A Wedding Story.....

My nephew Kevin married Lauren last weekend at the Gorge Crest Vineyards. 

It was one of the most beautiful weddings I've ever been to! 

It made me want to have a wedding re-do myself.

From the pretty/vintage-chic/crafty decorations.

 To the country/cottage charm of the flowers and place settings.... 

To the unbelievable view...I loved it all!

The kids had fun playing in the grass, and hanging out in the special "hammock" area under the tall pine trees.

 Here is my Niece Kim's son Carson and the flower girl.   Aren't they adorable?  Love his hat!

 The wedding party...
(that's my Niece Toni coming down first).

Just Married!  Lauren & Kevin.  Her dress was amazing, along with the flower in her hair.

 Another shot of the table.......

 And the homemade jam, lovingly made for the wedding favors.

 On the edge of the lawn, overlooking the vineyard and Mt. Hood.  I was ready to move in!

 Fun at dinner!  Alex & Cousin Ryan.

 Rourke & Malia.

 Ryan, my Sister Kathy, and her husband Dean.

 My Mom & Ella.

 A view from outside looking in.

 Love how the bride & groom chairs were decorated. :)

After dinner, champagne toasts, and berry cobbler dessert, everyone hit the dance floor. 

Here's a blurry picture of Malia cutting a rug with Grandma Jan.

Now the happy couple is in Bali for 2 weeks!

Congratulations to Lauren & Kevin.

~Linda

Random Shots of Summer Fun

Greetings!

We are enjoying a much slower-paced August and I'm loving it! July got completely out of hand with craziness. We have been managing to keep busy, but on our own terms. :O) I think we are almost ready for school with supplies and clothes. I have 1 box of Crayola markers to get - needed 2, Target only had 1 (after I had to return the first boxes because they weren't "washable" ---aren't ALL Crayolas "washable"??).......and hand sanitizer.

I thought I'd post a few random Summer pictures just for fun.

Have a great night. I'm off to watch Big Brother (please don't judge me!!). ;)

Sibling Dance Class:

A potato bug on the nose....why not??

The "spirited" child:

~Linda

Two Trips - One Week

Hello & Happy Friday!!
Last week was so abnormally hot here in Oregon (about 105 degrees for several days), and we DO NOT HAVE A/C! I decided to take the kids to the beach for a couple of the worst days. The weather there the first day was warm, sunny & beautiful! The next couple of days were cool and by the time we left, misty. I LOVED IT!! I felt guilty for not being hot, knowing how miserable it was back home.


Here are a few pictures from the beach. My sister and niece Kelli were there, along with my niece Kim, her husband Brandon and their son Carson, and my Step-Mom Jan.





Carson is about 3 weeks older than Ella. Alex really had fun playing with him. I think he was happy to get some "guy time". :)









Thanks to Dad/Jan and Kathy for letting us stay at your homes!

The kids and I came home for a quick pit stop. I repacked and we headed out the next day for Riffle Ranch in Madras. It's my brother in law's boss's place (I'm not sure if that's grammatically correct). I was so tired from the first trip, so I wasn't sure about hitting the road again. I'm so glad we did! It was lots of fun, and like a family reunion. The only missing people were my Dad & Jan and my niece Toni.

We had lots of fun, played games, had a bbq, went in the river, talked, laughed and enjoyed the peace and quiet. No tv!





A view from the covered deck/patio (looking out at the Deschutes River).

Alex, Malia, Niece Tara, Carson, and Niece Kim -- Sitting by the sprinkler.

Lots of family in the river. So cold and fun!!

Nephew Kevin fly fishing.

Some of the yurt/tents. Fully equipped inside with real beds!! I think there were 8 all together. We slept in the house, but most of the others slept in these. Maybe next time we can try them. They overlooked the river.

The "barn", which is really a super cool house that looks like a barn on the outside. It even had A/C. Thank goodness!

A family shot - right during the thunder and lightening storms that moved in.

Sunset on the "rocks"(!? not sure of the correct term - canyon?)

One on the many pics I took, trying to catch lightening on camera. No luck. Pretty though.

On the way home we stopped and took pictures by the tee pee. It was hot. No one was in the mood.

Okay, this should have been 2 posts. Maybe more pics later.

Have a great weekend.
Linda

(not sure why all of the white space is showing up between the pictures. I have tried forever to get it right. URGH!)