September Fun

A few weeks ago we took the kids to Northwest Trek.  It's a natural wildlife park where we got to see lots of animals and ride on a cool tram ride that the kids absolutely loved.   Megan's favorite part was there were 2 brand new baby deer right next to the road and Jordan liked the herd of elk we watched swimming in the lake. 

We watched this beaver for a long time as he was building his den.  The little guy was camera happy and every time the camera would flash he would do a little trick and come back to the glass, waiting to do it again. 

We finished off the outing with sundaes at McDonald's...or as Megan says...IcDondald's.  I love this picture of Megan with her favorite things, ice cream and Daddy!!!

Andrew's birthday cake this year was a simple jello cheesecake. The kids helped me make it and put on the candles and were squealing with delight when he walked in the door from work, so excited to show it to him. 

I wanted to put down some funny things the kids said this week so I don't forget them.  The other day we were in the car and totally out of the blue Jordan said, "Mommy, Megan's a little too weird for me,  let's just give her back to Jesus."  Megan's funny thing lately is every time I tell her I love her she says, "Well.....I love daddy." 

Video for Grandma Sally

I took this video of the girls so I could send it to my mom, since she is missing everybody while she's caring for Marianne in Utah.  For some reason, I couldn't get my e-mail to send it, so here it is Mom (and for anyone else who wants to take a peek.)  We love you Mom, and are thinking of you and Marianne all the time!!!!

Jordan's first day of kindergarten

We just put Jordan on the bus for his first day of kindergarten.  I think he was a little excited because he woke up at 3 and had a hard time going back to sleep.  He helped me make his lunch, we packed up his backpack and off we headed to the bus.

 Our neighbor Colton said he would watch out for him and help him on his first day.

A little part of me wanted to shed a tear, but how could I when this is the last thing I saw?  Does he look excited or what?

Our "Marianne" day

When Jordan saw these pictures he asked if they were from our special Marianne day, so that's what I'm going to call them, but as you can see from the pictures, Marianne is the only one missing from them.  As her health is declining, we wanted to get together to have one last hurrah to take pictures and just be together.  At the last minute, she was unable to come after all.  It was a very bittersweet day.  On the one hand, it was fun to be with family and watch the cousins play together, but on the other hand, Marianne's absence was a huge void and we all missed her so much.  I guess we just got a taste of what our future gatherings will be like when she is no longer with us....at least for a little while, because this I know...       

 OUR FAMILY WILL BE TOGETHER FOREVER!!!! 

Grandma Sally's Teddy Bear Picnic

As you can see, this year's picnic had a western theme.

Discovering the teddy bear's picnic after our walk through the woods

"Mother Goose" came to read stories to the kids.  As you can tell from Megan's face she was very confused by the costume and actually burst into tears a few minutes later.  She then promptly stood up, gathered her lunch and continued eating elsewhere. 

Waiting for the puppet show to begin

This picture basically sums up a perfect day...a little girl completely worn out from a day of laughing and playing, with a smidge of chocolate on her chin, clutching her new pink teddy bear!!

A Little Princess

Summer Days

The sun has finally decided to stick around for a little bit so we've been "swimming" in our hot tub. 

Andrew and Jordan had a lot of fun going to a hot rod show a couple of weeks ago.  Andrew put Jordan in charge of the camera and it was fun to see the show from a 5 year old's perspective.  There were lots of pictures of flames. 


Megan has branched out in her matching and now likes to wear clothes that have the same print. This was her polka dot day. You can't really tell from the picture, but she was actually saying "Cheese." That girl might be little, but she sure has one big mouth.

The good thing about living in Western Washington is that the beach and the mountains are both just a few hour drive away.  Usually the beach wins out for our anniversary trips, but this year we shook it up a little and went hiking at Mount Rainier instead.  It was pretty cloudy the whole time so we couldn't really see the mountain, but it was still fun to get away for a couple of days. 

Here's Megan on one of her "yellow" days.