The Roberts Family

The Cabin Trip

2012-01-30T21:09:00.000-08:00

With power restored the Pingetzer's had an awesome time at the Lake Wenatchee cabin.
Hot tubbing, sledding, marshmallows, hockey, and lots of good food were on tap.
A great three days that we're a refreshing holiday break.
Special thanks to Staci for all the great photos.

Friday night at the Wild Game

Payton finally got her hug with Walt!!

Hot Tubbing in the woods

Bombing down the sled hill

The gals

Payton navigating through the snow tunnel

The yearly mallow toss

Payton ate more than she threw!!

The whole crew...

Thanks Grandpa and Grandma for a wonderful trip!!!

BLACK OUT

2012-01-27T07:55:00.000-08:00

It was an interestting first night at the cabin.
A power outage plunged the cabin into complete darkness.
After a six hours cuddled around the fire a few games of hide and seek we called it a night.....
Only to be woke up around 12:30 when all the lights came flooding back on.
Definitely a memory that will be fun to look back upon.

Definitely the right type of snow....

2012-01-21T16:17:00.000-08:00

Early this morning Hayden asked if he could make a snowman with me.
I responded that it was "definitely not the right type of snow to make snowballs...."
He said okay and went outside.
About fifteen minutes later Hayden knocked on the window and pointed to a rather large snowball he had made in the yard. He had the look on his face that said... "see Dad, I told you so..."
Admitting defeat I went outside and helped turn that first snowball into the bottom level of a snowman. Payton joined the work crew after level 2 was finished and before long we had a four-ball giant. In the end, he stood about 8 ft. tall and lasted unfortunately about 4 hours before he tumbled over. But we will forever have these pics to remember him by.

The prep work

The end result

Friends

2012-01-15T18:25:00.000-08:00

A few days back Staci brought over a few of her nieces to play with Ash and Payton.

They broke out the rock painting kit grandma gave us this Christmas and got their krafty kraft on!

Next it was on to the bedroom where Princess dresses were donned and pretend meals were cooked.

Always great to get some quality girl time for Payton.

2012

2012-01-05T22:16:00.000-08:00

Another new year... another great celebration on New Year's Eve.
This year we spent the holiday celebrating with family members. We began the day by making a trip in to Moses Lake for some good old fashioned ice skating. We looked like quite the crew out there on the ice. Next on the agenda was go kart racing around the horse arena. Grandpa had designed a track that Hayden named "The Track of Doom". Everyone got in on the action including Mom and even our little 1 year old nephew Dane. Once the sun set it was games and good food inside the house. Shortly before midnight we had an impromptu photo shoot with sparklers and an awesome fireworks show courtesy of Grandpa and Grandma. A fun night full of great memories. Here's to 2012!!!

Plane Crazy

2011-12-28T22:21:00.000-08:00

Thanks to Uncle Dean and Aunt Jonda for this great Christmas gift. Hayden loves flying this thing, and as long as Dad doesn't put any more holes in it we will have lots of missions to share in the near future.

Ninja School

2011-12-27T23:49:00.000-08:00

What happens when regular school takes a break?????

Young Ninjas focus on some serious training.....

The Magician

2011-12-22T16:54:00.000-08:00

After recently reading Hugo Cabret, Hayden and I thought we could make a similar movie to one described in the book. After a few takes we came up with this creation. Enjoy!

Improvement

2011-12-22T13:44:00.000-08:00

It's amazing how fast kids can pick things up...
After only a few trips to the ice Hayden is well on his way to becoming the next Gretzky.
Thanks to Grandma for buying him some great skates that fit his feet.
Nice work son!

O' Christmas Tree

2011-12-17T10:28:00.000-08:00

Here is the 2011 beauty! The house feels pretty festive at the moment.

Only 8 more days until Christmas!

Ice Skating

2011-12-13T16:09:00.001-08:00

Grandma and Grandpa's pond froze over a few days ago so I took the kids for a little skating.
Kids are like bouncy balls... they can hit the ground over and over, but they always seem to pop right back up.

Bandon Trip - The Last Day

2011-12-01T20:50:00.001-08:00

A few photos to wrap up the Pingetzer trip to Bandon.

Another sunrise... we had to get up early for these on the trip (and for the low tides)

Hayden made the walk with me again this morning

He even climbed up pretty high on his own at this rock!

