Nine More!

 

Day 166 Rancho Chico - Omak
Mmm....lunch! Lyndsi is camping with Reily and Dylan is in DC so Steve and I splurged on lunch. Yum!
 

Day 167 Home
Lyndsi knew she wouldn't be home on Father's Day morning so she asked me to hang her homemade card for her. She wanted her dad to wake up and know she was thinking about him! He did.



Day 168 Home
One of our summer projects - check! We're trying to figure out what to do with the pile of dirt and rocks around our house.



Day 169 Spokane International Airport
It's already time for Dylan to come home! His flight comes in just before midnight so we're all huddled around waiting. Lyndsi chose Nana's lap to cuddle on.

Day 170 Spokane International Airport
And there he is! Dylan's flight was delayed due to stormy weather in Denver and then some turbulence in Spokane so we waited until after midnight for him. Two photos in one long evening!



Day 171 Okanogan Swimming Pool
Lyndsi joined swim team this year and this is her first meet. She's in 3 events for her first meet!

 

Day 172 Conconully Lake
Lyndsi spent the day with a friend at Conconully. Steve, Dylan and I drove up to pick her up. I couldn't resist this beautiful shot!

 

Day 173 Omak Swimming Pool
Here we are at Lyndsi's 2nd meet! Today is a Saturday so it's a much longer meet than the duals during the week. The weather was nice, though, so we sat back and enjoyed the day!

Day 174 Hess Lake Road
Dylan has been begging to go fishing so today, we grabbed our poles, grabbed Lyndsi a friend, grabbed Max and went fishing. Amy and Julia met me there and the 3 of us, along with Lucy, went for a walk instead. It was a pleasant way to spend the afternoon.

 

Only A Month Behind!

Day 157 Home
This is gross.....This is what happens when you have a teenage boy in the house. All those splatty things on our front door window are worms. Worm guts to be exact! Yes, Dylan cleaned it all up....disgusting!

Day 158 Okanogan City Pool
Last day of school! Woo hoo! Every year, on the last day of school, the pool has free swim. This year, the temperature was in the upper 80s so the free swim was well attended! I was here picking Lyndsi up to take her home.

Day 159 Omak
Poor Lucy! So much attention! The cheerleaders were putting on a dog was fundraiser. Lucy got a lovely, bubbly bath and a cute pink, gingham neckerchief out of the ordeal!

Day 160 Omak Performing Arts Center
Lyndsi's dance recital was tonight. She took a ballet class this year and had her final performance tonight. Her friend, Renea (on the left) took the class with her and her other friend, Jenna (in the middle), came to watch the performance.

Day 161 Home
Check out all these awards! I'm so proud of my kids! I expect them to do well, always, but I also know that it's not always easy to do well. I have a couple of great kiddos!

Day 162 Virginia Grainger Elementary
This is how much coffee I drank this year! We have a couple of great coffee shops in town so it's very easy to catch your morning coffee on your way to school. These stickers are from Freebird Espresso, the drive-through stand. Mmmmm......

Day 163 Home
This is a bullfrog leg. Dylan hunted and stabbed this bullfrog so now he's going to eat it! Dan Brown is the art teacher at the high school. He lives along the river and is very concerned with the bullfrogs that have sprung up along the river because they eat the salmon eggs in the river. So....Dan mentioned that he goes out and hunts those bullfrogs in the evenings - doing what he can to get rid of an invasive species!

Day 164 Home
And here they are - fried bullfrog legs! Fortunately, the legs were fried in flour so I couldn't sample them....but everyone else tried a bite! The leftovers went to the chickens.

Day 165 Spokane International Airport
It's 6:00 in the morning and Dylan is ready for his trip to Washington DC! I'm so excited for him but I'm feeling so anxious about having him so far away! I know he'll have a great time. Dylan's friend, Brady, is in this picture. Well, and Steve, too!

Yep - Missing Day 135....

 

Day 136 Home
Here's just a peek at the graduation announcements we received this year. Holy canoli! In the end I think we counted 15! Most came with party invitations so we turned that into several fun evenings. On one hand, our bank account felt the effects of so many well-deserved gifts, but on the other hand, our hearts felt full with thoughts of all these kids who've touched our lives!

Day 137 Home
Look at my new computer! Steve used his post-season soccer money to buy me this as a Mother's Day/Christmas present! Gotta love the guy - working hard but always thinking of me and of the kids!

Day 138 Cashmere, WA
Lyndsi and I spent the day in Cashmere watching Dylan's last track meet of the year. I've really begun to enjoy track events - maybe because I enjoy watching Dylan! This picture shows his thrower's relay team. Kids who normally are involved in throwing events took part in a running relay. His team came in 2nd place. Dylan was the only team member who typically runs and throws. The other 3 kids only throw! Not bad team!

Day 139 Home
That's my Dylan! Dressed in his Boy Scout, Class A uniform - with his Zags socks! Unfortunately, I embarrassed him when I said I wanted a picture so he went and changed. Sigh....just a phase, mom, just a phase!

