Travel : Canyonlands in Utah for spring break

Dunes like Oman…

Crazy 4 wheel drive road that broke our truck eventually-  expensive camping when  you are towed to Moab.

Petroglyphs   and arches.

First camp site in Needles. 

Second camp site with sundowners

Kids doing projects in am with cocoa

Joint trail with hall of karyns..

Brotherly love

Travel: February In Montana- or not Montana….

I like ski time in the sun-  but I need to get away for warmth…

Off to MX with family.  Beach time with cousins and sunburned day one because we did not learn a darn thing about sun and skin.  When Birch has his skin cancer removed everyone remind me.

Heading to Espiritu Santos for camping.  Cole still wears his fast suit  ( speedo ).

Our camp site.  I miss Africa tends with colonial furniture- but these were great.

Paddle boarding, kayaking and swimming with sea lions.

Typical Cole nap in Kayak.  David harassing sea lions and gets bit and takes a pic- no skin broken like on Aunt Rebecca.

Family photos

Mt Kilimanpoop named by the kids and sacrificial alter to for dead fish to the sea birds.  I have never seen Birch whack a fish on the rock to kill it when it was only half alive like that before.  “ Putting it out of its misery before the sacrifice.”  - All circle of life. 

Lots of great days on this trip.

Life: Survived our first xmas back.

Colism: “ the word Christmas mom has Christ in it- like the Jesus person.”

Colism:  “They go us mixed up – I don’t like legos.  I caught that- I do not really like legos. “ ( trying to be nice so he doesn’t lose money from Whining Jars we have)

Colism: “ can we play Wii “  8 million times a day

 

School ended with the traditional singing events.  Funny because in Africa we did concerts or plays like every week.  Here it is rare- ughh. 

So we started off with xmas eve at new friends house.  Kids did snow ball wars and we all had a great meal.  Tracked Santa and left a note.  He drank the beer and Rudolph left chili prints. Then we had our own day of presents, presents, more presents.  Cole loved the BB gun but birch loved the books. 

Left to ski with Mona and Mike and kids in Essex.  Great stay.  Ended with downhill that the kids were not ready fro after three years in Africa- so some meltdowns and knee injury for mom- but made it home ok.

News years eve we made our own special fancy dinner- china from the wedding and silver from Anne.   We had emperors black rice and whole trout for the boys.  ( Like in Kenya they said)

New years day lots of outdoor playing, chores, tamales for lunch, and maybe a movie.  With no TV funny not to hear USA football in the background.

Missing Africa friends a lot this season-  seems like I need a gin and tonic.

 

 

Life: Cole turns 8 with a hip hop all boy party at DDC

Travel: To Bozeman for regional rock climbing competition. Last place but good practice for the kids his only 7.

Only finished one course but parents did not do any BETA  ( yelling stuff out at kid) and overall he enjoyed.  Treat for after was dinosaur museum.

Life: October and still feeling new to this place

 

 

Rock Climbing competition.  First ever for the kids on at team- “ Pirate Gnarrs”.  Cole got 6th and Birch got 7th in their age group.  Cole needs three more arms for reach and Birch still working on mental endurance for the sport.  Great club in town with twice a week practice.  Next comp in Bozeman next weekend.  So cool to hear them use all the rock climbing lingo..

 

Happy Halloween.  No donkey pulls and we miss our Europeans take on this American tradition, but fun none the less.   “scored well mom in this neighborhood”.  Kids really into the house to house thing and Missoula is so safe no one worried about poison or razors in the candy.  Thank heavens the Halloween Fairy Witch came to our house and took the candy to give to kids in Africa ( left a small target toy instead!!!)
Thanks Mimi for Cole’s again.

Day of the Dead Parade in Missoula.  What a cool event.  Next year we are doing it up big time.  David totally in to this.  Cole’s class was in the parade because they made a giant roller print skeleton to carry.  So we walked it, watched fire throwers, watched a lot of white African dancers, and fell in love more with our new community.

 

 

 

 

Life: Other things new and old about our lives.

New:
Jealous Matt and Lisa swam with whale sharks.
Both kids are rock climbing.
Bears and deer are normal day sightings.
Hulu and Pandora- we love.
New cool friends and community starting to form.
Old:
We have too much stuff.
Our house looks like we live in Africa.
Birch still reads 100 hours a day.
Cole still doing the robot.
We still miss our friends from all around the world.
House still needs fixing, now we just have to do it ourselves..