Dave Ramsey Live in Portland

As Dave Ramsey's Investment ELP, Eldon gets asked all the time if he has met Dave Ramsey. Up until now, the answer has been "no." But guess what? The answer is now "Yes!" (see the photo!?!)

It was an awesome experience to go to all of Dave's live events in Portland; Total Money Makeover, Business Coach and Wealth Coach.

Thursday Night: Total Money Makeover was entertaining for us, but as regular listeners of his radio show and having read several of his books, not to mention the whole ELP thing, we didn't learn much here that we hadn't already soaked up.

FRIDAY MORNING: We were waiting for the valet to bring our car around and Eldon spotted Dave standing there waiting for his car too. What a quinky-dink! We all stayed at the same hotel were both headed to the same place...

Business Coach was a 6 hour course. We sat in the front row, my workbook actually has a little spit on it from Dave (I like the guy, but that was a little awkward for me). This course gave us a ton to ponder! We learned how to measure an employee's worth (we no longer have an employee), The baby-steps apply to managing business money, too. (Dave's story of realizing this wisdom was quite humorous. As a small business man he couldn't make payroll and his wife was sitting in on a meeting to discuss how to resolve this problem. She told him he needs to practice what he preaches in his business life, too! HAVE AN EMERGENCY FUND, SNOWBALL BUSINESS DEBT, etc. I love this story, Dave tells it better).

After the business coach class, Eldon and I 'played' homeless at the convention center. We ate this and that then we slept on a couch in a quiet corner. Some guy even gave us hummus dip that he couldn't sell! After tasting it, I know why...yucky gooky stuff, it did have a creamy smooth texture though.

AFTER THE HOMELESS EXPERIENCE: Well refreshed, we went to dinner with Dave and about 50 others. This is where the above photo was taken. (Have you seen the picture of us with Dave?!?;o) There was a Q & A session, dinner and one of the neatest things about that time was talking with the other people at our table. (We enjoyed that so much, maybe we should go on a cruise - without water?) One of the couples at our table own a HUMMER Excursion facility (you have to capitalize HUMMER for the effect). They offer guided tours on land and water, up high and down low on all sorts of vehicles. The husband was an amateur extreme fighter. He was 40, but didn't look it. Eldon asked him why his face wasn't messed up, his answer was "It's nice to win." That makes sense doesn't it?

We moved to the next room after dinner for the Wealth Coach Class. We were in the second row this time. This class was most enjoyable because it was focusing more on what to do with your money once the debts were paid and the cash flow is fluid. We discussed protecting your loved ones with your wealth, continuing to build your nest egg, and giving to worthy causes.

All of the classes were speckled with fun movie clips, jokes and stories. We definitely left on a high note. I am more mindful of where money is spent, stored and invested. Eldon and I have switched roles a bit. He is still the investment expert. However, lately, I tend to be a bit more tight fisted and conservative with money than Eldon. Honestly, I thought I would never see that day! ;o)

Elijah's had a birthday, SHOUT HURRAY!

Elijah is one year older and wiser, too! He is now a big shot 11 year old. This is very exciting for us. He is definately up to his mom's eyeballs in height!
His favorite gift was his Rubix Revolution. He selected a German Chocolate cake with Pecan-Coconut frosting.

We sincerely hope that you enjoy the goofy face shoots of the kiddos!

The First Day of School 2007

The kids are having a great year at school this year! These photos were taken as they were walking to the bus stop on their first day of school. (Aren't they sweeeeet?)
Jacob loves having lunch with his friends. He has a teacher who is famous for pulling out teeth. Every child in the entire school who has a loose tooth comes to Mrs. Sherman to have their tooth pulled. Really, they do. Much to his dismay, Jacob is a first grader who has yet to lose any teeth at all. We are all rooting (get it?) for him to lose a few while he is in Mrs. Sherman's class! FYI-Jacob has beautiful hand writing. and runs super fast. Jacob is a kind friend to everyone he meets.
Hannah has two teachers this year. Her teachers job-share; one teaches in the morning, the other teaches in the afternoon. Hannah is a super speller and has joined the 4th and 5th grade choir this year. She is having a good time having one of her best Friends in her class this year. Hannah does a great job of taking charge of any situation when a little guidance is needed, she is a great helper.
Elijah is King of the hill as a fifth grader this year. He has recently taken on the challenge of learning to play the violin in the fifth grade orchestra. The violin is an interesting instrument to hear someone learn, if you catch my drift. Elijah is in the choir this year, too. His new love is definitely the DDR at the Court Club. He asks us everyday if we are going to the gym, just so he can play. He has developed some seriously healthy sweat glands and calf muscles as a result. We enjoy watching him play with the other kids at the club, they usually tire out before Elijah. He has become quite the conversationalist this year, I'm enjoying it very much.

Monson Reunion 2007

The "Lewis and Clark Adventures" Family Reunion will be talked about for quite some time. The highlight for our family was definately seeing Elijah rock at Fear Factor! He ate cow tongue, some sort of intestine, and moved fish from one bowl to another with his mouth. Infact he liked the fish thing so much that none of his team-mates (pictured here) got a chance to help bite the fish themselves...I think they were okay with that. I was so proud of my boy! It was a blast to watch - in between the gag reflexes! Elijah's team won 1st place, he loved every minute of it. (See his gold metal?)
Jacob is our quite the breakdancer. This morning he told me that he couldn't decide what he wanted to be when he grows up. It was between an archeologist, fireman, or breakdancer. :o) This photo is at the family dance. There was an Indian war (or mating?) dance, the crowning of the Indian Queen and Princesses (Grandma, Alaine & Luetta), karaoke, and tons of food.
Karaoke anyone?

