Solo Trip

This fall I had the opportunity to take a trip back east with my Dad and sister. We met some longtime friends of ours Jan and Butch. Jan was a very close friend of my mom's.

We stayed in Cape Cod and visited Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket. The weather was very nice for most of the days, and the scenery beautiful. So many picturesque churches and beautiful architecture.

It was a gorgeous day on the ferry to Nantucket Island. Susie and I did some fun shopping and sightseeing.

We all enjoyed delicious food. Susie and I like to share meals so it makes it very convenient!

We had a great time with Dad and the group. Fortunately we all love (or can tolerate) lots of shopping.

This was the first time I was away from Deiana for more than one night. I was able to call her every day, and she was at home with her dad and brother.

I did receive a couple of unexpected phone calls due to her cutting her own hair (got the round brush stuck), and getting a referral for pushing a boy on recess (long term crush on him). Coincidence or acting out due to my being gone??? Guess we'll never know. Either way it was good practice for when we go on our cruise in February.

Second Grader

Deiana was so excited for school to begin, and to be in the second grade. She picked this outfit out herself and looked so cute. Hair has a way of coming undone by the time the school day is over.

You may have noticed she is now wearing glasses. I had meant to have her eyes checked at the beginning of the summer, but kept putting it off. We finally went in at the last minute one day before vacation. I didn't really have any concerns but I had noticed her squinting. Well, her vision is not that great and she needs to wear glasses all of the time. We got two pair of cute glasses and I was glad they arrived before school started. She loves them and has not had them off since getting them.

She looked so cute the second day I had to take a couple more shots. She is waiting for the bus with her dog Tasha.

We are off to a good start, she LOVES school, it is SO FUN!

Birthday Girl

Hard to believe but our little girl is 8. This will be her fourth birthday celebration with us and she is really getting very grown up. We spent her birthday at the beach and will have a party next week-end. She got a Wii for her birthday and she is in heaven.
Happy Birthday sweet girl, we love you so much.

Vacation part 2, the beach

Deiana and Grandpa

Deiana, Grandpa, and me.

Dinner partners.

Immediately after returning from the camping trip, we headed to the beach for the remainder of the week. Grandpa came too so it was extra special. We had wonderful weather into the mid 80's. We spent a lot of time on the beach, and did some relaxing, bike riding, shopping and eating out!

Deiana loves her Grandpa (and his I-pad!)

It all came to an end too soon, but Deiana is excited for returning to school. She is really missing her social life!

Family Camping Trip

We decided to take an extra trip camping this summer, as we have not had a lot of good weather to enjoy the boat. So we headed to Prineville with Jeremy, Sarah, Jordan and his friends Dave and Maddie.


We had good weather and practically had the campground to ourselves! Lots of fun on the boat. Jordan and Dave tubing.

Dave and Maddie tubing.

Jeremy and Sarah, the wild tubing pair.

Deiana loves a wild ride too, with Jeremy.

Deiana is perfecting her wakeboarding skills!

Way to go little girl!

Once Jordan figured it out, he had no trouble.

Jeremy is good at jumps but I didn't

catch any good action shots.

It was nice to spend time with the young people, but I do prefer a resort with a restaurant and a pool!

Crescent Lake 2011

We went on our annual camping trip with our friends. This year we went to Crescent Lake. It is a beautiful lake in the mountains. It is a little bit chilly and there were swarms of mosquitoes, but that didn't stop us from having fun.

We had our boat this year, along with several others belonging to our friends. Deiana did some tubing, and tried her hand at water skiing. She did great considering the temperature of the water!

Rosie came along but fortunately we were able to leave the other dogs at home!!

As usual Deiana hung out with the older "kids" and they were so nice to her. Here is a little video of the water skiing experience.

Braces

Deiana is sporting some new braces this summer. They are the first step in her ongoing orthodontia treatment. They will get her teeth aligned and begin preparation for the bone graft (in the cleft area) which will be performed next summer. They will be on for about 18 months. She did great at the orthodontist's office and didn't complain at all. Her teeth have already moved quite a bit and are more visible.
One of the advantages of getting braces at a young age, they are COOL.

Girls Beach Trip

Aunt Susie, Deiana and I went on a fun beach trip. We did a lot of shopping, some relaxing, beach walking, and a trip to the salon. We all went on the tilt-a-whirl, but as you can see above Deiana was the only one up for a second round. Some of us just can't tolerate spinning like we use to!
We had some decent weather, but still waiting for some real summer weather. We'll be back to the beach in August, hoping for more fun and sun.

4th of July

Deiana and Grandpa

Jeremy, Jordan, Alex and Grandpa

I think they look like brothers!

We had a very uneventful fourth of July this year. I had to work the 3rd and the 4th, so a fireworks display was out. (One of the joys of being a nurse) We had a Sunday gathering with our family, Grandpa, and my nephew Alex and his girlfriend who happend to be in town for a wedding.We don't have much planned this week, but we may be off to the beach next week for a "girls trip". Finally some nice weather around here!

House Painting

After 14 years, we finally had our house re-painted. The original paint job lasted so well we really didn't need to do it sooner, but the trim looked pretty bad. It was teal and rose colored and screamed 90's!
The more I looked at paint samples the more I couldn't stand to look at the house. Its hard to appreciate the colors and overall look of the paint job but it looks fantastic! We did not do the work ourselves as our house is very tall, especially in the back.

Now I am working on the yard. A lot of plants were dead or overgrown in the front. I have removed and trimmed but still need some bark and more color.

Deiana has been at (day) camp this week so I've had some free time to get some work done.

Now if we'd just get some summer weather!