Happy Holidays!

SO here we are between Christmas and New Years and I haven't posted anything since the kids started school. Of course I will be the first to admit that I am not the best at keeping something like this up to date. So where have we been and where are we now?

School has been great so far this year. Both kids love their teachers and we feel they are really thriving. Savi still loves art and horses. Every other day or so she comes home with some picture (usually of a horse) that she has drawn for us. With report cards she received a letter from her teacher with glowing compliments about what a great example she is to her fellow students. She also just finished up on swim lessons. She is learning to dive now. The teacher starts them off by diving from the side off their knees. By the end of the class Savi was the only one the teacher had diving from a stand. We are very proud of her all the time.

Daniel still loves words, science and math. He loves to know how things work and wants to be able to control everything... He in that regard reminds me a lot of my self, kind of scary! Daniel also got his report card and is a full grade level ahead in most areas. This wasn't a surprise to us but it is always kind of nice to know that it is recognized by someone else and not just me being an over proud parent. He also just went through swim classes. A couple of years ago he slipped in the pool and sank to the bottom for a couple of seconds and has been unwilling to put his face in the water since. He has been through the entry level lessons six times... He finally passed! He put his face in the water and floated on his back.

Ian is growing out of baby stage and into little boys stage. It is sad, happy and oh so cute all at once. He got an official big boy hair cut and I swear he grew up in a matter of minutes. It was such a huge change that some people didn't even recognize him. He is talking like crazy in full complete sentences using word like "delicious" and "I love it" or "that's my favorite!" He is my rough and tumble boy and is constantly rolling or jumping off of things. He even chipped his front tooth the other day.

Todd started working at a new company, Success Factors, at the beginning of December. Although it has only been a few weeks things seem to be going really well. He has been doing a ton of training, and the people he is working with seem to be a great fit. He works from home now which will be a big change for us. It is definitely taking some getting used to. I having to just pretend in my mind when he heads to the office that he has left the house. I even call him instead of going in there to try and not bug him too much.

As for myself my life pretty much consists of all of the things you just read above. I love my family and they are my life. Between home, school, church, Ian's schedule, running a brownie troop, making sure to take a little time to take care of my marriage, and just keeping up with life I really don't do much outside of that. I am coming to the realization that I do need to find something for me. I am considering taking some dance classes, or maybe photography. I'm not really sure, but I do think it is healthy for a stay at home mom to find something to call her own. I'm not saying I am unsatisfied or unhappy. I am proud of my family and that they are in part a reflection of me. I just need a little something that helps me recharge...

Anyways, I hope your holidays are lovely I know mine was.

What a Summer

So the summer started off with the craziness of both Savannah and Ian's birthdays. Savi had a sleep over and for Ian we just had a few friends over. Can't believe my oldest is already seven and my youngest is two now!

Most of our Saturdays this summer were taken up with working on the Hope Garden. I think I may have mentioned the garden in an earlier blog, but here's a recap of what it is. In January our church started a food pantry to provide food to the local community in need. Around February it was brought to our attention that most of the people receiving food had no access to fresh healthy vegetables. Our church sits on 8 acres of land and a large part of it was grass. We can up with a plan to plant a garden on the unused land and provide produce to the food pantry. It took us until March to get it planned out and brought to reality, but starting mid to end of June we were able to start harvesting and we have pulled hundreds of pounds of food out each week and sent them home with needy families. The greatest part is it is a project that our kids can be a part of too! You can look at some pictures of the garden by cutting and pasting this site to your browser http://picasaweb.google.com/hopegardenvol

On the 4th of July Savannah's Girl Scout troop marched in the local parade and threw candy to the crowd. It was a HOT day and the troop did an awesome job walking over two miles in the parade! Afterwards we headed of to our good friends' house (Trainer's) and had a BBQ and then walked over to the nearby park for the fireworks. Tons of fun!

Over the weeks of Summer we made several trips to Long Beach (always a fun time). Savi had Girl Scout camp and because I was a counselor at it Daniel gat to be part of a small group of boys called the "Tag-alongs." They both had a blast doing out door stuff all week. We also took several trips to the zoo, the Children's Museum, the parks, the "free movies" at the theaters, the Cupcake story time at Bliss, and the All comers track meet in Hillsboro (Daniel and I were sick that day so only Todd and Savi and Ian went to that one).

