Beach trip with Liounis clan

Beach Vacation with the Liounis Family

Nan and Poppop get a beach house in Ocean City, NJ every year.

We're invited to stay as long as we'd like.

The girls and I always go down for a few days during the week.

This vacation was very different for us...

no strollers, no naps, girls riding waves independently, girls riding rides independently, & only MacNMancos twice!!

This is one of my favorite memories...

The girls learned that singing into a fan sounds funny.

So , they sang at all times and danced around the fan like it was their first time, every time!!

The ice cream bells rang every hour or so...

the girls finally broke me down into buying them one.
Look at Jenni's face...
the smile tells it all.
She wasn't much good at Paddle Ball, but she LOVED spanking Poppop with her paddle!
I love how her leg goes up with her arm whenever she swings.
She also decided that whenever she'd jump over a wave, her hands were held up like bunny paws and she would hop... so cute!!
Pretty pix with the beautiful weather we had...

We went to the rides only one night...

We were all beat!

The girls even turned down icecream and Jenni fell asleep sitting UP on the edge of Morgan's stroller while we walked to the car!!

The girls LOVE Morgan's chubby legs...

morgan LOVES the beach!

Poppop riding a wave in.

He'd ride on the boogie board and when he passed Jaylee, Meg would put her on his back and she'd get a good ride!!

He also took Jaylee way out deep and one morning he took Jaylee to the huge water slides on the boardwalk... she had a blast!!

Jenni in her cool-girl glasses getting braver and braver in the water.

Jaylee romping around with Meg.

One morning we all went for a bike ride.

Jaylee got her own bike and Nan TRIED to keep up with her.

Poppop kept running in to high school friends.

Mandy and I pedalled and pedalled but really didnt get too far.

Morgan fell asleep on her diaper bag during the ride.

Nan on her bike.

Jennibelle believes that SHE was stearing us through traffic.

Meg's 24th Bday.

The Mac N Manco's crew sang to her.

Haha...

Goldsborough Reunion

2009 Goldsborough Reunion

We started up our faily reunions again on my Mom's Mom's side of our family.

It was neat that it was in the same pavilion as when we would get together decades ago.

This year was quite bitter-sweet.

We've lost many loved family members since our 2008 gathering.

Unfortunately, people came and went so we did not get a group shot.

I got a few pix of my fam though..

Sandy Goldsborough was in charge of kids games.

Here the 4 kids are racing to fill their buckets with water...

Alexa is turning Jaylee into a mummy.

They won this contest!!
Daryl GOldsborough made balloon animals for all of the kids
(And kids-at-heart)



Jennibelle sure does LOVE her watermellon

Water balloon fight for the adults...

We did NOT do so well...

and I was wearing awhite Tshirt (whoops!)

My girsl were pretty much at the water upmp or playing with water balloons the entire 5 hours we were there!!

Jaylee and Jennibelle thought they were soooo cool for getting Poppop super wet!

Mandy was sick, but we got to bring Morgan with us!!

Jason/Jenni and Poppop/Jaylee in the 3-legged race.

The Stringhams are not os good at this contest!!!

We'll practice our 3-legged-walking and water balloon throwing for next year!!!

Seattle Aug 09

Seattle 2009

The Stringham Family

Jason, Becca, Jamie, James, Jenn, Jason, Mom, Dad, Brian, Mary, Catie, Marie, Brody, Eric, Blake

Ethan, Audrey, Emily, Allie, Ryan, Jennibelle, Jaylee, Davie, Jenna, Tommy

The J's

Jenn, Jennibelle, Jason & Jaylee

Grandma & Grandpa Stringham

Davie, Blake, Audrey, Jenni, Jaylee, Allie, Ryan, Jenna, Ethan, Tommy, Brody, Emily & Catie

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To begin the blog, I have to apologize that I uploaded everything backwards, so the pix will start with our last day there...

We went to Seattle Aug 5th-12th.

We spent 4 days at Uncle Ed's Beach House in Sea Side, OR.

We consider this to be our first ever Stringham Family Reunion.

Hopefully, we can cont this every year or atleast every-other year!!

25 people in one house (with 13 kids) went surprisingly well!!!!

The other days were spent between Grandma and Grandpa's, Uncle Brian's, and out in Aunt Maria's boat.

Here are the girls at BWI trying to amuse themselves while we waited for our luggage, on our way home.

You'd think they'd be exhausted...

Jaylee stayed up the night before boxing the Wii.

Jason told her she could stay up until she lost...

