twentyeight

HAPPY BIRTHDAY JON

Johnny Be Goode - Chuck Berry and Bruce Springsteen

Just when did my little Jonny get to be 28 years old and a man?

This is how I will always picture him in my heart.  He has always been a hard working, happy guy!

Making Stone Soup with Andy.  Andy gave the directions and did the stirring while Jon collected all of the stones and grass or whatever his brother told him to do.

He was very independent and would balance out joy & reward with punishment when he was told not to do something.

One day I found him starting to cross the street without adult supervision.

"Jon, if you cross the street without asking, you will have a time out"
After considerable consideration and weighing the two very carefully....
"OK mom, I'll cross the street and take my time out!"
And then he went skipping out the front door!

But kids do grow up and Jon has grown into a caring, loyal, interesting man. (but he will always be my baby!)

 Can you just see the sweetness pouring out of this little boy

Jon and his cousin's Sean & Paul and brother Andy getting ready for a Super Bowl game

 

 

Jon in Santa Cruz

Jon in Disneyland pouring so much cheese onto his spaghetti that he clogged the cheese dispenser.  I'm not sure if I know who that guy next to him is with the HUGE glasses on???Mmmmm......

 This was his neighborhood bud through grade school - Marco.

Jon has always loved animals and still does....ask me to tell you about Joe Montana sometime!

Jon with his cousin Sean & brother Andy on Halloween

For awhile in high school Jon played drums in a band called "Losing Autumn".  Guess who's house they practiced at????  The orange hair thing was only for a weekend while they competed in Battle of the Bands.

Jon helping Jim build the pergola in the backyard.

Jon graduating from Cal Poly in San Luis Obispo

 

Jon fly fishing in Hope Valley near Lake Tahoe

Jon after Andy dressed him up early one morning to meet Brent Jones at preschool.

Brent was sweet enough to autograph Jon's football card.

Jon with his friend Megan at Christmas.

Thank you Jon for being a big part of our lives and reminding us to play more and laugh often!!

"A son holds his mothers hand for a little while......her heart forever." - Author Unknown

Important Milestones

Song - Dances with Wolves by John Barry


Seldom in life do things go as planned but I just returned home from a wonderful birthday trip for both me and my son, Andy who also had a milestone birthday this month.  Oh yeah, and just for fun we brought along Mr. B and Andy's girlfriend (so darling and funny) Ashley!

Now, Ashley and I are not happy fliers but we enjoy where those crazy airplanes can take us....

...especially after we have our Breakfast of Champions!  A double Bloody Mary for Ashley and a double Gin & Tonic for me.  It gets us right on that tarmac!

We arrived at Salt Lake City and then took a little puddle jumper to Idaho Falls.  Jumping in our rental car we take off for Victor, Idaho.  On the way there the guys spot a Mama Moose with her Baby as well as a Bald Eagle.  Two points for the guys and zero for the girls.  Don't worry we do catch up!

 After a day of touring and relaxing at Teaton Springs, we have a reservation for a fly fishing float trip down the Snake River.  The guides split us up with Mr. B and Andy in one boat, while Ashley and I head down the river in another boat with a different guide.  Ashley is a first time fisherwoman and I am just taking photo's and painting on the front end of the boat.  As Ashley is being taught how to cast, she actually catches a fish.  Go Ashley!

Ashley must of caught 20 plus fish on her first day of fishing.  She actually could of caught 30-40 fish but she got so excited that she forgot to set her hook.  It was all catch and release so it was all good fun.....well, maybe not so for the fish.

Our three person fishing boat.

Tanner, our guide and Ashley

Ashley's first Cutthroat Trout

The next day we head on to Jackson Hole, Wyoming for two days.  Unfortunately Andy and I got food poisoning and are in bed for two days.  But Mr. B and Ashely enjoy the town.

No one we know but a great shot of the Antler Arch in the town square.

On Tuesday we head off to the Teaton National Park and Yellowstone National Park. 

That would be a Glacier in the middle of the shot.

 

 

We headed North to Old Faithful ( see photo above) and the Old Faithful Inn (below).

What an amazing place, you kinda feel like you are on another planet with the ground bubbling and changing colors beneath you.

While heading North towards Livingston, Montana we encountered a tremendous amount of beauty.

We even picnicked near some.....

"Hey, what's in that picnic basket BooBoo?" - Yogi Bear

As we found our way up to our next destination, Chico Hot Springs, Montana and we realized that we had crossed the Continental Divide three times.  That's were the water decides if it will flow East or West.

As we headed into our last days in Chico Hot Springs, Pray, Montana, I meditated on the joy of this trip.  

The four of us in a car for 8 days and not sure if we would still be speaking near the end, but instead we got to know one another just a little bit better and found we can have fun together! 

A lot of beauty, laughter, great meals, lightening storms, heat waves and celebration.  

Being together.

Thank you Mr. B and Ashley for a wonderful birthday celebration!

"There is certainly something in fishing that tends to produce a gentleness of spirit, a pure serenity of mind."

Washington Irvin