Aunt Jonda made these awesome silhouettes of Payton and Hayden during the trip.

We've already got them up in the house and we're so grateful she shares her amazing abilities with us.

The Bandon Lighthouse

We hit the jetty at high tide and the waves were powerful

The kids tempting the tides....

The long road home....

We had a truly wonderful trip full of memories.

Already thinking about ways to get back to the Pacific!

Thanks to Grandpa and Grandma for allowing this all to happen!

Bandon Trip - Day 3

2011-11-26T21:13:00.001-08:00

Another day at Bandon... Another set of great memories.
Hayden and I started the day out with a walk on the beach, where we met up with Tamar and Brian.
After some lunch and a quick jaunt through town we ended up heading to Shore Acres for the afternoon.
Aside from a couple BAD navigation decisions on my part we had an amazing time.

As always the pictures will tell the tale.....

The sunrise this morning

We had the beach to ourselves for the first hour

Sun still creeping up...

We found a sweet secret passageway between two rocks

A little later on....

Some rock climbing

We met up with Tamar and Brian just below their hotel

Later on in town

A little geography lesson

Shore acres Sunset... before the sun snuck behind some clouds

The lights came on in the garden... and it was awesome!

A rare photo of the wife and I

A few of the lights

And last but not least my favorite photo of the day....

This picture should get anyone in the mood for Christmas!

Tomorrow we finish up our Bandon excursion with a trip to the lighthouse and a drive on Whiskey beach. Stay tuned for the last photo update!

Bandon - A Two Day Tale

2011-11-25T18:33:00.001-08:00

After a long drive down to Bandon on Wednesday (a.k.a - Worst driving day of the year) I was truly hoping the weather would work itself out and we would have a great experience with the Pingetzer clan.
Day one was a little wet with high winds, but today (Friday) was AMAZING. Almost sixty degrees, no wind, and amazing photo ops. I was able to see both the sunrise and sunset today.
And now... On to the pictures.....

Day One

The Lighthouse

A few sun breaks, but pretty ominous

Still a lot of smiles!

Day Two

The sunrise

Pretty nice way to start a day!

View from up above at the end of the walk

At mid-day it was off to town!

This pelican was sitting on the dock downtown

Lots of people were crabbing as well

Ed enjoying the beach

Photo op with the kids

As the sun began to drop the pictures kept getting better

Tamar and Brian enjoying Bandon

Tough to take a bad pic here

Hayden's handiwork

I felt this one was even post-card worthy

Payton enjoying the sunset

I love this place!

We finished the walk in the dark... but we were prepared. Night lights!

Thanksgiving at Bandon

2011-11-22T20:45:00.001-08:00

On our way to Bandon for Thanksgiving.
Stay tuned for updates and photos!

Wild Game

2011-11-21T16:39:00.001-08:00

Last weekend Staci and Brian invited us to a Wild hockey game in Wenatchee.
As if going to a hockey game with good friends wasn't cool enough by itself, it also turned out to be cow-bell night!
While the Wild didn't win, we still had a great time. "More Cowbell!"

First Haircut

2011-11-12T09:32:00.001-08:00

Payton received her first haircut last weekend.
We've been pretty concerned that it would be a disaster because Payton is in love with the movie "Tangled". She adores her long hair.... because it's just like Rapunzels'
But to Mom and Dad's surprise she did awesome. She sat still, smiled, and enjoyed the entire process.
The end result? It looks great! I think Ashley may have a hidden talent as a hair stylist.

School Photo Time

2011-11-05T23:30:00.000-07:00

Hayden brought home school photos yesterday.
Time to start filling the bus.
12 more spaces to go.

Halloween 2011

2011-11-01T20:27:00.000-07:00

The little ones had a great halloween this year.

We made stops at all the grandparents and friends houses.

The actual trick or treating in town was short lived as the wind was howling....

but the kids didn't seem to mind and it was great for the parents.

The only complaint of the night came from Hayden who was worried that I would eat all of his candy like I did last year.....

All I'm saying is that he better protect it or hide it very carefully. A Dad's will power only goes so far when it comes to chocolate.

Hayden was a Jedi and Payton was a butterfly (thanks cousin Rylee)

Gone Fishing

2011-11-01T20:19:00.000-07:00

Grandpa and Hayden struck again!
This time the fish wasn't quite as big, but it still was pretty dang impressive.
Mom and Dad attempted to cook this guy, but it wasn't the most successful meal we've ever created.
We definitely need more practice in the seafood department.
But as long as Hayden and Grandpa keep reeling em in I think we may have lots of future opportunities to improve.

