FedX Arrives... finally

Oma & Tante send a FedX package to arrive Tuesday before Christmas... It finally arrived Thursday after Christmas... wow... that was some weather and backlog. It worked out well for us as the kids got an extra package and were able to really enjoy it.


Emmi received a wonderful chest from Tante and a beautiful necklace, a music box and a new red scarf that she cherishes. The chest has become her desk... very cute. She also received two books that she has read and reread. And... $20 from Oma... she was so excited. We headed out together to Punky Doodlebugs a local children's boutique to spend her money. She found her treasure in 2.3 seconds... a notebook purse with colored pencils and a pad of paper. It's perfect for taking to basketball games.

Stefan & Joey received football cards, football card notebook with protective holders for the cards. They each got new books... Artemis Fowl for Joey and Frog and Toad for Stefan. Perfect. They also each received $20 from Oma. They were very excited and decided to pool their money so that they could buy an new game for the Wii. I don't know if this is the exact game... but you get the point.

The tin of cookies and the nostalgic Packers puzzle were also a huge hit!

Somebody lost her first tooth...

I'm kind of stunned that my baby just lost her first tooth. She is very proud and even had daddy write a note to the tooth fairy for her!

Calling Grandma to share the good news.

Showing it off...


Trying to show us her toothless grin.

Emmi's new smile...

Soccer Weekend

Soccer finally began this weekend. I'm coaching Stefan's team, the Outlaws. I have 6 little boys on the team. They had a great game. They won 16-1. Stefan scored 10 of the 16 goals. He towers above the others and has really picked up some good skills. These boys really enjoy playing the game. I don't have any pictures of Stefan playing since I was coaching. I'll have Joe takes some next time.

Some of the kids on Joey's team have now played together for three years. They are really starting to get as a unit. In his age bracket, they travel to different local soccer clubs to play. Their first game was in Battle Ground. They won 8-2 and Joey scored 3 of the goals. He has a wicked left foot kick and was able to score from the left side with it. He also helped to set up several goals for his buddies.This is Joey (#9) with a buddy. Joey had just scored and his buddy had helped him out. They had just finished "chest bumping" ... which is not good sportsmanship. We'll put an end to that.

Emmi's first game ended up getting canceled, so her coach ran a quick practice with the girls. She will play this Friday night as well as Saturday morning. Emmi on the left.

Computer Problems

FYI... My computer has a problem and will have to go to the doctor, therefore, I will not be blogging for a few days. See you soon.2

Playing in the Park

We spend a Friday evening (a week ago) visiting with wonderful friends in Sellwood Park. E who is now 13 (I used to be her nanny when she was 3!) dressed up Jeep in her top hat... too cute! All of the kids enjoyed playing frisbee and baseball in the field. Emmi loved the play structure. A GREAT evening in the park!

Happy Birthday!

Happy Birthday Oma!
We love you... have a great day :)

There's a whole-lotta TALENT in this house!

What do you do at the end of a week-long vacation? You learn to walk with a glass on your head. My husband has talent. Not only can he walk with it on his head, he can get off of the couch, put the grill away and kill a spider in the bathroom. He can also do all of this with a large glass on his head. We are all so proud of him!

4th Stop -- Hurricane Ridge

We headed out from Port Angeles to see Hurricane Ridge. I had never been there before and Joe had only been on part of it. It was a windy trek up with lots of road construction. At times we had to sit for 20+ minutes. It was well worth the wait!




And... we found snow... and threw snowballs in our shorts!

3rd Stop -- Olympic Game Farm

We had talked to the kids about this farm for a long time. It is a place for wild animals that are rescued. I think that the last time we visited, Joey was a baby. We saw and fed some amazing animals. We learned how to roll up our car windows quickly... some of those animals can get very close!

2nd Stop -- View Point

I'm not actually sure what the view point was called, but we were on our way to the Olympic Game Farm. We were able to get out, enjoy the view and stretch our legs.

Check out my Slide Show!

It was my turn to entertain the girls before zoo camp. We played and had a very fun day. I only took 147 pictures of them (with my new camera).

Yes, I think I'm crazy!

An Eagle

Joe got his first "Eagle" on the golf course Friday morning!

Ready to Rest

Fun summer pictures...The boys new look when it's hot... no shirts!



We've had a couple of very busy days around here. As much as I try to plan time to stay at home, it seems as if the last couple of days have been in warp speed. Today, it's the 4th of July so I am going to stay here! I don't want to do anything... I just want to stay home.

Now, so many projects to complete at home... where do I begin? Outside, crafting, sewing, cleaning (definitely not cleaning today... I can cross that off the list)

Happy 4th of July!

Thunder and Lightning and Rain, Oh my!

About 3 am or maybe a little earlier we had quite a thunder, lightning and rain storm. It woke me up... those of you who know me understand now that I mean it was really loud! Very impressive and not normal for the NW. My flower baskets look pitiful this morning... hopefully they'll perk up with the sun.

Tante's Home

Tante flew home on Monday with a clean bill of health! She's only here for a short time, but we are all thrilled. We met her at the Children's Museum after swim team practice (Joey swam very hard). We had fun... the kids hadn't been in awhile; especially Joey so they just cruised from thing to thing for 2 hours. Then we headed to Stefan's swim lesson. Everyone was very tired last night from our long day, but they were very content because their tante is home!

Refer Quiz

What Your Fridge Says About You

You like to be surrounded by things you love. You aren't exactly greedy, but you can be materialistic at times. You tend to be a fairly thrifty person. You splurge occasionally, but you're mostly a saver. You are a very adventurous person. You love to try new things, and you get bored very easily. You are responsible, together, and mature. You act like an adult, even when you don't feel like it. You are likely to be married - and very busy.

What Do the Contents of Your Refrigerator Say About You?

Beautiful Morning

After 3 days of hot heat (which you know I don't enjoy HOT HEAT), I got up early to take Jeep for a walk to the campus. It was gorgeous! Blue skies, crisp air, bunnies hopping... just beautiful. Jeep was exhausted by the time we got home. I'm so glad I went. It would have been very easy to roll back over and go back to bed. But, when the sun is shining and there is a cool breeze, you just have to get moving!

4th of July Banner

I created this 4th of July banner this afternoon. Didn't take too long and super cute!

Amazing Parents!

Have you ever heard of Oprah's Big Give? Well, our wonderful preschool parents gave the preschool and staff a Big Give. We were presented last night (during the VBS BBQ) with all kinds of amazing gifts... I'm sure I won't get them all, but here is a list:

• New Vacuum
• New Stove
  
• New Microwave
• New sinks for the boys bathroom
• New Faucets for the boys and girls bathrooms
• New trikes/bikes
• Hoola Hoops
• School Supplies
• $25 Office Depot Gift Card
• $500 Learning Palace Gift Card
• I know there's more... I just can't think

All of the teacher, aides and our director were speechless. I think it left a few church members speechless as well. We are so blessed to have such amazing parents at our school. Oh, the kicker for me was that this was orchestrated by a mom with one child on her way to kindergarten and one child entering preschool, another mom whose child will not be able to attend next year and yet another mom whose child will be attending for the first time in the fall, not to mention all of the wonderful current families!

I think I need to contact Oprah and share the story!

Another Birthday

I had a great birthday. Thanks for the calls and cards. My favorite part was seeing Tim McGraw in concert! Soooooo, much fun. Plenty of people to gawk at! I didn't take my camera along, but Joe had his phone. When he emails me the pictures, I'll post them! You can see great pictures here!