Spring Time In Washington DC

We just got Erik's memory cards in the mail this week....over 900 pictures....I have had a blast looking at all of them. Here are a selected few, I decided we needed to see the fun that he is having while working so hard at being a fabulous missionary! So here goes.............

..............With a new convert...........

(*a note from Erik)The Fernandez Family, Edgardo is the father who was baptized, his wife,Sylvia, his daughter,Nina, or Sabrina, his son,Bryan, (they also have another son named Santiago (James) who was having a temper tantrum at the time of the photo)

.....my boys and their fasination with Ninja Turtles, it never goes away...........

.....another baptism with brother & sister Heydi & Christian Medrano...........

.....the black name tag............

............the Washington DC Temple in spring. GORGEOUS!!!.......

.............Mormon night at the Minor League baseball game............

......goofing with his zone..........

......Look Ma, I can fly!!!......

......To Infinity and Beyond.......

...........3,2,1...BLAST OFF!!!....

.....Spider Man, Spider Man, does what ever a spider can.....

......High School Musical #4- The Mission Field.....

And here is one reflective picture, I love this. He has been able to go and see some of our nations historical sites. I can't wait to go there to pick him up and see them all myself. (only 7 months, but who is counting.....)

....words escape me, I only wonder what he was thinking???.....

....One more baptism with Hugo.....

.....And finally, the Bike Trip of the Century. They road their bikes from their appartment in Maryland, to downtown DC. Here they are in front of the White House. He took several video's along the way, which I have been unable to download today, I will try another day. All in all, he is having the time of his life; learning, growing, teaching, and having lots of fun along the way. We are so proud of him and his accomplishments, and can't wait to see what else comes his way.

Life in the Pacific Northwest!!!

Over the years my husband and sons have hiked hundreds of miles in the Olympic and Cascade Mountains. And now they are hiking on their own without Dad. This last week Nathan took Andrew backpacking, just the two of them, they went hiking through the Buckhorn Wilderness. Here are few pictures of their trip.

Nathan and Andrew, starting out on the trail. Notice the snow in the background?

They had some rain during the week and lots of wind, it was a bit cold too!

They did some fishing, this one that Andrew caught they threw back....too little!

This one they kept and ate, boiling on their little backpack stove as it was raining that day and too wet for a fire.

They did get to build some fires though and cook more fish. If you look really close you can see the fish on the stick. (My son is a mountain man!)

Here is where they slept. Nathan believes in "ultra light weight" backpacking, thus a tent is too heavy. He usually only packs this little tarp and sets it up to keep the rain off.

They saw some beautiful scenery. This is Lake Charlia, in the Olympic Mountains.

Gorgeous waterfall and landscape!

Nathan enjoying a little bit of sun!

And here is Andrew, truding up the hill. They didn't always take the beaten path, though Nathan assures us it was all safe.

Here is Andrew again, going down. Notice the snow again.

Another thing that my boys have always loved to do is try to scare their mother. When Nathan was a teenager, he started taking our video camera with him on his scout hikes, and then have everyone do stupid stunts to scare me. He would always ask me as I watched their 'movie' if it was scarey to me. I could always reply that "No, since you are sitting here beside me, I know that you returned safely, so I am not worried". That isn't to say that I don't worry while they are out hiking, because boys will be boys and my children don't usually fear much of anything. That said, here is the video of Andrew trying to cross a stream with his older, more mature brother's encouragement. Again I can say that I am not worried about it, because they made it safely home in one piece, with only one scratched knee. Thank Heavens!



And now to boats again.......Nathan took his Dad and Andrew out for a ride Saturday night. It was a gorgeous evening and they just floated with the tide from Bachman Park to Tracyton.

Here is Nathan under the Manette Bridge. We cross this bridge two or three times a day, but I don't think that I have ever been under them.

Blake, with the Manette Bridge in background.

Another great view of the Manette Bridge. This bridge is about 1/2 mile from our house, Blake walks over it everyday on his way home from work.

Blake and Andrew

Nathan, the happy boater. On one of his first trips with his Dad, he chastised Blake for not having a boat for he and his siblings all the years they were growing up. He realized what he had been missing. There is so much to do in the Northwest, how do we fit it all in???

Summertime and Boat Building!

So...Nathan has become a boat builder. He came home from college this summer with a list of things he wanted to do....visit Japan,visit the Grand Canyon, go to Costa Rica, build a boat and learn to sail and do some hiking with his family. He has always been one to fulfill his goals; he went to Japan, hiked rim to rim at the Grand Canyon in 2 and a half days and now here is the boat. He found plans on the internet and built this little beauty in our backyard with only a circular saw, jig saw and a hand saw. (I am still amazed) He scrounged for materials, using an old stair railing he found in our attic for the mast, old paint from the previous owners of our home, a tarp for a sail and he now has a boat. He and his friend, Derek Frei, took it on their maden voyage to Port Orchard and back. He is now learning how to work the sails and wants to take it on a longer trip! We don't even own a boat trailer, he just takes all of the seats out of our big van and hauls it around in that. Now he is planning his trip to Costa Rica...................adventure awaits.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ANDREW!!

On the day you were born, you were automatically loved by your brothers, sister, Mom and Dad, and  we have found that everyone who comes in contact with you, loves you....even teenage girls.  (Which still happens to be the case!!)

But then again, how can anyone resist such charm and good looks?  

We love you Andrew and are so grateful you came to our family, to keep us on our toes and constantly entertained.  THANKS!!  

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO OUR FABULOUS SON!!!  

Nathan's Japan Trip

Nathan had the opportunity to go back to Japan, mostly to visit people from his mission, but also to see parts of the country he couldn't see while serving his mission.  He was there for 3 weeks and had a blast, and is already making plans to return again, this time to hike and camp.  

Here he is with the Bishop and his family from Hakodate, he served here for almost a year. (beginning, middle and end of his mission)

Here is is old mission bike, he gave it to a new convert who still uses it.

In front of the Tokyo temple with his mission President and Dad.
With an old companion, Elder Yagi.
At Hiroshima

Solo & Ensemble Competition for Andrew

On Saturday, Andrew participated in the Middle School Solo and Ensemble Competition.  Here is a little snippet of his performance.  I always love to hear him sing, so it is hard for me to play for him also, as I usually get a little emotional, I think I did well too!  

SUMMER!!

Today was my LAST day of school! hurray :) My freshman year of college is now officially over....crazy. I am now a sophomore! I cant quite beleive it. I definately grew alot this year. Here are some of the things i learned.....

1. I learned how to feed my self. I learned what foods are BAD for college students, and what foods are GOOD, like pizza :)

2. I learned good hygene. I'm now PRO at brushing my teeth.


3. I learned how to smile REALLY pretty in pictures. I should be a model.

4. I finally learned how to dress my self. I can officially say that i now know how to dress in style

5. I learned that i LOVE my brothers. (and my mom and dad) I really miss hanging out with them when i'm away

6. And finally, i learned that i LOVE COLLEGE!!!!! GO COUGS :)