thoughts about being 100!!!

so i had my birthday last week and turned 38. stephen
bought this HUGE cake from costco. it could seriously feed
an army so i gave some of it away to my neighbors.

it was a good day. plus you get presents so that
usually makes the bigger # worth it.

i found this article in a magazine and found it very interesting
so i added my comments at the end of each one.

does anyone want to live to be 100???

20 signs you might live to
be 100!!!

1. you eat purple food.... do m&m's count?

2. You have been a college freshman... check.

3. you have a drama-free marriage... i think you need a little drama in any relationship

4. you enjoy good friendships... thank you friends!

5. you have strong legs. so that's why i exercise

6. you get goals. yes, sometimes the same goal each year

7. you feel 13 years younger than you are... um that would make me 18!

8. you have a positive outlook on life.... most days

9. you're outgoing.... yes!

10. you've got skinny friends.... but we like to eat yummy food!

11. you don't have a housekeeper... nope, just kids who are my slaves (insert evil laugh).

12..you often walk instead of drive... or ride my cute pink bike.

13. you do aerobic activity 5 days a week... yes i walk to the bus stop.

14. you don't like burgers... sorry i love burgers, fries, and filet mignon.

15. you skip colas... yes i'm not a big pop fan

16. you love tea... herbal tea

17. you limit calories to 1400-2000 per day... um i don't know i can't count that high

18. you don't snore... my sister andrea tells me that i do!

19. you weren't overweight as a teen... most kids who live on a farm don't have time

20. you have a flat belly... when i lay down it is flat!


so i might live to be 86 years old and i am totally okay with that.
in fact, i have given stephen permission to let me die at that age.
i've
lived a good life right?

not a happy camper!

So why do i go camping?

i don't sleep because they have bear signs warning
you that a bear could attack you during the night
and carry of your children.

there is no cell phone service or
wi fi connection.

i am stuck in a piece of flannel
that is way too small for
me to be "comfortable".

i cook, clean up, cook, clean up repeat.

chime in with a comment
telling me i'm not alone in this!!!

and yet the kids love it
and i get to spend some time look at
nature and enjoying God's creations.

oh ya that's why i go camping!

a very happy birthday party

my nephew, Matthew, celebrated his 4th birthday. he loves
lightning mcqueen and was decked out in a costume.

rosa and breelle spent many, many hours making
this amazing "lightning mcqueen race track".
i would love to be a spectator sitting by
the delicious edible track!

what would you wish for if you were 4 years old again?

would you wish for this amazing balloon hat that
mom is wearing. there was a clown named petunia who entertained
the kids for an hour.

unfortunately, matthew was
scared to death of her and didn't want to
be near her!

i forgot that madeline and jacob would not
get near a clown, mascot, or santa claus for many
years. i think we're over that now!
such balloon

Ocean Front

2 posts in 1 week.

Some additional photos from our Oregon Coast trip.

i heart the ocean! I would love to
live in a little cottage by the sea.

and throw in a red convertible ;)

1 of my favorite things at the lake house... a happy boy in a kayak.

beautiful on the outside, a little crusty on the inside

after much searching, we finally found
what was it called

blue lake,
no
fish lake
no
crater lake
no
oh, clear lake. ya it was beautiful

the kids were excited to row, row, row the boat

thanks mom and dad for a great trip. happy 41st anniversary
we love you!

Beach Balls

Wow what a fun summer!

We loved our trip to the Oregon Coast.

The whole family stayed at a hotel and made the most of our $69.74!

We dominated the swimming pool. I would see hotel guests walk by and
look in but none dared to enter..... the splash zone.
So amazing canon balls were on display!

My beAutIfUl sisters in their new swimsuits.
I know what you are thinking... are they models?

Canon Ball!!!

Speaking of balls.... I went and spent a couple days with my parents at the farm. Don't ya just love getting back to your roots!

Mom and Dad treated us to Chinese food and bowling.
We happened to get the Tuesday bowling special of $1.50. AWESOME!!

Madeline got a strike, yes!
But Mom is the one who took the cake.
She scored a whopping 127. Maybe her best score ever!

We are headed tomorrow to register Madeline for middle school, sniff.

how can my cute girl be that old? Don't you remember these days?

Pieces of Summertime

I know what you are thinking... this looks
like the picture from Iwo Jima.

Actually, he is on an adventure to dig up some dinosaur bones.
Where would this amazing dig take place?
In our back yard, of course!
He has a map and is trying to find a little bit
of fossil history.

Let's hope it doesn't look like a
sprinkler pipe and we have a geyser in our back yard.

Summertime always means yummy strawberries
and we sure had a bumper crop this year!

We had so many we had to freeze some.

Nothing beats sweet strawberries with whipped cream!

We had a swim meet today and the kids are
celebrating and showing us those impressive muscles.

They belong to our local YMCA swim team and practice
everyday for an hour.

It helps with the summer bored and wear them out ;)

Jacob is having a moment of silence
before he slices through the water doing his backstroke.

He also did the butterfly, 2 relays, and the 50 yd freestyle.

Madeline loves the breast stroke and butterfly stroke.
She also competed in 2 relays and the backstroke.

It's fun to get the ribbons as well.
In fact, if you want to come visit Jacob
will pull out his swim ribbons,
4 baseball trophies, and his medals
from the PTA art program.

What are you doing to keep your kids busy this summer?

good bye elementary school

Madeline had her 5th grade BBQ last week.

I helped with the field day crab soccer game. It was a lot of fun watching kids get in the "crab walk" and try to kick a ginormous soccer ball.
It was overcast most of the day and the sun came
about about the time of the water balloon fight, perfect!

Mr A was giving the 5th graders a big long boring speech and then he said the code word "summertime" and all the parents launched the water balloons!

It was awesome!
We had a great time running around and getting wet. I saved 3 water balloons and used them after all the right were gone. That's the best, when you are the only one with ammunition.

I got Mr A, Madeline, and another kid from her class.

When I got home I noticed my neck was a little red, so i put some aloe on it and ran off to Jacob's last baseball game. When I got home it was very red.
Well, I have had my share of sunburns thru the years being blonde and blue eyes it comes with the territory, but this is the MOTHER of all sunburns.
My kids and husband are NOT allowed to touch me unless it is below the knees. It has been 5 days and it is skill red but not RED!!! Yikes, I should have listened to that little voice that said "put some sunscreen on!!!"

We live and learn! Madeline will be off to middle school next year, ready or not!

I'm not, but she is... sniff.