What a Weekend!

We took advantage of the long weekend and headed out to Forks Friday night. But before I could leave town, I just had to stop and meet our newest little nephew, Michael. I thought I might be getting sick, so I didn't get too close or stay too long (hence the not-so-fabulous pictures). He is so tiny and sooo cute and I just can't wait to get my hands on him!
Then it was off to the ferry on our way to Shane's mom and Dad's. We met Shane there and Eli had dinner and a stretch before getting back on the road. We spent Friday and Saturday night with Jeff and Rebekah. Eli had loads of fun playing with Chloe and ALL of her toys (He must feel deprived in the toy department after seeing such a well-stocked house! Chloe generously shared all of her cool stuff). Saturday we slept in and hung around their house. It was an absolutely beautiful day and the kiddos (big and small) had fun playing outside....

and inside....

We had an awesome time at the beach...the sunshine made up for the chilly temperature! (Yes this is the very beach out of "Twilight". It was hard to miss that fact, what with all the teenage girls in Twilight shirts and "Isabella was here's" etched in the sand. (Don't get me wrong, I really like the first two books in the series (haven't finished yet) but I don't think I'd ever like them that much! I guess that Forks normally gets around 5,000 visitors a year...last year they topped 20,000. Who would have ever thought podunk little Forks would know such fame?)(Edward Cullen doesn't stand a chance!)Not the best family photo ever!And this is where my camera battery started to go dead! Had I been thinking, I would have snapped a couple of Jeff, Rebekah and Chloe!

Eli and Maddy taking her Harley for a spin!

After the beach we headed in to town (yes, there is an out of town in Forks) to my little sister, Sara's. She and her husband, Luke, are finishing up their new house, so it was fun to get the grand tour, see Maddy, and catch up with them. 'My brother Dan, his wife Brynn and their adorable little Rylee, also stopped by. (Coincidence the they were in Forks the same weekend!)After some quick (but yummy!) pizza, all of the girls and kids went to see the town's annual Missoula Children's theater production. It was hilarious to watch Eli's response...he stood on my lap, totally engrossed, through most of the play. He danced when the kids danced, clapped when the audience clapped, and pulled hair when (oh, wait I guess he was the only one who pulled the poor kid's hair who sat in front of us...other than that it was great!) It was also fun to catch up with old acquaintances that I saw there. Then, on the way back, we stopped in at the flower shop where I used to work. I worked there for 5 years through out high school+ and really enjoyed catching up with my boss, Charlene.

It is absolutely insane how big this whole Twilight thing has hit Forks. I would say a third of her shop is now dedicated to Twilight memorabilia. Just that day, she had 80 guests sign her Twilight guest book...crazy! If you're in need of Twilight memorabilia (wink, wink) definitely visit her! http://www.leppells.com/.

After the Forks trip, it was off to see Grandma and Grandpa Moo (at least that's what Chloe calls G&G K...she has a set of grandparents who raise horses and a set who raise cows...guess who raises the cows?) And finally, back home to an empty portfolio for Professional Certification...ahh, the fine art of procrastination...the more I do it, the better I get!