In August I joined Todd on a business trip to Washington DC. Although it was short I had a really great time. I was there for two full days. One day I went and walked around all the monuments. It was really neat but my feet were so tired! The second day I just relaxed. I was nice to have a bit of time for myself, and the kids got to enjoy some time with their grandparents.

At the end of the month we managed to get in a quick trip to Yakima to visit my family. We were only there for 24 hrs but had a great time staying with Uncle Scot and Angie and seeing my Grandpa and Grandma Levno (my dad's side) and having lunch with my Grandpa Bob (my mom's dad). We even enjoyed some fresh huckleberries on the way home. All in all a great trip.

Now school is underway and life is trying to settle into some sort of a schedule. Savannah is loving second grade and daniel is ecstatic about going to kindergarten. You can check out the pictures of our summer at http://picasaweb.google.com/teverett. Hope your summer was as great as ours!

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Savi and Ian's birthday's

So here we are mid June already. Two of my three kids have gained a year and it has been a wonderful fun filled month so far.

The month started off with Savi's school hosting the Feast and Festival, a carnival like thing for the kids to celebrate the end of the school year. I worked at one of the booths while Todd took the kids around to play games, and win candy and "money" to buy prizes with. We all had a blast.

The next day we hosted Savi's birthday party. It was the 6th instead of the 8th, but she wanted a sleepover and the 8th, her real birthday, was a weekday and she still had school. For her party she had two friends over and they went to Build-a-Bear. They each got a bear and a couple of accessories. We then picked up some cheesecake (Savi's favorite) from the Cheesecake Factory. The girls were up talking and giggling until 10:30 p.m. and up before 5:30 a.m. Needless to say we had some tired girls that afternoon.

Monday was her actual birthday so we had family over to celebrate. It was great to see everyone.

The rest of the week was a blur, Todd was out of town and I was planning a garage sale. They always take more work than I remember. Todd was supposed to come home Thursday but due to weather in Dallas he was stuck until Friday evening. So I got to do all the final preparations for the sale myself. He got home, the garage sale ended successfully on Saturday then we met up with Todd's brothers, Dad and Laurie to celebrate father's day and all the June birthdays with them. The next day, Sunday, Todd had to be at church early for worship and that evening we had company. By the end of the day Sunday I was exhausted!

Monday and Tuesday I took off. I pretty much didn't do anything. It was really nice. Then Wednesday we drove to Long Beach to visit my family. We celebrated Ian turning two and Father's day with my dad. It was a really lovely three days, only wish it were longer.

Saturday Todd took Daniel fishing with a group from our church for Father's Day. Everyone had a ton of fun even though it was a slightly drizzly day. That evening we hosted a BBQ to celebrate Ian again with a few friends and Todd's side of the family.

Now here we are on Father's day morning. Todd has had his breakfast in bed, we are ready for church and this afternoon we head to the Unger farm for the annual Strawberry Feed! All you can eat fresh local strawberries, what more could you ask for!

A Long Day

So Todd got home from one of his longer trips late last night.  Then early this morning he got up and headed to the church.  Today was Spring planting at the Hope garden.  After today it actually looks like a garden and not just a bunch of rows of dirt.  I came and helped for the first time and it was a lot of fun! Savi help dig small trenches and spread fertilizer and Daniel helped keep Ian out of trouble.  I ran the string down four 40 foot rows of pole beans that we planted today.  Let me tell you my arms are tired!  Todd and Rob pounded the posts and strung the main wires for the pole bean and also plant rows of peppers, garlic, and lots of other stuff.  It will be fun once the seeds start to sprout!

About three hours into the day I decided the kids needed to go home so I hopped in the car to leave... The car won't start. I was also taking our friend Rob's son home with me to nap while they finished planting so we transfered everything to Rob's car and I went home leaving Todd and Rob to figure out what was wrong with our car. The AAA guy came and said let me try something... He pulled out a hammer and reached under our car and hit it on the gas tank. It started.  I guess our fuel filter was clogged, he knocked it loose and the car could start.  We still have to have that changed, but at least it isn't something REALLY major!

After everyone got home and cleaned up we headed out to The Reserve (a golf course around here) to do dinner for my brother-in-law Brian.  We ate good food, sat outside and enjoyed the beautiful weather, and hung out with good people.  

All in all, other than a mid-day speed bump, a lovely day!  

