Yes, It is raining in Phoenix. September 5th to be exact. Actually it poured. It was wonderful. Makes you want to open the windows and let the cool air flow in. BUT...in Phoenix it isn't cool. Well not yet. It was pretty muggy but it was still pretty awesome to have something other than beautiful sunshine.
We were inspired at the library the other day. The girls and I poured over all of the cook books. Of course I was looking at main dish cooking and the girls were drooling over anything that would put 10 pounds on their mother! Daphne baked this yummy Pizza Cookie. It really tasted good. It had way too many calories but the raspberry jelly was a good choice for the sauce. 
Victoria, Kaleb and I made homemade noodles. We have decided that we would like a pasta maker to get the noodles thinner. It was quite a challenge. But boy did they taste so much better than store bought. And it was pretty easy too. The only challenge was hanging the dough. Everywhere we thought of we saw the dog eyeballing where ever we went. We finally hung them by wooden spoons out of the cupboards. Kaleb took a picture but I thought our cupboards looked a little messy. I guess I should put that on the "to do" list...organize the cupboards!
The tongue on the fish that swallowed Jonah actually looks like it is sticking out from the wall.
This puts Noah a little more in perspective about how "grand" this job really is. He is water skiing beind the Ark. 
Here is just a small assortment of paint for the walls. The blue bin looks pretty.
Two areas are 20 feet high. Kirk thought he was going to have to rent a lift until he found out that the church owned their own. What a blessing. He could have never done this with a ladder. He doesn't look like he is way up there. But he really is. A little spooky, I don't like heights.
Putting the finishing touches on the fish. What a beautiful eye! The white really makes everything pop. 
The kids thought they would take a rest on Joseph's hand.
Kaleb hanging on for dear life. 
Kaleb...about to be squashed. If you want to see more pictures look at the website at www.liquidairstudios.com . The website is still being built but has pictures of this project on it. 
Big brothers are good at dressing up as a horsey and giving horsey rides. Victoria dressed Jared up to look like a horse...well sort of. He was wearing a deer skin shirt with fringe, yellow gloves that only fit on his fingers, a bird hood with feathers, a viking helmet, a shirt for a saddle and puca shells for reins. He was a good sport. He made a great horse for a famous Roman Soldier equipted with a shield and sword!
A few weeks ago the kids and I were in the Library(one of our favorite places) and I got the most hypoglycemic I have been in a very long time. Everyone checked their bags for a snack and found nothing. We had to leave and go look for something for me to eat...right away. It was scary. Anyway, I drove through Wendy's and ordered 3 milkshakes. I think the kids were liking the fact that Mom was extremely shaky and about to pass out. Yay, milkshakes! They didn't even care that they had to share. Anyway, long story short....yesterday we dropped off books at the library after an hour of violin lessons. As we are driving away, Victoria said in a very distressed little voice that " I feel really, really sick." "Mom, I feel really sick...you know the kind of sick you felt when you got a milkshake?"
Since Kirk lost his job in July, he has taken on his new quest in life full time. He has been out at Desert View Bible Church painting a mural in a 100 foot hallway in their Children's Sunday School area. Anytime someone hires him to do such a job they get far more than they ever imagined! He pays such special attention to details. He has encountered adults as well as children who are not familiar with some of the Bible characters. His paintings are truely a ministry in itself. So take a look at his website even though it is under construction. It has pictures in various stages of development. It is really awesome. Go to http://www.liquidairstudios.com/ to check it out. By the way, that is Noah water skiing on alligators behind the ark.
Kaleb was determined to catch a fish this weekend trolling in the canoe and only caught a crawdad. Darn.
Doin' a crawdad dance!
Daphne and I had this great little spot where we hung out and read books while the boys and Victoria went out in the canoe fishing for a few hours. This was a nice flat rock that we managed to commandeer twice. It was so pleasant nestled in the bushes overlooking the Woods Canyon Lake.
Where there is water and mud/sand...you will find Victoria. There were some little kids who came up to the waters edge and wanted to play in the mud. Their mother quickly said no playing in the water...you'll get dirty.... Victoria came up to me later and questioned why that mother wouldn't let her "kid have any fun". If only Victoria knew me about 15 years ago. I may have not let her play in the water either. I guess that's the proof that I have let go of some things as she walks up to me with mud streaked across her forehead and all over her arms and legs. We made a special trip to the showers that night.
Kirk is the greatest Dad. He just lets the kids do whatever they think they can do. Victoria was insistent on steering the canoe. So Kirk got in the front and let her go wherever she wanted to go. Notice the back of the canoe is up in the air. A little problem with weight distribution. The current did most of the maneuvering but she had a great time and felt like she was really doing it. 
We hiked near Willow Springs Lake and found all of these little baby horny toads. They were the cutest things. Some were reddish and others were grey. They looked like little frogs running. 
Jared looked very inquisitive when he saw this water canon at the dam. You could just see the gears working in his head as he scoped out where the water jet would land when it hit.
We hiked the trail around Woods canyon Lake. One map said 5 miles and another said 3.5 miles. So it was somewhere in between. There was fern all over on the East side of the lake. It was beautiful.
If there is anything that Jared is really good at is the canoe. He has become certified in boyscouts in canoeing and kayaking. He just really likes getting out there exploring and never tires of it. Daphne and I decided that we think we need to acquire another one so we can all go out at the same time. Though it is a perk to get alone time for a few hours with everyone gone...Hmmnm, I may rethink that idea.
We have a rule with Victoria...walk for half an hour and get a ride for half an hour. She is so accustomed to riding on shoulders that she actually makes it pretty easy. Daddy and I would trade off to give each other a rest.
Here is one of the side branches to the Lake. Kirk and Kaleb took me in here in the canoe. It was neat seeing it from a different perspective...from on land and then in the water. The water was like glass. A couple of times a fish jumped out of the water and scared me half to death. I just wasn't expecting it to. 
Daphne loves taking pictures of clouds. She likes painting them too. A dreamer at heart.
