Montana Summer

We had a wonderful summer in Montana. I am short on time, as usual, so these are mostly out of order, but at least I am updating!

Here is Embree, now almost 10 months old. She claps, dances, waves, and does Popcorn Popping and Itsy Bitsy Spider. She talks a lot and today we think she actually said hi, although time will tell. She is a terrible sleeper and eater, but we are working on it and she is slowly improving. She is very smart and active and happy as long as we don't make her sleep or eat!Maddox with his stroller. I tried to get him to push a stuffed animal, but he wanted his spatulas instead.

This summer my family, meaning my sister and brother and parents, were sealed in the temple. It was a fast trip and it happened the day before Jeff and I left to head back to Kentucky, but it was worth it! How amazing and I am so grateful for eternal families and that now I am sealed to my siblings and parents. maddox has a habit of waking up in the middle of the night and wandering around and playing. This is where he finally fell asleep. Just the other night Jeff came out and found him riding his trike around the living room at 3 a.m. Funny now, but not at the time.

We went to visit my dad one day. he is working for the state of Montana flying helicopters to fight forest fires. This is his helicopter.

The boys loved it! Jett is my sister's boy. Maddox and him loved playing together, when they weren't fighting or biting or hitting.

We took a trip out to Portland to visit Jeff's family. Here is Maddox and Simon chowing down on the brownies!

Here is a four generation picture of girls. My mom, Embree, me, and my grandma, Darlyne.

Here is one of us hiking at Silver falls in Oregon. It was beautiful. You get to walk behind and under the waterfall in the background, kind of like in Robin Hood.

Here is Jeff with Maddox swimming at Whitefish Lake. Maddox loved the water. By the time we left he was going in up to his neck and trying to swim. Jeff is happy about that because the first purchase we will have for recreation when we are out of dental school is a boat!

When we went to the lake, a local sports store had some canoes, paddleboards, and such to try for free. Here is Jeff doing it.

Here I am trying it out. I failed. Some kid canoed by me and asked, "So this is your first time, huh?" It was pretty obvious. I was shaking and barely balancing. Then he very kindly rammed me and I almost fell off, but managed to just fall to my knees. In case you didn't know, I am scared of the water and was almost crying by the time I made it back to shore.

A view of Flathead Lake. The mountains in the distance are where I live.

We took Maddox horse back riding after Jeff got back from a cattle roundup with my brother in law on his ranch. It was fun!

Maddox loved the backyard and the hose, as long as you didn't spray him back.

Here I am reading to Maddox and Jett while they eat graham crackers. This was a rare moment when these two were sitting still.

To finish it all, here is Maddox right before we left to fly out to Montana, pretending to pump. Jeff was not too excited about this picture, but when we got out to visit my sister, who also just had a baby, her son Jett did the same thing. They just love their mommies so much and want to be just like them!