4th of July weekend!

 We enjoyed a wonderful 4th of July weekend with Jeff's Mom, Lori who flew up from Ogden to be with us. 

We had a great time with her and did some fun things as the following pictures will show.  But I have to mention that my thoughts during this weekend and the days before it were turned to my Father's family as my Aunt Lynn passed away from cancer on Thursday, July 3rd. She was the sister just older than my Dad out of 6 kids, and is married to my Uncle Rees. They have two beautiful daughters, Tori - 24, and Nicole -20 years old. My Aunt Lynn was diagnosed with a rare form of cancer and I watched from afar as she pressed onward, enduring horrendous amounts of pain at times and lost mobility in her arm due to the tumors that spread. I enjoyed sitting with Lynn and Rees at Marie's wedding reception in March, and the fun conversation we had.  I couldn't comprehend the amount of pain she was in and the many procedures she had done to try to control it and make life manageable. But she cheerfully participated in the activities and I am so grateful I got to see her. I am sad at her passing, and grieve for her siblings and immediate family for their loss in their daily lives. I know that she is in a better place and pain free - and am grateful for that knowledge which makes her passing just a little sweeter. 

She has a beautiful obituary.  You can read it here. 

She worked for 20 years at the Montessori Community School as Director of Admissions. The school has written a nice tribute that you can read here. 

Her funeral was on Friday, July 11th and while I wasn't able to attend, I've been thinking about and praying for my extended family during this time.

How grateful I am for family and the wonderful memories we make together! That being said, I'd like to tell you about the fun memories we have of our weekend with Jeff's Mom:

She flew into town late thursday night. Friday morning, July 4th we attended our ward's flag raising ceremony.  It was a nice, patriotic start to our day...complete with donuts. Can't go wrong!

 

We then got in the car for an 1.5 hour drive to Elbe, WA where there is the Mt. Rainier Scenic Railroad Experience.  It was sold out and we made it just in time to claim our reserved tickets! We hopped on the train just as it was leaving and enjoyed the sights and sounds (and smells!) of an old-fashioned railroad experience.

It was Brielle's nap time as we started the trip - which made for a long afternoon for her. She relaxed in my arms while we traveled...I didn't mind!

The train travels for 45 minutes to a Train Museum and refurbished train depot community.  It was fascinating to see how people lived as loggers back in the day and what life was like in that area and time. We also enjoyed just seeing the train itself and watching them switch the tracks so it could make its return course.

Brielle wasn't too into it.  She was sleepy.

She got a second wind as we were walking around the museum.  Of course she somehow managed to get tar all over her shoes and legs - which wouldn't come off with the baby wipes on hand! We had to get the train mechanic to clean her off for us and we again barely made it back on the train in time to head back.

Rosalyn was a champ - content just seeing all the new sights. It helped that she slept during the car ride there. 

I had cute 4th of July bows on the girls...they didn't last long on their heads. So much for being festive. :)  Good thing they still look cute!

It was beautiful scenery and we could see Mt. Rainier most of the time. What a lovely part of Washington.

After the train ride, we stopped for some lunch at a pizza parlor made out of an old train car! It was yummy.  Then we headed back home.  Brielle was so tired after all that and no nap--she fell asleep instantly with cracker in hand.

We got home, got Rosalyn a nap and then headed back out again to downtown Bellevue. They had a huge party going on at the large community park. They estimated 60,000 people there! We enjoyed the excitement and people watching. We got decked out in our patriotic gear and glow sticks!

The fireworks show was awesome.  We all loved it, even the girls. The fireworks were timed with the Bellevue Youth Symphony (which was such an incredible orchestra...all those Chinese children who live here! ha) I don't remember ever seeing fireworks while a symphony played...it was really awesome and so moving! It was one of the best firework displays I've ever seen. We got home at 11:30pm and we all crashed asleep. Our girls were troopers!!

Saturday we got up and went out to breakfast at a little restaurant that serves BIG cinnamon rolls. We all shared one and it was a yummy start to the day! 

We came back and Jeff and Lori took a bus into Seattle and went to the matinee Alex Boye/Ensign Chorus Concert. They LOVED it! I heard raving reviews...patriotic, fun and inspirational.  Afterwards they stopped for some gelato. mmm.

Can you tell they are related?!? 

I stayed home with the girls and recouperated with them from the day before. :) When Jeff and Lori got home, we went to a park and played for a while. We did miscellaneous errands and stayed up talking and laughing for a late night together.

Sunday we went to church and Lori helped out in the nursery program watching the children! She enjoyed playing with Brielle. We have an awesome nursery room with really fun toys and an outside play area with bikes and cars and even a toy house to play in! Brielle is spoiled here. A few people at church came up to me and couldn't believe how much Brielle looks like Lori! We've said this before, it was fun to hear it from others! 

We enjoyed a wonderful Sunday afternoon together playing with the girls and talking. We stayed up till midnight....and Jeff drove Lori to the airport at 4am Monday morning so she could make it back to work! 

We enjoyed good food, laughter and made fun memories. We saw the lush wildlife by Mt. Rainier, the sleek beauty of downtown Bellevue and Seattle, and played at two parks along the water of Lake Washington. It was a perfect trip and lots of fun!

Happy 4th of July! We are so grateful to live in this great nation.