Peace restored!

What a glorious day!!! We had our first fostering experience this weekend and if you didn't hear from us, that is because we were completely consumed and exhausted....more so than having a newborn. We picked him up on Sat. evening and he was very distraught. He was an 18 month old Romanian boy whose entire family was incarcerated. He was still breastfeeding and had a pretty good cold and mild fever, but it was very clear that he was well taken care of...seemed strange to us how this could happen. He was crying and saying, "mama, mama," over and over for hours on end. The only time he was silent was in the car because he thought he was going to see mom, so we went out, just to go out. He was sooo smart. He'd bring us our shoes/coats and get his ready, so that he could head out the door and find his family. If he could drive, he would've done it. What a determined little boy. This was VERY difficult for us...to watch how sad he was and the longing to be with his mom. The nights were very long and Ryan mentioned to me on Sunday that he didn't know if he could do this. God had a plan and he knew just what everyone in the situation could handle.

I went to pick up Reggie today from school and got a call that he was going to be returned to his family. I cried tears of joy for Avi. What great news :o). She asked if they could come get him with her (to avoid him being handed over to a stranger yet again), so they raced over and it was a joyous reunion, filled with lots of hugs and tears. They were so very grateful. Ryan raced home, but they were already gone when he arrived. The social worker said it was very rare for a child to be released at the first hearing and after the reunion, she said she'd never seen anything like it....the bond they had.

It was so awesome to see the support we got from friends....dinners, baby clothes/gear...thanks guys! The kids did absolutely awesome....I'm so proud of them. Reggie was a little overwhelmed the first day and told us he was ready to go to school so he could have a break....according to him little ones are a lot of work. I think the constant noise was hard on all of us, but they adjusted and after awhile, we got kinda used to it. Ainsley was very motherly and got him to smile several times. He followed them around and they liked that too. Ryan almost got him to laugh this morning, but his happy moments were few and far between. Even the kids were happy that he was going to be with his mom again...they saw how sad he was. Ryan asked them tonight what they thought and if they would like to have another foster child and they said, "yes." Of course Reggie wanted an older boy that he could play with :o).

All in all, I think that most foster children are not like this little boy as most are neglected and don't have that strong determination to get home. Hopefully, timing will be a little better next time...Ryan was pretty jet-lagged and I was still recovering from his trip too (I don't think I posted that the night before Ryan came home, Reggie had a double ear infection and we were both up most of the night. He's NEVER had an ear infection before, so I took him in just because and the Dr.'s face said how bad it was). We'll just wait and see who God has next for us.....

Ryan Asia Post

Well, I wanted to give you all an update regarding my Asia trip.

Singapore – Started my trip in S’pore last Monday and it was more like a resort type city.. very clean and didn’t have the feel of Malaysia as the City had more high rises than Seattle and Portland combined. The building architecture was tremendous and one of the coolest buildings I have ever seen was in the heart of the city. It was a hotel/casino that had 3 high rise towers that were all connected with sky bridges. Then on the top they had build what looks like a cruise ship that spans across all of the towers. They charge the tourists $100 US to enter the monstrosity. The weather there was very hot (90’s) and the humidity was probably 80%+. I ate Asian Fusion while I was there which was a little tough/chewy and not very good. Didn’t realize how close it was to Australia (probably a 2-3 hour flight). The airport in S’pore was the best as all of the security is located at each and every gate. So you check in, and make your way to the gate without any delay. And then each gate has glass doors and windows that opens once your flight is ready to board. At this time you go through the security line. Pretty slick but I’m sure expensive to do.

Penang – Its about an hour flight from S’pore. I took a day trip to see customers (its kind of like a trip to Spokane). It’s amazing what a one hour flight can do to the scenery. Penang is what I would call “real living”. Very busy with people, but our Molex people were very willing to accommodate. The weather there was even hotter than S’pore and more humid. I was drenched all day and every time I would enter a building I would start freezing because of the air conditioning and wet clothes. I went across a bridge that connects the main land of Penang to the Island which was about 2.5-3 miles long. It was huge. I was glad to fly back to S’pore that night only to have Pigeon for dinner with my colleagues.

