+collage.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5269205165413709410" style="WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 200px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SR_6LjUjNmI/AAAAAAAAAJY/mcU6RQNq6fg/s400/Heron+Eating+A+Fish+collage.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br />We took about 500 pictures of this Great Blue Heron that day - he was quite the fisherman, and we managed to get a few good pics of him catching and eating fish.</div><div></div><div>If you're still with us, <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">thanks</span> for looking.... we'll have some more out-of-sync pics coming up soon!!<br /><br />Some of these are from before we succumbed to the blessed <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">nerdiness</span> that is blogging, and some were just left out for the sake of breadth (or decency). So, here we go!</div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div>Jim and Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09024939374181244742noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8246115528052072011.post-72492976682267716782008-11-04T15:09:00.000-08:002008-11-04T16:08:56.809-08:00Election Day 2008 - Get Your Vote On!!<p align="center"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SRDcUMwZ47I/AAAAAAAAAII/O5YGAmk28W8/s1600-h/Get+Your+Vote+Day+005.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5264950203975852978" style="WIDTH: 324px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SRDcUMwZ47I/AAAAAAAAAII/O5YGAmk28W8/s400/Get+Your+Vote+Day+005.jpg" border="0" /></a></p><p>Amy and I got out and Voted today! I realize that this isn't exactly exciting news, but it felt good to contribute to the cause - especially when you feel like your candidate is the underdog and could really use the help.<br /><br />By reading that last sentence ( and seeing my red shirt), you can probably guess who I voted for. My sister recently chided me as being "Dad's last Republican Hope" and you know what? I'm damn proud of it.<br /><br />I see nothing wrong with standing for a government that believes in God, the Constitution, Freedom, lower taxes, punishing criminals instead of law abiding civilians..... and the list goes on. Benjamin Franklin has been credited with saying, "They who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety." I am not a "right wing conservative" by any means - heck if I ever met a democrat who didn't believe in abolishing my freedoms and trampling the constitution, I might even vote for him (actually, I voted for a Democrat Congressman today becaues I believe in his ideas). However, in our highly divisive political system , I haven't seen too much of this lately.<br /><br />I concede that Barack Obama will most likely win this election - the presidency has practically been handed to him on a silver platter. However, I sincerely hope that those who vote for him do so for the right reasons. I have heard more and more rhetoric about what a "historic" election this is, and I find it ridiculous. May we all vote for the person that we think is <strong>right for the job</strong>, not the person who will make the history books. I am not any kind of racist, but I really don't care if our president is Black, Hispanic, White, Asian, etc. I care that he will make the right decisions for this country. I think regardless of today's results, we can consider the "glass ceiling" shattered forever, and I am proud of our country for that.<br /><br /><strong>I should note that while I have expressed my own views very strongly here, I respect the differing views of others - the freedom to express our own differing views is one of the protected rights that makes this country great!</strong></p><p>If this post offends too many people, I <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">will</span> take it down. I am just sick and tired of keeping my feelings inside on this one - if any of you are offended, post a comment and I will remove this.<br /><br />And I promise to keep the politics off the blog from here on!<br /></p><p align="center">Thanks - Jim</p>Jim and Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09024939374181244742noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8246115528052072011.post-10060768680110759582008-11-01T13:01:00.000-07:002008-11-01T13:43:08.828-07:00Halloween and All Things Autumnal - Take 2!!!<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SQy2GnZTlkI/AAAAAAAAAHQ/7OXfzTkpC74/s1600-h/Green+Bluff+Farms+Pumpkin+Patch+Jim+and+Amy+005+copy.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5263782289259861570" style="WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 267px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SQy2GnZTlkI/AAAAAAAAAHQ/7OXfzTkpC74/s400/Green+Bluff+Farms+Pumpkin+Patch+Jim+and+Amy+005+copy.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Hey Everybody!! It's been a beautiful fall up here in North Idaho! <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">This</span> year, Amy had the wonderful idea that we <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">should</span> go to a real pumpkin patch rather than just buying our pumpkins at <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">Wal</span> Mart. It was a beautiful day and it brought back a lot of memories of picking pumpkins when we were kids! In the Photo above, you can see Amy displaying a lovely traditional <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">orange</span> pumpkin, and Jim displaying an atrocious green monster pumpkin (which we got for 1/2 price because it was green! Score!!)<br /><br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SQy2FyX9XSI/AAAAAAAAAHI/Cjcaka89ouw/s1600-h/Green+Bluff+Farms+Pumpkin+Patch+Amy+and+Scale+018.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5263782275027131682" style="WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 267px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SQy2FyX9XSI/AAAAAAAAAHI/Cjcaka89ouw/s400/Green+Bluff+Farms+Pumpkin+Patch+Amy+and+Scale+018.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Here we have a pic of Pumpkin number 2 being weighed and Amy <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">surrounded</span> by <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">orangey</span> pumpkin goodness!<br /><br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SQy2HDz3rVI/AAAAAAAAAHY/3vgOs4g8QTc/s1600-h/Halloween+Pumpkins+08+002.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5263782296887471442" style="WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 267px" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SQy2HDz3rVI/AAAAAAAAAHY/3vgOs4g8QTc/s400/Halloween+Pumpkins+08+002.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br />The carved Pumpkins - Jim Tried for a Spooky Tribal Face design that he sort of made up on the fly, and Amy made an awesome flaming skull design! By the way, we learned something awesome about green pumpkins - they are super easy to clean out and their guts aren't slimy and stinky!! Awesome!!