Playing Hooky at the Beach
Nothing better than a last minute trip to the beach on a weekday. I felt as though we were playing hooky, as we journeyed with the Flowers family. All four adults and three children piled into one car. Like puzzle pieces we clamored in for our trip, and piled out one by one at our destination, Dillon Beach. It was a perfect day, beautiful weather, and wonderful company. I spent most of the day attached to little Isaac, loving every moment of it. Scott, Jon, and Jess played in the water and the sand with Eli and Josh. We all left rejuvenated, refreshed, and sandy. We also made a mental note to bring Kona and Shasta next time as this is one of the few beaches that dogs are allowed. For this trip however, we didn't have quite enough room...Thanks for a good time guys!

Scott and I with Isaac

Jon and Jess with Eli and JoshJess and Eli running from the water...

Jon and Josh watching the waves
Jess and Eli enjoying lunch

A Day in Napa Valley
Five Fun-Loving couples, a beautiful day, and some great wine...Seriously one of the best times I have had in the Napa Valley. We spent the day with four other couples touring the valley, enjoying the beauty, and sampling some lovely fermented grape juice along the way. Our day started out at Rubicon where we were treated to a wonderful, and fabuloously historical tour of the winery. We sampled some of the best wines in a private tasting room in the caves (something I have always wanted to do). We had a lovely deli lunch at VSatui and traveled on to a few other wineries as well. We ended the day with a dinner at Piccolinos in Napa. The wine was great, the beauty of the valley was great, but the best part was the fun friends we were able to spend the day with. We made some great memories!!!

New Tat!

We have had the priviledge of having friends stay with us these past couple of weeks. J & A are missionaries from India, and they are finished up their 4 mo furlow here with us. A practiced her Henna tatooing skills on my foot. I love it! Though I don't think I am ready for a real one.

We also took a "field trip" to Ikea last weekend. We spent so long on the top floor looking at all the lovely furnishings, that we were all a little overwhelmed by the time we got to the lower floor. It was a fun, dreamy trip!

A Lovely Ending.

Our last couple of days in Michigan were not lacking in fun and surprises. On our way back to the east side we stopped in Grand Rapids to visit with a few good friends. We were also able to visit the Biel farm and go horse back riding. A new little filly was born about a week and a half before our arrival, and we got to feed, pet her, and watch her explore. We also had a wonderful ride through the acres of forest behind the farm.
The night before leaving, we decided to check out the Munger Potato festival with Scott's mom and dad. Apparently this festival used to be quite the event of the summer. But this year it was quite the bust. We didn't stay long, and decided to go play Bingo in Bay City instead. (Something that is becoming somewhat of a tradition when we are with Scott's parents). That night must have been our lucky night because both Jackie and I won two Bingos, leaving us with nearly $300 total in winnings. Not a bad way to end the trip.

Camping and Sand Dunes Anyone?? Sign me up!

After visiting the U.P. we made the long trek down to the west side of the state, near Lake Michigan. We met Scott's sister's family for a camping trip on Silver Lake. We enjoyed three nights of camping on Silver Lake which is bordered by sand dunes. On the other side of the Sand Dunes rests Lake Michigan. We had a blast camping with Ann, Vince, Ian, and Jenna. The best part was exploring the Sand Dunes. We all loaded into the truck, let some air out of the tires, and headed up the sandy road out to the great wide open of the rolling sand dunes. We bounced around in the back of the truck, manuvering our way up, over, and through the dunes until we arrived at the shore of Lake Michigan. We unloaded and spent the day lounging on the beach, soaking in the rays, and swimming in the refreshing water. The following day Vince decided that we needed to make even more memories at the dunes and he rented a jeep. My heartrate skyrocketed as Vince took us on a ride I will never forget. As Vince would say, "Nothing runs like a rental!" He was right, nothing runs like a rental, and we made memories that will last a lifetime!

The Bronco of our dreams...

Yooper, You Betcha!

