Life

 It's been awhile since my last post so....what have we been up to???

Angels game this past weekend. It was the 10th Anniversary celebration of the last time they won the world series.

 There was alot of red that evening...

 ...and the team started out so well, and then ended poorly. So sad!

Marilyn's cousin Brenda came from Minnesota with her niece to spend a week with her daughter who is attending school here. It's hard to believe that it was just a year ago that we met Brenda and her family. What a great relationship that has been!

 And then of course there are the wonderful visits to our sons and their families!

 Dancing with Grandpa

 Two little girls and their new tree house

And then the cousins came over to play also!

 I love this pic! Reminds me so much of the fun that I had when my cousins came to visit and we got to sit and eat at our own table apart from the "big folks."

It's hard to believe that this guy was once just a little baby in those swings! He is growing up so fast.

 Imagination in the playhouse

Enjoying her Poppi

 Cousins

 These boys love puzzles...and they are really good at them also!

 Such intense concentration!

J's new "bugman" outfit

Jim also took a trip back to Minnesota for our church convention. He was able to visit our niece and her husband (now attending Seminary) in their new home. 

And the highlight of the convention was the commissioning service for the newest missionary family. What a joy to see how God is calling the younger generation to serve Him abroad. May His name be honored and glorified through these lives.

MN moving

 Two weeks ago, Marilyn made a quick trip back to MN to help her siblings move the parents into a different apartment. After landing in Fargo, we cruised Broadway...

...then headed straight for the assisted living facility where the folks live, and started to pack. Since Mother was still recovering from her recent fall (with fractured ribs), her job was to sit and watch, and tell us what to do next!

 Within 30hours, we had everything moved and even had the pictures back on the walls. We worked really hard, and accomplished alot in such a short time.

 But we did make sure that dad and mom both had their daily naps.

 Mother is quite happy with the added room, and also having her hutch and china dishes out of storage and ready to use again.

 And, all of her little bears also came back home! 

 Their new apartment looks very homey and welcoming.

 After all the hard work, on Friday evening B & I drove to our brother's cabin and enjoyed a restful night at the lake.

 The next morning we had a huge breakfast (thanks R&G!) at the cabin...

 ...then we all went for a pontoon ride around the lake.

 B was a bit chilled...

 ...Brisco just enjoyed the ride!

 It was such a perfect way to end our time together as siblings--just relaxing at the lake after hard work.

Fishing would have been fun, but there was not enough time, so we just enjoyed the view. 

 Satisfied with a job well done!

One last stop...

The next morning, we went to the Lumberjack Restaurant to have breakfast.

We were met there by our daughter-in-law's parents and enjoyed a wonderful time of feasting and fellowship. We are so blessed by the great people that God has brought into our lives by the marriages of our sons!

Our last vacation destination was a beautiful town in southern Cali (only about 3hours from our home, but a new adventure destination for us). 

The motel we stayed in was truly a little piece out of Denmark!

 Our room was even themed after the Danish flag!

 A childhood dream of mine was to someday visit Holland and see the windmills...how ironic that I've seen several of these beautiful structures in both Iowa and California!

 Being in this town was like stepping into Europe...

...complete with Christmas "people" in the year-around Christmas store.

That evening, we feasted on Danish meatballs and potatoes at this cute restaurant.

 Early the next morning, we had a Danish pancake breakfast.

 After a bit more of wandering around the town...

 ...enjoying a last look at another windmill

 ...and another beautiful nook and cranny

...we said good-by to Solvang, and pointed our car toward home! It was a wonderful vacation with tons of great blessings and memories. 

Leaving Oregon

Just south of Portland, Oregon is a very interesting Aircraft and Space Museum. We stopped there because we had heard that it houses the famous "Spruce Goose" airplane that was built by Howard Hughes. Interesting fact: it is actually made out of birch wood, not spruce! The building was built to house the plane, and it was huge!

The large wing above this plane belongs to the Spruce Goose. 

This is the interior of the plane, looking backwards toward the tail, made of wood. And the beach balls? They were "flotation devices!"

The circular point in the middle is the nose of the plane. (This area was blocked off when we came that day.)

The thing only flew one time, and that flight was only one mile long; but Hughes made his point! He built a plane from wood! (All the aluminum and other metals was going towards the building of military planes.) This plane really was a work for art. 

I even found my own plane...

Yea!

A moon rover

This "house" of the museum was all about the history of space, the victories and the sorrows. 

The Titan II missile

Examining the tail end of things...

New pilot?

A beautiful F-15

A few years ago, the museum added this attraction"Evergreen's Wings and Waves Waterpark: a 747 made into a waterpark for kids! You can see some of the many tubes coming out of the sides and back of the plane. On that hot day, this park was a very busy place!

Harvest time in the flatland. This farm girl loved to see the golden wheat fields and also the combines gathering in the harvest.

As we entered the state of Californina, we got this first glimpse of Mt Shasta, and knew that soon we would be back home again.