Family Ties!

This summer all my family came here to Washington for a family reunion. I was very excited to have them all visit since we don't' get that many visitors! The first week my sister Monique and her three kids were the only ones here. We did many fun things daily working around my normal schedule. We went to a movie, played at the park, and had lunch at one of our favorites Top Burger.
But mostly the kids' just loved playing with each other especially just in our backyard! There were many hours spent in the pool
making obstacle courses, jumping on the trampoline, and sliding on it with bubbles! My kids love to take dish soap and put it on the tramp. They then run and slide all over the place.
Addie loved those bubbles!
There was even a really nice day that we ventured out to Cottowood Beach. They all had a great time and didn't want to leave.

Morgan babysat all the kids so Monique and I could go shopping. We had so much fun at Washington Square Mall shopping and eating at the Cheesecake Factory. We then headed to downtown Portland for a play. It was a gorgeous evening!
The second week of August everyone else came to visit. Monique's husband and my parents with Teresa's kids came on Saturday. Mason and Parker instantly started playing basketball and they had dunk contests daily!
I was really nervous before and during their visit about the weather!!! We had a very wet spring and slow start to our summer but I thought by the second week of August it should be good, right??? Well the second week of August of this year was not so good and I was frustrated! On Monday we had planned to drive to Mt. St. Helen's. We still did go there and learned many cool facts but saw NOTHING since it was so cloudy!!! We still smiled for a picture but we were all freezing!Tuesday I had planned a boating day. But that day I think the high was 71 degrees. So no wakeboaring, tubing, or swimming that day. Instead we went to a movie, the boys played basketball at the church while the girls shopped and the little girls' played Little House on the Prairie! That evening my sister Teresa, my brother Steve and his girlfriend Christina all flew into town. My house was now very full. Every bed was taken and the bonus room floor was filled! Wednesday morning we all packed up three cars and headed for the Oregon Coast. We stopped at Voodoo Doughnuts in downtown Portland first. This was our first time to this very famous Doughnut shop and we've lived here for almost 14 years! It has been featured on the Food Network and was even a stop once on the Amazing Race! After waiting in line for almost an hour in an "interesting" part of town we all indulged in our doughnuts!

We got to Newport and the beach house early evening. We have stayed at this house before and loved it. It's big enough for our large group and backs right up to the ocean. The weather as it usually is was cloudy and the water was cold!! Some brave souls, the kids' and Uncle Allen would run to the water, jump in

and then come back up the stairs to the hot tub! That was not me since we figured out that the temperature was only 52!
The second day we went to some tide pools.

The kids mostly loved exploring for any sea life. They found starfish, miniature crabs, and a dead seal. And the boys just being boys!
We just loved relaxing and visiting with each other. Since the weather was chilly we played lots of games and the kids did some crafts. On Friday we had to pack up and leave by noon. This day started out sunny and we didn't want to leave. We played at the beach right up until noon and headed North towards Tillamook. We took a tour of the Cheese Factory, ate our samples and had some of the best ice cream ever!!!

By the time we got back to our house it was about 7 pm. The kids played in the pool again and had a water balloon fight. The girls' decided to do something else with those water balloons!

That evening we just unpacked our beach stuff and did several loads of laundry. Almost everyone was leaving the next morning so Monique and my parents were repacking all their stuff. We were all pretty exhausted but the adults decided to go out one last time together for a late dinner. The next morning we helped get everyone out the door. Jon flew to San Francisco at 6 am, Monique and Allen left at 7 am and my parents, Teresa and her kids' left at 8 am. We were so sad to see them all go just like that!Steve and Christina stayed one more day. They loved going to Downtown Portland to the Saturday Market, shopping at the Pearl District and dancing at a great Salsa Club that evening. Off course the day everyone left the weather was warm and sunny! I guess that's what you get when you're in the Pacific Northwest! But we all had a wonderful time together and made some great memories!

Our Best Surprise Yet!

Jon and I kept this secret under wraps for about six weeks! No one knew about this Birthday Surprise except for those that were involved. Not even my other kids, parents or our bestest friends!!! Jon and I both said to ourselves as we were driving home "Are we Crazy???" And we said "Probably!" In just a few days I will be finally sending ALL my children off to school for the first time and now I have a new puppy in the house! Wish me LUCK!!!

His name is Charlie, Brooklyn witnessed his birth and named him! More details to come!

Birthday Bummer!

For months Madelyn has been counting down the days until her birthday! She was so excited because her cousins were going to be in town and she was going to be able to have a party with them. Well the evening before her birthday she fell asleep on the couch for about 30 minutes. When she woke up one side of her face was a little swollen. We welcomed our cousins late that evening and by then it had progressively gotten worse! She woke up a few times during the night and by morning it was even more swollen. Maddie was not that excited for her birthday and didn't eat much of anything at breakfast! Here's a picture of her at breakfast. We decided to call the Doctor and take her in to be examined. Her Doctor determined that it was some kind of skin infection. We thought that it might be an insect bite that she was having an allergic reaction to, but never saw any type of marks on the skin. Her day was pretty miserable. She didn't really want to do much, she took a three hour nap, she had to go to the Doctor on her bday, and she had to take "icky" medicine. The doctor said that it could get a little bit wore before it gets better, and by the evening this is what it looked like.

I felt so bad for her because she looked awful!!! I had to tell the kids' to quit starring at her and making comments about her face because she was becoming sad! We still had her birthday party with the cousins and my in-laws. She didn't have that much fun at her own party because she was uncomfortable! Everyone else enjoyed dinner, the ice cream sundaes, swimming in the pool, and the party bags!
She was a trooper and tried to have a good time. I think her favorite part of the whole day was when Brooklyn gave her, her gift. Brooklyn was so excited because she bought it all with her OWN money. (Gotta love the $1 spot at Target!)

Before the evening was over Jon and his dad gave Maddie a blessing that she would be healed! I am so blessed to have the priesthood in our home and grateful that my husband is a worthy priesthood holder. Maddie got better fast and just two days later she looked SOOOOO much better! (Sorry about the tongue, she was showing me her ice cream from Top Burger!)Even though it was a Bummer Birthday, we'll never forget her eventful FIFTH Birthday!