Here's Ruby, "guarding" the campsite! The weather was hot, and the kids kept busy swimming, fishing, crabbing and their favorite activity, poking sticks in the fire.
Alan, his friend Kevin, Larry's friend Jacob, and Larry (can't put that Gameboy down!), sitting around the fire.
Neil and cousin Nelson goofing around... other cousins Elliott & Joseph were there too, but I didn't manage to get photos. It was a fun trip to squeeze in before school starts - only 2 weeks to go!
Alan had his first football practice today - here he is looking tough! They have a pretty rigorous practice schedule, every day for 2 hours until school starts. Larry has soccer twice a week and works just as hard.... he's in the top division this year and the coach keeps them busy with running stairs and lots of drills. I'm glad sports are starting up, it's nice to have them exercising and away from the TV and computer.
We just returned from a great trip down to Bandon, OR to visit my grandparents. We stayed at the beautiful Jetty House right on the beach with Tyler, Anna and their 3 girls. With 6 kids and 1 dog in the same house, it was lively. Pictured above, L-R back (Tyler was taking the picture): Uncle Dave, Aunt Cyndi (who DROVE from Wisconsin!), Carrie, Me, Wade, Larry, Anna with Eleanor, Grandma, Grandpa, Megan, then L-R front, Alan, Audrey and Neil.
This year we got to celebrate my grandparents' 65th wedding anniversary! Cyndi & Dave organized a nice luncheon at the Bandon Boatworks restaurant for family & friends. This is the happy couple, ready to cut the cake...
Carrie was able to make it too, even though she just graduated from the University of Oregon and is busy settling into "real life." Here she is on the dock in Old Town Bandon with the boys (notice how Larry, at 11, has already caught up to her in height!)
The weather was great - sunny, but the wind made it chilly at times. That didn't stop the kids from getting soaked or burying themselves in wet sand, though. They also enjoyed building campfires on the beach at night, dropping crab pots off the dock (we ended up with 3 crabs that were big enough to keep), exploring the shops in Old Town, and picking blackberries out behind their great-grandparents' house.