Crazy weekend

To start things off I would like to a huge thank you to anyone who has served our country.  For those of you I know I am honored to have you as part of my life! For anyone who may read this that I don't know thank you as well.

So we had a long weekend... Why is it we always seem to think that because we have one extra day off we can fit an entire weeks worth of activities into the weekend?  It may have been crazy busy and I may feel like I need a vacation from my long weekend, but it was wonderful none the less.

Saturday morning started at 8:30 a.m. and I didn't get back to my house until 11 p.m.  I can't complain about the start of the day considering my first activity was getting a pedicure.  Nice start of the weekend! After that I met Todd at the church where he had been once again working on the food pantry garden.  (If I haven't mentioned this Todd and I took on organizing a garden to supply fresh produce to the food pantry our church has started) At church we had a luncheon to go to.  I then left the luncheon a little early and took Savi out to the country side to a birthday party at a horse farm.  She was in heaven!  Each girl got to ride for almost an hour.  She loved it of course an even got to ride bare back for a little while... something she has always wanted to do.  If you ask her what her favorite part was though she will tell you it was when she got to ride the birthday girl's horse for a bit.  They had painted it's hooves hot pink, it had a pink saddle blanket and pink  halter with pink jewels on it.  She also was wearing her own pink riding helmet given to her by her uncle Pete a while back. I was kicking myself for forgetting the camera.  Another mom took some pictures and is supposed to get me copies.  Each guest at the party got a silver necklace with a horse pendant, now one of Savi's most prized possessions. After that birthday party we drove back into town met back up with the guys and went to a pool party at Bryan and Linda's condo.  We had tacos and swam all evening.  Then to top it all off we had a huge chocolate cake and played Wii well into the night.  As we carried Savi sound asleep from the car to her room she woke up just enough to say, "Wasn't this just the most splendid day?!" And then she was sound asleep again.

Sunday we got up early and went to both services at church. After that they were serving root beer floats out in the oak grove so of course we stuck around for that.  We followed up the floats by going out to eat with a bunch of friends.  By the time we got home it was almost 3:30.  We rushed around to get the house and backyard ready for the small group we host most sunday evenings.  It was a lovely time of friends and good food!  I then headed out on with out the family to meet a few friends at a "girls night out" after hours event at Nordstroms.  Not something I would normally go to, but it was nice to get out by myself for a bit. 

For Todd and Daniel the next day started at six in the morning.  The got up early and went to the church to plant 65 tomato starts for the garden.  We are doing the big plant this weekend but didn't want these plants that had arrived early to die in the meantime. Around eight I started pulling stuff out of the garage.  Todd got home at 10 to help and we spent all of the rest of the day sorting out the disaster area called our garage. We sorted into three piles, keep and put back in the garage organized, toss and garage sale.  We had so much stuff sitting out that a few people actually stopped thinking it was a sale already.  I made $15 while cleaning out my garage! From about 11 a.m. to 4 the kids did a lemonade stand.  I admired their persistence.  They were out there for five hours straight not taking any breaks.  They earned seven dollars each.  At the end of the day we can now walk from the front to the back of the garage with ease and we can actually find anything we may need out there! Once we get the garage sale stuff out we will actually be able to park a car in there! Todd finally has an area to store his tools, so now we can get them organized so we actually know what tools we have and where they are.  

So that was our weekend.  Busy but good.  I hope yours was just as wonderful as ours and once again thank you to all those who serve or have served our country! As my daughter said so well, wasn't it just splendid! 

Sunny Day!

Today is a lovely day! Savi has been asking all winter, "When can we play in the sprinkler?" Well today they finally did. We are starting to get our yard back in shape after the dogs destroyed it this winter. It has been awesome to have this last weekend to enjoy being outside.

It has been a crazy weekend to say the least. Saturday night Todd hosted a "guys night". Obviously I was not around to be a part of that. Instead I went to a friends house and we had and outside fire and roasted marshmallows. Super fun! The next day I stayed home with the kiddoes while Todd went to the church and helped with the new garden we are planting to supply the food pantry. That evening we hosted a small gathering for the people that lead worship over the Easter season. Once again it was lovely outside so we hung out in the back yard and built a fire and had more marshmallows. Gotta love the marshmallows! Sunday we went to church in the morning and then hosted Small group at our house that evening. Definitely a full house this weekend, but tons of fun being with all those friends.

