Road Trip Back to Seattle......

A week after we got back from Megan's wedding we found out that her dad had passed away.  Steve really wanted to go back to Seattle to pay his repsects to Bill and his family.  Steve's youngest brother, Mike,  decided to come travel with us for the trip back up.  He brought his wife Suzy and his sweet daughter Addison. 

Addison quickly became my TRAVELING BUDDY! She was so well behaved!!!

She entertained us with her songs and her cute personality

She gives the BEST hugs!

We all gathered at Jeff's house (Steve's brother) the day before the funeral.  They have a beautiful home in Snoqualmie Washington.  They were perfect hosts and made us all feel very welcome.

I know this picture is very blury but I wanted to show their awesome deck area in their backyard.  You feel like you are up in a mountain retreat at their home. VERY PEACEFUL!   It was so nice seeing Steve's family again.

The boys in the kitchen.  These Howell boys sure know how to cook up a great meal! 

It was so relaxing to sit around and just visit together as a family

Kendall is a crack up.  He always makes me laugh
"I've got my EYE on you!"

Jan Kendra and Kendall flew in from Texas.  They just moved from Utah and we miss them so much.

This was the first time I saw Kendall without a hat.  I was actually stunned that he had so much hair.  For some reason I pictured him balding or something.  He has such thick, thick hair I doubt he will EVER loose it.  Holy cow it was strange to see him without a hat.  Looks good though  :)

Playing fairy princesses on the computer with my buddy...... 

Steve wanted to play with the fairies too!

Nova being cute with her big Baby Blues....

The Howell family NEVER gets together without a game or two of Screwball Rummey or Down the River.

This is Mike's FAVORITE pose.  Everytime the camera comes out....His hand goes up!!!

The only way to get a picture of him is if his wife holds him down and pleads for him to smile :)

Well the visit with the family was once again extremelly enjoyable.  The funeral was a beautiful tribute to a great man.

  I did not have a chance to get to know Bill Kenealey to well, but from the beautiful tallks at his funeral I learned a lot about what kind of a father, husband and grandpa he was

.  He will be sorely missed by his family and friends.

He helped raise an amazing ETERNAL family who all look up to him as a wonderful role model in their lives.  Our prayers go out to Val and the kids during this healing period in their life. We love you all!

I was NOT looking forward to heading back home.  The fourteen to sixteen hour drive was almost unbearable to think about.

Steve was pretty STOKED when he first  found out that the rental car company was giving us a cadilac to drive to Washington.  WELL.....I had ordered a FULL SIZED car so that we  would make sure that EVERYONE fit in comfortably.  When he drove up in the driveway (back in Utah before we left for the trip) and I saw this car,  I was a bit FREAKED OUT!!!! (to say the least)  Howie assured me that it was all they had left and we were basically stuck with it. 

It was an EXTREMELY snug fit!  Especially in the back seat.  VERY, VERY uncomfortable.

We had to make a lot of PIT STOPS to get out and stretch a bit

This is Addison's version of stretching.  She is quite the little copy cat

Here she is copying her mommy's actions as Suzy watches the boys stretch

It was nice to get out of that stinkin' car once in a while and stretch out our cramped legs

                                  Hey.....GET A ROOM!    :)

Relaxing in the shade

Oh man....when it was time to get back in the car it would almost make me sick thinking about it.  SERIOUSLY this is how much room we had.

I think we need to get a refund on our rental car. WHAT A RIP OFF!!!!  Not even room to get my HUGE size 9 feet  inside.

I really wanted to take this picture back into the rental car agency and have them explain to me how THIS CAR fits in the "FULL SIZE" category!  I DON'T THINK SO!!!! I couldn't even put my feet down straight.  If I had traveled a few weeks later (after my foot surgery) My big surgical boot would not have even begun to fit back there.  CRAZY!  

FULL SIZE.....NOT!

Anyway...It was nice when we finally made it home.  I felt bad for Suzy and Mike because they still had a two hour drive from our house to theirs in Manti.  YUCK!  Next time it will by by PLANE!!!!

I really enjoyed the company of Mike, Suzy, and Addison. Thanks for coming along.  Love you guys! 

Bowling for Dollars....

Since we were in town for Megan's wedding we couldn't pass up on the chance to hook up with the kids while we were there.  We met them at the bowling alley to have an afternoon of fun.  We wanted to do something different than just the normal dinner and movie night which we generally do when we visit Seattle.

 I don't think the kids were too thrilled when we told them that we wanted to go bowling with them.  They didn't seem like it was an activity that would thrill them much.  BUT....when the moola came out....So did their smiles.  Money...Money...Money!  Maybe this day won't be as LAME as they probably thought it would be!

