It's a wrap!

 The family reunion happened and now we are all resting.

The Auntie Linda wars continue.

Lady received so much attention that she didn't know what to do with herself.  She ate it up.

JP relaxing with his morning coffee.

There were walks in the woods.

The pine siskins fledged from the nest while everyone was here.  It was so fun to watch the babies on their first flying attempts.  They've had a nest on our front porch for several years. 

Yes, we played games.  Apples to Apples was popular as well as Wits and Wagers.  

The kid place in the basement to play their video games and hang out.



David went for a swim at the dock at the Litehouse. 

We went to dinner at Trinity.  It turned out to be a great place for lots of photos.  The food was excellent, and it was a very enjoyable evening.

Bruce Bishop's music was very nice, as always and he stopped by our table to visit during his break. 

Rylee looked stunning in her yellow dress, and I wish I had a better picture.

 

After they had eaten, the kids all headed to the beach.  

We were not prepared with swimsuits, but that didn't stop them.  They had a great time in the water.

The reunion is over.  Great summertime fun.   

Our forecast high for today is 104.  It's going to be hot out there.  Take it easy everyone.

Happy Birthday to my sister Mitzi!   The photos are of the year she was here to play her trumpet in the 4th of July parade.

The only time we played Watermelon Man in the parade.  It was lots of fun.

It's Monday in July!

 Savoring a beautiful July day.  A little warm but won't complain.  We are so excited to see Jon's sister and family who arrive tomorrow, plus all of our kids and grandkids this weekend. 

Lady is ready to play with the two boys who will be here this week.  Nephew Chase and great-grandson Jason.  

Play ball! 

Happy 4th!

We've had a lot of thunderstorms during the month of June and we certainly welcome the rain.  This photo was taken right after one of our last storms.

 

The storms have taken their toll on all of the plants but they're recovering from the hail damage and starting to bloom.  As you can see from the photo below, Miss Lady is in charge of all activities, both inside and outside.  I had just moved a plant and she is checking out it's position.  At least I think she's approving the move.

We had a new dryer delivered a couple of days ago and she was in charge of the installation.  She was very polite but kept going in and out of the pantry to be sure it was installed correctly by the two young men from Home Depot.  Border collies have to keep track of everything, especially people.  How many are there?  Where are they?  What are they doing?  

This is what the place looks like on the 4th of July 2024.  Jon and I are doing our best to get things in shape for the 4th and also for next week we're having a family reunion.  It will be the first one here since the summer of 2018.

The decks and the front porch have been painted with a fresh coat of stain and sealer.  

The lawn is very green from all of the rain.

We don't have any big plans for the 4th, but we'll spend the day remembering many of our previous celebrations.  We've spent many of them shooting off our own fireworks (when conditions were okay) to creating parade floats and marching in the parade in Clark Fork for more than ten years.   It was always a family and friend's event.  Our grandkids and those of our friends, grew up participating in the events of the day.  Great memories. 

I went through my photos and found these from July 2013.  Enjoy.

The Cougar Creek Band always had a float and marched in the parade back then.

It was the year there was a surprise marriage proposal.

We always had a "Second Line" behind our float, and anyone could join in to help toss out candies and trinkets for the kids.  

It was also the year that I took one of my favorite photos of Travis in the saw contest.  

That July we finally caught the firewood stealing dog in action.  Thompson, Neil and Ann's border collie loved to steal pieces of firewood from Jon's wood piles.  Here is the proof from July 2013. 

One of our banners carried by Marilyn and Jens.  The band always played this song in the parade.  This Land is your Land.

One of my favorite songs that I listen to on the 4th of July is Fanfare for the Common Man.   Happy 4th!