90 mins later and 750 pts stronger, she finally lost.

I was soooo proud of them on the plane and train.

They behaved so well.

Jaylee helped me not be so scared on the plane and enjoyed sitting by herslf for a while...

she's very into doing things independently.

Jenni believes that she was flying the plane with the "controls" on her armrest.

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Our last day was spent at Pike's Place Market with Grandma and out on the boat with Eric, Maria & the boys.

We went out on Lake Washington.

Nobody (but Mama) minded the freezing waters.

Jason stayed on the tubes so long, we were all impressed!!!!

The first run, he held on for 5-7 minsutes before he had to let go b/c his bathing suit had slid down below his knees!!

Jennibelle was traumatized with one spill he took when he bounced across the water on his belly/back 4 times. Poor girl! (Jason was fine!)

Uncle Eric pulled Jason, Jaylee & I.
Jaylee tried to knee board. Here she's practicing on the boat.

Looking back, we should have had Jason get in the water with her to help get her up onto the knee board, she just was not strong enough. She was pretty disappointed but enjoyed the 3-person raft just as well.

It as the girls' first time on a boat and they LOVED it!!

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Here are shots from Pike's Place.

We were all amazed at the size of the seafood!!!

Jaylee bought Gradma some pretty flowers as her way of saying "Thanks for having us"

She's a gift-giver like her Mama.

I remember bringing Jaylee here when she was 3 and buying her a hair decoration like the one she has in and taking a picture just at this same spot... boo hoo...

(notice her new Seahawks Jersey)

Jenni LOVED her hair piece too!!!

This is her flower-power outfit that she wore all week.

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This is the WA/OR border on our way back to Seattle from the Beach.

Our 3 hour trip home took 6 hours!!!!

The kids spent all day running through the sand dunes, making hide outs and playing. No one cared that their legs were getting scratched up. Jaylee could not wait to show Grandma their secret hideout... Grandma stayed out there for a long time, sharing stories about when she was growing up. She would do this each night too, when the kids were getting ready for bed. They all ADORE Grandma!!

"Go Brody Go..."

We cheered him on to crawling at the beach.

All the kids got buried by Unlce Jay and Uncle Eric.

Jennibelle modelling.

Our photographer, Becca.

BTW, I used some of her pix here on my blog...

THANK YOU BECCA!!!

Maria Medndenhall & Becca Kidd

We went to Cannon Beach, where Goonies was filmed.

Grandpa in his pants, and hat playing with the kids.

He is so kind and gentle with the kdis and will play anything they want!

Jason and Jaylee went out to ride waves and were called in b/c a Great White Shark had been spotted 2 blocks down from us.

The both ended up back in the water later that day!!

Jason, Eric & Jason Kidd

aka THE STUD MUFFINS

"The girls"

Audrey, Jaylee & Jennibelle

Audrey, Jenna, Jennibelle & Jaylee

Uncle Jason Kidd is great with the kids...

check out Jennibelle's smile

Catie fell asleep on the chair and didn't even budge when we moved the whole chair b/c of the tide.

The Stringham Brothers...

Brian, James, Jason

Jaylee helped all of the younger kids the entire trip...

can't believe MY kid is one of the BIG kids!!!

(pix deleted... will reupload soon)

BONFIRE!!!

Jennibelle really got in to the laser guns... here she is shooting her buddy Brody.

I still think Jason got more into it...

Tommy, Eric, Ethan & Jason

This picture was taken before Jason realized when wearing a wet suit you...

1. Wear a bathing suit under it

2. The zipper goes in the back

Jennibelle and Blake

Jenni... soaked... again...

All of the kids romping in the water.

Jaylee and her BFF Audrey...

Jaylee and Mama did their usual 5 am stroll on the beach for shells...

this time we found lots of sand dollars, dead crabs and sea gulls.

I LOVE these times that Jaylee and I get to ourselves!

The kids ADORE Jason...

here he's flipping all of the girls.

Our girls are sooo proud to tell people that he is THEIR Dad!

One of the times we were just all hanging out.

We enjoyed a game of Cherades after the kids were all down.
Maria was not the best at the game, laughing hysterically so that she couldn't even act out "Moby Dick".

Jason thought he was pretty sneaky with "photosynthesis" but Mary (who wasn't even on a team) guessed it quickly.

Ethan enjoyed playing with the grown ups!

Jennibelle and David on our back porch

One of the crabs Jaylee found.

Boy did they stink!!!

Our arrival to The Beach House...