<br /><br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SQy7_882zNI/AAAAAAAAAIA/FwEzWA35tIA/s1600-h/Halloween+08+004.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5263788771856796882" style="WIDTH: 267px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SQy7_882zNI/AAAAAAAAAIA/FwEzWA35tIA/s400/Halloween+08+004.jpg" border="0" /></a><br />Not so awesome - We also learned (the hard way) that a <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">pumpkin</span> with 1/2 inch thick walls will rot and collapse by the next morning...... We waited 'til two days <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">before</span> Halloween to carve the <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">pumpkins</span>, but Jim's gave up the ghost a bit early..... :(<br /><br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SQy40AIb8BI/AAAAAAAAAH4/lZtKq03m_J0/s1600-h/Halloween+Pumpkin+2007.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5263785268017360914" style="WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 216px" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SQy40AIb8BI/AAAAAAAAAH4/lZtKq03m_J0/s400/Halloween+Pumpkin+2007.jpg" border="0" /></a><br />Just for comparison's sake, here is our pumpkin from last year - we got all Martha Stewart on this one with raffia hair plugs, blown eggs for eyes, and gourds for the nose and ears. <br /><br /><div><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SQy2Hun6MFI/AAAAAAAAAHg/HCMkKSy1HUU/s1600-h/Jim+and+Amy+Halloween+08+025.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5263782308380029010" style="WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 390px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SQy2Hun6MFI/AAAAAAAAAHg/HCMkKSy1HUU/s400/Jim+and+Amy+Halloween+08+025.jpg" border="0" /></a></div><div>Costumes!! Ow can it be Halloween without them?? Apparently, Amy and I went as the 70's for <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">Halloween</span>. Jim kept telling people he was a used car salesman, but the truth was that we just wanted an excuse to wear some of our awesome old clothes. Amy's dress was one that her Mom used to sport back in the day, while Jim's suit was a gag gift from his sisters. The scariest part is that it fits perfectly!</div><div> </div><div><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SQy2IM-J8FI/AAAAAAAAAHo/2hBiBmta-I0/s1600-h/Halloween+Jim+and+Tim+08+013.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5263782316526399570" style="WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 300px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SQy2IM-J8FI/AAAAAAAAAHo/2hBiBmta-I0/s400/Halloween+Jim+and+Tim+08+013.jpg" border="0" /></a><br />Jim and his friend Tim from church had the best hairpieces at the Ward Halloween Party..... The best costume was the Transformers plane costume worn by the little boy in the picture - it was made of cardboard, but it REALLY TRANSFORMED!! How awesome is that? Parents everywhere - the bar has been raised!!</div><div> </div><div><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SQy4zr9usAI/AAAAAAAAAHw/cv5M98e0ZyI/s1600-h/Halloween+Dinner+with+John+and+Amanda+Searcy.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5263785262603743234" style="WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 300px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_4na3gBHW-oM/SQy4zr9usAI/AAAAAAAAAHw/cv5M98e0ZyI/s400/Halloween+Dinner+with+John+and+Amanda+Searcy.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Finally, on Halloween night, our friends invited us out for dinner and a scary movie (and saved us from the loser existence of sitting around our apartment <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_10">complex where</span> Trick-or-<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_11">Treaters</span> fear to tread...)<br /></div><div>Overall, it's been a fun holiday for us and we hope it was great for you and yours!!!<br /></div>Jim and Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09024939374181244742noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8246115528052072011.post-59240007825985629242008-10-31T23:58:00.000-07:002008-10-31T23:59:25.125-07:00Halloween and All Things Autumnal!!Happy Halloween!! For the next 60 seconds!!Jim and Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09024939374181244742noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8246115528052072011.post-14812958960510704322008-10-14T10:20:00.001-07:002008-10-14T10:43:39.381-07:00Our Weekend Getaway!!Okay, the title of this post should really be considered "deceptive advertising". <div><br /></div><div>Some friends of ours from church made us a job offer that we <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">couldn't</span> refuse: "Come with us up to Silver Mountain in beautiful <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Kellogg</span>, Idaho and spend the weekend in a two bedroom suite at the resort! They have a beautiful location, plush <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">accommodations</span>, and a huge indoor water park!! We'll pay you too!!"</div><div><br /></div><div>The job part of the equation was that we would be spending part of our time there watching kids for them and several other families. At one point we had 12 kids ranging in age from 1 year old to 10 years old. The kids were actually very well behaved, and we had a great time.</div><div></div><br /><div>Our suite was huge - we really only ended up using half of it, but the other half was just as nice. We could have had "Lucy and Ricky beds" (I Love Lucy, anybody?) but we opted to stay in the same room this time around.<br /></div><div>In any case, here are a few photos of the trip!</div><div><br /><br /></div><div></div><p align="center"><a href="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/room1copy.jpg"><img style="WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/room1copy.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /></p><p align="center">Here are some pics of our ginormous room - Seriously, this place was bigger (and much nicer) than our two bedroom apartment!! I guess for $300/night it should be!! We enjoyed cuddling up on the couch in front of the cozy fireplace and partaking of the splendors of free cable TV!<br /></p><p align="center"><a href="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/Kellog008copy.jpg"><img style="WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/Kellog008copy.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Jim and Amy at the top of Silver Mountain - they have a nice gondola that takes you up to see the view.