take the "a" train...or take the "m" train

we asked the girls what they wanted to do one saturday.
maya's repsonse was that she wanted to ride the train.
brynn quickly agreed. as long as she could take her bob the builder backpack with wheels that was STUFFED full of random toys. this girl is always packing something. tonight she went to bed with a noah's ark full of of toys. right next to her head.
we got on the train in downtown.
we rode past funky old buildings.
we saw amazing murals.
and the airport! the girls favorite part.
and to fort snelling and back home.
a grand success.
and i love how my hair and zoe's is matching in the bottom pic.

last shots of summertime

was going through photos and came across these.
love the green grass! ours is now dead. :)
flowers, popsicles, and being outside.....nothing better.

official neil young day

we decided that today since it's the 'harvest moon' day according to the calendar that it would make a fabulous NEIL YOUNG DAY! (he has a song called harvest moon-go listen to it). i love his voice and he is insanely talented with a guitar. i haven't heard another artist like him.

we're listening to him all day.

some of my favorite memories of neil young:

*my mom gave me a cd of him for christmas one year-listened to it over and over. she loves neil young and it's fun to share that love of music and of neil with her.

*listening to neil young in mr. litizzette's biology class in highschool. and one time i think i told lit that my favorite song was 'motorcyle mama' which was completely embarassing. :)

*lots of driving up logan canyon in highschool listening to him, in the coolest green vw van.

*seeing him in concert last summer here in minne. he's older, but his voice is still exactly the same. gave me chills.

so go out and listen to some neil young today. if you haven't heard of him before here are a few songs that i'd recommend:

-the needle and the damage done
-burned
-sugar mountain
-cinnamon girl
-cortez the killer
-heart of gold

rocky mountain high

turns out john denver had it right when he sang about "rocky mountain high."
after leaving utah, we cruised to rocky mountain national park.
breathtaking. absolutely breathtaking!
we had planned this little vacation for a year with our dear friends from lexington virginia.
don taught evan how to fly fish and we spent many evenings on their lovely front porch sipping lemonade when we lived in virgina.
we stayed in some cabins right on the big thompson river.
we ate by the river every night and fished it during the day.
maya caught her first trout on this river: a rainbow and a brown.
brynn's worm was caught in a tree-but she still liked fishing.
we hiked, fished, and just enjoyed being in the amazing park.
claudia and i explored estes park and found some fun souvenirs.
i wasn't quite sure i could leave and go back to a mountainless state after being in mountains for a whole month. it was not fun to leave.
we tried out this crazy slide in estes park, and after being a tiny bit hesitant at first, maya and brynn loved it.
all i know is that when i hear john denver sing (and we have a lot of his music at our house) rocky mountain high, it makes me so happy that i've been there and seen what he's talking about. that and i get a little teary eyed.

just can't get enough

one of my requests for our summer trip out west was to have some family pics by the wellsvilles.
now living in a place sans mountains i have come to appreciate the amazing ones i grew up beneath.
in fact, i still have an a debit card with the wellsville mountains on it and have been known to show it to people so that they can fully understand what i mean when i say "i grew up beneath some amazing mountains. see?"
so, the lovely camille stewart took these photos of us.
zoe was ready for bed, brynn and maya had koolaid mustaches, and evan had a bad haircut the morning of.
but as i like to say with my arm up "we prevailed!"
with camille's doing of course.
and i just can't get enough of these imgaes.
thanks camille-you are amazing.

the big Kindergarten

can't believe that the day has come for maya to go to kindergarten.
she rocked it in her high tops, bobcat shirt, jean jacket and batman backpack.
she also requested that her hair be all squiggly from braids.
the bus was the biggest hit, and she and her best friend anabella waited patiently for it to come.
she blew me a little kiss before she went to school.
she loved it, and i missed her while she was gone.

the little lady is 1!

happy b-ba-birthday little zoesy cat!
you brighten our days and make us laugh.
we love you!