I am looking forward to enjoying the backyard more and more as the warmer weather starts coming our way!

First Sprinkler day of the year.

We Made it Home!

Monday morning we headed home. The flight from San Pedro Sula to Houston was uneventful (other than Todd and I sitting next to a very nice lady that we got to know), but once in Houston we got stuck there. There was this massive thunder and lightening storm that had all planes grounded. First they boarded us, then they had us get off then they re-boarded us and then we sat on the runway for around an hour. I know it could have been worse, but it still was not too much fun. Once we finally got in the air you could turn around and look at the storm. It was this wall of clouds around Houston with huge flashes of lightening going off every couple of seconds. It was crazy to think that we had just flown out of that storm. Really amazing to watch. We got into PDX at 11:15 pm only an hour and a half late although to all of us tired people it felt much later. We are home now a trying to re-adjust to the routines of life without loosing sight of all we saw and did while we were gone.

Sunday in Honduras

Sunday morning the festival was over so we didn't have many responsibilities, but we did get to go to a church and visit with the people and be a part of their service. When we arrived there were two buildings- one a small run down shack and the other a large cinderblock building that was almost finished. I guess the way they build down there is as they have money they buy a few more cinderblocks and add on the next row. eventually they get to where they need a roof and then doors. Like I said this one was just about done, it had a roof and everything. It was by far the nicest church we had been too. Once again the people were so kind and sweet, and children were adorable. The kids all danced around during worship, super cute! Afterwards we got to attempt to chat with people. There was this one little girl that was so beautiful she would pose for pictures like she wanted to be a fashion model. She also wanted everyones phone numbers. We then headed back to our hotel for lunch. (By the way the food was amazing the whole time) We then had a break and a few of us took a cab down to the market to buy some souvenirs. After that we had one final meeting to wrap up the week and then we went back to our rooms to pack up for our flight home Monday.

Saturday in Honduras

So Saturday was a little different then the first two days.

In the morning we were all supposed to go to a conference, but due to the fact that Todd and I weren't feeling well we had to stay back. We rested for the morning and then picked up with the afternoon activities.

They took all the teams down to the festival field to help prepare for the children's festival and welcome the children as they arrived. The idea was to make sure every child received a hug upon arriving at the festival. It was a lot of fun.

I had the chance to meet, hug and attempt to chat with tons of kids. Two little girls in particular latched on to me and Tamara. They hung out with us all afternoon following us where ever we went. They brought their school book for learning English and practiced their pronunciation on us. Then we would practice our bits of Spanish on them. They will be on my heart always!

Then that night, we had the second round of the festival. I wasn't as tired as I had been on Friday so I was able to enjoy it and mingle with the people much more.

One of the neatest things that happend was when a few of us went out to give away bracelets. They were the "wordless gospel" bracelets where each bead stands for a part of the story of Jesus. One woman asked for one and we gave it to her even though most of them were going to children. She then suprised us by turning to another group of people and explaining the story of the beads to them. It was really neat to watch the message multiply so quickly.

Later on, back stage I met a young woman that led a small youth group. Even though we could barely communicate we really connected. It's so awesome how God does that!

In the Barrios of Honduras

Today we went into the barrios of Honduras.

We went to two separate churches, one in the morning and one in the afternoon. Small shacks by our standards, but compared to the houses they were very nice.

We were able to speak to the people and hand out food boxes filled with staples like rice beans and noodles. It would take them two weeks to earn enough to buy one box. We handed out over 100 of them just from our team... there were six teams. So awesome.

The second place we went took a while. The bus stopped and wouldn't go any further. The driver said not without a police escort, and the police refused to go into the area we were supposed to go. We had to call the chief of police of San Pedro Sula to order the police men to escort us.

They then rode on a motorcycle behind us with two police officers on it- one to steer and one to point the gun. When we finally got there an hour late the people had been waiting in the little church for us the whole time. It had to have been over 100 degrees in that building! We spoke and handed out the food.

Afterwords we found out the reason the driver and the police didn't want to go there. Not only was it one of the roughest areas of San Pedro Sula, but three days before a woman had been murdered right where our bus had parked. There were people there that were hurting deeply from the sudden loss of a friend. We were able to comfort those closest to the victem and invite them to the festival this evening. A pretty intense day to say the least. After all of this we came back reloaded the bus and headed to the first of two major festivals. It is eleven o'clock at night as I write this and I am exsausted. We will try to get some pictures of today up in the morning but for now I am going to crash.