</p><p align="center"><a href="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/Kellog002copy.jpg"><img style="WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/Kellog002copy.jpg" border="0" /></a></p><div></div><div>This is a picture of Jim trying out the artificial wave machine. Amy was kind <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">enough</span> to take this photo BEFORE he decided that it would be more fun to repeatedly surf on his FACE. It was painful and embarrassing, but he was <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">just about</span> the only person brave enough to try standing up(and failed miserably). Still it was loads of fun! And pain!</div><div></div><div>Since <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">waterparks</span> don't really lend themselves to photo opportunities (cameras just don't like water very much) we only have this one photo. However, we had lots of fun on the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">waterslides</span>, tube rides, and the lazy river!!</div>Jim and Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09024939374181244742noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8246115528052072011.post-36731461108713912782008-10-14T10:02:00.001-07:002008-10-14T10:19:17.114-07:00Water Sports!!This post really should have occurred several months ago (back when it was still warm outside), but we have been somewhat delinquent in posting as of late. So sue me.<br /><br />In any case, several months back, while my Mom was visiting us, we spent a lovely day on the Spokane River. We put the boats in at a local spot called Black Bay Park. The park has a shallow, secluded bay off the river with many spots to swim and play in the water. There is also a great rope swing there, and we all managed to use it! We paid for it the next day in stiff muscles (gosh I feel old) but it was well worth it!<br /><p align="center"><a href="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/Yakingsmall.jpg"><img style="WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/Yakingsmall.jpg" border="0" /></a></p><p align="center">Amy in the yellow "Yak" with the beautiful Idaho wilderness in the background</p><p align="center"><img style="WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/Kayakingjandnan.jpg" border="0" /></p><p align="center">Jim and Mom paddling around in the Kayaks</p><p align="center"><a href="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/Nantimes2.jpg"><img style="WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/Nantimes2.jpg" border="0" /></a></p><div align="center">A <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">litte</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Photoshop</span> magic allowed us to show Mom swinging and splashing down in the water all in the same picture....... <span style="font-size:130%;color:#3333ff;">How cool is my Mom!!??</span><br /></div><p align="center"><a href="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/ropejanda.jpg"><img style="WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/ropejanda.jpg" border="0" /></a></p><div align="center">Jim and Amy getting air on the rope swing!! We are higher up than it looks!!</div>Jim and Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09024939374181244742noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8246115528052072011.post-32638034793650398902008-09-18T17:59:00.001-07:002008-09-18T18:58:17.091-07:00Don't Run, You Look Like Food!!<p align="center"><a href="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/CatTales264low.jpg"><img style="WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/CatTales264low.jpg" border="0" /></a></p>It's really kind of a disturbing thought, isn't it?<br /><br />At least, we felt that way when we were being charged by a grumpy 700 pound Siberian Tiger.<br /><br /><p align="center"><a href="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/cattalesblogpic2.jpg"><img style="WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/cattalesblogpic2.jpg" border="0" /></a></p>This kind of behavior on the Tiger's part does nothing to give you any confidence that that skinny little chain-link fence will hold up if he hits it hard enough. It might as well be rice paper dividing mankind from savage albino beast.<br /><br />I guess if Mom and I died from a white Siberian Tiger mauling, it would make for some interesting conversation at our funeral........<br /><br />Let me explain - Jim's mom came to visit us a few weeks ago, and we thought it would be fun to take her to the North Idaho equivalent of a Zoo. That would be our local Large Cat Refuge.<br /><br />Cat Tales is a very cool place set back in the woods, startlingly near to a housing development. They have all kinds of Lions, Tigers, and Bears (oh my!), not to mention, Cougars, Cheetahs, Lynx, Panthers, and even several <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">housecats</span> that strut about with a self-important sort of gait.<br />Apparently at least one of these <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">housecats</span> has met an early demise because they would mess with the large cats and then got too close one day..... (true story as told by the keepers!)<br /><br />So here we are, standing in front of the White Tiger's cage, when he suddenly his head perks up, his shoulders tense, and I think to myself "he looks like he's gonna pounce".... A split second later, he did exactly that! Mom and I jumped about three feet in the air as 700 pounds of Tiger covered ten yards in about a quarter of a second and stopped abruptly at the fence.<br /><br />Then he got this look on his face like, "Yeah I <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">coulda</span> just snuffed you right there", and strolled off trying his best to look cocky.<br /><br /><p align="center"><a href="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/cattaleswithNan032low.jpg"><img style="WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/cattaleswithNan032low.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /></p>Thankfully, not everyone at the park had that kind of attitude. This full grown African Lion is named <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">Jamba</span>. He would occasionally stand up and roar at the Tiger in the next cage (which sounds incredibly cool) but other than that he was as calm as a sleepy lap dog.<br /><br />The great thing about <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">Jamba</span> was that he lolls his tongue out like a dog. This, by the way is not normal for lions at all - they just don't do it in the wild. It turns out that <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">Jamba</span> was raised with the security Dog that guards that park. The two of them would share a cage for years, and the keepers think that <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">Jamba</span> picked up the hanging tongue thing from the Dog!!