Hong Kong – I flew from S’pore to HK (3.5hour flight). I got to the airport and low and behold my driver was nowhere to be found. Then I called the Sheraton and they said my reservation had been cancelled. At that point I didn’t know where I was supposed to go. So I called our admin in HK and she explained that they put me in a different hotel. Nice if someone would tell me. After I found out where I was supposed to stay I went to the hotel counter at the airport and requested limo transport. They told me that they were backed up and I should take a cab. So I took a cab and all was good until I got dropped off at the hotel and was told by the hotel concierge that I was ripped off. Evidentially I paid the cabby double what I was supposed to. They told me I should call the police and report it but I was way too tired. Once checked in it was all good. I was upgraded to the lounge floor where they treat you like kings and the food is very western and very good. The next day I had meetings all day at HK Cisco and the day was a success. After that I was taken to a local place to get a suit. Needless to say I stood out like a tall fat white guy that was going to get ripped off. But what they didn’t know is that I was with my local posse. I (they) negotiated a wool suit for $185.00 custom fit. All I did is pick out my material and color and they made it in 2 days. When I showed back up they had another suit that just happened to fit the same as the other one. So I negotiated to buy it for around $80.00. So I got two suites for cheap, did I mention that their custom fit, pretty cool. Friday night I went out with my colleagues and we had some fun. New York on steroids is how I would describe HK. Light when it’s really dark and people everywhere. There are so many people, cars, buildings, etc… Then I was taken to the local market. I got a bunch of knick knacks for friends and family and had fun negotiating with the locals. Again I was with my local posse and had them translating for me.

Chengdu – took a flight from HK to Chengdu China Sunday morning and I’m now here for 2 days. I’m sure I will see some interesting local food. I’m going to walk through our plant there tomorrow which is 1 million square feet in size. The hotel is beautiful and probably the nicest one so far, right behind S’pore. After this I’m on my way to Shanghai to finish off my trip where I will look to buy movies, and more gadgets. I miss all of you and especially my babies (including my lovely wife and sweetheart) Hope everyone is doing well. Love ya..

Ryan is on a plane as I write…only 11 hours…finally!

Random post

Train ride to pick popcorn:Last Sunday, we headed down to Fremont to Ardenwood farms to pick some delicious popcorn. Our good friends, the Penner’s, were kind enough to share some popcorn with us last year and let us tag along for the picking this year. It was a pretty hot day, but we were able to find some shade thanks to the corn stalks. Ainsley was my little helper and Reggie had a bag of his own. We picked several ears and shucked them right there. A few had worms/bugs, but most were in pretty good shape. The bummer of it is that it has to dry for 6-8 weeks, so we won’t get to enjoy it right away. The kids had a ball hanging out with their friends and enjoying all the sights. They had all kinds of farm things going on…apple pressing, ice cream making, corn milling and many things we could sample :o).

So heavy Reggie couldn't lift the bag of corn:

Little inventor

Reggie’s little mind is always going, creating one thing or another, with paper, lego’s or whatever he can find. He prefers to build with wood, but that is too difficult for mom and dad. His room is filled with the clutter of all of his projects, but I thought his most recent was worthy of a picture….

Reggie’s ipod holder:Clowning around

I’ve been waking up the past two mornings to a couple of clowns wanting their costumes tied. I’m glad they have some time to play in the morning because with school and activities, it is hard for them to have much time together. For some reason they are thinking it is really fun to go outside at 7 in the morning and play in their playhouse. Keep in mind that the weather has really cooled down, so it is probably in the high 50’s. They had all summer to play out there and I think they only did a handful of times….go figure?

Athletic girl

Ainsley has been going to a new gymnastics place and she has been challenged a bit more than before, but is really picking it up quickly. Last week, I had one of the girls’ nannies ask me if I knew who the mother was of the little blond girl. She went on to say that she would be the next gold medalist and she loved coming just to see what Ainsley would do next :o). Too bad she really likes dance! We had her dance class today and she is so focused on getting in the right position and she just lights up when she is there. I’ll cross my fingers that she’ll like gymnastics that much some day, but if not it will be a good place for her to build muscle, flexibility and coordination for awhile.