During our second week in MI we were able to spend time at a wonderful little cabin in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. For those of you who do not know anything about the U.P. it is a world of it's own. It is north of the Mackinac bridge where winter comes early and stays late. Those that reside in the U.P. are referred to as "Yoopers" Yoopers have their own language and a very unique culture. They consider the mosquito the state bird, and they really like Pasties. If you don't know what Pasties are, Google it. And if you still have no idea what I am talking about, you might start by looking at a map...
We were able to experience the best of the raw, rugged, and beautiful U.P. for four nights in a cute little cabin on Big Manistique Lake near the little town of Curtis. We fished, had a campfire, and played a lot of pinochle and euchre. Could life get any better? I submit that it could not.
We were also able to visit Lake Superior, which is the northernmost of the Great Lakes. Storms on Lake Superior far excel those of the storms on the ocean. You can tour the shipwreck from a glass bottom boat to see first hand what the fierceness of the Great Lake storm can do. Lake Superior is approximately 150 miles from North to South, and 450 miles from East to West. It's Huge! We took a boat tour of an amazing place called Pictured Rocks. These are huge cliffs and rocks where the land meets the lake that have been "painted" by years of brutal storms. The water has beaten, carved, and painted the rocks which rise up from the water 30-50 feet. There are places we saw along the tour that the waves crash up and over onto the tops of the cliffs every year. This is an absolutely incredible place. I was also able to put my hand in Lake Superior... which is about the most one would want to submerge into the frigid water.

We were also able to spend the afternoon with some friends who recently moved to the U.P. It was encouraging to visit with them and see where they live.
The tree that you see growing on the rock outcropping is being supported by the roots which are stretching over the gap and into the land to the left.

Happy Birthday Uncle Scott!!
During our first week in Michigan we picked up our niece and nephew for a few days and brought them back to Scott's parent's house. We had a blast playing with them outside, and in the pool. They were also there for Uncle Scott's birthday. We also had a family/friends BBQ on the day after Scott's birthday. Thank you to everyone who came out to celebrate with us and endure the occasional downpours throughout the day. We had such a great time visiting with everyone!

How Did I end up here??
On our second evening in Michigan we met up with Scott's Aunt, Uncle, Cousin, and some friends at Kingfish restaurant on the river in Bay City for a fun filled evening. We started outside, moved inside for the rain, and then back out to the deck on the river to enjoy the rest of the beautiful sunny evening. A local radio station was hosting the event and they had a raffle for many fabulous prizes. Scott and I both won tee-shirts, but that wasn't the end of the winnings. Later in the Evening the DJ announced that he needed three ladies to come to the front for a friendly compitition. Somehow I found myself joining Scott's mom, Jackie, and Scott's Aunt Cindy at the front. We were told that we would each need a full bottle of beer. Since the three of us were not actually drinking beer, we needed to go and purchase three bottles. We came back ready for the competition. I am a bit embarrased to admit that I found it a lot easier to balance the bottle on my head then I would have thought.

It's Bacon...... bacon, bacon, bacon!!
Our trip started early morning on the 14th of July as we boarded the plane for our "Red Eye" flight to Detroit. Our connecting flight took us to Flint, where we were greeted by Scott's Dad, Phil. We were tired and hungry, so he took us out to eat at Tony's. Tony's is a place that I have only heard about, but never in my nearly 4 years of marriage to my husband, have had the opportunity to visit. Everything at Tony's is BIG, I mean HUGE! A bit overwhelming for this west coast girl. When you order bacon, you recieve ONE POUND of bacon. This is no exaggeration. After sitting in awe for a few moments over the ginormous plate of bacon we enjoyed a few pieces and took the rest home. I was a little speechless by the amount of wasted food in this restaraunt, but I was glad to finally experience such a famous Michigan destination. And thus began our Michigan vacation....

Too many goodbyes for me this week.

I know for sure that every friend we have has a purpose in our lives. I have been reminded this week how true this is as we have said goodbyes. While they are different goodbyes, they are still goodbyes and very hard.
On Tuesday one dear friend went home to be with the Lord. After many years of health battles, she took a rather sudden downturn and met Jesus Tuesday night. We know we will see her again.
Today we said goodbye to our dear friends here in Vacaville. They are relocating to DC, and they will be leaving a huge void in our lives here in Vacaville. We will see them again (hopefully many times) I am sure! Now we have a very good reason to visit DC, something we've been wanting to do for a while.
It's hard to say goodbye, but thankfully we have a God who is our common bond and we can rest assured, knowing HIS plans are perfect.
Joyce, we will miss your presence, your laughter, and your spirit.
Adam, Alexis, Nathan, and Bentley we will miss our late nights playing cards, trips to the beach, and camping with you. Lets plan for more times in the future. We are excited for your adventures to come.
I am SO grateful to God that no goodbyes are ever forever. And I am SO grateful for the amazing people that God has given us as friends.

An Hour at the Beach

We decided to take a last minute trip to Stinson Beach (just north of San Fransisco) with our good friends and our respective dogs. We took the same trip with these friends nearly two years ago, and decided it was high time we do it again. Besides, our dear friends are transferring to DC next week, and we want to spend all the time we can with them. Due to the busyness of the day, we only had a limited amount of time to spend actually at the beach, but it was Well worth every bit of the trip there and back.