2011-10-30T22:17:00.001-07:00

Saw this video online and had to share it today!

Enjoy Halloween

Happy Halloween

2011-10-30T10:59:00.000-07:00

Freda

2011-10-15T21:30:00.000-07:00

In loving memory of Freda Juanita Pingetzer.
A grandma who was full of spunk...
and who we loved very much.
June 7, 1922 - October 4, 2011

The Roberts Family Pumpkin Patch

2011-10-15T21:25:00.000-07:00

My parents have always been great with the grandkids.
This week they went above and beyond the normal call of duty when they hosted Hayden's elementary school for a field trip to their pumpkin patch.
Hayden had a blast telling all of his friends that they were going to his "Grandpa and Grandma's" farm.
From the looks of the pictures everyone had a great time (including Grandpa and Grandma I think...).
Hayden and Payton are truly blessed to have such great grandparents on both sides of the family.

Showing the other kids the lay of the land.

Hayden's pumpkin

It's pretty hard getting a kindergarten class organized.

The Great Pumpkin

2011-09-26T09:59:00.000-07:00

Our family has a little history of pumpkin growing contests.
Here is this year's entry. Hayden calls it the "Great Pumpkin"
We think it's a winner.... but who knows what Grandma has up her sleeve.

First Days of School

2011-09-16T19:36:00.000-07:00

It has been a busy few weeks here in the Roberts household.
Early mornings, breakfasts, showers, backpacks, and cold lunches....
It can only mean one thing....
School is back in session, and this year Hayden and Payton are both facing new challenges.
Hayden is beginning all-day kindergarten at Grant elementary, while Payton is making two trips a week to Hosanna pre-school. Both are extremely excited and ready to do this!

Labor Day Ride

2011-09-15T21:15:00.000-07:00

As a final summer experience Stacy and Brian joined us on a motorcycle adventure across Northeastern Washington. We began the journey by heading up towards Grand Coulee Country and then continued North towards Republic. From there we continued through small towns like Curlew, Tiger, and Kettle Falls. We finally finished our trip in a hotel in Ione (population 498) and experienced the 100 year anniversary of Metaline Falls. The ride was incredible! Lots of beautiful scenery, empty roads, and twists and turns galore.
Definately one of the favorite rides we have done up to this point.

Family Pics 2011

2011-09-01T23:30:00.000-07:00

A new year....
A new set of photos!
Thanks to Staci for the great work! All that work with the crazy eyebrow was worth it!

Waterskiing in Moses

2011-08-30T20:32:00.001-07:00

Hayden gave waterskiing a shot last weekend.

After a few failures, he shocked us all by getting out of the water and skiing for about a half mile.

He stayed really low as he was pulled along and didn't crash until he decided standing all the way up might be a good idea.

Getting ready....

He's up...

The look....

2011-08-22T18:19:00.000-07:00

Don't mess with these kids.... they mean business.

Seriously... whose kids are these two?

Lucky Number 7

2011-08-20T10:13:00.000-07:00

Ashley and I celebrated our 7 year anniversary this year by taking a hike through the old Snoqualmie tunnel.

The tunnel is located on the John Wayne Trail and is over 2.4 miles in length.

When you first begin the hike through the tunnel you are barely able to see the other end. It looks like a small pinhole in the black darkness.

The hike is unique because as you walk it doesn't feel like you are making any progress towards the light. Ashley referred to the lack of progress as her "own personal version of hell"..... a walk that never ends. But after an hour we emerged at the other end where we were greeted with a beautiful waterfall and snacks. From there we turned around and made the trek back through the tunnel. In the end Ashley made it out of the black hole and we finished with a dinner in Cle Elum. The kids loved it and despite Ashley's comments I'm pretty sure she had a good time as well. It's not every day you get to walk through hell and back!

The entrance to the tunnel

Inside we needed headlamps!

The other end...

Break time... Payton walked the majority of the 5.5 miles!

The mountain we hiked underneath

Little Ashley and Ashley

Making it back out the other side

The big finish... I guess Hayden lost his shirt somewhere in the tunnel!

At the fair....

2011-08-17T11:38:00.001-07:00

These four always have a good time together!