Honduras Day One- Medical Clinics

Honduras Day One, PM - The Mobile Medical Clinics

Hey everyone! So for the second part of the day we went to one of the free medical clinics we had set up for the week.  Pretty cool stuff.  They also had all kinds of things for the little ones to do while their parents were talking to the doctors.  This particular clinic was set up next to the field where our festival is going to take place this weekend.  Being that we are not doctors and we wanted to be useful we ended up clearing the field of garbage... there was alot of it!  

Day One AM - What an awesome day with the Honduran kids at school!

Check it out!

Honduras Trip Day One

Honduras!

Well - we made it. The travel started at about midnight on Tuesday night and ended this morning at about 11 AM. Our bodies are beat, but we're very pumped to be down here among such an incredible group of people.

Over 450 people were served today in the mobile medical clinics. Tomorrow we're in the schools!

More to come,

Todd & Julie from San Pedro Sula

The Crazy Month!

So here it comes, the month of insanity. Between my schedule and Todd's we are going to be so busy that the holidays will seem like vacation. In a matter of three weeks Todd will have gone on five trips. While one was just one day, the rest were at least three days each. That alone would normally wear me out (the kids have a harder time when Daddy is gone), but I have also been working on a major event with the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation for the last six months. It falls on October 24th so it is coming up fast. We are up to a couple of meetings a week and being that I am Co-chairing the event I can't really miss any of them. Between running Savi and Daniel to and from school, and finding people to watch Ian while I head to meetings, running Todd to and from the airport if my schedule allows and trying to prep to be out of town myself next week I feel like I am about to lose it. I look at my calender and I don't see a free day until the last week of October. Once that hits my event will be done, and Todd will be home for more than one day at a time. I see us taking a week and just not doing ANYTHING!

I hope you all have a wonderful month! I probably won't update again until November.
Julie

Ahhhhh...

Other than a few final touches (like trim and lighting) we are done with the kitchen. As it always does when it comes to home improvement it took way longer than I expected. We ran into many obstacles (like dry rot in the floors, uneven walls, and bat in the bedroom), but we over came them all and it was WELL worth it. Now that we are moved back into the kitchen we not only gained the kitchen, but also regained the living room and dining room where everything was piled while we worked on the kitchen.

All I can say is ahhhh. It feels so good to be back to normal. It feels as if a huge weight has lifted off of our entire household. I knew it was affecting the kids but I didn't realize how much until it was over. We are all much happier and relaxed people! The kids have been wonderful through the chaos and we are looking forward to having people over again.

A BIG THANK YOU to all that helped whether it was hanging the cabinets (Mike), buying the cabinets (Mom and Dad), tiling (Jamie), Getting us someone to fix the dry rot (John), fixing us dinner and watching our kids (too many people to mention)! We love and appreciate all of you!!!

THANKS,
Love Ya,
Julie

Savi lost a Tooth!

Savannah finally lost her first tooth! She has been wanting to lose a tooth for almost a year. Once some of the kids in her kindergarten class lost theirs last year she couldn't stop thinking about it. The funny thing is once it came time to finally pull it, she totally freaked out. "Please don't touch it!" Not wanting it to fall out in the middle of the night we went ahead and pulled. Once it was out she was ecstatic!

Holy Chiroptera Batman! There's a BAT in our room!

So for the past couple of days Jamie and I have been tiling the kitchen counters. (Keep checking the remodel picture album, I've been adding to it each time we do something new) Last night we decided to work late and get at least the counter tops finished. Because we wore working late we left the door open a lot as we came in and out, in and out, in and out... you get the picture. So we finally wrapped up around one in the morning after more things went wrong than I can count. (although I must say it didn't affect the outcome of the counters, they are gorgeous!) Todd and I went up stairs to crash into bed and what do we find (or should I say what did Todd find, I was still cleaning up thank God!) A BAT!!! A little tiny screeching terrified bat. I'm not exactly sure how but Todd managed to trap the thing between the window and the screen. We were so deliriously tired that couldn't figure out a way to get the poor thing out. Every time we tried to crack the window to pop out the screen the bat would try to get back into our room. We ended up going to bed with it there. As much as I hate bats I really don't want a dead one stuck in our window so first thing this morning I tried to release it. After many failed attempts I finally ended up ripping the screen from the outside to get him out. He is free now. I hope you have a happy life little bat.

