Family "Staycation"

School starts soooo early in Gilbert that we were desperate to do something before our Summer fun was over.  We couldn't really go anywhere so we decided to do a "Staycation"!  On Friday, we sent the boys and a couple of their friends to Sun Splash.  Then that night, all of us but Alex went to Joe's Crab Shack.  Alex wanted to play with his friendsies. :)  

 Then next day, we slept in and went bowling in the afternoon.  All in all it was a great, lazy time and Ryan proclaimed our "Staycation" a success!  He thinks we should do it more often!

St. Johns High 1980

This is the most awesome old St. Johns High School!  I started high school here in 1976 as a Freshman.  Sadly, by the time I was a Senior, they had built a brand new school and we were the first Senior class to go there.  I have sooo many great memories of this old building.  I love St. Johns so much!

The class of 1980 just had our 30 year reunion :/  I can hardly believe it's been that long.  It is soooo crazy.  Anyway, I was really excited about it when I heard about it, but then as the time approached, I really had misgivings about going.  I didn't really want to and then Brad talked me into it.  I am soooo glad that he did.  It was so wonderful to see old friends - kids that I had grown up with since I was a tiny girl.  We met and ate Mexican food the first night.  The next morning was the 24th of July parade and so we rode on a float.  I felt pretty silly doing that!  That night was the big dinner and program.  We stayed as long as we could, but then had to leave to get back for church the next morning (since Brad is the Bishop).  I was really sad when I found out that they took a picture after I left.  All of us that were there throughout the weekend weren't in the picture, but I am so glad that they took one of the ones that were there.  Love you guys :)

Janet Shreeve Wengert (my best friend growing up), me and Lurlynn Burnett

24th of July parade float

Greg & Leni live at our old house and all the family that was there gathered and had lunch.  Sometimes I sure miss that old house.  It really made me miss my Dad too

24 and Counting!

On Sunday, July 18th, our family had a birthday!  We are 24 years old!  24 years ago I married Brad and it will always be the best day of my life.  I love him more now than I could ever have imagined then.  It's funny how your perception of love changes - it changes as you add more to your family and it deepens to a level that I would not have thought possible then.  I wonder what it will be like in another 24 years - or in eternity.  I look forward to forever with Brad and with our wonderful children.  I am so thankful that we were given the blessing of finding each other and creating our own family.  Happy Anniversary!

Here's what's left of our family still living with us -  in Carlsbad, CA

This is the last time our family was all together the night before Taylor left for him mission (last September)

Father's Day 2010

Father's Day this year was down to only 3 kids plus 1 dog.  Brad - Happy Father's Day!  I am sooooo glad that our children get to have you as a father.  You are good and kind and teach the kids so well.  I love how you have taken time out of your busy life to play "Hop on Pop", coached endless soccer and basketball games and told even more incredible bedtime stories that I don't get to hear.  They are just for the kids when they are little.  You have given us all so much and we will be forever grateful.  We love you more than anything!

Ryan, Murphy, Alex, Danny and DAD!

Gilbert Golden Scholar!

This young man got his Golden Scholar award this morning and I couldn't be prouder!  He got straight A's his whole 7th grade year - even while being in Honor's classes.  He is such a good boy and a hard worker :)

Danny & his friend Jake Lunt

Danny and two cute girls in our ward!  Natalie Bloomfield and Katie Arnold.

I thought I would tag on a cute pic of Ryan and his 2nd grade teacher Kathy Bellman.  We love her and Ryan had a great year with her!

Maine (sweetheart time cont.)

After we left Boston, we drove up the coast of Maine.  I don't really know why, but I have always wanted to go there.  I don't know what I expected, but it was different than I had imagined.  I loved it!  It was such a great mixture of water and forest.  It had a "wilder" feel than I expected.  I loved how it was so much more its own place than a lot of areas in the United States.  It was more regionalized and didn't have as much of the national chain feel.

Our "home" base was Portland and then we drove all the other places and back.  We never drove farther than 2 or 3 hours away at a time.  Portland's downtown was so cute.  Old, worn-out cobblestones and brick buildings.  I don't know why I didn't take any pictures.  The only one I have is taken through the window of our hotel room - kind of towards the harbor.

We enjoyed ourselves by going to several different lighthouses.  This one was in Portland.  We saw it on Mother's Day and had our first lobster roll outside of it in a little shack.  The wind was so cold!

We climbed around a little bit down below but didn't get wet.  I took a picture of this because it was so interesting.  This rock was everywhere and it looked like wood.  It was really weird.  There was a sign where a boat crashed on these rocks on Christmas Eve in 1886.  It was a great day!  We wandered around the cute downtown of Portland and then went back to the hotel to wait for Taylor's Mother's Day call!  We got to talk to him for 1 1/2 hours - it was so awesome!  We called at the kids at home and did a conference call with all of them.  It was so good to talk to Taylor.  It was the best Mother's Day present ever and he sounded great!

Here are a couple of other lighthouses that we were able to see as we drove around the coast of Maine.

This is the same one as above, but I put another picture to show that it was out on a rock and they don't let you across because it's too dangerous.

One day as we drove up the coast to Camden, I took several pictures of cute old houses (so many turned into bed and breakfasts) and the quaint towns we passed along the way.

This is kind of an ugly picture, but note the old Rexall sign.  Just like we grew up with!

Camden was so cute, but oh so cold that day.  We drove up to a look-out and thought we were going to freeze to death!  I don't know that I've ever felt the wind so cold :)

My camera was zoomed as far as it would go for this picture from the lookout.

I had no idea that there were so many little islands and peninsulas in Maine.  If you look at a map close up it is amazing.  These all were taken at the top of the lookout.

We ate at so many amazing little places on the whole trip - we ate too well!  I think we had some type of seafood almost every meal!  It was awesome!  We had lobster rolls (which we had never had before and now I will crave forever), clam strips, clam chowder, lobster and more lobster rolls :) 

We loved Kennebunkport and Ogunquit.  Here are some pictures in Ogunquit

We were determined to find the little covered bridges that New England is famous for.  Sadly, there aren't that many left.  Yay for Brad who searched out and found this little bridge!  It was so beautiful there.

I loved this little platform with the rope swing!

We ended up the trip by stopping in Salem, Massachusetts on our way to the airport.  It was where they had they witch trials and then the Bewitched TV show was filmed there.  We were surprised to learn that all of the accused were killed within just a 2 or 3 month span.  

Wow!  What a wonderful trip we had!  I guess we are getting old, because we enjoyed the boring stuff...all the history, the driving, the lighthouses, etc.  It was such a relaxing get-away!  We love traveling so much and it was so great to see some new parts of the country that we hadn't ever seen.  I fell in love with both of them - but I think especially Maine.  I can't wait to go back someday and do the fall tour.  Until then, we will be dreaming of the lobster rolls :)