Sacramento Airshow

Grandpa Wright was able to get us VIP tickets again to the Sacramento Airshow. As we entered the airshow, Richard found a booth that was giving free beard trims. Now that he is sporting a "van dyke" he thought he would get it cleaned up.

Next we went to check out the local aircrafts. Richard kind of already knew that he was not built to be a helicopter pilot. When he wedged himself into the cockpit it was confirmed. His knees blocked a whole row of instruments.

Now Spencer Sanders on the other hand was just fine climbing into the cockpit. Although he is still a little too short to take control of the aircraft.

We concluded that this helicopter was best suited for Joshua Sanders and Stone. They fit perfectly.

See how good Stone looks in the cockpit of an expensive helicopter. Well, maybe he should lose the cowboy hat. Then he will look cool.

These boys are strapped in and ready to go rescue someone in the EVAC helicopter.

Here we are waiting for our turn to sit in the brand new EVAC helicopter.

And here we are sitting in the helicopter. Once again Richard didn't fit too well. Crouching down as low as he could get inside, his head still scraped the top.

Joshua got his own seat on the helicopter. He fit just fine.

This helicopter Richard fit into.

Now this is a plane! We could fit everyone and their dog into this one.

We are inside that big plane waiting to climb up into the cockpit.

With the VIP tickets that Grandpa gave us we were invited to dine with the performers. We ate BBQ pork and BBQ chicken with cool pilots in uniform all around us. We also had front row seats along the runway for the airshow. The main attraction this year was a re-enactment of the Pearl Harbor attack. There were Japanese bombers dropping bombs that really exploded on the ground. And American fighter jets chasing them through the air. It was pretty cool.

Here we are just about to leave. We were hot, sweaty, sunburned, but happy. Just as we exited on the other side of those white tents, they brought out the plane that Spencer and I had been waiting to see. OR should I say hear? We stopped and could still watch the airshow from the other side of the tent. It was an F-17 that made the ground rumble as it flew past. It was so loud that car alarms were being triggered in the parking lot. We watched it go real fast passed us. We especially liked how it was silent upon approach, but then shook the ground as it was leaving. It was the coolest way to end the day! Thanks Grandpa for the wonderful day!

First Day of School

Stone and Claire started back to school today. They have been looking forward to this for over a year. They are attending the new John Adams Academy Charter School. Our friend is the founder, and he has been talking about this school for almost 2 years. It is finally happening! Note their new school uniforms. They look dapper!

Here is another shot of them. We needed to recreate photo ops from previous year's first day of school photos. Stone is in the highest grade level at the school as a sophomore. There are only 34 students in his grade. He will be in the first graduating class at JAA.

Here they are outside the "school bus". Otherwise known as Dad's car. The school is 30 minutes away in Roseville. So Dad will be taking them in the morning on his way to work, and I will be picking them up after school. I really need to get into a carpool! Stone will most likely be attending a seminary class at JAA in the mornings as well. I guess Claire will be also by default.

A Day of Bowling Pleasure

So the family decided to go bowling one Saturday morning. Dad is showing his professional "get a strike every time" form!


Claire has her own professional bowling form. I thought this picture looked just like Candice at that age.


Here Mom and Claire wait for one of Mom's awesome scores to be posted.


The kids demonstrating the proper way to consume fried cafeteria cuisine.


Here is Dad wishing he could eat some of that delicious cafeteria cuisine. But NOPE!

BYU or Bust

I have started a tradition of making quilts for my kids to take to college. Aiden very excitedly informed me he wanted a Pokemon quilt. He gave me some pictures of Poke-balls that he liked, and I re-created them in fabric. He LOVES this quilt. I just hope he isn't mocked too much by his roommates.

Here we are en route to BYU Provo. We were also bringing my niece, Madison, home to Utah.

Here are some photos of Aiden's apartment. None of his roommates had arrived at this time. He stayed three nights by himself in the apartment. This is the front livingroom.

This is the kitchen.

And this is his room that he shares with one other guy. There are 3 guys total in his apartment. He loves having his desk right next to his bed. It all looks so clean right here. I would love to take a photo in a couple of months. I bet none of the rooms would be this clean?!

Family "DAY"cation

We didn't have the time or money to go on a big summer vacation this year. So we went on a "day"-cation. We took the family to San Francisco for the day. We started at the SF Zoo. Of course Little Richard wasn't with us. He was at Disneyland with friends. He hasn't been on a family vacation in 4 years.

Claire was very anxious to see a hippopotamus. She was able to get pretty darn close. He was sleeping though.

Lindsey and Aiden found some stray peacock feathers on the ground and decided to stick them in their pants. Most little kids thought it looked great, and wondered where they could get some too!

All the kids had to pose with Claire's new friend.

Then we ate lunch at a park. Even though it was August, it was too cold. So we ate our lunch in the car next to the park. Afterward we went to Exploratorium. Here Aiden is exploring some kind of force that spins you around with the wheel.

