A Shocking Surprise!

 July 4th, 2012, was the best day ever!  What a huge shocking surprise!  I thought Charity was coming to visit me and instead all my boys and their families came also.  I could hardly believe my eyes when I was driving to the airport to get Charity to see Casey on the sidewalk and then I turned to see everyone else across the street in the park!  I couldn't figure out how they all got here.  I was at the point of tears - so shocked, so surprised, and so super happy!  The kids did an awesome job of fooling me.  I had no idea.  If anyone asked me what the number one thing would be for me to do any day, I would say to spend that day with all my kids and their families.  There's nothing else I would enjoy more.  So you can see my dream came true on July 4th!  It is a day I will remember forever.  I felt so loved and cherished by my kids and their families.  We had a real family reunion for 2012 and it was wonderful - the best ever!  I love my family so much and they mean the world to me.  I miss them so much when they are gone.

Everyone got up early and drove from Grants Pass to arrive in Vancouver in time for my neighborhood annual 4th of July picnic.  There's a picture above and the rest below from that event.

 Weston and Paisley doing the gunny sack races - Paisley was cheating a little but Weston was hopping just like he was supposed to!

 I loved seeing everyone enjoy their ice cream.  Weston above and Spencer below.

 Adalei playing tug of war above and Elijah with his treats below.

 Above, Benson was so cute eating his chips!  Charity, below, found flags, necklaces, and other goodies to celebrate the holiday.

 The kids had fun with their balloons - Paisley and Brielle both got butterflies.  Below, Ashley holding cute little Audrey.

 Jason above with Audrey - I think she slept through the entire event.  Below, Weston and Benson enjoying the day.

 Weston above and Adalei below...........

Long Beach at Night

I walked 8 miles today and enjoyed the beauty of the California coast.

Long Beach, California

I am here for training. I enjoyed a long walk around the marina this morning. It is so beautiful and relaxing.

Visiting my family in Mercersburg and St. Thomas, PA

 The visit to my family was less than 24 hours and way too short but we crammed a lot into the day!  It was wonderful to see everyone.  Nate hadn't been there since he was 18 yrs old so the cousins had fun looking at a photo album with pictures from his last visit.

 My niece Candice is very talented.  She showed me her art work.  I was impressed by how talented she is.  She gave me one of her drawings that I plan to frame and hang in my craft room.

  Venus made the most delicious waffles for breakfast - mine was cherry, chocolate chip, and walnut!  It was great.  Irene, Lance and their family, and my dad came over.  (We took this picture after Lance had left for Bishopric meeting.)

Below, Lindsay and Emma were having fun and wanted their picture taken.

 It was fun to go to church where my brother is the Bishop!  Bishop Plessinger is on the left.  My dad is in the middle and my brother Gary (former Bishop) on the right.  Lance is a really good bishop.  He was shaking hands as we left Sacrament meeting.  I felt very welcome.

 After church, Gary, Dad and I went to visit my Aunt Fern.  She is in a rest home and seems very lonely.  We only had time to spend about 30 minutes with her.  She is my dad's sister.

 Above, a cute kitten from the farm.

 Relaxing by the creek and visiting.  This is Lance and Irene's place.  Venus and Irene made a delicious meal - ribs, mashed potatoes, zucchini, rolls, and peach cobbler.  It was so good.

 I was really happy that Ami, my sister-in-law, and Merrilee, my niece, took the time to stop by so we could visit.  My brother Dwain was out of town so I didn't get to see him.

 Relaxing and enjoying dinner......

 Since I was there last year, Lance built this tree house.  It is awesome.  I had to take some pictures of it.  The girls were so cute!

It was sad to leave but we had a long drive back to Philadelphia.  I'll have to plan another visit next year some time.  It was wonderful!  Nate and I had a great time.  I'm grateful that we could go.

My Favorite Location in Philadelphia!

 Reading Terminal Market (an indoor farmer's market) in city center - this was my favorite stop!  The food was so good.  We especially loved the cheesesteak pretzel sandwiches!  Yum!!!

 I just wished I could taste one of everything.

 I could not believe the price of these strawberries - 99 cents.  They sold them fast.  More surprising was that they were from California!

 Meats above.

 More goodies......

 The pickles looked so good but I didn't get to try one.

 Nate was able to have lunch with us one day while he was on break from his training.  We were enjoying cheese-steak sandwiches!  Oh, so good!

 We loved the Bassett's ice cream.  They claim to be America's oldest ice cream company.  They have been in business since 1861.  Bassett was a Quaker school teacher and farmer. 