Spokane to Sandpoint

2011-08-15T11:11:00.000-07:00

185 miles - 12 runners

With some current high school runners and past alums we competed in last weekend's Spokane to Sandpoint team relay. Each runner ran 3 legs (around 15 miles) over a 24 hour period, and rode a rollercoaster in the middle of the night.

Good times that hopefully will prepare us for the upcoming XC season.

Our team name was the Honey Badgers.... if you haven't seen it.... look it up... well worth your time.

Our team finished with a new PR of just under 23 hours.

Wheat Harvest 2011

2011-08-15T11:05:00.001-07:00

Last week we finished up the wheat harvest in Lind.

Record yields meant lots of smiles around the ranch.

Payton's Big Day

2011-07-29T09:40:00.001-07:00

Payton finished another trip around the sun!

It's hard to believe she is already three years old.

We celebrated with friends and family.... even Dora and Diego (who made an appearance on her cake).

We love you Payton!!!!

Birthday morning

A new pink razor scooter

A little purple cowgirl hat

Make a wish....

And blow out the candles!

1 more day...

2011-07-24T15:22:00.000-07:00

Tomorrow this little lady is turning 3!

WATERSLIDES!!

2011-07-21T20:56:00.000-07:00

As a final event for Hayden's birthday we took the crew up to Chelan to hit Slide Waters.

It's a small water park with only 10 slides, but it does a great job of letting kids of all sizes have fun.

Everyone went down the slides from Grandpa and Grandma to little Payton. A great day all around.

Look who's Six!

2011-07-19T09:45:00.000-07:00

Hayden turned six years old last Saturday.

We had friends over to celebrate the occasion. Complete with the splash strip, a treasure hunt, cake, presents, and even fireworks this day was full of fun.

Congrats little man on another year.

Ashley, Payton and I love you to the moon and back.

The treasure hunt led them to Grandma's pond

Where Hayden discovered a sword in the lake Grandpa had made for him.

Aunt Amber made some outstanding cupcakes!

What a great group of kids.

Nice Upgrade

2011-07-13T20:53:00.000-07:00

Ashley's new toy...

Racecars and Fireworks

2011-07-10T12:40:00.001-07:00

Last night we got to watch Uncle Josh take 2nd place in his race car and get a big trophy.

Hayden went down to the track to take a picture with him after the race.

And to top it all off there were late night fireworks after the races.

A great night.

Hayden has an awful big grin on in this photo.... hmmmmm.....

FIREWORKS!!!!

Run Royal

2011-07-10T11:47:00.001-07:00

The family ran yesterday's fun run in Royal City during their summerfest.

The course was a 1.35 mile loop around town and both Hayden and Payton ran the race.

Hayden ran the entire course and had a great finish.

Payton ran small bits of it while walking the rest.

Both had big grins on at the finish line.

The starting line

Hayden's big finish

The video

Payton's big finish

We survived, and still had smiles on our faces.

The runners

Slip n Slide 2.0

2011-06-26T15:04:00.000-07:00

A few days back we invented a new slip n slide outside the house.

We called it the "Splash Strip"

Hayden loved it so much he kept shouting, "I'm never going to stop doing this!!!!"

Kittens anyone?

2011-06-24T22:51:00.000-07:00

Early last month, on mother's day no less, our mama cat "Pirate" had a litter of kittens.

Five little fluff balls; each with a unique color and personality.

Up to this point we think they are all boys.... we think....

but we don't really have any idea. Just a little puff of fluff up to this point.

Anyways here they are.... the little pirates.

Pass the Purple Paint Please

2011-06-18T09:50:00.000-07:00

Summer painting season has officially been kicked off.

A few days ago we spent the day re-painting Payton's bedroom.

We've been wanting to change away from green to purple for the longest time.

Luckily we had a few helpers willing to lend a hand.

Payton hard at work....

Big brother even helped out a little...

The end result.... a room fit for a little princess.

Let's Race!

2011-06-16T16:14:00.000-07:00

Payton got a new helmet a few days ago.

It didn't take her long to jump on that four-wheeler and take it out for her first spin on her own.

The helmet looked huge on her head, but the smile on her face was even bigger!

A girl and her horse

2011-06-02T19:45:00.001-07:00

Ohme Gardens

2011-05-29T20:49:00.001-07:00

Today we made a trip up to Ohme Gardens in Wenatchee.

