Collecting a few Cavities

Gotta love the joys of collecting cavities... oh I mean, CANDY!
This years collection route included:
Our Ward Trunk-or-Treat in the Church Parking lot.

The wind picked up and made it FREEZIN' for the whole event. Brrrrr!

And around the Eastgate II neighborhood:

The house in the right hand corner was SPOOKtacular. The kids loved it!!!

We didn't hand out any in our apartment but we did decorate our walkway with glow stick pumpkins. How festive we are!

Have a SPOOKtacular Day!

Happy Halloween Everyone! Hope you had a SPOOKtacular day!
We started the morning off with packing our lunch full of SPOOKtacular treats:

Then my SPOOKtacular kids were off for a day of school activities. (Most of them got to have a party at the end of the day so they took their costumes in their bags.) And all the girls colored their hair for the day. Liberty actually got in trouble for "dressing up". Middle Schools are so boring and non-festive sometimes. Dumb! But my kids were darling anyways! XOXO

With a Kitchen Knife

Most of our Holiday things are packed away still but thankfully a few kitchen knifes and a stack of newspapers from the office will suffice for a Pumpkin Carving Party! And we even saved some seeds and roasted them up. Go us!

Dessert Concert

Tonight, Liberty had her 7th Grade Choir Concert. They called it a Dessert Concert because they all brought a dessert to share with the audience. Liberty has surprised us with her bravery and new talent. She really LOVES being in Choir. Her and her friend Ann even did a duet part on one of the songs. So brave! She did a great job!

In the group shot- She's the beautiful blondey on the right towards the front.

Helena 1st Snow of Winter 2013

Not quite ready for it but Brett is like a kid in a candy store! So in honor of my darling hubby- here's a hurrah! for the 1st Helena snow storm!

A wealthy man and his son loved to collect rare works of art. They had everything in their collection, from Picasso to Raphael. They would often sit together and admire the great works of art.
When the Viet Nam conflict broke out, the son went to war. He was very courageous and died in battle while rescuing another soldier. 
The father was notified and grieved deeply for his only son. 
About a month later, just before Christmas, there was a knock at the door.  A young man stood at the door with a large package in his hands. 
He said, "Sir, you don't know me, but I am the soldier for whom your son gave his life. He saved many lives that day, and he was carrying me to safety when a bullet struck him in the heart and he died instantly. He often talked about you, and your love for art. 
The young man held out his package. "I know this isn't much. I'm not really a great artist, but I think your son would have wanted you to have this." 
The father opened the package. It was a portrait of his son, painted by the young man. He stared in awe at the way the soldier had captured the personality of his son in the painting. The father was so drawn to the eyes that his own eyes welled up with tears. 
He thanked the young man and offered to pay him for the picture. "Oh, no sir, I could never repay what your son did for me. It's a gift." 
The father hung the portrait over his mantle. Every time visitors came to his home he took them to see the portrait of his son before he showed them any of the other great works he had collected. 
The man died a few months later. There was to be a great auction of his paintings. Many influential people gathered, excited over seeing the great paintings and having an opportunity to purchase one for their collection  On the platform sat the painting of the son. 
The auctioneer pounded his gavel. "We will start the bidding with this picture of the son. Who will bid for this picture?" 
There was silence. Then a voice in the back of the room shouted, "We want to see the famous paintings. Skip this one." 
But the auctioneer persisted, "Will someone bid for this painting? Who will start the bidding? $100, $200?" 
Another voice shouted angrily, "We didn't come to see this painting. We came to see the Van Goghs, the Rembrandts. Get on with the real bids!  "But still the auctioneer continued, "The son! The son! Who'll take the son?" 
Finally, a voice came from the very back of the room. It was the longtime gardener of the man and his son. "I'll give $10 for the painting." Being a poor man, it was all he could afford. 
"We have $10, who will bid $20?" "Give it to him for $10. Let's see the masters." "$10 is the bid, won't someone bid $20?" The crowd was becoming angry. They didn't want the picture of the son. They wanted the more worthy investments for their collections. The auctioneer pounded the gavel.  "Going once, twice, SOLD for $10! 
A man sitting on the second row shouted, "Now let's get on with the collection!" The auctioneer laid down his gavel, "I'm sorry, the auction is over." 
"What about the paintings?" 
"I am sorry. When I was called to conduct this auction, I was told of a secret stipulation in the will. I was not allowed to reveal that stipulation until this time. Only the painting of the son would be auctioned. Whoever bought that painting would inherit the entire estate, including the paintings. The man who took the son gets everything!" 
God gave his Son 2,000 years ago to die on a cruel cross. Much like the auctioneer, His message today is, "The Son, the Son, who'll take the Son?" Because you see, whoever takes the Son gets everything. 


