Long Beach pictures

We drove from Moses Lake to Long Beach on the 3rd and while we were sad to leave Lewis' family,
we were thrilled to be at the beach:

There was a friendly game of football:

And apparently some sand being eaten:

Lots of smiles, even from the non-sand loving type:

Jordan and Jackie got the kids all lined up for a picture:

And Tillie had a wardrobe malfunction:

Sophie couldn't contain her excitement:

We piled the kids all back in the car and they were thrilled to sit in the back with no car seats! As we drove down the beach we all chanted "USA" out the windows while Uncle Brian rode on the roof. People weren't as surprised by us as I thought they should be....

Maybe they were just distracted by the sunset:

On the 4th we went for a drive to Oysterville and I made Jackie take a picture of this dog driving the car. It still makes me laugh:

We visited Jake of course, and made sure to say Hi from Lewis (his biggest fan):

Then after a hike to a really pretty beach ( I can't remember the name) we had lunch in Ilwaco:

Uncle Matt was nice enough to take the kids on the Tilt a whirl because there's no way I'm getting on that thing:

Tillie chose the carousel.

Then it was off to the world's longest beach for the world's craziest 4th of July celebration:

See, the beach is a highway and no fireworks are illegal so you can imagine the chaos. Cars as far as you can see and fireworks all day and all night long. Full on fireworks going off all around you.

A loved sitting in the unused firepit:

Cute Porter:

Enjoying smores with the largest marshmallows I have ever seen. Also, the coconut covered marshmallows are so yummy!

We did some sparklers. Well, not me because I got to sit in the car with Cate for most of the time. She had a bad attitude about the cold and the loud fireworks!

My dad went all out with the fireworks this year. He got some really good ones.

And Great Grandma taught the kids the best way to make a sand castle.

Once it started to get dark and colder the moms and kids headed back to the hotel where we bathed and watched the fireworks from inside. They were good ones but Brooks still fell asleep.

It was a terrific trip.
Go USA!!!

Moses Lake in pictures

Busted!

"Happy happy birthday, today's your special day!"

Brooks' birthday was Tuesday, but for some reason my pictures are messing up so, here's my 10th try....
Brooks and his best buddy slash cousin Fischer on the beach in Long Beach on July 3.


We celebrated B's 5th birthday in style while we were in Utah. He is currently obsessed with Star Wars, and Darth Vader was kind enough to make a stop and fight our Jedi candidates. Luckily, there were no casualties.
As the guests arrived (mostly friends from Alabama how crazy is that) they were informed that they would be undergoing Jedi training.
They did very well on the obstacle course. Sweet moves, A.
may the force be with you.


Close your eyes if you make cakes that look nice. Please! This is a light saber. Use your imagination.

The last step before becoming a Jedi knight was to find the candy and chocolate filled meteorites that were hidden out in the sun because the hider didn't use any foresight. They were given specific instructions by Yoda himself to in the refrigerator put them before opening.
We all had a wonderful time and I kept thinking that I was going to melt once I got home to Alabama if I was hot in Utah. I was wrong because when I'm in Alabama I just don't go outside! Hooray for air conditioning because, honey, it's H-O double T here in the heart of Dixie.
Now back to the birthday boy-
Brooks is the sweetest little guy. He can pitch a fit like nobody else, but his fits are extremely rare. I am convinced that if everyone in the world was more like Brooks there would be no war, no hunger, and more love all around.
For example, Aiden loves this game where you start with A and everyone says a word and the person who is the judge says who is the winner based on what word they like the best. Well, when Brooks is the judge he makes sure that the score is even. Luckily, there are 26 letters so he can make it happen.
When we are walking anywhere Lewis tends to take off and walk really fast. I'm usually at the back making sure everyone is there and carrying whatever stuff we might need. Brooks always comes back to me and says "Mom, I want to walk with you. I will wait for you."
He is always watching out for me.
He is the greatest little guy.

"That's all over the minute you ride up Troy's bucket!"

While we were on our summer extravaganza tour we drove up to Washington and spent a day with Lewis' family in Moses Lake. Then we drove over to Long Beach where we spent the fourth of July. It can't really be explained, but I might try in another post. However, the most important part came on our drive to Portland when we stopped in Astoria.

It was a very important stop because it is the 25th anniversary of The Goonies this year. And I love that movie. Have it memorized. Watched it almost every weekend in high school. Have you seen the one with the the octopus that only goes away after they pull out the boom box? It's pretty sweet.

Anyway, they have turned the old county jail into a museum for films made in Oregon, but it's mainly Goonies stuff. "Rich stuff, Mikey"
This is where they filmed the opening scene:

Data's costume. "Bully blinders!! Only problem, batteries don't last so long."

"That's my Mom's most favorite piece!"

And this is a sight I hope to never see:

The museum where Mikey's dad works and they ride by on their bikes:

The house! And you can see Data's house on the left.

"alright, Michael Jackson didn't come over to my house. to use the bathroom. but his sister did!!"
What's your favorite Goonies quote?
And no, Brit, I didn't do the truffle shuffle because I just don't have any truffle to shuffle! hahahaha wink wink! :)