Blog Update!

I've been on sabbatical from the blog. The past few months we started and completed level 1 of an intensive discipleship program.  The program is called Operation Solid Lives (OSL-oslonline.com).  As part of the program protocol we were limited to only 2 hours of media time a week, which left no time for a blog update.  Check out the link above for OSL if you get the chance.  All materials are free and well worth the 5 weeks of disclipline.

Some major news over the new year is our friends from Pittsburgh, the Wright family, moved to Billings, Montana and moved in with us.

Jenny, Matt, baby Eden and Noah.

Noah (4) and Grace (2)

 Enjoying the January snow with some sledding.

Tuff is traveling as usual for business and speaking.

Way back in December he traveled to Helena and spoke at the Tribal Relations Training on Success (We don't' have video but Tuff's speech makes its appearance on our local government channel every once and a while). He also traveled to Lame Deer to speak on culture for a special two day conference.

In early January he traveled to Rapid City, South Dakota with Matt and Yas.  In Rapid City they met up with multiple Native ministries all working for the same cause.



Yas and Omar (Yas with Arise ministries in California and Omar with New Song as multicultural connections)

Matt's first time to Mount Rushmore.

Tuff turned 32 on January 23rd and on the same day spoke to the middle school students at Lockwood, followed by the next day speaking at New Life Church Winter Retreat.

He got a chance to fly in a private aircraft back in January to Utah for a meeting and took some incredible photos with his cell phone out the window.

Tuff traveled to Bismarck, North Dakota over Super Bowl Sunday and preached at New Song Church for both services Sunday morning.  Below is the video to his sermon if you want to watch (starts at minute 29:35):

In the meantime I got to go skiing for a day at Redlodge Mountain February 6th with my friend Jon and Kassia.  It hit 70 degrees in Billings that day and was in the 50's on the mountain.

Lunch break with Kassia.

Jon giving Kassia lessons.  Kassia is Jon's personal trainer at the YMCA so the tables turned on the mountain.

Proudly sporting my Griz Golf vest from my college days.  Who knew it would come in handy skiing.

And of course life with our little beauties is incredible.

Grace dancing with her friend Grace.

Liza's first swim the other night (February 20th).

Valentine's Day sister love.

Jenny made chocolate cupcakes to sell at Ruby's in Crow agency.

Noah and Grace enjoying Valentine pancakes.

Saying goodbye to our friend Amanda. She is moving to South Carolina.

 Matching tutus.

Liza (at 6 months old).

Video below is of Liza's first food:

More sister shenanigans. 

A video of Grace making Liza squeak and giggle below:

And now for a Christmas update!  Christmas almost slipped through the blog update cracks.

My mom (Oma) made Grace and I matching aprons and bought Grace multiple mini baking utensils.

Christmas Eve

Christmas Eve at Ty and Toni's house in Busby, Montana. Picture below of the cuzzies.

Uncle Jay dropped in for some Christmas cheer.

One of Jay's gifts, a BBQ lighter.

An Elsa dress, Christmas present from Tuff's mom (Mam).

Now hopefully I'm back to regular updates so they don't have to be so long.  Love you all!

Making of the Christmas Card

Thanksgiving morning at 7:30am (the sun was not up yet) we took our Christmas card pictures.  Winner winner turkey dinner, the picture above was selected.  Tuff came up with the "fur" theme for this year and the catchy phrasing comes later.

The scene was conveniently located at the end of our block.

Difficult to get all the family in sync for the photo if you can imagine.

Several things to take note of in the picture below...one being Tuff is wearing a fur tree skirt.  Haha.  Also Liza and Luna are wearing wine glass decor.

Thanks to our friend Jason for taking the pictures.  This photo shoot lasted less than ten minutes.  It was cold!

Later that day we traveled to St. Xavier, Montana (partially where Tuff grew up) to Tuff's Aunt Darlene's house to celebrate Thanksgiving with family.  Everyone chipped in for the feast, bringing a dish or two.

Our cuzzies the Lyman's and Liza's birthday pal Addeleigh, born exactly a year a part.

Family competing in Bananagrams.

The day before Thanksgiving little Liza Love turned four months old. In the bottom left picture of the collage, Grace fell asleep in the shopping cart at TJ Maxx (shopping for the fur of course-where else would you find a fur tree skirt?) and Liza borrowed a dog bed to hang out.  Sometimes you have to be creative as parents.

Grace and I supported the Griz this season by wearing our letterman's jackets often as we were out and about.  They made it to second round of playoffs and lost.

Liza is supporting the Bison (my sister Cydney's alma mater), who are playing for a shot at the national championship this Friday against Sam Houston State.

This is a "throwback" photo of Tuff and the Griz playing against Sam Houston State back in 2004 for a ticket to the national championships.  Tuff had two interceptions that game and the Griz defeated Sam Houston.

Last week my college golf teammate Jasi was visiting family in Columbus, Montana.  We made the short drive over to Columbus to say hi.  Love seeing her and her family!

Grace has been to two birthday parties in the last two weeks.  One was for her friend Grace (yes lots of Graces so she goes by Goodie most the time) who turned four.  Of course it was a princess theme, and heavy emphasis on Frozen.

Goodie is in the Super Girl costume.

Smitten to be by two Elsa's.

The video below is Goodie on a Frozen streak:

She also attended her friend Bri's 3rd birthday party.  They crafted snowmen on sleds and ate them.

Goodie and Bri posing on right side of photo.

Tuff spoke this past Tuesday in Helena, Montana for a Tribal Relations Training.  He gave an incredible, insightful speach on the asked subject, success.  I'm hoping to get an audio of it for those interested in listening.

Today and tomorrow Tuff is in Lamedeer, Montana speaking at a confernce.

We miss him while he is gone but keep busy.

And sometimes while Tuff is gone I have some weak parenting moments like this one below.  I let Grace push the stroller around the house...

...with Liza in the stoller.

Or letting Grace take a popsicle, red no less, on the white chair.  Amazingly both these examples turned out with no incident.  However, I'm writing about them as a reminder to myself to sharpen up!

Family fun.

Another "throwback" of Grace at seven months old and recently a four month old Liza balancing for dad.

Here is another baby comparison.  Grace and Liza at 20 weeks old to scale!

And if you want to watch a baby giggling lots I took this video just moments before posting this blog update:

We will be in Montana this year for Christmas.  That update to come soon!