Cousins!!!!

When we got home from CA we had an invasion of cousins at our house... a planned one! Matt and Julie and kids were here in Arizona while we were in Santa Clarita. Why do you leave San Diego in the summer to vacation in Arizona? I hear it is two things 1. We have air conditioning and 2. The Pool. The kids were excited to get back to the cousins and they had a fun time together for the day we overlapped.



Jack and Jake swimming.



Courtney and Anna.



Jessica, Anna and Caleb on a simultaneous jump.



Jack's reaction to all that fun!

(pictures compliments of Julie)

The Friends

When I moved to California in 96, Trish Vaughan was one of the first people I met there. A short while later I met her sister and husband, Jeff and Shari Beck. The same year Derek and I got married, Trish and Joey Newton got married. This is a picture of what has happened since then! Jeff and Shari have three little girls. The oldest, Cambria, was in Anna's Master's Kid's class two years ago. They are the three surrounding Anna in the picture. Trish and Joey also have three little girls. Ellie is to the left of Jack and Bethany is far left in the picture. Their youngest and Luke are missing from the picture... eating and napping respectively. 10 kids and only 2 boys! Look at Jack surrounded by all those ladies! They had fun playing and Derek and I had a nice time seeing old friends.

More California Dreamin'

More on our CA trip...


Anna and Luke digging.



Jack smiling his handsome, chipped-tooth smile!



Now I would have never let my first child chew on driftwood at the beach. Luke, I'm sorry, I hope you survive!



Alan & Karin, Kenny & Kathy, Trish, and Derek enjoying the Linahan's backyard!

More California Dreamin'

More from our trip 'home' to California...



Leah and Uncle Kenny enjoying the trampoline.



Leah and Aunt Kathy... she's not so sure about those waves, but she was braver (got closer) than the others! No surprise.



In hunt of sea shell treasures. Or sea glass. Or just stumps of wood!



Before we moved last spring, we went to Gladstones and afterwards were out on the beach for awhile and got our picture taken. This time you can see Luke in the picture!

California Dreamin'

The last week of July we were able to go back to California to visit for a week. It was soooo nice to see familiar friends and places and to see Kenny and Kathy. The Linahans graciously allowed us to stay at their house and we had a lot of fun!



Leah hanging out pool-side with her baby.




Boomer, the Linahan's dog! The kids want a dog soooo bad, mostly the older two. The funny thing is that Leah and Luke were by far the bravest in light of Boomer's barking and licking. The couches and chairs in the Linahan's house were considered the 'Boomer-safe' zone by Anna so she spent most of her week hopping from one couch to another to a chair and then rushing to her final destination. Favorite phrase of the week, 'Stay, Boomer! Stay, Boomer! Stay, Boomer!' which all three older kids used regularly even if he wasn't in site. They did love him, though, and they all still really want a dog. I think they relaxed a little more around the non-barking, non-licking cats in the garage. Boomer was such a good sport to put up with us-- as if he had a choice :)!



Uncle Kenny, Dad and Jack 'hoopin' it up' in the pool.



Can you say Wana Iguana?

Pool or Bath?

This has been our pool temperature of late. Actually, I think this was one of the cooler days in the pool!

Mid July

For some reason we didn't get many pictures taken before we left for California. Here are a couple from one morning in mid-July!