Wow, summer has been flying by! The kids have been busy with swim lessons again. They are both doing really well too. Kristin has been learning the butterfly and breast strokes. Amazing! Tomorrow is Kristin's last day at daycare... hard to believe. Kellen will still attend 3 mornings a week, but in the private kindergarten room.
The kids got their letters from their teachers on Friday. Kristin has Mr. Shotola this year and has found out 2 friends are in her class... so far. Kellen has Ms. Stoeker, who is new to Sexton Mountain this year, but has taught kindergarten before. We get to go meet the teachers and drop off our school supplies at the Ice Cream Social on Thursday night.
Monday, August 27, 2012
Monday, August 13, 2012
Happy 9th Birthday Kristin!
Happy birthday Kristin! It is so hard to believe it has been 9 years! How did we get to the half way point to 18 so fast?!
Kristin had a luau themed birthday party at home with friends, Nana and Papa, mom, dad and Kellen a week before her birthday. The kids had fun with a water fight, slip and slide, and sprinkler in the back yard. Then they had a good time making fruit kabobs and eatting ice cream cake. Such a nice day for a party.
 |
| Running through the sprinkler. |
 |
| Blowing out candles on the ice cream cake. |
 |
| Kellen is giving Kristin the present from him... couldn't wrap that! |
Chinook Cup Champions!
Kristin's soccer team did it again! They won their tournament this weekend. Two tournaments and two gold medals. Way to go team! Kristin had a goal and an assist. She really had 2 goals, but one of her teamates was offsides, so it didn't count... but it looked great! Kristin was also co-captain for the championship game on Sunday.
I has warmed up here and is in the 90s lately. Forecast says 100 for Thursday... I sure hope not.
It is hard to believe there is only 3 weeks left until school starts. We are starting to get ready for school. The kids and I picked up most of their school supplies yesterday. Kellen picked out a Spiderman/super hero backpack too. The kids also started swim lessons again today.
 |
| Kristin with her medal and the team trophy. |
 |
| Champions! |
I has warmed up here and is in the 90s lately. Forecast says 100 for Thursday... I sure hope not.
It is hard to believe there is only 3 weeks left until school starts. We are starting to get ready for school. The kids and I picked up most of their school supplies yesterday. Kellen picked out a Spiderman/super hero backpack too. The kids also started swim lessons again today.
Sunday, August 5, 2012
Day 11, Saturday Market
On Saturday, we went downtown to the Portland Saturday Market. It is a big market with arts, crafts, photography, food and live music. Not too far away is the famous VooDoo Donuts. We headed that way, but decided to pass when we saw that the line was over a block long! Nonetheless, we had a great time at the market. It is held right down by the Willamette River, and the weather was beautiful.
The girls ran some errands in the afternoon, and somehow Kristin made out with a new doll. The rest of the day was spent hanging around the house and playing in the yard.
It was a great vacation, and we were lucky to spend it with Oma and Poppa!
The girls ran some errands in the afternoon, and somehow Kristin made out with a new doll. The rest of the day was spent hanging around the house and playing in the yard.
It was a great vacation, and we were lucky to spend it with Oma and Poppa!
Day 10, Friday
Friday was the last day of swim lessons for the kids. Kristin passed her class! She was so excited. Kellen is new to his class, but is right on track with where he should be. He is awesome at the backfloat! The last day of class is called 'fun day' and the kids got to use life jackets, paddle boards and noodles etc. Kristin's group had some 'noodle' races. Ever the competitor, she won the races of course!
That was in the morning, in the afternoon, we got went to the Nike Employee Store in Beaverton. One of my coworkers' wife works there and shared passes with us. That was a pretty fun experience. The kids made out great as usual. Kellen found some soccer shin guards early on and wore them all around the store after that. He's been very excited for his own soccer to start. He's been to so many of Kristin's games that he's ready to play.
In the evening, we all went to dinner at Red Robin. Somewhere in there, Kellen got some 'Oma time'.
That was in the morning, in the afternoon, we got went to the Nike Employee Store in Beaverton. One of my coworkers' wife works there and shared passes with us. That was a pretty fun experience. The kids made out great as usual. Kellen found some soccer shin guards early on and wore them all around the store after that. He's been very excited for his own soccer to start. He's been to so many of Kristin's games that he's ready to play.
