Wonderful Week!

It's been a great week full of fun with family and friends! It began on Sunday with Tori's birthday dinner - belated because it was the first time we could all get together (minus Laura and Ben, of course). Tori turned seven on August 14.

Opening gift from Uncle Tom and Aunt Anna

Zac


Deven


Noah

Monday morning I had a great surprise visit from Sarah S. and her girls, Kate and Elia. It was great to see them and meet Elia for the first time. What precious girls they are! Sarah has been a friend of Laura's and our family since she came to Kelloggsville Christian School in 7th grade :)

Monday afternoon and evening was spent in Holland with the triplets. Fun, fun, fun!

Abby, Sophie, Noah
Ready to help me with supper - wearing their new aprons from Seattle's market

Just a few seconds of what turned out to be 30 minutes
of giggles and dancing....

Anna had some fun with the kids after she got home from work

On Tuesday morning I visited my friend Sarah. This is the best of about eight pictures I took - one of those stretch-your-arm-out-and-shoot pictures. Prayers for Sarah, please - she is expecting TWINS and experiencing some difficulties in her pregnancy. The babies are fine and developing well!

Wednesday and Thursday was our annual getaway with my mom and sisters. Beckie made all the arrangements this year and we had a wonderful time in Shipshewana, Indiana. We shopped at the flea market on Wednesday, saw the Baker-Pasma families in concert in the afternoon, and had a fantastic supper at the home of an Amish family in the evening.

Beckie won a pie at the concert - compliments of the Blue Gate Bakery.
(She now knows the secret to getting her name drawn out of the stack :)

There were lots of laughs......

These really are tears of laughter

Just one of MANY phone calls over the two days....

Denise, Mom, Marva, Beckie

The Morton Street B & B where we stayed

Denise, me, Beckie, Mom

Pretzels at JoJo's - a tradition for us
in Shipshewana


Eating Beckie's pie - yum!

On Thursday afternoon we spent some time with my nephew Mike, his wife Suzanne, and their kids - a special treat for all of us! Their family lives in Elkhart, Indiana where Mike writes computer programs and Suzanne stays busy home-schooling their kids.

Oliver, Suzanne, Grace, Mike

Lily, Suzanne, Grace, Mike, Oliver
Does Mike look like a proud father? He should be!!

Dinner in Three Rivers on the way home

Thanks, Beckie, for making all the plans and arrangements for our wonderful get-away. It was a great time, as always!

And a final note - our son-in-law Ben nearly aced his test in Greek today with a 97.5%! He audited a class in Greek at Fuller Seminary this summer, and passing this test enables him to take other classes this fall that require command of that language. He begins full-time studies at Fuller in Seattle in a few weeks. Great start, Ben!

Wonderful days with Laura and Ben!

We had another great trip to Seattle! The best part - of course - is spending lots of time with Laura and Ben. But we're glad they live in such a beautiful, lively city where there is always plenty to see and do. This trip included some old favorites and some new activities.....

The 5 Spot - our favorite place for breakfast.
The decor is always changing - you'll get an idea what I mean if you watch the slide show.

Laura and Ben live just a block down from the market

The market is beautiful - and a favorite spot for tourists

Ben recently received this certification of his completion
of the Boston Marathon in April. Note the time - under 3 hours!

We spent Saturday night at the Mariners' game -
the stadium is within walking distance of their apartment.

Ben and Ryan B., who joined us for the Mariners' game.
Ryan recently moved to Seattle where he is doing his residency
in radiology at Virginia Mason Hospital.

Laura and Ben enjoy beautiful views of Puget Sound from their apartment

This view of the shipyards was taken from their apartment balcony

Ben had commitments on Monday and Tuesday, so Laura, Bill and I headed to Portland, Oregon - about a 3 hour drive. Laura knows her way around there a bit and showed us some of the highlights. One of them was a tour of the Pittock Mansion built in the early 1900s.

Portland is known for its beautiful rose 'test garden'. It is an incredible place with acres of roses.


The well-known Powell Bookstore in Portland is the largest bookstore in the world - 77,000 square feet of space! This picture shows the directory so you can find just the book you're looking for.......


On Thursday we took a tour of Safeco Field where the Mariners play. We had a fascinating, behind-the-scenes look into locker rooms, the press area, owner's suite, the dugouts, etc.

This picture was taken in the press conference room

We also toured the Theo Chocolate Company - never knew there was such a huge process getting the chocolate from the bean to the store! We all looked stunning as we toured the factory.....

Thursday evening we spent some time with Hogie and Kristen. We've known Hogie since he was an exchange student in Steve's class at South Christian - '88-'89. When he returned home to Germany after that year, we weren't sure we'd ever see him again but instead have always stayed in touch and seen each other often over the years. He is now a father of three and both he and Kristen both work as architects in Seattle.

The family - Kristen with Leo, Hogie with Klara, me with Max

The slide show will give you a good idea of the fun we had.....




It was a wonderful week - relaxing and yet filled with activity and fun. Thanks, Laura and Ben, for sharing your place with us once again and for always treating us to so many coffees, meals, etc., etc.! We loved the time spent with you - and we love you!

Triple the Fun! Thursday, August 16

We spent another great evening with Tom and Anna and the kids in Holland. After supper at the kids' favorite place - Froggie's - we spent some time at Kollen Park before heading downtown to watch the Street Performers. When you see these pictures, you'll see why we have such fun with the kids - they are full of energy and are so delightful!

Noah climbing, as usual

Sweet Abby

Abby and Noah

Great fun on the tire swing!

Noah and Abby by the fountain

Sweet Sophie

We found the 'balloon man' again
and the kids were fascinated by his creations.
This time Abby and Noah asked for dolphins
and Sophie asked for a flower.

Tom and Sophie

Grandpa and Noah

Next post - pictures of Laura and Ben and Seattle!

Summer Fun with Grandkids and Friends!

We've had a fun-filled week between my trip to Germany and our visit to Laura and Ben in Seattle on Friday! Last Thursday we had dinner with Tom and Anna and the kids and then walked around downtown Holland where Street Performers line the streets on Thursday evenings. It's a wonderful atmosphere - lots of people and great entertainment.

Abby, Noah, and Sophie with Grandpa

The kids are fascinated with the 'Balloon Man'
and are patiently waiting with their money
so they can get their own creation.

Abby chose a blue elephant :)

Noah pays his dollar

Sophie chose a purple poodle

We spent some time in Kollen Park where there is a great playground for the kids....

Abby 'rock-climbing'

Sophie loves the slide

Noah climbing - one of his favorite things

Noah enjoys his ice cream with Grandpa and Daddy

Abby and Anna

On Saturday, friends Tom and Ila invited us to their place on the Muskegon River - one of the most peaceful and relaxing places you could ever hope for. Great friends, delicious dinner, and a long, slow boat ride made for a wonderful day!

Ty spent Sunday and Monday nights with us because their family is camping up north and he had to work. It gave us an opportunity to take him for a belated birthday dinner - an annual tradition with each of our grandkids. This year his birthday was during our weeks at the cottage, so we didn't have a chance to go out with just him until this weekend. He is now 14 - hard to believe!

Ty and I enjoyed bike rides down the Kent Trails and to Houseman's for ice cream. Being one bike short, Bill had to drive.....

Tuesday was Tori's 7th birthday and we went to the campground to join in the celebration.

Tori likes her new cowgirl hat :)

More gifts - this one from Mom and Dad along with a new bike

Steve and Tori at the campfire

We're so thankful for our family and friends who have added great fun to our summer! Still to come - Seattle and a couple of days away with my Mom and sisters. Then it's back into a routine and schedule after months of vacations and travels......