Nothing but Nieces and Nephews

Silly Girls playing with Auntie outside.

Future Cowgirl.

This weekend, I had the privilege of seeing my babies (except for the two big ones). I came home exhausted; pulled in every which direction, but I love every minute of it. If only I had more hands and arms to carry them in. Fighting over sitting next to me, holding them, and wanting me to stay the night with them. I really had to divide my time. Afton has been so close to me for years. All of my nieces and nephews have at one point in their life (I've been the cat's meow for them) and typically they grow out of it once they start to get a little more independent and don't want to be toted around on a hip anymore but Afton is still clinging to me. (Maybe cause she's still small enough to tote around on my hip). Either way, I could tell she was getting a little jealous and wanting to claim territory with me since Sophia was around and Sophie's finally to the age where she runs into Auntie's arms the minute she sees me and wants Auntie to do everything with her. So, I made it a point to take Afton on a special date with just me and her. In the summers I try to take all Grace's kids separately for a full date to somewhere cool; since I was living so close. Like, I've taken Gideon panning for gold, Abby on a trailed horse ride, Afton to Putz and Glow etc. but since I'm so far away, my options were limited this weekend; especially given that everything in Newcastle seems to be closing down. But we made due and headed to the HI-16 for ice cream and Italian sodas. She drank my Italian soda and ate all her ice cream, then she decided to cap off the night, she wanted a special fun drink from Mini Mart (or Loaf and Jug. whatever it's called now) So, I got her a HELLO KITTY fun container that was way overpriced and she was happy to get her special time with Auntie. My sister wasn't too happy the next day when she told me Afton peed the bed and attributed it to me letting her drink Italian sodas, and hello kitty drinks right before bed :) OOPS! That's what Auntie's do though.


As for Gideon, poor guy was so sick. I barely saw him and when I did he was like a ZOMBIE walking around. He couldn't even get to the table to eat with the fam. Poor guy. But, he was feeling better by the time I left.

Poor boy fast asleep.

As for Abby, she opted to stay at her cousin Meghan's house; which I had to take her to her house to get clothes and got voted to drop her off too. How do I get voted to do these things!?! So I didn't get to see her much, but when I did, she was all snuggled up with me.

And Sophie, well she stoled my bed so I had to sleep with her. I slept actually extremely well, but the absolute best part was the mornings. See, Sophie is extremely independent and rarely likes to be held, snuggled, or is not a touchy feely girl but on the run constantly. However, when she woke up, I remember stirring with her as well. She looked over to me and just cradled herself into my arms for almost a full hour before she wanted to get up. I just absorbed it as much as possible. We were even holding hands. I would look at her and she'd close her eyes real quick as if she was really asleep. Too cute. The best part was she actually is at the age where she knows Auntie and knew that Auntie would be sleeping with her that night and told Christopher she was waiting for me to come in. By the time I got in she was asleep but she promptly nestled right into my arms as soon as she woke up. What a special bonding moment. With every niece and nephew I can remember the first official time we actually had a sentimental bonding moment and this was it for us. My heart was so happy. And she did the exact same thing the next day.

Sophie and I waking up together :)

As for Dubs, We had a bonding moment in Laramie but not to the extent that I'm still waiting for. I mean, he's only 4 months. Dessa and my dad went on a "date" to the Newcastle movie theatre which I was originally invited to and then Dessa uninvited me so Chris and I were sent to baby duty. Dubs was crying downstairs and Sophie was yelling in the back bedroom. We were not very successful. But, I went down and gave Warren his binki and quieted him down. Chris says that I passed the test and can officially come as their nanny to California. But then, I went to Sophie's room and was singing her songs until Afton came in and disturbed the whole process; now Sophie standing on the bed wanting to play with her cousin so when I took her out to the living room because there was just no turning back at that point, Chris said I failed. Good thing I'm family. But come one! What else was I supposed to do. Options were limited at that point.

Missing Kaori and Icariah. You both hold such a special place as well in my heart. You all truly are my heart.

Jason after eye surgery. His eyes were open until the flash from the camera.

Finally my Family!

This last weekend, Grace and my babies came. I was very excited.

Grace and I absorbing the sun. For once, we weren't cold!

Second hand shopping and found the PERFECT 1940's hat. Way to expensive though. Besides, where would I ever actually wear it. I have so many cute hats and never wear any of them.

