goodbye, mainland!

after three weeks away, it was time to head back to the island. we had such a great visit with so so many special people. (of course, we missed some of you but will try hard to make it up on our next trip.) when the crummy weather hits this winter, our door is open... we love visitors!

we flew out early saturday morning so we headed up to shanny's house on friday. we are so blessed to have mike and shanny in our lives. they open their wonderful home up to us, we come in like a storm, tear it apart, eat their food, and then just like that...we leave. :) our evening at their house was extra special because we got to visit with some old friends, and my nieces.

these two i tell ya, get them together and they work up mischief.

a little backyard ring around the rosy.

coen. daphne. bella. gianna.

thank you yet again, mike and shanny, for letting us whirl through your house. it was so fun to see you guys...get over here soon! xo

medford

we spent our last week on the mainland in southern oregon with my family. lots of good fun was had and it was nice to just hang out and let coen entertain us. here are some highlights:

swimming in fav nick's pool.

yes, my child has to wear headgear in the pool. thanks, tubes.

a lawn mower. a boat. a swing. a fish.

gotta love papa john's house

big big trucks. gotta love papa's work.

hot tubbing.

papa george snuggles.

grandmas garden.

hanging in the backyard.

a really big boat

last night papa john treated us to a ride on the hellgate jetboat excursion. this is one of the best things southern oregon has to offer. let me tell you, it is quite the operation. 5 boats and over 300 people...wowza! not only that, but they run lunch and dinner trips 7 days a week plus brunch on the weekends. and pretty much are always sold out. craziness! it's no wonder why.

coen was really excited about the big boat...

okay, maybe the excitement only lasted .5 seconds after

they started up the really big engines. big boats, go really fast.

oh and, you get wet...really wet.

thank God i had a (sleepy time only) paci with me.

he did settle in after about 30 minutes, as long as i was holding

onto him really, really tight.

the beautiful rouge river and the hellgate caynon.

oh and some nesting ospreys with their babies!

the jet boat takes you on an hour ride down river,

then drops you off at the ok coral.

the ok coral is an all you can eat and drink restaurant

that is included in your ticket price.

it is sooooo beautiful and the food is pretty darn good.

after a big meal we had time to walk around.

coen loved running in the big grassy lawn

and throwing rocks in the river.

he waved to each boat as they loaded up,

but was pretty sure he didn't want to get back on our boat.

thankfully i convinced him!

i think i want to do the jetboat trip every summer. how can you not?

it was soooooo fun.

thanks papa john for all the good memories!

grand daughter lunch

nikki, keely and i took our adorable grandma out to lunch this week. i wish we could do this more often, but i am thankful for the fun times we do have together. it was a fun, food filled lunch date! xo

ribs...yummy yummy

we are spending our last week of vacation in medford visiting my family, and wes decided he wanted to treat us all to yummy yummy ribs. if you have had these ribs before, you understand exactly what a treat they are. in fact, my aunt who lives an hour and a half away caught word mid afternoon that ribs were being made, and she jumped in the car to join us. it was a great evening hanging out in the backyard and chowing down till our bellies hurt. big thanks to everyone who came and enjoyed the feast with us!

stinson love

another week. more great beach memories. here some highlights from our time at stinson...

miss libby riding some big pacific waves. wes was a super great coach.

beach babes soaking up the sun sand.

the boys plotted to get grandma down to the beach. priceless.

coen and wes hiked in muir woods while mama was shopping.

