A bittersweet gathering...

This April we lost one of the greatest men to ever touch our hearts, Luke's grandfather, Philip Jackson.  Although no one was happy about the reason for the gathering, everyone is always happy to gather together. It seems as though the toughest times to get through are made possible by being with your family.

Here are Aliza and Kaleb in Grampy's tree. As i'm sure I've mentioned before, this tree is irresistable to children! They MUST climb this tree! I have so many pics of my kids in this tree! I hope there are more to come...

Cousin time! The kids were so glad to have each other to play with! There youth and inocence was a welcome distraction to the grief everyone was experiencing! Here Alexandra and Aliza have some fun coloring and playing together.

Here are Jackson, Aliza and Kaleb durring some much needed play ground time! They love each other so much!

This picture is precious! Jackson adores Kaleb for being the big boy and Kaleb eats it up! They have a definite bond, and it is so sweet!

More cousin love...Luke and Phil jammed a little. They look like traveling minstrels!

Aliza soaked up some Gramma love!

And Kaleb gave Gramma a shoulder to lean on...

Here is a group of "the cousins" - Luke, Chris, Jonathan, Nick, Phil,

Kira, Kristin, and Heather.

Winter 2010

This winter was one for the record books...literally! We had two huge snow storms that left us out of work and school and snow bound for days! NOT normal in Maryland! When we weren't digging ourselves out we did try to get in some quality snow time! Above is Kaleb getting ready to brave the snow hill!

Aliza ready for her turn!

Kaleb and Izaak tandem sledding!

this was a quality wipe out situation! Kaleb was the daredevil of the bunch...surprised? He even rode his sled most of the way down the hill standing on it! It was amazing!!!

Here Ali and Eema make a snow blob...I say blob because despite their good intentions the snow wasn't quite the right consistancy...they had fun anyways!

Thank the Goddess the winter is over! Hopefully next year won't be as severe!

Aliza Jane's 7th Birthday Party!

Happy 7th Birthday Ali! You are growing so fast! This year for Aliza's birthday we had most of her friends join us for pizza and cake, Shrek 3D at the theatre and a camp-out sleep over...in our living room because it was so hot outside! They all had a blast!

All together we had Samantha, Lilly, Da'Nya, Olivia, Melody, Shakira and Ali...what a crazy group of little girls! They all got along without a hitch!

Ali loved her catterpiller cake!

Then we were off to the theatre to see Shrek Forever After in 3D! the girls were very good at the theatre and kept their 3d glasses on to enjoy all the cool parts! Such big girls!

Of course there is always time for a good group jump on the trampoline!

And then the tent went up! It was hot and humid and a chance of severe thunderstorms, so I thought it best to keep them safe inside...it worked out magicaly!

Here are Ali and her friends chilling out for the night. They laid in the tent and watched an all time favorite; Annie!

Everyone made it through the entire night! It was even the first successfull sleepover for two of the girls! Aliza was very worn out the next day but she was extremely happy at how her birthday turned out!

Happy Birthday my Sassy Chick!

Random Nature Photos I LOVE and nEeD to Share!

Starfish at Abolone Cove in Southern California...love the colors!

My brothers neighbors lemon tree! It was dripping with lemons and absolutely stunning in the sunlight!

 

These delicate little flowers were growing on the side of a cliff at Swallow Falls...I love the light shining off the water beneath them!

The Pacific Coastline...majestic! The endless sky and the brush in the forefront contrast well...if only I cold have smell-o-puter so you I could smell that salty air whenever I looked at this!

I'm a sucker for a good flower! i love all the tropical varieties in SoCal!

A muddy trickle.

The symbol of paradise!

A west coast sea anemonie...pretty blue-green! This was actually taken  standing above the water...

I hope you enjoyed! I did!

Swallow Falls Camping 2010

This Memorial Day we camped at Swallow Falls in Oakland, MD, with the Braun family! We had a great time hiking the falls and camping! Above is my most prized photo of all time, possibly! They are all so happy and it was the most beautiful back drop!

Here is another winner in "Jane's photo contest"...while hiking the falls I yelled "Get together!" and they sure did...beautiful!

