Surprise!

I found out the other week that Stevie had been conspiring behind my back...but with good reason!  You see, he had secretly been trying to arrange for my friend Liz to come visit for my birthday. 

Liz, Don and Lydia were our most excellent friends that we met/lived next to in Okinawa.  Our families had many crazy fun adventures together and we missed them dearly when they moved back to the US a year before us.  But just because an ocean separated us, and now half the country, doesn't mean our friendship grew apart.  This is one of those cool friendships where the wives, husbands and kids are all best friends.

So when Stevie was arranging for Liz to come, Don threw in his "I want to come too" card and they ended up figuring out a trip for the whole Jones family to see the whole Coats family in Washington.  What an awesome surprise!

Stevie and I picked them up at the airport on Thursday while the kids were in school, but the kids soon got reunited and had fun!

Lydia and Emmy chatting.

Working on a craft together.

Liz and Cannon working on a puzzle (we did this alot in Okinawa).

Ready for bed in a tent (that's Obi under the purple blanket!)

On Friday, while the kids were in school, I took Liz, Don and Lydia to experience a little of Washington - like forests with huge trees and farms with fresh picked produce.  I think Don was a little amazed at how big the trees are and I think Lydia was impressed with the pick your own dahlia farm.

After a morning in nature, we headed to a junk yard.  Yes, a junk yard.  Isn't that on the tops of everyone's site seeing list in Washington?  No, the reason we went to a junk yard is this: back in Okinawa almost every weekend you could find us and our neighbors in the front yard gathered around a very decrepit, yet amazingly functional fire pit.  We made many, many good memories around the firepit.  So Don and Stevie decided we needed one at our new house - or maybe it was Lydia's idea, I can't be sure.  But who ever had the idea, it was a good one. 

So back to the junkyard...Don had seen an idea where you use an old tire rim for the bowl of the firepit and then enclose it with rocks.  Sounded like a good plan to me so we hit the junkyard in search of the perfect one.  After a little rooting around (by Don - Liz, Lydia and I busied ourselves by eating wild blackberries) he found the perfect thing!

More on the firepit on Sunday's post...