During the Reunion we visited Ft. Walla Walla where we were all challenged with a scavenger hunt, organized by Denea (Eldon's sister). The kids loved it.
For the Ft. Walla Walla tour, we were divided into groups. Eldon, Hannah and I were in the same group, alon with Acacia, Paul, Eliza and Michaela. (Denae, Grandma M. and Alaine are missing from this photo, but they were also in our group.)
Lance found himself by the stream with all the kids several times during the Reunion. The kids discovered an apple tree with fallen apples, so they cleaned up the ground and threw the apples into the water and watched them go down stream. Totally fun!
Oh, more Fear Factor fun! In this challenge the teams were to gather all the worms they could with their toes and put them in the hands of their team-mates. Eldon and Elijah had a good time competeing on this one.
HERE"S THE FISH CHALLENGE! Uh-oh, I see somebody using their hands.

I appreciate everyone who attended and helped make the reunion a hit. We'll see you next year!

Seaside, OR

Seaside is definitely a place I want to go back to explore further (on a Tuesday afternoon during the school year). It was crazy-crowded with people when we were there. They have the cutest downtown area with novelty shops and restaurants. We didn't fight the crowds to see them, but we did stay long enough to feel the icy water. It was beautiful. I love these pictures!

Astoria, Oregon- I wanna go again!

I can not get enough of the whole wild flower thing! (See Mt Rainer Blog) Anyway, after the American Idol Concert, we (think Cindy Lauper and sing) "Drove all night" to get to Astoria. We stayed in an awesome 4 room suite right under this HUGE bridge on the Columbia River. Astoria is apparently famous for a few things, among them is having Goonies and Kidergarten Cop filmed there. (We rented these movies to watch late at night during our stay.) Also the are one of the oldest working docks on the Columbia. I loved the museums and history of this town. Above you will see us on the door steps of a old house. This is the Flavel House, this was the retirement home of a wealthy Bar Pilot who pioneered Astoria. He married a 14 yr old girl when he was like 30. She was commended for keeping it together as well as she did, there was a lot of pressure on her as the wealthiest woman in Astoria. I very much enjoy learning about the people of the day and what their life was like. There were several documentary type movies for us to watch in the museums in Astoria. The first few pictures you see are of the Bar Pilot Museum. This is where we learned what a Bar Pilot is. Apparently it is extremely dangerous work, I'll leave it at that, otherwise I will have to find a publisher for my work. Eldon and the kids loved this museum, they learned how to tie several different knots and how to turn a boat around and there were loads of maps, compasses and recovered wreckage. We were also able to board a real boat and check out the facilities. Elijah liked the bunks. Jacob liked the deck, Hannah liked the kitchen, I liked the shore.

The Astoria Column is also pictured here. It is something like 167 feet tall. We purchased some floater plains to release at the top. It was neat to watch them fly from that high up. The views were spectacular. The stairs are another story... every fitness club should have a column like this one.

American Idol and Whimsical Art

On our way out of Mt Rainer, We stumbled across a bizarre estate open to the public. It was filled with huge sculptures of iron and wood. We wandered around the property for at least an hour amazed at the creativity of the creator. The out house was adorable, it had stained glass and a porch, magazines, two stalls and a urinal. I couldn't figure out how to turn the picture of Jacob and the stick monstor upright, but that was my favorite "attraction." The artist has a sign in table to greet the visitors who stop to see his creations. In a frame above the sign in book is a framed rejection letter from the Seattle Museum of Art. Apparently, they felt his work was a bit too "Whimsical" for the museum. I say it's too bad. My family loved his work!

After leaving here, we headed for Tacoma for the American Idol Concert. We are all big fans of Blake. We love watching him perform, and I think given the opportunity to see him again, we will be there. Jacob was overwhelmed by the concert a bit, so we left during intermisson. That was okay though, we saw the best part...

Mt. Rainer is Awesome!

Eldon and I took the kids on an adventure packed trip just before school started. Our first stop was the Historic Copper Creek Inn near Mount Rainer. We stayed in an adorable cabin with an old style fireplace, and a new style hot tub in our private yard with a deck and gas grill. It was fun to learn the history behind the Inn. After two meals in the diner and a restfull night's sleep we headed for Mt. Rainer, National Park. It was quite a drive; curvy roads surrounded by enormous trees all around us, and surprising splashes of color provided by the abundant wild flowers. I was so impressed by the flowers that I decided to take pictures of them that I can display in my home. (I haven't fiqured ot the best way to do this yet, but I will!) Jacob could have hiked all day. It is much different than the Tri-Cities. We look forward to visiting the mountain again soon. Oh, and I should probably explain the HUGE snail Elijah is holding. He found it near the cabin we stayed in and he kept it for a pet. He named it Gary, just like Spongebob's pet snail. Elijah loved that snail. Unfortunately Gary got lost. Elijah thinks he is still in the van somewhere. Nice, huh?