"Flying" He bounces them up from lying flat on the tramp and then tosses them into the pit.

Video of the girls dancing at Ardenwood Farms:

Flying solo

Ryan has been gone to China since last Sat. and things are going surprisingly well. We have been really busy, so the days are passing quickly....I'll post about our corn picking adventure later. I had a lot of things I planned on getting done, but I'm pooped by the end of the day and usually don't sit down until 9. It will be sooo nice to have Ryan back home :o).

Ryan has been busy traveling to Singapore, Penang and now to Hong Kong. He's eaten all kids of new things and has been having stomach issues because of it! His favorite thing was a glass of West Melon juice (tasted like watermelon). He has been very impressed by the airlines there, one was called Silk and he said it was so nice; video games, movies, etc. And, he's had a hot meal on every flight and he isn't even flying that far! He is doing a bit of shopping this weekend with some locals (so he won't get ripped off), so we'll see what goodies he brings home. He got fitted for a custom cashmere/wool suit yesterday that cost $180 :o). There are a lot of people from Molex US that are there right now, so he's having a nice time catching up with old friends. He travels to a couple more sites and returns on Thursday, so it is a long trip. He'll have just adjusted to the 13 hour time change by the time he comes back, just to do it all over again :o(.

The kids got a new cold earlier in the week, so sleep was a bit of an issue, but I got one really good night with 7 hours straight and that recharged my batteries. On Monday, I had a bit of a stomach bug. Thankfully, the intense part passed in a couple hours...God knew mom couldn't be sick! I kept waiting for the kids to get it and thought we were out of the woods, but last night Ainsley was complaining of a stomach ache and threw up at about 8:45 last night and again at 12:00 and again at 2:30. I felt so bad for her because the last round was the dry heaves and that really hurts. She was up several times in between thinking she was going to throw up, but couldn't get it out. She ended up sleeping with me and it was a long, rough, night, but she woke up feeling much better. I'm not sure if it was the whole experience and the smell/lack of sleep, but I'm not feeling very well today. My bout earlier in the week was GI related, so I'm hoping this isn't a different bug. I'm also wondering if Reggie man is going to get it. I kept him home today, so we are having a nice relaxing time reading books, watching t.v. and doing crafts :o). I hope they decide they don't want to be sick a lot!

All caught up, just in time!

Life feels pretty good these days. My to do list is very short and I’ve been able to volunteer in Reggie’s classroom and have some time to work-out/grocery shop during the day. It is nice having some free time to knock things out, but that is all going to end soon. We are officially certified Foster Parents and already received a call last Friday. Unfortunately, Ryan left for China (for 12 days) the next day and we didn’t think it was a good idea for all parties. It has been a pretty long process, so now that we are nearing the end, it is a crazy reality to think how different our lives could be in just a few weeks! The kids keep asking when we are going to get our new kid. I’m glad they are excited and hopefully, they are going to be good helpers :o).

Trip to Lake Tahoe

Last weekend we took a spontaneous trip to Lake Tahoe. I’ve never been there and wanted to see what all the hype was about. On Wed., I got on-line and found a hotel for $44.00! It had the same review stars as hotels 3 times the cost, so I figured why not. We left Sat. morning and got there around 1:30. We left in a hurry, surprise, surprise, so I didn’t even know what time check-in was. The Blue Lake Inn is a smaller hotel, so he said if the room was ready, we could have the keys. As Ryan was checking in, I could hear him telling Ryan that he didn’t know how we got that rate, but since that what it said, that is what he would charge us. Since Ryan has traveled a lot recently, he has become a hotel snob and was not impressed with our room. Reggie, however, walked in and said, “this is the best hotel ever!” Ainsley was also excited about our home for the night.

