Oregon Trip 2009-Part 1

We recently had a great family vacation to my hometown of Astoria, Oregon. Greg and I were able to just take Josh and Emma. Christopher had traveled to Denver to visit an old childhood friend, Jenni was in Moab with Cordell and his family, and Tara and Austin are on there own!!! We had such a good time with just the two kids. They were so much fun!

I love this quaint little city. It just feels like home :) My parents moved there when I was three and I grew up there until I left for college. My heart is still in the northwest and probably always will be.

We traveled with my brother, Mark and his family and had a wonderful time. We were gone for a total of 8 days and although we had the time of our lives, we were all ready to come back to our "home" in Utah and have a good nights sleep in each of our beds.

One of our favorite activities is to visit the ocean. Cannon Beach has become a must see for our children. We checked the tide tables and timed our visit there for a low tide. As we approached Cannon Beach we noticed a strange mist coming onto the beach from the ocean. It made it rather hard to see the famous Haystack Rock at first, but after a few minutes it burned off and we had a terrific view. Some of the pictures below show the fog. Emma and Josh had a blast searching around for sea urchins and starfish. Greg and I were content just to wade in the water and enjoy the view. The sand was so warm and felt so great on your toes. There is nothing in the world compared to the sound of the ocean. I really miss it.

We had amazing weather during our stay (70-75 degrees) and as I watch the weather reports of the northwest now, I am very grateful we timed our trip when we did. It was perfect!

This Is A Little Disturbing...

I accidentally video-taped this sideways and can't figure out how to turn it around. Hope you can still see it. This was taken at the Lagoon Day for Greg's work. They had free cotton candy to all the employees and their families. Josh took full advantage of this and probably set a record of eating 15 (that is NOT a typo) cotton candies during our 9 hour day. EWWWWW. Surprisingly, he did not even have a stomach ache later that evening. I did however, make sure he brushed his teeth extra good and long later that evening. This is a video of number 12 and 13...I think.

Lagoon 2009

This year Greg's work had their summer party at Lagoon. Emma was so excited she could hardly stand it. She actually had a "countdown calendar" in her room for the big day. Josh brought his friend, James along to keep him company and all in all it was a really fun day. I have a really hard time on rides, so Greg was in charge of taking Emma on all the rides. I gladly accepted the job as a photographer...rides make me really sick. Emma was everywhere and did not back down from any of the rides. I think she rode just about everything they had to offer. Greg said the best part of his day was when they were on one of the biggest roller coasters in the park and she screamed out "THIS IS TOTALLY AWESOME!!!!" He later told me that this declaration from Emma made the day worthwhile. I love the picture of Greg and Emma holding hands and walking in front of me. Emma was dragging us everywhere and it was so cute to see her holding her Dad's hand.

Josh spent his day eating the large amounts of free cotton candy provided by Greg's employer. I have video tape that I will post right after this of his big feat. Not sure it was one of my proudest moments being his mother, but it was very entertaining :D

Austin & Tara's Wedding (June 20th 2009)

Tara and Austin were married on June 20, 2009 in the Draper Utah Temple. We woke up to a rather blustery day and I remember telling Tara on the way to the temple not to worry about the weather. Storms can rage outside the temple walls, but the ordinances are the same...sunny skies or not.

Greg and I had our concerns about her being so young and getting married. However, I have to say that they are both very happy and we feel at peace. Austin is a great guy and Tara will be a wonderful wife and mother. We wish them nothing but wonderful things on their eternal journey!!!

Freedom, Friends, Fly-Overs & Fireworks

Yesterday we had a great 4th of July celebration in our neighborhood. We had lots of food, a bicycle parade, music, swimming, fireworks and even our own personal "fly over" by Brother Spears who was piloting a helicopter for the Stadium of Fire events. He made a small pit stop to our party and flew really low overhead and gave us a great little show! It was fantastic and the kids especially loved it. It was a wonderful evening that really captured the "Americana" feeling. This will be such a great tradition for years to come! This was definitely one of the best 4th of July's we have had in a long time.

Holding Hands

Today I was walking with Emma and as we were walking she reached out and grabbed my hand. I love the fact that she is 10 1/2 years old and still loves holding my hand. This was not an isolated incident, but rather a pattern that she has developed over the years. Wherever we are or whatever we are doing, she always reaches for my hand. It is such a simple gesture, but it says so much and I can't help but smile a bit whenever I feel her perfect little palm slip into mine. It fits into my hand so perfectly...almost like God molded them together. I know that in the not too distant future, she will no longer be reaching for my hand and it makes me sad. But for now...today...she still is and I love it.