Trip to Ohio, Washington D.C. and New York

 We started the trip in Ohio, staying with Grammie and Grampie, having a lovely dinner out on the terrace.

 The next day we went to Amish country, just south of Akron, and went into Lehman's Hardware Store, which is huge.

 The sign told us to watch for horse and buggies. . .

 . . .and we did.

 It was a lovely day. . .and the hills of Ohio were beautiful and green.

 We also visited the Guggisberg Cheese Factory, where they have the best Baby Swiss Cheese ever.

 Here we are just before we left for Washington D.C. in front of the Finlay's home.

 We stopped at one of my favorite places. . .Harpers Ferry, West Virginia.

 Coco wanted to be the "boss" of the Reese's Pieces.

 We hiked along the C and O Canal and are looking across the Potomac River here back at Harpers Ferry.  Harpers Ferry has been a strategic location militarily for decades because it is at the confluence of the Shenandoah and Potomac Rivers.

 The Shenandoah Mountains in the background were lovely in spring.

 Here we are at the World War II Monument, with the Lincoln Memorial in the background.

 The California representatives of American Mothers, Inc.

 We took the ferry out to Liberty Island.  Here we are waiting for that ferry, with the skyline of Lower Manhattan in the background.

 Coco and Gavin look at the Statue of Liberty from the ferry, not unlike what two of their great grandparents from Ireland and Hungary must have done when entering New York Harbor in the early 1900's.

 Coco dressed up like the Statue of Liberty.

 Out on Liberty Island - the statue is being repaired and will open again in October of this year.

 Freedom Tower at Ground Zero just surpassed the Empire State Building as the tallest building in Manhattan - very impressive.  It will eventually be 1,776 feet tall.

 One of the favorite children's books of the kids is "The Little Red Lighthouse and the Great Grey Bridge".  The bridge is the George Washington Bridge, crossing the Hudson, and if you look at the base of the bridge, the little red lighthouse actually exists.

 After spending the night in Edison, N.J., we drove across Pennsylvania but had a stop at Hershey, PA. We all loved the tour of Chocolate World.

 Uncle Evan was a big hit in Lowe's in Akron because he could ride the kids around on the cart.

It had just rained and the kids loved driving fast through the river in Sand Run Park in Akron.  It was a great trip and we covered a lot of ground.  Thanks for your hospitality Grammie and Grampie.

Congratulations Alana Finlay Johnson, JD

 Steve and Alana Johnson right after the commencement.

 Ian and Evan with their sister, the new graduate.

 We had dinner every night at Steve's home.  Thanks for your wonderful hospitality, Pat.  What a beautiful location overlooking Utah Lake!  Thanks to Donna Georgino for coming up for graduation.

 Steve took us out on Utah Lake.  Grammie and Grampie liked getting out on the boat again.

 It was a beautiful day for a spin on the lake until. . .

 the motor gave out and we ended up paddling a bit until we could get towed back into the dock.

 Meg flew up for the day of boating and graduation. . .thanks Meg. . .we loved having you there.

 Just before the graduation.

 More graduation pix. . .

 Grammie and Grampie with Alana and Steve in front of the law school.

 Proud parents. . .

 Thanks, Mel and Linda, for coming to Alana's graduation and dinner.

 Just before Alana got her diploma.

 Alana getting her doctoral hood.

 Evan, still on crutches with a fractured foot, made it through the two-hour graduation.

 Alana and Eileen were best friends in law school.

 The tulips were lovely in Utah this time of year.  We went to Thanksgiving Point for the Tulip Festival.

On our way home with Donna, we stopped for a short hike in Zion National Park.  It was a great trip and the end of 7 years of hard work for Alana at BYU.

Awesome Times in Austin

 Last weekend Jeannie and Erin went to Austin for a friend's wedding.  They had both never been to Austin and this was the first time back in Texas since the family road trip of '99.

We enjoyed all the sights and sounds of Austin.  It is known as the live music capitol of the world.  They also have delicious BBQ and Tex Mex food - we sampled it all, of course!

We saw the capitol building and it's lovely grounds.  It's made completely of granite and looks similar to the California state capitol building.

Austin also has a Colorado River that runs through it but it is different than the one that is in Colorado and goes to California.

And here we are with the beautiful bride, our friend Rachel.  We can't wait to go back to Austin to enjoy more Southern hospitality.

American Mother Inc. Awards

This past Saturday, I was honored to receive the 2012 California Mother of Achievement Award by the American Mothers Inc. This is a national organization recognized by the United Nations and is the official sponsor of Mother's Day. My parents, Brad, and Megan and James were able were my guests at the La Canada Country Club for the gala luncheon. It was a lovely event and I was humbled by all of the very accomplished women at this function. I am grateful to Julie Sears for nominating me for this award.
I could never have done half of the things that I do without my best friend and husband, Brad.
Here I am pictured with the emcee for the event, Sonja Brown (2nd from the right), and then from left to right, the California Mother of the Year, Beverly Nelson, me, Darcy Ure (California Young Mother of the Year), Sonja, and Sara Vance (Outstanding Service to Children). All of these ladies have wonderful stories to tell about their lives. We will all be at the American Mothers Inc. Convention in Washington D.C. in May.
Alana sent me this picture to show that while she is studying for her law school finals, her younger brother and her husband are having scooter races (Evan rides a scooter now while his foot is healing from a fall in soccer) in the law school lunchroom. Evan was timing Steve here.
Here are the kids and grandkids shown in the ambulance that is being taken to El Salvador in June.
Baseball pictures were this week and Gavin looks like a real pro.