doe ray me fa so la tee~

Halle joined the choir this year...a choice she debated but now really enjoys! She has never liked to sing in front of people, but for no other reason other than she didn't have the confidence to get up and do it....SO I feel its been really good for her. The choir sang the NATIONAL ANTHEM at the opening ceremonies of the Homecoming game last week. They all did an awesome job!!!

She's is really having fun and considers choir one of her favorite classes now. She still gets nervous and doesn't love getting up in front of people, but I think its the first step in helping build her confidence and help her get over that fear. She loves her teacher, as well as the new friends that she has made along the way...all in all I think she will come away from this class with a new found love and confidence in herself.

Life isn't about "easy", its about growing and learning

and making "EASY" out of the stuff we have to do!

Da KING!

It was "HOMECOMING Week" at the high school this week which meant "BUSY" (Cameron said that "busy" was and understatement) for our 2 teenagers. Being Cameron's senior year, he decided to participate in the Homecoming KING Pageant....which meant many nights of practice, cake making, talent finding, coming up with a costume to model and everything else that goes along with this crazy, fun, busy week.

Cameron was determined to make his cake from scratch. I frowned on the idea, but only because the cake recipe that he wanted to use, often falls in the middle if you don't make it perfectly...BUT he was determined...and HE DID THE ENTIRE THING by himself, from mixing, to measuring, to baking and decorating...he did it all....I didn't touch a thing AND IT DIDN'T fall in the middle!!! He even went out to our raspberry patch to pick fresh raspberries for it! I was thrilled with the way it turned out. It was a masterpiece and he can forever say that it was "HIS"(and HIS ALONE) masterpiece! Someday his wife will be grateful that he is such a master chef (he really is an awesome cook)!!!

the finished cake~

my little man hard at work~

his "Buttermilk Chocolate Raspberry" cake....

The opening number started with the boys performing a hilarious dance number. It was the first hysterical moment of the night...not because the boys didn't do well, BUT because they did...funny~ because BOYS are just funny when they do things like that. It was a fun filled, great evening of entertainment kind of night!

For Cameron's talent he performed a "Commercial Spoof" where he sucked helium from a balloon and sang the "Oscar Mayer Bologna" song....I still laugh every time I rewatch it on the camcorder
For his modeling they were asked to "wear their favorite first Halloween costume"...Cameron thought it would be fun to wear the first one ANYONE gets to wear...and so he showed "Where babies come from"....THE STORK! It was adorable and we laughed pretty hard as we saw this GIANT sized baby on a stork come out from behind the curtain.

Cameron did a fantastic job.....had a wonderful time and we all laughed for a long time. We were thrilled and excited as they announced the winner as " CAMERON WILKERSON, THE 2011 DHS HOMECOMING KING". What a great way to end the last Homecoming of his highschool years!!!

Congrats to my little Man!

Go*FIGHT*Win!

(This years Seniors that are on the football team...a group of very athletic and talented boys)

Last week, Homecoming Week, was Cameron's last home football game. There was mixed emotions for me...some happy, but only because that means sitting out in the cold, wrapped in a blanket, wearing a hoodie, thermal socks and a coat are soon going to be a thing of the past...SAD because I love watching Cam play football. He is a MOOSE out there on the playing field, just charging after the other team, full of excitement and life. He's one of the sweetest, most considerate, kind people I know...but get him out on the football field and he turns into an animal! He is so much fun to watch! I am sad that he's a senior and that this is his last year at home...that always tugs at my heartstrings and makes all the "lasts" sort of like their "firsts"...you know, the ones that you are "so excited for", like when they start to walk, their first word, their first smile etc.... but "sad that your baby is growing up" kind of first?! That's the way "the lasts" experiences with my kids are for me, I'm excited to see them and experience them, but sad that my baby is growing up!!

Cameron loves his football and has enjoyed this last year on the field. He's been able to get a lot of playing time and has had some awesome plays. I'm going to miss him...football just won't ever be the same for me after this year is finished!

Our DHS is undefeated this year and has "Shut Out" the last two teams that we've played...which makes for a sad day for the opposing team but a very happy day for us!