This story by an Unknown Author entitled "Who'll Take the Son?" was shared today in Sacrament by a young man leaving on his mission. I was bawling like a baby. Still now.. when I read over it, I cry.
In the World these days, it seems that in our hurried pursuit of "the bigger, the better, the best" we sometimes fail to recognize the MOST important thing!
Our family is NOT one for running ourselves ragged in a million different directions. We understand the importance of making time for a little service, for smelling the roses (or at least the mountains. LOL), for being a kid while you can and for enjoying moments together. We try hard to not overwhelm our lives with things that won't last or blind us from the more important things.
But still.... my hope is that we will be able to recognize the significant and important things (even when the world doesn't put much value on them) and always CHOOSE the SON!

A CHEER for the Scout Program

Tonight was the October Scout Pack Meeting. Sister Guyman planned a Halloween Carnival in one of the local Elementary gyms. The boys had to pass off certain things in order to play the games (Things like putting an article of faith in order, reciting the scout law, or doing the scout handshake). Stations included a football throw, a Pumpkin bean bag toss, a Balloon/dart board, a little bowling and a ping pong game. Then everyone got to decorate a Halloween cookie. We all had a blast!

They also do such a fun job with the award section of the night. They have a CHEER box that contains tons of different ideas for cheers for the boys to do when they receive an award. The boys can choose their own cheer or pick one from the box. Justice picked the 3 gun Salute. Everyone shot a pretend gun into the air 3 times and then blew the smoke away from their finger tip. Sister Guyman has such great ideas!

SOUP-er Saturday

It has been YEARS since I belonged to a Relief Society that did a Saturday Craft Day. I can't tell you how excited I was to move somewhere they did! Yeah!
I got to help one of my favorite Helena people {I'm so sad Jenny's leaving soon!} with one of the projects. So fun! And I even got to use my vinyl machine (wahoo). I think they turned out so beautiful!
It was a fun day of visiting with ladies, eating SOUP and crafting! Yeah! Yeah! and Yeah!

Here's the project that I helped with [except we need to make ourselves a few magnets]. My inspiration was my SIL Cheri cuz she made me one of these years ago and it's been in my kitchen ever since. Thanks lady! I don't think I ever told you how much I love it! My favorite color is RED but I am also in love with the avocado green one.

I got an extra one for Liberty. She's working on a Young Women's goal and this goes right along with it. She did a great job! Way to go, Sis!

Marching in the Red Ribbon Parade

To celebrate the Drug-Free week, all of the East Helena Schools participated in the Red Ribbon Week Parade today! They had tons of the community out to watch them march down Main Street. Pretty fun!
Liberty played cymbals in the Marching Band.

Victoria sang with the Rockin' Kids Choir. Radley's Rockin' Kids are Drug Free!:

Justice got to hold up a sign that said, "BELIEVE!" (as part of the "Believe, Achieve, Succeed, Drug Free" Slogan!)

Glory thought she was doing gymnastics (LOL) but was just happy to wave her little red ribbon. So cute! "Keeping it Kind in Kindergarten!":

Bishop Thank You

Victoria and Glory's Sunday school classes got together today to say Thank You to Bishop Campbell for all the service he gives to our Ward. It was a bonus because I am teaching one of their classes so I got to be there. We got to see pictures of him when he was their age and learn a little about his favorite things. The kids all signed a Baseball Home Plate thank you card for him [The Lord hit a HOME RUN when he called you to be our Bishop] and got to share some of his favorite cookies. Each class also made gifts of service they are going to do as a gift for the Bishop. It was very sweet! What cute kids!

Fusion Grill & Dancing

Brett and I went on a double date with the Paynes tonight. We tried out the Fusion Grille. I liked it a lot!
And it's always fun to hang out with friends!





THEN...

we headed to the Church building [6th Ave Bldg from 8 pm-11 pm] for a

 Tri-Ward Spooktacular Adult Dance! 

Everyone was asked to "bring a treat to share and have some fun". It seriously was the most fun I've had on a date in years!!!! (Not that I don't enjoy all my dates with Brett but tonight was sooooo fun!)
They had prizes for standing on certain shapes on the floor when the music ended. Brett and I won a DVD of Casablanca. We played a dangerous round of Musical chairs (almost peed my pants it was so funny!) in which Brian won the IronMan gift bag! They also had this group game of popping balloons and building little lego men. Our team totally got jipped!!! LOL There were quite a few Line Dances that we even got Allie to join us in. And they played a game or two of Donuts on a String! Brett and I got to practice our Swing Dancing which we haven't done for years! And the Morey's (the cutest older couple ever!) taught Brett and I some moves. WHAT. A. BLAST!!! Can't wait for the next one!

Butte, MT: World Mining Museum

While in Butte, we also visited The World Museum of Mining.  It was AWESOME! It's has tons of things to see with indoor and outdoor displays. Perfect for letting kids run around and get out some energy!
Some of our favorites were Hell Roarin' Gulch- the old, live-size replica of a Miner Town, the glow-in-the-dark Mineral Room, and Glory loved walking down the railroad tracks.

