Fun with the Grandkids!

Julie was doing a wedding so we took Crew,Cole,Cash and Gracie for the day a boy we had some fun! I wanted to take Gracie to Build-A-Bear because we hadn't taken her yet. She chose a pink bear and of course we dressed her like a Princess! Gracie picked her bear and her outfit,I don't even know where she found the pink heels but she brought them to me!

 Gracie is very hands on. She wanted to keep stuffing her bear while the lady was trying to stuff Cash's bear.

 Cash knew just what he wanted also. He immediately picked a camo bear and an awesome army outfit. He told me he didn't want to kiss the heart or wish on the heart but when the lady asked him too he quickly did it.

 Crew chose a Giants baseball hat. The sales clerk asked him if he wanted New York Giants or San Francisco Giants.  He looked appalled and said "San Francisco Giants"!

 Cole very quickly chose a football. He and Papa had some fun tossing it around outside the store on the way to Johnny Rockets for lunch.

 We had a family dinner the next day which was Sunday and Gracie was eagerly sharing her fudge pop with Montana and Montana was loving it!

 Nixin's first day of Preschool. Love the wave! She is adorable!

 G-Mama and Harlee Mae Colburn

 Montana spent two nights with us when Harlee was born. It was the first time we had her overnight. In fact it was the first time she had been away from mom and dad overnight! I don't think Jenna love that! We went to build a bear and she chose the horse but I chose the cheerleader outfit since Jenna coaches cheer for Mountain View High School.

 Montana loved the Spider-Man towel after her bath.

 After Montana went home Miller came to spend the night for the first time! He also loved the Spider-Man towel. The only one who doesn't is Nixin. She told me last night when she was spending the night that I needed to get a Princess towel and she is right!

 We went for a golf cart ride. Miller is trying to smile but the sun was very bright.

 Miller made this bouncy ball and he was very proud.

 G-Mama made insect pancakes which Miller loved.

 I don't know how many Hungry Hippo games we played with Miller but it was a lot. We bought him a game on the way home.

 I took Nixin to see her new baby cousin,Harlee. She likes her but was having more fun playing with Montana.

 Harlee is only 6 days old in this photo. She was wide awake and very alert.

 Daddy came home and Jenna's mom has taught Montana to show her teeth when she smiles. Precious picture.

 When Nixin stayed over she wanted to ride my "Girl" horse,Psynna. None of the grandchildren had ridden her yet because she is not as reliable with the little ones as Santannah is. I decided to let it. Psynna and Nixin did very well until Teri let two of her horses into her arena and they started running around. This perked Psynna up and she started to trot in a circle pretty fast. Nixin held on like a trooper but it scared her enough that she was done for the day. She had a nice long ride. I was concerned she wouldn't want to ride again but she was ready to do it again later that day but it was way too hot.

No grandkids here but as we were leaving the house to take Nixin to lunch this beautiful Hawk was sitting in this saguaro next to our house and I had to take a picture. I love the Hawks we get to see in our area!

Harlee Mae Colburn

FIRST THERE WERE TWO!

THEN THERE WAS THREE!

NOW THERE IS FOUR!

HARLEE MAE COLBURN
BORN: 8-14-2012
6LBS 13OZ
19 INCHES

My beautiful new granddaughter arrived! The proud parents are my youngest son Trey and his wife Jenna. Harlee joined big sister Montana who loves her baby sister! I am thankful that everyone is doing well. We have all been blessed. I have to say that Jenna is a trooper! I will let Jenna tell her story but lets just say if Trey hadn't come home after she asked him not to leave work and I hadn't got there when I did (at the end of my hair appointment) Jenna would have had Harlee on the kitchen floor with only Montana who is 17 months old to help!

Harlee is named after her two great-grandmothers. My mom,Trey's grandma, is Ina Mae Wadsworth Wimsatt.Trey's other grandma on Kenneth Howard Colburn,Trey's dad's, side is Donna Mae Miller( Colburn) Stephenson. Now we have Harlee Mae Colburn. I love tradition and that Trey and Jenna used Mae as Harlee's middle name to honor these two very special ladies.

