Fun and chores

Tonight we went out to the country and enjoyed some strawberry shortcake with Jeneé.

Afterwards we headed up the road to see Sinwaan and clean up his paddock. At first Levi was excited to use the pitchfork and bucket to clean up horse manure. It was really endearing. Once I took over though he got bored and commented "I want to leave this poopy spikey place." Spikey in reference to the little thistles.

At one point he also said "I am curious about these thistles" but it sounded like he said "missiles" so I asked Matt "How does he know what a missile is?" After some clarification I realized he was wanting to learn more about thistles.

Ellie rides around in the backpack on my back while we are cleaning up the paddock. She tolerates it well and likes to point at the horses.

Popsicles

We have had some really strange weather this year. It's been fairly cool and wet. This week we had two days of high temperatures, high being mid-90s, and we had to break down and turn on the A/C at home. This is popsicle weather!

Ellie wanted to try it so I gave her a taste and she must have gotten her teeth on it and decided it was TOO COLD because she made the craziest face I have ever seen. Unfortunately I was unable to get a photo of that face.

After a couple initial shocks she started grabbing the stick from me and just lightly putting her lips on the popsicle to taste it. Silly kid.

Ellie has also learned to shake her head no when she doesn't want something now.

Portland Trip, Sunday

Sunday morning Joanie made us pancakes with fruit and stripples. We hung out for a little while and then we packed up and went on home. It was sure nice to see them again!

It looks like Ellie and I have something else in common - soccer. She enjoyed playing with this little ball while we were there, kicking it around.

Natalie and Ellie share some toys

"...but he was still hungry"

How cute are they?

Dog in a blanket

Ellie discovered a dog hiding out in the pile of blankets on the sofa. Good detective work Ellie!

Portland Trip, Saturday

Levi shares a moment with cousin Natalie.

Levi loves to play with Wes' micro machines

My mom and Ellie, ready for church.

Matt and Ellie, sharing a moment.

Levi loves to be read to, and my mom was happy to oblige


The beautiful Blumenberg family

Sabbath school was interesting. The kids had fun. They had a treasure chest of gifts for visitors. Levi picked out a plastic 4x4.

After the announcements at the church service, Wes and Joanie went up front with Natalie for her baby dedication. They had written some notes to her that Wes read. He did great. Natalie didn't cry. It was a lovely dedication.

After church there was a potluck. Joanie had brought a lot of food and it was all very good. By the time I was done eating Ellie had fallen asleep in my arms.

On the drive back to Wes' both kids were asleep. We grabbed a change of clothes for them and they did not wake up until we got to the Oregon Zoo. I was so relieved they had gotten some sleep.

Sometimes Levi has a tough time waking up. He wasn't in the mood for photos. A group of us went to the zoo. Some of Joanies' family came along too.

I had talked to Wes ahead of time about what to do about a stroller. I wasn't sure I wanted to pack my big heavy double stroller all the way there. Wes did some research and found that you can rent a stroller at the zoo for $9 (with a refundable $20 deposit). So that is what we did. I was glad for it, it had pockets along the back for water bottles, the shade part was sturdy enough to support a diaper bag and purse, and the seat-belt was easy to quickly get the kids in and out frequently when there were things along the way to see.

It was a beautiful zoo. We saw mountain goats and bears and bald eagles. Ellie was really into all the animals.

Levi started cheering up once he got out of the stroller and got his hands wet. We kept hearing train whistles and Levi wanted to ride the train. We told him "maybe if we can find it." Well we never did find the train station until the end, when it had given it's last ride for the day. I was disappointed for Levi but I think he had fun regardless.

There were lots of neat habitats and enclosures to look at. Here we are checking out some neat frogs.

They had a petting zoo with Dexter cattle and goats and a bearded dragon and a chicken. Levi was very curious about the dragon but would not touch it until I did, and then I had to hold his hand. Ellie was not afraid and touched it too. Then Levi wanted to pet the chicken and asked her name. Matilda.

Ellie tries so hard to communicate. She points and murmurs and tries to tell us what's on her mind.

The Baboon exhibit was popular. One male seemed much larger than the others, and a bit agitated. He paced around while the others just chilled.

We got to see a momma and baby elephant.

This was a fun thing for the kids to do, although I admit I crawled in too.

We saw sea lions and a cheetah and a cougar. A warthog and lots of ducks and some otters. A nice variety of animals.

We debated buying the kids something from the gift shop but in the end did not get anything. They have enough stuff at home as it is.

After all that walking around we were pretty hungry so we went to the Spaghetti Factory for dinner. After the meal Ellie and Levi played a strange game that involved pulling Levi's hair until his head came back to the back of the seat. Levi was laughing so I guess he had a good time. He is starting to realize now that a sister can be fun.

Portland Trip, Friday

This weekend we headed over to Portland on Friday afternoon. Wes and Joanie, always gracious and accommodating hosts, made us grilled hotdogs, grillers and chicken burgers for dinner.