We had a great time. I so did not want to see them go. She's my bestfriend and I love her kids like I can't imagine loving anything more (besides my other nieces and nephews). We went to Billings shopping for Costa Rica, went out to eat, went to church TWICE, and layed around doing a lot of nothing. My favorite part, though, was sitting outside in the warm weather with Grace. That is until.... Gideon thought it would be funny to THROW a spider onto me that went scurrying up my leg. I yelled so loud but before I was even done yelling, he had already found another one and was about to chase me around with it when Grace finally intervened (after she composed herself from laughing so much) and told him to quit. I was screaming for her to tell him to stop, but she couldn't compose herself long enough to get it out. Finally though, she got him to stop pestering Auntie. Besides that part, sitting outside with my sister, looking at the mountains and actually feeling heat from the sun while watching the kids play was great.

My heart


Abby with her cool new hat she got in Billings. She's decided she needs to find her own fashion sense and I must say... I'm diggin' it!


Gideon and Afton playing in the mall play area being little monkeys! CUTE MONKEYS.
They did such a good job while we shopped til we dropped. Literally, Afton begged for me to carry her during our last lap, got her in the car, and before we even got out of Billings, She was OUT like a light.


My little sidekick Afton. Never leaves my side! From the first day she got here she was already telling her mommy she didn't want to leave. They said this place is better than Custer. MUCH


Thank goodness she wasn't standing on the corner of a busy street like this. People would have thought she was an orphan dropped off on the side of the road like a cat someone didn't want!

Loving the Lovies

Just some more pics of my babies while I was in Laramie

Loving Laramie

UW PRIDE!
This weekend, I came to Laramie since Dessa and Christopher are here for the semester teaching at the Law School. So much closer than Jackson Hole. What a memory lane it has been. First night we went to Altitudes to eat. Wonderful food and even better company. Sophia latched on to me right away. Wanted auntie to carry her etc. etc. Nothing warms my heart like that. Then yesterday, we took Sophia out to the rec center for some swimming. Warren's first time in the pool as well. He seemed to like it but his hands turned blue pretty quickly :) He was a little chilly, so Dessa stayed out of the water with him while I played with Sophia. She did such a good job sharing with all the kids that wanted to play with her toys. After that, Dessa and I just had to go to the University Union cause I had to hit up the book store for some new UW attire. If there's one thing I'm proud of in my life, it's that I obtain a BA from the University of Wyoming. I did it on my own. I may not have kids, a husband, and all these other things that most people have, but I have an amazing career, in a management position at the age of 28, and I would have never been able to do that would it not have been for going to college. So crazy walking into the Union. Thought about it and I don't think I've been to Laramie since 2008. That's way too long. And I spent way too much money at the book store on shirts and sweats; all things I didn't need :)

Dessa really wanted to go downtown to look in all the new little shops and boy is there a ton! We went in to three before she was pooped and ready to retreat back to home. I bought Sophia a little present down there because.... she asked when I got here on Friday, "Auntie, you bring me a present!?!" I just had to go and get her one. They wrapped it all super cute. She loved it. That evening Dessa and I got ready and headed for Love Joys for some sisterly bonding. I haven't been there for years. In fact, I forgot it existed. When I told Dessa I was coming, she asked where I wanted to eat our first night and I had a hard time deciding because I couldn't really remember all the places. Drove by love joys the day before on our way to altitudes and told her we would be off for some bonding the next night to Love Joys. Love that place. Atmosphere is great. The guy that seated us, was the same guy that used to seat me and my friends all the time when I loved here. Guess, he's content with his job! Dessa and I had a great time. Lots of good talk. I love my sisters so much; and she needs to get out now that she has two kids and spends 90% of her time playing mommy.


So, today, I took Sophia onto campus. A little walk we took while the sun was still out. Campus looks the same. New entrance to COE library, but everything else is just as I had remembered it. Except, the jealously of all the students walking back and forth with their backpacks on crept up inside of me! It makes me think... I may just want to pursue a Masters here soon. After telling my wonderful bother in law that last night, he said, I best get on it! No reason not to. He's the one that got me to get my undergrads. So.... it's safe to say that I will be looking into Master's programs here shortly. The tough part is, I will have to do it all online because I'm locked in with a career already. Which, is ok. I just miss the campus college feel. Sitting in the room, while the prof. lectures thinking about what you're gonna do that night; oh so badly not wanting to prepare for the test. Definitely don't miss paper deadlines and the like, but want to further my education. Plus, if I want to move up in my career from the point I'm at now, a MA is going to be required. Better get it done while I'm young.