Enjoying our hotel room:

The weather was beautiful, so we got our suits on and headed to the pool. Reggie has turned into quite the swimmer and was having a lot of fun. The princess was in the hot tub because the pool was too cold. Thankfully, it was a relatively cool hot tub…she would have stayed in there all day if we would have let her. After that, we decided to head to the beach to check out the lake. The location of the hotel was great! It was about a block off the busy strip and a couple blocks from a semi-private beach that we were given passes for. The kids dug in the sand, threw the frisbee with Ryan and played on the play structure a bit. It was record breaking hot weather there, which thankfully was only in the high 70’s, but it felt really warm. We went to test out the water and quickly realized we’d just be looking at it. It was freezing! It was fun to watch the parasailers and be amazed at the size of the lake. Reggie called it a sea-lake, as big as a sea but really a lake! By the end of our play time, no one could walk on the sand because it hurt our feet so bad. It was like tiny, tiny pebbles and our feet got some exfoliation. We like the smooth sand at Lake Cavanaugh much better :o).

Ryan’s favorite part about heading somewhere new is eating out. Since we were in South Lake Tahoe, which is technically Nevada, we were going to go to a casino buffet, but decided not to take the kids through the smoky, game-filled casino. We ended up at Denny’s and haven’t been there in a long time, so it was REALLY good and it happened to be kids eat free night, so that was a nice bonus. By the time we got back, it was movie time and then to bed. Bedtime is always a bit challenging and since Ainsley’s took a little snooze in the car, she was up until 9:15.

They were up bright and early at 6:45, but played quietly so mama and papa bear could get a little more sleep. That morning, we decided to ride the gondola up to the top of the hill. It was very expensive, but worth it! Reggie was pretty nervous (he doesn’t like heights), but ended up doing great. There was a nice viewing area at the top where we took pictures and had a snack. We rode it a little further where we got off and went for a little hike and spotted some big prints, but thankfully, we didn’t see what belonged to those prints. The top is over 10,000 feet and it is a little crazy on the way down. The gondola stopped a couple times and I could see the panic on Reggie’s face. His thoughts seem so much older than the thoughts of a six year old. He’s recently decided he won’t sleep in his room and Ainsley told us it was because he was afraid someone would come in the front door and take him and we asked him if that was true and he said no, he was worried the spider’s were going to get him. So, I guess Ainsley has some big thoughts for a 4 year old! Before I had kids, I thought they had to be like 8 or 10 before they understood things, but now it know it is more like 3!!! It is pretty amazing how smart they are :o). That was a bit of a tangent….we headed out after lunch and both slept a good amount on our 3 ½ hour drive home.

Eye aches/headaches and more

Enjoying Sam's birthday party at Springtime Trampoline:

Reggie has been having eye aches that sometimes turn into headaches for about 7 months now and I decided to take him to see our Cranio-Sacral (CS) person in Kirkland. I wasn’t expecting her to find anything, but she said his neck was really stuck. She wanted to see him again before we left, but we ran out of time, so I was hoping she fixed it. He’s had a few more since we’ve been home and these seem to only be in his eye. I took him to the eye doctor and everything checked out fine. But, I was a little worried for a minute when the nurse asked him to read the letters and he said he couldn’t. She kept making them bigger and bigger and he still couldn’t read them, so she switched to numbers and he did fine. I was cracking up when I realized he was trying to make a word out of the letters!

We had only 2 visits with the CS person here in Pleasanton and he hasn’t had an eye ache in 2 weeks :o)! She found some stuff in his shoulder and scar tissue around his lung that she worked out, so he should be all fixed up now. Sad to think that he already has “stuff” at such a young age. I’m glad we are taking care of it now and that we know where to go because it would be a whole lot worse when he’s older. I guess all my crazy physical therapy has not only benefitted me, but everyone I meet and tell about this other option for good health. Doctors these days just want to give you a pill and I’m so thankful there are other great options out there. I just hope someday they are covered by insurance!