After dinner Wes brought out this little tent he had and Levi helped him set it up, he was sooo excited. The kids had fun playing in it and at bedtime Levi got to set up a mat and sleeping bag and slept in it too.

Just like mom

Today I noticed that Ellie's nose sweats, just like mine.

And Levi has discovered how to really play his game on the laptop and gets into a trance over it. (Also just like mom).

Poor things.

Four Steps To Freedom

From Matt:

I found Levi trying to put a leash on a lounging Missy, and decided to take pity on her. I told Levi to ask Missy to 'come,' and told him that if she didn't then it meant she didn't want to go for the leashed torture test that Levi calls a walk. Of course, Missy decided not to listen to Levi, instead running for me, and so I told him that he couldn't take her. In response to that, Levi hatched the following plan, which he relayed to me:

1st stop. You put Missy in her kennel.

1st stop? You mean step?

Yah, that's what I mean. 1st step...

2nd step. You get Bebe out of her kennel.

3rd step, I put this [leash] on Bebe like this (pretends to slip choker over Bebe's head.)

And then the fourth step, I take Bebe outside for a walk.

* * * *

That was followed by...

Dada, did you know I can eat like a dog?

What!?! Did you eat dog food?

No answer.

Levi, did you eat dog food?

No answer again.

Levi, I asked you a question. Did you eat dog food?

I don't think so.

What do you mean you don't think so?

Well, I can eat healthy... and Bebe eats healthy.

But did you eat dog food?

No. No. I didn't eat dog food. No.

OK good...

But dog food tastes good.

Ugh...

Olive Lake, day two

Saturday morning was Jeneé's birthday! I had signed up for the breakfast meal so once the kids woke up I got started on the food. I made pancakes with fruit topping (strawberries, applesauce or bananas) and whipped cream. I also tried to make some potatoes but the first batch that went into the oven got overcooked. The second batch I heated on the stovetop and they were better but by the time they were done cooking I think most people were done eating.

After breakfast Miles got the raft ready for the lake. It had lost some air overnight and had to be re-inflated.

It was beautiful at the lake, but cold. Levi ran down to the water and started throwing rocks in right away.

Later on the kids had fun in the raft, playing and paddling around. We had the boat tied to a tree on the shore so they couldn't get too far out.

Jeneé, Maddaly and Amber took a walk and found the inlet. Nicole and I held down the fort while Miles and Matt went back to the cabin for some forgotten items.

Once they got back Jeneé built a fire and we had a very tasty lunch of haystacks.

After lunch Matt and I took a walk to the inlet with Miles and some of the kids. It was a neat little path through the woods and there was a new bridge over the inlet, but that is where we turned around. Levi was getting tired of walking.

When we got back to the cabin later I whipped up some cream and Nicole put candles on the pie I had made for her birthday. It was a little warm, and scary carrying that pie across the cabin. My hands were shaking a little. It turned out to be a pretty good pie, worthy of a birthday.

Maddaly played some games on an iPhone and Levi watched her, they had some nice 'quiet time' despite missing nap time today.

Dinner was grillers and baked potatoes. It was great. We roasted more marshmallows to close out the evening. We left the cabin that night and headed home. It took a little longer due to some thick fog across the mountain roads. It was a wonderful experience camping. Happy birthday Jeneé, and thanks for including us! :)

Olive Lake

This weekend we were invited out on a camp trip for my friend Jeneé's birthday. She decided on Olive Lake in the Umatilla National Forest, and was able to secure a 3-bedroom cabin there. Other attendees included Amber, Miles and Nicole and the kids (six in all).

We left about two o'clock on Friday and the trip took us about three hours. After showing us our room, Jeneé took us up to the actual lake, which was beautiful. We walked out on the dock and took in the sights. It was a little cooler than I expected.



In the cabin, Levi's laptop was a big hit with all the kids.

There was a little pond outside the cabin and throwing gravel into the water was a favorite activity of all the kids. This meant I felt diligent to keep an eye on them so I did not get much rest, but I think the kids had a great time and the older the kids get, the more I think that is what it is all about. As a parent you learn a little more each year what being unselfish really means. I have great memories of being a kid and going on vacation and I want the same for my kids, even if it means I don't get a nap :)

After a fantastic taco dinner we gathered outside around the fire pit and waited for Miles to get the fire going so we could all roast marshmallows for S'Mores.



Well as it turns out the wood was a little damp so Miles borrowed an axe from the neighbor and split it all up.

Group shot!

Levi was quite patient as he watched the fire grow in size.

Finally it was time to roast some marshmallows!



S'Mores, one for each hand! What a great idea for camping out.



Levi, providing some comedy, wedges himself into a pipe.

Levi shows off by doing a one-handed pushup over his playpen. Unfortunately when he landed he snapped a leg off his favorite Breyer "big yellow horse."

After dark Matt and Miles went out to take night photos of the neighboring cabin so they could test out a program on Miles' laptop.


It was a memorable and fun evening at the cabin!