Not exactly the photo shoot I had in mind.
Monday, September 23, 2013
Friday, September 20, 2013
Sun(lazy)river
We celebrated the end of a glorious summer as we did four years ago, with a trip to Sunriver with our friends Andy and Laurel. Over time, our hosts have seemingly forgotten what it's like to vacation with our family and, so, invited us to their vacation home once again.
After an epic drive--during which Ava asked "How much longer?" no fewer than a gazillion times--we arrived in Central Oregon. Perfectly timed with rush hour, we got there late enough that the children went right to bed, but early enough that we could still fit in plenty of drinking.
The first day was spent discovering that James has pushed past his healthy mistrust of water and is now dangerously fearless of the pool. He practiced jumping in while his parents weren't ready to catch him, charging away from his parents into the deep end of the pool, and running on slippery pool decks (there's a good reason the lifeguards tell you not to do this--James has the head injury to prove it).
We couldn't have asked for a more enjoyable final day. Laurel and Andy took us to one of their favorite Central Oregon spots for a morning at the the lake. The sun was shining, the sky was blue, the lake was gorgeous, and Ava was kind enough to drag each of us around as we relaxed on our inner tube of choice. Order was restored in our world.
After an epic drive--during which Ava asked "How much longer?" no fewer than a gazillion times--we arrived in Central Oregon. Perfectly timed with rush hour, we got there late enough that the children went right to bed, but early enough that we could still fit in plenty of drinking.
The first day was spent discovering that James has pushed past his healthy mistrust of water and is now dangerously fearless of the pool. He practiced jumping in while his parents weren't ready to catch him, charging away from his parents into the deep end of the pool, and running on slippery pool decks (there's a good reason the lifeguards tell you not to do this--James has the head injury to prove it).
On our second day there must have been something in the air...Laurel came down with a horrible migraine and the children came down with the being-horrible-little-shits. Frightened for everyone's safety, we threw both children in a bike trailer and enjoyed Sunriver's network of bike trails. The fresh air reset their crazy, and we were able to enjoy the rest of the evening without undo harm.
 |
| Resetting their crazy |
 |
| Oh, no thanks! I'm going to need something a little bit stronger. |
We couldn't have asked for a more enjoyable final day. Laurel and Andy took us to one of their favorite Central Oregon spots for a morning at the the lake. The sun was shining, the sky was blue, the lake was gorgeous, and Ava was kind enough to drag each of us around as we relaxed on our inner tube of choice. Order was restored in our world.
Thanks, MacSchweitzers, for another great visit!
 |
| Ava, earning her keep |
Wednesday, September 18, 2013
Sally and Brada
We just found this post in our drafts file from this time last year and figured it was high time we bring this one out of the vault.
Sally and Brada have been with us for going on two years now and Ava has no end of stories about them. Sally and Brada are Ava's brother and sister from another mother and another father. They have exciting adventures--a given, since they have houses all over the world. Their father works on the Hawthorne Bridge, raising and lowering it when tall ships go by. He recently transferred to the Steel Bridge for training but was soon back at his post in the house atop the Hawthorne Bridge.
What follows is a typical episode in the lives of Sally and Brada. Transcribed here, verbatim:
You wanna know what Sally and Brada LOVE to eat? Their favorite food is crabstems.
How do you make crabstems?
You go to the beach and pick up some crabs--pretend crabs--and then bring them home. You cook the crab in the fish fry and then hold it in one hand and push the stem in.
What's a stem?
A stem is chicken on a stick. Brada makes the best crabstems but Sally doesn't cook them because she is too young. She can just help Brada because he's older. Sally gets a stool and stands on it and uses a really long spoon to help him stir.
So crabstems are pretend crabs with chicken on a stick?
Actually Brada makes his crabstems with cake. They are WAAAY better with cake.
Sally and Brada have been with us for going on two years now and Ava has no end of stories about them. Sally and Brada are Ava's brother and sister from another mother and another father. They have exciting adventures--a given, since they have houses all over the world. Their father works on the Hawthorne Bridge, raising and lowering it when tall ships go by. He recently transferred to the Steel Bridge for training but was soon back at his post in the house atop the Hawthorne Bridge.
You wanna know what Sally and Brada LOVE to eat? Their favorite food is crabstems.
How do you make crabstems?
You go to the beach and pick up some crabs--pretend crabs--and then bring them home. You cook the crab in the fish fry and then hold it in one hand and push the stem in.
What's a stem?
A stem is chicken on a stick. Brada makes the best crabstems but Sally doesn't cook them because she is too young. She can just help Brada because he's older. Sally gets a stool and stands on it and uses a really long spoon to help him stir.
So crabstems are pretend crabs with chicken on a stick?
Actually Brada makes his crabstems with cake. They are WAAAY better with cake.
Wednesday, September 4, 2013
Tuesday, September 3, 2013
August 2013
Shortly after Layne and Gary departed, we experienced the moment we've been waiting for for months...James finally stringing words together in a sentence. He woke up one morning and said, "Ava's sleeping" and then didn't stop narrating for the rest of the day. His next phrase was "Light on!" and then "Light off!". Man were we excited. But then he just kept on saying it, and saying it, and saying it -- in a way that only a toddler can -- until we realized that he was actually asking to turn the light on and off. And for the rest of the day and EVERY DAY SINCE he has filled every moment of silence with the request to play with light switches. It's like we have our own seizure-inducing toddler-powered strobe light. Add in some house music and James's pacifiers and we'd have our very own rave!
High on the success of Ava's biking skills, we decided to join 23,000 Portlanders in the Portland City Parkways with Ava on her own bike instead of in the bike trailer. A few rainy blocks into the 9-mile route, we realized we had overestimated our daughter's cycling prowess and underestimated James's need for a friend in the trailer. With James screaming and Ava refusing to leave her bike locked up on the route, we loaded Ava into the trailer and Brian pedaled home with her bike in one hand and the two kids in tow. After drying off we lit a fire and drank some tea while watching the rains pour down. Much more our speed.
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