Whitman Mission and Walla Walla

Ok..so you might die because I am posting twice in 1 day, but I am trying to document our summer fun as we are going...it is much easier and doesn't take 2 hours.

Today we met some friends at the Whitman Mission outside of Walla Walla Washington. Say Walla Walla Washington three times as fast as you can. Walla Walla is famous for it's sweet onions and home to the Whitman Mission where Dr. Marcus Whitman, his wife Narcissa Prentiss Whitman and nine others were killed by members of the Cayuse Indian tribe. For more information on the Whitman Mission go to http://www.nps.gov/whmi/ (sorry, I don't know how to put a link in yet).

I have heard of the Whitman Massacre since I was a young child attending Whitman Elementary School in Spokane WA and taking Washington State History. I have always wanted to go to Walla Walla and see the Whitman Mission. Now you may know from previous posts that I like to drag my family to historical sites and see all things history. This time I was able to drag a few friends as well :) I had mentioned my desire to my friend NaDell, whose parents live in Walla Walla, and she said "let's plan a day and go!" We decided on the day, she sent an email to everyone we know and people actually showed up! Here are some highlights of our day:

This is the great grave of those who were killed.

Here is a listing of those who were killed.

View overlooking the valley where the mission was located. Beautiful..

With friends at the museum.

The kids at the museum. Cute comment by Madeline today. We saw "Night at the Museum 2" this weekend and in the movie all the people and objects come to life after dark. This afternoon while we were waiting for our friends Madeline asked if the people were real. I said they were. She then asked if they came to life at night! It was very cute and I had to explain that they were real people, they just lived a long time ago and that the museum came to life only in the movies :)


After the mission we went into Walla Walla and spent an hour at Pioneer Park. They have an aviary and of course a playground.

A pretty peacock.

Welling and Ransom kids at a pioneer statue (the kid in the front was just a kid in the park who wanted to be in the picture)

Elizabeth, Daniel, Gabriela, Olivia, Madeline & Everett at the park gazebo.


Thanks to the Ransoms, Mitchells, Warrens and Tolicks for enjoying the Whitman Mission with me today! We had so much fun and look forward to doing something again.

Next...we should visit all the Oregon Trail sites that are within an hour drive of the Tri-cities...anyone?!?!?

Last Day of School!!

Yesterday was the last day of school for Gabriela. Gabriela enjoyed her year in 2nd grade with her friends and teacher Miss Barrett. What a great year she had. Everett and Daniel finished their homeschool program in Kennewick last Thursday, but had a school picnic on Tuesday. After our fun summer, they will all be excited to start school on September 1st....Gabriela in 3rd grade and Everett and Daniel in Kindergarten.

After school we met our friends at the "Hathaway Park" for a "We are out of school water kickball party"...there was more playing in the water, than actual kickball, but it was a great day. Below are a few highlights from the day:

Gabriela with her friend Paige. Gabriela and Paige met the first day we moved to Richland when her dad came with the Elder's Quorum and helped us move into our apartment. They have gone to school together for the past three years and were baptized the same day. Paige's family is building a house in Pasco and we will miss them in our ward and neighborhood. But we will still see them because Pasco is only 6 miles away!! We love you Jenks family!!




Gabriela with her lovely teacher Miss Krista Barrett. They had a fantastic year! Thank you Miss Barrett...we love you!!!


Kick Ball Fun!

Great kick Gabriela!

Madeline playing in the pool with Breton.

What a fun day we had. We are looking forward to a lovely summer. Thanks to our great friends who plan such fun activities!!

It's about time!!

So much for keeping up on our blog. Three months later and I am finally doing it! I have no excuses. Here is recap of our life through pictures, with a little commentary...ENJOY!!

MARCH

Gabriela is 8!

Gabriela's Birthday Party - we invited everyone, I don't think we will do that again...but it was a lot of fun!


Baptism Day - Saturday, March 14 2009

Paige, Hallie, and Gabriela
They are all friends who have birthdays within a few days of each other and were baptized on the same day. What a wonderful day!

Gabriela with her Dad


Happy St. Patricks Day - we had our roof replaced!

Old roof

New roof - only cost us $124 - Thank You insurance :)

APRIL

Happy Easter!

Next to carving pumpkins,coloring Easter eggs is one of Aaron's favorite "holiday" things to do. We always do it the Friday before Easter so we can find Easter eggs on Saturday morning and keep Easter Sunday for worshipping and remembering the resurrection of Jesus Christ...the real reason we celebrate Easter!

