Falling in love with Jesse

With this movie, my secret crush on Jesse James began. You have to know that it gave me a secret thrill to actually visit the farm and house he grew up in.

Celebrating like it's 1799!

Turning 13, Amish Style!

On the night before Ashley's birthday, we rolled into this bustling little town:

Jamesport, Missouri. Population 505.

We could hear the brisk clip-clop of fast running horses pulling little black compact buggies. Every now and then we caught a glimpse of their occupants: young girls riding shoeless, a young boy and his sister, a teenager taking his "jalopy" out for a spin, a father bringing his boys into town for business, and an elderly woman on her way to visit a friend.

(I like to think that this is a teen's buggy, we saw it hitched to a post with a bunch of other buggies and they all had different designs on their reflector.)

On Ashley's birthday,

she woke up to breakfast in bed,

(cinnamon roll from the Gingrich Old Dutch Bakery)

a wonderful present of playing with this cute little kitten,

some happy birthday phone calls,

and then we went shopping!

(Madi with her "Mormon quilt" and Ashley with her Amish quilt)

When I asked Ashley what she would like for her birthday, she started by saying the normal answers such as "clothes," "a phone," "an Itouch," but then she surprised me by saying that what she'd really like was an Amish quilt. We had fun looking at the many different hand-quilted and detailed quilts at an Amish store in Jamesport.

Happy 13th Birthday, Ashley! It was really fun to celebrate it in a old-fashioned way.

The Circle continues....

We just got back from Laguna Beach, California. This is a trip we take just about every year. When Steve and I were first married, the trips to Laguna were a little more sporadic because at that time in our life, the PARENTS paid for the trip. Those were the days. Our hotel room, meals, transportation: paid, paid, paid by the parents. That's why we only went about every four years or so, and it was usually given as a Christmas gift, which we loved! Then, slowly, Steve and I started booking our own family vacations to Laguna (on the "off" years that we didn't go with the whole family). Before we knew it, we were going every year. Part of the trip was booking our hotel for the NEXT year while we were checking out. This year, we invited Steve's parents to join us. We also had a married daughter and her husband, so they needed their own room. Steve and I find ourselves now in the role of hosts for our little group...we arranged for the rooms, the food, the activities. On one of the evenings, Steve and I looked at each other and realized that we have become the PARENTS. It's a really weird place to be. However, if you have to be in that place, there is no better spot than Laguna Beach! What a fun time we had with three generations!

Here are some of the highlights:

Steven relaxing (with a beautiful shot of his wife in the background)

Kelsey and her Cov...always good for a laugh!

B.J.'s pizza! A trip to Laguna is never complete without a meal at this joint.

Mer baby and Ash

The Newlyweds

The Oldlyweds

Bathing Beauties: Madi, Ashley, Mer, and Bam

Our body-surfing Grandad and Madi

Dinner at the Beach House: Bam and Dandad's treat! Thank you, Bam and Dandad.

The PARENTS