Is this thing on?

FIRST! We want to wish you all a happy Fourth of July, especially our brothers in arms. This Thompson family celebrated by eating at Ikea for lunch, then taking BART to Embarcadero and walking around buying some produce for our Fourth of July Feast. Later that night we put Mack to bed then ate yummy food and mostly just listened to fireworks as we watched a Globe Trekker marathon of our own making. In my opinion, it was perfect.

Obviously it's been a while since I did this.
Hold on a second, I've got the news on in the background, and the on site weatherman just gave a little update holding a water bottle and a banana. Couldn't he get someone to hold his banana and water for him? Or just set it on the ground? odd.
A lot has happened over the last couple of months. Tyler and I must be addicted to danger because we moved to East Oakland. Now, after a several "incidents" including our car being broken into (yes, the Honda--people must be really desperate) and catching 4 mice in the period of 2 weeks in our apartment, we're hoping to move to Hayward which should cut down a little on Tyler's hour commute.

Back on Memorial day weekend Tyler had his official graduation ceremony from USD. The President of Qualcomm spoke and officially became the richest person I will ever see in my life. This guy practically invented "wireless" and life as we know it. That same weekend, Kyle gave his "Farewell Talk" at church. He entered the MTC two weeks later and just left for Pittsburgh on Monday. Good Luck Kyle!

Later that week, Mack took his second trip to Disneyland. It was a HUGE hit the second time around. His favorite by far was the Carousel, but it sure was funny watching his face on the Haunted Mansion.

In June, Tyler's Mom came to visit for a long weekend and we loved having her. She spoiled Mack, made us dinner and best of all- BABYSAT! Frankly, I don't think any responsible mother in our ward would allow her teenage daughter to come babysit in our neighborhood. We loved showing her around San Francisco and probably set some sort of record for the most attractions seen in one day.

Kassey married Will King last Saturday in Midway, UT. Don't be offended if you didn't get an invite. It was a small family wedding, at least as small as our family gets. Mack and I flew up to Utah for a couple days to help. It was crazy and I'm so glad to be back where I can "relax". Congrats to Kass and Will!
I guess those are the highlights of our summer so far. We've been trying our best to take advantage of life here in the Bay area in lots of little ways. We went down to Gilroy to check our the outlets (which I can't recommend enough), and thanks to Kassey (I had to find a yellow or gray dress to wear to her wedding) I think I may have been to every major shopping center in the area, which is both a blessing and a curse.

Over Father's Day, Mack and Tyler shared their first real tide pool experience down in Monterey. Mack loved the rocks and birds and other funny things. Tyler was a little bit nervous about sticking his fingers in the weird sea creatures. We can't wait to go back.
I can't forget to mention that back in April Mack had his first boating experience. Grandpa can't wait to get him on the tube. I think it might be a while (grin).

Last but not least, Mack celebrated his first birthday back in May with cake, presents, and ribs from Legoland. Of course he got what every little boy dreams of for their birthday, a pony! About a month later, he started walking. He gets better and better every day, mastering moves such as turning and stopping without falling over. He does it all with his hands in the air, up by his head. Talent indeed.

**If you actually want to look at any of these pictures, just click to make them bigger.**