Trina health update:

God has been faithful…I am so thankful he gave me the answer to my arthritis pain!!!! My back has been better than it has been in years!!! There is about a week a month where I have some discomfort, but it has gotten better every month and hopefully when I take the birth control pill continuously, I won’t have any pain :o). We just went to Sam’s birthday party this weekend at a tumbling and trampoline gym and I was drawn to participate. It was really a stupid thing for me to do, but I couldn’t resist. It has been over 10 years since I’ve flipped and it took a couple of back tucks before I knew where the ground was and then it was like riding a bike! I had SO much fun and felt like a kid again :o). 3 months ago, I wouldn’t have even dreamed of doing anything like that….the thought would have made me cringe. The true test was waking up the next day with no pain….God is good and his timing perfect!!! I was nervous about fostering, given my pain, but now that burden is off my plate :o).

Doing a Brody (no handed round-off):

I saw my OB about my fibroids and she didn’t feel anything, so I just had an ultrasound and they saw the ovarian cyst and one fibroid that they felt wasn’t big enough to do anything about, so for now, I’m officially done going to the doctor!!!!

Ainsley's Birthday party in Livermore

Ainsley and Claire working on decorating their wooden purses:
Dancing with the Fairy Godmother:

Patiently waiting to be crowned princesses:

Having tea and tea-type kid food:

Anxiously waiting to open presents:

Last weekend we had a joint birthday party with Ainsley’s best friend Naomi, and it was a blast. However, the morning started out a bit rough. Everyone thinks Ainsley and Reggie are so mellow and usually, they are, but the 2% of the time they are not, they can be a real handful. We’ve been having some listening issues and it exploded, when, after almost 2 hours of asking, Reggie wasn’t dressed, hadn’t eaten breakfast or picked up his room. I warned him that I would clean up his room (which means I get my bag and take everything I pick up to be earned back at a later date) and he still didn’t move. So, I got my bag and collected quite a few toys. Reggie was screaming, grabbing my arms and then Ainsley got upset and was scratching me and screaming (she gets VERY distressed when Reggie has a fit). They were out of control and I ended up running and hiding in the bathroom while they both had fits. It was like 10 minutes of screaming….I’m sure the neighbors thought someone was dying!!! Thankfully, that doesn’t happen very often, and I’m thinking next time I give a warning, it will be taken seriously.

The day could only get better after that and it did :o). Ryan came home from volunteering at church and I took Ainsley over to the birthday tea party. Libby had done a beautiful job decorating and taking care of every detail and after doing some last minute things, like frosting the cake, the girls arrived. They decorated their goody purses with rhinestones and then some girls painted nails in anticipation of the fairy godmother arriving. The girls were in awe when she showed up. They danced together, painted nails some more, ate lunch (with real tea) and then each girl was crowned a princess. Any of you who know me, know that my party for Ainsley would have been much different, so I have to thank Libby for giving her a beautiful day. I hope she remembers it because she’ll probably never have a party like that again!!!

Ryan and Reggie had some good quality time, riding bikes to McDonald’s, enjoying a nice meal and ice cream and then heading the 3 ½ miles back. At the end of the day, Reggie, said he really enjoyed hanging out with just dad, so we’re going to make an effort to have more one on one time with the kids.

Cub scout event and camping

Raingutter Regatta

We had a cubscout event a couple weeks ago and it was really fun. At the first June meeting, the scouts were given little wood boats to put together and decorate for this event. They raced them in raingutters. I wasn’t at all sure what this meant, but you can see from the picture that they blow on the sail and the first one to the end wins. It was a riot! They had brackets set up and if you lost, then you raced again in the losers bracket. Reggie did great, he won, then lost, then won, then lost. He was a good sport and had fun. We had a BBQ lunch there and then they had an award ceremony, where all the kids got squirt guns! Even Ainsley got a little one and there was even a hose at the park to fill the guns. Let’s just say Reggie didn’t leave very dry and to no surprise, he loves being a cub scout :o).

