31 May 2009

For Memorial Day we went hiking along the Upper Rogue River Trail.  It's one of our favorite hikes for kids: miles and miles of level trail for them to run back and forth along.  At an elevation of 3000 feet, the temperature was perfect.  Looking at these photos, it seems like much longer than a week ago that we were out there.

The Rogue River is narrow and fast near its source.  It runs all the way to the Pacific, changing its character several times as it goes from a narrow channel to a lazy river to world class whitewater.

This photo was taken at a favorite park.

Abe and Gibson made each other laugh by both trying to get a drink out of the drinking fountain at the same time.

This "Dublin Bay" climbing rose has dwarfed its trellis.  It exploded in blooms this week and is covered with literally hundreds of roses.  Brandan gave Becky this rose bush as an end-of-residency present and we kept it in a pot for a couple of moves.  It was one of the first things we planted in our yard and it has thrived ever since.  This summer marks 5 years since we moved here.  We're not as extravagantly delightful as our rose, but we've thrived as well.  We've grown by 2, been well fed by the natural beauty around us and basked in the warmth of true friends. 

24 May 2009

Sophie talked Abe and Helen into making a human pyramid with her.  It worked pretty well considering their height differences.  

Becky knew Brandan was making her something for her birthday (getting locked out of the garage is a big hint), but she did not expect this: a Calder-inspired mobile made of aluminum welding wire and colored acrylic squares.  Brandan hung it from the ceiling in the stairway.

The finished mobile is a work of art as well as an engineering marvel.  The entire structure balances very elegantly.

On Saturday, we drove to a nearby town for their Boatnik Festival.  We got there in time for the parade.  The main event of the day was a speedboat race with homemade speedboats.  Even the engines are homemade.  The race feels like a pine wood derby for grown-ups. 

Sophie sat in one of the boats for a photo.  Near her hand you can see part of the steering cable.  About 25 years ago Becky's dad built a soap box derby car with the same cable steering apparatus as these boats.  It's pretty scary to think of trying to steer a speedboat going 85 miles an hour with that primitive cable.

17 May 2009

Sophie has started doing her own laundry.  She likes feeling responsible for herself.  She does a great job which makes us think a 9 or 10 year old could do laundry just fine.  Watch out, Abe!

Our town hosted police officers from all over the northwest and Canada for a motorcycle riding competition.  A parking lot was laid out in an elaborate maze of traffic cones.  Becky took the kids to watch the police officers practice one day and they liked watching the motorcycles weave through the course so much, Brandan took them back to watch the competition.  All of the officers were happy to answer questions and let the kids look at their bikes.

Helen's dance class ended this week with a recital.  We all enjoyed watching her dance.  She kept her eyes on her teacher and carefully copied every move.

Sophie snapped this funny photo after the show.  Helen is dashing to the refreshment table.  If you can only eat one of the treats on a table piled with goodies (rice crispie treats), you want to make sure you get one.

This is our front yard, but this is not our yard sale.  Every Spring our town advertises a hugely popular city-wide yard sale.  It's a fun morning to enjoy good weather, see friends and neighbors and look for deals.  The yard sale next door sprawled down the sidewalk, which made it possible to scoop up bargains just steps away from our front door.  (Chelsea still has an exercise machine available, if you're interested.)  

10 May 2009

Happy Mothers' Day!  Gibson got to use markers to draw some flowers for his grandmas.  It's pretty rare for him to use markers because he requires close supervision.

Every other Spring, our school presents an art exhibition with projects created by every student.  It's a fun evening to walk through the exhibit, enjoying all the color and creativity, looking for names we know and especially admiring the talent of our own resident artists.  Sophie painted a lovely watercolor of a beach at sunset for the show. 

Abe drew this frog with markers and a pencil.  He says, "It has a football for the mouth and baseballs for the eyes."  We love the curl at the end of the frog's tongue.  This frog snaps flies with panache.

Mother's Day weekend marks the end of probable frosts for our area, so we planted our garden on Saturday.  Sophie, Abe and Helen each chose their own bed to plant whatever they wanted in.  We filled in the remaining 2 beds with the leftovers.  Each bed has a different style.  Sophie planted exotic varieties of carrots, kohlrabi, parsnips and radishes in concentric arches around an Anaheim pepper, all bordered by forget-me-nots.  Abe planted cherry tomatoes, broccoli, beets and kale in orderly lines.  Two thirds of Helen's bed is flowers-- asters, zinnias and lupine-- food for the soul, maybe.

The biggest threat to our freshly planted garden is our neighbor's cat.  The soft dirt looks like a warm, inviting litter box to her.  We tried a home remedy this year-- sprinkling the dirt with cayenne pepper and chili powder after we planted the seeds.  Hopefully the spices will discourage digging.

And finally, one of those parent payback moments.  Sunday afternoon, after church and lunch, Abe, Helen and Sophie put a puzzle together on the hallway floor.  We could listen to them all day like this-- chatting together as they helped each other find the pieces.  

3 May 2009

Brandan was gone to a conference for part of the week.  At the same time, our kids were suffering from fevers and runny noses (not the swine flu, we hope.)  It was a good week to snuggle on the couch and watch lots of movies.  Or at least the same movie over and over again.  

A cute idea seen in San Diego + gorgeous fabric from Sarah = designer shopping bags.  This fun project was essentially free, took one morning to do and now Becky feels 35% more stylish at the grocery store than she did a week ago.

With Brandan home and the kids feeling better, our family participated in the city-wide clean-up on Saturday.  We picked up litter for a couple of hours.  Hard to imagine a cuter clean-up crew.

Kudos to Sophie, who not only picked up her share of trash, but gently shepherded Gibson at the same time.