Andrew the STAR (and Mom too).

Tuesday evening Andrew performed this violin solo for the parents and Enumclaw Middle School community. That afternoon he played it for the students and faculty of the school. He was terrific in both performances and electrified the crowd. His accompanist (Rosie) did great as well.

Thanks to Rebekah for taking this video.

Happy Father's Day!

Dad,
Happy Father's Day! I remeber that you would read us stories, play with us, when we were younger and now you love to play games with us! Thank you so much for all of your support, help, encouragement while we have gone to school, work, go after our dreams and guidence with different life skills. I personally couldn;t have done it without you and mom supporting me and everyone else, making it possible for me to finsh college and work, THANK YOU. I love playing games with you, spending time, and I think it is so neat how you love to travel so much, so I hope you get to travel a lot more since you are retired if that is waht you and mom decide to do, rest of the family it is alright by me but sorry I didn;t get that from you because I am not much of a traveler although I love going to Utah because it is so much fun to see our family, relatives. I am excited to see everyone soon, it will be so much fun and so thank you for letting us be able to go to Utah to see our famiy. Thank you for always believing in us and helping us out if we are having a hard time, watching movies, talking with us, etc. I love how you love to play games with us, are always there for us, check on all of us kids to see how we are doing, helping others out, and teaching us about hard work, being responsble, being on time, etc. We are so lucky that you are our dad, I am glad we are family forever becaues as Grandpa Johnson said: "Families are everything." ! I love you so much dad, and enjoy spending lots of time with you!
Thanks again for everything you have done for us and helping us achive our dreams, encouaging us and helping us out when we need help and for understanding how we all like different things or like the same things. ALos, thanks for teachign us about jokes and how you tease us, to make us laugh, right?
you are awesome!
Mels

POP-SICLE

He is the bomb. Trips, games, movies, and laughs, we have them all. He provides us with so much each day. He supplies us with ways to follow our dreams. He has the best ideas, and is pretty dang close to being the big fat boss of the whole world (second only to Janice :) ). Really, I think we could not have been luckier to have a better dad. Us kids must have been the smartest ones in heaven when we chose to have dad as our father....

THANKS SO MUCH! i love you dad! happy fathers day!

Graduation!

After four years of very hard work, Melanie graduated from Green River Community College with her Associate's degree in Early Childhood Education. She even graduated with honors as she maintained a grade point average of 3.7.

The graduation ceremony was held on Friday at the new Showare Center in Kent. There was a big graduating class.
A proud Mom and Dad get in a photo with the graduate
We are all very proud of Melanie and wanted to celebrate her achievement. She planned a celebration event and invited many of the people that have helped her through this journey. It was a great evening.

Melanie with her graduation cake
Melanie with the display by our front door that she created of pictures through her first 25 years along with a sign in book for all the guests.
The graduate with some of the food she and Rosie prepared for the celebration.Melanie with Ann Baker and Judy Bruggeman -- two people who gave her invaluable help through the Transitions program at Enumclaw High School. These two angels had a profound impact on Melanie.

Single Ladies

Here's Joyce and her best friend Rainah dancing to Beyonce.

Grace and Joyce at the same age

Here are a few photos of Joyce and Grace around the same age. Grace is normal in terms of growth (she is growing out of her 0-3 month old clothes right on time). I look back at the pictures of Joyce and she was wearing newborn stuff at 3 months that didn't fit Grace for very long.

Grace:

Joyce:

What do you think? The look like sisters right? Would you confuse them or do you think they have their own look?

Grace

Grace in the words of Joyce is "growing bigger and bigger." She is growing out of her sadness at nights and is really smiley and delightful.

She is a really good communicator and likes things a specific way and so she can let you know quickly when something is not to her specifications.

She is also an incredibly prolific drooler. John and I use to make fun of those parents whose babies always had a bib on - well we might become those parents because Grace is going to develop skin diseases if we don't.

We have been so lucky to have Emilie and Stephen come and visit us (sorry about the red eye in the photo Stephen). We can't wait to see more family this summer.

Yosemite -- Mariposa Grove

We ended our unforgettable trip to Yosemite with a hike through Mariposa Grove at the southern border of the park. The grove has many stately sequoia trees that are up to 1,800 years old and almost 300 feet tall. Sequoia trees are the largest volume living things on earth. Coastal redwoods are taller and another species has slightly larger trunks but nothing has the combination on width and height of a sequoia.

Unlike other parts of the park there were few people in this tranquil grove. I felt a great sense of reverence as we walked through this beautiful setting. While I hated to miss church on this sabbath day, being in one of God's great cathedrals was a good substitute.

