California Part 1

Okay, so it's been quite a while since I blogged and will just have to pass on blogging about end of spring happenings.  I'll just give a quick summary:

Darya finished her first year of pre-k.  It went really well!  She really likes school and I honestly am surprised at how much she has learned and grown this year.  She is learning more and more words (though usually still signs and fusses to communicate), but there are a few verbal words she uses frequently, "no"being the most common of them. That's our girl! Ha!  She also turned 4 years old on June 9. She is growing up so fast!

The boys finished another year homeschooling and were eager to take a summer break.  They had their very first piano recital and got to show off perform for some church friends.  Our oldest son, who is going into 6th grade, got to go to his very first youth camp.  It was bittersweet for me!  To say he had fun would be an understatement.

Moving on.  We went to California for a few weeks to visit family and friends.  I'll start with the first part of my trip and I have good intentions to blog about the others.  Darya and I flew out a week before Joel and the boys so we could go to northern CA to visit my family.  We stayed with "Aunt Joannie" (my twin sister) and her sweet son, Joey.  We mostly bummed around her house or my mom's, but we also went to Columbia one day which is an old mining town. Here are a few pics from my week there:

I forgot to mention how incredibly well this girl travelled!  We had three flights with a couple of long layovers, and she was GREAT the entire time! 

Darya and cousin Joey walking to Grandma's house

Sitting on the steps of the old schoolhouse in Columbia

Yeah, we were supposed to share that cone

 Panning for gold

My Aunt Les (mom's best friend) and her beautiful daughter, Claire (she was the flower girl in our wedding and an inspiration for adoption)

Cousin Simon

Grandpa Chucky (my dad) 

4th of July with Uncle Steve (my brother) and Grandma Charlene (my mom)....they'd probably hate that I posted this pic of them, but alas I don't think they even read this blog since they're both computer illiterate :-)

That's it for now!  Stay tuned for more pics from our trip!