<br /><p align="center"><br /><a href="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/cattalesblogpic3.jpg"><img style="WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/cattalesblogpic3.jpg" border="0" /></a></p><p align="left">While we were there, Mom got the chance to feed one of the big male Tigers by hand. It's really neat to be that close and watch them eat. Thankfully, the tiger is behind an extra thick sheet of <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">Plexiglas</span>, and you feed him through a hole in the glass. Nonetheless, it's a really cool thing to see.</p><p align="center"><a href="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/CatTalesblogpic1.jpg"><img style="WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/CatTalesblogpic1.jpg" border="0" /></a></p>We also got to see some other big cats while we were there - A Panther, a Cougar (go <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">BYU</span>!) and most notably, a <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">LIGER</span> !! That's right Napoleon Dynamite fans - the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_10">Liger</span> is NOT just a mythological creature, although this one didn't seem to display any magical powers. She was bred from a lion and a Tiger and displays faint stripes on her body.<br /><br />In any case, our trip to Cat Tales was very cool, despite being a little bit scary. Did we mention that the cats weren't being fed that day. I bet we looked pretty tasty!!Jim and Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09024939374181244742noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8246115528052072011.post-80895507361715904102008-09-18T17:59:00.000-07:002008-09-18T18:13:50.595-07:00Trailer Park Moment of the Week (9-18-08)<div align="justify">Hey there everybody!! Sorry it's taken us so long to post on the Blog, but we'<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">ve</span> been <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">experiencing</span> technical difficulties with our home <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">Internet</span> for a long time here. <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">You</span> could call it our Trailer Park Moment of the MONTH. Our <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">Internet</span> people represent a level of ineptitude that is generally only exhibited in the manufacturing of British Automobiles and the cleaning of fast food restrooms.<br /><br />In any case, we are FINALLY back up.<br /><br />This Trailer Park moment should have happened a long time ago. We were parked at the local gas station - the one located about 150 yards from our humble abode. Mom was inside buying (guess what) a soda, when we noticed a <strong>different</strong> kind of soda machine on the side of the building.<br /></div><p align="center"><a href="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/BaitMachine.jpg"><img style="WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/BaitMachine.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><strong><span style="font-size:130%;">That's right - this one dispenses live worms and <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">nightcrawlers</span>.</span></strong><br /><br />This one should be categorized under "things you only see in Idaho". I absolutely love this state, and part of me actually thinks that it's totally awesome that we have Soda Machines filled with Bait, but it's still pretty Trailer Park in my book.</p>Jim and Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09024939374181244742noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8246115528052072011.post-21504749003442334622008-08-13T17:15:00.001-07:002008-08-13T18:01:01.066-07:00Bear World<div>Okay, this post is a little out of sync, but we had too many pics and stories from our trip to Utah to show and tell them all at once. On the way home from Utah, we spent a few days in Idaho falls to visit with Amy's Grandma and here Aunt, Uncle, and cousin.<br /></div><div><div>While we were down there we decided to make a little trip to a place that is simply called "Bear World" This is a great little animal refuge north of Idaho falls. They have bears, elk, a rare albino elk, baby bear cubs, and a petting zoo.</div><div><br /></div><p align="center"><a href="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/UtahTripJune2008205copy.jpg"><img style="WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/UtahTripJune2008205copy.jpg" border="0" /></a></p><div>To see most of the animals, you drive your car right through their paddocks. The bears walk right across the road in front of the cars and there are no fences between you and them. The park staff reminds you, in a loud and repetitive fashion , to keep you windows rolled up at all times.</div><div>However, despite the admonishment of the staff to keep your windows up and don't feed the bears, you can pay to ride around in a big truck and throw hunks of meat at the bears instead!!</div><div>We didn't do this, but the bears really love that truck. We just happened to be right behind it in our small, low to the ground car, with rolled up windows and no meat. <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Greeeeaaaaaat</span>!!</div><p align="center"><a href="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/UtahTripJune2008242.jpg"><img style="WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/UtahTripJune2008242.jpg" border="0" /></a></p><div>The baby bear cubs are REALLY cute, and they run around and wrestle <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">and</span> climb on things. They MUST be boys. The one in this picture loved to play with a stick.</div><p align="center"><a href="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/UtahTripJune2008292copy.jpg"><img style="WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/UtahTripJune2008292copy.jpg" border="0" /></a></p><div>I just loved the baby fawns. I nearly had my Man Card revoked for making silly voices and cooing at the baby deer. If you have never touched a deer, the grown ones have fairly coarse fur. The baby fawn was the opposite - its fur was wonderfully soft.</div><p align="center"><a href="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/UtahTripJune2008308copymany.jpg"><img style="WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/UtahTripJune2008308copymany.jpg" border="0" /></a></p><div>More animals from the petting zoo - clockwise we have some goats, a ginormous rooster, turkey, a guinea hen, a midget (Bantam) Rooster, and a tiny baby duckling. The midget rooster was really funny - he seemed to think he was ten feet tall and bulletproof. He had one heck of a strut on him for a creature that stands about 8 inches tall.</div><p align="center"><a href="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/UtahTripJune2008344copy.jpg"><img style="WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/UtahTripJune2008344copy.jpg" border="0" /></a></p><p align="left">The deer would eat grain right out of your hands. I don't mean to sound morbid, but the only deer I have ever touched were dead ones after I shot them during hunting season. I have always had a lot of respect for deer, so it was a real treat to get to pet a live one.