It's Fall!

It is definitely autumn in Northwest Montana. The leaves are turning, the temperature is dropping, and the harvest of the field behind our house has happened. This week has been nice and sunny, so everyone is trying to get in one last summer activity. Summer went by so fast this year, it's hard to believe we'll have snow soon.Sunset in Whitefish

Tyler was getting ready to go stay at Nana and Papa's house

A visit from the Dungans

Our good friends Tod and Erin came to visit us from Minnesota last weekend. Their 2 1/2 year old son, Milo, came too and boy, did we have fun. Tyler and Milo got along pretty well considering they had never met, Tyler doesn't talk, and is just learning how to share. Milo was a great influence on Tyler, a good little player, very patient, and an all around super good boy. We went up to Big Mountain on Saturday and took the gondola to the summit. The views were amazing! Tod and Milo rode on the alpine slide and said it was a blast.

At the Summit of Big Mountain

Heading down in the gondola. Whitefish Lake and the town in the background.

The boys loved the gondola rides!

Daddy and Tyler looking east at the snowcapped peaks.

Scott and Tyler enjoying the view

Erin, Milo, and Tod

Being sweet boys before bedtime

Erin and I took the boys to lunch and the park while Scott and Tod played in a golf tournament. Now we both know what 2 kids would be like!

Milo posing with the big bear

Walking around Mackenzie River as we wait for lunch

Tyler loves the slides! He always goes down on his tummy, feet first

Watch Me!

Contemplating which way to go

Thanks for coming to visit us! Hopefully we can get together again soon!

The Twins are Here!

This morning, Hayden Kate Harris and Will Allen Harris were born in Chadron, Nebraska. Hayden came in at 5 lbs 3 ounces, Will at 6 pounds 7.5 ounces. Babies, mommy Katie, and daddy Aric are all doing great! Welcome to the world, little ones! We are so happy to have you here!

So sweet!

GN Camping Trip

We had the annual Great Northern Employee Camping Trip on Monday night. We have it at the group pavilion site at Tally Lake, and it works out very well. The weather this year was in the 60's, dropping into the 40's as the sun went down. Everyone still had a great time. Tyler explored the area and discovered some bear scat by the river. Luckily the only wildlife we actually saw were deer and some very cute bunnies. Hopefully next year will be a bit warmer for us so Tyler and I can actually spend the night!

Tyler and Daddy by the footbridge (I discovered the lens was smudged after these pictures were taken... with some tiny fingerprints!)

The pavilion at Tally Lake. It has fire pits, a bbq grill, and lots of picnic tables and campsites. The guys played bocce ball and ladder golf to pass the time.

After camping, Tyler needed a bath! Scott had to use the hairdryer to dry his hair....

...extra volume and extra curly!!!

August Pictures

Here are a few pictures from August that I have been meaning to share. We were able to go to visit the Marlins/Heishmans at Lindbergh Lake for a day to enjoy some great company and sunshine. The water was a little chilly for swimming, so we did some kayaking, rock throwing, and playing while visiting with Ann, Derek, their 3 beautiful kids, and her parents. Thanks for having us!

Sarah, Cate, Ann, Tyler, and Stef at Lindbergh Lake
Kayak time! Tyler and I went for a quick spin, and Sarah spent some time on the lake as well.

Cate and Tyler finishing lunch. They really hit it off, it was very cute!

Cowboy Tyler

What a goose!

EB + LE

Last weekend we made a road trip to Great Falls for our friends Eleanore and Leif"s wedding. It was two days of fun seeing old friends, drinking at the Sip 'n' Dip Bar, and of course, the highlight being a truly beautiful wedding. Eleanore and Leif made their wedding very personal, from the hand sewn boutonnieres to the old fashioned typewriters to write the happy couple a note, it just felt like them. Thank you for including us in your celebration!

The groom and bride after the reception

The Sip 'n' Dip lounge is a tiki bar in the hotel we were all staying in. It has a window from the bar that looks into the deep end of the pool, During the day, you can watch your friends feet as they swim.... at night, a mermaid and merman swim in the pool, complete with bikini tops and mermaid tails on the bottom! It was quite a show!

Ann, Stef, and Kelly enjoying a fishbowl- the signature drink of the Sip 'n' Dip

The mermaid swimming at the Sip 'n' Dip. Sometimes she would swim through hoops and play rock paper scissors with you.
Scott and Doug at the reception. It was held at the CM Russell Museum which was really neat.

Leif is getting his PhD in literature... what an appropriate cake!The groom's cake and the delicious wedding cake: lemon filled with huckleberry!

Kelly has more pictures posted on her site at Team Peppmeier

Swimming!

Tyler is a big fan of swimming. Yesterday Scott took Tyler up to Tally Lake to visit Doug and Christine since they have parked their camper up there for a couple of weeks. The water was a bit too cold for Tyler, but he had a great time running and playing in the woods. Hopefully the water will warm up by the time we go camping up there in a couple of weeks.

Here are a couple pictures of Tyler swimming in the hot tub, which is considerably warmer than the lake!

He loves to wear his life jacket and just float around. He wears this silly grin on his face most of the time he is in the water!

He gets kind of upset when it's time to get out. Here is his pouty face.