Grizzly Giant one of the oldest and largest of the trees in Mariposa Grove
Sequoia grove. The red tint of the trees is beautiful.

Marc in Tunnel Tree

Yosemite Falls & Yosemite Point

Upper Yosemite Falls from the valley with Yosemite Point to the right

Saturday our destination was the top of Yosemite Falls and Yosemite Point. It is a steep trail that ascends 3,600 feet and is about eleven miles round trip. After the first thousand feet every view is marvelous as you look down on the valley, over at Half Dome and go right by Yosemite Falls which is the highest waterfall in the US. As it crashes down it literally sounds like thunder or a glacier calving.

Yosemite Falls from the trail

Marc with Yosemite Falls in the background and Yosemite Point on top right.

Stopped for a photo with Yosemite Falls, Yosemite Point and Half Dome in the background
From Yosemite Point. Marc in upper left admires the valley and Half Dome.Marc is fixated on Half Dome
At Yosemite Point
From Yosemite Point looking down at The Lost Arrow. Glacier Point is across the valley.
On our descent the sun hit the mist from the waterfall to create a brilliant rainbow.The rainbow spreads over the lower part of this photo.
We stopped for a photo from the Tunnel View on our drive back to our apartment. Bridal Veil Falls is on the right. El Capitan is on the left and Half Dome is in the middle.

Yosemite -- Vernal and Nevada Falls

Vernal and Nevada Falls from Glacier Point
The golden sun sets on Half Dome from Glacier Point.

For years I have dreamed of climbing Half Dome. It is one of those iconic hikes/climbs that I want to complete before my time on this earth is over. The route up the back side is always open from the end of May to October and that is why Marc and I planned this trip for the first weekend in June. However, this year there is still too much snow on the trail so the National Park will not open it for a few more weeks. While that was disappointing news, there are marvelous alternative hikes in the park.

Friday we took the part of the Half Dome hike that was open. It is one of Yosemite's signature hikes -- especially when there is a lot of water flowing over the falls as one finds this year because of all the snow. It goes by two spectacular falls -- Vernal and Nevada. The round trip we took was about 2,500 feet of ascent and a total of ten miles. Every step was beautiful.

Marc on the Mist Trail below Vernal Falls. With all the water flowing this was more than a "mist" trail. By the time we got to the top of the falls we were drenched as if we had been caught in a big rainstorm.

Above Vernal Falls, Note the trail on the left side near the middle of this photo.
Below Nevada Falls.
Marc inspects the raging river from the bridge above Nevada Falls. These falls empty into the Merced River that cuts through Yosemite Valley.Marc above Nevada Falls.
Along the John Muir Trail with Liberty Cap and Nevada Falls in the background.

We drove back up to Glacier Point to watch the sunset that evening. Half Dome dominates the valley as the yellow sun lights its face.

It was a day to remember.

Yosemite ("Das ist verboten")

Liberty Cap and Nevada Falls at sunset from Glacier Point

Last week Marc and I made a long awaited trip to Yosemite National Park. It is one of the most beautiful places in the world. One is filled with wonder and reverence by the magnificent landscapes throughout the park. Shortly after we arrived on Thursday evening we drove to Glacier Point with hopes the clouds would clear and we would see a great sunset. Glacier Point is only open a few months of the year because of snow covered roads. It was not open when I was there with Steve two years ago so this was my first time there. It was the setting of the famous and historic evening Teddy Roosevelt spent with John Muir in 1903. If you look on the back of the California quarter you see the view from Glacier Point as well.

Famous photograph of President Teddy Roosevelt and John Muir at Glacier Point. It is hard to tell if they are standing on the overhanging rock but that looks to be the case.

As we arrived at the Point we were overwhelmed with the beauty and setting. It is high above the valley and looks down on everything but Half Dome, which is directly across the valley. Unfortunately, Half Dome's top was covered that evening with clouds. But even so the view was unbelievable.

At the very point there is a rock formation that juts out and is called overhanging rock. I had seen a number of old photos with people out on that point and was disappointed when it was fenced off and "Danger Do Not Enter" signage was prominently posted.

Marc contemplating hopping the fence and going into the "Danger Do Not Enter" area where the overhanging rock can be seen in the foreground.

Marc on overhanging rock with Yosemite Falls -- the highest in the US -- in the background.

In this century old photograph a woman strikes a pose on the overhanging rock at Glacier Point.