Group picture....you can tell the new ones because they wore their special shirt/hat:
Camping in the backyard

This was our adventure over the 3 day weekend. We set up the tents and invited Caleb and Naomi over for a sleepover. They’ve never had a sleepover at a friends’ house before, so we weren’t quite sure what to expect, but they did great! The girls were all in one tent and the boys in another and everyone made it through the night. Sleeping in a tent isn’t that comfortable, so Ryan and I were pretty spent the next day, but it was worth it….the kids had so much fun! The best part was taking a shower and using our bathroom in the middle of the nigh-now that’s camping in style :o).

It was even better to be greeted in the morning by Libby and Scott, who brought us donuts from the Donut Wheel. Naomi’s actual birthday was that day, so they thought it would be fun and special and it was a hit.

First day of school!!!

The 23^rd of August came pretty quick. During the couple weeks we were back and before school started, we hung out with friends, enjoyed the sun and moved Reggie in to the “office”. It was a mellow couple weeks, but went way too fast.

The week before school started, we found out who Reggie’s teacher was. To my surprise, it was one of the Kindergarten teachers from last year. She is teaching the combo class (1/2 1^st graders, 1/2 kindergarteners). I was a bit surprised and a little disappointed that he would be in the same place (there is a separate building/play structure for the kinders). Reggie was super excited because he knew the teacher and would be in the same classroom setting (he is very reserved in new settings, so we got to skip those nervous feelings this year!). This option had never even crossed my mind, but, once I started thinking about it, I realized it will be a really good thing. The kinders go home half-way through the day, so he has only 12 children in his class for part of the day! He has absolutely loved it so far and has ventured out to the big playground to find his friends on recess and at lunch. For me, it has been a little adjustment. Last year, we were overloaded with information and this year, we don’t get much, just drop the kids and go. I'll be volunteering in his class this year, so I'll get to see how it all works :o). Reggie’s friends are scattered in other classes, so it is more difficult to hang out and visit with mom’s, but we are figuring it out.

We’ve been exploring with lunches…today, I sent teriyaki chicken and rice. Those thermos’s really keep things warm. I made a deal with him that if he eats his vegetable, he can have a small treat and so far, he's mostly been eating them after school. I don’t think his friends will be wanting to steal his lunch anytime soon….they probably wonder why he is eating a spinach salad with croutons! It is always interesting to see what is left at the end of the day. He is a good eater :o).

There are 2 boys in his class from last year and they have an interesting dynamic, so we are learning about bullying and how to pick your friends wisely. Some of the conversations we are having seem crazy for 1^st grade, but Reggie is doing the right thing and being more confident in standing up for what is right. Reggie asked if we could call one of the boys mother’s to explain something that had happened in the classroom, so we did and she was very appreciative.

We haven’t been doing much extra activites because we’re still trying to get into a routine, but we’ve had fun biking to school and playing with friends on the playground after school (except the the several days that were over 100 degrees!).

The 12 first graders:

Ainsley and I have been very productive while Reggie is at school. We’ve been grocery shopping several days, thrift store shopping, cleaning, doing laundry, etc. Ainsley is very good about playing by herself, so I’ve been able to get caught up on a lot of stuff (she is having a tea party as I write). We did take one day last week to do something fun and it about killed me. We went to pump it up and I was her friend, so I ran around with her for an hour and 15 minutes! I finally had to ask her if she was getting tired or hungry, but her response was no!!! We went down one more big slide and she decided she was hungry :o). It will be nice to have some time with her to work on letters and play babies.

Ainsley started school on Sept. 8th and is having a bit of an adjustment period. I think she has a bit of social anxiety. I’ve been noticing it more and more, starting at her birthday party, now church, gymnastics and school. It is pretty obvious she’s nervous because she puts her hands together under her chin. As time goes on, she relaxes, so I’m hoping this is just a phase. Reggie was very similar, if not worse and he is much different now. I just don’t understand how both of them are like this. I’ve asked myself if it is something I am doing and her teacher assured me that they are the way they are, but it is hard to watch her struggle :o(. Time will tell….I’ve seen just how far kids can go in just one year :o).

