A Whale of a Time

We are back from a trip to San Diego...sand, sea, surf, Shamu. He even let us pose with him. Here, check it out.

Isabella had a great time. She seemed to enjoy all the shows. She and Kathie avoided sunburn. The rest of us were not so lucky. Yes, it was our own fault, but it is still no fun. We spent a day and a half at Sea World and then a half-day at Mission Beach.

Alison and I were going to ride the roller coaster at Sea World, but it was down for maintenance. Then, we thought about riding the Mission Beach coaster, but didn't get a round to it. So, we had to settle for riding with Kyle on the freeway.Hmm, not quite the same.

I've got some other photos I'll share later. We've got fun photos and scary photos: churros, funny faces, funny hats, messy eater, flowers, dolphins, killer whales, Kyle.

It's time to face the 100+ temperatures, not quite as nice as the 70s in San DIego. Hmm, I wonder if there are any jobs there?

Bella in the Pool

Bella went swimming tonight. It took a while for her to get all the way in. She would fuss when she went in a bit further each time and then would end up going in farther the next time. When Kyle got here, he went in with her.

Before that, though, she decided that "Here is water. What doth hinder me to drink?" Well, something like that. Anyway, the pool is warming nicely, and Bella really enjoyed it. I'll share more later.

Blog for Lauri

Here is a photo of my peach pie.




Oops. Too late. The difference between yours and mine is that it was not my first one...and I didn't make it.

Bella's "walker"

Hey, did you notice that I had not blogged in a day or two? Well, I guess I didn't have much to say. Even now, I don't have much to say. So, I'll give you something worth a thousand words. Isabella got a new table that plays music the other night, and found that it slides on the tile. So, back and forth between the dining room and the den for quite a while, pressing buttons and making noise all the time. So, the youngest Walker used her own walker.

Plastic and Paparazzi

Isabella went to Fiesta Mall Friday night, so Alison, Nana and I tagged along. While the women shopped, the kids went to the children's play area. At first, Bella was a little intimidated. After watching for a bit, she decided that she could step up onto the bridge and walk across it. She fell a few times, but ended up playing on the bridge for over 15 minutes. Towards the end, she was so tired she fell almost every time when she tried to step off, but she would not give up. Luckily, she had her pacifier to help balance herself. She tried to climb on some higher structures, but couldn't figure how to shift her weight so she could get up there. So, she kept coming back to the bridge because she had mastered it. If someone else was on it, she would not back down and she still crossed through.


Before we went, I saw that her Mom and Nana were treating her to some Britney Spears news. She certainly studied it closely, taking in both all the Brit tidbits and also the styling looks of Dannielynn in the photo. Lyndsay was acting like she wasn't looking at the magazine, but you can tell by where she is holding it that she already checked it out the same way. And Kathie is not even trying to fake it. They obviously want Bella to learn something from her time.

And sure enough, Isabella DID learn from her time in the competitive world of paparrazi. Here, we were on the way home from church and tried to engage her in a conversation. Did she talk to us? Did she make a noise like a dog or a cow or a platypus? She did NOT. In fact, she went so far as to pull out her own sunglasses and put them on. I'm sure she figured that if she couldn't see us, then we couldn't see her.

Bella and Beatles

We were lucky enough to see Goofy directing the Disneyland band when we were there for Bella's b-day. He did pretty good for a dog, or whatever he is. This was right in front as we walked in. So, I just scooted over behind the band and grabbed this pic.




Still, how can you beat Mickey directing? Kyle boosted Isabella up on his shoulders so she could see Mickey and the others that later joined him. I think she enjoyed that as much as any rides.

If you are wondering, no, I don't know how many churros Nathan ate throughout the day. I don't think we passed a stand that he didn't buy from. I would guess around 8.



Now, back in Queen Creek for her birthday party, she loved having Daddy toss her up in the air. It is not fair, I tell you. Kyle never liked that. He wouldn't sit on my shoulders, he didn't like being held up in the air. How come he gets a kid that does?




We went back to Beatlemania Live last Saturday night. Here is a photo which must have been taken several years ago, judging from their apparent ages. They are not as young as the Beatles were at the same period, but they sound really good. Some new songs were added, which delighted Kyle, Lyndsay, Kathie and I. Alison enjoyed it a lot, too, but since it was her first time, she didn't know the previous show material.

One Year Old Already?

Now come on! How many of us enjoy a birthday cake like Isabella did yesterday? Oh yes, she had her own cake to consume or demolish, and she did a little of both. Then, Lyndsay and friends got to clean up that purple. Even Bella came out a little stained, but that doesn't show well in the pictures.


