It's Halloween Time!

Halloween is so much more fun when you have kids!  Last night we had our ward party and since it wasn't on the weekend, Matt came!  It was fun to get Riley dressed up and people loved or coordinating costumes.

Tonight Matt had to work so Riley and I were on our own for trick or treating. Yes, those are tears.  Getting her costume on is always a fight but she recovered quickly.

Just as we were getting started, some friends came around the corner on our street.  The friend who's cow I milk also has some miniature horses.  She came around the corner with the pony pulling her carriage and offered to take Riley and me for a ride!  It was so much fun!!!  Every house we stopped at, people were coming out with their kids to see the horse and pet him.  It made for a very fun, very memorable Halloween!!

Pumpkin Carving

Each year we tend to procrastinate and end up carving our pumpkins the day before Halloween. This year we had a 100% improvement and carved them two days before Halloween. Kimbre picked out three nice pumpkins two weeks ago and Monday night we let our creative efforts flow.

It wouldn't be proper pumpkin carving in a Zirker household if the jig-saw wasn't employed to crack open the top.

Riley tried a few bites of pumpkin, but didn't really care for the taste.

Before the mess got too out of hand.

The finished product: Kimbre, Matt, and Riley 

Halloween time!

The tradition lives on!

 

 Yes- she is eating the pumpkin guts.

 

 

Brant

We're all set for Sandy the Frankenstorm. Kelly is very giddy because she just received a robocall from Georgetown telling her that the school is closed tomorrow and she doesn't have to work. I think the place I have been working is going to be closed too because they are following the federal government and the govt. just announced their closure a few hours ago. Church today was all abuzz with talk of storm preparations and people comparing notes on which schools and offices were closed. We should be fine. We have food, water, and if it goes really bad, I have four different camp stoves that run on four different types of fuel. So far, it's just raining a bit. Nothing too exciting.

LEGOS

 

 

My newest lego creation.

 

Unloading the cars on the top

 

 

The cars loaded and ready to go!

 

 

-Braxton

 

What we've been up to

 Before

 After

 New Pantry (was office Closet area)

New pantry view from kitchen

 New doorway/passthrough into kitchen.  Will be tile all the way in from the garage door.  It was the pantry.

 Shelby-11 months and always smiling

 She is standing on her own now and walking with help

 Andras 10th birthday.  Grandma-the outfit is perfect!  It looks adorable on her.

Mint brownies for her birthday dessert (after the wedding that Bishop Erik performed that evening)

There is more progress on the project since I took these pictures.  The new kitchen entrance is framed, the pantry and new pantry door are framed and all of the electrical and HVAC work is finished.  We have to do some insulating and then onto sheet rock!  The plan is to sheetrock tomorrow morning (as long as Erik is home ) We started tearing it all out on Thursday of last week so we are a little over one week into it-with boxes on the counter functioning as the pantry right now.  The kids were out of school this week for fall break so they helped.  They love to DEMO.  Andra had a great (busy) birthday.

Autumn

We saw this tree on a walk around our neighborhood this morning. I think it's a sugar maple. 

 We saw these chickens being roasted on a visit to the Market Fair at Claude Moore Colonial Farm with Marlo and Jamieson and kids.

 We saw these gentlemen enjoying a pint of ale at the fair. 

It's Getting Colder

This morning we not only had frost on the windshield but we had ice too.  They are talking snow by mid-week, maybe.  I just heard on the news that the Uof I fired coach Akey and hired Jason Gesser (was the quarterback at WSU about 10 years ago).  The colors are beautiful in Moscow this year and it has been a nice, though wet, fall.  Mom and I are both busy.  Mom spends hours each night working on schoolwork.  Can we make it a couple more years?   

More Hike Pictures

We visited this cabin that was built around the turn of the century to house workers intent on buiding a reservoir. Later abandoned.

Remnants of a steam-powered winch used by the workers.

Drying our soggy clothing and morale.

Los cuatro hermanos. End-o'-the-trail.

A few pics from our weekend adventure

2012 Zirker Family Reunion

We would like to make an entry in the family blog about our 2012 Family Reunion so it will be there for a history and give us something to enjoy as we think back to the fun we had.  Kimbre has encouraged us to do this so it can be printed in the 2012 hard-cover book she puts together each year.  With that in mind I am going to lay this out in outline form so it doesn't sound too cheesy.  Here goes!!!

Saturday, June 30, 2012

• The 2012 Zirker Family Reunion was held at our home in Moscow Idaho.  Families planned to arrive on Saturday and then start the reunion Sunday morning by attending church together.