Here is another old photograph of someone on the overhanging rock from taken from a different angle so Half Dome is prominently featured.

We looked around and while there were a lot of people (75-100) we couldn't see any National Park rangers. Marc said, “I’ll go out there" and quickly hopped the fence and made his way to overhanging rock. Knowing we only had a minute or so I took a number of quick pictures of him with the valley and Yosemite Falls in the background. As I was taking the pictures a group of Germans wandered over and immediately began saying, “Das ist verboten” (That is forbidden). At the same time they were anxious to get some good pictures of Marc on the rock. After a few minutes Marc made his way back to "safe" territory behind the fence.

Not more than a minute later, Ranger Dave showed up in his National Park Uniform. We thought he might be after Marc but that was not the case. I went up to him and asked a couple of questions ("When will Four Mile trail be open, what is the weather forecast…") and then asked him if I could get a picture of him with Marc.

Ranger Dave with Marc. Note the fence and overhanging rock in the lower left portion of the picture.

Marc's timing for the photos on overhanging rock was impeccable. Unbeknown to Ranger Dave we had once again created a memory that will last a lifetime.

Moose Encounter, Cabin Clean Up and Memorable Hikes

Rosie, Andrew and I made a quick but excellent trip to Utah last weekend. We had some great time with both the Miller and Johnson relatives and had a very productive day working on the outside of the cabin.

Sunday afternoon, John Stauffer and I went outside to walk around the cabin on a perfect spring day – blue skies and 65 degrees. We walked over to the cave and I heard something through the bushes. I thought it was a person clearing the brush. When I first looked I thought it was a horse but quickly realized it was a moose. I called to John and told him to come and see the moose. We watched him for a minute or so. He clearly looked at us. I wanted a better look around the bush, so I walked a couple of steps closer. At that point we were only about ten yards away from him. Then the moose – a young one with no horns -- broke into a run straight for us.

We ran with everything we had for the cabin which was only about 30 yards away. We ran around the front of the cabin and fortunately the moose went around the back. That was the fastest I have run in many years and maybe the fastest in my life. I had no idea John could run that fast as he was in front of me. The instantaneous effect of adrenaline is remarkable. I have not been that frightened in a very long time. Our hearts were racing but we survived the adventure to live another day. I learned my lesson about getting close to a moose.

The moose came back (I think he was looking for John) on Monday and we got this photo.

Monday was clean up day at our cabin, "Johnson’s Holmstead". Lee, Jeannie and their son, Mike, joined us and brought a trailer full of tools and equipment. Sonja and Robert and their children also came that morning. Kari and Brian, Annie and Nate, Paul and Jill, Rosie, Andrew and I had spent the prior evening at the cabin and were all enlisted for this day of hard labor. We got a tremendous amount of work accomplished as we cleared almost all of the dead brush and trees from the lot. Nate and Brian cleared the culvert under the road so the stream in front of the cabin flowed much better and lowered the level of the stream significantly. Then they enlisted Andrew and built a rock wall for most of its path.

After a long winter the windows were very dirty. Nate handled the hard to reach high windows.
Above -- With my chainsaw cutting some dead wood. Below -- Andrew wheels the wood to the wood pile and fire pit.
Lee got the Captain Ahab award for his relentless pursuit of pruning the big tree in front of the cabin. At one point he maxed out the somewhat wobbly extension ladder and took the chain saw up to cut some branches. The rest of us were praying he made it down without incident. Not many teenagers would do what he did and I know of no other 59 year olds who would even contemplate it.

Everyone worked very hard and helped transform the look of the cabin. It was remarkable how much work was done and we appreciate all who gave their holiday to improve the cabin. Below the transformation is very evident.

Above -- Paul, Jill, Lee, Jeannie, Rosie and Brad take a photo break during the clean up. Below -- the whole crew after a long day of hard work.

Early Monday morning, Paul, Brian, Nate, Rosie and I went over to Guinavah to climb the Crimson Trail. It was a beautiful morning with lots of sunshine and an ideal time to make this gorgeous hike. The canyon and Cache Valley are green as they ever get and the mountains are capped with a beautiful snow top. The views from the top of the Crimson Trail are wonderful as one overlooks the canyon, across to the Wind Caves and down into Cache Valley. At one point on the trail you can even see Logan Temple. It is in many ways the best trail in the whole canyon.

Above -- Rosie and I are high above Third Dam on the Crimson Trail. Below -- Rosie on the Wind Cave on our Friday morning hike.

Below -- On our trip to Utah we stopped in Twin Falls to the very impressive Shoshone Falls.