Summertime

Summertime is beautiful at Sigh-Bar. The nights are cool, and the days are sunny and warm.  Alex and the kids drove over from Billings to share one more week playing with us before school starts, while Nick was in Houston working. We played at different parks in Whitefish, drove Mulee all the way to Sweet Peaks, went shopping for new school shoes, and spent an evening at the Farmer's Market. Leo and June rode the horse, drove Artie and Grizzlee, and loved getting dirty helping G'pa. Ruby couldn't get enough of Bonnie, and loved being free to wander around outside, swinging, and having a ride in Grizzlee. We often ate outside sitting around the firepit, and on their final evening had a ceremony to burn the clothes, pj's, and shoes that the kids had worn out! All too soon it was time for them to hit the road again and go home to get ready for the new school year to begin.



Our good friends from Cypress, Mark & Tammy Bitter, spend summers at their cabin in Star Valley, Wyoming, and took the drive up to visit with us for a few days. We had a great time sharing Sigh-Bar with them and constantly chatting! Mark and Tammy love to hike so I decided to invite them to help me check an item off of my bucket list -- climbing the Danny On Trail to the top of Big Mountain. The hike is steep and was definitely a challenge, and of course Tammy wanted to add on the Flower Point Loop (which added another 3 miles) but it was definitely worth the gorgeous views from the top. We opted to ride the lift back down, and made it back to town in time to spend the evening at the Farmer's Market. We planned the next day to hike in Glacier Park, so drove the Going to the Sun Road to the summit at  Logan's Pass, but after circling the parking lot for 45 minutes gave up on the hike! It was great fun to share a little bit of Montana with dear friends.

Our cute Junie was so excited for her birthday, and thrilled to be turning 5 and finally going to kindergarten. We drove over to Billings to share in the fun and help her celebrate. She knew exactly where she wanted to go for her birthday date, the Rimrock Mall. She had been wishing and waiting to buy a specific "handbag" that she had seen at H&M. A new stuffed animal was not originally on her wish list, but when we got to the mall and she looked in Build-a-Bear, she couldn't resist a soft, new bunny. She also had a definite idea of where she wanted to eat, and loved sitting up to the counter at Cinnabon for a yummy cinnamon roll! June had been introduced to Chuck E. Cheese at a birthday party of one of her friends and she was anxious to share the fun with her family, so after our shopping spree we met the rest of the family there for a plethora of games and activities. Then, to cap off a day of celebrating, we went to June's favorite, IHOP, for dinner. June is an absolutely delightful little girl, bursting with personality. She loves people, and always has a smile and time to chat with everyone/anyone. She is very bright, and loves to pretend. She tries really hard to keep up with Leo and his friends, and usually loves Ruby too much! She adds a special spark to our family, and we love her so much!

We capped off the month with a short-but-sweet overnight visit with Gloria and Kent and their friends, Gary and Allison, from Mesa. They had enjoyed a quick getaway to Glacier National Park and Banff in Canada, and stopped in on their last night before flying back to Arizona. We enjoyed lunch with them at the Fart & Slobber Inn and ice cream at Sweet Peaks before they left the next afternoon. It was so fun to have a quick visit with them, and a great ending to the beautiful summer month of August.