Never been before and have to admit we didn't know what to expect.

However, this place was amazing. So much love, passion, and hard work went into building that place.

If you've never been you should make sure to check it out sometime. Very impressive.

About to start our journey...

Lots of up and down climbing

A rare shot of Ash and I together.... thanks Hayden

At the wishing well.... Hayden wished for rainbow colored rocket shoes. Payton wished she could meet Dora and Boots.

Hayden blazing a trail along a cliff

Lots of intricate little paths

Not many flowers there, but the few they had were beautiful

This was called Hidden Pond

Just chillin'

This was the "Hobbit" bench. One of my favorite spots at the Garden.

Wrigley

2011-05-29T20:40:00.000-07:00

It's about time we put up a picture of this little guy.

Last month I decided the family really needed a new puppy.

A quick look in the Nickelsaver and we ended up with Wrigley.

Hopefully he grows fast and has some brains in his head. We really need to have some good luck with a dog in this family.

Hosanna 2011

2011-05-14T14:51:00.000-07:00

Hayden is down to his last few weeks at Hosanna PreSchool.

Summer and Kindergarten are right around the corner!!

Tea Time....

2011-04-30T09:47:00.000-07:00

With all this news about princesses lately I thought I would share some photos.

Our little princess taking tea time with a few of her good friends.

Thank you Aunt Jonda for the great photos.

Opening Day

2011-04-25T17:43:00.000-07:00

Last Saturday was opening day for youth baseball in Ephrata.

This is Hayden's first year playing for a team, and he is pretty excited about the whole thing.

The best part.... he gets to play with his cousins and uncle Josh is the coach.

Look at that game face!

The Team - "Wintoniak Racing"

Keep the eye on the ball....

Heading for third!

Can you tell he's having a good time?

Back to the game....

For now.

The Adventures of Flat Stanley!

2011-04-19T17:46:00.001-07:00

Recently in Hayden's Pre-School class they began reading the book Flat Stanley.

To go along with the book his teacher wanted him to take Flat Stanley on an adventure with him.

So the following pictures are his journey.....

Flat Stanley boarding the plane!

His first stop.... New York City

and the Statue of Liberty

After that it was a quick hop over to China to see the Wall

Followed by a Pirate adventure with his Lego friends

And a stroll in the park in Paris

Somehow he ended up on 3rd base in a Red-Sox game???!!!

Next, he went swimming with killer whales!!

And gave Mickey Mouse a high five in Orlando.

No experience is complete without a quick jump out of a plane.

And wouldn't you know it....? He even made it to the moon!

People were so amazed at his accomplishments that they even put him on Mt. Rushmore!

But eventually things had to slow down and he had to come home to Ephrata, WA.

Back to school to share his adventures with Hayden and Payton.

The Easter Bunny has got nothing on Payton.....

2011-04-19T16:39:00.000-07:00

Little Payton was an egg dying machine last Sunday.

The only problem was she was a little partial to the color Purple.

In fact.... to the point where every egg was.... Purple.

Even her hands got a nice coat of color.

No colon, but still rollin'

2011-04-12T11:18:00.000-07:00

After a long series of events, most unpleasant, Ashley had a major surgery yesterday to remove her colon.

Everything went exceptionally well, and according to the doctor Ashley has beautiful insides. I always knew she was beautiful from the inside out and now we have proof!

She has started the road to recovery and while uncomfortable she is in good spirits.

Thanks everyone for their prayers and positive thoughts.

And remember this final thought from something we read online: "its four feet less, but still the best".

27 years young

2011-04-10T17:50:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday Ashley / Mom!!!!

We love you!

Scrambled Pancakes!!!

Not quite skydiving.... but still good times.

2011-04-03T22:32:00.000-07:00

To celebrate Ashley's upcoming birthday we were planning on taking the plunge and going skydiving last Friday in Snohomish.

Unfortunately the weather was not in on the plans and the reservation had to be postponed.

Rather than have a wasted day we decided to go on a bike ride.

We hit a nice loop through Sun Lakes, around to Orondo/Wenatchee, and finally back home again.

Not too bad for a fall back plan.

Pizza Time

2011-03-30T09:28:00.000-07:00

It has been awhile since we last posted a cooking creation on the blog.

In fact the last one, blue chocolate chip cookies, scared a lot of people.

But I couldn't resist posting last night's creation.

With the help of Hayden and Payton we made homemade pizzas.