In the evening, we all went to dinner at Red Robin. Somewhere in there, Kellen got some 'Oma time'.
Day 9 - Thursday at OMSI
Kristin decided that she wanted to take Oma and Poppa to OMSI, which is the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry. It is a cool museum in Portland that is really geared towards kids and families. The kids' favorite part was going on a tour of a WWII submarine nicknamed a 'pig boat'.
They also have lots of interactive exhibits. The kids like the one with the air pumps, tubes, and nurf balls. Later on, Kellen had T-Ball. It was team picture night.
Day 8 Wednesday
On Wednesday, the kids had swim lessons. They both enjoyed showing off for Oma and Poppa. Kristin wanted totake some batting practice, so we went up to the school. Kellen found a new friend on the playground while Kristin swung the bat. Later on, Kellen helped Omo make some blue jello, and Oma and Poppa tagged along to watch Kristin's soccer practice.
Day 7, Tuesday, McKenzie Pass
On Tuesday of Oma and Poppa's visit, we strolled through Sisters in the morning. Bella was a very popular puppy. She couldn't go into the shops, but she got plenty of attention on the sidewalks. Everyone loves a boxer puppy it seems. What's not to love, afterall?
Poppa had read about a place called Proxy Falls, so we decided to visit there on the way back to Portland. The road to Proxy Falls is an older mountain pass called Old McKenzie Pass that is only open in the summer. It's full of twists and turns and beautiful vistas. On the way to Proxy Falls, we were surprised by the Observatory at the summit of the pass. The pass cuts through an old lava flow and we saw huge fields of lava rocks. The Observatory itself is made from these lava rocks. It has window holes cut into the Observatory. Each window hole provides a view of a nearby mountain. It was quite the experience.
We ate our lunches and loitered at the Observatory while we enjoyed the fanastic scenery. We probably could have spent a whole day exploring the area if we'd had time. We headed next to Proxy Falls.
Proxy Falls was another great adventure. There are two waterfalls on the hike. The hike is a great oval loop. At the top of the loop, two trails branch off like horns, taking us to each of the falls. Before we could get that far, however, we had to pass through a lava field. It was quite the hike, especially for the kids and the puppy. When we reached the first of the falls, we ran into a reporter from the Salem Register Guard. She interviewed Poppa for a story in the paper!
The trail leads to a vista of the first falls, which appeared to be the bigger of the two. But the trail to the second falls lead us to base of those falls. The water cascaded down the hill into a pool. There did not seem to be an outlet for the pool either, so we guessed that it must go directly into the ground. So in two days time, we saw a river emerge from the ground, and a large waterfall disapear into the ground. What a trip!
Poppa had read about a place called Proxy Falls, so we decided to visit there on the way back to Portland. The road to Proxy Falls is an older mountain pass called Old McKenzie Pass that is only open in the summer. It's full of twists and turns and beautiful vistas. On the way to Proxy Falls, we were surprised by the Observatory at the summit of the pass. The pass cuts through an old lava flow and we saw huge fields of lava rocks. The Observatory itself is made from these lava rocks. It has window holes cut into the Observatory. Each window hole provides a view of a nearby mountain. It was quite the experience.
We ate our lunches and loitered at the Observatory while we enjoyed the fanastic scenery. We probably could have spent a whole day exploring the area if we'd had time. We headed next to Proxy Falls.
Proxy Falls was another great adventure. There are two waterfalls on the hike. The hike is a great oval loop. At the top of the loop, two trails branch off like horns, taking us to each of the falls. Before we could get that far, however, we had to pass through a lava field. It was quite the hike, especially for the kids and the puppy. When we reached the first of the falls, we ran into a reporter from the Salem Register Guard. She interviewed Poppa for a story in the paper!
The trail leads to a vista of the first falls, which appeared to be the bigger of the two. But the trail to the second falls lead us to base of those falls. The water cascaded down the hill into a pool. There did not seem to be an outlet for the pool either, so we guessed that it must go directly into the ground. So in two days time, we saw a river emerge from the ground, and a large waterfall disapear into the ground. What a trip!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
