A Fun Afternoon

So.... our Spring Break (last week) was marred by Evelyn being super sick (she actually had mono.. poor baby! We thought it was strep throat (her strep test came back positive but the doc thinks that was secondary) but it was worse than that. Thankfully she is better!) and the weather being not super great. This week, of course, was beautiful! I asked the kids if they wanted to take a day off from school and do something fun (like go to the beach, etc) but they both said NO! They didn't want to miss school. Crazy kids...although I think it's great that they love school and know it is important! So instead we headed out after school today to Commenwealth Park to walk, see the ducks and play.

A Starbucks stop was certainly in order!

Those are baby ducks with their momma...so cute!

I love these two!

Evelyn's reaction to almost getting pooped on by a duck! :)

Lots of playground time was had!

My sometimes pensive little man...

On the way home the kids said it was the best afternoon ever! I love this time with them and being out in this lovely weather!

Evelyn Gets Braces!

We have known for a while now that Evelyn would most likely need some orthodontic work to help get her teeth straight. In February her dentist felt like it was time to get a consult and start planning for it. The orthodontist said that even tho Evelyn still has plenty of baby teeth yet to lose, it was time to work on what she could while the rest of her mouth grows. She had concerns about Evelyn's front teeth in particular and their safety as they protrude out farther than her nose. It was decided to start on "Phase 1" now, which involved braces just on the top front teeth. Once she looses the rest of here baby teeth, we will start "Phase 2".

Today was the day to start!

I may be bias, but I think she is beautiful! Just a couple of shots of her "pre-braces!"

Matthew asked me to put these pics of him in this post to show his teeth. Silly boy!

On our way into Dr. Walker's office. She was a little anxious but also trying to take it all in stride.

An hour later, it was done! She was very brave and did a great job!

After a milkshake and some ibuprofen, she ate a soft dinner and headed to bed, a little sore and feeling "weird"! I totally remember that feeling! Here's to a good start to our orthodontic adventure!

Easter 2016

It's been a while since I have posted... January 26th...yikes! I can assure you that there wasn't any monunmentous event that has been missed. 

Easter!! My favorite holiday of the year, celebrating my salvation and Christ's resurrection! I hosted again this year... I think it's going to officially be "mine" now..yay! Even though it can be a lot of work to host 20 some people, I love it and am happy to open my home to celebrate!

It was a little chilly and my kids weren't exactly thrilled to go outside to get their pictures taken. Here are the best ones...

Love these two!

The cousins are always fun to be around and they enjoy having a table to themselves.

I didn't get a photo of the table or main course fare this year, but I did get a shot of the desserts. I made a carrot cake and a super yummy berry trifle that was a huge hit. 

The day wouldn't be complete with out a cousin egg hunt. 

Thankful for a lovely day with my amazing family. Happy Easter!

A Trip Down Memory Lane

The kids had the day off Friday, and Doug found a car he was interested in buying (we have been looking for a new commuter car for him for a while), so we made it an adventure and took a road trip to Roseburg to look at (and then buy) the car. Roseburg also happens to be where I spent 10 of the best years of my life, so I was excited to show the kids the town I grew up in. We had such a fun day exploring and spending time together.

Our kids are such great travellers... and not just because we got them donuts for the road! :) They have never been farther south than Albany (in a car anyway), so it was fun for them to see new things along the way (a big highlight was seeing Autzen Stadium in Eugene... the both got giddy when they saw it!)

This is the car.... a 2007 Ford Five Hunded, fully loaded, low miles. and a bargain price. Doug brought his coveralls and all of his tools to check the car out. The salesmen at the dealership were both surprised and impressed! The car was in great shape and we decided to buy it!

While Doug was inspecting the car, I took the kids on a trip down memory lane and showed them around Roseburg. It was both special and emotional for me going back to places that impacted my childhood so much.

Abby's Pizza.... many fun nights spent here with my family. You could watch the cooks make the pizzas thru a giant window, and it was where us kids could have soda... a real treat for us. I learned how to make a "graveyard" inside this place!

This was Roseburg's first McDonalds. It opened when I lived there and it was here I had my first Happy Meal! :)

Although remodeled, this is the DQ that we would sometimes visit, a lot of times after going to Abby's! My dad would watch us in the rear view mirror as we anticipated if we were going to stop for ice cream or not. He often would drive past, just to see our reaction in the mirror, then turn the car around and go back! Silly guy he was!!This is one of my favorite childhood memories!

830 Rose St. This was once Bailey and DeBernardi Insurance, where my dad worked. He would sit inside on the far right at his desk with a blue phone. His co-worker Barbara was on the other side. I still can remember the smell of his office, even after all these years. So many memories of visiting him at his office.

This pharmacy has been around for ages! It was owned and run by the Kaiser family, who went to church with us and whose daughter Jeannie babysat us often. It looks totally the same as it did when I lived there.

 

The YMCA. I spent many hours here taking swim lessons. They still have the parent observatory deck that my mom watched us from.

My school. My amazing school. I LOVED this place and the years I spent here learning. I had amazing teachers and amazing friends, a lot of whom I still keep in touch with. It was such a great community to grow up in!

It always seemed bigger when I attended there.. but it isn't as big as I remembered.

I spent so much time at this church. I was a bit emotional when I entered into the sanctuary...  this was where I learned so much about God and was a part of such an amazing community of both kids and grownups. The priest was there and saw that I was a bit teary and gave me a big hug after I told him my story. "Welcome Home!", he said. It was a meaningful moment. 

Then it was time to "go home" To my old home, that is.

324 W Susan St. So much life spent in this home. It looks different of course... we haven't lived there in 35 years. But the memories still flooded in. I did ring the door bell but no one answered. My sister and I shared the room on the far left. It was so good to see it. 

Right across the street from our house (like RIGHT across!) is Quintas Park, a small park that was just perfect for us to play on growing up. My sisters and I spent countless hours here. What is so great is that the play equipment we played on as kids is STILL there!! It has fresh paint but it is the same stuff. How awesome it was to see my kids playing and enjoying it as I did so many years ago.

Doug was ready to sign all the paperwork on the car so we headed back to the dealership. Our tour was over, but really I got to show the kids pretty much everything I had hoped to. After all the signatures, we took TWO cars home, the kids splitting time between the new one and my car. On the way home Doug and I knew we had to take to the kids for one last surprise. Rice Hill.

This place has been around since before I was born and seriously has the BEST ice cream. It is truly an iconic place in our fine state.

Yumminess!

I came home with such a full heart, thankful for the amazing childhood I had and that I got to share some if it with the kids. I hope they enjoyed it as much as I did!