Rockin' and Rollin'

All of us in Southern California felt the 5.8 earthquake this morning. Tom was at work (4th floor) and said his office shook like jello. Jared and I were outdoors at Mission Viejo Lake eating lunch with my visiting teacher. The ground was shaking for a LONG time before it stopped. Sherrie grabbed the picnic table and screamed, "Earthquake! It's an earthquaaaake!" at everyone standing nearby. That was unsettling - and a little funny. We were just talking about food storage and getting our water together, too... Kara, Chuck and the kids were in Mission Viejo and said it was pretty intense. Corbin wisely got his construction hardhat Aunt Marilyn gave to him during his trip to Nevada this week and wore he stood in the doorway. He worried about Rusty, their dog, but Rusty didn't mind the quake too much. Grandma Joyce said she felt it up in Lancaster and her house was shaking for about 10 seconds, but everything is fine (thank goodness!).

Yosemite

Tom, Kathryn and Jared enjoyed "camping" at Yosemite this past week with some of the Pearson/Welch relatives. Uncle Jim Welch had been to this particular place 2 years ago and vowed that the only thing missing was to have more family around to play with. So, last year he emailed everyone to see if anyone in the extended family wanted to go together in 2008...Tom and I signed up and I'm so glad we did! It was beautiful and fun and very special to be in such an amazing part of the country. The spot where we stayed was pretty awesome as we could walk down to a tributary of the Merced river to swim (shallow enough for Jared and small kids, deep enough for an amazing high dive rock), walk to a great waterfall, walk to the Wawona School for "playing", walk to the library, walk to each others' cabins, walk to get fresh towels at any time of day, and had every convenience and comfort while we were in the wilderness (including cell reception, free long-distance and fully-equipped kitchens). We were a little drive from the Yosemite Valley, which was nice for day trips. I would go back to The Redwoods at Yosemite anytime! Highly recommended.

Luckily, we left the day before the fires raged in the area. Evidently they have cut power to the whole valley now and have lost many homes in another part of the park. Everything was tinder-dry when we were there, I can see how it would go up quickly and intensely. Scary!

Jared's 3 1/2 birthday

With Jared's birthday so close to Christmastime, we decided to celebrate his Half Birthday with his friends this weekend. We met at the Pittsford Park down the street, set up an umbrella and the cool mini-frisbee game Chuck gave us, and played and played. The biggest hit were the dinosaur "pup-cakes" (as Jared calls them) our friend Wendy made as a present to Jared. They were devoured with enthusiasm. Kara's family was there, but I didn't catch them all on the camera (sorry! these pics were taken at the very beginning so a lot of people were left out). I did buy paper dinosaur "hats" for the little boys even though this was supposed to be a simple no-frills party, but those hats were a great choice. My "little boys" continue to play with the hats at home (see picture). I especially love the two-finger t-rex mode they do. Roar!

4th of July

Kathryn, Jared, Kayden, Kara and Corbin at the Aliso Creek 4th of July Pancake Breakfast. Great idea to put syrup in mustard bottles -- less mess (but many people couldn't "find" the syrup at the beginning!). After breakfast, all the kids rode their bikes around for a Parade. Jared and Kayden had a good time! Note: Jared instisted on holding his yellow Tyranosaurus Rex the whole time. That made steering kind of interesting...

"Grandmother Bread"

Family - I found a great blog written by a grandma who lives on a farm in West Virginia. There are many great recipes there. This one looks very promising, Jared and I are going to try making it this afternoon before Tom comes home from work. Just check to make sure your yeast isn't old before starting. Bon appetit!

Link for Grandmother Bread recipe and variations

Daryn Michelle Thiel

Name: Daryn Michelle

Date: Saturday June 21, 2008

Time: 9:20 AM

Weight: 6 lbs 11 oz

Length: 20 in

Blue eyed blonde.

Two pictures shared by Nathan and Krystle this week. What a beautiful family!

While we're on the phone...

This is what happened to Tom while he was on the phone yesterday. (Jared is holding his favorite "silky green" blanket.)

Before and After Swim Lessons

The first is Jared "before" our week of swim lessons and the second is Jared "after" swim lessons. Before he wouldn't completely join the Carroll's kids in their tiny pool. Now we face the problem of overconfidence in big pools.

Visit with Grandma

On Friday, Kara, Chuck, Corbin, Kayden, Kathryn & Jared made the trip up to Lancaster to visit Grandma. We had a great time talking and lunching together. The kids had a great time playing together. Several times this week, when asked, "What would you like to do today?" Jared has replied "I want to go to Grandma Joyce's house! Can we do that?"

So cute

So here are some pictures Krystle sent me of herself and Claire. I really like this first one because it seems like Krystle finally took my advice and is training Claire to work for her supper. She might not enjoy it now, but she'll thank you in the future. Plus, with the new baby on the way Krystle will need all the help she can get. The least Claire could do is to sweep the floors. Don't worry, she'll get use to it, her tears will lessen over time. I hope you enjoy the rest of the pictures. I know I did. Since we are so spread out it's difficult to keep up to date with Krystle's pregnancy and everything but it looks like she is doing great! Our little fatty, sigh, so cute.