Grandpa & Grandma Visit Bellingham

Grandma and Grandpa had a great visit with Josh, Cheryl and Noah this last weekend. It was good to get away and spend a few quite days in Bellingham with family and without church or business meetings getting into the way. It has been a long time in coming. I think the last time we were at Cheryl and Josh's was last spring.

Thursday evening after the bishop was done with his interviews we headed to Cheryl and Josh's to visit for a couple of days. We went to the park, did some shopping, and celebrated Noah's first birthday. He really liked his first "Tonka Truck" and Legos . . .
If you run over the legos the dump truck picks them up
and puts them into the truck, kind of like a street sweeper.and his carwash magnets . . .
which teaches colors, vehicle names and sounds as you mix and match truck, car, plane, tractor, and many more pieces to create different vehicle combinations.

Every combination sings a song and all the pieces are magnetic.

Their front door is metal so Noah takes them on & off the door and likes to push the music buttons a lot. Sometimes he figures out that the vehicles can fit in the carwash. He played with them every chance he got.
Okay, being grandma makes me a bit prejudice!

He also got some new boots from Uncle Chris. . . . that he tried on but found that they were a bit too big....

He wore them for a very short time until he decided he had had enough. . .We also went to Larrabee State Park on Friday and had a great time outdoors and while we were there we discovered some of Noah's favorite things to do.

Here are some of them:
Noah likes . . .
. . . riding on Grandpa's shoulders

the slide . . . of course . . .

....to run everywhere now that he can,

especially when he is unhooked from his leash!
"I wonder how far I can go before they catch me? Ha...Ha...Ha....try to catch me now!"
Then we took him down to the beach and found that he liked more then anything. . .
. . . playing in the sand and
the feel of it running through his fingers . . .
. . . over and over
and over. . .
. . . until we decided to move farther down the beach
Where are we going Gama?! Is there sand there too?!
(At least that is what it looked like he was thinking)
He does say "Hi there!" and "mama", and "dada."
I found that Grandpa enjoyed spending time with Noah
as well as taking a few minutes in the shade with his new toy! His iphone!
The rocks were fun but Noah had enough of that and wanted to get down again, so we went back to the park and then to dinner.
And Finally BATHTIME. . . .
WOW!! Look what I can do when I push up in the faucet!

We had a great time and can't wait until we can go back again!

Noah at Grandma's in July

It was fun having Noah, Cheryl and Josh over for a visit this summer. I tried to get some pictures of Noah trying to walk but he wasn't going to have any of that yet. But I did get this cute picture of him all smiles and having fun.

3 New Babies to arrive in 2009!

We are so excited to announce that Allisha, Denise and Cheryl are having babies this next spring! Congratulations and best wishes to all!

Rich Visits Elder Marlatt

This month Bob needed someone to help him get his MTG business car from Topeka, KS to Austin TX, so Rich jumped in to help. He flew into the Kansas City airport Friday August 1st, and was able to visit with Elder Marlatt on his way to spend the night at Bob's MTG apartment in Topeka. Then Saturday morning he took off for a long drive to Austin Texas and flew back home Sunday morning the 3rd. Thanks so much Rich your help was greatly appreciated!

With the permission of the mission president; one of the perks he got while there was a visit with Chris. How often do you get a free meal and visit from your brother while on your mission?!

Elder Marlatt and his companion at their apartment.
Of course, Rich made sure he got a picture of "THE 'TONY LAMA' COWBOY BOOTS"!
Or is it that Elder Marlatt made sure Rich got a picture of his awesome boots!?!
(None-the-less, in the past you would have never caught Chris wearing a pair, and a few months back Elder Marlatt admitted that yes, he did need, and was okay with wearing them. Way to go, Elder Marlatt!!)

Bishop's First Wedding & Baptism

Mike and Nancy's Wedding

This past weekend was wonderful. We had fun setting up and participating in the wedding of Nancy Cadel and Mike Bickell.
They are such a sweet couple.Bishop Marlatt watching as the happy couple arrive.Bishop performed a wonderful ceremony and the weather was great!
It was hot but the wind helped to keep it from being too extreme. I think it reached 99 degrees Saturday, or so they say. The wedding was outdoors and the reception in the cultural hall.

Bride's father.

Groom's parents and grandmother.
Cutting the Cake
Mike's mother put a lot of loving hours into the cake and watched as the weather melted all her hard work away. I was amazed as she didn't give up or fall apart as I probably would have if it was me. She just went to work to make sure it looked it's best before the reception began.
What an awesome Mother!
Sister Oakes greeting the bride.Mike's Mother and our Relief Society President Alicia Snyder.
The Relief Society worked hard to help make it a big success.
Thanks so much for all the help and support!
After the wedding and reception we all went into the Relief Society room to witness as Mike and Nancy's were baptized.

Mike and Nancy with Eld Inlet Elders
What an Awesome Day!

AWESOME Youth Dance Festival 2008!

July 24th - 26th was our Regional Youth Dance Festival with performances on Friday and Saturday. Bishop Marlatt helped back stage in the young men's area and had a great time. He was there everyday without fail.

"Vienna Waltz"

Our stake had the best synchronized performances. They did awesome in the Waltz, Swing and Samba, but then I might be a bit prejudiced too.

I went with Cheryl and Josh Friday and sat with the Martinsen family to watch the first showing. Noah was very interested in all the action and colors of the dancers.

Here he is with his Grandpa and Grandma Martinsen.

By the time the dance was about over Noah had had enough action for one day.

"The Samba"

Bob was going to sit with us for at least one of the showing but wasn't able to because they were short on helpers back stage in the young men's dressing area. Josh and Cheryl spent the night Thursday at our house and we went together to the dance festival. Bob got home late Thursday evening from the youth conference and had to leave very early Friday morning so Noah got to see Grandpa Marlatt all but a glimpse here and there each day, but was able to say goodbye in the parking lot after the Friday performance as they were getting ready to head home.


Saturday Bob and I went with Rich and Allisha to Randy and Cathy Naegle's sealing in the Portland Temple and then straight to the dance festival for the Saturday afternoon showing. We stopped long enough in Olympia for Rich and Allisha to pick up their car so Bob could stay the rest of the time at the Tacoma Dome with the youth.

"The Swing Dance"

Rich, Allisha and I enjoyed the 2pm session and then had lunch at the quaint little "Burger Stop" in Fife. They had the best milkshakes I have had in a long time! While we were there I saw a friend from Wood Badge that had his daughter dancing in the festival with one of her LDS friends. They came to every performance and loved it. We then headed home after a very long and fun filled day.

It seemed like the youth got better and better at each performance... although they were outstanding in all their performances. You could tell in their faces that they were truly having a great time.

I wish that I was closer and could have gotten more pictures of our youth, there were so many of them that participated and I wanted to include them here but the pictures didn't turn out very clear. Sorry about that.