This is little Warren
Then, I went and drove around by myself for a while today. What a TRIP! I drove by Basic Beginnings; spent 5 years working there. Every afternoon, to Basic Beginnings I went and I LOVED IT! All the those little munchkins :) I saw one family while we were eating at Altitudes the other night and the parents remembered me. They said, "Miss Tara!" Only the oldest boy Jordan seemed like he had a spark for recognition in his eyes. Been years though. I went by my old apartment as well. They took the balcony off! BUMS! But, still looks the same. I drove by all my old haunts and had warm fuzzy feelings going by all of them. But, you what was the most profound? I still remember like every bump in the road, every feeling of the slight turns in the road were so familiar, the pot hole at the 4way stop sign on Grey's Gabble... It just didn't stop. Reynold's street, Hancock street, Crow Drive, Harney. It was wonderful. The memories of warm winter evenings with a slight breeze give me a great sensation of the past that I hold no regrets in.

All the afternoons I spents here. Basic Beginnings Day Care
So... As I blog, Dessa is at the store shopping for the week, Christopher is out working, Michael is gone with his girlfriend, and I sit here with two baby monitors as their supposed to both be taking their afternoon naps; however, on one, I'm listening to Sophie telling stories (with, I'm sure, her stuffed animals) about how one needs their diaper changed, and on the other baby monitor, I hear Warren's swing swaying back and forth, back and forth.


My old studio apartment! Absolutely loved it :)

Long Time No Talk

Been a while. Nothing new to report but snow, snow, and more snow! GRRRRR

Back to Blogging

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Another wonderful Karaoke competitor.
Well I've been holding off on blogging because I was trying to get my blog book order. Check... Got it done. So now, that it's printed I can keep blogging. I wanted the last entry in the book to be the one about a look back on 2010. Two memorable things have happened in my life since the start of 2011. First, Karaoke Contest. I started karoking a few months back. I was sooo sooo nervous the first time I got up to sing. I had done it in high school but never since. But, I really got a great response and it was everything to hear someone come up to me and tell me they had gotton goose bumps, or the song I sang made them cry. Those compliments were just great. I mean, who would have thought that I'd find a lot of self worth out of singing silly songs. But, I have. It's been real fun and I continue to get great compliments so, with much pressure, I joined the Karaoke contest. there were 13 of us and some had amazing voices. I was totally nervous but refused to let on :) After the first two rounds, they announced the four top finalist. I sat there while all those around me didn't hear their name, but then.... they called the name, "Tara." YAY!!! I was so excited. So, I sang my heart out for the last song. At the end, they called us all up and announced third place, then second, then first. I got second. BUMMER! Oh well. The thing that really bothered me was that the guy that won, sung a song that was a talking song. You know what I'm talking about right? Like one of those country songs that you talk instead of actually sing. I don't know what the song was called or who the artist was since I don't listen to country but the crowd really liked it and knew the words to yell for the chorus so, he took the cake. However, I did find out later that one of the judges was his father. Either way, second was alright and if it actually came to singing talent, I may have just been able to win. Realistically, there was another girl in the finals that I thought was much better than me but she didn't even get third place. It's all for fun though....

The other thing that has happened this year already has been a huge reality check for me in regards to my father. My dad hurt his back a few months ago and has been nursing a bad back ever since. He finally went in to the doctor and found out that he actually had something wrong with some of the discs in his back but it would be an easy fix with surgery. During all the pre-op testing, they found black spots on his lung and after receiving one piece of bad news after another, we finally found out that it was NOT cancer. However, it is a disease that will need to be treated after he recovers from back surgery. As I write this, he lays in the hospital waiting to get released after a successful back surgery. I was so scared and have never had to face anything like that. I've never had a close friend or family member even come close to death; at least not while I've been old enough to understand what's going on. I tell you, I had no idea how to handle it and bawled for hours and hours a couple times. My dad is my rock. My hero. Even if I ever get married, he still will always be that. To see my dad suffer and the unknowing combined was more than I thought it would be. I just was really confused as to if I was overreacting, under reacting, or being completely unrealistic about the situation. But, in talking to my sisters and hearing their voices quiver as well, I knew that it was ok for me to struggle. Praise God my father is doing well and, with God's blessing, he may even start to feel better with his lung issues and his back as the months roll in to years. I can't imagine my life without one of my parents, and frankly, I refuse to.

Top 10 of 2010

A memory, moment, or person who has impacted me. New friends, old friends, family, new babies, big babies, trips to see the country, trips that didn't last as long as expected, people that have touched my heart, and times that I will never forget. That's what these pictures, from 2010, represent to me.


