The USS Sampson....

Well...our ship came in as part of SeaFair. The USS Sampson is a 510ft Destroyer (I had hoped for a yacht, but a destroyer will do ;) )

There were two or three Coast Guard ships protecting the Sampson the entire time it was there. We watched them escort every boat that came close - even a guy in a kayak. Notice the large machine guns on the ship...would have scared me to death...

The tour took a full hour and we got to climb all over the ship.

I turned around and saw the kids had found a place to sit...I quickly took a picture before panicking and telling them to get up. They were sitting where the missile's launch...super safe. Then I had them stand before the long range gun - we were told they could hit something 9 miles away.

Here are some of the crew. The first picture is one of the members of the VBSS (Visit Board Search and Seizure) crew. He said that they can board and take control of a ship in under five minutes. Apparently the Sampson biggest advantage is its speed, and they have two little boats they use to move to the other ships they have named "lightening" and "thunder"...

Some more pictures....

No more training wheels!!!

Kenzie has learned to ride a bike without training wheels! We are so proud of her. Here are some action shots:

Jack loves his scooter and is starting to do tricks. I couldn't get a good shot, but isn't he handsome :)

... and this is where Jaron was while they were outside

Menatchee Adventures....

The Sorensen's have once again invited us over to play! We had so much fun! On Saturday we went to Leavenworth and went hiking up in the canyon. It was so beautiful!


After hiking, we went in to tour the cute Bavarian town and listen to the polka band playing in the square. We had gelato first at this really great place. I don't know the name, but I would highly recommend it.

After leaving Leavenworth, we went back to Wenatchee (Onatchee, Menatchee, depending on which kid you talk to) and we went swimming in the Columbia River. It was the coldest water I have ever been in. Ben and Gray decided not to be part of the fun.

We had so much fun - Thanks Sorensen's!!!

Running Crazy....

I have run several races the last couple of months and wanted to post my accomplishments and brag a little bit ;)I ran the Sound to Narrows 5k with Zanda and Roger Nelson - It was really fun but we didn't see the Sound or the Narrows bridge :)

I ran the Rock n' Roll Half Marathon for the second year and beat my goal time by 5 minutes. I was slower than last year, but considering I had major surgery the first of the year and didn't a lot of training time - I still feel really good about it.


Last weekend I had the awesome opportunity to run in the Warrior Dash - 3.55 miles and 12 obstacles that included jumping over fire, climbing over junkyard cars, crawling under barbed wire through a foot of soft mud, and 8 other very scary obstacles. We received an awesome Viking helmet, a medal, a cool t-shirt, and a gigantic turkey leg. I ran it with DeAnn and her niece Kaylee. It was totally filthy, but SO much fun. Thanks DeAnn for giving me this experience for my birthday!!

Here are some before the race pictures:


After the race we were hosed down by a giant fire hose to get all the mud off. We changed clothes and got a turkey leg...then headed home for a shower!



I'm hanging up my shoes for a few months and just doing "good for me" running - no more challenges for a while!

Jack's Baptism and Family Fun....

Jack got baptized on Saturday July 2nd! We are so proud of him! Thanks to everyone who came and all the family who participated.

My sisters Mandy and Brenda and my Brother Nathan came with their families and my parents and spent a few days after the baptism with us. Here is a picture of the entire crew:

On Saturday after the baptism Jack asked if he could get in the pool:

After we got him out of the box, we filled up the pool in our backyard and everyone had a good time. The two younger boys Jaron and Cooper weren't quite sure they were ready to go out with everyone.

Sunday after church we went to see the locks in Ballard and had a picnic at the park there. It was a beautiful day and they had a band playing while we ate. So much fun!!

After we went to the Seattle Temple to see the beautiful grounds. Here is a picture of all the grandkids (except Mary) that were here. I also included a picture of Grandma taking a picture for those siblings that weren't here to watch :)

Monday the 4th of July we spent the majority of the day at Alki beach in West Seattle. I managed to only get one picture but you will have to take my word for it that we had a great time.

We had a barbecue and shot fire works from our backyard. The majority of the crew had to leave at 5 am on the 5th, so we had to finish the fireworks early. Kenzie and Grandma don't like the sounds and several other kids joined them to watch Tangled instead. Kenz actually fell asleep with her hands covering her ears.

This is a typical "end of the day" shot with Kathy (Nate's wife) reading to the kids.

Family is so awesome!