Alaskan Cruise With the Gunnells

Steve's father,J.Darwin Gunnell, passed away a little over two years ago at the age of 94. He was a remarkable man who accomplished many things during his lifetime. I feel one of his greatest accomplishments was his family. With his wife Olive (who I never got to meet,she passed before I met Steve) they had six children. When Darwin's estate was settled there were some excess funds that the family decided should be used for all the siblings and their spouses to go on a vacation together. It was decided that we would go on an Alaskan Cruise through Princess Cruises. On July 11th we set out on our adventure and we had a great time!

My pictures below are a not in order but I want to get this post done and I don't want to start over with my pictures. 

We were cruising through Glacier Bay our first two days at sea where we had a chance to check out a few glaciers. Those two days had our worst weather,a little rainy and foggy. The glaciers where still very visible but not the best for taking pictures. I posted this picture of Laura to show that we had balcony rooms. The only way to go on an Alaskan cruise.

Steve really was having a good time even though it doesn't look like it. He is standing on our balcony.

Me on our balcony with the Marjerie Glacier behind me.

Our first stop was Skagway where we immediately boarded a boat to Haines Alaska for our Eagle Preserve outing.These are the rafts we would spend the next hour and a half riding.

Steve's brother Doug,his wife Ellen and Steve waiting to board.

I love this picture of Steve's brother-in-law Mark walking the plank.

They provided us with the life preservers and the boots.

Our party was split between two boats and this was the guide for the other boat.

Steve's brother Scott and his wife Rachael. Poor Rachael was sick the entire cruise but she was suck a trooper .

The life preservers had names on them. Mine was Eagle Stew?????? Comforting.

This was our very interesting guide. I enjoyed hearing about his experiences in Alaska,his family and the very small town of Haines especially in the winter. Needless to say they wear many hats and have several jobs,winter jobs and summer jobs!  The gentleman in the front of the boat was traveling with his brother. He lived in Florida and his brother in Tucson. Originally from New York. The brother from Tucson has a quarter horse gelding named Scooter that is 32 years old. He has owned him since he was 4. He still gallops him through the washes in Tucson! 

Steve's brother Lamoine and his wife Susan.

We stopped briefly as one raft was ahead of the other and the guides wanted to stay together. there were fresh bear tracks on this beach.

Not a great picture but that is actually a wolf we saw. Our guide said he had only seen one 2 or 3 times the entire summer.

Hard to see it but this is a bald eagle in flight. I took several pictures of bald eagles as we saw so many of them. None of the pictures do justice to these majestic birds. 

In Juneau some of us took a helicopter ride which landed on the Taku glacier! I have to say that this was the highlight of my trip. I had never been in a helicopter before or on a glacier. Steve could not attend as he has a fear of heights! 

Ellen

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Taku glacier with one of our copters. That is not running water, it is the glacier.

Looks as if we are standing on water!

In Ketchikan we went on a rainforest hike. At the end of the hike we got to feed some reindeer.

The bald eagle and the great-horned owl both have injuries and can not be returned to the wild.

This man is an apprentice to his Uncle learning the art of carving Totem poles. This totem will be a bear and it will take 5 months to complete.

After our rainforest hike we were taken by bus to our all you can eat crab feast. A feast it was! I was telling Steve that we will try the rest of our lives to find crab as good as this and be unsuccessful. These were not the King crab legs but the dungeons (sp) crabs. Little Ellen sitting to my right in the picture ate three crabs!

They emptied our bowl of shells three times!

Read this sign in Ketchikan,very interesting. The best pizza in town at the mexican resturaunt!

This was our table for dinner every evening.

On our way to Alaska at the airport.

On our way to Haines we had to pass through this famous 3 mile tunnel. The trains use this tunnel also. It is so narrow the bus has no room on either side.

A few more random helicopter photos.

This actually had a small waterfall on the glacier. 

Walking on water. Yeah right!