Doll house exhibit

Mineral Room

Glow in the Dark Minerals & Seamons Fam

It was also a blast because we participated in the Junior Miner Program for kids 5 to 13. It has 2 levels- the Nipper Level (Grades K-4) and the Junior Miner Level (Grades 5 and up).
To complete the Program, they have to:
1. Answer certain questions on the Scavenger Hunt worksheets. (Nippers only have to answer half)
2. Find Miney [this little guy in the yellow]. He's hiding somewhere in Hell Roarin' Gulch. 
3. Complete the Word Search.
4. Complete the Mineral Identification questions. (the Rock room is helpful)
5. Tell the gift shop attendant where Miney is hiding and turn in your completed form for a reward!

It was TONS of work! You had to search hard to find the answers to the 32 questions! But we had a great time!
We answered questions like:
How many rocks are displayed on the window sill of the Rayworth Mining Co? 17 rocks
What mineral from Butte is 80% copper? Chalcocite
What is a "honey pot? (underground exhibit) a Toilet
What is the third row of letters on the optician's eye chart? OFLCTG
How fast does a cage full of men go up and down? 450 ft per min
What is the main component of the inside of the mine adit? wood beams
When was the multigraph machine used? (Hell Roarin' Print Shop) 1905-1930
Whose office is upstairs in City Hall? the Mayor
What mineral is bright green under short wave fluorescent light? Opal

The kids were way excited because when they finished the Gift Shop lady gave them a bag of rocks and a candy! It made their day! What a fun museum!

Butte, MT: Berkeley Pit

Today was our lucky day because on days in the Winter season when the weather is nice, they open the tunnel to the Berkeley Pit for free. The weather today was gorgeous and so it was one of those days! Yeah for us!

 The story behind the Berekely Pit is pretty amazing and long! They have a whole website dedicated to it- you can find it at The Pitwatch.

Here's a little blurb as well:
"The Berkely Pit, started in 1955, was a large truck-operated open-pit copper mine until mining ceased in 1982. By 1980 nearly 1.5 billion tons of material had been removed from the Pit, including more than 290 million tons of copper ore. The pit enabled Butte to claim the title The Richest Hill on Earth. 
Two communities and much of Butte's previously crowded East Side were consumed by land purchases to create the pit. The Anaconda Mining Company bought the homes, businesses and school of the working-class communities of Meaderville and McQueen, east of the pit site. 
The pit is 7,000 feet long, 5,600 feet wide and 1,600 feet deep from the high wall on the north side just below the Kelley mine. Present day visitors can view the mine from a platform located above it. The viewing stand offers a look at the Berkeley Pit, which is filling with water. The Berkeley Pit Viewing Stand, open from March until November has an admission fee of $2."

The kids were bummed that the Gift shop wasn't open but we did break into the Trolley display outside so it made up for it! LOL

Spending time in BUTTe, MT

On our way back home, we spent the day in BUTTe, MT. No disrespect for the people of Butte but we have called it BUTT, MT for as long as we've made trips through Montana. LOL 

We made a stop at their Visitors Center first. It was a pretty neat building right next to a Nature Park. They had a few neat Fishing Lure Exhibits, some stories and pictures of Butte history and these telescope thingies that pointed to all the different mine shafts on the hill. We also got to learn about the big white ugly dog memorialized in a bronze statue. They called him the Auditor. He lived in Berkeley Pit among the miners for 17 years. And since my youngest two LOVE dogs, they loved the story! [girls on sitting on the statue in the middle left]

We drove around the middle streets of town. They are a lot like Anaconda in the fact that you can High-5 the neighbors through your window. LOL But here in Butte the homes are huge in comparison. Next time, we'll have to take the Walking tour and " See BUTTE from the inside out!" {Gotta love the signs)

P.S. We really wanted to take the bus tour up to the Lady of the Rockies statue but they closed it down for the season. Bummer! Next year, I guess. Here's what she looks like from the freeway:

Fairmont Hot Springs: October Swim

We LOVE the Hot Springs at Fairmont Resort! It is so fun to swim outside in the freezin' cold! Brrrrrr & Yeah! We love how the steam rises from the pools and makes it kind of creepy. A perfect October activity! As a bonus- we were there during the full moon. It was big and beautiful in the BIG Montana sky!

Most of the family got half day passes to the slide so that's what most of our night consisted of. We had a blast! You can also buy glow sticks so you can see in the slide but we opted for it being pitch black and freaky! ;) [These photos were the rides in the light but we stayed until it closed as well]

The kids also loved jumping in. Funny kiddos!

But when your face started to freeze- you had to spend some time under water. LOL:

We ended our night with a Tropical Sno-cone to eat in the hot tub! Oh yeah, baby!

Oh yes.. and the boys posing while they were trying to pick up women. Whoot Whoo! (that's my whistle) LOL

Fun family times! Good bye, Hot Springs... until next year!

Philipsburg, MT: The Sweet Palace

The real reason we made the trek to Philipsburg was for the Sweet Palace. Who wouldn't drive almost an hour to visit the "prettiest candy store in the West"? LOL I'll tell you--It did NOT disappoint!
It's a little on the expensive side but we set a weight limit for each family member and everyone went to town. We all got to pick out our favorite candies to try and even took home some fudge for the family to share. Gotta love a sugar high on vacation!