The Praying Mantis

We are not the only ones praying and helping our garden grow. I have a big family of praying mantis's living and watching over our garden. My little boy has prayed for our garden every night at bedtime and this has been the best year for us so far. We don't have a lot of space but all of our plants have done very well, except the strawberries. There are not a lot of bugs that I

admire but I have to say I have found one.... The praying mantis. I see one every time I water the garden. I found one eating a tomato bug and one eating a fly. They love ants too. I sat and watched one for about 30 minutes as it was sneaking on a bug and it caught it so fast. I felt like a little kids just amazed as I admired it. I have to give these little creatures a gold star. They make me so excited and happy. Our tomato plants love them too. I have only sprayed for bugs once but then decided to let these wonderful insects do their job and keep my garden safe. A big thanks to the Praying Mantis!

Zinnias

This is the 3rd year that I have planted Zinnias from seed. I just love them. They grow so tall and are so colorful. Every flower is unique in style and color. They grow so fast and stay looking great even threw these hot summer months. When a flower fades and dies you clip it off and another one grows right back. Easy gardening. I plan on planting them every year. A package of seeds is only like a dollar and worth every penny. Plant these and everyone compliments them too:D

skiing / snowboarding

Andy showing off his moves

Lauren rocks!! She is an amazing snow boarder.

This is some random dude hitting the jumps. Oh I wish I could feel that rush. I don't think I could have handled the landing though.

I love the powder effect!

This is my amazing husband!! This was his first time ever snow boarding. This is not intended to be a pose but its just after a pretty hard crash. Looks like he is posing and I love it!

I love this picture. She looks so relaxed

I had a chance to take some photos while we went skiing with our friends this week. What a great time. It was so nice to be on skis again. I didn't ever think that a ski season would pass that I wouldn't have the chance to go skiing. Its amazing how fast time flies by and then you realize that more than 5 years has past and you haven't hit the slopes not even once. I guess that's what happens when you start a family and kids are in the oven.lol. I can't even tell you how amazing it was. The smell, taste, sound and the feeling was remarkable. It was perfect and more than I thought it would be. It was like riding a bike. It all came back to me so perfectly. In fact when I came home and fell asleep in my bed I had dreams of skiing all night, just like I did when I was younger. The only difference in this trip and trips when I was younger was. I wore knee braces on both knees. I was not as daring and didn't go on one jump. Instead I watched everyone jump and took pictures. I couldn't chance another torn ACL. I couldn't take the time off work to get another knee worked on. I don't think I could handle more pain from another Physical therapist either. Another thing that was nice was it was only 2 hours to go skiing. All threw middle school and high school we went to Powder Horn CO and it was a 5 hour bus ride squished. Most of the time I just made the isle my bed.lol. Memories. Awww I love skiing!!! I can't wait to show my kids one thing that I truly love to do.