((also priceless))

celebrating aunt mary's beautiful life and her love of stinson beach.

it was a wonderful way to say goodbye to such a joyful person.

french riviera

our last theme night was hosted by the lohmeier's (wes' aunt and family) and was a delicious french riviera theme. it was very classy...cause well, they are classy people. aunt laura had the kids paint french impressionist pictures, which coen loved. the food was a labor of love and it was perfect...eh, i mean parfait.

the menu: beef bourguignon, spinach & strawberry salad,

bacon green beans, and fresh berry crepes.

ristorante mazzini

the mazzini girls (grampa's nieces) hosted a wonderful italian themed dinner at their lagoon house on monday night. wes and i were pretty busy chasing coen around and didn't get many pictures...bummer. but, the theme was just perfectly done. antipasti platters were served in pizza boxes, an inflatable pool filled with purple water balloons for "grape stomping", a wine bar, and lots of gooooood food. perhaps the highlight for me was when dessert filled pizza boxes where delivered to the table...love. very well thought out and planned, you girls rock!

the menu: pasta bar with alfredo, pesto, & marinara sauces, grilled chicken,

caesar salad, garlic bread, lemon cheesecake and assorted chocolate filled pizza boxes.

happy 24th of july

night 2 was hosted by the hoeffner's (grandma's sister & family) and it was an independence day theme on the 24th of july. they did a really good job and everything looked and tasted great. we even got to watch fireworks on the big screen tv. nice job guys, we had a blaaaaast!

the menu: bbq chicken tenders, sourdough bread salad (amazing!),

corn on the cobb, watermelon & pound cake with berries

ole!

our annual beach trip has grown to nearly 50 people. you know what that means? lots and lots of fun, food, family, and um....more fun. everyone is spread out into a total of 5 beach houses, and each night a house hosts a themed dinner party. we always kick it off big with a reoccurring fiesta theme. as always pop pop whipped up some very delightful mexican food, and wes ran the margarita station. no one went hungry. no one ever had an empty glass. the kids were never bored. um...success!

the menu: green chicken chili enchiladas, carnitas tacos,

black beans, cabbage slaw & sopapillas

getting creative with the stick on mustaches...

enjoying our backyard of sand, and decorating sombreros.

ole! our good friend sanjoy joined us for the night...lucky us!

no fiesta would be complete without a pinata!

there are some serious pinata whackers in this family.

and maybe some equally as serious candy eaters.

hello, stinson beach

hello, chilly water.

hello, bits of sunshine.

hello, cutie pie kids.

hello, themed dinner nights.

hello, stinson beach, hello!

slumba party

wes had to fly to berkley for a meeting, so our last 2 nights in seattle we slumber partied it up with bella and gianna. we also invited some gooooood friends over to hang out. our week in seattle was so fun, but went by way too fast. can't wait to see you all again!

we love you bella, gianna, allie, abby, and baby b!

coen informed me that, "gianna is my best friend."

hard to handle this much cuteness.

we love dizzy bus

lots of dizzy fun with cousins...yea!

fun with friends

many of our friends in washington have had adorable babies since we left. it is so fun to get know all of their cute cute personalities. coen is one of the oldest, and um...biggest, and he just loves to play with all his friends.

sweet quinn

whitney came over to cut wes and coen's hair.

the best part? the boys got to play.

coen is such a giant next to quinn.

the best shot of the munchkins i could get.

coen is spent on having his picture taken.

picnic fun with some cuuuuuute kids...

beckett quinn harper & coen

lady bugs are pretty cool too.

thanks for playing friends...can't wait till we can do it again!

cutie-pie cousins

lots and LOTS of cute cousin fun going on this week. i love that these 3 play so well together. they also really truly love being together. it is SO fun to watch. here is a look at what the trio has been up to.

waterslide fun at the dizzy bus.

bella was too cool for school, but quickly changed her mind

when she saw what fun thing 1 & thing 2 were having.

"you are really gonna let me drive this bus?"

yes, coen...in 14 years you can come work for aunt dizzy.

some light reading material on the bus.

i love how they are all reading the same brochure, yet also reading each others.

a little snack break. sharing is caring...easier said than done.

yesterday afternoon bella and gia came over to play.

well, bella came and took a nap on the couch

while the two little bits ran circles around her.

didn't even phase miss bella b, she slept through the whole play date.

oh thing 1 & thing 2, you sure make us laugh...

we love your quirky personalities!

excited we have a couple more days of cousin fun, and even a cousin sleepover!

i wonder how much sleeping will be going on?!