The fair is in town!

This week the Western Montana Fair is alive with flashing rides, a plethora of 4-H critters, and all the delicious fair food one can handle! Haven was able to see pigs, cows, sheep, goats, chickens, horses, and even a baby buffalo up close this morning. And of course, Haven LOVED the kiddie rides and even threw a full on tantrum when it was time to go. It was when she shoved her head into the ground that I knew she needed her nap.

Mercy Me

I am so impressed with the musical talent Missoula draws. Last year, the Rolling Stones were here, as well as Jeremy Camp. This year, we were excited to catch Mercy Me in concert this last Tuesday night. Thankfully, the fire smoke stayed away and we had a nice, warm and clear evening to enjoy the amazing sounds of Mercy Me and Need to Breath. Next: Steven Curtis Chapman, Reliant K, and Bethany Dillon will be here in November - can't wait! =0)

The mile swim...

Some of you know that I am training for two triathlons at the end of August: a sprint triathlon on August 25th (in Hamilton), and a Olympic triathlon on Sept. 1st (in Frenchtown). To prepare for the open swim for the Olympic triathlon, I did a 1.1 mile swim in Polson Bay this last Saturday. I completed the long stretch in 38 minutes - which was a personal best considering this last May was the first time I stepped into a lap pool - ever! Since then, I have been swimming 2-4 times a week with at the local YMCA, and have found a great group of people to train with.

We love family!

Nate's parents and sister drove up from Texas to spend the last week in July with us! We loved their company and were able to enjoy the summer weather here in Missoula. We took advantage of some great day hikes as well as a day at the local water park.

The Big Apple....

Meanwhile, I was in New York City while Haven and Nate were in San Diego. I had this fun weekend get away planned since April, and was so excited my dear friend, Kamille, could join me. I LOVED New York, and all the sights, sounds, food, shopping, shows, and people that go with it! I will provide some captions to the pictures above. First, we had an amazing lunch at the famous Serendipity restaurant know for their tasty frozen hot chocolate as well as the cute chick-flick starring John Cusack and Kate Beckinsdale. I also met up with two of my old high school buddies - Teddy Wiley and Jake Francis - who are now residing in New York. It was so fun to meet up with them and see Jake in action as a head chef for a swanky little restaurant near Soho. Teddy is heading to Harvard Business school in a few weeks. Our hotel for the last two nights was a block away from Times Square - which is always a buzz! The two staples of New York: the Statue of Liberty - need I say more.... and, the Empire State building. We enjoyed the sights from the Empire State viewing deck. Ground zero was powerful (construction is now in progress for the new buildings). I really could sense a heaviness and sacredness as I viewed the area... very moving. We visited Rockefeller Center before lunch at "Tavern on the Green" in Central Park. And, finally, our oh-so-fun and "we never looked better" make-overs at the Channel counter (more like lounge) at Bloomingdales. We also were fortunate to see the new Broadway hit "The Color Purple", starring Fantasia. An incredible performance, and the music was so soulful and uplifting!

Haven's Travels

Haven flew to San Diego with Nate to attend cousin Carrie's wedding. Of course, Nana, Papa and Auntie Bekah (Nate's sister) were waiting with open arms for Haven's arrival! She even managed to visit great Popo and Momo, and eat some of her famous biscuits and gravy with the rest of the Speer family. Haven was fortunate enough to continue her journeys with Nana and auntie Bekah back to El Paso for a few days, and then back in the car for the trek to Missoula (to stay with us for a week). On their road trip north, they strolled through the Colorado Springs zoo. Haven was fascinated with feeding the Giraffes, but wasn't too thrilled with the donkey ride!

Waterslide Fun!

Our finale to our week in Kalispell was a day at the Big Sky water park with our good friends, the Chapmans. We enjoyed great company, fabulous weather, and of course, the thrills of being flung through slick, watery tubes into pools of water. Haven had her first water slide experience, and really wasn't quite sure what to think of it... she was more interested in eating snacks and drinking from her sippy cup next to mommy.

Glacier Park

We have had a fun, but very busy month of July! To begin our travels, we drove two hours north to spend the first week of July in Kalispell. We were able to stay at my grandparents' town house and enjoy the very beautiful, but very warm weather (over 100 degrees!). It was such a blast spending time with my uncle Steve and aunt Jan, who were in the area for Glacier Bible Camp. Haven thought Uncle Steve was "grandpa" (my dad and Steve are brothers and share a remarkable resemblance of each other) - so she loved Uncle Steve! We spent a few days with them, and managed to make it to Glacier National Park to see the amazing sights and dip our toes into the cool glacier waters of Lake McDonals. And, we couldn't pass up on some yummy ice cream after a trek into Apgar village!

Nate turns 31!

We celebrated Nate's birthday (June 25th) with some yummy homemade strawberry shortcake... the perfect summer treat.

Eating one of mom's chocolate chip oatmeal cookies!

I think the photos speak for themselves.... Haven has momma's sweet tooth!