Bend it like...Oregon

My parents flew out this past week and gave Dave and me a chance to get away for a few days. We headed down to the Pronghorn resort in Bend, Oregon with our good friends, Mike & Jacie.  They were celebrating their 13th anniversary.  We were just celebrating 4 days of adult-only conversation (aka 4 days without Thomas the Train).  The boys got two rounds of golf and the girls hit the spa and did some scrapbooking.  We all relaxed, ate good food, caught up on sleep and had an all around great time!

Us

Mike & Jacie 

 The boys on the 18th tee which was right outside our patio door

 Tired golfer

Beautiful course

 The baby bunny in our back patio area

 All of us at dinner

Can't wait to do it again next year!

Visit with Josh and a Happy 4th

Last weekend my brother Josh came in to town for the 4th of July holiday.  We lucked out and had beautiful weather throughout his stay.  On Friday I had to work, so he and Dave went out to Newcastle Golf Course for lunch and then headed to the Muckleshoot reservation with Dave's brothers to buy fireworks.  

On Saturday we played outside and purchased a kiddie pool (see previous post) for some water fun.  We then headed to Pacific Raceways to drive go-karts.  Dave and Josh drove, the kids and I just watched.

Afterward we grabbed dinner at The Rock and then frozen yogurt at our favorite new place - U Top It!  If you live near Covington, it is worth a try.

Sunday we took Jack to his first movie - "Cars 2".  He made it through more than half of it before deciding he was all done sitting still.  Then I got to walk around the mall with him until it was over.

We also spent some time visiting the parks in our neighborhood and having a picnic.

And then Monday of course, was the 4th.  We had some friends and family over and hung out with our fantastic neighbors in our cul-de-sac.  We played in our pool some more, barbecued burgers & hot dogs, set off fireworks, and then watched all of the firework shows for miles and miles from our back deck.  The views were absolutely incredible.  Other than my horrible allergies (I'm allergic to anything that grows) and a hand full of splinters for Jack, it was a fantastic 4th!

We all posed for a picture to give to my parents for their anniversary - 43 years on July 6th!

And then the kids wanted to pose for one too - Tatum (neighbor), Kate & Noah (friend)

Me and my big bro

My little peanut

 Pool time!

 Popsicle time!

Nothing like eating dinner in your driveway!

Jack overloaded with red velvet cupcakes - yum!

On Monday, I took the day off work and we kept Kate home from daycare to spend the day  with us.  We went to the Experience Music Project (EMP) museum to see the new Nirvana exhibit.  It was very cool and Kate loved getting to play with the instruments, especially the drums!  She plans to be a rockstar when she grows up.

We finished up the day with lunch at California Pizza Kitchen followed by shopping at Toys R Us for Jack's upcoming birthday.  Then it was time to drop Josh off at the airport.

We had a ton of fun Josh!  We are already looking forward to seeing you in October for your next visit!

Dream Come True - Sort Of

Growing up, I loved swimming.  Any time I got a chance to go to a pool, I was thrilled and I stayed in it as long as possible.  My parents usually had a hard time getting me out.  I loved taking swimming and diving lessons.  But growing up in Colorado, it wasn't too common to have swimming pools in your backyard.  I think I had one friend, Allison, who had a pool.  And I LOVED getting to go play at her house!  Outside of that and the occasional visit to the rec center's indoor pool, my only pool time happened during family vacations - which wasn't nearly often enough.  So as a child I always dreamed of owning a home with a pool in the backyard.  

Well I moved to Seattle where it is even less common to have a pool in your backyard.  What was I thinking?  But this past weekend we had wonderful weather so I ventured out to Fred Meyer and purchased a pool for the kiddos.  Not quite the pool I had dreamed about when I was growing up, but I guess it will do for now.  And the kids sure seemed to enjoy it!

And Daddy turned on the sprinklers in the yard to add even more fun.

Pure joy!

Maybe someday I'll retire somewhere warm and sunny where it is typical to have a pool in your backyard.  Until then, the kiddie pool will have to do.