Our Crazy Summer!

 Let's see, where did I leave off?  The summer of crazy continued on with boating

Flying

Flipping

Synchronized diving

Sunsets

Boat driving

Boogie Boarding

Stalking cute strangers for a random toddler photo op

Sunning

And trying like crazy to get ONE good shot of the kids

Clowns!  The toddlers were easier.

That closes out the company/entertainment portion of our summer.  We have a few days until David returns and a week until school starts.  I personally need a summer to recover from my summer but no-one can say we didn't do anything fun!

As for the Captain...RIMPAC wouldn't be complete without a good photo op.  500 yards between the ships - amazing!  I know they break out into a cold sweat when there is another ship within a mile!  I'll be interested to ask how long they held this formation.  

Beautiful.  Lake Erie is in the second row from the left, in the second spot from the top.  How do I know this?  Well, not to brag, but I have an amazingly trained eye for detail and an extensive knowledge of Naval ships.  

And...I might have seen the practice photo :)

Memories and my Memory!

There's just something about being 40 (ish).  I can't remember why I walked into the pantry, but I can remember every word to every song from the 1970's!  Fun, but not as useful as remembering why I'm in the pantry.  

Given the memory issue, I'll do my best to catch you up on the last few weeks!  I think it was something like company, RIMPAC, company with a sprinkling of standing in the pantry with a confused look on my face...  

A year ago our sweet little Audrey moved to Bahrain.  This was a photo of her and Emily when they "graduated" from pre-school in 2010.  

Here they are now!!  Turns out if you move to Bahrain the best place to meet your family for a vacation is Hawaii.  Lucky for us they squeezed in a day for us to catch up.  As you can see, no trouble re-connecting.  Cute.as.ever.

After the Audrey sighting there was a little more RIMPAC.  No shoe photos this time (because I can't remember which ones I wore!)  Truth be told we skipped a few and had little energy for the ones we did attend.  Turns out, Lindsay Lohan has nothing to worry about.  I apparently won't be stealing her "party all night every night" crown any time soon. Thanks for your votes though.  

Daddy left the moment the last reception ended and after a speed of light house cleaning, our pals from Japan landed for a visit.  Here is a shot of the kids back in 06 (awwww)

And now.  David wasn't home to see them but we did get a Lake Erie drive by - the boys like this shot since he's technically in it!

Emily and her buddy back in the day.  Other than the teeth he hasn't changed that much!  Can't say the same for her.  Man this seems like yesterday.

This band of hooligans has been having a good time for many years!

As you can see, we have been busy beaching, hiking, eating and playing!

When did I blink?

 As for the man and his mighty warship, more of the same...

I think he will miss this one day!!  

Just like the kiddos, I have also managed to get a year older.  Thanks for the birthday wishes, messages and gifts.  It was a good day.  Our friends have gone to a hotel for a few days and then return to us for another few.  I'm off to fit in the usual in their absence...laundry, cleaning and groceries.

I'm pretty sure my husband returns at some point and then the girls start school.  Life moves fast but at least it's fun!

RIMPAC Fun

RIMPAC is in full swing this week, we are loaded up with ships from everywhere and they are lined up 2 deep at every pier!  It's a sight to see but very hard to photograph.  To get a good perspective you would need to be in a helicopter and there is only so far I'll go for a good shot!

 Best I could do was to climb up on the bow of Lake Erie last night to try and capture a few shots since they were all dressed up for the 4th of July. Shooting directly into the sun wasn't the best plan but it's hard to move a warship around the harbor for a photo op.

The other night David and I were at a reception onboard a ship from Singapore, watching the other ships prepare their "up and overs" (flags) for the 4th.  I asked if they spelled out anything.  No, he said, they are specifically designed not to have a message. Next question was who decides the order (because naturally I can see people getting cute with this...Brenda will you marry me, Brian is a fool...) to which he replied - "there is a specific prescribed pattern of randomness."  

Naturally. Navy men make me laugh.

These are both Japanese ships participating in the exercise.  One of the Captains brought his wife and two daughters on the trip and when we mentioned that Olivia had been studying Japanese for a few years he invited her to the reception!  

  

She was nervous at first about having to put her skills to the test but after a short time, these two 13 yr olds were having a blast.  Turns out they like a lot of the same music and other technology stuff that I don't get!

It was a great experience for her and my hope is that these three will stay connected!

As for the receptions, so far David has been to 6 and I have been to 4.  It's not a great picture taking opportunity...rushing to get dressed, kids fed, uniforms changed and out the door.  No photos of us all dressed up but I can show you the shoe portion of my wardrobe changes :)

 Basic black, slight wedge, classic and comfortable.

BAM!  This was my one moment of crazy, but how cute are these?  Just so happens they matched my dress so perfectly I took the bullet and wore these babies...on a ship. Usually I am the one making fun of those fools.  Yes, I walked to the car barefoot.  

Back to practical wedges

Notice they are getting lower and lower each night!  

I took the night off to spend the 4th with the kids.  David met us at dark and we ended up finding our neighborhood pals just in time for a great fireworks show.

All we need is an apple pie in this shot ;)

5 more receptions to go...I'm running out of shoes!