"A Year Later" Housewarming Party

Last weekend we had a little house warming gathering. It was great fun! Sunny skies, kids running in and out of the house (a rare occurrence in the Vann household) and friendly faces that truly made our house "warm." My parents even made it up for the event. I was feeling a bit under the weather that day, but managed to take 2 photos...yep that's right; I am such a natural. Ah well...there will be times in the future.

Nick busted out his balloon artistry skills for the kiddos. Taylor Norris was very excited to show his mom the tiger with a head in his belly.

He even did a few for the big kids...friend Kevin and his side-kick, Parrot.

Father's Day Weekend

Ami and her sassy pinkness

Nick and I headed to Steilacoom for the weekend to celebrate Father's Day with the Lopez clan. I think I will start calling it a Bed and Breakfast/Retreat Center for the simple reason of that is exactly what it is. My parents provide a warm and comfortable home, with an agenda of recreation and play and more delicious food than I could possibly consume (although, I think I hold my own quite well).

This year, my amazingly giving father seemed to have gotten the Father's Day role switched, because instead of expecting to receive gifts, he gave them. He purchased kayaks for all 6 members of the family with the intent that this will be added to the Lopez recreation list of options. We were beyond thrilled by the newest mode of exportation and headed down to the Puget Sound (the launching pad is 2 blocks from my parents home) for a test run. We paddled to a small island about 2 miles away, worked on our tan on the beach, paddled around the island, and then headed home. It was a glorious 4 hour adventure (not to mention the sore arms), giving us all a new perspective of the town that is near and dear to our hearts. Kayaking is the true definition of "water view." We even got a little play time with some seals; water dogs.

I am so looking forward to the many more water trips to come...Lake Padden, Lake Whatcom and the bay of course!


Prepping for the venture down to the launch:


Matt and Dad (with the babe on board - Brea (yeah right...like she isn't going to come) floating round). Just as an FYI...my mother who prior to launching, fretted the paddling was soon 500 yards ahead of the group the whole time.

Enjoying the beach time...

...while dad is hard at work:

Local Produce

For the past 27 years of my life (aka, all of it) I have wanted a garden so badly. There is something so holistically beautiful about eating something that came out of the ground. This may sound so simple and common to you, but if you really think about it, it is amazing. From a tiny little seed growing to become a gigantic apple tree (I don't have an apple tree, but for the sake of an example, stay with me) that produces hundreds of apples a year...so fresh and crisp and straight from the earth! Something that you can watch grow and get excited about. Something that you know exactly where it came from and what is on it. Something that came out of DIRT...dirty, wormy, dark dirt. So cool. You still may not totally understand my awe, but that's ok, we all have our quarks.

Anyways, Nick and I have ventured into the garden to see what will grow. We aren't quite done planting yet, but I have already enjoyed and cooked with many of the herbs that we do have (except for the dill...the bugs/slugs apparently wanted it more badly that us). Keep in mind that neither of us have a green thumb, but we are excited to see what works and what doesn't. This year we plan to be feasting on:

Tomatoes

Raspberries, plus thyme, spicy and Italian oregano & sage

Mint and basil (the bugs like the basil, so we pulled them out of the ground and put them in pots)

Peas and Cumbers are coming soon...(oh and yes that is a toilet next to the shed. This will not be part of the garden, rather, it is making it's way to the restore.)

Squamish - The Land of Scrapes and Bruises

Over Memorial Weekend, Nick and I took a trip to Squamish, BC. For those of you unfamiliar with said recreational heaven...keep your eyes peeled during your next trip to Whistler. It is a beautiful little town filled with hundreds of miles of single track biking, various hiking trails and of course about a ba-zillion rock climbing routes. You know you are in Squamish when you see "Big Chief "...a HUGE wall of granite begging to be climbed upon (I leave that to the professionals and just sit in awe of the massiveness and scariness of such a big rock).
Our main goal was to explore the bike trails and enjoy each other's company. I am proud to say we accomplished both tasks! After 2 days of vigorous riding (not to mention pushing our bikes UP black diamond trails - dang those maps are hard to read) and total body exhaustion (ummmm, black diamond trials are meant to be ridden DOWN, not hiked up with bikes on shoulders) we were pleased with our new little recreation heaven. We plan on returning to further explore the trails and even get a little chalky, climbing on some rock.

