Lee at home

Anniversary!

Well Lee and I went to McCloud, CA, to take the Shasta dinner train through the mountains. It was a three hour trip, with different courses in the meal. It got dark soon after we embarked, so we didn't get to see much as far as scenery. Just trees rushing by. (Answer for Jenny: The train was going slow enough that if someone jumped from the open air car, they would just get scraped up and feel stupid.) Anyway, after the train ride, we headed back to McCloud Inn, a little hotel there in town. It was fun, the only down side was that it wasn't a bed and breakfast which we assumed it was. So we're waiting for our breakfast in the morning...... and waiting...... and it never came. :) So we headed down to town to find some grub, and it turns out that we were staying in the ONLY hotel in town that wasn't a bed and breakfast. So there were no breakfast restaurants. We wandered around the deserted and cold town (while everyone else was snuggled up in their big bed and breakfast beds, still in their jammies, enjoying breakfast on a platter...) and we finally found a little coffee shop tucked into a deserted looking train station. They had good pastries and really great coffees that they put tons of real chocolate in. YUM. So that turned out really nicely. (for me... mmmm...)

Next day we wandered around McCloud, then found our way back to the car and travelled back home. The kids had stayed at our friends' Bridge and Nancy that night, we babysit for eachother whenever we have nights' out or weekends away.

Will add more later as exciting things happen.... :)

Lee on the open air car on the train

Me posing :)

Us on the train

Lee and I on the dinner train

It felt like fall up there in McCloud, CA!

Lee with the dinner train in the background

Shasta in the background

The happy birthday girl!

Peyton was wailin' on it!

the birthday girl, takin some whacks

Ice cream cake!!

Present time!

big birthday girl getting help from Jayda and Marina Liabraaten

Selina's tongue

Selina's favorite "ballerina dolly"

Love my girl!

silly goose

Yes, she is always like this!

Mommy and her cutsie

Selina and Mommy enjoying the warm fall day

The boys lounging around

Peyton with his kitty. Selina has named her "Jolie-Ann".

My punk Peyton with a mohawk!! (Daddy only let him have it for three days)

My loveable kiddums

Me pretending to be helping with the playhouse

Lee and Peyton working on the beginning stages of the playhouse

A strangely smokey picture of Lee working on the new playhouse

Peyton peering into a mirrored cabinet destined for the playhouse.

The kids are enjoying being read to by Shirley Doolittle.

Here is the little family with our Vietnamese worker, Chou.

We're still here!

Hi everyone! :) We have been pretty busy lately. Selina turned 4 on October 9th, and we had a fun party for her with some of her little friends. They maimed a big pinata, ate homemade (by daddy) ice cream cake, and had tons of fun running around and being crazy. Selina got lots of play food and dish sets, and a great Little Mermaid play CD player from Uncle Jared! Everything was a big hit. Daddy tried to finish the playhouse in time for the party, and he got just about everything done except the electricity and finish drywall inside. I couldn't believe how much he did in such a short period of time... Two weeks! Wow. The kids love their new house.
Well, we've been throwing around lots of ideas about trying to sell the house again. The market at the moment is disgustingly flooded with houses for sale, so the chances of having an easy and painless sale seem slim. We will try to sell it on our own for a while since we're in no hurry. I can post signs at work (the health club) and in varius community centers. The only issue I'm dealing with is the nightmare of keeping this house in selling shape to show at any moment. That is possibly the worst part of the selling experience for me!!! :)

We are in the middle of Special Meeting week this week. We have lots of workers in town, so enjoying the special gospel meetings and such. Chou, a worker from Vietnam, spoke all night Tuesday night, and we will be having him for dinner tonight. This is very special for us because he knows my Grandpa Gene, who is in Vietnam right now helping with the Lords' work there. He is such an encouragement to the Vietnam workers and friends, and holds a special place in many hearts over there. So I am looking forward to getting to have conversation with Chou, it's such a privalege to have him here just for a short time.

As far as future trips, we are really excited about our upcoming trip to Los Angeles! We will be flying down for the Vietnam Vets' friends' reunion the second weekend of November (8th). It will be so special because Lee's parents Al and Pam will be flying out for the reunion and we will get to spend some time with them! We may take a day to go to a zoo or something kid friendly. It will be the first time in 7 years that I have been to LA. I'm pretty excited, thinking of all the shopping there..... :) .... that I probably won't be able to do... but it's fun to think about. Daydreaming.....

After that trip, work will be busy for me for a couple of weeks until we hop in the car and head up to WA for Thanksgiving week. That will be fun. We will try to do most of the driving at night so the kids can sleep and the trip will go a lot smoother. We will have to procure some books on tape for the trip so that we stay awake.

The week after we get back from WA, Lee is heading to Las Vegas, Sin City, for a business conference. He will get to spend time with Mike, Amanda and Dane while he's there! I am jealous that he gets to do that, but after all the traveling I think we will not be able to afford taking the whole family. Anyway, he will really enjoy seeing them!

Let's see.... and after that, Lee's uncle Lorin Humphrey may be coming out in December to spend some time with us! Wheee! Lots of family in those couple of months. We have to make up for missing our family all year long!

We have a lot to look forward to over the next couple of months. I will try to keep the blog updated with photos!

Lots of love, and I hope you're doing well wherever you are!