Starbuck

So we've had him for a week now and he is wonderful! I guess I got so used to the personality of Kona (our little fox terrier) that I forgot how calm bigger dogs can be even as puppies. Starbuck is blending in with our family perfectly. He and Kona wrestle all the time and it wears both of them out which is good. The kids adore him (its hard not to with a face like his). He loves to snuggle too. We all love him, he is the perfect addition to our family!

Family Camp '08

Every year come end of July a big group of us pack up and head to Fort Stevens, OR. We usually stay for about three days. Being that we are so close to the ocean the weather can unfortunately be very unpredictable. This year we had a little of everything. The first day was beautiful weather, sunny, warm. We had one night that was FREEZING cold and then another that was pouring rain. a few people ended up wet but for the most part we all survived.

All that aside it was a wonderful time. Camp fires are always fun with the hot dogs, s'mores and campfire biscuits. I think when you are camping you tend to eat more, at least I do. There are all sorts of things to eat all the time. I also think being outside makes food taste better. I don't normally like hotdogs or pancakes, but when I'm camping... Yum!

The kids had a blast riding their bikes for hours on end. Daniel would put on his helmet first thing in the morning and wouldn't take it off until bed time. Ian was still a little on the young side to really let play in the dirt and stuff but next year I'm sure he will have fun! Savi and her buddy Mackenzie put on a lemonade stand. I was so proud of them. To get the money to buy the lemonade and cups mackenzie collected and turn in aluminum cans. Savi had received a cardboard lemonade stand for her birthday and she saved it for camp. They colored it and made the lemonade and did everything with minimal help from Jamie and I. They definitely earned the money they made and had a lot of fun in the process.

We are all looking forward to next year already!

If your going to San Francisco...

So we finally did it! For years Todd and I have talked about taking a road trip and driving the coast to San Francisco and for my 30th birthday this summer I requested we make the trip a reality. After four days, 1532 miles, 6 tanks of gas, three visible fires, 13 fire trucks, 330 pictures, approximately 28 hours in the car, and more bridges than I can remember, we arrived back at house and fell exhausted into our bed. All I can say is it was WELL worth it!

I will start off by giving my advice to anyone considering making a trip like this.
-If the drive is not part of your destination, don't bother. We spent more time in the car than we did anywhere else, but it was stunning landscapes that we drove through, and we enjoyed every minute! (well almost every minute of it, there was that occasional annoying driver that was oblivious to the people around him)
-give yourself plenty of time. We took two days to drive the 101 and HWY 1, but we could have taken two weeks to explore all there is to see.
-If you are going to take the advice of a book and go ten miles off coarse on a curvy road to find a restaurant, you should probably call to see if they are open first.
-Talk to the locals, for the most part they love to tell you about their towns. (there is a great little book store in Yachats, OR)
-Open the windows. The most surprising thing for us was how awesome it smelled. I don't even know how to describe it.
-Take the Alternate routes if you have the time, they are worth it.
-The little squiggles on the map do nothing to prepare you for the curves on HWY 1. I wouldn't recommend taking more than a small sedan.
-On HWY 1 if they have taken the time to mark a corner with a speed, you should probably believe them.
-Watch out for deer, they were everywhere!
-Be careful, California doesn't seem to believe in guardrails. Just road, three feet of grass, then nothing until the water below!!!
-If you take HWY 1 don't let anyone convince you to cut inland to 101. it is so worth the extra time to see all the extra beauty!
-Buy a book, it definitely gives you ideas of places to eat and stop for pictures or leg stretches.
So that is my advice, if you ever take this trip be prepared for some of the most beautiful sights you have ever seen.



We started or trip heading from Portland out the the coast at Lincoln City. In our first day we drove down to Brookings where Todd has family that were so generous and let us crash there for the night. They even took us out to dinner at their Mexican restaurant, Pancho's. Super good! I can't say enough how beautiful it was. There are so many amazing places to see and spend time. Todd and I barely even scraped the surface. We will definitely be taking trips to specific places in the future.

