Frazier leaves for his Mission

 We're excited to see Frazier off at the airport to travel to Provo to begin his training at the MTC. Originally, he was scheduled to train in Sao Paolo, but he has yet to receive his visa.

Frazier hasn't flown a lot, and he was nervous. But the TSA agent gave him an encouraging smile and wished him good luck.

Grandma and Grandpa picked him up at the Salt Lake airport and brought him to Provo.

Even Katie was there to wish him well. Off he goes!

Easter 2013

 Another Sunny Easter Sunday is a miracle. Every other day is cloudy and rainy and somehow when it's time for hunting eggs, brilliant sunshine. Notice the Halloween bucket. They're in it for the candy.

Hike on Frailey Mountain

 Paul took the scouts out to Frailey Mountain in Snohomish County for a Saturday hike. Shane came with him on this one. Jackson, Greg, and Alex enjoyed the exercise, but Paul said he paid for it with soreness for the following week. Dave Zinkand took all these pictures.

Snow Day

 It is really coming down outside. I hope we keep the power on. Often the weight of the snow will take out a power line and since we are at the end of the island, we're the last to get it back.

We've collected 5" and it's still accumulating. If the wind doesn't blow, the trees look magical. I hope we don't have too many limbs break. 

Jackson Crashes

 On the way home from school, Jackson fell asleep at the wheel. He was almost home, just a few hundred feet more. As he approached a turn in the road, he continued straight, across the northbound lane, through a ditch, and snuck between a power pole and a Douglas fir. He was so close to them, the side mirrors broke. He continued into a yard of blackberries where hog fencing caught him gently. Then he woke up.

The car was totaled and the fence needed to be repaired. Jackson and Paul were preparing for a camping event that night. The owner of the home was not worried, except she was going to the airport to pick up the dogs of a famous Seattle Mariner baseball player. She was dog sitting and needed to have the fence fixed. No problem.

Paul ran into town to grab some hog fencing, we towed the car home because it wouldn't turn, and the fence was quickly repaired. They weren't even late for the scout event.

Summer Celebration

 In 2011, Jean Well published a book titled, "Through the Garden Gate" which included this quilt, Summer Celebration. I learned how to flip and sew making this beauty. The design is based on 5" squares, 10" squares and rectangles with those dimensions. 

The process has the maker work with squares of muslin as a base. Then you chose fabrics and sew like a paper-pieced project, flipping and sewing until it is all covered.

That makes it a pretty heavy quilt. I created quite a mess while I was sewing this together. Little bits of fabric covered the floor.

Florida Seabase

 Paul and I took a trip to BSA's Florida Seabase for a week of scout training. What a delight! We flew into Fort Lauderdale and drove down to the keys and stayed in Islamorada. The accommodations were bunkbeds, but the water was crystal clear. While he was in classes, I was out snorkeling, kayaking, and stand-up paddleboarding. 

There were a few of us couples and we enjoyed adventuring together.

We had to watch out for iguanas because they were everywhere. The water was shallow for hundreds of yards. If you fell out of a boat, it was no big deal.

We drove down to Key West so we could see Cuba.  The fish cleaning station is attracting quite a bit of attention.

Islamorada is gorgeous, especially at sunset.

I'm not going in there.

But I'll feed some tarpon at Robbie's Marina.

This is Fort Zachary Taylor State Park. Construction of the fort began in 1845 as part of a mid-19th century plan to defend the southeast coast of the US through a series of forts after the War of 1812.