Lauren's Big Adventure in FamilyLand

"So, do you think I look great in pink, or what? Personally, I think I look simply smashing in just
about anything! But that's enough about me; let's talk about my parents. Aren't they way cute?
See where my cuteness from? But that's enough about us; let's talk about our house. We're
sitting in our living room that overlooks hydrangias, spruce trees, and the blue skies of Everett. But that's enough about the inside of our house. Let's talk about the outside...."

"Here's the Cute Couple in front of the Cute House (I'm not in the photo because I'm taking the picture). See the hydrangias? Don't they make you want to burst into song?---"I looked out my window/ and what did I see?/ Pop corn popping on the/hydrangia bush!" But that's enough about the hydrangias; let's talk about me some more"......

"Do I look happy or what?! I'm way happy because my aunts and uncles and cuzzies and one of my Grandpas are coming to visit me!! Is this way cool or what?! I'd better get dressed up for them...."

"How do you think I look in my Arizona baseball cap? Too much blue? Ok, let's try more pink..."

'How about this number, with the pinky, dangly do-dads ?"

"Or how about this Princess Leah thingy?"

"Oops, I can say no more!"

"Decisions! Decisions! Decisions!....What's a cutie like me to do?!

"Oh, to heck with the fancy stuff! I'm gonna go Western---like in Show Low, Arizona!!----

HOW-dee, pardner! Hear them KY-yotz?..... Hey, is this a Dunkin' Donuts donut or a KrispyKreamer?....Whatever.... Oh!---I hear a car outside---it must be the cuzzies!!"

"It IS the cuzzies!! HOORAY!! HOORAY!! They came all the way from London and Portland just to see ME! Are we all way lucky or what?!! But wait!---there's someone missing. WHERE'S

TESSA?!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

"THERE she is!! My bitty-buddy DID come to see me! HOORAY!! Come on, Tessa, let's have

a picnic in my front yard, ok?".......

"It's the FAM!!!---

on the LAWN----

Oh my gosh!----

ANNIE'S gone!....

(and so is Uncle Brandon and Gabby and Auntie

Joy and Uncle Ty and Rachael and Todd

and Auntie Jeannie and Uncle Brian and

Christina and Nana and Auntie Sandi and

Vanna and Binky and Sparky and Jakey

and Timmy and O-ee and KittyMo and

Bone-sie and Cone-sie and....."

"And here's Cousin Joshie holding moi (that's French for mwaah). Actually, Joshie just wants to

show-off the cool tattoo on the back of his hand. Well, it's not really a tattoo; it's an 'I-already-paid-the-cover-charge-to-get-into-this-nightclub-and-I-can-come-and-go-as-I-please' stamp, not to be confused with a postage stamp which now costs---Hey everybody, let's hit the BEACH!

"Oh, my gosh! Did you hear what Noah said?"----'Aaurrr!! Begone with ya' matey, or I'll make mince meat of ya' with mi trusty cutlass, I will!! Aaurrr!!'

"Oh, my gosh! Is this the way everyone talks in London?!!"

"Oh, thank goodness my other London cuzzies are not pirates or piratesses! (BTW, I use the terms piratess and piratesses for three reasons: (1) I prefer speaking the King's English; (2) Grandpa told me to say piratess because (3) it makes Annie and my aunties so happy when they hear words like piratess, poetess, executrix, aviatrix....)"

"Oh, my gosh!---it's the (Layland) FAM!.....with the briney deep in the background and my most-favorite-Binky in the foreground. Actually, we're busy posing for a totem pole carving, which you will see later in this series of wonderfully-narrated photos. But one thing you won't

see in my photos is my Daddy's big Boeing 787. We got to go see it---for real !---on Boeing Family Day. That was WAY fun!!"

"This is my Uncle Benny saying, 'Smile for the camera, Natalie---or I'll have to squeeze your neck even harder!'(Just kidding!! Uncle Benny is nice.)"

