18 years and 18 days

This is a crazy story. After a full 18 days of being missing, the neighbor dog down Zeke upside down at the edge of the creek. He needed surgery to clear out the bugs that had infested him and they discovered cancer, but he is now home and walking and eating. It is an amazing gift to be able to care for him and say goodbye the way that it should happen. He had to have used up at least eight of his lives in this little adventure. He's 18 years old, declawed and about 3 pounds...but home now!

Rough times in Spain

From Marta...Already in Spanish times, we just have dinner and are now watching tv. Tomorrow I take them to my private club pool all day.

Cousins

Devan and Kenzie have been buds since they were little. It's nice that even though they don't see each other too much, they keep connected through their phones. And when they do see each other, there's a lot of giggling. 

Sounders tournament

It was a perfect weekend for soccer. We have to remind ourselves of this in a few months when it's miserable!

Sounders

Having a tournament at Starfire where the Sounders practice gave  the boys some photo and autograph opportunities. Mason was quick to cozy up for a shot.

Deandre Yedlin

Stefan Frei

Kenny Cooper

Clint Dempsey

Deandre Yedlin

Even without a pen Mason made a haul on his kicks and a ball. 

Selfie by her selfie...from DFW to MAD

Off to Spain!

Borja's family invited Kenzie to spend some of her summer with them. She easily hopped on the plane this morning, a little annoyed that I was able to fly her as an unaccompanied minor and guarantee her delivery. She was ready to take off with passport and boarding pass. Her plane spent over an hour on the tarmac, but that'll just take the Dallas layover to five hours. 

Only Mason

...can run over his own middle finger on a bike. 

Zekie

We came home from vacation and our feisty Zeke was missing. We don't know how he got out or where he went but he hasn't been seen since Sunday. He was getting old and frail, so maybe he chose to go out in his own way. Regardless, we are sad and miss our buddy. 

This kid

This guy is pretty much a natural at any sport he tries. We went to the beach with a friend and a bunch of locals. Mason fit right in. 

Nut farm

We aren't usually the ones who like to go on tours or mass group outings, but Mason made friends with a guy on the airplane who recommended we check out the Macadamia nut farm, Tropical Farms. It was a surprisingly great time! For $20 each we had about 1-1/2 hours with a great guide who talked about the Polynesian lifestyle, including making fire and dancing. 

Chirpie had friends

Ermi brought Speedy and Mason brought Tiger. 

Boys and water

Love

Tidepools

A group of us went on a beautiful hike to the Makapu'u Tidepools, and unmarked trail down the side of a cliff, quite literally. At the bottom are gorgeous tidepools and a couple of blow holes. 

Surfing

We spent one day in Waikiki. We rented surfboards and immediately Kenzie and Mason bolted, against counsel, for the deep blue ocean. We lost sight of them so I had to swim for a solid 20 to 30 minutes until I finally found them. I wasn't happy. Eventually they earned the right back and spent much of the day surfing/floating with their cousins. 

Eventually be right back and spent much of the day surfing with the cousins

Grammy snorts, I mean snorkels

She did ask me to destroy this picture, but I just can't do it. This is perhaps my favorite shot of the entire vacation. Grammy has a fear of water but let me take her on a quick snorkel tour. I had to hold her mask and floatie the whole time, but she did put her face in and saw a fish! 

More fun with selfies

Issaquah fourth

Once again we had a great Fourth of July here in our hometown of Issaquah. Kenzie and Mason hopped on their bikes and rode down town to catch the parade. Ermi and I drove after he woke up, allowing Cindy some much deserved time alone. The rest of us met up with each other and some friends and walked in the parade with Mason's soccer team. The weather was perfect and I realized that we know a good percentage of the people in Issaquah. The whole time that we walked and eventually ended up at the park we were surrounded by friends the boys played laser tag and then dodgeball, while Kenzie and Bentley socialized in the shade. After a couple of hours we came back home and had a barbecue. Eventually Lauren brought the party in a bag of fireworks and the kids are still out there as I write.

Mason found the python after Ermi and I left.