Katie's Dance Practice

A 20 sec. clip of Katie practicing her Oompah-Loompah dance. If you can't tell, she's on the right in the center with the offwhite tanktop and black pants....the one who's actually dancing in time.

DC Day 7

The US Capitol, Guard at the Tomb of the Unknown Solider, tombstones at Arlington National Cemetary.

DC Day 6

The Washington Monument about 8am, the Jefferson Memorial (and Reagan National Airport), the Lincoln Memorial, and Rodin's "The Thinker" with some motion added.

DC Day 5

Washington Monument with a serious storm passing over, the ultimate lightning rod. Three views of the new World War II Memorial, and one of my favorite photos, a WWII vet taking a moment to think. Read the inscriptions around him as though they are talking about him. Sort of looks like my grandfather William L. Westvang, who can be found in the database at the WWII Memorial.

DC Day 4

The first two are in one of my favorite museums, the National Air and Space Museum. Next three are the south steps of the National Gallery of Art, then a butterfly garden next to the Natural History Museum, and finally the Smithsonian Castle.

DC Day 3

More pics....Washington National Cathedral, Korean Veterans Memorial, two of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Lincoln Memorial, Jefferson Memorial, South Lawn of the White House.

DC Day Two

Those first two pics (below, on a previous post) were from the first day (night) we stayed in Washington DC back in Sept/Oct. These are from day two, including a photo from the National Archives.....notes taken by the first Pres. George Bush on Air Force Two when Pres. Reagan was shot. Dad was flying the plane that day (only reason I included this little piece of history). Also, me on the National Mall (Washington Monument in backgrd.), the "Castle" of the Smithsonian, and a T-Rex skeleton in the Natural History Museum.

Redding

Sorry for the delay in posting. I usually post when I have new photos, which I've had, but just haven't dl'd them from the camera.

We went down to Redding in mid-October and met up with Mom and Dad and Uncle Bill and Cousin Natalie for the interrement of Grandma and Grandpa Westvang in the Millville Cemetary. We also visited Nannie and Grandpa's old home site on Abernathy Lane as well as G&G's house in Shingletown. Although the reason for meeting was a sad one, there were some consolations in that it was good to get everyone together again, the weather was absolutely gorgeous (75 degrees and clear), and it was good closure on the events of the last year or two.

Slacker

OK, I do have updates........promise to get to them very soon.

Washington DC

T and I try to get away once a year sans kiddos. This year we decided on DC. Even though I've lived there twice (7 years total), I still enjoy everything DC has to offer, and Teresa's two visits were only for a couple of hours each, so we thought a full week with no schedules would be nice. We took a stroll (my pace isn't really a stroll, and I think I wore her out walking), didn't rent a car, and saw almost all of the major sites and museums. I'll try to get more pics up over the next few days.

Oktoberfest

Sort of. It was fun, but not even close to the real thing. Went over to the Cascades to a town called Mt. Angel. They have an Oktoberfest every September (still don't why it's not Septemberfest) with lots of American stuff and a few sausage stands. A nice day trip for the family, though. We stayed at a KOA not far from there in one of their Kabins, kind of like last year when we went to Redding, only this was a "deluxe" cabin, which means it has a small kitchen, a small bathroom, and a loft for the kids. We really know how to rough it.

First Day of Kindergarten!

The girl is all grown up now. She goes to bed on time and gets up on time so she'll be ready for school! She's got her own backpack, lunch box, and 'tude!

First Lost Tooth!

Miss Kalia was so proud to lose her first tooth. She needed a little help from Mom, but was glad to get a few quarters from the tooth fairy.

Sorry we haven't posted in a while. Not much to report but a bunch of busy-ness around the house. We did make a quick trip to Utah to visit friends and family. School starts soon and a few trips planned........stay tuned........

Family Gathering

Some photos from the family gathering over the 4th of July weekend. We gathered for GG Westvang's memorial, but had a great time being all together again and telling stories and swimming.