"Hey, this reminds me of a scripture!---FAITH...HOPE...and CHARITY...(though it appears "Charity" may be flagging a bit....)."

"Oh, my gosh!---this reminds me of those three proverbial monkeys!-----

"See no evil" "Hear no evil" "Smell no evil"

But beach time is over now, gang, so----Hey! I got an idea: Let's go to a Rock concert..YEAH!!"

" Oh, boy!----WOW!!---It's either Peter, Paul, & Mary----or ABB!! (i.e. ABBA minus one)"..

"Hey, lookie!!----either Mary and Peter are multi-instrumental....or Paul just refuses to give up the microphone...."

"YOU GO, GIRL!!!"

"Oh, my gosh!!!---It's George Harrison-----BACK FROM THE DEAD !!!!! But Peter, Paul, Mary, ABBA, and George are merely the warm-up acts for YOU-KNOW-WHO!!!!!!!!!------

"MEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!"

"After my concerts, I like to relax backstage with my publicist and my manager (At the moment, my manager is in the other room snoring....)"

"But here's a photo of all four of us together.....(Binky makes four)"

"Well, this is the morning we take Grandpa to the airport, but before we do, we take him to the Seattle marketplace to show him the sights....."

"Our first stop is the pastry shop where I demonstrate for Grandpa how to eat them big, puffy

Russian thingies with potato and cheese in them...pooferooties?...porfavories?...Pavorotties?....

WHATEVER!!"................

"And then it's on to---HEY!---something's kind a' fishy around here!!"..............

" Well, here's the totem pole of our family that I told you about a few frames ago. Each character

on the pole represents a certain vowel or consonant, which taken together, constitute words and phrases that form a message. For example, this pole reads as follows: 'Fourscore and seven years ago, our fathers brought forth upon continent a new nation, conceived in liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.' Pretty neat, huh? But now it's time to send Grandpa on his way, with a BIG smile"..........

"That's all, folks! See ya' ! XOXOXO"

Saturday Morning with Todd & Grandpa 7/11/09

It's 5:30 a.m. Saturday morning in Show Low....time to go fishing at Fool's Hollow Lake!

"I can hardly wait to get there, Grandpa!"

Todd casts his line in the water and waits for the trout to start biting.....

"When will we start catching fish, Grandpa?"

Even if the fish aren't hungry at the moment, Todd is. But he prefers tortilla chips instead of worms and salmon eggs....

Well, if he can't catch a fish on this side of the dock, he'll try the other side......

While he's waiting for the fish to start biting, Todd notices some giant spider webs on the dock....

"Gosh, we've been here a whole hour and no fish yet. I'm getting kind of bored."

"I think I'll dream about catching some fish....maybe pretend I'm fishing in the clouds...."

"Well, buddy" says Grandpa, "it looks like the fish just aren't biting this morning. How about we

pack up and go to the playground and then to McDonald's?"

Todd takes one last look at the lake..........

On the way back up the hill to the playground, he stops to look at rocks and bugs....

and some dandelions......

and fox tails...........

At the playground, Todd works out on the bars.......

then whishes down the slide.........

Before leaving the playground, Todd pauses to look at more rocks and bugs.......

After pancakes and sausage at McDonald's, Todd and Grandpa stop by the Church to work on

tomorrow's Sacrament Meeting program.....

...and make 30 copies of the program..............

With the Church work done, it's time for some outdoor soccer!

...then some indoor soccer in the cultural hall....

....moving the ball down the field....

Then, before it's time to head home, Todd asks to use Grandpa's camera and shoots the final

10 pictures of this blog post.....

"ENLIGHTENMENT"

"Doorways to the Kingdom"

"Hallowed Halls"

"My 4th-great grandparents leave Nauvoo"

"The Lord's Living Prophet"

Grandpa on the phone....

Missionaries in the field.....

a photo of the Transformer on my soccer ball....

"Self-Portrait of the Photographer"

That's all, folks! ....See ya' next time. (The end)