Wednesday, April 29, 2009

Multnomah Falls




As we were driving home from Portland we decided to make a quick stop at Multnomah Falls. As we were parking in the distant parking lot I thought, "oh this will be a quick stop", but as we walked closer and closer it became more and more magnificent. The greens become greener, the water mists you, and you almost can't believe how beautiful it is. The kids loved the hike up to the bridge. Maxwell wanted to keep going all the way to the top of the falls, but I was not about to haul a baby up that path and Steve did not want to be piggy-backing Sophie. I've done the little one mile hike before, and it is a bit harder than I thought it would be, especially in flip-flops.

Tuesday, April 28, 2009

Chaos with the Coles

Our nephew Brandon got married last weekend in a little town in Oregon about three hours from Portland, so we decided to turn it into a family vacation and visit Portland, including the city's main attraction...the Coles Family. We shacked up with them in their adorable house complete with a kitchen that is smaller than our master bathroom. Seriously, who designed houses in the olden days? And that was back when moms actually had to cook every meal, rather than let McDonald's do it for you. Other than the kitchenette the house is awesome. (Don't worry the Coles won't get offended...they're renting!) It has a basement that kids can, and do, spend hours playing in. It is also located in the charming Multnomah Village, which pretty much makes up for the dinky kitchen.

The kids loved spending 45 minutes at the Children's Museum. It would have been longer, but we arrived 45 minutes prior to closing. That's how we roll! Mira and Olivia Coles are obsessed with their teeth. Steve showed Mira how to wiggle a loose tooth properly, and so she was doing that the entire time, including during her t-ball game!


There is a section of the museum where children can apply their own face paint. Isn't that every mother's dream?


Steve examined the crocodile teeth and just in case you were wondering, the anatomy is correct!


In a previous post I had mentioned the violent nature of my children. I just want you all to know that usually they are quite sweet. They are great conversationalists...


...and very loveable!


A trip to Portland would not be complete without a visit to the Rose Garden...even when the roses are not in bloom! Isn't that what imaginations are for?



Steve and Dustin are alike in many ways. They are both great Dads. They are both very helpful husbands. And they both roll their eyes and shake their heads at their wife a lot!


If Steve and Dustin's jobs fail we now have a back-up financial plan...The Max and Mira Modeling Duo!



We were told the Portland Zoo is a must, and it did not let us down. The concensus is that the favorite exhibit was the Polar Bears. Those are massive and beautiful beasts. It was truly amazing to see them. I don't even attempt to take pictures of animals behind glass, because without fail there is a big streak of reflecting light down the middle of the picture. Instead I took pictures of my beautiful litte beasts!


Can you tell which children were lacking sleep? Thanks for the exciting (and exhausting) time Coles Family!

Monday, April 20, 2009

Easter Orange



I bought Sophie's dress from a little boutique called European Baby almost two years ago. It was on clearance and size 4T was the smallest size left, so I had to patiently wait to add it to her wardrobe. Easter Sunday was the perfect day to unveil it! I even bought Maxwell an orange shirt to match, and then the rest of the family attire just fell into place from there. It really came in handy that Steve had an orange tie. I bought it for him once in honor of his alma mater...the Boise State Broncos. He pairs it with his blue shirt and wears it with much pride!

Sunday, April 19, 2009

My Babies are Bullies!


This is one of my dearest friends Rebekah (I can't believe I just said dearest...that makes me sound old!) and I with two sets of our children. We each have three children and they are all very close in age. In the first picture are Maxwell and Mira as babies, and the second picture is Lucas and Capri, taken just a couple of days ago. Why is it that my children are performing acts of violence (i.e., pulling hair and throwing a right jab) while her children are passively looking on? Kind of funny, but seriously, what's the deal?

Sunday, April 5, 2009

What About Mom?

In Maxwell's class they are teaching a special safety course. You know the one when they start out with the easy stuff like not to talk to strangers, and end with the hard stuff like what to do when someone touches you wrong. I have talked to Maxwell about this many times, so this should be a major repeater course, but it is always good to have reminders. He came home with a list the teacher had him fill out that was titled "Who can I tell". It had three blanks for him to write names of people he could tell if someone was touching him inappropriately. This was his list:

1. uncle

2. Steve

3. aunt

He wrote in his own #4. Mrs. Love (his teacher)

I was going over this list with him and he explained it to me further. He said when he put uncle he meant Uncle Ryan. Uncle Ryan is my sister Cali's husband, and he just became a police officer, which is the coolest thing ever to a 6 year old boy. He now associates police officers with protection rather than just someone who will give you a ticket if you don't buckle your seatbelt!!

I thought it was funny that he wrote Steve rather than Dad on the list.

When we got to "aunt" I asked him which aunt he was referring to. He said, "which of your sisters is tough and does kickboxing?". I said, "that's my sister Cari". He said, "yea, that's who I meant...Aunt Cari." He is really seeking protection here isn't he?

I'm sure his teacher was happy that he added a number 4 and wrote her name in, but really, where the heck is Mom on the list?

Maxwell loves first recess

The other day Steve had a couple of appointments cancel so he decided it was time to take care of his own and clean Maxwell and Sophie's teeth. Maxwell has never minded getting his teeth worked on, in fact, it almost seems like he enjoys it sometimes. This day was different...because he was going to miss first recess. He literally threw a tantrum - a 6 year old tantrum. I could not believe how upset he was getting. I could not talk him down from the ledge. In the midst of his tantrum he cried out, "I HATE DENTISTRY." I burst out in laughter and couldn't stop. I think my laughter finally got to him, because I saw a hint of a smile appear on his face for a moment, but then he caught himself and started back in on his ranting and raving. It was a memorable moment!

Quizzes

Maxwell and Sophie are totally into quizzes lately. They especially like math quizzes, nevermind that Sophie always gets asked what is 2+2 and her first answer is always "1". Even when I preface the question with "think really hard before you answer." Then after saying "1" she always follows it with the right answer. I'm not sure if she is teasing me without a smile, or if I should be worried about her brain activity.

The other night after discussing the "standard works" and what books of scriptures that includes the kids wanted a quiz. This was her question:

Me: The standard works includes The Bible, The Book of Mormon, The Doctrine and Covenants, and the Pearl of Great...what?

Sophie: Harvest!

Can you tell where we buy our bread from?