raging loonatics at raging waters

the much anticipated mini family vacation has finally come to pass. we have been sniffin' out this water wonderland for a while. since i wasn't able to go to girls' camp this year (boo hoo) we took the opportunity to dive in for double days of drenched delight. once we settled in, established our spot: by the fountain, in front of the small slides for the boys, and not too far from ray ray's river and caden's endless river, we split off for some crazy times. after the first day they all found their fave spots to hit up repeatedly. Ray floated on her tummy down her little river, brady rode the Great White Shark (huge water slide--5yr old daredevil), caden insisted on swimming upstream in the lazy river and Kendra loved the wave pool and any big slide we got her on. only one small moment of panic: caden had ditched brady in the river and the next thing i see is my idolizing son brady being escorted by a lifeguard to reunite us. brady thot he was big stuff walking with one of those cool rescue guys. these slides where there's no tubes were our only shot of adrenaline for jared and i. not a lot can measure up to the "Tornado" ride at the Great Wolf Lodge in WA but raging waters gave a valiant effort and it has more than plenty for the kids to enjoy. Two full days of lots of daddy fun time were great, its hard giving him back to PG &E to work, but that makes these family moments that more valued. our season passes will be well used i'm pretty positive.

my boy got married!!!! ok, he's not really mine

sometimes in life you come across someone who changes your life. about 3 years ago Elder James Heiner from Virginia did just that for jared, myself and our little family. he was a brand new missionary out in the field, happy to be in salinas--what a guy huh? he had a spark about him, he loved being on his mission, he loved us, our food, our kids and the gospel. he was perfect. jared was the ward mission leader and was privelaged to see first hand and close up what a determined and warm spirited missionary he was. he was able to serve in salinas again at the close of his mission and our attatchment to him grew even closer. i chatted with his mom on his christmas phone call, i wrote her a letter praising him, we played, hung out and just formed an extremely special bond. since his departure, he has kept in touch with us by calling, texting, and he even brought the then "just girlfriend" out to visit and for our approval. we knew when this blessed day came we had to be there in the sealing room to share in this monumental step in his life. so jared turned the van into a hotel room and we hit the road, utah bound, arriving to attend the family dinner the nite before--which both their families were so hospitable and grateful we were able to come out. wedding day we helped the bride's family by gathering and preparing the food for the reception. jared and i completely loved being of assistance and working in the kitchen together. this is the kitchen of the rental mansion where the bride's family all stayed--what a great, super impressive family by the way. the Mount Timpanogas temple was a gorgeous sight. it was a tad hot for us, and there was a few spurts of rain, but the wedding party could care less, we were so happy for them both. we were able to meet up with Elder Kim--the groom's trainer from his mission and 3 other mission companions that jamesey had here in different areas. we had a blast catching up and just enjoying their youthful vibrance. who let these beautiful wedding crashers in? ruth and devon now live 3 minutes away (good friends from salinas), so they had to sneak a quick visit in, and yes, we boogied on the dance floor. too fun! the reception was at American Fork Amphitheater, it was a gorgeous nite, the cake cutting on the balcony was picturesque, the happy couple was just too perfect. grandma vofo made our weekend possible, the kids totally enjoyed having her take care of them, spoil them and love them, but boy did daddy get a huge welcoming home. i loved capturing the moment. we had a wonderful time, wouldn't have missed it for the world and are so grateful for such amazing people that we call friends. we love you jamesey and tracy--Mr. & Mrs. Heiner!!!

fun, food and friends!!!

sure, no school, water activities, and fun events are all great parts to the summer months, but i really love this time of year when my friends come back home to visit, and we all get to hang out like the "good ol' days". at this seminary class reunion i made us all play a group game of "guess something i did in high school and something i've done since high school.lets just say the room was hootin and hollarin' and someone is a skinny dippin' fool! no one was nude at this pool party tho. the super cute lowrey family had us over for a nice bbq and we had a great time with them in their beautiful but freezing pool. i got to sneak over and see newborn Brynn. the proud new mommy, brittany didnt want a postbirth picture--cant blame her, so you just get to see her adorable baby. visiting with friends just isnt complete with out a girls nite out, and chocolate cake! this is what summer is all about!

finally the FOURTH!!!

wow, its been busy around here. it seems like the fourth of july was about 2 months ago. we loved having family over for quaint fireworks on our driveway. i was just thrilled for this event. nah, it was adorable to watch the kids get such a kick out of little silly sparks. the kids were too cute, they love their cousin Scout. for the evening we headed up to gilroy high school to see a fantastic fireworks display that our friends told us about. thank you to the Staley and Lowery families, we had a blast watching the blasts and enjoyed your company. great suggestion. jared and i always appreciate this time of year to feel patriotism. we love to be reminded of the freedoms we enjoy because of those who have sacrificed. go team USA!

ruby--our real gem, saying goodbye to grandma

a 14 hour car ride was not a sacrifice at all in order to get up to Washington for my mom's mom's funeral. Ruby Fife lived 81 marvelous years, accomplishing so much and loving more than we can comprehend. her and grandpa raised 6 wonderful children, had a super cute relationship, and served 5 missions for the church. they are too amazing. dan and roxi were heading up for their family vacation, so i hopped in and after driving thru the nite we rested for a while then dan and i headed up to the viewing. aunt tammy made a wonderful slide show of her life and reuniting and hugging that fife clan was great. the funeral was beautiful--the family's musical number was incredible, my knees weakened when my mom so powerfully played the intro. i was impressed that we all didnt fall apart as we sang. but watching our dear cute little grandpa quietly weep and slowly wipe his eyes during the program was the hardest part for most of us. these are the Fife kids with their dad. its quite the crew. my uncles are talented, hilarious characters always full of suprises. my aunts are super loving, caring and involved. we laughed, we cried, we ate, we hugged but most importantly we were just there together to remember a wonderful, inspiring woman. one of the more touching moments to me was my brothers and dad being pall bearers. we are all very grateful that grandma is not suffering anymore but it's still unreal to imagine her being gone from us. we know her spirit lives on and that she is filled with joy, but it was hard to see her body put in the ground. my dad dedicated the grave and i was reminded of the great assurance that the blessings of the priesthood give us. it was comforting. afterwards the cute little relief society provided a nice lunch for the family. we had a lovely time to visit and just enjoy seeing eachother. this is my cousin melanie who we wanted an updated picture together since the last one we took was 32 years ago. so fun to catch up. the dividing of grandmas jewelery turned out to be quite humorous. my mom pulled out her jewelery she didnt want and we went shopping and had some fun with the dated accessories. we ended our trip with dan taking us geo-cacheing. its like a real life treasure hunt where you use your GPS to get clues and find hidden stuff. its pretty fun. we found this one in the woods by the golf course in my parents' neighborhood. all in all we had made and recalled great memories: bumping into my mom at the viewing and her not recognizing me, reading moms past yearly newsletters, spending quality time with andrew and megan, singing a beautiful number at the funeral with my extremely talented Fife side of the family, looking at pictures, and feeling so blessed to have had grandma in our lives. we love you grandma.