A day for happy tears

I didn't forget to post on this event..I've been trying to get some pictures together. 

My brother, John, & his family were sealed in the Houston LDS Temple  last month.  It was a beautiful occasion that was celebrated by our families and some wonderful friends.  We're so happy for John, America, Bash, and Mia. 

                                                                                           

Sometimes it's ok to cry...

like when you leave your brand new camera in the backyard for two days...in the rain. 

Let me start from the beginning.  We bought a Canon Rebel a little over a month ago.  I've been using it all over and around the house.  Friday morning I made a quick look around for the camera and immediately remembered where I'd left it.  I brought it inside and, as one would expect, the lenses were completely spotted with water.  The camera turned on but would not focus.  Another troubling sign- water dripping out the side of the lens.  I'm somewhat of a realist so I told myself it was drenched and ruined and I resolved to move on and not let it ruin the day for myself and the kids.  It wasn't until I had the chance to tell a friend what had happened that I found myself bawling.  Funny how that happens. 

Anyway, the one and only recommendation was to air it out.  I removed the battery and the memory card and dried it out.  I also wiped down different parts & switched it off and on several times which I understand you're not supposed to do.  I'm impatient.  And despite that I'm happy to report that the camera's actually working!  It's a little quirky and still a little spotted and, although I still don't know much about this camera, I can tell you it's definitely taking pictures.

And this is the boy who is the reason I had the camera in the backyard.

Let the catching up begin...

First off, Sea World! We took a trip to Sea world with some friends a couple of weeks ago. The weather was great & the crowd was small- October is a great time of the year to go.

Got it!

I've got a new camera and I love it! Over the last couple of days I've been irritating my kids by taking loads of pictures of them. I'm starting to cool it since the only look I'm getting now from my 2-yr old is a glaring sideways glance when she sees the camera. I can't say it's not fierce but it's getting old.

big decisions

My camera broke. I'm not too upset, though. Truth be told I've been waiting for my camera to brake for some time now...it's been half-broken for almost a year. I've been looking forward to getting a newer, nicer camera and now that the time has come I remember how much I hate making decisions... more so when they involve lots of money (going out, not coming in). It doesn't help that I know very little about cameras.

In the meantime, it's driving me nuts not being able to take pictures! Here's one that was taken during the last days of my half broken Kodak. I love this picture. Way to finish strong, Kodak.

Our Mima

Never did blog about Mima's visit! Mima, my grandmother, spent about a month here in Houston while my mom recovered from a recent surgery. My mom's side of the family is full of colorful women and I'd say Mima takes the cake. She's a lot of fun and we really enjoyed her visit. I still can't get over how neat it is to watch my own kids having fun with my grandparents the way I always did as a kid.

And this was a common sequence during Mima's visits to our house- Olivia leading her by the hand to her bedroom closet, shutting her in and walking away. You can't beat a great-grandmother who'll oblige that kind of behavior, right? And then to have her come out of your closet wearing your bloomers on her head like a Mexican wrestler? I wonder if my kids know how lucky they are :)

Ririe Reunion

Alright, we had a Ririe family reunion in California last month. It was nice having so much of our family together. We spent some time at my grandparents' home in Salinas. My siblings and I have some fun memories of that house from when we were kids so it was fun to now watch our kids enjoying their house as we always did. And, of course, they enjoyed our grandparents.

And we were reminded of why Californians pay so much to live in that state. The weather is gorgeous! After spending over 10 years in Texas, it felt a little Twilight Zone-ish having to wear a sweater in July.

We spent most of our time at Asilomar State Park but we also visited some sites around Monterey Bay. Get ready for a whole bunch of pictures...