deck garden

So we let M&M plant seeds in March... didn't really think that anything would come of them. Well, as would be our luck, when we think something will work it won't and when we don't think it'll work, they TAKE OFF! After having most of our 72 seeds take off, giving a bunch away, planting them in the greenhouse (that we had to buy to fit them all), and then transplanting them into pots, this is what we have. It should be a great time harvesting! I have a feeling pumpkin hunting is going to be different this year- we'll be "hunting" on our deck!!!

Shock!

I am facing a day of disbelief... how is it that one day you're in high school, the next day you get married and have kids the next and in what feels like a blink your little girl is going to girl's camp?!?! I don't get it...

We spent Saturday getting her all the supplies that she needed for the week- including new clothes because she is growing- YAY!! Finished the day with a cute new haircut that makes her look way older than I am ready for. I know that this is how it's supposed to be, but can it slow down a little?

So back to today... we start the day with a dual meet, where she does great! Then we hurried home, made her lunch, loaded all her stuff in the car and headed to Church to drop her with the other girls. Lots of other girls... She is the youngest in our ward going and is sooo excited. Her leader gets there, we load her stuff in her car and I ask if she wants me to hang out or if she's ok. She's says "I got this mom", and gives me a hug, with an "I Love You" and then she is off with the other girls.

I only hope that camp is ready for her! I can't wait to hear all of her adventures...

90 what?!?!

There are only a few days each year that hit over 90 degrees, today is one of those days. What do we do when it's that warm? We rejoice in the fact that we have an air conditioner in the sliding door and pray that we don't have to go outside. It sure is pretty to look at though!

In other news, we went to the beach with Brook, Mark, Ally and Brax last night to make s'mores- yummy little critters... nothing better than chocolate, graham crackers and marshmallows. I have to admit that I skip the marshmallow part, how do you s'more??

Pike Place and the 4th

Ok, so I decided that as much as I enjoy reading my family's blogs, I should probably do a better job of keeping up on mine- especially since this is the closest I get to keeping a journal lately.

How quickly life goes by, when I posted last, the boys were finishing their junior year in high school, hadn't applied to colleges and were getting excited to finish school... well, fast forward a year! Oh my heavens, how fast that went! Now, we know that Blake is going into the Navy in January, Carl leaves for the University of Idaho next month, M&M are 1/2 through sixth grade, swim team has more than doubled in size, Jarett is still working on search at Corbis, we have another teenager living with us, and life never seems to slow down.

That is until this weekend. Brook, Mark, Allie, & Braxton came to play for the 4th and this week. We had a BBQ at Pat & Terry's last night, watched Marysville explode, or at least that's what it looks like, and finished the weekend with a trip to the Pike Place Market. Perfect weekend! I absolutely love my family- near and far, and enjoy spending time with them when they are in town... on tap for the rest of the week- bonfire, swimming, and wandering who knows where else!

Kids are great!!!

So today is a beautiful Seattle day! I decided that while I made lunch, M&M should play outside...
They both asked how long they would HAVE to play outside- 20 minutes- is that toooo long? So, 3 minutes later, Maryn comes in and asks how much longer because they are bored, after riding bikes for soooo long, please remember 3 minutes. I recommend that they play with sidewalk chalk- this is what I got 5 minutes later!! They then spent the rest of the 20 minutes sitting on the step until I told them they could come in. Really, who knew that playing outside was so bad?!?!

Prom 2009

Here are some pics of Carl & Dani getting ready to leave in the limo to Dani's prom! My only question is why on Earth don't they warn you when you have a baby that it will feel like only a few days between then and the time they are going to prom?...

gray day...

So today I woke up to a gray, chilly day outside... not a good way to start the day! So instead of wishing I could be somewhere else that is warm and sunny, I am trying to think of great things about the day-

#1 It's art day today, so I actually get 2 1/2 hours to enjoy my house with no one else in it! YAY!!

#2 I can play Guitar Hero all by myself and not have to worry about being the bad one in the group... those of you that have teenagers understand what I mean. :)

#3 Hopefully today my middle school team will win their meet against Voyager- GO OV!!! We are a small team, but I am so impressed with each and every swimmer this year- they are FABULOUS!

#4 I have great kids, a wonderful husband and an extended family and friends that are all there when I need them and love me for who I am each and every day- what could be better than that?! Well, ok, if we added sun, it could be a little better, but ya know...

I hope that you can take time to find the sun in your day!

Britt & Ryan's wedding

To start off my updating, let's talk about how FABULOUS the wedding was this past weekend! My niece Brittany married Ryan Saturday in Utah at the Timpanogas Temple. The weather was great and the bride & groom were both stunning! I am truly blessed to be part of such a supportive and talented family- from Heather's beautiful and tasty cake to Kelly's ability to display chocolate everything so that you couldn't resist any of it to Gary's beautiful house and stunning view, you couldn't have asked for a better weekend. We can't wait to hear all about the honeymoon in Spain- lucky couple!