Winter birthdays

This girl is about the cutest 2 year old I can think of. Sophie Remier

Born November 19th at 3:30am Warren William Reimer

Danielle and I in Washington D.C.

Left over fireworks at Grace's house

Ahhh... the LAK. Great memories this year there. "Gideon, go apologize to the little boy" Especially when they're singing happy b-day to him!

A true old friend that I love to death

Think I started hanging out with this one when I was like 12:)

For the last couple weeks now I have beeen wanting to do a blog entry on the top 10 most distinguishing moments/chapters of 2010. I've been racking my brain over those last few weeks trying to remember back to the beginning of 2010; what happened this year vs. what happened last yeah and, to be honest, I can't even really remember where I was when ringing in the year 2010. I'm pretty sure, if memory serves me somewhat, that I was fast asleep in Custer, SD when most the rest of our nation was yelling "HAPPY NEW YEAR." I remember having to work the day before and am pretty sure I had to work the next day as well. Yes! I've got it. That's exactly what happened. I had to be to STAR at 7am cause I think the 1st of January fell on a Saturday; the Saturday I worked 7am to 7pm. So, yep. I was fast asleep knowing that I had to be up by 6am. I think it's safe to say that New Years Eve of 2010 won't fall in to my 10 distinguishing moments. Not only can I not remember the day it turned 2010 but it seems like the first half has been a big blur; like a picture you see taken from a moving car where everything's in motion and you cant seem to make out anything but the bright lights.

Except for #1 on my list, the rest are not in order of least important to most important; best memory to worst memory, etc. I'm putting them all down from earliest 2010 distinguishable memory/chapter of my life to latest. So here goes. DISCLAIMER: As always, I use high discretation as to what I put in this blog. Therefore, some will be quite vague.
#1: Softball, T-Ball, and Baseball. By far, these memories pop out more than anything. Abby, Afton, and Gideon's summer games. Oh how I loved the sun-kissed burn on my back from sitting at the baseball fields for hours this summer, just waiting for their turn to bat. The drives to Spearfish, Sturgis, Upton, Hulette. Taking abby to practice with the windows rolled down, driving past Deckers on my way to the fields knowing a great night would be to follow. Watching Afton twirl circles and pay absolutely no attention while standing in their mini field. And Gideon, being more excited about the way his blue uniformed looked than the game itself. Oh how cute he was with his ears sticking out of his hat. Although it wasn't under the best circumstance, spending the first part of that summer with my family was something long overdue for me. 4 days after high school I moved away from Newcastle and never looked back. For the first time since then, I spent more than just a small ammount of time there. And guess what, I loved it. Don't want to move back any time soon, but I loved the flood of memories every night, the bumps on the road right by the baseball fields, the sound of the train in the middle of the inning, and the warm light breeze as dusk settled in. I absolutely loved it.
#2: Tuesdays at Hobbs street.
#3: My last day of work in South Dakota
#4: Indonesia: need I say more?
#5: Ribeyes and all the memories that would follow
#6: Sunbathing in my mom's back yard while everyone else worked
#7: Getting offered 4 out of 5 jobs I applied for and all the emotions that came with that
#8: Washington D.C. and Lily explaining an episode of "Cops" I laugh thinking about it!
#9: Warren William Reimer
#10 And finally... Sheridan, Wyoming

So many specific memories are attached to all these distinguishing moments, but those 10 made the year 2010 most memorable. It was a year of learning, growth, lost hope, new found hope, and new chapters.


The good ol' bag lady bash with great company

On the road in Indonesia

Gideon loving his Auntie. Doesn't happen often. Totally picture worthy when it does.

Oh... you three!

Grace, you're so special and it's the little moments like these that I love.

The plant in the background was my favorite ever. I grew it from just a few tiny green leaves. Now it belongs to DOC in South Dakota

Kaori, you're so beautiful

Mom and dad forcing me to get out of the house and do something in the midst of my depression after returning from Asia. Thanks for push me parents. I appreciate it.

Thanksgiving at the Pines in Jackson Hole. Great weekend Dessa. Thanks for all you do.

Surabaya, Indonesia Immigrations office. Praise you God for letting everything go smoothly here.

Leaving the country.

New friends.

Here's to ya!

I love you kids.

Spuddie, You went through a lot with me.

Afton, seriously... I know it was staged but you could have at least acted like you were sleeping with me!

Erin... You're great.