Last post I showed the down side of the fires and all the smoke.

This picture is the upside.  Beautiful sunrises.

A four generation picture.  

Giving help in the sewing room.  Sometimes you just have to decide what needs to be done versus who needs to be held.

The soccer dude who could not believe his dad wanted him to play with rain boots.

Cute little sight that graces our floor.

Another cute face that blesses our house.

A Breath of Fresh Air

What I would like to see.

What I get to see.

Smoke, smoke go away!

The Next Steps

So much has happened in the past months.  As I sit in a hospital doing nothing and school is out I will now try to recreate all the great happenings in the last few exciting months. 

Yes I know you all probably are aware that Dale came to an agreement with the county and all accusations against him were dropped.  It's wonderful having that all finished and in its place is this "beautiful" flying helicopter.

Many of us have taken turns being his copilot.  Rock usually wins out and navigates every flight.

Aaron and DeAndra had beautiful Jensley the day before Dale's birthday.  This was one of my favorite pictures.  I know Aaron used it but I love the sweetness with Ryker, the contrast between brand new baby feet and two year old wonder.

Her dark hair was a pleasant surprise.  He peacefulness was just what DeAndra ordered and deserved.

Next it was Marissa's graduation from nursing school.  Here she is trying to convince us she learned and is smart.

It's wonderful to see the support of family.  It's always fun to have these great people at anything I attend.

During the graduation all nurses read the creed or promise or something like that.  It was pretty special to see both Marissa and Mom read this together.

Another special person who showed her support.  What would I do without her help and love?

One of the greatest moments was spending time with KC.  He is going back to school in computer stuff.  I wish I could say more but I know he can look at the computer and spout words that mean nothing to me but will help the computer do what I want it to do.

There is the diploma.  She is a graduate.  She took her NCLEX (some nursing boards that say you are now an official nurse)  and passed.  She can now look for a job after she is done sacrificing her time babysitting in Hawaii.

It is always fun to spend time with Sherry and sew some new creation.  This was our project.  They are practical and have a sort of whimsy to them.

Still with me?

The girls gave Lindsea a baby shower that was fun.  They always do things in a big way that make me smile.  Having rubber duckies in the drink was fun.  Too bad the drink didn't taste good and just became a swimming pool for the colorful birds.

Hudson is going to be one well dressed baby between family, Gloria and DeAndra and the sweet friends at the shower.  He is also the reason I sit in the hospital.  For a run down of this drama hit Volle's Volleys on the right of my blog to read the exciting tale.  I am so grateful he at least waited until school was out so I could help and be around.   All is going well as of now.

Nick has a new job at Boeing and is learning the craft of looking busy while being bored.  Hopefully he can get his training soon and actually be working.  He is loving the independence and has his own apartment with furniture he purchased himself.  Can't wait to see his bachelor pad.

Whitni is working this summer waitressing, running around with little boys and doing all the last minute stuff people need finished.  

This shows to me the beauty of being a grandma.  This sweet munchkin is caressing my face.  He does this especially when he is tired or in a new situation.  I love the fun of being with each one of them.  This summer is the summer of the grandkids!  

Amsterdam Fun! Scenery

During vacations I like to practice with my camera.  It seems it is the only time I have to sit and play with the features.  During the cruise I was able to take it one more level and actually took a class.  It was short, but I did learn some new things to try.  Here are my efforts:

 In portrait mode.

 Sunset fun.

 Up close and personal.

 Zoomed in.

 On the way north from Curacao we were on the sunset side, so evenings were great.

 The England pose.

I still have a lot to learn.  This means I need to go on more vacations!

Amsterdam Fun! Curacao

Curacao is a much larger island than Aruba.  It is greener and more colorful.

 The leader was getting bad headaches from the white building glaring from the ocean, and so he ordered the buildings to have color.  

 We took another tour, but this time the driver was mute.  She didn't speak unless you asked her a question.

 One of the stops was a liquor maker.  So now you know why mom and Dale were hanging out at the bar.

We sat and waited a long time for the pedestrian bridge to open.  We watched ship after ship come through hoping the bridge would move into place.  Finally we gave up and took the ferry, only to watch the bridge move as we floated on the water.

 Another stop was some caves.  Usually inside a cave it is very cool.  This cave was the opposite.  It was hot and muggy.  They did have fans along the way, which felt great.  It was a great stop.

 Dale and I took a walk along the floating bridge, actually we went about a third of the way, took the picture and walked back.

 Our ship from the floating ferry.

 A dangerous shot from our tour on the bridge.  A different angle of our ship.

Curacao was a great stop, but again what do you do for a week here? 

Westerdam More Fun!

These are some pictures from the first formal night.

Dale loved that he went on vacation and had to get dressed up to eat.

Since the deck is not cooperating with my hair we had to take it inside.

 Aruba was the next stop, a small island that has recently embraced tourism.

 We took a ride with a very talkative cabby.  I'm not sure how much of what he said to believe.  Above is their national forest.  It is totally cactus and rocks.  Aruba is all cactus.

 A city shot.

 Big rock and cactus, it is actually a cactus fence.

These two trees show us all which way the wind blows.  Aruba was good for a few hours, but I can't see myself spending any more time.  Send me to Half Moon Cay and the flour sand instead.

Westerdam Fun!

For one week Dale and I enjoyed a week of relaxation with my mom and dad on the Westerdam in the Caribbean.  Our first port of call was a privately owned island by Holland America (cruise line) called Half Moon Cay.  It was amazing.  The sand was like flour.  

 This was an island to retire on!

 Inside the ship was a bar with live music so this part of the beach was great because the sounds of the singers and musicians drifted to the shore.

I'm not sure you can really appreciate the beautiful blue this water was.  Totally relaxing with lots of sun.  Dale enjoyed floating on the water.  The rest of us enjoyed reading on lounge chairs.