Take a look in the corner on the left of the picture. That is what still remained of the birthday girl's stash after opening maybe one-third of them. And it does not include the gift in the next picture. As you might expect, she often enjoyed the tissue paper stuffed into gift bags as much as the gifts themselves. Stlll, I think her folks managed to involve her in 75%+ of the openings.

Now, in my view, her favorite present, at least as far as immediate reactions, was the two-seater wagon. Here, you can see the Queen For A Day sitting in her royal throne. This picture was actually taken, of course, before the cake picture, but I wanted the flow of this post to start with the reckless abandon of playing in food. Now, you can see her original party outfit and her beaming about her sweet ride. ZKW, she could probably use some hardware into which to plug her iPod when she gets one. Hint, hint.

It was a great party, great food (no, everyone did not get their own cake nor did anyone else eat practically naked), lots of gifts, and all of Bella's extended family. Thanks to all who helped make it a success.

Official update for Leigh: I have 624 photos involving Isabella. You were the closest guess.

Happy Birthday, Isabella.

Where Is Your Wife?

OK, that was not my wife in the princess photo from Disneyland. Yes, she is a princess, but did not wear her fancy clothes to an amusement park. Here she is with most of Bella's entourage. They are. from left, Casey, Phyllis, Christen, Kyle, Lyndsay, Princess, Nathan, Michelle. Not pictured are Alison and Randy.


Since returning, I have heard that Isabella has begun walking some. Here she is trying to stay up with her Mom and Dad. She is soooo small, the door looks huge, doesn't it? Maybe it was just the camera angle.












Hey, did houses sell in TX? Are baby and mom fine in CA? Did y'all see Susan's purty new kitchen in AZ? When do we get photos of the house in NV? How were the numbers for the accountant's race in TX? Is the bathroom finished in AZ?

Weekend at the 'D'

Happy First Birthday, Isabella Camryn. Ten of us went with you to Disneyland for 2 days of non-stop fun.


Well, as you can see, we had a GREAT time at the 'D'...Disneyland for those of you who don't know what we mean by 'D'. Oh, and I think Kathie might have been there somewhere. Ha ha. I can't remember. The character breakfast was good and I didn't eat again for, like, two hours. Wow. I do wish they had a bit more fruit, but the Mickey-shaped waffles were very tasty. Once, while I was up to get some food, Goofy sat down at my place and added a lot of pepper to my eggs, then turned them over so I would not see. Since the table was all giggling, I knew something was up. So, he did not catch me.




Bella was there, of course, since it was for her birthday. Here she is on the carousel with Dad, Mom, and Grammy. In fact, she got to ride more things than I did....seeing as I was the official photographer. I did not go crazy, however, only taking about 150 photos. And not a stump in sight. A bunch of them were flowers, but I won't bore you with them right now.



Since it was her birthday, Bella went all Britney on us and got a tattoo (well, she calls it her tat). As you can see, it was pirate themed for some reason. She was going to shave her head, but no one would do it and she could not handle the clippers by herself. Luckily, no one else was caught up with either geting tats or with turning into pirates. However, we did ride Pirates of the Caribbean on Sunday, it's 40th birthday. And it is cool how they have added Johnny Depp into the ride. They did a good job.



OK, I might have been wrong about no more pirates. When we came off of the Temple of Doom ride, we came across this motley crew. I thought that eye patches and earrings did not make someone a pirate, but it seems I was wrong.

Hey, you know what I miss. When Indiana Jones first opened, they handed out cards that let you read the signs through the waiting line. Now, they don't even post what the letters are. What's up with that? I am sure Walt would be disappointed.

Well, we did go the the Scottish Games yesterday at the local community college campus. The forecast called for only 66, so it was a little too cool in the shade and a little too warm and sunny in the sun. Here is a photo of a dude that reminded me of the famous scene by Marilyn Monroe in Seven Year Itch. What do you think? Can you see it?





Here is the most dangerous sport of the day. You can see that this girl is all concentration. You would be, too, if someone threw a giant stick at your head and you had to catch it. I think she can do it, but I do not have photographic evidence either way.





Here is my vision for Isabella in a few years. Actually, the complicated tongue maneuver is worth extra points, so I think she must have scored well on this.






Let's end with Bella watching the guitarist for NeedFire playing just for her. She is not sure she likes it, but the rest of us had fun. Still, I wish the groups played a little more of the Scottish-Irish-influenced music than just adding bagpipes to rock. Ah well.