Happy 4th Birthday Samantha

I had intended to write a few notes with these pictures when I posted them 4 days ago, somehow I got distracted and 4 days later I am finally getting around to it... now I notice that the pictures are not in the proper order. Oh well, so it goes sometimes. We started Samantha's big day with a delicious breakfast, then off to the market for the morning - not to worry, we decorated our tent with balloons and all the other vendors wished her a happy birthday. After the market we came home for presents, swimming and cake and ice cream. That evening we set off fireworks which has become a tradition for Samantha's birthday since it is so close to the 4th of July. Emily was exhausted from the busy day so she missed out on the fireworks, but she did not seem to mind, sleeping soundly on the couch.







On Monday we invited some of Samantha's favorite friends (that live near us, not to be confused with all her favorite friends that are spread all over the country) over for some swimming and cupcake decorating. She had a super birthday and we are so grateful to have her in our family. She is a happy soul and while I am delighted that she is growing and I get to see her personality develop, I am a little saddened that my baby is now 4 - where did the time go? Did I take enough pictures that I have documentation to reflect on when she has babies of her own? Boy it goes by way to fast - stay tuned to my next post or two when I will repeat this sentiment when I post Jacob's 13th birthday!

Happy 4th of July!

For the 4th of July we had a few friends over on Saturday evening. We set off bottle rockets during the day, had a BBQ and went swimming. This is all the kids watching the parachute guy come back to the ground.
The swimming was so fun that I didn't get too many pictures.

Once the sun went down, James helped everyone with the fireworks show. We had sparklers, big and little fountains and ice cream cones for a treat.



What a fun way to end the day.
On Monday we went canoeing and kayaking with our good friends the Sandstroms. We had a great time with our friends and just as it was getting a little hot, we stopped and played in the river, had some lunch and gave the kids a chance to try out the kayaks. This is Sarah and Emily paddling around the swimming area.
Samantha ready for some lunch.Emily trying out some paddling.
Kathryn and Jacob took turns on a kayak we rented, they both had a great time with it.
James spent most of the day manning the other canoe, but when we stopped at a swimming area for lunch he took a turn with the kayak.
My friend Minna and I took our two youngest with us - Emma and Samantha.
After earning his canoeing merit badge at camp, Jacob was quite good at the canoe and the kayak. We had a great time and will definitely go again!

Jacob's First Scout Camp (written by Jacob)

This is my troop. My Dad got to come the whole week. They are a nice bunch of boys.

My Dad and I got to go river rafting on one of the days. We took two of my friends and had a blast. We went on the Ocoee River in Tennessee. Our guide taught my Dad how to steer the raft. I will definitely do it again.

I got to do a lot of canoeing and kayaking. I like the sea kayaks the best. I earned my canoeing merit badge. It was one of my favorites.
They have a sideways climbing wall that was pretty hard. They had a competition called the Iron Man Competition to see how fast you could get across the wall. I did it in 1 minute, 15 seconds.
This is my Environmental Science class. The teacher was pretty funny. I earned this badge too.
I earned 7 merit badges at camp: Canoeing, Mammal Study, Swimming, Indian Lore, Reading, Tracking, and Environmental Science. Camp was awesome!

A visit to Idaho

I went to Idaho to get together with my siblings and bury our mother's ashes in her home town. We were able to spend a day at the Teton National Park and visit Jenny Lake. We hiked to hidden falls (a family tradition from our childhood). It was great to see my siblings, sorry my sister Lynne was unable to make it, but we will shoot for all 6 of us another time.

Happy Memorial Day!

After the Cotton Row Run we invited some friends over for a barbeque. We had sack races, played baseball, ulimate frisbee, spun in hula hoops, visited with friends and ate lots of yummy food. Earlier in the week Sarah, Emily and Samantha were invited to a friend's house to make cards and tie a quilt for a soilder serving over seas. It was a wonderful Memorial Day.

Cotton Row Run 2010

The Cotton Row run was great this year. James, Jacob and I ran the 5K and the girls ran the 1 mile fun run with help from James and our friend Ruth-Anne. We got pictures of everyone running (thanks Julie and Jacob) except Kathryn, she just ran past too fast! We look forward to running it again next year. And no, I was not about to pass out even though my face was bright red - it just does that...

15 Years and Counting! YIPPEEEE!!!

James and I just celebrated our 15th anniversary. We ran away from home for a couple of days to the Smoky Mountains. We took the RV and pulled a trailer with motorcycles. Our dirt bikes are street legal so we rode all over the Smoky Mountain Park, on and off road. Needless to say we had a super time. The first day included 50 miles, sleet, cold wind, crab and steak for dinner and a movie in the evening. The second day we rode to the top of the mountain, encountered ice on the road, but sunshine the rest of the day. We went 100 miles that day, including creek crossings, wooded dirt roads, seeing lots of wildlife and enjoyed another delicious meal and a movie in the evening. I LOVE camping in our RV it is so luxurious. The last 15 years have been wonderful and we look forward to many, many more.