Day 140 Home
Have you met our parakeet, Perky? He's quite a character: not friendly to us but loved his best friend, Ricky - a zebra finch without a mate. Ricky died and Perky started abandoning his cage (which we would leave open during the day, in the basement) to join us upstairs. He'd perch on the chandelier above our dining room table, not letting us near him but wanting to be near us. So we moved his cage upstairs, locked his door open, and let him have free reign of the living/dining area. Now he's happy as can be - he sings with the birds in the morning, naps in the afternoon, and coos to himself in his mirror!



Day 141 Home
Lucy loves Dylan's bed! This is where she goes when we vacuum, when there's thunder, and when she's in trouble. In the winter she sleeps under the covers. She like Lyndsi's bed, too, but Lyndsi tends to move a lot so Lucy gets kicked out!

 

And yet another day missing! What is going on?

Day 143 Virginia Grainger Elementary
It's the Orchestra's Concert Night! Amazing! I'm so impressed with what Lyndsi and the other orchestra members have learned in the year that they've been involved with the strings program at school! This year, Ms. Ridenour added cellos to the mix so it's beginning to sound really good. Lyndsi and her friend, Quinn dressed alike tonight. Can you tell who's who?

Day 144 Home
Meet the newest member of our family! This is Fred. Fred is a hand-me-down guinea pig. He came from our friends, The Vedders. Fred is the sweetest little guy! He loves to be held and have his chin rubbed. He also squeals with joy when we bring him little veggie treats!

Day 145 Home
Lucy isn't too sure about our friend, Fred!
 

Day 146 Home
Poor Daisy. Tigger gets a little aggressive sometimes. His claw created a huge hole in the side of poor Daisy. We've treated it and are now keeping Daisy isolated in the mud room.

Day 147 Omak Cemetery
The Boy Scouts put out flags on veterans' graves for Memorial Day every year. Grandpa Laycock's stone isn't marked with his military service so it is often missed. Since Dylan began performing this act of service, he's made sure to put a flag on Grandpa's grave. This year, Dylan wasn't able to put flags out with his troop so we went as a family to make sure all the family stones were properly marked.

 

Day 148 Home
I love Lucy's sleeping habits! This is her "bed" - a ripped up ottoman with a blanket on top.

Day 149 Omak
Grandma came to town! She brought Grandma Margaret to town to visit friends and to put flowers out on Grandpa's grave. This gave Grandma some grandchild time! We went to dinner and out for ice cream on one night she was here.

Day 150 Home

Look at my 2 newest treasures! Lyndsi and I spent the weekend in Spokane and did a little shopping before we left town. Erin convinced me to buy the cute little owl. Aren't his eyes so googly! I dug the lantern out of my parents garbage. Can you believe they were going to throw it away?

Day 151 Virginia Grainger Elementary
Grandparent's Day 2013! Lyndsi auditioned to play The Star Spangled Banner on the piano and Tanner Tugaw auditioned to sing The Star Spangled Banner. Both did so well that the judges said they should perform together. So they did! The kids worked with piano teacher Connie a couple of times and then performed in front of a full audience. They did so well! Towards the end of the song Lyndsi repeated a line of music and Tanner forgot where he was in the song so the crowd sang along with him to finish up. It brought tears to my eyes! I was happy that Nana and Papa were able to drive over to watch Lyndsi's performance.

 

 

Day 152 Salmon Creek Coffee Company, Okanogan
Today was Okanogan Days, our town's annual birthday celebration. There's a parade and a pancake feed in the morning accompanied by music and other entertainment throughout the day. Lyndsi marched in the parade with the Girl Scouts and then played with the orchestra at the coffee shop after the parade. Nana and Papa stayed to watch, along with the rest of the family.

I'm not sure what happened here. We don't have Day 153! I know there was one at some point but now it's gone. Oh well.

Day 154 Home
I love a man who cooks...and cleans....so thankful! I love this man for many other reasons but this is what I caught him doing tonight!



Day 155 Virginia Grainger Elementary
Meet Bruce! Bruce is a volunteer for Methow Valley Arts, which is a non-profit arts group. Bruce is a teaching artist who comes to paint with our second graders every year. He teaches them a bit about Georgia O'Keefe and about watercolors and watercolor techniques. Then the kids have time to create their own masterpieces. Bruce then chooses 10 paintings to take to Mid-Valley Hospital, frames them, and hangs them in the hall where they stay for a year. These 4 kiddos were in my class this year and are proudly displaying their paintings, which will be hanging in the hospital.



 



Day 156 Home
Grandpa Richard and Teresa came to visit us tonight. They were passing through on their way from the westside to Newport. We got to visit and have a lovely dinner at the Breadline. They are both working on finally retiring and selling their home in Alaska. They'll then move to a condo in Sequim, WA.  We enjoyed their visit and are looking forward to them living closer to us in the future.