Signing in:

We just started homework this week and so far both kids love it! I have several workbooks that I was hoping to use someday and I’m finally using them! It is a bit tricky for me to work with both of them, especially keeping Reggie on track because he loves to “help” Ainsley. She is doing great with her writing and starting to learn letters/sounds. If we keep this up all year, she’ll be reading by Kindergarten! Reggie has already noticed an improvement in his reading and that is giving him a desire to read more!!!!! Cross your fingers that this lasts more than a week......

Last summer post-Visits with friends/family

We sure made the rounds again this year! Reggie had a few playdates with his pals Kellen and Abby. We did the Boeing tour this summer and learned lots about the history of Boeing and how airplanes are made today. I can’t wait to fly overseas in one of their new planes. They sound so cool...changing the inside of the plane to look like night/day to get you acclimated to the time zone you are traveling to and having pods to sleep in (although I'd never be able to afford this). CRAZY! Reggie’s favorite part was feeling the airplane and going in the cockpit.

We also had a couple visits with grandma Pam. She came to the lake for the day and played with the kids and we tasted some nice focacia bread my mom whipped up :o). Reggie wants me to make it, but it is a little too involved for me. We also headed to Issaquah for a visit at her house. The kids love to check on the chickens and run in her yard. We celebrated Ainsley’s birthday a little early with cupcakes and presents!

I got to visit a few of my friends this year too! Jill, my college friend, and I have been trying to get together for a couple years! It was a great visit and fun to see Peyton (who is now almost 3!) and the girls. Peyton was 24 weeks old when she was born and is a bit of a miracle and it is amazing to see her now, perfectly healthy and just beautiful. Jill and Ryan are such a fun couple and it is too bad we can't see them more often. Hopefully, Ryan can join me next time. He was able to join me when we visited Jane and Mark. We headed there after working on our house in Kirkland and had a nice time seeing the girls and having a drink. Lilly was a bit disappointed we didn’t bring anyone for her to play with! There’s always next year :o). I also got to see my friend Trina, who was back visiting family in Bellingham. They moved to China a year ago and God brought us together by a fluke, but He has really used each of us to minister to each other. It was really great to hear face to face all the wonderful things they are doing in China for God’s glory :o).

We had a nice BBQ with Ryan's family for his birthday. Holly has 3 dogs, so Ainsley was glued to us and I’m not sure if she even spoke a word the entire time! She saved it up and chatted all the way home! Grandma Gloria brought her little dog and Ainsley has been talking about her ever since :o). It was also fun to watch Jamie on Komo 4 T.V. She was in a Powderpuff football game to raise funds for kids and she threw a touchdown pass! Unfortunately, we missed Kim/Shane, Danny/Jeanne and the cousins, so we’ll have to catch up with them at Christmas.

We had a surprise visit with Grandpa Geno and he looked great! Ainsley had an allergic reaction to a bug bite, so I took her in and decided to stop by and see Grandpa. Somehow, he knows more about what goes on in the family than anyone! I got all caught up and had a few candies too :o). Ainsley was very patient, so she got a few candies too. She has asked a few times to go back to visit Grandpa Geno and try some more chocolate candies:o).

We finished the summer with Ainsley’s birthday party! We saw many of the friends and family that were at the 4^th; Jim/Ruth, Lacey and kids, Jenisa, Aunt Jana, Aunt Sue/Uncle Rich, Cathy, Michael, Kellen, Laura and the crew and the Rhinehardt’s of course :o). We had a fun time and the kids thoroughly enjoyed the loft, where all of our childhood toys are, as well as some new ones. It looked like a tornado ripped through. Big thank you to Laura and Lacey for helping navigate that clean-up effort!. It was our first rainy party for Ainsley…luckily mom and dad’s new kitchen and dining room accommodated the large crown very nicely. We had a nice BBQ and an awesome cake. Thank you Aunt Sue for making such a lovely Barbie cake for Ainsley…..it was amazing!

Welcome baby Rowan!!! We got to meet baby Rowan on our drive back to California. We stopped in Vancouver for lunch and had a great time seeing, Kirsten, Ben, Uncle Al and Elizabeth.