Daniel, Gabriela, Madeline, & Everett with their beautiful colored eggs.


FFS or Family Friendly Soccer was started last Fall by some friends in our ward who were tired of league soccer and the time it took away from their family..yet they still wanted to play soccer....thus the birth of FFS. We have a Fall & Spring session lasting 8 weeks, we play on Saturday mornings for 1.5 hours. We practice for 45 minutes and play for 45 minutes. The teams are divided by age and coached by parents. Every family member can participate and it is alot of fun! We had such great success we are continuing next Fall.

Gabriela's team that Aaron coached both seasons.

Everett & Daniel's team


Painting our kitchen - After two years in our house, we finally painted the kitchen. Aaron really wanted to paint it tangerine, and I couldn't go that bright..but I wanted to make sure he had a version of his color. With the help of my friends Jessica, who helped me pick/confirm my paint colors, and Lisa who painted with me for two days...we finished it! We love it!

Before

After

Behr paint - Wall: Creamy Nougat
Accent: Apple Crisp


MAY

Memorial Day Weekend

We spent Friday & Saturday in Penticton, British Columbia CANADA. My Grandmother lived most of her childhood and early adult years there and my dad was born there. When we crossed the border, I was informed by the Border Patrol Agent, that because my dad is Canadian (even though he is a naturalized U.S. citizen)I could apply for Canadian citizenship and be a dual citizen. We spent five minutes at the border hearing all the reasons why I should become a Canadian citizen..the best reason is if I ever committed a felony and the U.S. decided to deport me...Canada would take me! It was great:)

We had a lovely time meeting with my dad's cousins and seeing Penticton and the surrounding areas. It is a beautiful place and well worth the visit. We wish we had more time to spend...we will go back. The best part of the trip was being with Aaron, the kids, and my parents. We don't get enough alone time with them and it was great having them for two days. We love you Mom & Dad!!

Summerland B.C. just north of Penticton. This area is part of the Okanagan Valley which is central British Columbia and works its way to North Central Washington State. It is full of orchards and vineyards. Very beautiful.



We took a ride on the Kettle Valley Railroad which was part of the Canadian Pacific Railway. The kids had never been on a train and had a wonderful time.




Here are Gabriela, Daniel, and Madeline with Grandpa Borders at Wiltse Elemetary School. My grandmother was a Wiltse and her father owned over 600 acres of orchards. When he passed, the children developed the land. Wiltse Elementary School is located on Wiltse Blvd. with a crossroad at Wiltse Place. Pretty cool. We also visited the graves of my Great Grandfather & Grandmother Wiltse,and Great-great Grandfather & Grandmother Wiltse.

Madeline, Gabriela, and Daniel with Grandma Borders

This is overlooking the city of Penticton. It sits between Lake Skaha on the left and Lake Okanagan on the right. Lake Okanagan is 69 miles long and is said to be home to its own sea monster - a giant serpent like creature named Ogopogo. Unfortunately we didn't see it!!


The rest of the weekend we spent at the cabin in Kettle Falls. All the Washington families came up, as well as some friends of Andrew & Christy and we had a delightful time playing at the lake and enjoying each others company.






Last but not least.....


Everett lost a tooth earlier in the month and his face is the result of a mosquito bite he obtained at our ward Father & Son's campout. I should have taken more pictures because it eventually moved across his entire face and didn't clear up for a few days. Aaron was afraid his face would never be the same...but he is back to normal.


Parting thoughts...
I hope you enjoyed the last few months. We did. I hope to do better, but can't say I will. School gets out this week and we have a full summer of Aaron traveling, Kim going to Girls Camp, kids in swimming lessons, family trip to Utah, more traveling for Aaron, home for a week, Kettle Falls cabin with friends, Everett & Daniel's birthday, home for a couple of weeks, more swimming lessons, another reunion, anniversary...then with a week to spare in between...the kids will go back to school!

Life is very busy, but well worth it. I have a wonderful husband who I love dearly and works hard for our family. I have fantastic kids who at times drive me crazy, but I wouldn't trade them for anything. I have outstanding parent's and siblings, on both sides of the family, who love and support our family and make me happy. I have a testimony of the gospel of Jesus Christ and know that it is because of him I can have this family that I love...forever. Good night :)