We have our last season game tonight and then we start the Semi-Finals....and THEN into the Finals...May WE go down fighting to the end with an UNDEFEATED SEASON!

sO let it BE wriTTen~ sO let it BE dOnE!!!

The many faces of Little Mr.....

Little Mister is full of life...he is a tease, he loves to go "bye-bye", he is rolling all over the place, he loves grandma to hold him, he jabbers and he so happy all of the time. He has a darling little

laugh that brings a smile to everyone nearby...especially his grandma~

He is curious and loves to see new things...especially things that move (he is looking at the cat walking on the grass below). He loves the hands

on the clocks or the pendulum that moves back and forth,

and studies their movement.

He loves telling grandma "how things should be"...as he plays with the computer~

His eyes twinkle as he smiles and giggles~

The leaves on the tree brought a smile to his face as he hit them and they moved

back and forth~

it made him laugh and laugh.

Although it looks like he might be crying here, he isn't...he is laughing!

Little Mister is one of the happiest babies I have ever known!!

He loves the camera and seeing his picture on the computer~

....And I LOVE HIM!

He lights up my life!!

Being a grandma makes me SmILe!

Life is a High Way......

Deron and I took a quick trip to the city last week to pick up a few needed things. As we drove down the canyon we took a detour to one of my favorite places to stop and stretch my legs...yes, that would be Whiskey Springs (if you follow my blog...its something I talk about every year~). Its a gorgeous stop ALL of the time, but especially in the fall with the colored leaves hanging from the tree branches and covering the ground. It just makes me want to curl up with a blanket and a good book and lay on the lawn, watching the red and orange leaves float softly to the ground.....I don't, but I want to.
Deron and I walked up along the hillside to stretch our ever so tired legs...the leaves covered most of the path which was beautiful, as well as fun. They old leaves crunched under our feet and rustled as we walked by...the freshly fallen bright colored leaves were a gorgeous contrast to the "green" leaves that still hung here and there on the branches of the trees........it was like walking in a dreamland!

It still amazes me that leaves can be dark green one day and change to a bright red or orange the next day...........the magic of "mother nature"~

I feel very blessed to live in an area that is both magnificent looking in the spring and summer as it is in the fall. I don't think it gets better than this..........although I am sure there are places EQUALLY as beautiful, I don't think there are many that could beat the beautiful area I get to enjoy day in and day out.

1 fish, 2 fish, red fish, blue fish

Last week as we took our drive up in the high country to look at the fall colored leaves, we stopped at the Strawberry Fish Trap to watch the Kokaneese (spelling is most likely wrong...sorry) Salmon spawn. They are an unbelievable bright RED this time of year and so much fun to watch. I'm not usually a huge fan of watching fish...but because of their gorgeous RED color and their ability to JUMP cement walls, they fascinate me. Several years back when all of our children were still living under our roof, we stopped at this same place to watch the fish spawn, and vowed we would come back every year to watch them again and again....sad to say this is the first time we've made it back...BUT it was fun to watch them none-the-less!

Hubby, showing us the route the fish take from the Strawberry Reservoir, up to the traps.

Halle....showing her "True" feelings of our day trip~

This picture doesn't do these fish justice, they are huge and so brightly colored...I guess

the only other time I've ever seen fish so bright is in the ocean....you don't ever see

fish this color around OUR parts! It's almost a novelty~

There are thousands of fish, literally, swimming and trying to get up stream. They fight for the front where the water rushes into the trap...many of them try relentlessly to jump the cement walls...and many succeed, only to get to the other side, where there is yet another trap.

They are a gorgeous, yet curious sight, one I highly recommend if your driving these parts. I am not sure how long the spawning season lasts, but if you hurry....you might just get to see these beautiful creatures in their bright colored coats.

IN like a LION!

It seems the leaves changed over night........one by one they've gone from a beautiful

shade of green to the bright shimmering golds and oranges of fall~

I've thoroughly enjoyed the beautiful summer that we've had and its fun to see the colors of the leaves during the fall, especially if you get to the mountains at just the right time, before they all turn brown and fall to the ground....but with the change of the colors comes the knowledge of what comes after, the cold, the white and the dreary...and with that~ lets just say, I prefer the months of April-September the best.

If you get a chance to get up the mountains before too long, make sure you take your camera, its a beautiful time for photos!