One of the Summer's Best Activities

Boat camping!
We went up to Lucky Peak with Rich & Jo and the kids this past weekend. 

There's nothing better than August sunshine.

 This little guy stuck his hand in the curley cheetos and exclaimed, "There's nothing like a fresh Cheeto", complete with a big sigh.

 The best part of this year's boat camping?  It has to be telling stories in the tent.  Gordon, Jess and I had Cam and Eli in the tent with us.  Gordon told them "The Three Pigs" complete with actions and I interjected when I could. We told them "The Three Bears" and some other stories.  When things died down a bit, Eli said, "Now let's tell freaky stories", and he proceeded to do so.  It was so much fun

Rich & Jo did all the food, which was nice for us. 
Fun, fun, very fun.

Simon and Grace

Simon and Grace, taken on the 4th of July.  Grace has her daddy's carmel skin and Simon has beautiful auburn hair. 

They look like they are communicating. 

I wonder what they're saying?

Simon:  Whoa!  I didn't see you there.

Grace:  I've been staring at you for the last 5 minutes.

or

Grace:  Why do you have that big-eyed look on your face?

Simon:  My dad says sometimes my eyes look like I am headed downhill on a roller coaster.  But I can't believe I just saw Scott eat 7 pieces of french toast.

or

Grace:  What in the world is that smell?

Simon:  Is it you?

Grace:  No - is it you?

Simon:  Well if it's not you and it's not me, then who.....

or

Simon: This is turning out to be as good as I thought it would.

Grace: I could tell we were going to feel a lot of love when we got here.,

Simon:  Ya, I'm glad we're in this together.

Grace:  Me too.

Baby Grace

Baby Grace is now 2 1/2 months old, the age where their personality starts to show and they begin to interact with those around them.  She is no exception.  I have tried and tried to get a picture of James at 3 months to post along with this but my tech-savvy talents have their limits.  Even though concensus is that she looks like Suzanne, I would argue that the two pictures look a lot alike. 

It does look like she's going to have brown eyes, though, like her dad.  She has her mom's cute little lips and makes some of the cutest, funniest little faces with them. 

 Like this......

She is a sweetie pie and we are so glad she came to our family!

Some really great pictures of Gordon

 I got up Saturday morning (of course he was up before me) and found Gordon weeding the garden.  Love the glasses:)

 I just had to have another picture, so I went out and hollered for him to look my way.  No luck, thanks to his i-pod.  I finally got up close and personal and startled him.

This next one is my personal favorite.

Working in the garage in his watering boots, pajama pants, both sets of eyeglasses & hat.  The only thing missing is the headlamp.

He really believes in dressing for the occasion, don't you think?

Family Time

July is such a fun month.  It's warm (or HOT, like I like it) & the weather is good. 

It's also a gathering time for families.

 Miriam modeling her new swim suit for us.

 What a great view of the Black Marauder at Cascade lake.  We had a lot of fun waterskiing/boating.

 The kids & grandkids even got to ride the horses for a while.

 We used the Ewing family (Laura's) boat dock for the day.  It was fabulous.

 Gordon doing his famous "jump off the dock" waterski start. 

I had the cutest picture of the two new babies; Grace and Simon.  It was corrupted somehow and wouldn't print.  The most special event of the week was Grace's baby blessing.  She has grown so much since this picture.  More pictures soon.
Be sure to scroll down for more pictures of the week.

Family Time Continued.....

Party time for the Birds on July 4th!  We packed a lot of fun into a few days and it didn't disappoint.

What a dilema. 

 Eli was so happy to roast marshmellows.  I think he's our future pyro.

 Grandpa got some unexpected cuddle time with Miriam.

 Three men and a little lady.

 Cam idolizes his dad.

Most mothers know how it feels to have this kind of time with your family when the kids have left the nest.