Talk about another crazy ride...I experienced my first earthquake today! We were just starting to get our lunch ready when we felt the house shake. Dave and I both thought it was just a big truck on the freeway behind our house. When the shaking kept going and we felt the ground rolling under us, we realized it was an earthquake! Dave was a bit excited but I was a bit scared! I had never felt one before and didn't know if it would keep going, what to do, where to go with the kids...Okay, I was over-reacting a bit because it was over by the time all my thoughts were thought, but I didn't know! The actually shaking only lasted about 45 seconds but it was enough to move our hanging lights and pictures on the wall (nothing fell). We were actually 30 miles away from the epicenter but still felt the strong shakes! Wow, what an exciting, crazy day!
(Really, the hardest part of going thru this earthquake is having to explain to Elijah what happened and how it happened and how everything happens...all day, over and over and over again! *sigh*) :)
We're all okay and Elijah is just plain excited! :)
Eleven years ago, on June 19, 1998, I was in a motorcycle accident.
What started out to be a normal, fun night, celebrating a friend's birthday, ended up very different and scary! While at the birthday party, I met Travis. He had just gotten his crotch-rocket sport bike and I thought it looked cool so I asked him for a ride! We went to cruise around our small town but then headed out of town for a "real" ride. Going out of town, we drove down a dark country two-lane road that curved. Another van was in front of us but Travis sped up and moved into the next lane to pass it. The story goes that Travis didn't know the road curved and when he finally realized it, it was too late. He slammed on his brakes, spinning us around and around on the pavement before throwing me off. I remember watching the sparks fly from the bike as it layed down and slid on the road, as I was rolling over and over on the pavement myself. Finally, when all rolling stopped, Travis and I were both miraculously able to stand up and get a ride back into town from the van in front of us. We both thought we were okay, with only minor scrapes. I had seen that my legs were scraped but thought they would just scab over, as with any bicycle accident. Boy, I was a little off. After getting back to the party, we were brought immediately to the ER, where I was admitted and the pain finally hit!!! I stayed in the hospital for four days, eventually having surgery to scrape/clean out my leg wounds and sew up the hole in my foot from the kick stand's puncture. (Did I mention Iowa does not have a helmet law? So it's even more amazing there were no head injuries!!! )
All that to say, it was a pretty crazy first and only motorcycle ride for me! After the accident, just riding a regular bicycle was hard for me, especially going around corners or curves so there was no way I would get on another bike!!!
A few years ago though, my younger sister, Tricia, bought her own sport bike. (crazy!) She enjoys driving it around with her friends but I had never ridden on it until 2 weeks ago. While back in Iowa, my dad offered to take me for a ride, and I did it! Here are the short videos of the start and end of our ride, just to prove I did it!!! Now eleven years later, I've ridden a bike again! Corners/curves were still a bit scary, especially on a real motorcyle, but I made it! Hooray!
Today, Natalie turned 1 year old. We celebrated by first bringing her to the doctor to get some shots. She loved that :) Then in the afternoon, my parents along with Jenn and the boys came over to help celebrate.
We opened some presents.
Here's a picture of Natalie's ladybug birthday cake that Laura made. (Dave decorated the cupcakes.) Cool! Natalie loved eating her cake.
We also celebrated Natalie's birthday with Laura's side of the family while we were in Shenandoah.
Well, I think I am the last of my family to post some pictures about our trip to Iowa for Jeff and Beth's wedding. So, here is our version.
We flew into Kansas City, where Laura's family picked us up. We stayed the night in Shenandoah and then left for Sioux Center the next day. Tricia had a little surprise waiting for Elijah when he got to their house...a fireman outfit! Super cool! Elijah loved it!
When in Sioux Center we stayed at Dordt in Southview. It was fun being back at college. We went to Beth's house for a little pre-wedding fun.
Here's some pictures of the wedding at Covenant Church. The morning of the wedding, our camera broke. So I stole pictures from my dad and sister, so if these pictures look familiar...that's why.
After the wedding, we relaxed at the All Seasons Center. Oh yeah!
This past week, we took a little vacation to World Impact's beach house to rest, relax,and have some fun as a family. We left Tuesday morning and came back Thursday night. Here are some of the highlights from our time.
We drove up the PCH and when we made it to Oxnard, it was time for lunch so we stopped by a little Mexican place called, "La Salsa Factory." I got a shrimp burrito and Laura had fish tacos. Natalie especially loved the rice!
Late afternoon, Elijah got to play at the beach. He was super excited to play with all the toys in the sand and even brave the cold water!
Then we went to Dairy Queen for some ice cream and had to check out PetSmart to look at the animals.
The next morning, we ate french toast and bacon for breakfast and then drove up to Ventura to shop at the thrift stores. Laura and I found a few clothes, but I think the kids were the real winners. Elijah found a fire engine and a large digger truck and Natalie got a real China tea set for $1.50 (which she will enjoy when she's older).
For dinner we went to Andria's. On the menu: A Maui Maui Burger and Shrimp.
Our last day there, we spent a lot of time at the beach...and then Elijah and I went for a ride on the Kayak. Here are some random pictures.
We also stopped by our favorite fruit stand to pick up some strawberries. Here's a picture of Elijah eating his strawberries. The strawberry on the left is for Jesus.
We will be going on vacation again soon (This time to Iowa for my brother, Jeff's wedding). Stay tuned!
We started our Independence Day Celebration with the 1st Annual hanging of the American Flag! Last summer we bought a flag from one of our neighbor boys who was selling them as a fundraiser. I think it was a total rip off ($10) when we got it, but I don't know how much a flag should cost? Anyone? And it was for a good cause. Anyway we hung it up to show our patriotic spirit! It's kinda big and we really didn't know where to place it...so we hung it on our fence!?
Here's a picture of Natalie with her new pearl necklace. We got it in the mail yesterday from Overstock.com as a free gift for some reason. Doesn't matter. Natalie loves it and wears it all the time.
For dinner, we had the all-American 4th of July meal: Hot dogs, baked beans, potato salad, and strawberry lemonade. It was perfect! I let Elijah put the hot dogs on the grill. Check out the awesome placement!
After dinner, Elijah and I waited for it to get dark and then we headed over to the Coliseum to watch the firework show there. Laura stayed home with Natalie since she was sleeping. It was a special treat for Elijah since the fireworks started at 9pm and he usually goes to bed by 7pm. He was so excited to see them! All day he kept asking, "Fireworks now?" Here are some pictures. The fireworks were a little loud.
Los Angeles is our playground. We love city life and can't imagine ourselves living anywhere else right now! We love the diversity the city offers and the numerous opportunities it provides for teachable moments with our kids. Thanks for stopping to read about our family adventures.
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