While they may not be pizza parlor quality they still were pretty darn good.

MEGAMIND!!!!

2011-03-28T14:01:00.000-07:00

You'll never guess.......

what movie we watched on Family movie night!!!

Sunday Hike

2011-03-28T13:43:00.000-07:00

This Sunday Hayden, Payton, and I took a little hike....

By the time it was over we were at the top of Beezley looking down on E-Town.

Needless to say, the second half of the hike was much easier than the first.

Brian's Totally Radical B-Day Bash

2011-03-26T09:01:00.000-07:00

Last week our good friend Brain turned 30 years young.

To celebrate the occasion Staci threw an 80s costume party.

The end result was some good laughs and gnarly photos.

Ocean getaway....

2011-02-23T18:04:00.000-08:00

There is probably no place that Ashley and I love more than Bandon, OR.

We love to get down there as much as possible, and took that opportunity this President's weekend.

Beautiful scenery, great weather, and no crowds. It's an ocean lovers paradise.

It's tough to take a bad photo there.... everything feels like its ready for a postcard.

Sunset silhouette

Face Rock

Hayden stranded

Trapped by kelp.... and not excited about it

Bandon Sunset

The crew on a seashell hunt

Heading into a cave....

Hayden on the other side....

Names in the sand

Ashley is already planning our next trip back. Hopefully it's soon.

Stuck on You!

2011-02-23T17:53:00.000-08:00

Ashley and I celebrated Valentines day this year by taking part in a couple's progressive dinner. We had a great time and even made a pair of velcro shirts for the occasion. It was good times, much better than the traditional roses and card.

The group

Our shirts in action....

Jonda and Staci setup a photo booth for everyone to use...

Let's just say I put up the "safe" ones.

Reptile Man

2011-02-11T20:01:00.001-08:00

Last night Hayden, Austyn, and I headed into Ephrata to watch the world famous Reptile Man put on a show.

We'll have some videos to share later, but for now this photo will give you a sneak peak.

Ready for school Mom!

2011-02-09T19:08:00.000-08:00

Payton has recently been letting her mom and dad know that she is ready for school.

I think she's just getting tired of watching Hayden going to learn/play with his friends while she's still stuck at home.

A few days ago she came out of her room with her backpack, boots, and hat on and announced, "I'm going to school to see all my friends!"

The Cabin

2011-02-05T11:58:00.000-08:00

We finished up January with another amazing trip up to Leavenworth with the Pingetzer crew.

As the pictures show, we had an amazing time.

It has been fun watching the number of people in these group photos grow over the years.

The grandkids

The gals

Uncle Dean got the kids sweet Nerf guns. There was never a safe moment in the cabin.

Payton was the reloader

And Hayden was always ready for action.

Grandpa Ed brought his helicopter which was awesome because the cabin had 30 ft. high ceilings.

We made a trip into Wenatchee to catch another Wild game.

Hayden is getting addicted to hockey.

And of course, Grandma Kim led the charge with the now "annual" marshmallow fight.

White Out!

2011-01-30T15:33:00.000-08:00

I've said it before and I'll say it again...

It's great having photographers as family and friends.

Otherwise we would never have pictures like these that we can keep forever.

Thanks so much Staci for the pictures.

And a special thanks to Grandma Kim for the idea and making it happen.

See you next time....

Just Dance!

2011-01-24T22:04:00.000-08:00

A couple of days ago I was playing the piano in the living room when Payton got the urge to dance along. She's already got all of my best moves down. I particularly like the ending..... when she falls over and acts like it was all part of the show.

Wild Game!

2011-01-19T16:11:00.000-08:00

Last Saturday Brian and Staci invited us to watch a Wenatchee Wild hockey game.

It was awesome! The Wild won 3-0 and there was lots of great action. We took Hayden and he went crazy. He has been walking around the house the last couple of days hitting things chanting "Let's go Wild" "Let's go Wild"

Pizza.... now French Fry....

2011-01-02T10:58:00.000-08:00

A few days ago I had the idea that it would be a lot of fun to take Hayden skiing.

I wasn't sure how it would work out.... but we had a blast.

We started out with a few runs on the rope tow, and then it was on to chair one.

He's still not ready to go completely on his own, but he learned a ton.

After some google searching I found out about pizza and french fries. Which if you don't know is the preferred method for teaching the little guys how to go faster or slower.

