THE HOUSE IS STARTING

Well the builder has finally started on our house. We got a call last week and he said that he got the approval with the permits to start. I could hardly believe it. Here are a few photos of the start of the foundation. Warning: House postings may be extreme in the next 6 months.
The first and third Picture is looking West on out property.
The Second picture is looking East.The Fouth picture is looking North West.

It is hard to believe that we are finally building. It feels so right to be here in this area. The new church building is only a few blocks away. I am learning that having patience pays off.

I am so thankful for my blessings for they are many.

Barkley Family Murder Mystery 2007

This year Jer had a 1920 mobster theme. The scene took place on October 27th, 1927 at the pinnacle of Prohibition. The mafia and the criminal underworld ruled the streets in chicago. Today we were held hostage in a small bank while a couple of mobsters, "Mad" Paulie Moretto (jer) & "Pretty" Tommy Piccoli (Mark), cleaned out the vault. In the meantime Robert Worthlin ownner of the Worthlin Bank of Chicago layed on the floor dead from a gunshot.
Who did it? As we played the game we had to uncover the clues scene by scene. In the end we fould out that Mr James Cantwell (Jason) killed Robert Worthlin because he stole Mr. Cantwells share of the Bank. All too fun and can't wait till next year. check out the Photos. I wish I had everyone.

Our Fun Trip

I can't believe it. We finally got away. Mark and I figured it had been about 3 years since we had a trip longer than a quick overnighter. We decided to go to Uncle Don and Aunt Carols new home in Spring Creek. We missed our visits with them every year and it was at the top of our to do list. It was a blessing to be able to see them and look forward to next year.

It was beautiful ~ the pictures do not show the true beauty. We have a full mixture of weather from 75 degree weather on Friday to snow in the afternoon on Saturday.
Friday we went up the canyon where we came across a nice heard of what looked to be Angus Cattle. I think they might have been herding them down for winter (At least that is what I'd like to think for they were way too cute to send to the slaughter house). As we went up the canyon it was so beautiful! The pictures do not do justice. We came to the glaciers and at the bottom was a Boy Scout camp. WOW ~ It looked like the Swiss Alps. We continued to the top which was about 8,800 feer in elevation. Check out the web site I have posted. What a wonderful trip it would be to go hiking there.

Saturday friends on Don and Carols, Ron and Linda old neighbors brought one of the final loads to complete their move ~ lots and lots of rocks. It was fun to sit and visit. Ron and Linda are wonderful people.

Sunday we had breakfast and went into the casino. It was fun. Aunt Carol hit bank on the penny slots and took us to dinner. It was another great day.

Of course Aunt Carol cooked us some great dinners. I can' wait to make them. One of my favorite parts of the trip was the birthday cake Aunt Carol suprised me with for dessert. It was soo nice. Uncle Don and Aunt Carol look GREAT! Aunt Carol reminds me of Grandma ~ So down to earth and so sweet and kind. I love the fact that you can just sit and talk. Both Uncle Don and Aunt Carol have such a great insight on life. We love them alot! Can't wait till next year.

Oh Beautiful Day!!!

It is such a beautiful day today, I feel trapped all stuck inside the house. The sprinklers have just kicked on reminding me that we have such beautiful weather in Richland. I even had to turn the AC on today.
My favorite part in fall is the cool crisp mornings with a cup of hot cocoa, watching the leaves turn from yellow to orange to bright red. Then the wind just blows them around getting in the perfect spot to walk on.
When I was a kid I don't remember ever walking on the sidewalk when the leaves were falling. I do however remembering the old man on the corner yelling at me because I always cut across his lawn right thru the leaves. How rude of me! He probably enjoyed looking at his leaves all beautifully fallen on his yard. I guess I am much more mature to understand that now. LOL.
Anyways, I hope everyone is enjoying the outdoors.
Smiles

HERITAGE DAYS

It was a nice day with just Emily and MJ. Dad and I took the little-ones to Heritage days where we got to look at some pretty cool stuff from the old west. We watched and learned how a blacksmith heats iron and twist it into decorative iron rods. This was MJ's favorite. My favorite was the hats. Check out the hats in the pictures. These are hand made & Beautiful. We visited many trading post and learned how to speak an indian language. The Lewis and Clark musuem had many interesting facts about there journey.

All in all it was a relaxing day with the kids. I forgot what it was like to only have two kids to take around. It was sure alot less complicated. The older kids stayed home and did homework. We are having lots of fun up here in the Tri-Cities.

Mark's Big B-day

As you know Mark turned "40" this year. This year Mark's family decided to surprise him by driving up to wish him Happy Birthday. Let me tell you it is hard to keep a secret from your husband. I slipped a couple times but thankfully his brothers bailed me out with playing Battlefield. It was a great seeing Mark come out of his room with a big "WHAT THE HE??" look on his face. We all got a great laugh out of it. Mark was very happy to spend time with his family ~ He misses his Brothers alot.
I Love you Mark!! It has been an eventful past 25 years with you. I think it is so sexy to watch your man grow old. This may be sick but I love those gray hairs on your head. Happy B-lated B-Day.