Hanging out in the 'ham! (part 2)

Slowly but surely I am catching our blog up! (This statement seems to be a theme, I know). Things in Cali are going well... Curt and I are both super busy with school and having a great time hanging out with friends and enjoying the summer weather; though it would be nice if it were just a tad cooler. But, let's get back to life in Bellingham this summer, which had its own warm, sunny weather! Here's LuLu and I with the twins... I'm holding Lucy, and Alyssa has Maddie.

We enjoyed a super fun Stephan family BBQ in Brian and Lisa's backyard.... including delicious yummies and family photos. Here's our family... Lu, Curt, me, Lisa, Brian, and Kelli and Ethan with Lucy and Maddie. (We miss you guys sooooo much!)

Here are the Kolb's.....

And the Stephan's....
Here's Kelli and I with Lucy, trying to stay cool in the shade:

More cute babies!! Lu with Madeline, and Aunt Jani with precious little Lily! :) (Love that headband)

Curt also got a chance to do some fly fishing on one of his favorite rivers... the Methow! He and his dad took off for a 4 day weekend and had a blast... as documented in Curt's smile below :)

Here's Brian casting....

And showing off a great catch....

Hanging out on the river.....

Meanwhile, Lisa and I had a girls weekend over at Kelli's with the twins while the boys were gone, as Ethan was out of town for the weekend as well for a bachelor party. It was so fun hanging out with my adorable nieces! We had a blast uncovering some cute clothes, accessories and shoes for the girls.... and playing dress up! Maddie, love the Santa hat, tutu, and animal print flats-- you are so stinkin' precious!
Lucy was a little freaked out by her Santa hat and red tutu get-up however! hehe :) I couldn't resist posting this wide-eyed photo....

Hi Maddie-cakes! :)

Lucy sporting a little fro-hawk! :)

Before we had to leave Bellingham, Brian and Lisa treated us out to a delicious dinner at Mambo's in celebration of my having completed my elementary ed. and master's degree! Yay!! The dinner was a celebration in itself as my lasagna was to-die-for. MMmmmmmm. Thanks guys!! Here's Lisa, me, and Lulu.

Another table shot that included the boys too! Alex, Curt, and Brian....

One last departing family shot -- Alyssa, Lisa and Lucy, Me, Curt, Ethan, Kelli, and Brian with Maddie. (oh! and Molly dog) :) Love you guys!

Hanging out in the 'ham! (part 1)

Backtracking a bit again to our travels, adventures, and family time from our vacation this summer, we return to Bellingham! After friends Brian and Andrea departed for Cali, we had about another 2 1/2 weeks to chill in the 'ham, and soak up some time with our wonderful family! Man, do we ever miss you guys!
One fantastic experience I got to have was to help Kelli with Lucy and Maddie's swimming lessons....The girls were so adorable in their little swimsuits with hot pink ruffles! We'd start off by just sitting in the water with them while they splashed around, and then took them into the deep end (deep for them that is... Only 3 1/2 feet for anyone that was panicking) for some more kiddie activities.
One of the days at swim, the girls had the opportunity to try out the pint-sized life jackets! So adorable. Maddie LOVED having hers on, and was content to just float around on her back in it. Lucy, did not so much love it however. So we chilled side-pool while sister sported the red, puffy cocoon.

Once the girls were dried off, they snuggled into their car seats.... Does Fiddler on the Roof come to mind anyone? Anyone??..... (match maker, match maker, make me a match... find me a find..)

In other excitement and adorableness from this summer, Remy dog deserved a spot on the blog. Curt's sister Alyssa babysat little Remy for a friend of hers for a couple days, and so Remy hung out at Curt's parents house a couple afternoons. He was SOOOooooo stinkin' cute, as depicted in the picture below. (How could you resist a face like that?! Seriously). The best part, however, was constantly hearing Lu's voice saying something along the lines of "Remy NO!, No Remy! No!" hehe.

Molly dog was not keen on Remy's level of adorableness. She pretty much hated that brown-furred ball of energy that chased her around the house and bit her ankles. So of course we had to make it up to Molly for her generous toleration. Love you Molly! Here's Curt and I hanging out with Lucy (w/me) and Maddie (w/Curt). Madeline doesn't look all the sure of old unci-C.... :)

Hi Maddie and Lucy! Cute as little buttons I tell ya! (I am definitely the bragging aunt here) :)

Curt had a little side adventure while we were in the 'ham; running the Chuckanut Foot Race! 7 miles of beautiful wooded paths, lush green foliage, fresh sea and mountain air, and grueling hills. (It's possible that I might have signed up and then backed out. Oops). Here's Curt all numbered up and ready to smoke some peeps. Get 'em!!!!

