Mid July

Hey Lois here is that "spurge" I told you about. It is a euphorbia. What do you call it?

It got very big and billowy (white flowers on far right behind the nicotine plant)...

John did great this year in swim. He isn't scared at all. I really have to fatten him up tho,

he is such a stick and always freezing. Here he is waiting for the teacher to let him go...

Can we come with?

This is Thomas jamming to Raspberry Festival jazz - he's very uninhibited!

I have no idea what game the girls were playing, but it was very competitive!

Here Uncle "Ulvern" is making sure he remains in the boys' hearts forever -

these matchbox cars are now "Ulvern trucks" etc.

Finally Uncle Alvern and Aunt Fran came, yay! Aunt Fran had her De Young family reunion here in Lynden and apparently half of Holland came - they made the Tribune :)! They stayed with us on and off for about a week and we really enjoyed visiting with them / had Cal and Melinda over etc. Kara and four other girls from CA / the Netherlands hit us that week on a road trip also. They played with the boys in the backyard the first night they got here, and Thomas was so in love with the Feenstra girl he was mad when they she went away on Sunday and did not stay here to play with him :)! We also got to see Daniel and his buddy Jonathan (and their tiny friend) who came up for the Young Adults retreat. We were so inspired by Uncle Alvern's hiking stories we went and hiked the Grand Canyon ourselves in Sept...but not down and up in one day :)! More on that later, you know, when I get to it chronologically :) Hee hee!