In total we made about 8 runs down chair one with very little crashing and no tears (which is a huge plus). The only thing that was able to slow us down was the bitter cold. It didn't get much hotter than 10 degrees the entire time we were there. We'll definitely go again soon.

First time on chair one

At the lodge

Hayden thought the chair lift was cool.... but a little freaky

At the top of chair one

I distratcted Hayden so he wouldn't see someone getting carted down the hill on the sled.

Notice it on the right hand side.

GO-KART MAYHEM!

2010-12-15T20:35:00.001-08:00

Grandpa and Grandma surprised the grandkids with go-karts for Christmas this year.

And thanks to some hard work from Uncle Josh they are now operational.

So.... who needs to wait for good weather? We had these things out and moving already.

Anyone up for some racing?

A special thanks to Grandpa, Grandma, and Uncle Josh

2010-12-15T20:27:00.000-08:00

A few of the cold weather activities we've been up to at the Roberts house.

Payton's first icicle.

Hayden and I worked hard on this snowman. He was about 7 ft. tall.

This little guy was our first attempt. We really had to work hard to make the snow stick on this one.

Needless to say, he's one warm day away from being the headless snowman.

Lil Monkey Jumping on the Bed

2010-12-01T22:07:00.001-08:00

Payton recently got a new bed, and she absolutely loves it!!!

Here's hoping she doesn't fall off and bump her head.....

1... 2... skip a few....

2010-12-01T22:04:00.000-08:00

Hayden made a milestone tonight. He counted from 1 to 100 with no mistakes.

Dad and Mom were awfully proud of the little man.

WHAT A FISH!

2010-11-01T21:33:00.000-07:00

Hayden hauled this monster trout out of the canal last week.

It measured 25 inches in length and was just plain huge.

Hayden even needed a little help from Grandpa to hold the fish up for the picture.

Grandpa and Grandma will be serving up fish sticks for weeks!

Happy Halloween 2010

2010-11-01T21:25:00.000-07:00

Hiking MarDon

2010-11-01T21:23:00.001-07:00

A great family photo at the top of the hike at MarDon.

Take the extra time to check out Grandpa's walking stick. (It's worth the effort)

Anyone have a cat stuck in a tree?

2010-11-01T21:17:00.000-07:00

Last week, Hayden's class made a field trip to the Ephrata Fire Department.

It looks like they had a great time checking out the fire trucks and firefighting equipment.

Hopefully there are more of these trips this year.

GOOOOOOOAAAAAAAALLLLL!!!!!

2010-11-01T19:57:00.001-07:00

Hayden just finished up his first full season of soccer.

And while the Premiere league in Europe hasn't called yet, I'm pretty sure they're reviewing his tapes.

As you can tell from the pictures he had a Great time playing with his team.

Isn't kid's soccer awesome?

We're already counting down the days until baseball season.

District XC Champs

2010-10-29T21:33:00.000-07:00

For the fourth time in the last six years Royal Boy's XC are district champs.

This Saturday we will be making our seventh straight trip to State in Pasco.

We're hoping for great efforts, fast times, and no regrets.

It should be a lot of fun. We race at 12:00 if you are in the area.

Signs of fall

2010-10-24T16:27:00.001-07:00

2 of our favorite signs of fall.....

Leaves changing color

and a trip to the pumpkin patch!!!

The Lip

2010-10-16T11:14:00.000-07:00

Meet Payton.... a young master of the pouty lip face.

Seriously, how does a 2 year old know how to work her parents so well?

Halloween Practice

2010-10-16T10:23:00.001-07:00

Hayden, Payton, and I are so excited for Halloween that we decided to do a little practice.

Only two more weeks till the Trick or Treat!

Look who's pedaling now!

2010-10-16T10:19:00.001-07:00

Payton decided it was time to keep up with her big bro.

Fishing with Grandpa

2010-10-16T10:11:00.000-07:00

A few days ago Grandpa took Hayden and Payton fishing. They came back with some great fish stories. And the pictures to prove it!

Rocking Roberts

2010-09-16T20:32:00.000-07:00

Late night fun with photo booth....

I call this the delirious time.

First Day of School - 2010

2010-09-12T23:05:00.000-07:00

Here's to the start of a great year!

A blustery day at the Roberts House

2010-09-12T23:02:00.000-07:00

Like Mother... Like Daughter

2010-09-12T22:54:00.000-07:00

There's no denying that Payton is a little Ashley re-born.

