Shannon Went Home

It is so sad in the house because Shannon left yesterday to go back home. She came back with us from California on our vacation a couple of weeks ago. She was such a big help and the kids just loved her. Every morning they would wake up and give her lots of hugs and kisses. They would even sing the Good Morning song to her on occasion. It was really nice having some other type of estrogen in the house. She motivated me into running again and started the Twilight series together.

The hardest part was seeing her go. I don't know if it was all the fun I had shopping with a girl and trying to pick things out that were of fashion...I was really lost. Or was the dressing up and taking pictures. Or just having a girl to chat with or having someone who didn't mind sometimes me having her pose for pictures since she is just so beautiful. Either way I guess we had a lot of fun and I will miss that very much. Hopefully she won't stay a stranger for too long and will come visit us again. She is soon to be 18 and will be graduating high school as well, she is a senior this year. I just wanted you to know that I miss you very much girlie and can't wait to see you again. You keep up the good work and stay out of trouble. I love you very much!!

Yahhhh WE ARE HOME!!!!

I am so excited to be home and back to normal....well it will take a few days but it is so nice to be here right now.

First of all we woke up really early yesterday morning to Pismo Beach and found lots of shells and Sand Dollars. The kids were thrilled and had a blast in the ocean. Benjamin actually was running through the waves and splashing. We also saw seals out in the water playing by the surfers. We then left the horrible hotel and was on our way to Oxnard to meet up with Brenda and her beautiful daughter Kristen. It was so nice to see Brenda and reminisce about the good ole days in the military. I was so excited to meet her little girl and see how smart and pretty she is. It was a short reunion but we had to be on our way for another trip to San Clemente. We ran into a lot of bad traffic along the 405 but we got there just in time to shower and head to Nick and Kelsey's reception. It took us a while to get there since we were lost but it was worth it. They both looked so happy and had the honeymoon look in their eyes. It was held at Kelsey's parent's house and it was beautiful. They had a pasta bar and chocolate fountain. I have to get one of those for my kitchen. I also enjoyed seeing her beautiful cake. I am so very happy for them and was thrilled to see Bill's uncle and aunt and the rest of the family. They are all so wonderful and we don't get to see them too often so it was nice. This morning we were off one more time home. We didn't hit any traffic that really stopped us so we made good time. We only really had one major meltdown with Matthew so we were lucky.

Now that we are home and sitting down a little, we are all about to pass out. It has been a rough couple of weeks but it was all worth it. I miss my family and friends already, I am happy to have Shannon here with us though. She is kind of my piece of Sonora here...I am going to be heart broken when she leaves. Love you all and hope you enjoyed our journey on our vacation with us. Here are some pictures of us all these last couple of days.