MTC!!! July 15, 2007

Grandma and Grandpa left AGAIN on July 15th for the MTC. I was sad. This is their second mission to Quito Ecuador. I had to farm my kids out to wonderful friends. Here are a few snap shots from Julia, who kept them Sunday to Monday for us.

BFF!!! Anna Jane and Madee.

Quick shot before heading out the door to church.

This is their MTC room with Tracy's kids and Tucker.

A blurry picture, but the only one I have of me, Tracy and Parents, before they leave.

Home, Home on the range...

We were glad to be getting home, but at the same time really enjoying our time in Laguna. We even tried to stay longer...........like 21 days of travel wasn't enough. It was really just peaceful there. We had a wonderful time at each place we visited. We loved visiting family and friends. The car time was even great too. The kids didn't watch one movie and hardly any TV at ANY of the hotels. I think maybe 2 hrs worth out of 21 days........not bad!!

This is Jenna telling me "Peace out".

Not much to say......this is MADEE!!

And this........this is my Tucker!!

READY FOR HIS BED!!

HERE WE COME LAGUNA!!!!!

We were sooooooooooooo ready for sunshine and a bit of sand in our toes! Laguna couldn't have been better. We loved the people this go around. We decided that we will reserve every June to say at the same hotel. Some of the people we talked with had been coming for over 20 yrs to the same hotel at the same time. So a lot of them knew each other. It was really fun. The kids found friends fast and planned they day out with them. We got to sit and relax, no walking really. Except for some clothes shopping. We love the shops down there.

Madee lost her 1st tooth. I thought it was pretty early.....she just tuned 5, but I guess!!! Here she is so excited to have it out!!

Jenna is our fashion diva......showing off her new swim wear. She is my modest one. You should see Madees. LOL

San Francisco

We stayed in San Francisco for 4 days and really enjoyed the time we had there. The girls really liked the Sea Lions out on Pier 39. The girls kept asking to go back everyday. Brandon & I enjoyed the people watching we got to do. Boy, are there wack-o's there!! We have always gotten the fresh fruit from this same stand at the Warf and the girls got to taste what great fruit we have been talking about all these yrs. We got to watch the street shows and loved them too.

The kids like the unique shops too. Even Brandon got in on the action too!! We had a lot of fun trying on different crazy things.

Okay, seriously.........people thought they were conjoined. They were so tired of walking one day that they begged Brandon to carry them. So laughing, he picked them both up. As people walked by and starred at Brandon, his response to them was this......"What they are conjoined." with a totally straight face. I was dying laughing after the 3rd or 4th person was eye ballin' him.

We took them to see the San Francisco Bay Bridge. They almost got soaked by a huge wave. Can you tell the ground is all wet!!!

Our last day in San Fran was fun. We tried to go to several parks, but they were closed. They opted for the Warf again!! We watched more street performers and even bought a really cool picture a guy did with spray paint. The kids couldn't believe it. They were excited to buy it. That ended our part in San Fran.!!

Down The Coast!

We left Cannon Beach and headed down the coast of Oregon. We couldn't believe the beauty that we have never seen. I couldn't stop looking out at the ocean just feet from the highway. We stopped in Otter Rock to stay the night. At this time of year the sea lions have all thier babies. There is a place called Sea Lions Caves. We were able to go down 218 floors to see the Sea Lions. We really liked it.

Down the road we went...............through the tree!!!! NO really. We went through the Redwood Forest, through the tree. It was pretty close, but the van we rented made it. Our truck would not have made it! So that day we were glad we had the van.

Away we went, down the road, through the tree and on to San Francisco making it there at 12:30am. We drove for about 10hrs. made for a long, long day, but we made it!!

St. Helens OR

We were so dang excited to FINALLY go and see our dear Jen. She is a wonderful friend and one of my BFF!! We went and had a great time at her home with her kids.

This is at a place called Camp 18. Jen took us to Cannon Beach on the Coast of Oregon, on the way we ate here. It was delightful!!! Best breakfast ever! Love ya Jen!!! It rained really hard on us at the beach and here. Go figure!

Multnomah Falls

We had a really fun time in Oregon and especially Multnomah falls. The girls hiked all the way to the top of the falls where they were able to look off the edge of the fall. It was amazingly beautiful.

These were on our way to Multnomah on the side of the freeway!! Not bad ha!

This is the Falls. It really was breath taking. Tucker & I got to the bridge then turned around. We had a group of Japanese girls literally hording him. They were taking tons of pictures of him and when I took him out of the stroller they were screaming. I felt like he was a celebrity baby!!

They made it!!!

