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First, just  a picture of our dog.  She is a mess!  SHe is 6 years old and thinks she is one of the kids.  She is so sweet and so good with the kids...we all love her so much.  She actually hurt her back a couple of weeks ago and it scared us pretty bad.  We thought we were going to lose her.  It made me realize how attached we are to her.    She's great...except with strangers.  She's just so excited to see them that she just loses her mind.   Like, for example, jumping in the car with the  mail lady.   Very embarrassing.  

Last week we went to the last bird banding at Tremont for the year.    They didn't catch many birds, but, the kids had a blast tromping around with Miss Tiffany and Mr. Gar and asking questions.   

Moses says Mr. Gar is his "favwite fwend".  

I'm amazed at how much my kids have grown to love creation over the past year.   They all love to journal about their experiences and draw what they see.  I don't even have to prompt them to do so anymore...unless I specifically want something journaled about.   They have done this all summer...along with reading all sorts of field guides, biographies of naturalists, and other books about bugs, birds, etc.   They've done school all summer without even realizing it!

After the bird banding we hiked up to Spruce Flat Falls.   It was perfect for the kids.   I was kind of a nervous wreck with Moses and then up at the water....but, they had a blast!

After the hike we drove halfway around the Cades Cove loop.   It would be much more enjoyable if people would actually pull off the road when they see something but we ended up sitting for so long in one place, it was very frustrating.   We did see one bear and got to watch it for a bit.   So, even with the frustrations, it was fun and was great quality time together.