Dad and Lindsey were sharing the "whisper" game. If you've been to Exploratorium then you will recognize this. Otherwise it is too difficult to explain.

Dad and I sharing an intimate moment in the big Papa Bear dining chair.

I loved this photo of Aiden and Stone. It is true to their personalities.

Lindsey accidentally walked in front of a shot that Dad was taking. But I loved the resulting photo of the back of her head. I love the curly tendrils down her neck, and the "ever so Lindsey" ponytail buns in her hair.

This was Dad's favorite exhibit. It has to do with a state of confusion. "Should I drink or not?"
The toilet has never been used, it is completely sanitary, but just the negative connotation in our minds of toilets can cause one to pause before drinking. Claire makes it look all so elegant.

Family Reunion in Tahoe

Ta-Da! Here we are. This is the whole family to date. Hard to believe but we were able to get every member of the family in one place at one time. I didn't think it was going to be possible for me to get Richard and Lindsey to the reunion. But Lindsey cleared her schedule, and a cute girl needed a ride to Sacramento the exact week of the reunion, so Little Richard decided to make the trip.

Playing at the beach was definitely the order of day. We went to three different beaches, rented boats and kayaks, got sunburned, and ate copious amounts of food. The food was awesome!

Here are Lindsey, Claire, and Aiden building a sand castle. It must be the first day, because no one is sunburned yet. It was amazing to me to see how sand can entertain children for HOURS!

On Sunday we went to church in Tahoe. I thought it was funny how the Bishop explained that Fast Sundays are always a bit unnerving for them, because given all the visitors attending, they never know what is going to be said from the pulpit. So he took 10 precious minutes from testimony time to explain exactly what a testimony is. It is NOT an "I love my family"-mony, or a travelmony. Anyway!!! after church we went home and had a little special service of our own. Tara's son, Nathan, turned twelve while on vacation, so he was ordained to the office of Deacon by all of his uncles, and grandfather, and Dad. That was fun to see. Oh, and by two cousins who are worthy Aaronic priesthood holders, Aiden and Max.

Another special event on Sunday was that Richard and Stone joined us. Richard came to California late Saturday evening. And Stone had scout camp until late Saturday evening. So they both joined us on Sunday. Here we are relaxing in the backyard.

This photo was taken on one of many walks/hikes that week. Syd and Tara are good at keeping the kids busy and occupied. The Hoopes women have way more energy and desire for activity than I do. I would be exhausted from being at the beach, and they would be packing up the kids for a "walk" before dinner. Ah, Claire is a true Hoopes girl and wishes that her mother were more like them. The problem is that Claire actually has Hoopes genes in her. I only got the name.

One of the many activities available for the kids was to sew p.j. shorts. Here Claire and Audrey are modeling their shorts and matching anklets. These were easy shorts that took 1 yard of fabric and only 1 pattern piece.


Each family had to perform something. We got into a stupid human trick phase, and my family stood up to perform something that must be a Wright gene considering Hoopes' can't do it. We are all flaring our nostrils full force in this photo. But if you notice Big Richard is having to do it manually. Hoopes' can't make their eye go blurry either. I guess they just don't have good facial muscle control?!

Grandma Hoopes took an evening to share some stories about her father, Grandpa Cummard. Grandpa Cummard was a world traveler, and he liked to collect hats from each country. Grandma Hoopes brought those hats and we had to guess which country it came from. There were enough for each grandchild to wear one. I think I like Max's dutch girl hat the best. This was done before Richard and Stone arrived. But we have done this with just our kids at home.

This photo pretty much sums up the trip, lots of family running around, lots of fun being had, lots of food, chaos, noise, and laughter. With Grandpa Hoopes sitting quietly observing the shenanigans. All he had to do was remove his hearing aid, and he was quite content.

Tam and Terry's 50th Anniversary Party

We had this small cake made to display the original bell cake topper that was on Tam and Terry's wedding cake. You can see it in the picture. Lindsey's bakery "Paula's Bakery" made the cake.

This is a photo of Tara's two oldest children, Nathan and Anna, enjoying the chocolate fountain. The chocolate fountain was a huge hit with the young and old alike. I think it has been one of Mom's best purchases yet. Thanks Mom for letting so many people borrow it. We also served cheesecake and veggies and dip.

Here is a photo of Tam and her only sister, Sydney. They are very close and yet they are exact opposites. Their personalities could not be more diverse.

The kids had a good time running around the building. Claire and Audrey did a wonderful job of watching and playing with them in the nursery and elsewhere. Audrey and Claire had the idea to host a babysitting group in the nursery for any kids who came to the party. Although the only kids who showed up were from our own family. But they still did a wonderful job keeping them entertained.

Here is Tam with some of her good friends at the party. Tam was afraid no one would show up. But we had approximately 60-70 people come. It was a good turn out. Tam and Terry really enjoyed it.

This photo is included just because it is a picture of Mom. We have to sneak those in where ever we can, or else our posterity will think our mother died at birth. There won't be any photographic evidence to support her existence.