About 2 weeks back she had a little "incident" where she bit through her bottom lip.

She was fine.... in fact it's already healed up, BUT it did make me think back to a picture I have of her Mom in a not so different situation. What a pair!

Mile Madness

2010-08-28T16:13:00.000-07:00

Most of you know that I love to run. And recently Hayden has really been asking me to take him running with me. So today we took Hayden and his two cousins to the track and ran their first timed mile.

We made sure to stretch and warm up before the start and then ran four laps. The boys did great and ran almost the entire mile (just two small pit stops along the way).

At the end they were tired, but were rewarded for their hard effort. Way to go Boys!!! AWESOME JOB

Final Times:

Hans - 11:40

Winston - 11:42

Hayden - 13:41

Howdy!

2010-08-22T11:32:00.000-07:00

Summer Days at the Fair

2010-08-22T09:11:00.000-07:00

One sign that the summer is about to close on us is the Grant County Fair. We made the best of the situation by rocking the carnival rides. Hayden and Payton both LOVED it. The only person who got sick was Dad.

What carnival isn't complete with a bounce house?

Believe it or not, the dizzy dragon is the ride that made Dad sick. I think we're still spinning.

Payton doing her best impression of mom on the bike.

Need a lift?

Ashley even tried out the rides. I have no idea how she was able to squeeze in this one.

And what day wouldn't be complete with a ride on the elephant?

Seriously.... they had an elephant.

6 Years and Counting

2010-08-19T10:27:00.000-07:00

Happy Anniversary Ash!!

A few pics from the motorbike road trip we did to celebrate the occasion.

We started out on the North Cascades Highway and made our first stop at Winthrop

The North Cascades

We spent our first night in La Conner

The next day we crossed Deception Pass onto Whidbey Island

We made a stop at Fort Casey

And used the ferry to get off the island

It was a lot of riding, but it was awesome crazy fun. And it never hurts coming home to two great kids.

Wheat Harvest in Lind

2010-08-09T02:02:00.000-07:00

For the last week and a half I've been out on the combine in Lind helping with the family harvest. Other than a few errors on my part, the harvest has been going great. High yields and good looking wheat. Hayden, Payton, and Mom even stopped by to check out the progress.

Special thanks to Staci for the great photos.

Back Off!

2010-07-28T10:33:00.000-07:00

Today Orange met Dory.

Lets just say he wasn't that excited about it.

Meet the new additions

2010-07-27T16:06:00.000-07:00

World; meet the new additions to the Roberts Family. Courtesy of Grandma Kim as a gift for Payton's birthday.

Meet Pirate (named by Hayden)

Meet Orange (named by Payton)

And meet Kit (named by Mom and Dad)

Its Not a Box!

2010-07-26T09:16:00.001-07:00

Sometimes the best toys are the most simple. In this case a large box became a pirates den. Complete with hidden treasure maps, prison bars, skulls, and two little pirates.

A good pirate always has their dagger close at hand.

Payton turns 2!

2010-07-26T09:09:00.001-07:00

Yesterday Payton finished her second trip around the sun. We celebrated in grand fashion with a perfect 2 year old birthday party: Bowling and Dairy Queen. I'm not sure she knew 100% what was going on, but she sure knew how to blow out the candles and open those presents.

The Gang

Blowing out the candles

Who needs a cake when you have a blizzard all to yourself.

What a pair of hooligans

Payton's present - A tire horse swing

She loves riding this......

Slide Waters

2010-07-24T10:03:00.001-07:00

Hayden and I cooled off by heading to Chelan for Slidewaters yesterday.

This waterpark was awesome because they let Hayden on every one of their slides. He even tried out the "Purple Haze", which is a pitch black tube that is pretty extreme.

We had a great time and went hard for about 6 straight hours. Needless to say, Hayden slept really well last night.

Late Night Camping

2010-07-23T08:58:00.000-07:00

Last night Hayden and I went camping. It was a spur of the moment decision.

.....

I guess that's one of the perks of having a mini-forest outside your door. It came in real handy last night.

Hayden turns 5!

2010-07-19T09:56:00.000-07:00

Our little guy turned Five on Friday. And we celebrated the handful with a big monster buster party. We had the family over and the cousins got to play together. It was hot, but the squirt guns and water slide cooled things down.