</p><p align="center"><a href="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/UtahTripJune2008359copy.jpg"><img style="WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/UtahTripJune2008359copy.jpg" border="0" /></a></p><p align="left">Bear world is a cool place, and ironically, the grown man was the one who seemed to enjoy the petting zoo far more than any of the kids that day. Go figure.</p></div>Jim and Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09024939374181244742noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8246115528052072011.post-10355317791820157182008-08-13T16:32:00.000-07:002008-08-13T16:59:06.734-07:00I must be getting Old.....<p align="center"><a href="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/Compact-Flourescent-Bulb.jpg"><img style="WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/Compact-Flourescent-Bulb.jpg" border="0" /></a></p><div align="center"><strong><span style="color:#cc0000;"></span></strong><span style="font-size:180%;"><strong><span style="color:#cc0000;">WARNING</span></strong><span style="color:#cc0000;">: This may be a boring post.</span><br /></span></div><br />I hear that as you get older, you start to realize how many boring stories you end up telling people. Here's one from me:<br /><br />So we went to the store today to get a few groceries and thing s we needed for the apartment.<br />Well, I ended up in the housewares section of our local <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Wal</span> Mart (I know, I'm a bad person for shopping there) staring at the giant wall of light bulbs.<br /><br />As I stood there, I got to thinking, "You know, the bulb I'm replacing was a 150 watt bulb. I bet I could save a lot of money on my electrical bill if I got one of those energy saving fluorescent bulbs."<br /><br />And like that, I suddenly discovered that I was 65 years old. I remember when we were kids, and the household fluorescent bulbs first became available, my father went and spent a bunch of <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">money</span> on these newfangled fluorescent bulbs and put them in all the lamps in our house. He too was trying to save a little money on the electrical bill. They gave off that cold, greenish white industrial glow, and I remember how much we hated them - we would actually cheer with joy when one would die and we could replace it with a normal 75 watt bulb.<br /><br />I'm not sure if Dad ever knew this, but we would occasionally try to give the bulbs a little extra nudge to <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">help</span> them shuffle off this mortal coil a little faster. I guess you <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">could</span> refer to it as some type of electrical euthanasia...... we might knock over a lamp by "accident" or know into the ceiling bulb with a <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">broom handle</span> as we went by.<br /><br />And now, here I am, 28 years old, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">standing</span> in the housewares section, and doing exactly what my dad did. Crap!!<br /><br />I used to be cool.... I swear!! My mom says I'm cool!!Jim and Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09024939374181244742noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8246115528052072011.post-30613488734315878322008-08-08T14:44:00.000-07:002008-08-08T14:57:23.933-07:00Trailer Park Moment of the Week (8-8-08)<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Ok</span>, so this "Trailer Park Moment of the Week" thing should probably be a weekly <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">occurrence</span>. At least that's what the title implies. However, I am lazy and forgetful, so these little golden moments will probably only occur when I remember to do them. In this case, I was shocked into memory by the sight of something so wonderfully trashy that I HAD to post it up here!!<br /><br />I suppose it's a bad sign that I would give give my right arm (or other things) to own this fantastic item!! I hope you all enjoy this one!! If those two great men by the names of Smith and Wesson were looking down from heaven right now, I think they'd be grinning from ear to ear!<br /><br /><p align="center"><a href="http://i183.photobucket.com/albums/x242/jimmer_5/SmitthandWessonBarbecueGrill.jpg"><img style="WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://i183.photobucket.com/albums/x242/jimmer_5/SmitthandWessonBarbecueGrill.jpg" border="0" /></a></p><div>I don't think I need to say anything else. If you don't understand it, you never will. Wives, please support your husbands in making the necessary sacrifices so your family can obtain one of these fine, stainless steel, beauties. I guarantee that they'll only go up in value, and your home just won't be complete until you have one!<br /></div>Jim and Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09024939374181244742noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8246115528052072011.post-10163954780657717972008-07-28T23:45:00.000-07:002008-07-28T23:48:15.807-07:00I HATE Blogger....Man, Blogging is nice, but there is something wrong with the software on this site. I can never seem to get all of my photos to enlarge when I upload them. On out last post, they all enlarged at first, then some of them randomly decided to stop doing it. Anyhow, it's late, I give up, and Blogger now owns my soul.<br /><br />I'll probably delete this in the morning, but I needed to vent! Grrrrrrrrr!!!!Jim and Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09024939374181244742noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8246115528052072011.post-12849600442434704732008-07-28T23:13:00.001-07:002008-07-28T23:44:32.203-07:00The Best Trip Ever!!!<div align="center">Glacier National Park!!</div><div align="center"><br />Words cannot express the awesome.</div><div align="left"><br />This last week we were lucky enough to get a visit from Aunt Suzanne, Uncle Jim, and our cousin Grant. They flew all the way from New York to visit us and to take a trip to fabulous Glacier National Park. We were overjoyed to see them, as they are some of our favorite people on the planet!</div><div align="left">If you have never been to Glacier, I express my condolences. It is absolutely BEAUTIFUL!! This trip was fairly short, but we packed a ton of stuff into those four days. The weather was beautiful, the views were exquisite, the lodgings were comfortable, and even the food we ate was splendid (although we don't recommend the fresh whitefish au blanc beurre at the local diner in West Glacier - the sous chef must have been off that day). Anyhow, I'll let the pics do the talkin'. </div><br /><img style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/GlacierTripPics108.jpg" border="0" /><br /><div align="center">Here we are, just outside of Glacier Nat'l Park!! Can you believe they let this ragged bunch through the gates?