Now, I am not a big fan of Utah, but this weekend was great!! Mr. FunL and I went without the kids and were able to spend more time together than we have been able to in months- a much needed and appreciated get away... thank you boys, Stacie & Kristi for watching M&M.

It's a shame that all too soon the weekend was over and we were back to work, school & swim. Time to get ready for the next swim meet- talk to ya soon!

Time to catch up...

Ok, so I spent this last weekend in Utah for one of my niece's weddings-- beautiful, but more on that later...

I was talking with various family members teasing them about how they need to update their blogs so that I can know what is going on in their lives. It's really fun to see what they are all up to each day or week. Then, out of nowhere, one of them asked when I was going to update mine? I tried everything I could think of to explain why my last post was LAST August, but nothing worked. So, it is with this, that I promise that I will Try to post more regularly...

We'll see how this will work!

Lovin' Tigg & Playin' with Tink

Maryn & Tigger- this is heaven... at least if you're Tig :)
Ok, that was easy, let's go for something higher

... and she brought this one down too!

How do you get your energy out?

You know how most houses have one kid that demands more attention than the others? Well, our house isn't any different, except that our most demanding kids have 4 legs and bark! See, Tigger loves to have someone rub his belly, which is fine except if Tink thinks that Tigger is getting attention, then she MUST get more attention that he is- sound familiar? So, here's Jarett playing with Tink while Maryn rubs Tig's belly. For those of you that don't believe how high Tink can jump, I have included a picture of Jarett holding a toy that she can grab with ease.

Lady Washington

Dad, Maryn, Marques, Carl & Blake onboard the Lady Washington
What an interesting crew...

The Hawaiian Chieftain- she tours with the Lady.

The two ships at Everett

...and should add, mouth as you bash your head- :)

A couple of weeks ago I learned that The Lady Washington was going to be at the Port of Everett and that we could go tour her for free. I called dad and he joined us... Let me say that going on this ship, I confirmed that there's NO WAY that I ever want to be on an old ship for very long. They are really small. She is beautiful and her crew takes great pride in her and knowing quite a few stories about this ship as well as the original Lady Washington. It would be fun one day to go on an evening cruise when they fire her cannons- maybe next year!!

Who said he could turn 16?

Ok, so who in their right mind said that a little baby could turn 16?!?!?! On Tuesday Carl turned 16... I can't believe it as it truly feels like he was just born yesterday. I can remember the doctor placing him in my arms. What an incredible feeling- then fast forward to kindergarten, first grade, middle school, high school- then driver's ed. Oh my heavens... he is growing into a great young man. Jarett and I bought him his first car. So now he is driving, I am sure that tomorrow will be his mission and the day after that he'll be getting married and having kids. I hope it takes longer than that, but at the current rate, it's all going too quickly.

I am also so grateful for the great group of friends that he has surrounding him right now. They suprised him with a 16th party that was great. So much fun (at Chuck E Cheese), who knew that teenagers would have so much fun THERE!

Lake Quinault

Hello-

So here's my first attempt at blogging... at least for my family, so we'll see.

A couple of weeks ago we decided to go on an adventure. We woke up reasonably early, loaded the 4 kids, and one of the dogs (Tinkerbelle) in the car and we drove...

After approximately a four hour drive, Jarett & I told the kids where we were going- oh, this would be because we were there and figured they might have figured it out by now :)... We had arrived at Lake Quinault, which is quite possibly one of my favorite places in Washington State! I haven't been there in years, but have wanted to go back forever and this was the perfect time to do it. After parking at one of the park trail heads, we decided to follow one of the paths, it is truly beautiful. Maryn was certain that we were going to get lost... or worse yet "mom, are we going to walk forever?"- it should be noted that the walk was only about 1/2 mile... How many other places can you drive a few hours and be in a temperate rain forest? Oh and then drive another hour and be at the ocean??? So cool...

After our walk in the rain forest we spent a few hours at the lake; Blake, Maryn, Marques and even Tinkerbelle all played in the Lake while Jarett flew his Kite. I stood by taking pictures and Carl waited on the sand to run off Tinkerbelle's energy after each encounter with the water. What a perfect day!



Blake, Carl, Maryn & Marques on this really cool stump, oh and Tink too!
These are on the trail that we went on- isn't it georgeous! Here's a rare shot of Carl- of course it's with Tink and doesn't Maryn just look tickled to be there...



Rumor has it that Schnoodle's can swim, we thought we'd test this theory- this is Carl with Tink after her first swim... she found it invigorating- time for a schnoodle 500!!

Blake was daring enough to take Tink into the lake, on the first attempt she found the fastest way out possible... second attempt she clung to his leg... third attempt she swam between Blake, Maryn & Marques- then was off for another schnoodle 500 with Carl.

After playing by the lake for a few hours, we finished the day by driving up the Washington coast, through Forks and Port Angeles and back home. What a great day. Carl, Blake, Maryn & Marques are all ready for our next one day adventure... hmmm... I wonder where we'll go next???