Making Memories

So after our eagle watching experience, we spent some time in downtown Coeur d'Alene. I can't say that I have ever done that and it was kindof fun...especially when you have 4 teenagers and a hubby:) We went into a few shops and I would say our favorite was the FigPickle Toy Shop. We also found a candy store with a HUGE bubble gum machine with over 20,000 gumballs! That was my favorite place! We also saw some great gingerbread hoses...my favorite was Snoopy. We also stayed to see the lights and it was COLD but always so pretty! My pictures didn't turn out so good in the dark. Oh well! Lots of fun was had today and many memories were also made! Here are just a few misc pics.

The Eagles in Coeur d'Alene

We went to watch the eagles in Coeur d'Alene. I thought it was pretty cool...I don't know if the rest of my family thought it was as fun. The lake was beautiful and we saw a few eagles come and try to catch Chinook out of the lake. Caleb and Kelsie were scared of the cold so they stayed in the car....Pansies!!! Then we got a group shot and the kids decided to role play. Caleb, Kelsie are the talons, Zach is the wings and Jacob is the fish. Funny kids!

Ode to Young Women's

I have had the privledge of serving in the Young Women's organization for about 3 years and last week was released. It was a bitter sweet moment for me. For those of you who have served in YW you know the amount of time and energy it takes to fulfill that calling. The love that I have for these young women cannot be expressed in words. They will always have a place in my heart and I will treasure the time I was able to spend with them! I loved being able to be in YW with Kelsie. She will actually have a few months to be there without me finally! I have loved the YW leaders I have been able to serve with.They are amazing women and I will miss the associations I have had with them! But now we will be forever friends! Primary here I come! (So excited to serve the younger kids too!)

Bolt

I never would have guess that I would be posting a story about the Barnes family owning another dog but here I am. Dave and the kids totally figured the whole thing out without me even knowing! I had a HUGE list of must do's or must not do's when picking a dog. After much searching Dave found the "perfect" dog for us. His name is Bolt and he is a Miniature Pincher. He is three years old and I totally have to admidt that he is a true addition to the family. I have fallen in love with him and so has the whole family.

October

October came and went like a whirlwind!!! Sports always encompasses our life during this season. Cross Counrty and Football were the highlights this season.

Caleb was involved in the Cross Country Team and had a great season! He earned 12th in the District JV 5K race and got a personal best time of 17:23. I think??? (I may have to change that time later) I am always amazed at his determination and dedication to his sport. This year Caleb was able to make the trip to Boise with the team for the Nike Championship Invitational. With a little juggling around on Geoff's part they were able to run cousin to cousin. It was fun to have them in the same race! Sometimes it makes me really sad that we have moved away!

Jacob played on the White Varsity team for Mountainside Middle School this year. His team went 5-1 and I think I have mentioned it before, but Jacob is SO much fun to watch play! He plays cornerback and tight end...(again, I might have to change these details later)He had the opprotunity to play on Eastern Washington's Red field (not quite the same as the Blue turf) But fun still the same. He also had the opportunity to play against his good friend James Baird. It was a good game but we ended up victorious.
Here are some pics of my football boy!

September

September is the start of the school year. This year we sent Zach off to BYU Idaho and what a great experience that was! Dave and I drove Zach down and we were able to tour the campus and get Zach all set up into his apartment. He has 5 roommates that are all from Spokane.

These guys are all returned missionaries and we knew they would be a great influence for Zach. He is settling in to college life great and as Dave and I left him we were so happy to be leaving him at such a great campus and we were both a little jealous that we didn't take the opportunity to go to college and experience life as a Freshman away from home.

I was kind of a space case with my other kids and as much as they hate my picture taking habits....I totally forgot to take pictures of them on the first day of school. Sad, I know. So as Kelsie starts her senior year, Caleb started his Junior year and Jacob is the new 8th grade ASB President I can't believe that time is going by so fast.

August

August is the month of Caleb this year....He turned the big 16. Went on his first date with all the confidence that he always shows. I will always picture Caleb as my little boy who always needed his blanket and thumb. He doesn't need those anymore. He has grown up to be an amazing young man who knows what he believes and is not afraid to share his beliefs with others. There is never a dull moment when Caleb is around. He keeps us laughing.

Caleb also started and finished his Eagle Project this month. Caleb chose to do his Eagle project at the Spokane Guild School and Neuromuscular Center. This school specializes and benefits kids with special needs. He organized a crew to move office furniture (35-40 desks) and then painted three rooms before new carpet was to be installed. He also painted two bathrooms and built a changing table and a desk. He added a inspirational quote for those who work with these amazing children.We had so many people come to help and it turned out to be a great experience. This project was a great benefit to the community and could not have been acomplished without Caleb's leadership.

Here are a few pics:

My Big Brother Came to VISIT!!

The fourth of July was the best this year because Eric and his family came to visit us! It is always so fun to have family come here to Spokane. Saturday we headed up to Priest River to a good freinds cabin for fun and food. We wanted to show our family off to our friends/family away from family. Badmition brought on the best facial expressions. (I couldn't add them all)

Emily is so BEAU-ti-ful!

Evan and Jacob were some of the only brave ones to get in the water. It was sooo cold!

The potato gun was a hit!

Thanks to the Romney's for having us at the cabin!

Sunday we went to church and played games and just had fun being together.
Monday was the Fourth of July and we borrowed some canoes from friends and went canoeing down the Little Spokane river. We didn't have the camera with us because we were worried it would get wet. It was so beautiful to enjoy the land we live in! Eris and I were in a canoe together and what fun we had!! We were not the expert paddlers and basically ran into every tree we tried to avoid! But...We did NOT tip over the canoe! I think that was a major accomplishment.
Later that night we headed down to Riverfront Park to listen to some jazz and to watch the fireworks.

The Nelson's got to see the best of Spokane!! The fireworks were great!

Then on Tuesday we rode the Hiawatha Trail. I highly reccommend that you do this at least once in your life. It is a blast!

We had a little problem this time going on the trail. As you first start you go through what is called the Taft tunnel. It is just under 2 miles long and is pitch black. You have flashlights on but it is still pretty dark. As we were all riding through we hear someone say...I think I have a flat tire! When we made it to the end of the tunnel sure enough the bike Emily was riding had a flat tire and we hadn't thought to bring the repair kit with us. So Eric and Dave went back through the tunnel...Long story short... Dave ended up staying back beacuse we couldn't fix the bike but made friends with the shuttle bus driver and so had a great time without riding with us.

It was a fun-filled few days and I am so grateful to Eric and Tracey for making the trip here to spend time with us! We made some great memories! It is always hard for me to say goodbye! Thanks for coming!!!!