Birch Bay

I love this sign in the Peace Arch park, leading into USA!


We got to go up to Birch Bay this week. Ray & I actually went listen to a timeshare presentation and got a free trip, but somehow it got messed up and we already had all our vacation time and babysitting (thanks mom & thom) set up, so we used Mom's bonus time for her time share in Birch Bay which is only a few miles away from the Canadian border. We don't have our passports or enhanced driver's license so we couldn't go into Canada. It is a 3 hour drive up to Birch Bay and only a few more miles to the border.

Here is a pic w/ the water somewhat out this morning before we left, it was right across the street from where we stayed. It would be really nice in the summer.. but prob. not available then, either. We stayed in a cute little studio apartment, w/ a little kitchen and a Murphy bed.

Ray by the water yesterday w/ the tide in.

We went to the Peace Arch Park and they had all the names of the flowers, here I had Ray stand next to the "Sexy Rexy" :)

Some of the strange sculptures they had there.

ok , Ray & I felt a little bad that we were sooo fascinated w/ a black squirrel, but have you ever seen a black squirrel before??!

had to take one of both of us to prove I really was there.

The Peace Arch

The flowers making the USA flag

The peace Arch

The Canadian flag

My kind of garden... it had rocks by the flowers w/ a name of each flower.

First day of school

First day of school

September 9, 2009

Jadyn, 4th grade, Aurora, 1st, Melissa, 8th, Keagan 4th.

This is what it should look like, all happy & excited!

This is how it started.. got up at 6:45, got Keagan up, Jadyn came over at 7 (poor thing, its her bday today!) Got Melissa up at 7:30. Melissa requested crepes for breakfast so I made them and she wasn't hungry! But Keagan and Jadyn liked them. Then I got Keagan and Jadyn out in the back yard to take pictures. They all hate this part, are you done yet mom!
Showing his goofy side.

Jadyn looking so cute! She's been coming to our house since she was 4! (shes 10 now)

Can we go yet?! Not until I get more pictures!

Melissa running from the camera

and giving me her look

I told her if she smiled then I would quit trying to take pictures of her..

this is the after picture, don't they look cute and happy together.... This is the before...

really they do get along, but they like to tease each other and wrestle around, someone told me that my kids get along so well, well here's to prove they are just like the rest..

Aurora, my cute 6 year old niece. She comes in the morning, too. She got there a little after 8 this morning, her mom was driving her to school. "Normally" she comes at 7:30, I say that because they are usually late.

she wore her striped socks, too. She dressed herself today! :)

She loves her cousin Melissa!!

Keagan and Jadyn on the way into school.

and Aurora

School starts at 8:45 - 3:05

Aurora and some of her friends, Anna & Zane (who currently she says she is going to marry)

We passed by some middle schoolers waiting for the bus. I told Melissa they looked soo little, she said they are mom, they're just sevies.. Now that she is a BIG 8th grader! haha!

This is what kept me from crying after dropping of the younger kids, Melissa and I joking around. I kept trying to take pictures of her just to bug her, we were joking saying that is only the one million and 3rd picture you took.

one million 4, she was texting all they way into school.

her to her friends -Where are you at now?

me-Remember the phone needs to be turned off when you get to school

her-I know mom!

Aspire middle school 9:00 - 3:30.

Bye Sweetheart, are you sure you don't want me to walk you in, I could take your picture by the Aspire sign (we saw someone doing that on the way in and she told me not to get any ideas...)

Bye, Love ya! Have a good day at school!

Now off to do chores!

Welcome back to school mom!

cutting down the trees

We have 16 or 17 big cedar trees in our backyard. Ever since we have moved here (4 years ago) we(Ray) have been calling different loggers/tree specialists to cut some of them for free in exchange to take the wood. It is such a tight spot back there that most have refused. They like to get bigger pieces. Ray finally found someone to do it, the only thing they have to take 6 or 7 to make it worth their while.
We have been wanting to get some of them cut down because it is soo dark back there and in our house and it our roof gets all of the "stuff" from the trees.
The tree guys are going to be here soon to start cutting. We're way excited... and a little nervous. I love the trees, but want more light. And we'll still have 9 trees left!

Ray went up on top of the roof to take some pictures.

They asked us to put a big "X" on the ones we want cut down.

From this vantage point the right side are those that are being cut.

The back 2 in this picture are staying.
Above are the 6/7 that are getting cut down. I say 6 or 7 because two are intertwined.
A big one that is staying. We had to move all of the toys, trampoline, swing set to the back corner to be out of the way.
More pictures to follow later today! :)