Mike had a good day of fishing the day before Thanksgiving. It was a rain/sleet mix with a temp in the low to mid 30's. State stocked 810 trout into a local 42 acer lake.


Good - 14 1/2 " 1.3 lbs Rainbow Trout




Better - 18 1/2 " 2.5 lbs Rainbow Trout



Best - 24" 6 lbs Rainbow Trout

J

U

M

P

for joy!

If this doesn't make you smile (even on a Monday) then it's hopeless.
Enjoy your day!

Getting Carried Away...

The other day when I was putting these pictures on the computer Mike said "gee how many pictures did you take?" He probably thinks I get carried away, but it's so easy to snap pictures when the subject is this darn cute and her expressions change so fast. I just want to stop time for a while and remember these lovely days of 9 and 12. I remember my sister saying as her kids have grown (Cody and Chelsea are 23 and 26 now) that she enjoys each age and stage as much as the others. I am just at a great place with my girls. They are so charming, funny, sweet and full of positive energy. I really enjoy hanging out with them and they seem to enjoy my company too and I know it's not always going to be like that.
Another reason I love snapping her photo is that she is a willing subject and that wasn't always the case when she was a toddler.

Sometimes when I am looking at Megan's face I catch a glimpse of my dad's ornery smile the one you see after he says "gotcha" when he has played a trick on you. When I get a shot of her with that sparkle in her eyes then I know I have caught her "Reil" smile.

I have been hearing "your girls are so beautiful" for 12 years now. I always say thank you...and think well all kids are beautiful. But sometimes when I see my kids I think "wow how did I have such pretty kids?" or when someone tells me they look like me I always think "yeah they resemble be but they are so much prettier." I have always thought of myself as more on the cute side than the pretty side. I always take it as a compliment when people tell me that they look like me because I think they are beautiful...of course I am their mom so I am probably a little prejudice.

The other day at Paige's riding lessons I was out in the arena snapping pictures of her and Megan was standing on a step stool. Then Megan says "take my picture while I shake my head". Luckily we have a Nikon D-90 so it just snaps away and catches all the action. I also snapped a few pictures of Cody, he is the new lesson horse. He just came to the stable a week ago so he is getting used to his new home before he starts being ridden by students. Paige cannot wait to ride him. He is really tall and so pretty.

I love that she has this big silly grin on her face the entire time that she is shaking her head back and forth...she cracks me up!