Labor Day weekend...

Saturday Colin and I drove up to Lake Tapps, WA to visit my family. My parents were still on their anniversary vacation staying in a cabin so we went to Laura and Justin's lake house. They were having a Labor Day party so we joined in on the fun! We had beer margaritas, mojitos and strawberry lemonade and vodka. YUM! Keana and Joey came up to visit and Joey decided he wanted to keep running down to the water. Well, we decided to put him in a lifejacket and let him have a go at it and maybe he'd learn a lesson or two! He ran and ran then face planted into the water. Boy did that scare him! And guess what? He didn't even try and go by the water again! He wasn't hurt just scared him enough to stay on dry land-which made Keana's chasing him a a whole lot easier. Later we went on Justin's boat with Keana and Joey, Justin's niece Jaden, Colin, Justin and I. Colin and Justin ended up going on a "booze cruise" with some friends later that night and came back awhile later...they must have had tons of fun because I don't think they had any "beverages" left. =)












Sunday Laura and Justin, my parents + Colin and I went to the Melting Pot to celebrate my parents 30th wedding anniversary which was on August 26th. My sister and I made my parents a quilt with tons of pictures on it of all from different stages of our lives. We also made them a scrapbook starting from their childhood, then wedding day, then family life and ending with a page that said "30 years and counting" with their picture on it. It actually turned out pretty good! Well, 3 hours, 6 fat bellies and a huge paycheck later we were finished! It was really great, especially the dessert! Wow, I've never been so full in my entire life...I thought I might die!
Monday, Colin and I rode my parents jet skis on Lake Tapps. It wasn't the warmest weekend but we still managed to have tons of fun! It was a nice break from the everyday routine of school/work. Colin hasn't been up to WA since February so my parents and Laura/Justin were really excited to see him. He needs a little vacation once in awhile too! He has his Osti's (I have NO idea how to spell that) exam in the middle of September and after that, the rest should be a breeze! This is the nerve racking test for Colin and his friends-everyone is dreading it! I know Colin will pass. I've never met anyone with such an extensive memory. He remembers things from years ago that I would never remember 6 months down the road...sometimes I think he makes it up! haha. Then, the only test left is the national boards in October and November...then graduation on DECEMBER 20th!!! Can you tell I'm excited???

Oh yes...Duke and his best friend Stoli had a TON of fun too!

Kara

A little giggly girl...

Today I babysat Madison again. We went to Subway with Colin before he had clinic, then went to Target and Bed, Bath and Beyond. Then met Tiffani at our house! I heard Maddie laugh for the first time today...it was SO cute! She loves watching Duke and Diesel and smiles and laughs at the. And for some reason, she loves Colin. He gets more smiles from her than I do! Tonight Tiffani and I are going to meet up to scrapbook! I'm helping her put it together so Maddie can have something to look at when she's older.

Here are some more pics of today! Just for you and Addie and Katie! And yes, Tiffani read your comment and agreed that she is lazy. haha




And a little video of Madison...the first video I've ever posted! Hope it works! :)

New Baby New Bed!

Today Colin and I babysat Trent and Tiffani's little 5 month old Madison. Trent goes to school with Trent and Tiffani and I have become great friends! Madison is very cute and a very good baby. We had so much fun with her! Madison and I decided to go shopping and we picked her up some sweet pink shoes. Also, a zip up hoodie outfit with pants and a onesie to match, and a romper. I LOVE shopping for baby girl clothes!















Duke loves Madison too! He thinks she's his little toy and just wants to lick and stare at her.


This was my favorite picture from today...look at those beautiful eyes-and the slobber!

Duke was a lucky boy today too...he got a new dog bed and took his first nap in it today.

This weekend Colin will be teaming with Trent in a Foosball tournament...should be interesting to see! Apparently they are really good-so lets hope they win some prizes! Tiffani, Madison and I will be cheering them on!!!

Sunday we will be meeting my mom and dad at Bailey's in Albany. They will be traveling to Reedsport to celebrate their 30th wedding anniversary by staying in a cabin and will be passing though Albany. It's a good excuse to meet up and eat some good food! Colin also starts Fall Ball (softball) on Sunday with his sisters and brother in law. They are really good so it's always fun to watch them play! That's our exciting news for the week!

Quick Update...

Colin is at around 200 visits. He needs around 265. He is SO excited to start practicing with his dad-they're going to make an amazing team!

My work has slowly started to pick up. Fall time is my busiest time so we'll see what happens this fall! Hopefully LOTS of work!

Other than that, we're just thankful for the cooler weather and happy this weekend should be nice! We had some pretty crazy lightening storms up here in Portland and down in Albany last weekend. Interesting to see! Well...that's all for now!

Softball Champs...

Colin's team (which includes his 2 sisters, brother in law Jason and his brother and friends) had their championship games last Sunday. They won the first game then had to play a game against a team who previously did a little unfair switching of the schedule. They lost to them a couple weeks ago so we all were anxious for Colin's team (Bailey's) to win! They ended up beating them by a few runs. Everyone was so excited! They ended up having to play them for their final game-the championship game! Colin had a grand slam in the 6th inning (out of 7 innings) and they ended up winning 23-13!!! I think Colin's Granny and I were more excited than anyone! :)

This season was full of randomness...including Bethany having the biggest bruise on her calf that I've ever seen (think the size of a squash with a hard knot the size of a tangerine!) and Allison breaking her nose. They are both doing much better now! Fall ball starts in a couple weeks so we'll be making many more trips down to Albany before we actually move. I should calculate the cost of gas in the last few months...wow!

The Big 2-5

Well, today I am officially 1/4 dead, or less. Bummer. The good news is that it's an easy age to remember. Today I worked a little then came home and played around with the new Cricut machine my mom and dad gave me for my birthday. It's a di cut (sp?) machine that is really awesome for scrapbooking or other arts and crafts. I did a few baby cutouts for my friend Tiffani so we can start scrapbooking baby Madison's book soon. Then I thought I'd try and beat Super Mario Bro's level 3 on my new Nintendo DS Laura bought me. I am absolutley horrible and attribute that to my mom NEVER letting us have anything other than an attari! Anyway, Colin is on lever 6 with 27 lives and I keep killing my guy on level 3. Colin took me to a chinese restaurant in downtown Portland and it was SO good! I finally found spring rolls that come close to Mandarin Kitchen's in Des Moines.

Last week my parents, sister and I went to Potholes for about the 23rd time. We started going when I was about 9ish months and have gone back almost every year since. I hope to make this a tradition with my future family. Anyway, here are a few pictures from camping...



Duke had a great time lounging around. The sunsets were absolutely beautiful!

Thought this was a funny picture of duke. He was sneezing! Here is a picture of the fires that were near the damn. The middle one looked like a skinny tornado because of the heat rising.













Other than my birthday and camping, nothing else is going on! Just getting back into the swing of things at work. My jobs are picking up which is great. I am one of the lucky few whom actually LOVE their job and wouldn't trade it for anything! Hope everyone has a nice sunny week! It's darn hot out today!