<br /></div><img style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/GlacierTripPics079.jpg" border="0" /> <p align="center">Home sweet home!! The "Staggerin' Inn" was a fantastic place to stay, despite the flagrant use of puns exhibited in it's colorful name.<a href="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/IMG_1476.jpg"></p><img style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/IMG_1476.jpg" border="0" /></a>Berry pickin' fools. Grant and Jim decided to reach for the good stuff rather than settling for 'low hanging fruit'. Check out Grant's nimbleness - he actually stood like that for about ten minutes straight. True to form, Jim fell off the fence every 60 seconds. <div align="center"><a href="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/GlacierTripPicsedited083.jpg"><img style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/GlacierTripPicsedited083.jpg" border="0" /></a> What could be better than fresh picked berries to sprinkle on your cereal at breakfast time?<br /><a href="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/GlacierTripPics038.jpg"><img style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/GlacierTripPics038.jpg" border="0" /></a>The beautiful falls along the Trail of the Cedars<br /><br /><a href="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/GlacierTripPics034.jpg"><img style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/GlacierTripPics034.jpg" border="0" /></a> Some ferocious local wildlife along the Trail of the Cedars. Do NOT feed the animals!!<img style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/GlacierTripPics060.jpg" border="0" />After a rousing hike, the group paused for a delicious (and nutritious) lunch by Avalanche Lake. This picture was taken just inches from the spot where we saw an unidentified snake several minutes earlier. Thankfully, the Snake Gods were smiling on us that day, and the snake didn't steal anybody's sandwich.<br /><a href="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/GlacierTripPics063edited.jpg"><img style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/GlacierTripPics063edited.jpg" border="0" /></a> A magical cascade by the Avalanche Lake. It's so magical that Unicorns come from far and wide to drink from it's crystal clear waters.<br /><br /><a href="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/IMG_1592.jpg"><img style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/IMG_1592.jpg" border="0" /></a> Uncle Jim and Amy enjoy a cool, refreshing beverage after a long day of hiking.<br /><a href="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/GlacierTripPics114.jpg"><img style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/GlacierTripPics114.jpg" border="0" /></a> On the second day, we got stuck waiting for construction for 25 minutes. However, there's ALWAYS something to climb on around here, so nobody got bored.<br /><br /><a href="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/IMG_1525.jpg"><img style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/IMG_1525.jpg" border="0" /></a> This is the place where we got stuck for 25 minutes - it was such a boring, ugly place to be stuck - if you don't believe me just look at the picture we took!!<br /><img style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/IMG_1536.jpg" border="0" />Here we are hiking up to the Hidden Lake - we hiked in the snow uphill both ways!! You kids have it EASY these days!!<br /><br /><img style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 200px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/GlacierTripPics166.jpg" border="0" /><br /><a href="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/IMG_1557.jpg"><img style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 200px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/IMG_1557.jpg" border="0" /></a> Speaking of <strong><em>kids</em></strong>, we saw the cutest baby mountain goat hanging out with it's momma along the trail to Hidden Lake. It was really cute and fuzzy, and even the burliest lumberjacks among us said, "Ooooooh - isn't he CUTE!!"<br /><br /><div><a href="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/GlacierTripPics125-1.jpg"><img style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/GlacierTripPics125-1.jpg" border="0" /></a> The slightly less cute Bighorn sheep.<br /><a href="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/GlacierPark-HiddenLakePanoramicView.jpg"><img style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/GlacierPark-HiddenLakePanoramicView.jpg" border="0" /></a> <strong>Behold!! The Majesty of the Hidden Lake!!</strong></div><div></div><div>Okay, let me just say that Photoshop is AWESOME. This fantastic panoramic view was actually four pictures taken by Amy that we stiched together and color corrected in Photoshop. The program actually has a tool that does this for you and we think it did one heck of a job!!</div><div><br /><div><a href="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/GlacierTripPics163.jpg"><img style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/GlacierTripPics163.jpg" border="0" /></a> With all of that Majesty just lying around, we figured we needed to get a group shot next to it.<br /><a href="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/GlacierTripPics153edited.jpg"><img style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/GlacierTripPics153edited.jpg" border="0" /></a> The Mountain Goat says, "I'll show YOU majestic!"<br /><a href="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/GlacierTripPics179.jpg"><img style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/GlacierTripPics179.jpg" border="0" /></a> Further on down the road: An overlook of Saint Mary Lake<img style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/IMG_1563.jpg" border="0" />And FINALLY.........</div><div></div><div>What would a trip to Glacier Nat'l Park be without a picture of a real live glacier? This is a shot of Jackson Glacier, which is, ironically, one of the only actual glaciers you can see from the road.</div><div></div><div>This trip was the best trip we have been on in many years - thanks again to Uncle Jim, Aunt Suzanne and Grant for coming to see us and making this happen!!!</div></div><br /></div>Jim and Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09024939374181244742noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8246115528052072011.post-7585532429413947302008-07-16T10:37:00.000-07:002008-07-17T14:12:58.935-07:00Utah Trip in Review - the longest trip EVER!!Our trip to Utah was tons of fun and we took so many pictures--we may have to do installments or this could be the longest post ever! So here we go.<br /><br />We planned this trip because Jim's brother Tim and wife Ashley are the new proud parents of baby Ian. In this case however, "proud" also translates to "sleep deprived". Ian is a beautiful healthy baby boy, and he is so cute! We all really enjoyed holding and rocking him during our stay with Tim and Ashley. We look forward to watching Ian grow - he seems to get cuter every day! Congratulations Tim and Ashley!