The rules of the game were that if someone bowled a strike they would receive $5.  For a spare $3 and if you bowled a strike on your "Lucky number" frame (which was drawn before the game) you would receive $25. 

Heather and Spencer all geared up and ready to go....

They have their game faces on! 

Hayley had perfect form  :)

She was funny to watch because it was obvious she had never bowled before.  She kept us laughing all day!

Kylan was soooo focussed on the pins.  I loved to see his HUGE smile as he turned around after bowling a strike or a spare!  He would march over to me (the bank) and look at me like,  "allrighty now...hand over the money!!!" 

Hayley posing with her dad....

Get a STRIKE Howie!  We need to earn some of this money too  :)

Heather with her loot!

Heather REALLY banked today.  She bowled a strike in two separate games on her "lucky frame"  Not to mention the many, many strikes and spares as well.  She is quite the bowler!

We had a great time laughing and spending time together.  Everyone earned some well deserved cash.  We even awarded the booby prize to Hayley and gave her an extra  load of money to even things up a bit.  She was a great sport.  FUN MEMORIES!

 After the bowling we went to dinner and a movie...the ole standby.  There is a buffet dinner place that the kids always want to go to.  It has a lot of gooooood food.  I can't remember which movie we went to that night but I do remember enjoying their company. 

 So glad that we were able to spend some time with each of them this weekend. It was GREAT to see them again!

Heather invited us to stay with her while we were in town.  She has a nice cozy place and made us feel so welocmed.  She even gave up her bed and slept on the couch!  So kind and thoughtful.  Thanks again Heather!  You are so sweet!!!   Love ya!



Megan and Benjamin's Wedding.....

Steve and I received an invitation to Megan's wedding and decided to make the trip up to Washington to attend.  I am so glad that we were able to share in their special day.  I had a chance to meet many of Howie's relatives which I had never met before.  It was nice to be there and to be able to attend the temple ceremony that day. 

What a special experience being able to watch two people who love each other so much, seal their love for ETERNITY!  I loved watching the tears of happiness stream down Benjamin's face.  I could sure feel of the love he has for her.  There was a special feeling in that room that day.  It was so nice to see that Bill was able to make it and see his daughter get married.  He was extremely sick but through a lot of faith and prayers he was able to hang in there that day.

Megan and her new husband fresh from the sealing room in the temple!

I love when a newly married couple walks out from the temple after being married. They always seem to be GLOWING with happiness. It always makes me a little choked up. No matter how many weddings I go to it is still one of my most favorite parts of the day. Besides the ceremony of course!

I loved her dress. 

 As Karah would say..."She looks like a PRINCESS!"

The kids were fabulous! So well behaved. 

 They were so adorable all dressed in their wedding attire. 

 snack time.....

 Jason was one POPULAR GUY when the snacks came out! YUMMY!

I love how the kids gathered around the foot of Bill and looked up at with with admiration.  They love their Grandpa!!!

So happy that Bill was able to make it to the wedding of his darling daughter. What a Tender Mercy from the Lord.

My handsome man with his mom

The Kenealey Family

Bill and Val....Eternal companions

Rainy day in Washington but the colors were gorgeous. I wanted to walk the temple grounds but the rain wouldn't let up.  That is what you get when you get married in Seattle area....RAIN, RAIN, and MORE RAIN!

Bill and the BOYS..... Tyler, Zach,Jason, Grady,

Madison with the flowers. She lugged them around all day. Later at the reception she was kind enough to give me a STEM of one of the flowers. She was so proud to give it to me. She said "smell it, it's beautiful!" Never smelt a stem before! She is such a doll!

 I think this picture is so precious as Little Madison looks at her grandpa with love and concern. So tender! She had her hand resting on his just before I snapped this one. As he sat there with his eyes closed she was tenderly patting his hand as if to say..."It's okay Grandpa" "I love you!"

Taking a rest.... He looked exhaused!

Happy couple with their parents

 

Cheesin it for the camera!

The kids were tired of taking pictures so they were hiding behind these pillars. Aha...I got ya!!!

Megan with her mom Val. What a day to remember. Megan was just glowing all day long

Megan with her mom and sis.... 

Val and her beautiful granddaughters.....

Gorgeous Girls.....

I am glad that Steve and I were able to come to Washington to Megan's wedding.   Her family is so close knit an I could really feel the love they share with one another.  Val is a cute grandma and I can tell the grandkids all ADORE her!