Day two we went from Brookings, OR to Sausilito, CA. Although gorgeous I would probably split the part of the trip into two days next time. Many people tried to tell us to cut inland and take 101 down to San francisco, but the whole point was to drive the coast and let me tell you you get CLOSE to the coast. It was so stunning it took my breath away at times. And the redwoods, WOW!!! We started our day with a little fog when we first entered the forest and it made the woods seem almost magical. I can see why many stories are written about trees coming to life. As you drive through you feel so tiny, and the trees really do feel like they might just reach out and touch you. Just amazing! I know I keep saying, awesome, amazing, gorgeous, but I just don't have any more words to describe it.


Once in Sausilito (across the Golden gate bridge from San Francisco) we stayed at a beautiful place called Cavallo Point. It is part of Fort Baker at the foot of the Bridge and is a really cool place to stay. We had a room that had been converted from the old Captain's quarters into a wonderful modern day room with all the charm and history still intact.

Day three we spent in Downtown San Francisco. We wandered Pier 39, Fisherman's Wharf, Ghirardelli Square, and Hyde Street pier. We stumbled upon a three hour sailing tour of the Bay. It was the most fabulous time, and we got very sunburnt. Since we hadn't planned the sailing trip ahead of time, we didn't think of sunscreen. Oops!

Day four started with a lovely breakfast by the water in Sausalito, and then around 11 am we hit the road and headed home. Eleven hours later with only a couple bathroom breaks, and gas stops, we rolled into Beaverton and fell asleep as soon as our heads hit the pillow.

Like I keep saying it was just an amazing trip. It really couldn't have gone any better!!!

American Girl

So, for the last six months Savi has been working hard, doing every extra job she can find around the house to earn enough money to get an American Girl doll that looks "Just like her." The day finally arrived. She had enough money, and we went online and searched through the options to find the one that looked the most like Savannah. Unfortunately, in order to get the one with the hair style Savi wanted we had to get it with Medium skin tone. So the doll looks like Savi with a nice tan. Savannah is oblivious to this fact and absolutely adores her new doll. She loves it when people comment on the fact that it looks, "JUST like her."

If it's Good Enough for the Dog...

So this morning Ian wakes up and I make him his usual Eggo waffle and sit him in his highchair. He takes a few nibbles and then asks to get down. Asking to get down consists of him screeching for a few minutes until he realizes it gets him no where, then he shakes his hands in the air and says, "ahhhh du". If you are not a translator of baby talk that is "All Done". I get him down thinking he hadn't really eaten enough breakfast but I wasn't in the mood to fight with him. A couple of minutes later I realize he is not in my line of sight so I go searching for him. Where is he you ask? Sitting in the laundry room shoving handfuls of dry dog food in his mouth! I scooped him up and out of the laundry room, shutting the door behind me. He was more distraught at me taking the dog food away than the Eggo waffle!!! I guess I will have to find him a cereal or something with the same texture as dry dog food...

Ian is One!

Our baby is one now. He was born on father's Day last year and it took some explaining to convince Savi that his birthday did not fall on father's Day again this year. It has been a crazy, fast year. Savi is done with Kindergarten and will starting first grade in the Fall. Daniel will be going to another year of pre-school, and Ian has gone from 8 lbs 10 oz to over twenty pounds and trying to walk and talk. He says many things now, but you have to know his language to understand. "tata" is thank you, "ba" is Ball, "Baba" is bottle, "dada" of course daddy, but it can also mean mommy, Daniel or Savi sometimes too. He loves to sing too. If there is music on especially in the car, you can hear him "ba, da, la" to the tune. He is also trying to walk now. His first step was on Thursday, He stepped from Daddy to me, about three steps. Since then he has tried several more times to take a few steps. We are looking forward to a busy summer. I will do my best to keep you updated!
Julie

Savannah's 6th Birthday Party

So our little girl turned six. Well, officially she turns six tomorrow, June 8th, but her party was today. She asked for a zebra party this year. Since Zebras are pretty popular this year I figured it wouldn't be too hard. Since I like Costco cakes, and they are cheap I bought a blank Costco cake and decorated it myself. I thought it turned out pretty awesome. I also bought some iron on stuff and made her a zebra t-shirt. Savi's biggest wish was to have a water fight at her party. I started planning that way and then looked at the weather report. It was supposed to rain. Savi prayed every night leading up to today that God would let her have her water fight. Although the skies were gray the rain held out and we were able to have a really fun time. As the kids entered the house they had to come through a forest of balloons. We then had a pinata. After the kids collected their candy they donned garbage bags decorated with black tape to look like zebras they then had their water fight! It was a blast! We came inside, did presents and cake and then played while we waited for parents to come pick up. All in all a wonderful day! Thank you God for holding off the rain and wind!!!