6/6 to 6/7 Seattle to Portland

We left Seattle after running out of ideas for the kids. Portland was next on our list. Not knowing where to stay in Portland, I had booked a place online. It ended up downtown and WAY, I mean WAY fancy. Not a kid friendly place. Everyone there was in slacks and ties or nice clothes. In walks the McNary's with 3 kids in tow, dressed in our messy street clothes with Tucker just screaming (not crying just being loud)!! So, we decided to get out of there as soon as our luggage was brought up to us. We decided to go to the Waterfront where there was a fair going on. Brandon can't stand fairs. Boy were there some wack-o's. The girls begged him to go on some rides. He finally gave in. They had a blast. We have them on video of their first roller coaster ride by themselves. We listened to some really cool South African music and then left. We were so uncomfortable in the hotel that we opted to leave a day early.

6/3 to 6/6 Seattle

We got to Seattle early in the day. Madee asked me about 10x "when can I see Anna??" Her little friend has been in the Seattle area for about 3 weeks and she was just dying without her. So, we met up with them on day #3. We decided to go to Pikes Place Market and the waterfront the day we arrived. WHAT A MISTAKE!!! That is the nastiest place on earth. Well, maybe not, but it is in the running. We drove around down town a little and realized that was not a good idea either. NO PARKING!! Didn't end up being to fun driving more for the kids, but Brandon got to see Qwest Field where is Seattle Seahawks play. That was neat.

We got to go on a boat and go to Blake Island where Tillicum Village is. It is a Native American village where they dance and feed you. They kids liked the show and the ride over. The next day we finally got to met up with the Aldridge family. We decided to met at the Pacific Science Center and had a blast. Even the adults enjoyed it. Brandon and Paul got stuck doing brain teasers while the little ones ran around. Our favorite things were the dinosaur fossils, brain teasers, the giant tic-tac-toe game, virtual soccer and the butterfly garden. We took the monorail over to the down town mall and walked that. Brandon wasn't having a good day with all the "stuff" going on with the business. We got to eat at PF Chang's. YUMM!!! They probably didn't like the mess 5 adults, 6 children and 3 infants made, but it was really good!! LOL. I mean a BIG mess! We walked down town and froze our butts, so we called it a night. We really had fun in Seattle and will be making an "adult" trip back soon for a Seahawks game.

6/1 to 6/3 Spokane, WA. to Bellingham, WA.

We were so sad to leave the wonderful comforts of the Whitaker home. We visited with Scott a bit when he came home and headed off to Bellingham. It is about 1/2 hr. south of Canadian border. Brandon was especially excited to go there to see some of his old stomping grounds. His great-aunt and Grandmother are from there and he would spend much of his summers as a kid there. We went and hiked Whatcom Falls. Brandon told us all about this park, but you can't describe it in words. We LOVED Bellingham!. Loved the trees, loved the parks, loved the people. We swear we will retire there. I just have to love the rain first!!

This is the home that Brandon stayed his summers in. He was like a kid at Christmas, so excited to show the kids.

Sunset at Bellingham Bay. This is a park that we sat at and watched the sunset. The kids were the "kids to watch!!" Tucker had all the ladies and the girls were showing off on their scooters.

5/31/07 Spokane, Wa.

Corinna made us an amazingly yummy home cooked meal last night!! Ribs, corn on the cob and baked potatoes. We had a fun time catching up with them. The kids laughed and played. It was fun to see them like that again. Unfortunately, Scott had to work today. He is still on probation with the Fire Department, so we missed him today. Corinna was our tour guide and took us around Spokane. We went to a park in the center of down town that was really fun and beautiful. The kids loved the slide and the water that would come out of the ground and got them all wet. Oh' and the snow cones!! It was really hot that day so that was an extra nice treat. Thanks guys for making our stay a memory!

This is the slide I am talking about!!! Yep, it is a Radio Flyer wagon slide. Cool ha!

5/30/07 Coeur d'Alene, Idaho to Spokane, Wa.

So from Missoula to Spokane we go............but first we must stop in the beautiful Coeur d'Alene Idaho. I have never been up this far into Idaho. WOW!!! It was amazing. We had to hit the city park and play, stretch and enjoy the view a bit. We loved the lake. It was breath taking. We got to Spokane around 4:00 and we very excited to see Scott, Corinna and the boys. It was nice to see familiar faces for the kids and a warm home cooked meal! Yumm Yumm!!

5/29/07

So, from Idaho Falls to Missoula MT. we went. We arrived at the hotel around 4:00pm and the girls couldn't wait to find the pool. You see this was no ordinary pool, this was a water park inside the hotel. All they wanted to do was SWIM, SWIM, SWIM!!! That is all we heard. It was really fun and Tucker even enjoyed the water. Oh' and for the record........Brandon swam in a public pool. I have it on video!!!!! LOL

Our Family Vacation.........5/28/07

Well, call us crazy or what you may, but we have decided to take the family on a 4,000 mile road trip. Visiting 5 different states, staying in 9 hotels, 2 homes, and visiting over 13 different cities!! PRICELESS MEMORIES!

Today we left the comforts of our beautiful home and headed for Salt Lake City to get some dinner and stretch our legs. The traffic wasn't too bad for the holiday. We ate dinner and headed for Idaho Falls. Not to much today except driving.