First day of school and the last of vacation 2011

Here is Carter on his first day of High School.  High School!?!?!  How did the that happen!!  

Ethan on his first day of 5th grade.

And here she is on her first day of Kindergarten!! I love how big their back packs are!

OLIVIA!!!

In her classroom by her desk.  Love it!

Carter has to leave at 6:30 to get the bus at 6:35. He has gotten up and out the door every day on his own, with JaDee taking him to the bus stop...He makes his own lunch and has done his homework every day without being asked. Even a couple of essays with hardly any help from me.  I tell you, we should have started with high school! It is amazing.

Ethan got the teacher he wanted so he is very happy.  We have to sign the planner again, but as usual, I don't do it unless he brings it to me.  And when he does it is all filled out, and all of his work is done.  It is going to be a good year for Ethan.

Olivia was so excited!  I was too....But I surprised myself by actually crying when I dropped her off.  It started when we walked through the doors of the school and I kept it together until I took this picture.  Then I kissed her quick and left. I didn't want her to see me teared up. She was fine...of course.


The last few days of vacation were on the farm.  JaDee and I celebrated 15 years of marriage and went to Red Lodge, MT.  He surprised the "socks" off of me (I was going to say "pants" but I figured that was TMI) with a pearl necklace.

At Clark's Fork Falls and its amazing high water this year.  There is me with my pearls and my gray hair.

Olivia with Uncle Rod.  He saved the vacation and had chickens.  JaDee's mom didn't have chickens or a baby calf to feed this year so we had to go to Uncle Rod's to collect eggs.  We did that a couple of times. Oh and Uncle Rod lives 30 miles from JaDee's farm, so it was bit of an effort to get there.

Farmer Livs at Uncle Rod's coop.

I swear, if Carter was ever smiling in any of these pictures.... Here they kids are with JaDee's grandparents. Grandpa is 91 and Grandma is 88.

here are 2 gals I don't see very much...All of our husbands are cousins.  Kristy is holding her baby boy #6 and Jackie is pregnant with baby #5.  I have no plans of catching up, but I love these ladies.  It was so funny, Kristy and I both confessed to worrying about each other. I worried about her with all her 6 boys with a husband who is a pilot and always gone; she worried about me getting dragged to Alaska.  We both assured each other that we are fine! Now we can stop worrying and know that we are both loving where life has taken us!

And cousin Matt (Jackie's husband) is giving Olivia a ride on Oreo.  Olivia had to wear cowboy bots for the event.

What is that face S!!  Here with his arch nemesis, Ethan...  When Ethan was little, he could really bug Cousin S. Now it is so funny to see Carter and a couple of his younger cousins have the same relationship these two did a few years back.  Now they are grand friends!

My dad and Carol came from Arkansas to Utah, so we got to go back to my sisters house and see them for a bit.  Here they are with all the Smith grandkids.

We went to the Dinosaur National Monument and hiked up to see fossils still in the rocks.  Olivia got a ride on Grandpa's shoulders.  Courtney is behind them.

I got to carry Miss B because I had a water bottle.  And my sister is brand new pregnant and it was hot and I didn't want Courtney wearing herself out.  That's because I am nice.

Here we are at Courtney's new house.  I look really short with my cropped pants and my tall sister, but the gray hair is gone from my hair thanks to a much needed coloring appointment in Wyoming!

So pictures I didn't take and could kick myself now are none of my kids with my mom or JaDee's parents, not enough of the cousins together, none of them swimming in grandma's pool and none of me with CaMee and EmRee.

Next year for sure.