Another Ocean Experience

Once again, we went down to San Pedro and did the annual Sanitation District Boat Tour. It was the first time for Ellie and Ethan but they loved touching the animals in the tanks. Shown above is Captain Ellie helping to drive this 80-foot research vessel, the Ocean Sentinel.
As the onboard marine biologist explained about some of the different fish that had been pulled out of the bay, Ethan decided to see what they felt like.
Ellie thought the fish were pretty slimy. Her favorite part of the trip was watching the dolphins that were swimming around the boat.
We had a good day and learned much about ocean life in Santa Monica Bay.

Beauty and the Beast - A Star is Born

We are so grateful for the many people - family and friends - that came to the stake musical, Beauty and the Beast. Danny played the part of Gaston - and did a fabulous job as the self-absorbed, conceited Gaston.
Danny's parents, Merril and Sharon, surprised Danny by flying down to watch him perform for two of the shows.
Pictured here are Belle, the make-up artist that did such a good job, the Beast, and Tierra.
Cindy Combe, left, made all of the wonderful costumes with the help of many volunteers, and Emily Combe directed the musical - the Combe family scores another big win.
Here Danny is shown, flexing his muscles, in the musical number "Me".
Stephanie was one of the townspeople and is shown here with Grammie.
Gaston and LeFou have a moment as they plan to get the Beast.
Our good friends - Beth Stogner was the wardrobe and Craig Stogner was the Bookseller.
This was the Tavern Scene and was wonderfully choreographed. . .a great job done by all.

Cabrillo Marine Aquarium

Erin, Aunt Helen, Dan and Allison came down for the stake musical, Beauty and the Beast, and during the day we decided to take a trip to the Cabrillo Marine Aquarium. Here is everyone in front of a spy-hopping whale replica.
Aunt Gladdy, as Gavin calls Erin, showed Gavin and Coco the tidenpool tank.
Coco and Gavin put their faces in a grunion photo display.
Auntie showed Coco a crab in the tank.
Looks like the group got a little bit too close to this Great White!

Evan Can Cook!

Evan has learned much on his mission but one of the most useful is that he has been learning to cook. He is shone here, in his Argentine soccer jersey, with his current companion, from Missouri, with gnocchi that Evan created. Buenos Aires has a European flavor so he not only delves into traditional Argentine gastronomy but has mastered some Italian delights as well.

Erin bags another country!

Last weekend, Dan and Helen flew to Seattle for a conference that he was attending. Erin joined us for the weekend, primarily so she could drive to Canada, since this was one country she had not been to. The weather in Seattle was unseasonable warm and clear. This is a picture of Mt. Rainer just above the downtown stadiums in the foreground.
Ian asked us to check out the route of the RAGNAR for the possibility of doing that race in 2011. This is Deception Pass Bridge on Whidbey Island which is on the route of the 2010 RAGNAR. The water is flowing out to Puget Sound. Erin and Helen even found a quaint dairy close by the route which serves delicious and inexpensive ice cream which will be a start for planning next year's RAGNAR!
Erin enjoying the view from atop Deception Pass Bridge, Whidbey Island.
Skyline of downtown Vancouver, BC
Erin and Helen drove to Stanley Park in Vancouver and walked through this lovely area. This park is right on English Bay and since it was so warm, many people were enjoying the beach at the park. We stumbled upon this cute tea house in Stanley Park at Ferguson Point and enjoyed a delightful brunch overlooking English Bay.

Elise and the Dolly

Elise, or Coco as she is called these days, found the antique dolly, Bertha, in Alana's room and was quite taken with it. So we put the two of them on the rocker and Coco was quite happy to just sit there with her new friend.

Happy Birthday Alana

Alana had her 23rd birthday and we celebrated it with a Belle birthday cake, in addition to chocolate chip cheese cake. Gavin and Ellie helped Alana to blow out the candles.
Ethan helped to destroy the cake but he totally enjoyed it.
This is Gavin and Coco's favorite lunch.
What's better on a hot day than a vanilla shake. . .Gavin can hardly wait until Uncle comes back from Argentina so that they can go to In and Out Burger together.

A Day at the Beach

The heat wave here in So Cal prompted us to pack up the kids and head for Bolsa Chica Beach. The kids loved playing in the sand and having a picnic lunch.
Ellie and Gavin loved digging in the sand and watching the waves come up and fill the hole in.
Thanks, Stephanie, for helping with the little kids around the water.
Coco found a chair just her size and all she wanted to do was to relax.
Coco and Ethan decided they needed to do some more relaxing in the beach chairs.

4th of July Activities

We started out the day on the 4th of July with the kids making chocolate chip cookies (and tasting the dough to make sure that it was good enough).
Ellie and Gavin watched the fireworks from Grammie and Grampie's deck while drinking root beer floats on July 4th - a real family tradition after all the years.
We had a barbeque at Stogners with a bunch of the neighbors. Little Buddy was pretty excited to see some of the fireworks.
There were many fireworks that were shot off in the cul-de-sac.
Ellie and her mom were watching the fireworks on the street.

Grammie's Birthday

Mom and Dad went up to the Morro Bay House for a week. . .the problem was nobody was around to celebrate Mom's birthday. So Brad and I decided to drive up and surprise Mom. She and Dad were having Happy Hour at Tidelands Park when we arrived with the World Cup Special of 20 pieces of Kentucky Fried Chicken - wasn't sure whether she was happier to see the chicken or us.
The next day, on her actual birthday, we went to the family favorite restaurant, F. McLintocks, where the waiter poured water, blindfolded, on top of Mom's head. . .he didn't even spill too much.
We were so glad when Sue was able to join us for the evening at McLintocks. It was great to see her and to catch up on all the other Ferguson activities. We had a fun evening celebrating Mom's birthday. Thanks for a fabulous evening, Mom, and Happy Birthday!

Aloha!

Right after Allison's graduation, we took a family vacation to the North Shore of Oahu. The weather was just beautiful and we were able to do some of our favorite activities there too. Something we all enjoy doing is having a picnic dinner at Sunset Beach. Cousin Tat was able to join us here for dinner and we were able to spend a good amount of time with her during our vacation. Thanks for showing us so many great places, Tat!
Of course, no trip to the North Shore is complete without numerous trips to Matsumoto's Shave Ice in Hale'iwa. Always a treat!
We decided to take a quick trip to the Big Island. We drove to Hawaii Volcano National Park and stayed at the Kilaeua Military Camp. Driving on the Crater Rim Road was so interesting to see where the road just ends because of the lava flow in 2002. We all found the Big Island so unique.
The view across Turtle Bay is always so lovely. What a relaxing vacation! Hawaii is just a gorgeous state. We have such great memories!
On the last day, the girls decided to go skydiving. Something they have all wanted to do. It was located at Dillingham Airfield on Kaena Point. The girls all had huge smiles on their faces once they landed. What a great experience!

Two Jobs

Alana's job this summer after the first year of law school is doing an internship for a law firm in downtown LA. Her office is on the 11th floor and overlooks the 110 Freeway, and when it is not foggy out during June Gloom, she sees the Hollywood sign in the Hollywood Hills.
Clearly, it wasn't rush hour outside Alana's office window on the 110 Freeway
Here Alana is preparing for a meeting in one of the board rooms at the firm.
Gavin's job this summer is to have fun and learn a lot. We went for a walk on the bike trail yesterday and there was a man that was exercising his horse and he let Gavin ride it with him.