My daughter.  I am so proud of her.  She's done something I could not do at the age of four and still cannot do now.  She loved riding a rollercoaster.

She had been talking about wanting to ride the rollercoaster at the fair for a few days and Jason and I weren't sure if it would be a good idea since she was scared of some of the rides last year.  When we walked onto the midway, she spotted the upside-down-whirly-spinny coaster for adults and said, "I want to ride that rollercoaster!"  We decided to find something more her speed.  And she so loved loved loved it.  We ran into some friends so she and Greta got together.  Hazel even was putting her arms in the air as she went down the "big hills!" 

Maybe riding the kiddie coaster isn't a big deal for some people, but since I have always been scared of them and Hazel can sometimes be shy and afraid of things, I was so happy she enjoyed it and did something brave. 

Then we put Klaas and Hazel on the little car ride.  Klaas was very serious the whole time and cried hysterically when Jason took him out.  He loved it.  The other highlights of the fair were two balloons: one which flew away immediately after Hazel was warned about taking it off her wrist (she cried) and one that popped in Klaas' face when we walked under a tree. 

Klaas kept talking about the cows and pigs we saw.  I think that was the most exciting part for him.  A good few hours at our little county fair.

Casper sadly could not enjoy the cotton candy, corn dogs, and ice cream we all had.  But I think he still had a good time.

We love our new place.  We've been here since March and are so blessed to have four other families live all around us that have become our friends.  We knew almost all of them before we moved in and have really enjoyed living near them.  Last week we had an Italian progressive dinner at our houses.  We started off with delicious (!) cocktails and bruschetta at Bill and Sarah's, yummy spaghetti and meatballs byf Julie and Daniel and Henry and Anna, stuffed bell peppers at our place, and then a layered strawberry cake by Allie and Andy.  Good good times.  

And I would recommend the bell pepper recipe.  It was from Giada de Laurentiis.  Stuffed peppers with a basil sauce.  Summer goodness.

On Friday we started what we hope to continue every weekend until it gets cold: outdoor movie night.  Jason stretched one of our sheets on our back wall, Bill brought his projector, and Henry brought his speakers.  We set up a rug and chairs, made popcorn and root beer floats, and projected Maverick.  Such a good time.  Of course we waited until the end of August when the nights are getting cool, so by halfway through the movie, we were all wearing sweaters, hats, and were bundled up in blankets.  But we're tough north Idahoans.  We're going to do it again this weekend if we can.  Wine and cheese and.....maybe Star Wars or Indiana Jones?

Picking Garden: peonies, lupine, and wonderful sunshine

We headed out to the picking gardens for the first time today.  Some good friends came and that made it even better.  The peonies are just blooming, along with iris, columbine, lupine, tea roses, and several other varieties.  I stuck with the peonies and lupines, since I love them so much.  It was a bit of juggling trying to take pictures of the kids, pick flowers, make sure Klaas wasn't walking on anything he shouldn't, and that Hazel was practicing safe flower-cutting techniques.  So a lot of the pictures ended up out of focus and not in the perfect setting.  But that's just how life is.  We had such a good time.  I love our Palouse. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

One day it was 95. The next it was 62 and raining. That's just weather in the northwest for you. On Saturday we went to a local fall festival and took a hay ride, saw the Raptor Club from WSU, and learned about butter churning. Then we also went to our local alpaca farm to check out the alpacas. Klaas, true to form, yelled hello to all the animals and Hazel got an ice cream cone painted on her cheek.

Today we went on a little walk, came home in a drizzle, and now we're playing legos, and making breakfast-for-dinner burritos. We also have a good supply of chocolate chip cookies and projects (knitting for me and leather for Jason). I'm working on a hat for Klaas, to be followed by hats for Hazel, Jason, and myself. Jason recently made a cowboy-style wallet for himself and is now working on a design for an iPhone carrying case and a belt for Hazel. I also want him to make us headbands similar to this. We just have an endless list of things to make around here.I also really like my new shoes.

The county fair

We went. We saw pigs, cows, sheep, goats, chickens, ducks, roosters, turkeys, and bunnies. We yelled hello to the pigs (Klaas) and really liked the chickens with "hats" (Hazel). We also got lots of balloons, accidentally let the air out of said balloons, and signed up to win a free iPad (!).
Hazel rode on rides this year for the first time. She and Jason went down the big slide. Just look at the pictures and you can tell whether or not she had a good time (no). But then she went on to drive a little car that went 2 mph around a track and thought that was the bee's knees. So we redeemed ourselves and will not be known as "Mom and Dad who tortured me and made me go down a big scary slide." (Though as a disclaimer, she was very excited climbing up the stairs.)

This is the look of jealousy. We do have a rule in our house: you can ride the rides when you can appreciate them (or be afraid) and you might be able to remember the experience at a later date.
Then we dug around for rocks and artifacts in a sandbox provided by the university's archaeology program and headed home. No deep fried snacks this year. But we did have a yummy and fun dinner out with friends at the alehouse. And that's another year at the county fair. It gets more fun every year as Hazel and Klaas get older.