Ethan's New Bedroom

After the first night of being scared I put all of Ethan's car buddies up on the wall and told him if he gets scared he can talk to his car buddies and they'll protect him. We've heard him a few times talking to them after he's in bed...it's pretty cute and it seemed to help. He's pretty proud of his big bed...he tells me all the time "I sleep good in big bed mommy".

Our week

Ethan is now in his very own big boy bed. He was very excited for the move but a little scared at the same time. On the first night he begged me to stay with him in his "big bed"....and even gave me a pillow to lay on. I eventual had to just let him cry to sleep....but he never got out of bed. Daddy ended up going in around 1 in the morning to sleep with him after he woke up scared. But it's been good ever since. He hasn't yet figured out that he is a free man and can get out of bed when ever he wants...he still calls for me when he wakes up so I can go get him. Which is kind of nice...but one day I know he'll figure it out ;o) He wakes up in a way better mood and tells me that he "sleep good in big bed". I'm still working on the finishing touches of his bedroom, so I'll post some picture's once I get it all done. The only other exciting news around here is that Luke pulled a tick off of Kula's neck the other day. And...NO...it wasn't one that just landed...it had been on there for at least a 2 weeks...from what we can figure. We think she got it at the ranch. It just happened to be under her collar so we didn't even notice it...until we took the collar off the other day. Poor Luke was petting her and rubbed up against it and thought it was a matt so he went to dig in and take a closer look....ewwww!!! Luke and I both about lost our dinner....I tried to take a picture but the camera wouldn't let me take a picture of something so disgusting. It was close to the size of a dime... Poor Kula...but I imagine she feels better now.

Confused.....

So a little over a month ago I saw this elk out in the field by our house. At the time I thought he was just passing through....but he's still there. Our neighborhood was owned by the Harris Ranch and the family still continues to run cattle on the land that hasn't been developed yet...so I think the Elk thinks he's a cow. The boys and I went for a walk the other day so I brought my camera along....just in case. He happened to get up for a snack....which is easy pickins when you have a rancher who mows the grass for you. And he doesn't even have competition for the ladies....he just hasn't figured out that when the ladies show up they will be actual cows...not cow elks!!!!

3 Bull cows on left, 1 Bull Elk on the right.

Family Photo's

Nikki was brave enough to tackle the job of taking picture's of our whole family over Memorial Weekend. Here are just a few. She did an excellent job...considering all the people and kids involved.

Keith, Chrissy, Aleena, Gale, Cindy, Luke, Ethan, Charli, Clayton

Papa, Gaga, Ethan, Aleena, & Clayton

Glen, Katie, Sue, Clayton, Leonard, Charli, Ethan, Luke (The Coldiron's)

The Stonebraker - Wilson Family

The two newest additions - Siena Quinn Stonebraker & Clayton Allan Coldiron

Only a week apart!

2 Months

Clayton started smiling and talking while we were at the ranch.

Cart Rides, "Copterplane" Rides, and Tractor Rides

Phew...it's good to be home. 2 weeks on the road with 2 little ones is hard on a person...but we had a lot of fun and made some wonderful memories. Here's a run down of our wonderful 2 week Summer Vacation...even if Summer has been on strike.

• A 275 mile trip from Boise to Lewiston
• Lots of family to visit
• One very nice brand new house to stay in.
• Late nights and way too early mornings (5:30 am...the first morning)
• A few 2 year old melt downs. The Stonebrakers, Coldirons, and Nikki were lucky enough to witness the grand of all melt downs...never the less while trying to take pictures.
• Lots of play time with cousin Aleena and brand-new cousin Seina....lots of laughs and a few tears.
• One very long 424 mile trip to Seaside, OR...with a 1 1/2 hour pit stop in Portland to visit Luke's Grandma Dorothy.
• Thank God for portable DVD players!
• One VERY tired and grumpy mommy.
• Another 293 miles the following day down Highway 101 to Gold Beach, OR to visit Luke's other Grandma, Flo.
• Just a few diapers to change.
• A trip to the Tillamook Air Museum to look at "Jetplanes"...and one very happy 2 year old.
• A stop at the Newport Aquarium with sea creature's to touch...and lots of Pishy's to see.
• A rustic cabin with a partial ocean view ;o)
• A nice sunny day to go to the beach...BUT...it was windy and cold.
• Finding grass on the beach to protect us from the wind.
• A 293 mile road trip back to Portland...and stuck in traffic for an hour and a half.
• Some desperate times finding Starbucks to save mommy's sanity...belive it or not there are Starbucks on the coast...after all Fred Meyer is everywhere...and usually where there is a Fred Meyer usually lies a Starbucks.
• A Wildlife Petting Zoo with Lions, Tigers, and Bears. Way cooler than any Zoo we've been too. And a little boy who fell in love with a little baby goat.
• A very loud Donkey begging for food.
• A nice visit with our friends Jeff and Irene who gave us a nice (free) place to stay in Portland and fed us a wonderful Dinner and Breakfast. Thank You!
• A trip to IKEA...much needed mommy time. ;o)
• Another 345 miles back to Lewiston.
• Lots of BIG trains and BIG boats to see.
• A few days rest in Lewiston....ahhhh!!! Well if you count doing laundry rest...but at least we weren't in the car for 8 hours a day.
• Golf Cart rides with Papa Gale and Uncle Keith.
• A $275 vet bill. Just a sprained paw (BB) which required some sleepy medicine and then an X-ray and a hot spot on a leg(Kula). And 3 medicines to dole out.
• Another 50+ miles or so up the Clearwater River to Orofino, ID via Moscow to spend some quiet time at the Wilson Family Ranch. We had one full day to ourselves. Ethan and I took a 2 1/2 hour nap :o) We also purchased some new Vandle gear at the U of I bookstore.
• A smiley 2 month old...made my day!!!
• A few more poopy diapers.
• A nice Buzzzz from Papa Gale in the "Copterplane" (that's what Ethan calls Helicopters...if y'all are wondering.) So close we could smell the jet fuel and see Buddy in the back seat.
• A tractor ride with Papa.
• A Copterplane ride with Papa.
• Another Tractor ride...which I think is WAY cooler than a helicopter ride to a 2 year old. ;o)
• Oh...and horses and cows...lots of cows.
• And finally another 260 miles back to Boise....with 2 days to rest up before Luke goes back to work.
• A Grand Total of 1,940 miles....oh and a couple picture's...so check out our Family Album.

On our way to the Beach

Ethan and Papa on the Tractor