Kevin, Lisa, and family were stuck in Wyoming     

• Saturday morning we received a call that Kevin, Lisa, and family were having car trouble and were stranded in Buffalo, Wyoming.  We felt helpless as their saga unfolded over the next two days (they arrived on Monday).  The rest of the families arrived safely and settled in to their various living/sleeping quarters.
• Erik, Jamie, and family, Brant, Leslie, and family, Travis, Kelly, and Matt, Kimbre, and family all arrive by Saturday evening and the reunion was ready to go.

Sunday, July 1, 2012

• We attended church in the Rolling Hills Ward (our new ward since the recent division).  We took up three pews in the center of the chapel and enjoyed visiting with family and friends.  We missed Kevin and family but received updates throughout the day.  Each call was a new adventure.

• After church we met in the cultural hall for a dinner.  Again, we enjoyed the food and visiting but worried about Kevin and Lisa.  

• Grandma (Martha) started the reunion off by recounting some history of her ancestors leaving their homeland and coming to America.

 

• Reunion T-shirts were handed out, they read: 2012 Zirker Reunion, Our Roots Run Deep.
• That evening we met at Grandma and Grandpa Zirkers house for carmel popcorn and a slide show (just like the old days).
• We heard from Kevin that their car was fixed and they were on their way.  He suggested sending some help out to help drive them in to Moscow.  The brothers were ready and willing to take off right then but we decided it would be better for the travelers to get a motel, rest, and then come on home in the morning.

Monday, July 2, 2012

• Erik's family showed up at the house at the crack of dawn to go fishing at Hordeman Pond.
• Hike to Warnick's Cabin was postponed until Kevin and family arrived (rescheduled for Tuesday).
• We gathered together in the backyard to do Family Flags and Duct Tape crafts.

• The boys all got together and re-built the fort floor.  Even the kids help hammer nails and put things together. 

• FINALLY! Kevin and Lisa and family arrived!  We all had a pool going on who could guess the exact minute that they would arrive and Leslie won!

• After all the crafts and building fun, we had lunch.  As the afternoon got hotter and hotter, we decided to walk down to the pool and take a swim.  
• That evening we all got on our reunion shirts and headed to Kamiak Butte for dinner.  The Richards family joined us for hot dogs, s'mores, and a talent show!

• Ty, Braxton, Kanyon, Raya, and Adria decided to sleep out under the stars in the fort. Unfortunately, around 1:30am a storm with thunder, lightning and rain blew in! So, Kevin and Mom rushed out and brought everyone in.

Tuesday, July 3, 2011

• Happy Birthday Hallee!
• Some of the more adventurous members of the family headed out early to hike to Warnick's Cabin. 

• At 10am we all got shined up for family pictures.  Against all odds we got done quickly with very few tantrums. 

• That night, we went to the church to eat dinner.   Afterwards, Kevin and Lisa provided the evening's entertainment with "Minute to Win It" games.  

•  Unfortunately, Matt had to leave that night.

•  The kids had lots of fun with the GI Joe's toys, they were a big hit.  There were tubs and tubs of them.  In the evenings they were parked up and down the hall.  It made walking down the hall barefoot in the middle of the night a little tricky.

• The kids tried sleeping out under the stars again and thankfully they didn't get rained on this time.  It did get pretty cold though.  Notice the frost on the sleeping bags?

• Hallee chose chocolate covered strawberries for her birthday dessert.

Wednesday, July 4, 2012

• Everyone got up and headed to Seth and Lacey's for breakfast.

• To allow some time for breakfast to settle before we ran the Fun Run, we assembled our rockets.

• Travis and Kelly spearheaded the Zirker Family 4th of July Fun Run 2012.  

• We went to Mountain View Park to launch our rockets.  Even the "big kids" got to light some of the bigger rockets.  

• Crashed and relaxed, Moms slept.  
• That evening, it was a BBQ and homemade ice cream at Seth and Lacey's and plenty of 4th of July fun.

• Seth was in charge of the fireworks and the show did not disappoint.  The kids had Tootsie Pops to add to the fun.

Thursday, July 5, 2012

• The zip line was finished and worked great...for the smaller kids.

• Departures began.  Erik and Jaime left in the morning.  Mom and I took Travis and Kelly to the airport and along the way drove Kimbre and Riley to Coeur d' Alene.  When we got back we celebrated Leslie's birthday with pizza and a DQ cake. 

Friday, July 6, 2012

• Kevin, Lisa, and family and Brant, Leslie, and family left this morning.  They stopped to visit Yellowstone on the way home.
• We are thankful for the good weather we had.  Not too hot and not too cold.  Everything was green and growing.  Several family members said they had never been to the Palouse in the spring/summer when it is green.  One of the reasons we love it here.
• Some families took time to visit the sites of Moscow or friends from the old days.

Please blog your thoughts and experiences from the reunion.  Kimbre will put them all together for the 2012 Blog Book.