Now this is summer...

Well I finally feel like we had a little bit of summer last week. Meaning that we did a few fun things as a family and had a little adventure in Albany. Ray took the kids to the aquatic center and we went to the Seattle Zoo. The kids enjoyed the gorillas (the mommy had a baby who we were all smitten with). A few other favorites were the lions, flamingos and elephants. It was fun to see Addy experience it all for the first time and then compare that to Alec who is way "too cool" (as you can see from the hilarious sunglasses) for the zoo. I sincerely apologize to my parents for my teenage years as Ray and I enter this new stage. It seems like just yesterday when I too thought my parents knew ABSOLUTELY nothing and that I could outwit them at every turn. I am trying to be mindful of what it was like and not judge him too harshly but HOLY COW, sometimes its tough. As taxing as it may be its fun to see him growing up and trying to figure out who the heck he is---I think we may need to buckle in, hold on tight, and try to enjoy the crazy ride. :) On Sunday afternoon we headed back to our old stomping grounds for a quick visit with friends in Albany. The kids were really good on the drive and they genuinely had a great time for a few days. It was good to see them happy and "at home" with a few familiar faces. Nothing breaks my heart more than to hear Carson talk about his birthday (8 months away) and how he has one friend whom he will invite. I know he will make tons of friends between now and then but it still makes me stop and think how upside down there world really is. Even Livvy, my rock, jokingly asks for a friend for her birthday in a few weeks. I told her, for once I think we are all in the same boat as far as that goes. Thanks to the Morse's who hosted us for our mini-vacation. The kids loved their trip to the lake where Alec got a lesson on driving the boat and Livvy took a crazy ride on the biscuit. Carson loved his time jumping off the dock and collecting feathers. For anyone who is up this way, please let us know, we would love some company. Ray is still plugging along at Amazon and I think we recognize now more than ever that this is the experience and job he needed. Knowing that helps while we continue to transition. Life is good, well there's hope anyway. :)