Fall is here in ND

Just today I noticed how pretty all of the trees are all of a sudden!  Probably by this weekend they will be at their peak.  The weird thing is, 99% of the trees here are yellow.  No orange, no red.  Maybe the hard maple tree doesn't grow well up here?  Sad.  We went for a Fun Fall Family drive after supper this evening.  Ben & Tyler said they weren't getting out of the car.  Rich wasn't real thrilled with the idea, and Grace and Ben ended up fighting most of the way. 
Ben:  (whispering) stupid
Grace:  (yelling) He's calling me stupid!
Ben:  (yelling)  She hit me!
Grace:  (screeching)  He called me stupid under his breath!
You get the idea.
We did stop down by a lake and -everyone- got out of the van so I could take a pic.  They were so happy and smiled like angels.

My best friend Adrian Clayborn

Yes, that's right, Adrian Clayborn IS my Facebook friend.  And I'm quite proud of that :).  Someone posted this pic to his page today:

He's so awesome!

My smart boy

Tyler sent off his online application to Iowa tonight!!  It's so exciting!  One minor issue he had:  my sweet, smart, honors student spelled his own last name wrong on the application LOL!  So Tyler Kinnney will be attending The University of Iowa in August of 2011.....that's if the accept him after that snafu :).
Silly kid.  He can use the excuse that he had taken nighttime cold medicine before filling it out and he was a little loopy.

kind of like this picture LOL!!!

We love you Tyler <3

This has got to be a cruel, cruel joke

And really, it's not funny.

A few tennis pics

These were from last week when Matt's team played Jamestown.  Matt barely lost this match...he was playing really well! 

Seeing our cousins

Last weekend we met Heidi, Joel and the boys over at Grandpa Jim's for the weekend.  The weather was beautiful, but the wheat was out of the fields already, which was sad.  We found a field or two with wheat, and made the kids stand in front of it for a quick pic, since a large grain truck was coming down the road toward us and we were blocking it's exit.  Oh well, we got a few more back in the yard.  Joel and Rich cut a bunch of dead trees down and hauled them to the dump.  They also mowed and trimmed the cemetery.  We had church on Sunday and Roger was surprised to see all of the Peterson's in attendance :).  It was the anniversary of Grace's baptism too, so that was kind of fun.  After church we all had to head home, although wished we could stay!  Joel and I will be old people living in that house one day & staring at the buttes :).  It's still and always will be our happy place!  Rich had to work the phones at the MDA telethon on Monday with the other NWS guys.  I took some pics of the TV when they were on.

A few tidbits from the past week

It was a really busy one!  Rich had his interview for the DM job Wednesday.  We waited on pins and needles for any info Thursday and Friday.....and got nuttin' LOL.  No word yet, apparently Brenda was out of the office Friday.  If we don't find out tomorrow I will commit myself to the Bismarck Sanitarium, because I'll be in a stress-ball on the floor. 

                                                                  A few senior picture outtakes LOL!!!

 Tyler had his senior pics taken Thursday, and Matt went to Fargo Friday & Saturday to play in a tennis tournament for BHS.  He lost both of his matches, but played against varsity guys who were really good.  One day he'll be the varsity guy playing the 8th grader :).  Thanks again to Joel & Heidi and the boys for visiting him and bringing him lunch, you saved the day!!  I had a garage sale on Saturday.....the big INternational Pow-Wow is this weekend every year and Bismarck has a city wide garage sale.  We didn't do great, but made about $136.  The sofa bed finally left our driveway.  It started at $20, then went to 'or best offer', then went to FREE SOFA BED!! 

 Finally, tonight some college guys who had just got into a house drove by and took it...they said they didn't have much furniture :), so it went to a good home.  Tonight I tried to clip Lucy's hair myself...and oh my, it was a Disaster with a capital D.  None of the clippers I have worked on her thick hair, so I had to scissor cut it, which took forever.  She now looks like she has patches of mange on her back :). 

Took a few pics of Grace outside doing cartwheels and attempting backbends.  For a lithe and slender little thing, she is highly inflexible :)!!!!  I was nowhere as thin as her, but I could flip around and do cartwheels, round-offs, back and front walk-overs and backbends.  Maybe she needs some stretching exercises.  She also does a left handed cartwheel instead of a right one, which is totally backwards for me.  That girl wears me so thin by the end of the day.....she doesn't stop moving, and she whines like nobody's business.  She talks back all the time now too....and she is so darned strong-willed!  Argh, my head hurts.