The Flood is Coming

Well, they do say the valley might flood this winter, but I am referring to the flood of blog posts. Yes, I am finally playing summer ketchup, a phrase my friend, Kelly coined. So get ready, here they come...some tonight, many more in the near future. They may not be as creative, witty, or proof-read because I'm slamming them out. But our summer will be recorded for all to see. Thanks for reading, feel free to leave us a comment ;-).

Zooing it

We went to Point Defiance Zoo a few times this summer. One time we even ran into our good friends, the Wellers. That was a treat. We also went to Zoo Boise on our way home from Utah.
We saw wildlife inside and outside the zoo.


Andy, Tyson, Tyler, and Bradley monkeying around with their new monkeys.

We could hang out at the kidzone all day.

We discovered the Budgie Buddies. Paige loved holding a bird on a popsicle stick, but Iwasn't too sure about her doing that.

Cousins

My cousins, Lori and Melanie, from Utah came to Seattle with their families. We spent a day at Pacific Science Center and riding a ferry to Bainbridge Island.

Kate, Michelle, and Megan

Fast friends Emily, Kate, Ashley, Courtney, Drew, and Megan.

The girls, plus Spencer and Luke. Not pictured, Paige and Dane.

Tyson stayed home sick, and Bradley was at Cub Scout Daycamp.

Wild Waves 2010

We spent a day at Wild Waves, thanks to the Ellsworths for their season pass discounts. For the first time, we let Tyson who was with Gunner, hang out on their own. They spent most of the day at the waterpark.

Bradley and I on one of my favorite rides, the Kangabounce.

Paige didn't like the rides, but was happily entertained in the water, or just hanging out.

It was a nice, relaxing family day.

Bradley, Gunner, Tyson , and Kate. Kate could not get enough of the rides, she went on anything she could over and over again. Bradley braved 'the Wild Thing' and was happy he had.

Keep it coming!

Seaside Oregon

My two cousins from Utah and my sister, along with our parents spent a few night together at the Oregon Coast. The temperatures were cool, but it was fun to get together in a place we remember spending time as children. It was fun to have all 12 of our kids get to know each other better and reminisce.We enjoyed climbing the 'Column' and riding a trolley in Astoria.

An eternal family. Neighboring Cannon Beach was the most beautiful.

Playing on the beach. Bradley followed the tradition of being buried in the sand. Despite the wind, we roasted hotdogs and marshmallows.

My cousins, Melanie and Lori, and my sister, Michelle, and I.

Kate and Paige digging for treasures.

We went on a truck tour of Fort Stevens. We also frequented the $.75 Tillamook ice cream shop on the cute downtown boardwalk of Seaside. We even got to go to dinner without the kids one night, thanks Grandma and Grandpa.

Summer Fun

We started off our summer vacation with our annual trip to Richland. The kids took swimming and tennis lessons. They had free breakfast and lunch at my almamarter, Jason Lee Elementary, and made new friends. Tyson learned to backflip off the board, Bradley improved his endurance and passed his level, Kate swam across the shallow end all by herself, and Paige had no fear, she loved it.
We went to the park and a car show/parade.
I convinced my dad to have a granite slab put on their island and then I shopped for granite, shopped more for granite, and more and more...but that's not all...we also bought new living room furniture and carpet. It was a busy two weeks, as usual. We were so happy to have Rick come both weekends to visit and drive us home.