<br /><p align="center"><a href="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/IanBW.jpg"><img style="WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/IanBW.jpg" border="0" /></a></p><br /><div align="center">Ian looking thoughtful<br /><a href="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/BabyIan6-08small.jpg"><img style="WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/BabyIan6-08small.jpg" border="0" /></a></div><div align="center">"Hmmm - this example of the canine species appears to exhibit hues and patterns that do not appear commonly appear in the natural world!! Closer study will be necessary!!"</div><p align="center"><a href="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/TimholdingIan1small.jpg"><img style="WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/TimholdingIan1small.jpg" border="0" /></a></p><div align="center">Ian whistling a tune for his father's amusement</div><br /><br /><p align="center"><a href="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/AmyholdingIansmall.jpg"><img style="WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/AmyholdingIansmall.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /></p><div align="center">Amy with TWO sleeping babies - but thankfully only one is in diapers </div><div align="center">(I don't know HOW they got Ian potty trained so fast, but they did!)</div><br /><br /><p align="center"><img style="WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/MomholdingIansmall.jpg" border="0" /></p><div align="center">Grandma feeds Ian a bottle and plots about the easiest way to </div><div align="center">sneak the baby home in her suitcase!</div><p align="justify">Jim's Mom and Dad drove cross country to visit their new Grandson - now I hear you asking, "That's a long way? Why didn't they just fly?" Well, the reason is because they are really nice parents. We recently bought a car from Jim's grandma, and Jim's parents were kind enough to drive it all the way from New York to Utah for us!! It's not actually a brand new car, but for all the world it looks like one!! We are so thankful to Grandma Muz for selling it to us and we've really enjoyed it!!</p><p align="center"><img style="WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/OurNewCarSubaruForester012small.jpg" border="0" /></p><div align="center">Jumping for joy!!<br /></div><br /><br /><p align="center"><a href="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/OurNewCarSubaruForester020small.jpg"><img style="WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/OurNewCarSubaruForester020small.jpg" border="0" /></a></p>We went shooting twice on our trip - Jim was embarrassed because he hasn't shot at clay pigeons in a while and he missed a lot of good ones. Jim's brother Tim fared much better. We took a picture of the back of his head (lower right corner) because, despite his prowess with a shotgun, he didn't get the looks in the family!! Just kidding!! The truth is that we got the back of his head because standing in frond of someone who is shooting is a bad idea. And often results in a Darwin Award for the photographer.<br /><br /><div align="center"><img style="WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/shooting1copysmall.jpg" border="0" /></div><br /><br /><br /><br /><p align="center"><a href="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/UtahTripJune2008029small.jpg"><img style="WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/UtahTripJune2008029small.jpg" border="0" /></a></p><div align="center">Amy forgot to wear a hat, so we made her one out of the used shotgun shell boxes!<br /><br /></div><br /><br />While we were in Logan, Mom, Dad, Jim, and Amy took a nice hike up in Logan canyon. The trail was supposedly only 1.3 miles long, although we all severely doubted that measurement by the end. What they don't tell you is that there is a fair portion of the trial (not, that's NOT a typo) that seems to go straight up. However, the view was absolutely beautiful and the wind caves (which were actually made by water) were very cool. It's definitely worth the uphill slog!!<br /><br /><br /><p align="center"><a href="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/WindCaves01small.jpg"><img style="WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/WindCaves01small.jpg" border="0" /></a><a href="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/WindCaves03small.jpg"><img style="WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/WindCaves03small.jpg" border="0" /></a><a href="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/WindCaves02small.jpg"><img style="WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/WindCaves02small.jpg" border="0" /></a></p><br /><br />The next stop on our weird, wild vacation was a trip down to Nephi, UT where we met up with Amy's side of the family. It was really great because all of Amy's immediate family managed to be there, as well as a few aunts and uncles, and Amy's Grandma. It was great to see everybody, and we had so much fun!! It's always amazing to see how fast the grandkids (ok, nieces and nephews to us) grow up, and this trip was no exception. We also got to see Baby Bailey for the first time - she was only 2 months old, and very cute!!<br /><br /><br /><br /><div align="center"><a href="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/bartons1copysmall.jpg"><img style="WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/bartons1copysmall.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /></div><br /><br /><p align="center"><a href="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/UtahTripJune2008145copy.jpg"><img style="WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/UtahTripJune2008145copy.jpg" border="0" /></a></p><div align="center">Amy's dad (Bruce) shows off the guitar that he built from scratch!! It was really amazing to see the finished product - he built all the forms and molds by himself!! </div><div align="center">Dirk and Jim worked on a much simpler project - a toy sailboat. Blake had fun playing with his sailboat in the backyard by the little waterfall display.<br /></div><br /><br /><p align="center"><a href="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/hike2copysmall.jpg"><img style="WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/hike2copysmall.jpg" border="0" /></a></p>During the visit, a bunch of us went hiking in Salt Creek canyon !! Dirk and Paige both helped clear the weeds from the trail - Dirk with his "whackin' stick" and Paige by collecting armloads of wildflowers. Does anyone now doubt the inherent internal programming differences between boys and girls?