Photo Shoot Outtakes

Yesterday after lunch we got all dolled up to take a Christmas photo. Then came the hard decision of where to take it. It was warm, and natural light is always better than flash, so we headed outside. But the cloudless day made for some harsh light. We went by one of our big trees to see if that would soften it up a bit. Then came our next challenge: convincing Desert Boy to stay put.

Then Desert Girl had some issues.

We switched to a different location and Henry wanted to be in the photo while Desert Boy puffed out his cheeks.

Oh yeah, Henry, it's all about you!

One, two, three, kids, open your mouths. At least it was a change from Emma eating the grass.

She was happy eating the grass, though, and it made her smile, so we let her do it.

We kept trying and never ended up with the perfect posed photo. But we did get this one. Sometimes the best photos aren't the posed ones.

Visit with Santa

We went into town last weekend and Desert Boy had a chance to chat with Santa. And he sure chatted. They had a long discussion, and I didn't quite hear all what Desert Boy wanted. I heard dump truck and fire truck, which was a surprise because usually he is too focused on trains to think of other things.

I'm not quite sure what Desert Boy thinks of Santa, but he was happy about getting a candy cane.

They had really cute decorations up, so we tried to get some posed photos. Desert Girl didn't want to cooperate.

Aunt Tana was with us, which was lots of fun. Desert Boy always gets excited to see her and didn't leave her side.

I couldn't get Desert Girl to smile either. Ah, well, it could be worse!

We're going to go get our Christmas tree this weekend--Desert Boy is so excited about Christmas coming. He wants it to be right now so he can open gifts.

Special Night

Last year Desert Boy was fascinated by the Christmas train at the Border Inn. When it was put away, he cried. Almost every time we went out to the Border for the next year, he asked if the train was going to be there. Denys appreciated his memory and invited him to help her set up the train. Of course Desert Boy was more than happy to oblige.

He didn't even bother to take off his coat, he was so excited. This little boy can sure work up a lot of enthusiasm!

He was very curious about how this train worked. It runs on batteries, different from his wood trains at home.

Dad helped a bit, too.

Meanwhile Emma was happily exploring everything and was attracted to the twinkling lights on the Christmas tree. I think we're going to have to figure out a way to keep her out of our Christmas tree at home once we put one up.

Denys set up her village inside the track, and then it was all ready to go. Except for one problem. The fuzzy white snow had gotten caught around the wheels of the train last year, and it wouldn't let the wheels turn freely, so the train kept stopping. Out came the needle-nosed pliers and began operation Remove the Snow.

Nomi graciously corralled Emma for awhile, keeping her from more trouble.

Operation Remove the Snow was successful, and then it was time to watch the train go around and around the track. And around and around some more. And around and around. While we adults went on to other things like talking and chasing Emma, Desert Boy didn't move from the train table. He wanted to watch that train go around and around some more.

My husband tried to get Emma to pose for a photo, but she had other things in mind. She is getting quite rambunctious.

I think we could have left Desert Boy at the train table all night. He was happy as could be.

I imagine that we'll be going back out to the Border quite a few times in December. We had a delicious salmon dinner while we were out there--one of the best dinners we've had at the Border. So it won't be a hardship for any of us to go back!

Silver Sage Band

We were lucky to catch a performance by the Silver Sage Band this last weekend. We usually get to hear them once a year, and we really like their music--and their humor! They play old-fashioned country and cowboy and sheepherder songs.

Desert Girl was entranced. She really likes music, just like her big brother. I hope they both learn to sing a lot better than their parents! Fortunately, they both don't seem to mind our off-key singing. We've been doing more lately to get ready for Christmas. Maybe it's a good thing it's winter and cold and all our doors and windows are shut tight!

Desert Girl was sporting a flower clip that we had picked up from the craft fair held earlier that day. We found lots of treasures at the craft fair. Desert Boy wasn't happy when I told him some of them were surprises and he couldn't look at them until later, like at Christmas. He put on his perfect little pout and declared, "I want Christmas to be now!"

Desert Boy. Blinded by his Mama using the flash. I'm nice like that. And I didn't even give him the camera so he could reciprocate.

I didn't manage to get a photo of any of the dancing. It was fun to watch, with the younger kids doing their interesting dance moves. Later we watched some swing dance instruction. I'd like to learn how to do that someday. I wonder how hard it would be to get lessons way out in the middle of nowhere?