The best part of this day (outside of his race time/killer placement of course), was that I was the designated photographer, and I had myself all lined up on this corner to catch Curt as he came by. Well. The race started and in the confusion of 1,000 people flying by me, I had absolutely no clue where he was, when he would run by, and couldn't for the life of me remember what he was wearing to even pick him out. Frustrated and feeling like a failure, I took ONE blind shot into the crowd and left. Later, looking through my pics, this one picture I took captured Curt exactly as he was rounding the corner! Granted, unless you have the ability to see microscopic images magnified ten times their size, you may have trouble picking him out of the picture below (he's the third person from the right in the pic, starting with the person in the red way on the right), but I swear he is there!!! I am sooooo good.

I then jumped in the car and raced ahead to the next point I hoped I could snag a pic. I got there just in time to leap from the car, run across a treacherous highway, and snap this shot. Dang, I am telling you, I was working it people! :)

Yay! Good job honey!

Again, you made need a magnifying glass to read this, but Curt placed 31st overall running it in about 45 minutes and 45 seconds... and in doing so, broke the personal goal he had set for himself - so he was pumped! We then enjoyed the music and yummy food they were serving down at Larabee Park post-race, and then headed for home. Quite an exciting time.

More Bellingham pics to come..... :)

Washington Sightseeing Extravaganza...continued!

Well, Curt and I are back in Cali, and officially both started school today! Wahooo! I was fortunate enough to get a long term sub position with the Westside District, at a school and in grade I love (6th). :) It's definitely the next best thing to a full time job, as the experience has been amazing getting to set up and start a year off. Curt enjoyed his first day too, and was glad that two of his six classes were reduced a few students -- down to 40, instead of 44. Ugh. Crazy huh? Anyway, in a desperate attempt to get caught up with our blog.... I must back-track yet again to this past JUNE. What?!? I am sooo behind.... at any rate, enjoy the third installment of our good times up in Washington with friends Brian and Andrea. :)

After leaving Twisp... it was off to Bellingham, and a beautiful drive through the North Cascades Pass awaited us. Not a cloud in the sky people! Virtually unheard of. We were pumped that B & A got to see Washington like this. Here's Curty and I posing for a picture road-side. (Please ignore Curt's closed eyes):

Playing in the snow....
A quick pic at Ross Lake. Amazingly beautiful!! The silt and other goodies in the glacier water give the water that deep green/blue color... almost unreal looking.

More Ross Lake scenery, and Andrea's "man-hand." The poor thing got taken out by a mosquito!!

Me and Andy with the San Juan Islands in the background.... a gorgeous day to drive up Chuckanut!

Finally in Bellingham with our nieces!! Here's Curt with Maddie, and Kelli and I with Lucy and Madeline... They are precious little pumpkins and I miss them terribly!

Another fun adventure we embarked upon was our ferry ride out to Victoria, B.C. The water was practically like glass the entire way there... and beautifully sunny and warm. We couldn't have asked for a better day to make the trek!

Here's some pics from on the boat as we near Victoria, and then posing by some pretty flowers. I really wanted to drive out to the Butchart Gardens, but we just didn't have time to drive up there and tour it all with only a few hours. It made me feel better to find out later that the entrance fee is 30 bucks a pop -- so I was appeased for the time being. Hehehe... Next time though, as I am sure it would be worth the coin if well planned! :)

Here's a snap shot of the Parliament building we toured... and me looking at it from the outside, upside down, enjoying my jasmine iced tea... Ummmm... I could really use one of those right now, so refreshing! (did I mention that it's 101 here today - ugh). Sweet, cool, merciful Pacific Northwest - we miss you! (although I wouldn't have missed it a week ago when it was almost 100 in the 'ham w/no AC -- for all of you that survived, hats off to you!!).

Chillin' on the boat home... Ahhhhhhhh.

The views were spectacular! Here Mt. Baker looms in the distance:

Here we are enjoying a little relaxation fireside in Curt's parents backyard. Brian got a chance to bond with Molly dog... you can see Andrea was pretty happy about that.

Fourth of July was a blast celebrating at Kelli and Ethan's with family... breaking out the oysters on the BBQ and spending more precious time with Lucy and Madeline.

Here's Lu and Brian about to take oyster shooters. EWWWWWWWwwwwwwwwwwwww.

AHHHHHHHhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh. Tasty.

We busted out the fireworks later and had fun lighting up the streets with our hoop-la. (I was mostly scared of all the sparks and the possibility of getting taken out by an errant bottle rocket, but still enjoyed myself never-the-less.)

Happy Fourth! Hi Lisa and Brian... miss you guys sooo much!!

We also toured downtown Seattle, the wharf, and Pike's Place Market -- check out those hanging peppers! They were amazing... all fresh, but dry in a few months to look just as cool. The produce looked yummy too... ummmm.

Curt and I stopping for a quick pic under the public market sign (wait, I'm sure you didn't know that from the picture).

Enjoying one last delicious meal at Anthony's on the pier with B & A before they headed back to Cali...

More updates to come.... For now, happy travels to those of you still on summer break, we are so sad it's over for us!!!! (but seriously, can we complain after having 10 full weeks off. Ummm, probably not).