Four

Happy Birthday to our sweet Gabi! We had a little celebration on Sunday evening with cake and mint chocolate chip ice cream (Gabi's favorite!) My parents were here, so it made the day extra special! On Monday, Gabi did "Show and Share" at her Preschool. She insisted on bringing our cat, Rocky, to show her classmates. She did an excellent job of telling everyone about Rocky, including that he eats mice, he purrs a lot, he likes to petted on his chin and ears, and that if you pull his tail, he will whap ya! We were very proud of her.

Gabi has also been playing soccer this fall. She really likes it, but isn't very aggressive and is the littlest one on her team. Nonetheless, she runs around the field after the ball with a huge smile on her face (and that's all that matters).

We were able to attend the Nebraska vs. Wyoming game in Laramie last Saturday. I grew up a huge Nebraska fan (and still am except when they play Wyoming!) My Mom & Dad came out from Iowa and my brother came from San Francisco (where he recently moved to). We had a great time tailgating and watching some good football (well, kind of....)

We called this "The Poke Sandwich"...it isn't too different than what happened on the field!

There were a lot of Nebraska fans in the stadium, but not enough to create the usual Sea of Red.

Maya kept stealing cookies at the tailgate. She is becoming a cookie monster like me!

Grandma Phyllis' 80th Birthday was last Sunday (the 18th). We had a big party for her at Amanda & Greer's home. Everyone had a wonderful time and the kids were excited about helping her blow out her candles.

Silly Maya:

Things have been super busy around here. We will be moving into our new house this weekend!

Lots of Love, Joe, Tara, Gabi & Maya

End of Summer Happenings...

It seems like we've been going a mile a minute around here, but thankfully our days are still filled with lots of fun as we enjoy these last days of summer. The ranch kids (and dog) enjoyed a swim outing to the creek. A great time was had by all!

We celebrated Gio's 5th birthday! I can't believe it has been 5 years since I held that cute little bundle of joy shortly after he was born! I'm loving that Gabi & Maya are able to have so much fun with their cousins.

It has definitely been harvest time around here. I've canned 16 wide-mouth jars of greenbeans and 12 of dill pickles. I made 6 pints of bread and butter pickles, 6 pints of zesty zucchini relish, and 8 pints of our favorite so far...sweet yellow tomato chutney. I've also frozen lots and lots of shredded zucchini, chopped green peppers, and swiss chard. Last Wednesday, we had a corn fest where we packaged and froze 55 bags of corn off the cob. It was quite the production with the turkey fryer used to boil the corn, 3 electric knives decobbing the corn, and lots of helpers. We've probably only harvested 1/3 of the corn! The tomatoes will be next...I have my sights set on canning some salsa and bruschetta. The best part of the garden's harvest is the fresh produce! We have been stuffing ourselves with as many fresh veggies as we can take!

Grandma Phyllis with Milan and Gabi:

Grandpa Don with Maya on our newly built fence!


Gabi had her first day of preschool last week. She was soooooooooo excited about going to school. I was able to drop her off and Joe picked her up. She had a permanent smile on her face the rest of the day. We are so proud of her! I was crying as I left her at school, which really surprised me because she has gone to school when we lived in Golden. They were tears of joy because I am thankful that she is such a happy, healthy little girl. She also started playing soccer last week. It seemed like she was more interested in socializing with the other kids than actually playing soccer. It will fun to watch her during her first game next week!

First Day of Preschool:

Maya is doing great as well. She has been singing quite a bit lately (ABCs and Twinkle Twinkle). I'm actually surpised it has taken her this long to start singing since her sister sings (and talks) nonstop. ;) Maya colors like a rock star. Don't tell Gabi, but I think she colors better than her sister! She LOVES to color and would spend hours at it if we let her. She is also able to draw smiley faces, her shapes, and some letters. We're working on her name and it won't be long!

That's all for now! Lots of love to you all! Joe, Tara, Gabi & Maya

Check out our house progress: wyomingishome.blogspot.com

Cabin Time

We were lucky enough to enjoy some quality time at Joe's parents' cabin this past weekend. We enjoyed a few hikes, making s'mores, playing in the loft, and cuddling by the fire. The girls slept in the same bed, so they pretty much giggled themselves to sleep. :) Enjoy the pics.

Lots of love,
Joe, Tara, Gabi & Maya