"Uh, Where Does the Time Go?"

Well, this is where:

Josh and Peter had one final week in archery camp. It was great. They then packed things out, made sure camp was safe for the month until Pete goes in again in late October.

They had a ball and became really good buddies. Micca and I are thrilled about this as you can imagine!

Nana Jo has been able to spend lots of time with her two beautiful grandkids. Yay for family!

Cash turned ONE on September 16th!

Peter and I celebrated our SECOND Anniversary on October 5th. He bought me this very beautiful, vintage handmade saddle by Otto Eaton. It fits like a glove. Matine approves too.


We said goodbye to Josh. He was here in Montana working with Pete and hanging out for an entire month! Micca was ready for her hubby to be home, but we really hope they BOTH come back to stay next year.

Pete has loved being able to spend time with Matine. He gets the entire winter (less a few days here and there for making some money) to soak in all of his beautiful daughter he can.


Matine has been growing like a weed! Most of the growth has gone into her cheeks. She LOVES her Johnny Jumper and most mornings you can hear her talking at the top of her lungs, non stop, as she bounces and spins. She may be growing some John Howell cheeks, but this child has the lungs of a Cottongim. When the room and conversation gets loud, she gets louder, and she has LOTS to say about everything (with a big smile at all times of course :)).

The fish are still alive, minus a few. Pete had Brad Cox over to help him change out the water and do a bit of "fish maintenance."

Laurie came along too - any excuse to hold a baby girl.

I have been trying to crank out hours on my medical transcription certification. Yikes! I am a fast learner, but there just aren't enough hours in a day! I HAVE to be done by January 1, so it looks like I will be behaving like a college student again and pulling some all-nighters!

I continue to live in a state of pure "awe" at how perfect and amazing our little girl is. She is amazing and she has made my life more than I ever dreamed it could be. She is still the most beautiful being - inside and out. There isn't a bad day with her around. She is 5 months old now!

Nona Kerri and Jim-Pa are the most amazing grandparents! They adore every second of being here with Matine (and even me too). They have been working on their house, painting, doing little fix-ups. Mom makes an appearance at our super cool community thrift store -every single day - and manages to find some pretty amazing stuff each day. They drop in to pick up a tool here and there (a ploy to see Matine), invite us over for dinner (a ploy to see Matine), and have managed to find any excuse to include us in their lives. What a gift. To me, Pete and the baby.

Matine has been able to see (even if briefly) her friends and boyfriends. Sully gets cuter by the day and is now a strawberry blond, sitting up 7 month old!

Not pictured are William, Ruben and Audrey - who we have been having play dates with too.

Blogger readers, I promise to be updating more often! It's always a whirlwind this time of year. We are adjusting to the change in seasons (we have had snow for a week straight now), Pete gets home after being gone and we do lots of getting re-acquainted, life happens, and we are just busy people darn it!