Gooby Dots

Last night Grandpa Roger came over to work with Todd on the playhouse they are building for the kids in the backyard. The kids love to run around out back and watch while todd and Roger work. After coming in last night Daniel was sitting on my lap trying to get warm. He had gotten a little chilled outside. I looked at his arms and said, "Daniel you have goose bumps!" Obviously no one had ever told him this before because he exclaimed "What are goose bumps?!" I tried to explain what they were saying they were bumps on your skin when you are cold. I then left him to sit on the couch while I put Ian to bed. When I got back and asked him to come snuggle with me in the chair. He stood up and stated, "I'll come sit on your lap to get rid of my gooby dots." I asked him what on earth are gooby dots? He replied, "You know the bumps on your arms when you are cold, Gooby dots." I will forever think of gooby dots when I get cold. I think it is a terrific word that makes me smile each time I think about it! Gooby Dots!!!

Everett Birthday Bash

So Between May 30th and June 28th the Everett side of our family has too many birthdays to try and celebrate them separately. This year we decide to have a big picnic and Celebrate everyone together. Brian Everett, May 30th, Savi Everett, June 8th, Father's Day June 15th, Roger Everett June 16th, Ian Everett June 17th and Brooklyn Everett June 28th! Whew! I get tired just thinking about it.

We chose a place called Horning's Hideout. A privately owned park out in the middle of nowhere that has tons of grass to play in, several play structures, and best of all a lake you can fish at with out a license. The kids always talk about wanting to fish and so we thought it would make a memorable day. We were right.

It started off with the kids watching the salamanders and blowing bubbles. When they decided it was time to fish, Grandpa Roger took Savi, Daniel and Brooklyn to rent the fishing poles. On the way there they stopped to watch someone else reel in a fish. When they got it in and on shore it got loose and came a little to close for comfort for Daniel and Brooklyn, you could hear them shrieking on the other side of the lake. It was hard not to laugh. They got the poles and came back, but by then Brooklyn wanted nothing to do with those slimy creatures coming out of the lake. Savi loved fishing though, Daniel too but not quite as much as Savi. He could handle the holding the pole part, and reeling it in, but once you could see it he was out of there. We ended up as a family catching five trout. Savi's was by far the biggest of the day. If you get the chance you should ask her to tell you her fish story. It is very cute to hear her tell it.

We opened presents (Savi got a bean bag chair to go in the play house Grandpa and Daddy are building) packed up and headed home with three very dirty and tired children. We came home, and cooked the trout for dinner. To our surprise all three kids ate it and seemed to like it. Everyone slept good that night! All in all a wonderful day!

Savannah Smiles again... Mommy can breathe again

So last week we came home from a wonderful trip to Disneyland. We took just Savannah with us and had a fabulous time. We did miss Ian and Daniel but they will get their turn when they turn six.

Saturday morning Savi complained of a tummy ache, but kept going as normal. Sunday afternoon it really hit. She couldn't keep anything down, and didn't even want to get out of bed, or even watch a movie in bed. It is excruciating as a mother to watch your child suffer like that. For almost three days it continued to get worse. She was so weak she could hardly even sit up in bed. Last night we were almost ready to take her to the hospital because she hadn't kept even water down all day. Around eight we made the decision, if she threw up again we would take her in.

Well, that seemed to be the turning point. She started keeping water down and slept through the night. This morning (Wednesday) she actually asked for something to eat! She ate a VERY light breakfast of rice crispies. Then she heard the garbage truck coming and yelled down the stairs, "I want to go see the garbage man!" That's when I knew she was on the mend.

At dinner she came down and sat with us and ate a light dinner. Afterwards she sat on the big brown chair. I came up to sit with her and she did something she hasn't done in DAYS, she SMILED!!! I took a deep breath and knew it was finally over. Now we just pray it is over for all of us!

Star Wars Recapped - by a 3 year old...

Back in the States - best thing I've seen this week...

Our good friend Rod Davis in La Vega, Dominican Republic

This guy is one of our missonaries in the Dominican Republic. He is the real deal...