 Oh, my!  These sticky buns were divine!  Full of gooey caramel and loaded with raisins and nuts!  I could eat a pack by myself!  They were made by the Amish and delicious beyond description.

 More baked goodies from the Amish (above and below).

 Nate enjoyed a chocolate cream filled whoopie pie from our favorite Amish bakery.  

Below, Venus is getting ready to buy some pastries - I wasn't far behind.  I had to get some too!

This market was so fun!  We ate lunch there both days and just loved it!  If I go to Philadelphia again, this will be my first stop!

Visiting Philadelphia (June 2012)

 I thought it was really fun to see these domino sculptures.  This was at the top of my list of what to see while I was in Philadelphia.  Aren't they cute?

 They had life size game pieces as sculptures.  I liked this chess piece Nate chose for his picture.

 This is a memorable picture - it cost me $5 to take this picture.  We ran into a homeless man Paul that took our picture and then asked for money.  After he got the $5, he asked for more money.  Nate has a kind, generous heart.  Paul was lucky because I wasn't so inclined.  This sculpture represents Philadelphia as the city of brotherly love.

 This is a picture of the Eastern State Penitentiary.  This was the world's first true penitentiary, designed to inspire true penitence or regret in the hearts of the criminals.  It had running water and central heat before the White House.  The cells are vaulted with sky lights.  Many notorious criminals were housed here.  Gary referred to his "friend" Al Capone so we had to take a picture (below) of Al's cell.  

 This is a picture of Gary and Venus as we were leaving the penitentiary.  It was interesting to visit - the prison stands today in ruins with crumbling cell blocks and a surprising eery beauty. 

 Nate had training so he didn't get to see any of the sights.  We took him to the window where he could see the Liberty bell.  All the historic sights closed at 5 pm which surprised us.

 This is a picture of Gary, Nate, and then me with Independence Hall in the background.  It was really fun to be in Philadelphia right before the 4th of July.

 In the background is a picture of Philadelphia's City Hall with the statute of William Penn on top.  William Penn was the founder of Philadelphia and the state of Pennsylvania.  City Hall is the world's second tallest masonry building.  The granite/brick walls are 22 feet thick.

 We toured the Grand Lodge of the Free and Accepted Masons of Pennsylvania.  It was very interesting.  There were many rooms where meetings are held during the week.  Each room has an altar where ceremonies are held.

 This picture above is George Washington's apron that he wore in the Masonic temple.  It is part of the museum there.

 The Masonic temple had sculptures of Faith, Hope and Charity.  Of course I had to take a picture of Charity!

 The pictures above and below are the front of the Masonic Temple.  The architecture reminded us of the SLC temple that our church has.

 We went to the Ben Franklin institute - I was amazed at all the things Ben Franklin invented or discovered - bifocals, flippers, stove, lightning rods and sudoku (magic cube) are just a few of them.

  This is a picture of me with Venus in front of Ben Franklin.  At the exhibit below you can see the key on the box.  When you try to pick up the key, you get shocked!  That was a big surprise.  Of course, Ben Franklin is most remembered for discovering electricity.  He was quite the scientist!

We had a great time seeing the sights of Philadelphia.

Gary was so kind to take us to a great BBQ rib place where he bought dinner to celebrate Nate's award!  It was delicious!  Thanks Gary!

Dr. Nathan Tanner Honored 6/23/12 in Philadelphia, PA

 On June 23rd, Dr. Nathan Tanner was honored by the Academy of General Dentistry (AGD).  He received a fellowship award which is a prestigious symbol of dentistry's continuous journey toward improvement and progress.  At the annual convocation ceremony, the AGD recognizes the traditions of scholarship and medicine by conducting the event in full academic regalia.

 

 At 4 feet long and 5 inches wide, the velvet doctor's hood is the longest of all degree robes, and is lined with silk.  The hoods are lilac in color.  Lilac is the official color of dentistry.  The blue trimming is the color of education.

 We were thrilled that my brother Gary and his wife, Venus, drove from St. Thomas, PA, to attend the event with us.  We had a great time together!

To receive this award, Dr. Tanner had more than 500 hours of approved continuing education credits and passed a comprehensive 250 question exam.  In AGD's 60 year history, less than 16,000 dentists in the U.S. and Canada have earned their Fellowship award.  This annual ceremony is the profession's most prestigious event.  Dr. Tanner has made a commitment to lifelong learning and support for the AGD's mission to serve the needs and represent the interest of dentists and to foster continued proficiency through quality continuing dental education to better serve the public.

Congratulations Dr. Tanner!  We are so proud of you!  I think Nate was the youngest dentist honored at the event this year.  He is doing great in his career!  I'm so grateful that I could go and attend this special event!