<br /><p align="center"><a href="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/hike1copysmall.jpg"><img style="WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/hike1copysmall.jpg" border="0" /></a></p>Amber and Baby Bailey; Blake blowing a dandelion; Paige and Kayle; Blake in a 'logger's chair'<br /><br /><br />So that was the majority of our trip - we also have a few more pictures to show from the journey home, but those will have to wait for another time!! Phew!! If you made it this far, give yourself a pat on the back. And an ice-cold beverage! You've earned it!Jim and Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09024939374181244742noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8246115528052072011.post-34658411261525503762008-07-10T11:08:00.000-07:002008-07-10T12:31:11.997-07:00Manito ParkSo, I've had the idea to decorate some of the bare walls in our apartment with photos of flowers. I've looked around in the vast selection of home decor stores that the Northwest proudly offers (which is pretty much Target, Kohls and Walmart), and have found pretty much nothing. Which leaves me with my own "talents", so with camera in hand, Jim and I paid a visit to Spokane's very own Manito Park. Can I just say I love this park! It is a 90 acre park with 5 different gardens.<br /><br />The Rose Garden<br /><div><a href="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/manitopark014copy.jpg"><img style="WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/manitopark014copy.jpg" border="0" /></a><a href="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/manitopark032copy.jpg"><img style="WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/manitopark032copy.jpg" border="0" /></a></div><div>The more formal Duncan Garden.<br /><br /><a href="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/manitopark037copy.jpg"><img style="WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/manitopark037copy.jpg" border="0" /></a> <a href="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/manitopark045copy.jpg"><img style="WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/manitopark045copy.jpg" border="0" /></a></div><div>Jim on a bridge<br /><a href="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/manitopark046copy.jpg"><img style="WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/manitopark046copy.jpg" border="0" /></a></div><div>And a bridge of Shrubbery</div><div><a href="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/manitopark039copy.jpg"><img style="WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/manitopark039copy.jpg" border="0" /></a></div><div></div><div>Anyway. These are the pics that I like best. The colored pics are the originals and the B&Ws, I played with a bit in photoshop.<br /><a href="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/manitopark024copy.jpg"><img style="WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/manitopark024copy.jpg" border="0" /></a><a href="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/bw2copy.jpg"><img style="WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/bw2copy.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><a href="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/manitopark019copy.jpg"><img style="WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/manitopark019copy.jpg" border="0" /></a> <a href="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/bW1copy.jpg"><img style="WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/bW1copy.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><a href="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/manitopark021copy-1.jpg"></a><a href="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/bw3copy-1.jpg"></a><a href="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/manitopark021copy-1.jpg"><img style="WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/manitopark021copy-1.jpg" border="0" /></a><a href="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/bw3copy-1.jpg"><img style="WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/bw3copy-1.jpg" border="0" /></a><br />I'm hoping these are worthy of a frame. </div>Jim and Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09024939374181244742noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8246115528052072011.post-81485368427586557142008-07-09T11:56:00.000-07:002008-07-09T12:08:59.037-07:00A recent conversation between Jim and Amy.....<a href="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/ski-jumper.jpg"><img style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 200px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/ski-jumper.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div>A few nights ago we were sitting watching TV. As the Olympic trials have been televised as of late, they seem to have sparked a few humorous moments as we grasp for the names of obscure sports. The recounting of the following conversation will most likely land me a spot on the Olympic "Sleeping on the Sofa" team.</div><br /><div></div><div>Amy: "Hey, I have a question."</div><br /><div>Jim: "<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Ok</span>, what?"</div><br /><div>Amy: "What is that sport where they go down a hill on skis and then they jump?"</div><br /><div>Jim: "Uh, you mean <strong>Ski Jumping</strong>?"</div><br /><div>Maybe this conversation isn't funny to anybody except us, but I got a big kick out of it and I have been teasing my wife unmercifully ever since.</div><br /><div>I have to say though, this incident reminds me of my lovely sister April. She's been known to have a few moments like this of her own.... I guess Amy REALLY fits in with our family! </div>Jim and Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09024939374181244742noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8246115528052072011.post-41533297945729421902008-06-07T13:51:00.000-07:002008-06-07T13:59:35.985-07:00Trailer Park Moment of the WeekIn a comedy routine that Jeff <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Foxworthy</span> did a few years back, he stated that you "can't give a Redneck money", because he had just gone out and bought a very expensive pair of Blue Stingray Boots.<br /><br />I do wear western boots almost daily, but I have always felt that I have reasonably good taste when it comes to footwear. Well, I have <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">finally</span> proven myself wrong.<br /><br />I was browsing on the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">internet</span> a couple of weeks ago and I discovered a pair of brown sharkskin boots with lime green tops and found myself wanting them badly. Thankfully, I currently lack the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">fundage</span> for the aforementioned purchase, but I still felt like a redneck nonetheless.<br /><br />This post is really, really pointless, but here's a picture of the offending footwear. I am fearful of the comments I will receive, but here you go!!<br /><br /><br /><img style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll187/amyannmacnair/TonyLamaSharkskinBoots.jpg" border="0" />Jim and Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09024939374181244742noreply@blogger.com3