The summer seemed to come and go in the blink of an eye! I’m glad we got to see as many friends and family as we did :o). A big thank you to mom and dad, who put up with us all summer!

More Summer Fun-A picture is worth a thousand words!

All dolled up:
Grandpa and Reggie (and Kona the cat) enjoying the morning, pondering life:

The art of applying chapstick:

Finally, Reggie holding Spencer!

Loving the nice warm sand:

Floating with Grandma

My swim co-pilot...grandpa did much better this year, staying where I could see him. Only had one close call with a pit bull chasing me, but I don't think he could keep up-I think the kids were pretty worried, especially Ainsley.

Party boat :o)

Had to get a picture of this...the house under the stairs. All 3 cousins would try to cram in and play house with dolls/babies or whatever they felt like taking out of the loft:

Spencer...you are missing all the fun!

Jaunt in the woods:

Such decisions...who should pull who?

Working quickly to make a pool in the sand:

Grandma's work picnic. This was talked about all summer and we had to wait until the very end of our trip to enjoy the face painting, bounce houses, pony rides, kid games and food. Poor dad, I talked him into going this year and he ate something bad and was throwing up that evening. Thankfully, no one else got sick (maybe he just ate too much-it was free!).

Ryan and Reggie did the 3 legged race which was pretty comical. I somehow deleted the pic :o(.

Pooped after the carnival.

The evening ritual....show time. Everyone was enjoying Charlotte's Web :o).

Building a volcano. Reggie did this over and over all summer. One time, something went a little haywire and the stuff was blowing out 5 feet into the air. He was loving it!

Watching the bears at the Woodland Park Zoo. This is always my favorite and we got lucky again and we got to watch them swim. It came right up to the glass and Ainsley smartly backed away.

Grandma Peggy took the kids for a couple outings, once to the children’s art festival in Mt. Vernon and another to Friday Harbor. They did some art projects at the art festival and Reggie colored a top that he played with all summer. They went to their favorite place for dinner, McDonald’s! When I picked them up, Ainsley told me she had ice cream for dinner :o). My camera was broken, so no pics :o(

Ferry Ride. Both the kids thoroughly enjoyed the ferry. Reggie told Grandma Peggy that he wanted to live on the boat! Ainsley loved to watch the water crashing off of the boat while they were moving and Reggie enjoyed watching the ferry dock. Of course, they came home with all kinds of goodies and were stuffed from treats. It was good for them to spend the entire day with Grandma and enjoy seeing a new part of Washington.

Raspberry picking. They didn't like these berries as much as the tiny ones at the lake:

Nothing seemed to be off limits this summer. The kids were into everything and Ainsley found grandma's nightgown and decided to put it on.

Helping grandma make a pie crust. We enjoyed the best berry pie!

Buried Reggie. It is a good thing Maggie is strong!

Entertaining each other:

Passed out at Aunt Liha's. We wore Ainsley out this summer.

Slipping and sliding at Aunt Liha and Uncle Wade's:

Paddleboarding at the lake. This is a pretty good work-out and so peaceful :o). I did take a spill once due to gigantic waves...

Just finished some sweet treat:

Rough having Spencer duty:

Uncle Wade entertaining the kiddos:

Critters at the lake! The kids have seen more wildlife inside the house than outside, thanks to the hunters, Maui and Kona. They didn't do a very good job of killing and eating, although Kona loved to eat her kill in our room. Animals we saw in the house include: rabbit, mouse, chipmunk (several of these), and lizard (one with just the head that was still moving....fascinating!).

This little guy was crawling around the kitchen and decided to make its way behind the fridge-notice he is missing his tail. What fun!Chipmunk on the loose in our bedroom. It was quite the comedy to catch it. We had a mouse in the house for several days and Ainsley was in the living room and said, "Mom, the mouse is here." I put a tupperware over the top and caught it. Those are the lucky ones that escape. Sometimes, we just smell the dead smell and have to track it down that way :o(.

Pump it up: