~8/28/2010~

Just riding a wave in on his boogie board, whatev...
anybody who knows what a scaredy cat this boy was of the water at home, sees this as quite crazy! From boogie boarding to snorkeling, this kid is CONSTANTLY in the water!

~8/27/2010~

The cutest thing in water wings and flippers I ever did see! Owen snorkeled just like Uncle Joshie at Hunauma Bay!

~8/26/2010~

This is the life!

~8/25/2010~

LONG OVERDUE!!! It felt so good to get to spend the day with Michelle, and we still have 7 days together!

~8/24/2010~

one whole hour into our visit to Oahu, we went to Owen's favorite place to swim, and Michelle and I got to lay in the sun and visit! Forgive the picture quality, this was taken with my phone!

~8/23/2010~

I'm beginning to think that once the pile gets into the bag... well... we may not be able to pull off the whole "checking one bag" thing... seeing as how he hasn't STARTED packing his things...

~Project 365~

Well, thanks to my sweet cousin Alyssa, I have decided to take this task on for Josh and myself. It is a project where you take a picture a day. Whether it's of you, someone else, or something else, you take a picture everyday for a year. And at the end of the year you are able to look back over your year and remember something significant from each day. Most of us have troubles remembering what we had for dinner the night before, let alone something that happened each day in the last year! So, wish me luck. And please forgive my photography skills... I pray that by the end of the 365 days they improve some, but for now, all I can say is... enjoy!

~Bidding Michelle And Owen Aloha~

At the end of May, our Brother In Law Derek got sent to Oahu for a job through his company. And at the end of June, Michelle and Owen hopped on a plane to join them. So, we gathered some family and a few of Michelle's closest friends, and spent the evening enjoying each others company! Within minutes of dropping Michelle & Owen off at the airport days later, we changed our plans of taking a road trip through the Grand Tetons and Yellowstone, and had purchased tickets to spend those 9 days on Oahu with the Patseys instead!

Me, Michelle & Leah

Michelle with the Mason family

With our Auntie & Uncle Paul, or "Uncle" as Owen calls him

Michelle & Leah

Tyler & Alyssa

With Lindsey Borg

With the McGee Family

With Aunt Donna, Cindy, and sweet little Wyatt

With Aunt Wendi & Katie

Michelle & Katie

With Sarah Spellman and her little man Aiden

~Sunshine And Stellar Friends~

With Lindsey not teaching summer school this year, me working BEAUTIFUL hours at Foursquare Church, and Leah only working until noon every day at Union Bank, we've been able to spend a few fun afternoons together in the sun! One afternoon consisted of pedicures and snacks at Bradley Park, and another was an afternoon of sun bathing at Alki. I love hanging out with these girls, and look forward to many more fun times!

Linds & I at Alki

This picture was taken by a 6 year old boy who had taken to playing with Leah's son Mikey!
Sweet Mikey posing for a quick picture before going back to playing. He had a great time too!

Our afternoon at Bradley Park. I love these girls!!!

~Mr & Mrs Smith~

On a particularly toasty Friday afternoon, we headed out to Pioneer Park to celebrate the marriage of Danny Smith & Lindsey Parks. It's quite fun to get to watch your co-worker officiate the wedding! Andrew Gard is our Dean of Students for our Ministry Institute at Foursquare Church. It was a great time, and a beautiful wedding and reception! Congratulations to Mr & Mrs Smith!

Mrs Stroud, Mrs Barnard, & Mrs Gard

I love love LOVE this man!

Your best friends are always there to stress over outfits with you! Leah, we've chosen great ones for this event! :-)

~A Day At The Races~

Sunday July 25th, the beautiful Julie Mironchuck set the group of us up for a fun day at Emerald Downs. So after NO sleep, and a long morning at work, Josh and I met up with Amber, Ray & Leah, and Troy & Lindsey to check out the horse races. One of the MANY things on my bucket list is to attend the Kentucky Derby, so I chose to make this day at Emerald Downs as a "practice run" for the real deal! After yummy appetizers in the clubhouse, we made it down to the track to check out the horses. It was a gorgeous day, and always a great time with some of our favorite people!

~Clancy's Coffee~

Several months ago, Josh came up to me and said "I think I'm going to pursue firefighting. What a great way to live an attitude of servitude, laying down my life to save others." What wife wouldn't be excited to hear those words? One of the sexiest careers out there, and MY husband has set his mind to making it a career! He sat down with a man by the name of Steve Rawson, whom he's known for a while from the YMCA. After hours long conversations with Steve, it was mentioned that Josh had never worked "under" anybody. Being a real estate agent for years, he's been his own boss. And, our belief is that you can only lead to the degree that you can submit. So submission started. Josh turned all of his focus to helping Steve open his second Clancy's Coffee. With a successful drive through in Enumclaw, they decided to take on the city, and the shop, and open a fully functioning coffee shop, complete with incredible food, from the local bistro, Minoela . Their soft opening was just 2 weeks ago, and they're doing beautifully! With the successful opening under his belt, that amazing Josh has turned some of his focus back to firefighting. I'm so proud of this guy!

We promise Ken was excited as Shannon and I were to be at Clancy's!

~The Harbor With Katie Sue!~

Yesterday when I got off work, I took my sleepy rear out to the new Clancy's Coffee in downtown Tacoma. The amazing Mr Josh Barnard had a big hand in opening the shop, and it's such a fun place to be! Our cousin Katie Sue works there with Josh, and the 2 of them were closing together. Once the shop was closed down, Katie and I headed out to her house for dinner and some girl time. Katie lives right in downtown Gig Harbor, and you can sit and enjoy Gig Harbor Marina from her dining room table! After a fabulous dinner courtesy of Katie, we decided on a walk through town for a yummy dessert treat. And good news, Katie and I are HOTTIES in Gig Harbor! :-) After scoping out which home we'd live in given the chance (if you haven't wandered this part of Gig Harbor, i definitely suggest it, BEAUTIFUL homes!) we found a fun and cheesy photo op. After our walk, we enjoyed giggling over pictures taken over the years, and Katie showing a video taken of her and a couple other missionaries in Papua New Guinea, going WEIGHTLESS in a small plane! EEK! not an idea of a good time for this girl! Needless to say, time with Katie is always completely enjoyable! We are so blessed to be able to call such an incredible girl family!