Today we embark on my 2nd favorite month of the year! December, of course, is #1 – Christmas, Holidays, my birthday, Nate’s birthday, tradition, decorations, family, food, awesome fun.

Anyways, I can’t believe October 1st is here, and I love my fresh monthly calendar all filled out on the wall in orange and black and perfectly decorated by my middle schooler (which is going amazingly, I might add).

Tonight, I’m going back 6 weeks to the Flying U Ranch trip we took. Honestly, I couldn’t love this place any more. It’s officially family tradition now. The kids go nuts. So some highlights, and then some pictures.

1. Nate. Good grief, this guy. One of the ranch hands lent him a bike for our time there. I’m pretty sure he buzzed around and put 50 miles on that thing. Not really – but practically! He made friends with everyone, managed to talk the owner into searching for predator teeth on Ebay, played, explored, loved on the animals, and crashed so hard at the end of the day – it was almost like he fell over! I described it to someone like Little House on the Prairie. He’d get up and hop on his bike…..he’d go visit everyone on his route, hang out at the general store and scrounge for money for gummy candy and trinkets, he’d visit the barn, hang with the animals, play with the kids, and just let his imagination run wild. Oh, and on the last day of riding – he galloped………I mean he GALLOPED (insert horrified mother emoji face here)!!!  He and Todd were two peas in a pod. And as I watched them take off ahead I just said a prayer for God to keep Nate on that horse. Bless Crystal the horse and God for keeping him on her! To say the least, Nate had a blast.

2. Audrey. Sweet Audrey. She rode Bo this year. She loves Bo. She played hard too, spent hours at the barn, knew the backstory on all the animals by the end of the week, could tell me which horse was friends with who, who didn’t like who, and who was missing from last year. SHE saw a bear on the hay ride. We missed it. She was stoked. She played a lot of soccer….a lot! She practiced with my camera too and had a blast! She has a natural eye for it, her own style and I loved watching her. And even though it wasn’t exactly roasting, SHE was the one who jumped in the cold lake every day! Rockstar. Audrey had so much fun.

3. Ken and Jill! We LOVED exploring the ranch with you and we can’t wait for next year. You guys are awesome ranch peeps and we adore you!

4. Movie night was The Black Stallion! Imagine the cutest little theater that plays VHS and DVD on the big screen. First one there gets to pick the movie. Anyone care to guess who was there first?

Seriously – how did I forget that there were minimal words in this movie – and yet I was riveted. An hour in – Nate stood up, turned to leave the theater and said, “mom, i have to go to bed now”. I followed him back to the cabin and he fell asleep before his head hit the pillow. Which reminds me I need to watch the rest of it!!!! ‘

5. People come from all over. And they’ve been coming for years. We met one loving grandpa who had been coming for 50 years. He was there with his daughter who started coming when she was a young girl and his granddaughter who started coming a few years ago. We love the stories. And now my family is becoming one of those stories.

6. Spring Lake. Todd and I got engaged here 17 years ago. No more words needed!

7. Family time. Sitting on the deck of our cabin and watching the sun set and the kids play and run free. There is nothing better.

Oh Flying U – we are booked for next year and the kids are already counting down!  Thanks for the best week ever!