Busch Gardens Williamsburg

To start our family reunion vacation, we went to Busch Gardens Williamsburg. It was a very interesting day. It was quite smoky at the park, because there was a wildfire at the Great Dismal Swamp (yes, that is the real name). Felt like we hadn't left California, until I noticed the humidity. It was really, really humid, and it started to pour around 3:00 pm. We were soaked through, but we had a great time.

Here are a couple of pictures.



At the arcade, David won an X-Box 360 at the same time John won an iPod Touch. I guess we were quite lucky that day, despite the smoke and rain.

My Favorite Beach Picture

John, the boys, and I accompanied Mandi, Junior, and their boys to the Bodie Lighthouse in the Outer Banks, NC. I took quite a few pictures, but this is probably my favorite of the entire vacation. I thought I'd share it.

John was kind enough to remove the digital date stamp for me in Photoshop.

All That Remains...

My favorite roller coaster at Busch Gardens Williamsburg was the Big Bad Wolf. It was so much fun! It was wild, but not too wild. Daring, but not too daring. It was the perfect coaster.

Unfortunately, Busch Gardens decided to replace it. So rather than experiencing this at the park...



This is all that remains.

AJ's Birthday: 1st Video Shot With My New Camera

Here's a video I recorded on my new camera at AJ's family birthday celebration.

AJ's 10th Birthday!

AJ turned 10 a couple of weeks ago, and we officially have only double digit aged children. (Boy are we old!)

Here are a couple of pictures of the celebration.

Outer Banks Beach Bash Extravaganza 2011

John, the kids, and I went to my family reunion last week. My entire family rented a huge beach house (right on the beach) in Nags Head, NC. More photos to come, but here's one from our last day.

Playing Around With My New Camera

Click here to view these pictures larger

A Quick Trip to Utah

I took the boys (David, Michael, and A.J.) to Utah for a quick trip in late July. We picked up all the things David needed for school and were able to do a few fun things, including a visit to the Bingham Copper Mine. When I was young, my family used to visit the mine when we visited our grandparents in Utah. I thought I'd continue the tradition.











I took this picture when I was showing my kids how big the trucks at the mine really are.




These pictures are from the LDS Church History Museum.






David snapped this picture as we entered St. George, Utah. I love the way the Temple looks against the red rocks.

Summer Beach Trip #2

We took Beach Trip #2 with our friends, the Hicks family. David and AJ enjoyed the zip line. AJ and Michael played on the beach with the Hicks' children. I was able to talk to my dear friend, Kristina. It was a wonderful day!

Our First Eagle Scout!

David passed his Board of Review and earned his Eagle Rank in Boy Scouts last month. He worked so hard over the past several years, topping it all off with his Eagle Scout Project to benefit Project Linus. (You can read more about it by clicking here.)

We are so proud of you!!

Audrey's Birthday Celebration

A group of our friends got together to celebrate Audrey's birthday with a shaving cream/water balloon fight at a local park.

The kids had so much fun!

Summer Beach Trip #1

We went to the beach a few times this summer. On our first trip, AJ discovered a love for "drizzle" sand castles and collecting shells with Mom. Here are some photos from our first trip.