Symposium

The annual Planning Department Symposium was held today at Jon's work. They had a lot of fun planning and putting things together for this event. Jon got to hear speakers all day and eat fun food. The theme was "The Grammy's."

This is Jon's record cover. He wanted to make it like the X-Files.

Jon also got an award today. The planning department consists of three sections. Each section gave an award to one person. Out of the entire Air Quality Analysis group, Jon won the award! The award is for star performance.

Train trip to Hanford

Jeff & Kelley came up with the fantastic idea of taking the train to Hanford to spend some time with Gene and Wanda and get some scrumptious ice cream from Superior Dairy. So yesterday, we all met at the train station and went on our adventure! It was so much fun! Gene and Wanda met us at the train station in Hanford with an old red fire truck (circa 1930's. . . I could be wrong. . . ) and took us on an hour tour of the town. The truck dropped us off at McDonalds for lunch and and then we walked to Superior Dairy. Mmm. . . the ice cream is so good! Plus 1 scoop is probably the equivilent of a pint of Ben and Jerry's ice cream. . . but much creamier and delicious! After we were completely stuffed full of ice cream, we walked across the street so the kids could play in the park before heading back.
It was such a great day! I think that we all probably slept hard that night!

Father's Day, Part 2

This year was Jon's first official Father's Day. We slept in for a bit and then went to church, totally ditching our Sunday School Class (I know. . . we're so bad! hee hee) and then headed to John and Debbie's for lunch. Everyone was there, making it a fantastic day. John even made homemade ice cream, which was delicious! Overall, the day was a great day. I am very thankful for the father that Jon is. It is so much fun to see how he and Ethan interact. I know that Ethan loves his daddy very much because he gets so excited when he sees Jon walk through the door each evening. Thanks Jon for being the father of our son!

We watched the Father's open up their cards.

Cooper kept us entertained by getting completely inside the "Santa" bag.

Jon's granparents, Gene & Wanda

Jon's mom, Carolyn, with Cooper & Ethan (Logan was asleep).

Jon opening a card.

More of everyone.

Ethan - 9 months

It is hard to believe that 9 months have come and gone! Here are some pictures of our busy little boy! Here are some highlights of the past month:

- Ethan now has 6 teeth.
- Loves his Cheerios.
- Likes to get into mom's stamping stuff. He likes to take the stamps out and push them down the hallway.
- Who needs toys when you have an empty box?
- Likes to roll balls.
- Would rather be in the water anyday.

Ethan is such a joy and we are very thankful for him! He is a blessing to Jon and I.

Father's Day, part 1

We celebrated Father's Day a little eary since Jolie's parents were heading on a long roadtrip before Father's Day actually got here. It was nice to hang out with the whole family and see all the kids together, which is rare. Jolie's parents bought a small blow up pool that the little ones had a blast in. . . well, George was a bit scared, but he loved running around in his little swimmers. Zoe and Ethan had a blast splashing around. Ryan. . . well, I think she was a bit big for the little pool. It was a really fun afternoon and it was such a blessing to have the whole family together!

Happy Birthday Stephanie

Last Thursday, We had fun celebrating Stephanie's 27th birthday. The kids had fun playing on the helicopter teeter totter and eating leaves. We had fun hanging with Josh, Steph, Chris, Amelia, Denise and David while eating yummy hamburgers and cupcakes with Monica's yummy frosting and chocolate ganache. Yummm!

Zoo Time

Lions, Tigers, and Bears! Oh MY! We had a blast last Thursday when we (Jolie & Ethan) joined Jolie's parents, Ryan, Zoe, and George for a trip to the Fresno Zoo. Ethan loved being pulled in the wagon with Zoe and seeing the Orangatans (I think the monkey-family are his favorite!). We had great weather and a fun time! Thanks so much Grandma and Grandpa!

Yosemite - The mark that May is over

Phew! The month of May is over! It really was a whirlwind of craziness with the cookbook being completed, printed, and sold (in fact, we are still selling them. . . if you know people who missed it the first time!). We, with our friends, the Mikow's, decided we needed to celebrate the start of a new month with an adventure. So, we packed up and headed for beautiful Yosemite for the day!

I never really expected to hear Josh read the temp in the 30's at noon on the way to Glacier Point, but when we got up there, he was right. . . it was cold. . . and we did not complain (knowing that it is June in California!). Needless to say, Ethan's shorts came off and jeans and a sweatshirt quickly were put on. We got a very quick view of Half Dome before it was covered with clouds (which made for some awesome pictures!) and had a picnic lunch. Then, we headed to Curry Village for some hot chocolate and Yosemite Falls. By the time we reached the valley floor, it was drizzling rain, but warmer.

We saw a bear, some deer, had an Asian family take pictures of Ethan, and were warned that "Speeding kills bears" (what about the deer?). It was a great day with great friends! We will definately have to do that again.

Thunder & Lightning!!!!!!!

Last week we had an amazing lightning storm that lit the sky, shook the house, and took away our electicity. It was so amazing. Not to mention, Ethan slept through the whole thing! These are some shots that I successfully got that night.

Oh yeah, it's like 10pm! It seriously lit up the sky!

The clouds looked awesome with the lightning!

First Swim of the Summer!

This past weekend we took Ethan for his first swim. He practically jumped out of our arms to get in. He definitely a water baby. . . he loved every minute of it!

Ethan - 8 1/2 months

With life being VERY crazy and busy this past month, I finally got some pics of Ethan for the 8 month mark. He is so very busy and active!

Ethan is getting his fourth and fifth teeth. We had to get a gummy rail for the crib because he was gnawing the paint of of it to help ease the pain of the teeth coming in. This is Ethan post-nap. . . happy as can be.
Ethan doesn't go far without his rings. Whether at church, home, or at the Mikow's, he loves his rings and will crawl around with them! He even likes to crawl underneath things now.

Ethan loves his train and likes to push it around the house. It is really cute to watch!

Yosemite Falls

Jon and I made the commitment to never (and I mean NEVER) climb Yosemite Falls again after we survived the feat several years ago. I guess he meant "we" would never climb it again when he agreed to climb it with his friend Chris, from work.
Last week, Jon and his friend took Thursday off and treked up the 3.4 mile climb to the top of Yosemite Falls (plus another mile to go to Yosemite Point). The two of them had been wanting to do this for about a year and this was the perfect time to go. They had great weather, beautiful scenery, and a great time!

Jon and Chris at the base of the hike. This pic was taken after they got down. . . They survived!

Half Dome from the top. . . SO BEAUTIFUL!!!

Chris and Jon at Yosemite Point. You can see the top of Half Dome coming out of Chris's head.

Jon and Chris at the top of Yosemite Falls.

Yosemite Falls from the Valley floor.