Unfortunately, we sucked it up when it came to taking photos this time around, but I would like to share what we have:

We camped at Alice Lake...a pristine and quiet campground, perfect for us. But prepare yourselves; flushing toilets are not a commodity.

Every one in Squamish seemed to ride bikes...from people with HUGE rigs with 6 bikes in the back to oh so cute smart car.

Photo Scavenger Hunt

Nick and I are part of a Monday night couple's group. Six of us couples gather together once a week at alternating homes and read through various books based on enriching our marriage and growing closer to God as a couple. It is an awesome time to gather in fellowship and learn. When we are in transition from finishing one book and choosing another, we usually use one Monday inbetween to play a little. In the past, board games have been busted out...dinners have taken place. But this time, in honor of Mindy and Brian's birthday, Cinco De Mayo and the sunny May weather...we took our gathering outside for a little healthy competion in a photo scavenger hunt. We invited a few close friends to gather with us, split up into three teams and attempted to finish the list in half an hour. I thought it would be fun to share a few of the creative (and rediculous) shots that came about from our little game.

Photo #1: Make yourselves appear really small

Team #1 Tiny, tiny people.


Team #2 Jason definatley takes the cake for being the smallest looking.

Team #3 Now, that is a creative shot!

A few honorable mention shots:


Photo: "Picture with someone in a uniform"

Photo: "Being public art"

Photo: "Reflection"

Photo: "Posing for a catalog"

Photo#2: "Photo with an animal"



Team #1 - Is he actually touching that thing?



Team #2 - Can you see the fear in her eyes...he's about to snap your head off!

Team #3 - the things people do to win a game...

Photo #3: "Can you find us?"

Team #1 Behind the fense...tricky, tricky.

Team #2 Is that a finger I see at the top of the bush?

Team #3 They are behind the fense too...a ploy of distraction taking place.

Malibu Tool & Tackle 2008

Last week, Nick, Ami, Matt, Dad, Uncle Paul, Aunt Bettina and I headed up to a Young Life Camp in Canada called Malibu for a week of working, eating, fellowship, eating, recreating and did I mention eating? Tool & Tackle has been around for years...volunteers spending a week of their lives each year to de-winterize the camp, in preparation for summer campers. Jobs include, rebuilding docks, landscaping, plumbing, remodeling dorms, cleaning the pool...basically everything that needs to be fixed, gets fixed. It was a great time being at camp again...a place where God certainly dwells. We work hard, but they keep us going with our various meals:

8am - breakfast

10:30 - snack break
1pm - lunch
3:30pm - coffee break
6pm - dinner
8:30pm - coffee, tea and eating up all the treats that didn't get eaten during snack break.

We had "club" each night (time for song and a mini-sermon about God's love) and got to recreated a little each afternoon. It was an amazing time to serve the Lord...such scenery and lots of laughs with the family and new friends.

The ferry ride over:

How about that being your view from work? The outer dock team...gettin' it done:

A view from the top. A short, but steep scamper up lots of rocks puts you over the top of Malibu:
They even have disc golf! It really is the perfect place!

Texas

Last week, Nick and I had the pleasure of flying down to Texas to visit his family. There were a few familial business things to take care of, hense the last-minutedness of our trip, but it was time well spent none the less. We stayed at Nick's father and his wife's house on the farm. They have a fabulous chunk of land in Saint Hedwig (a little town outside of San Antonio) so we got to get the real "country" experinece.

Brother in law, Matt, and step mother in law, Leslie prepping the patio for a BBQ with friends and family that evening

Nick taking me on a ride on the wild side...when in Texas, drive tractors like the Texans!

A shot of their backyard...beautiful, expansive land.

Nick Sr. has an organic landscaping business. He keeps all his plants stored at the farm. It's a great place to wonder around.