NW Regionals 2013

The third weekend in May has become synonymous with Regionals.  This is the third year Kylie has participated, and the third year I've gone to watch.  Brad and I turned the weekend into a mini-vacation once again and we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves.  The weather wasn't as glorious as it's been the past two years, but that was only a slight disappointment.  Both Kylie's 8+ and 4+ boats made it into their finals, placing 2nd in the heat for the 8+ and 3rd in the heat for the 4+.  In the finals, she placed 3rd in the 8+ and 4th in the 4+, and she said she felt like all the girls pushed as hard as they could.  The competition was tough, and they were happy with their results.  She also rowed in a high school 8+ and placed 3rd.  I love watching her row. She is so committed and strong.  I also love hearing other parents tell me how much they like Kylie.  She regularly gets complimented on what a good friend she is, her good attitude, her ability to encourage and support her team mates, and her great work ethic.  I'm proud to be her mom!

8+ heat race, coming in 2nd

Heading out for the 4+ heat race.

4+ heat race, the top four boats...Kylie's boat is in the foreground and she's wearing her red hat.

JV Women's 4+ boat.  The girl on the left wasn't able to race in the heat because her blood sugar was too low, so she was replaced by the girl next to her.  She was able to race in the finals, though.

Warming up on the ergs.

8+ finals...it was amazing how close they all were!  Kylie's boat is in the middle of the pack. I love that she wears her red hat so I can see where she is.

Results of the 8+ finals

4+ finals...this time their boat decided to all wear white hats and unfortunately, so did everyone else in the race!  

JV women's 4+ boat

JV women's 8+ boat, their coach is in the back.

High School 8+ boat.  This race is just for fun, so each boat has a dress-up theme.

The High School 8+ race, they came in 3rd.

After the race, feeling great!

Brad and I took a side trip to Multnomah Falls; it's absolutely gorgeous! It reminded me of the waterfall in the Philippines that Kylie and I got to see with the Hooyers.  Same lush, green, moist surroundings, but about   30 degrees cooler!

Looking down over the bridge

View out over the Columbia River...I'd love to explore this area more and camp here sometime.

Brad walked back down before me so he could take my picture on the bridge.  

May Beach Day!

Our warm, sunny weather continued for several days and on Monday, May 6th, we reached 86 degrees...tied with Phoenix, AZ for the warmest location in the continental US!  I think that's warmer than it ever got here all summer last year!  So of course, we had to head to the beach!  We didn't have time to go anywhere far, but luckily we have beach access about 1.5 miles from our house.  Ben and I walked down and Kylie drove down with Jillian (she only had about an hour until crew practice).  We met up with the Olivers and soaked in as much vitamin D as we could!  

 

Just like old times! The kids have gotten a little bigger, but they still enjoy playing on the beach together.

Nathan had a great time pestering his mom...again, just like old times!

 

Collin decided he wanted to try to get stripes...

and Ben and Emma built a hot tub resort for sea creatures.

I'm really looking forward to more beach days this summer.  We deserve some warm, sunny days after the past two lousy summers we've had! 

Hyrum's Baptism

My nephew, Hyrum, (Corey & Jeff's oldest) was baptized this past weekend.  This is the first time I've been able to go to one of my nephews baptisms; Elijah's was in California and none of the others are old enough yet. My dad gave the talk on baptism and it was so touching to hear him bear his testimony to Hyrum . The baptism was at the North Seattle Stake Center, which is the same place I was baptized, as well as my brother, Scott, and my sister, Corey. After the baptism, I gave my kids a tour of all three stories of the building, from the dressing rooms above the stage where we would get ready for Road Shows and Stake Plays (wow, I'm old!) down to my old seminary room in the basement.  They were impressed by the size of the building and I'm surprised that it still seemed large to me, too.  It is a beautiful, brick building with a real steeple, an impressive entry way and well manicured, mature landscaping. But most of all, it's the church of my childhood. I enjoyed sharing it with my kids, even if it was just a short tour.

 

(This is not my picture, I found it on commons.wikimedia.org, photographer is Joe Mabel)

Hyrum before his baptism.  Doesn't he look dapper in his new suit?

Corey and her boys.

My family...I can't believe that we're all almost the same height!

 

After the baptism we went to the Good Shepherd park in Wallingford for a picnic.  Ben enjoyed climbing the trees and we all enjoyed the sun, good food, and family time.  I'm so glad Corey and her family live close by so we can share in the important events in their lives.

Welcome Back, SUN!

We had some gorgeous weather at the beginning of May, and when the sun is shining and it's actually warm, there is nothing I want to do more than kayak!  It's been way too long since I've been out on the water.  One lovely Friday, when I had a lunch date with Brooke and Gretchen at Bella Luna, Gretchen texted and asked, "Should we kayak to Bella Luna?" It took about two seconds for Brooke and I to respond "YES!"  So we did!

And it was lovely!  

Although it was also very windy going there, which made the paddling difficult, and coming back we ran into some huge swells, which Jane did not appreciate and so vocalized her displeasure the entire way back! Bella Luna was a welcome break and we enjoyed sitting in the sun and actually feeling HOT while we ate our delicious calzones.