Amsterdam Fun! Scenery

During vacations I like to practice with my camera.  It seems it is the only time I have to sit and play with the features.  During the cruise I was able to take it one more level and actually took a class.  It was short, but I did learn some new things to try.  Here are my efforts:

 In portrait mode.

 Sunset fun.

 Up close and personal.

 Zoomed in.

 On the way north from Curacao we were on the sunset side, so evenings were great.

 The England pose.

I still have a lot to learn.  This means I need to go on more vacations!

Amsterdam Fun! Curacao

Curacao is a much larger island than Aruba.  It is greener and more colorful.

 The leader was getting bad headaches from the white building glaring from the ocean, and so he ordered the buildings to have color.  

 We took another tour, but this time the driver was mute.  She didn't speak unless you asked her a question.

 One of the stops was a liquor maker.  So now you know why mom and Dale were hanging out at the bar.

We sat and waited a long time for the pedestrian bridge to open.  We watched ship after ship come through hoping the bridge would move into place.  Finally we gave up and took the ferry, only to watch the bridge move as we floated on the water.

 Another stop was some caves.  Usually inside a cave it is very cool.  This cave was the opposite.  It was hot and muggy.  They did have fans along the way, which felt great.  It was a great stop.

 Dale and I took a walk along the floating bridge, actually we went about a third of the way, took the picture and walked back.

 Our ship from the floating ferry.

 A dangerous shot from our tour on the bridge.  A different angle of our ship.

Curacao was a great stop, but again what do you do for a week here? 

Westerdam More Fun!

These are some pictures from the first formal night.

Dale loved that he went on vacation and had to get dressed up to eat.

Since the deck is not cooperating with my hair we had to take it inside.

 Aruba was the next stop, a small island that has recently embraced tourism.

 We took a ride with a very talkative cabby.  I'm not sure how much of what he said to believe.  Above is their national forest.  It is totally cactus and rocks.  Aruba is all cactus.

 A city shot.

 Big rock and cactus, it is actually a cactus fence.

These two trees show us all which way the wind blows.  Aruba was good for a few hours, but I can't see myself spending any more time.  Send me to Half Moon Cay and the flour sand instead.

Westerdam Fun!

For one week Dale and I enjoyed a week of relaxation with my mom and dad on the Westerdam in the Caribbean.  Our first port of call was a privately owned island by Holland America (cruise line) called Half Moon Cay.  It was amazing.  The sand was like flour.  

 This was an island to retire on!

 Inside the ship was a bar with live music so this part of the beach was great because the sounds of the singers and musicians drifted to the shore.

I'm not sure you can really appreciate the beautiful blue this water was.  Totally relaxing with lots of sun.  Dale enjoyed floating on the water.  The rest of us enjoyed reading on lounge chairs.

Thank You to Gordons

This has taken too long, but I wanted to express my thanks with my efforts.  Kelli and Steve got us a Whoopie Pie recipe book and pan for Christmas.  My efforts are messy and hopefully with practice they will look more uniform, but they still tasted great.  I wasn't aware of all the possibilities there are to make, even some with jalapenos and herbs, of course with a cream cheese filling.  Thanks Kelli and Steve!!!

Little Helpers

It's good to teach them young.  Of course they are the ones making the mess, but they are more than willing to clean it up. 

I just have to lower the standards a little.

The celebratory cheer!

Summary

Dale and I took a weekend and headed to Salt Lake.  We enjoyed hanging out with our kids.  They do know how to have fun.

The purpose of the trip was to visit KC and his girlfriend, Heather.  We had a great time and totally enjoyed having her with us.

She became like a daughter to me, at least in the mind of a very talkative quilt shop owner, but I'll take it.

This past week author, Avi, came to talk to the students in Manson.  I have read Something Upstairs by him every year during our Revolutionary unit.  I have enjoyed every book I have read written by him.

It was exciting to listen to him tell of his life and then answer endless questions from the students. 

This past weekend we went to Spokane for a sibling dinner.  I enjoyed the food and the company.

All of Dale's brothers and sisters were there with all the usual joking and teasing. 

On our way home from Spokane the next night we helped the sorely missed grandkids trunk or treat.  

Rock was totally in character as Buzz Lightyear.  

Ryker let us put the lion suit on.  If you haven't seen how he reacted the first time this suit was put on look at Aaron's blog.  It was a riot.  

This has been our month.  We have enjoyed visiting with lots of family and friends.  Bonnie and I took in a musical in Seattle and also a quilt show in Wenatchee.  Parent conferences are over and now relaxation can seep in.