ocean shores WA- aug. '10

aven and i just got back from spending a few days at ocean shores. it's a nice little beach town that isn't commercialized at all, so it's the perfect spot to get away and have some down time. the local pizza shop gives away free kites- SCORE! aven had a blast and although it was quite chilly we had a great time walking the beach and flying aven's kite. check out the horseback riding on the beach!

"that's how they make go-carts"- summer fun for me!!

this summer has been busy but certainly alot of fun. some of my favorite things are looking (and occasionally breaking into, but that's our secret) old plantation homes, car shows, and the races at the sevierville dirt track. this last trip home was packed with all three!!

the house pictured is in rutledge down the street from my mom's best friends house. it's beautiful out there, the house is civil war era and still has the original flooring of the basement that was used to hide and treat wounded soldiers. i'm told there are still blood stains in the cement. very interesting house and it is #2 on my 'if that house ever comes up for sale' list.

the car show was in rogersville and we had a great time. at the end of the night i asked aven if she was going to be a car junkie like me and for the rest of the night she referred to herself as 'junkie baby'. i got some interesting looks that night :) aven had her pic taken in the back of a '55 mercury and my fav was probably the '65 mustang fastback (the red one). great night and good food, doesn't get much better.

i love going to the 411 racetrack, can't believe i didn't know about it until last summer... the fun times i missed out on!! everyone gets all excited when there's a wreck, bumping is semi-encouraged as long as there are no injuries. if you ever get a chance to go, you'll have a blast! be prepared to get a little dirty and plan on eating your weight in corn dogs and snow cones. this particular night the raffle tickets were for miniature race car go-carts, hence the funny "that's how they make the go-carts" when a wreck happened and two race cars ended up on top of each other ;)

North Carolina and family

my parents are from a small town in north carolina and the past few years my mom's side has been able to get together each year and eat, eat, eat!! aven had a great time playing on the playground and chasing everyone's dog. over the last few years i've really enjoyed going back and visiting family more than i ever thought i would. as a kid i was always bored b/c my cousins are quite a bit older than i am so i never really had anyone to play with, although i've always been a tomboy so the creek and bare feet usually sufficed just fine. i've come to appreciate the joys of a small town... 1) i don't believe i'll ever find anywhere else where the people are as warm hearted and sincerely caring 2) no one speeds b/c they all know each other and they'll tell your daddy at church on sunday, but they're probably coming over tonight for dinner 3) they don't use the shopping cart returns in the parking lot of grocery stores, they are actually considerate enough to return them to the front entrance of the store and one of the greatest for me is 4) no matter how long it's been since they've seen you they are ALWAYS happy to see you, invite you over for dinner which just happens to be your favorite BBQ chicken and fresh green beans from the garden out back (wink, yes they remembered). i am very blessed to have such a wonderful family, i love you all very much!

** the white church is the church all my mom's family grew up in. i can remember being in a sunday children's play when i was little and wiping my nose on my sunday dress, my mom was so proud!! the rock building with the flowers is the school my family all went to and the other rock building with the flag was the only grocery store and gas station for along time before ingles was built.

jen and eli visit to TN

jen and eli came to visit while we were home and it was great being able to show her where i grew up and the four interesting things to do in morristown :) aven and eli (she calls him IE) had a wondeful time playing together at the lakehouse, going fishing almost everyday and the pancake breakfasts on the porch. these pics were taken at glenmore in jeff city. i can't say thanks enough for 'everything', jen! i love you to pieces**

aven's bedroom

at the rate i'm going, it will be a few years before i'm completely finished with this house and getting pics posted, so from here on out i'll post the pics as i complete the room :) the first (and only) completed room has been aven's. the next time i'm at IKEA i'm going to pick up a down comforter for her, she wakes up every morning 1) asking to play with tristan and 2) saying it's cold and it's going to start snowing!!

summer fun at my mom's

aven and i went home for a while in june and july and had a blast! aven played outside almost the entire time we were there and came back to seattle with a farmers tan (people out here don't seem to know what that is). it was definately a transition coming from 90+ degree weather back to wearing fleece jackets and long sleeves! had a great time with everyone and can't wait to come home again at the end of august, see you then!

northwest trek- WA

today we went to visit the northwest trek somewhere close to mount rainier (not exactly sure on the exact location, just know it was out there!) we had a great time, saw a bunch of bison with a baby bison, caribou, wolves, coyotes, grizzlies, and tons of other animals. the scenery was unbelievable. it was a gorgeous day and we'll definitely being going back again. they had a cross section of a tree that had been cut down and donated in 1974 that was over 640 years old. it was planted in the 1330's. as you can tell, it was very big. on the way up, there was this adorable little country store that reminded me of home so of course i had to take a picture of it.
love to all~
amanda