Daddy and Isabelle
Mia showing off
Camping in the 21st century...
My portable kitchen that Kent made for me. It worked pretty slick.
Sunset at our camp site

While playing trac ball I ended up smacking Isabelle in the eye with my ball catcher/thrower thing. I had decided that I am not very good at the game being I lack control while tossing the ball.
Her nice bruise.
While we were down by the water I was just messing around with the camera and took these pictures of some flowers. I thought that they looked pretty nice.

July Wedding

At the end of July the girls and I went to Bismarck to my cousin Heather's wedding. Kent was unable to come because he was working on the siding and we had decided that once he was finished with the project that we would put our house up for sale. So it was very important that the siding and windows got done as soon as possible. We has a great time at the wedding seeing everyone and dancing.

Me, my bother Mike, my sister Kayla
Brecken, Owen, and Mia all the same age. We try to sit them down at every family function to snap a picture.
Isabelle
Mia and her blue slushy. While dancing she hurt her mouth so we drove to DQ to get a slushy to make it "all better".
Kayla and Isabelle Dancing

Grandpa Richard is having a little too much fun!
They don't get out too often.
Grandpa and Grandma even out lasted the three year olds! Mia and Brecken down for the night.

My brother Mike as Michael Jackson. He knows how to do some break dancing moves so the DJ talked him into doing this. He had some fun with it.
At the dance they played "musical men". This is some chick sitting on my brother. I told him I was going to show this to his wife Tonya as blackmail!
Grandpa Richard jamming
The morning after the dance Mia and I went on a morning adventure in the park before Isabelle woke up.
I don't think she is awake yet...

Projects

This summer Kent put vinyl siding on the house and put in new windows. Doing it himself was a big job and it took a big chunk of the summer.

Kent said this picture made him feel like he hired out the job. We got butt-crack and a tatoo in the same picture!
Backyard
Mia's window

Kent's Grandma's

Over the Fourth of July we took a little trip out west to visit Kent's family. As always it was a lot of fun visiting and of course eating!

Kent and Mia waiting for the cows.
Mia ready to give the cows a little treat.
While we were there Kent's mom had her birthday. from left to right: Grandma Ara, Arley, Grandma Maureen and Mia

God's Country

After spending a few days at Grandma Ara's we proceeded south to spend a few days in Medora. Medora is one of my favorite places on earth. The landscape has remained the same for millions of years and it is so full of rich history. Theodore Roosevelt lived out here and he is one of my favorite historical figures so it is just so fun!

Mia and Isabelle checking out the "Fairy Dogs." (that is what Mia called the prairie dogs).
Boy, getting down was A LOT easier!!
Whew! Me made it!
Kent, Mia and Isabelle
Cowgirl Isabelle

Cowboy daddy. The shirt Kent is wearing has an interesting story. It was over 100 degrees in Medora when we got there and we went through about a million gift shops to find a sleeveless shirt and were unsuccessful. So, we bought this shirt as a regular t-shirt and I sat in the hotel room using a Leatherman and my teeth to tear the sleeves off of the shirt. Loads of fun!!!
Huge buffalo bull posing for the camera
Grandpa Richard, Isabelle, Mia and Kent cooling off in the hot summer heat.
Stagecoach horses
riding the the stagecoach. They didn't have much for shocks and struts back then!

My favorite picture of Medora.

"I promise daddy, I won't touch anything... at least while you are looking."

Father's Day

For Father's day this year we went up the DL and again like last year. We went to the flea market outside of town and bought a few things. Then we went to Zorbaz to pig out. When we were walking in something happened to me that hasn't happened in a while...I was carded before I was able to enter the building and then I had to wear a wristband into the establishment to indicate to the servers that I was over the age of 21. I told the guy at the door as I was handing him my ID that he just made this old lady's day. He looked at it and said he never would have thought that was my age. Must be the Arbonne skin care I use or maybe the fact that I lost 30 pounds since March...well either way it was a nice compliment.

Monkey see...
(here's the monkey)
Monkey do! (Sorry about the lack of tan, people, but I'm Norwegian. I can't help it!)

Girls' Birthdays

In the middle of June we went up the Kent's Parents' cabin for the girls' birthdays. Since Mia's is at the end of May and Isabelle's in the end of June, it worked out to have it somewhere in the middle. As always, we had a very nice time up there and enjoyed the simplicity and the peacefulness of it all.

Mia and Isabelle with their "cakes." It was actually stacks of cookies.
Isabelle and Mia trying to coax the deer over to eat from their hand.
Opening presents