My New Heroine Is:

=Caution=

Spoiler ahead. I'm pretty sure

anyone reading this has already

read the book, but just in case,

this does give away some of the

storyline.Unlikely, but true, it's Professor McGonagall from the Harry Potter

series. I just finished reading The Deathly Hallows, and each time

Professor McGonagall enters the story, she GETS it! She triumphs

Harry and backs him up completely, no questions asked, no matter

what. And towards the end, when Harry appears in Hagrid's arms,

who is the first to react? Yes, it is indeed, our lady McGonagall.

In a story with twists and turns I didn't expect, she was the constant.

She responded the "right" way, the way maybe a mother would.

I enjoyed the unexpected ways Harry and gang

were able to get out of hopeless situations, like

flying out of Gringotts on the dragon that was

supposed to kill them. I guess all those years

in "Care of Magical Creatures" classes paid off.

Dumbledore...wow, he became a real person

in this book. One with faults and a past and

real feelings. But I enjoyed the way his story

unfolded throughout the book, piece by tiny piece,

and the way Harry felt so conflicted about Dumbledore's

real intentions. That kept things interesting.

Fiend fire! And Harry going into it to save

his arch enemies! Loved it! Because after all,

we all truly felt sorry for Draco after reading

The Half Blood Prince, right?

And last of all, Harry comes off conqueror!

We knew he would, but it's never quite as

simple as it seems at first. After all, we had to

get through 744 pages before the deed was done!

All in all, a good read, a well thought out storyline,

and a fun ending. Thanks for talking me into reading

it, kids!

A chance to visit with Diane and Dennis

It was fun to see Diane and Dennis for a few

hours during Dennis's sister's wedding reception

in August. They had a real quick drive home

over the weekend.

So this is Dennis in his natural surroundings. No wonder

he loves the color baby blue. Probably reminds him of

the beautiful blue lake by his home!

Sarah Struck's Wedding Reception

At the end of August Keith and I went to Eatonville for

our Son-in-law's sister's wedding reception. That's a mouthful!

It was held at the Struck's home, and this is the view of Alder Lake

from their yard. It was a beautiful evening.

This "thatched" roof over the shed really set the stage for

a tropical themed wedding.
The bride, Sarah, had a gorgeous dress, and the cake
had shells and sand on it, very cute.

Some fancy cutting turned this piece of fruit into a sailing ship.

My favorite, the palm trees made from veggies.

A fun and delicious evening!

Boating in The San Juans

No better way to cool off on a hot summer day than to

take the boat out for a spin. While you're at it, why not

challenge an old Washington State Ferry to a race?

With Eric behind the wheel, we totally won!

Eric got us all the way to Orcas Island! We stopped at a dock

near East Sound. Devin's making sure the boat will be there

when we're done tooling around the island.

Does this dock look familiar Katie? Your yacht brought you

here for your Senior Prom dinner! Then your plane took you

back for the dance. Pretty sweet!

That's our boat!



And here we are on this comfy log getting ready for some
amazing pb&j sandwiches. Doesnt' get better than this!

Orcas Island

After picnicing at the beach, we took the short walk

into town to check it out. East Sound is a pretty cute

little touristy place. Bookstores and restaurants,

some antiques, stuff like that.

This picture overlooks the inlet we boated into.

Another obvious photo op.

You can't boat all the way to Orcas Island without buying
ice cream! You can see the town behind Keith as we
were leaving.

Devin behind the wheel takin it home.

Just another beautiful day in the San Juans.