Summer/4th of July/Lake Hauser

Ave and her buddy Buster. There are a lot of pictures like this. She really loves to snuggle with him.

Ave's three traveling softball tournaments were in Butte, Bozeman, and Helena. We decided to stay overnight in Helena at Callie's new hotel. She's the best! The girls (and Teague) had a blast in the pool.

They just looked so cute and tiny.

I'm glad she loves it, and she has the nicest girls on her team. They are from all different schools too. It's neat they are getting to know each other before they all end up in middle school together.

Cool kids at Target. Who doesn't love Target?

Buffalo Wild Wings with all the girls.

One tough team picture.

Ally and Bella went to daycare with Avery. They are great kids, and I'm glad they are friends again! They were laughing about how Ally tried to bunt one day. This was her form!

Callie's hotel is so fun! They have barbecue pits and fire pits. We had some fun roasting marshmellows and making s'mores before bed.

They love their buddy Callie, and she loves them.

A blurry Teagie picture, but he looks awfully cute.

They wanted to go swimming one more time before we checked out. They had the whole pool to themselves.

Tired kids on our way home. The season was a lot of fun, but it wore us all out.

One last picture of Ave and Reece. She's a sweetheart.

Columbines always make me happy! My one purple lupine always looks good too.

Sprinkler time!

Buster loves to drink out of the hose, but he's not a huge fan on the sprinkler or the bath. He loves his Avery though. This might be my favorite picture of the whole summer!

Sleepy little guy. When he was tiny, he liked to sleep on my sweatshirt that I wore when we first picked him up from Helena.

Strawberry season is upon us. It makes Teague and I very happy to eat a couple from the garden every day.

Fire pit time. This has to be one of the best purchases Grandma and Papa have ever made.

All the cousins are here! My favorite time of the summer is when we are all together!

That is a gorgeous sunset. Summer is my favorite season. I'll take 90 degree weather anytime.

Drive-in time! We are so lucky to have a drive-in. There are so many kids who will never get to experience that fun.

Kelsie and two little goofballs hanging out in her car. They watched the new Jurassic World.

I watched Incredibles 2 on the other side. My kids saw it when I was in San Francisco, and they raved about it! I have to say I quite enjoyed it.

The 4th of July was freezing! The kids didn't seem to mind though. We went up to Corby's (My Dad's friend forever) house. He has an awesome view of the Big M and an awesome backyard. Carter was chasing Link and Hawkins here. They love wrestling and being chased by him.

These two are great buddies. I love this picture, even with Carter being slightly washed out.

They played some competitive football with Nikki (Foley) Edmundson's kids. Kyle and Ave set up some plays to take advantage of her speed.

Teague really wanted to try some croquet. He's fancy as you can see by this pose.

My buddy Link. Sorry Kels, I'm sure I got those fingers out of his mouth right after.

These are two very different poses, but I like them. The fireworks were awesome too. Town Pump does a lot for Butte now. It's pretty impressive.

Cousins picture at the parade - We had everyone there this year!

Teague was looking like a cool kid with that sucker in his mouth. He just kills me sometimes.

Ma, Pa, and Terr at the parade. I see you behind that flag Terri.

Hawkins cheesing it up with his Mom.

Link being patriotic in front of his Mom.

Mom's friend Michele is running for commissioner of her district. Mom ran out to support her. Michele is wonderful and smart. I hope she wins!

Me and my baby.

Jocko and a couple kids. I think there is a good chance Landon and Carter might pass her up next year.

3 buddies! They are all getting so big.

Carterman and a hairy little Buster bear.

Link always loves to play in the sandbox/makeshift pool when he's here.

He splashed himself. I love this expression!

Buster might have enjoyed the slip and slide more than anyone else!

Go Boo!

Baby Cooper came over to visit. He's the sweetest baby, and Jordan adores him.

Go Link!

Ave helped him make it all the way to the end. It looks like torture, but I promise he enjoyed it!

I love this one of Buster running next to him! He was very intrigued by the sliding action.

Time to take a break with a yummy vanilla cake Grandma made.

Looking good Kels!

Time for a cuddle. We have a picture almost exactly like this with Laney. She was old and sleeping though. Buster wanted to wrestle!

We met Callie and her boyfriend Shad on July 5th at Lake Hauser. Shad has a boat, and Callie has been trying to get us together for awhile. Luckily, it finally worked out. We had a blast!

Hawkins loved it!

Poor Shad. We invaded his boat with 10 people! He was so nice and patient with all these little weirdos.

Hawkins loves a good pair of glasses.

They look pretty happy and relaxed don't they?

The wind does wonders for Carter's hair!

Kyle and his girl.

Teague thought he was pretty cool sitting up on the edge.

More cheesin'! This kid is so silly.

Ave and Carter tried tubing together. They went down hard! They just weren't heavy enough! After that, we always had one adult with a kid.

Kyle and Teague had a delightful ride.

Kyle looks like he's barely hanging on!

I'm pretty sure Carter is peeing in the water here. Ha ha ha!

Time for Kyle and Avery to go!

Ave loved it! Kyle also rode with Landon, and his facial expressions were the best! Erica and Carter went too. Kels and I went with Link, and I hit the top of a wave and fell off. It was a great time!

Poor Hawkins got worn out.

Erica and Teague took a turn again. Teague was having a blast.

Sleepy little blond guy.

Good form Erica!

3 sisters in the water. It was a gorgeous day.

Lando is a good big brother.

And...they are both out. I love the contrasting hair colors.

Ave and Callie. They have always been best buds! A huge thank you to Callie and Shad for a super fun day!