Day Trips to Papa & Nana JJ's Home

We all love our "day trips" out to Papa and Nana JJ's (Sheldon's parents) home in the country. When it's hot the kids love to swim in the pool and walk down by the river to play in the sand and watch Papa swim in the VERY cold water.
Other highlights are hiking on the trails in the forest in the backyard, splashing in the hottub, and playing with cousins Melea and Lily when they visit on the same day. There's always great food and uplifting fellowship. Thank you Lord for Family!




Braden & Ashlyn with cousins Melea & Lily in the pool with Papa!

Fun at the Fountains

Sometimes on a warm day we will take our kids to a fountain to play for a change of scenery. We have the beautiful WSU Vancouver college campus near our home with this fountain, which we get all to ourselves so it's very peaceful. Ashlyn was a little unsure about getting too wet, but Braden got as soaked as he could.




















































This fountain play area is at Blue Lake Park near Portland. It was quite busy the day we went because it was a hot day, but Braden LOVED it, as you can tell by the excitement in his face!

Blueberries, Blueberries, and More Blueberries

IT'S BLUEBERRY SEASON!
Every summer our family enjoys hitting as many farms as possible to pick fresh fruit...so here's our blueberry picking expedition! We picked 13 lbs (and ate a couple more too!) in less than an hour. I'm sure we'll be back for more as we all LOVE fresh berries!

As usual, I missed getting a photo of Sheldon picking! He captured all the great photos for us!

Our Trip to the Iowa Farm

Every summer we enjoy our trip back to where I grew up: the farm in Iowa! It's always such a neat time to hang out with my parents, my sister and her fiance, grandparents, and several other family members and friends (as we plan a big reunion with both sides of the family). I, of course, always come back very refreshed as the kids get plenty of "grandparent time," while I get a much needed break. I also just enjoy the peace and beauty of my childhood home in the country, and the visits to Lake Okoboji (the beach and the boat)!

This picture was quite the production as I am standing on a ladder (and Sheldon too as he takes the picture) because the corn is actually about 7 feet tall!

Highlight Photos of Iowa Trip:

Of course we didn't capture photos of all our family and friends, but posted just a few of the many highlights of our trip..... (Sheldon takes so many good photos that is was difficult to narrow it down)!

Amanda Visits Us

My long time friend (we go way back to elementary school), Amanda Dotson, came to visit us for a week this month. It really means a lot to have visitors come from so far away (yep, she's from Iowa)! This was her first time visting the Northwest, so we made sure to show her around as much as we could.
Some of the highlights included: raspberry picking with the kids, biking on a scenic trail, a beautiful drive through the Columbia River Gorge to Multnomah Falls, hiking, a day trip to Cannon Beach on the Oregon Coast, and time to just talk and talk and talk! Amanda might tell you that her highlight was being tickled by Braden all week or answering ALL of his many questions! Thankfully, she's a teacher and loves kids!

Here are some photos of our highlights:

This was Ashlyn's first time berry picking! WOW, she knew exactly what to do. When it was time to leave she insisted on carrying her bucket with the few berries (and sticks) that she had picked. Of course, she dropped her bucket and spilled all of her raspberries, but she was not bothered. She simply sat down and said "clean up, clean up...." as she picked up every last berry. As you guessed, her berries were a little dirty and smashed, but we all had a great time!





We pause for a picture at Lucia Falls after biking.














This was Ashlyn's first time visiting the coast. She LOVED it, especially the feel of the sand! I learned (the hard way) to apply sunscreen on the kids BEFORE going onto the VERY windy beach!

















Braden loved playing in the sand and helping
Daddy dig a BIG hole!

Water War

The kids are so entertained in the kiddie pool!

Ashlyn isn't afraid to start a water war with Braden. The other day I watched her pour water on his head first. Of course, he had to get her back! I'm glad they considered this playful or I would have had my hands full.