And yet another winner! Izaak on the north side of Muddy Falls...stunning!

Of course this place is a huge obstical course for my Kaleb, aka: mountain goat! He was climbing every rock and mountain face he could get his paws on! Had some people holding their breath as usual but he made it through unscathed, as usual!

Here's an interesting shot of Ali looking in the little pools where she found some tadpoles! The kids spent hours exploring the falls and the surrounding woods!

And of course Matilda enjoyed he trekking time, and sleeping by the camp fire! She's such a great camp dog...although I think she's part frog with her tongue hanging out like that!

Here are Kaleb and his freind Nick making the camp fire. They worked hard finding fire wood, sawing it to size and putting the fire together. There boy scout training was coming to fruition!

Here are Aliza, Samantha and their newly made camp friend! She was thier age and totally sweet, they had a great time playing together, riding scooters, and playing at the beach!

Although he was too busy with school to come for the full trip, Luke surprised us by showing up for the last night! It was great to have him there and I was eager to show him the falls...even if I was a lobster from falling asleep on the beach the day before!

I love our camping trips! I hope the kids remember the places they have gotten to experience and hold on to their appreciation of nature and the environment to share with their families some day.

Our Family Trip to Los Angeles!!!

For years Luke and I have talked about wanting to go to L.A. and have him meet my west coast family, well, this is the year we finally pulled it off! After much discussion about timing and working out details we bit the bullet and did it! Off to Redondo Beach we went to see my brother Augie, his wife Dove and their rock-n-roll kids, Sierra and August!!! It was so great to see my famliy again and to have the kids all get to know each other was a dream come true! Our families are so similar in so many ways! Our trip was jam-packed with fun! Above is Aliza with the Gaffney pets (apparently it's genetic to have strange pets!).

We went to the beach and basked in the Southern California sun for a day! The kids had a great time playing in the waves, burying each other in the sand, and flying a really great cyclops kite! The beach breeze was perfect for it that day! Now my kids have seen both the Atlantic and Pacific oceans while in my care! I'm so glad I could provide them with those experiences!

 Kaleb and August got along like peas and carrots! They played video games, and August showed Kaleb how to rock out some beats on his drums! They shot each other with Nerf guns and had an over all great time getting to know each other!

What's a trip to SoCal without stopping at the one and only,....DisneyLand?! Thanks to Augie and Dove for making a dream come true for the Narlees! We had an amazing day, the wait for rides was short, the weather was impecable, the kids were happy and we had a BLAST! We stayed till after the fireworks display and headed home with some TIRED kids!

Here are Kaleb, August, and Aliza at the Armed Forces Day Parade! Augie was not about to miss this, even though the rest of us were whooped from the day before! The kids had a grand time playing with snails, sitting in helicopters and watching some good old fashioned marching!

We went for a tour of the Palos Verdes area of the coast with the best tour guide EVER - my brother! We saw amazing views of the coastline, crazy cool fountains, and neighborhoods over run with peacocks!  We then met up with my old friend Terra, her husband Mike and their beautiful daughter Astrid to frolic in the tidepools of Abolone Cove! Here we found crabs, starfish and plenty of sea anemonies to inspect and adore! It was an absolutely wonderful time! I wish I could share ALL of my pics on here...but alas, space limitations!

On our last day in L.A. we headed up to Hollywood to see the sights!  Although no actual stars were spotted we had a really great time with the Stars on Hollywood Blvd. and Mann's Chinese Theatre.  Here we are in front of the Hollywood sign in the hills...although it was a cloudy day and you can't see it in the pic, it's there behind us, I swear! Another great day in California!!!

We were there for 6 days, and it went by completely too fast! Amazing connections were made between all of us and the experiences the kids had together will make memories for a lifetime! Izaak is already waiting with baited breath to find time and money to head back...he and Sierra Sam are amazing friends in addition to cousins!  I hope with all my heart these kids stay in touch throughout their lives one way or another! It's amazing how close they all became in just a few days, the bonds of family never cease to amaze me! Thank you Gaffney Crew for hosting us and giving us memories to cherish a lifetime!!!