Okay, this photo wasn't taken at the music program, but I figured I should include it since it was musically oriented. Desert Girl loves sitting at the piano and playing. It won't be too many years till she can play better than me!

A Trip to the Black Hole

One late afternoon in the not-too-distant past, I decided it would be fun to load up the kids and head out towards the fields and see what my husband was up to. The afternoon light was gorgeous, and it felt great to be out of the house.

We couldn't find my husband (he was out shuttling farm equipment), but we decided to enjoy our time outside and go on a little adventure trip.

We drove up one of the two-track roads until I spotted an interesting looking hole in the hillside. Usually I look at those holes and say, "I should go check that out some day."

That day I decided it was "some day." It was the day to go check it out.

So we piled out of the van.

We weren't at all prepared. I didn't have the baby carrier for Emma and I didn't have a flashlight. The hole was so far away you can't even see it in the photo above.

But we had a snack and we had gumption.

What else do you really need?

I say that the kids are easily distracted by what's around them, but I have to admit that I was, too. I really liked how this Indian rice grass looked in the afternoon light with the faded autumn vegetation around it.

We're getting closer, but you still can't see much of the hole in the rocks. Henry was happy to run around. Can you see him?

It was nice when we started getting to rock, the walking was easier and it just felt more adventurous.


Desert Boy and I took turns leading. He didn't like all the bushes in the way, but he had been promised a snack when we reached the hole, so he kept going.

It got steeper and more interesting.

And then I couldn't resist racing ahead so I could get a photo before the sun disappeared behind the mountains.

Whenever that happens, Desert Boy asks, "Is the earth turning?"

You betcha.

Desert Boy did a good job getting up the steep parts.

Even though he was wearing his cowboy boots on the wrong feet.

Some of the climb was a hand-and-foot scramble.

The hole was big, and little Desert Girl makes it look even bigger. However, it didn't go back far. Oh, well, now we know.

We had our snack and everyone was happy.

We enjoyed the last rays of the setting sun.

Then it was time for the long hike back to the van. But before we left the rocks, we spotted something else...

...another cave!

We will return to explore some more someday. And eat more snacks.

Kite Flying

We seem to have no shortage of wind out here in the desert, so last week we made the most of it and went kite flying. It was Desert Boy's first experience kite flying.

You can see from the expression on his face that he thought it was grand. He crashed the kite a bunch of times...

but he managed to keep it up in the air most of the time.

I wasn't sure if the really thin thread on our dollar-store kite would hold up, but it did. In fact, we definitely got our money's worth!

Kite flying is something difficult to appreciate in still photos, so here's a little video:

Ready for Winter

I couldn't resist sharing this photo. They're all ready to go outside and play!

Happy Halloween!

I love Halloween, it's such a fun holiday when you have an excuse to be a kid again. It's like a trip back to kindergarten and the dress-up corner with a chestful of wonderful costumes and accessories. You decide who you want to be for a moment in time and get all decked out. And then when you're tired of being that person or thing, you just take off the costume and go back to being yourself. Or try on another costume. And another. And another. (We had a big costume chest in kindergarten, I still remember it.)

The candy part of Halloween is like being a kid again, too. I ate so much candy as a kid. I can't eat so much anymore (thank goodness!), but every year at Halloween time my sugar intake increases. It's probably a good thing I live far from stores so I'm not even tempted by half-off candy the day after Halloween.

Emma looks like she has plenty to say about Halloween, too. She's talking about a lot of things these days. And she even says Mama. At least it sure sounds like Mama to me.

Another thing I enjoy about Halloween is the chance to be creative, so I picked up a pumpkin from the store and brought it home for the kids to enjoy. While I put away groceries, Desert Boy decorated the pumpkin with marker.

Then it was time to carve it. Desert Boy didn't remember last year's pumpkin innards and was a little grossed out by the hanging seeds. I encouraged him to touch them so he could feel the sliminess of it all.

Like most little boys, he thought it was pretty neat.

He had seen his friend Ava's pumpkin and the candle in it and couldn't wait to put a candle in his pumpkin. He waited with great anticipation as we found a candle and something to light it with. Then we had to turn off all the lights in the house to appreciate the glowing face.

I told him I wanted photos so we had to turn the lights back on, and he grudgingly agreed.

The glow on his face made the pumpkin worth every penny!

Hope you have a fun Halloween!