27 March 2011

We're nearing the end of a monster-long Spring Break (12 days!) Brandan took a few days off in the middle of the break and we took a little road trip to the Portland/Vancouver area. We stopped at Silver Falls state park on the way. A nine mile trail encircles 10 waterfalls. We hiked to 2 of the waterfalls. Here we are in front of South Falls.

Here's a photo of Sophie in front of Lower South Falls. This waterfall is shorter than South Falls, and prettier. 

This photo of Helen is so dark because she is standing behind the waterfall. The trail went behind both waterfalls, a neat feature of the hike. Abe liked throwing rocks at the backside of the waterfall.

 

We warmed up after our hike at a terrific lodge built by the CCC during the Great Depression. The park volunteers kept a large fire burning in a huge stone fireplace.

 

We stayed with our friends, Tim and Kirse, in Vancouver and our kids' favorite activity of the trip was playing with their kids. Unfortunately, we don't have any photos of them. While their kids were at school, we had fun playing in Portland. Tuesday we spent the day at OMSI-- a science museum that encourages (demands?) interaction with the exhibits. Here Brandan shows Abe how a DJ adjusts the speed of two turntables to mix music. Brandan was a DJ in high school for a rap band.

 

This photo shows Helen playing a whack-a-phone. This instrument may only exist at OMSI. You play it by hitting the ends of pipes with the soles of rubber flip flops. We'll be watching for this musical technique at the conference center during General Conference. 

Here's Gibson inside a model of a Gemini space capsule. Except for his feet not reaching the ceiling, he looked pretty snug. It's hard to believe this tiny spacecraft was built for 2 adult men.

 

Back in Vancouver, we drove past our old house. While Brandan was in residency, we lived in a duplex at the very edge of the hospital parking lot. Now it is just a grassy spot at the edge of the parking lot.

 

We spent Wednesday at the Portland Zoo. The kids started the day with lots of energy. Here they are pretending to be baby eagles. 

Surprisingly, they ended the day with plenty of energy, too. We certainly didn't expect to see every animal in one visit, but they just kept going and going and going. . . The animals, on the other hand, were mostly sleeping-- a good reminder that real life, even in a zoo, is not the same as a television nature show.

 

Back at home, we celebrated Gibson's 4th birthday on Saturday. Brandan made delicious pancakes for breakfast. Yoda tasted much better than you'd expect anything 900 years old to taste.

 

Here's a photo of Gibson warming himself over his birthday cake. Four candles seemed like a small bonfire to him. Gibson directed Becky, Sophie, Rylee, Abe and Helen while they decorated his cake. He wanted a basketball/Star Wars/Buzz Lightyear cake. We pretended the Star Wars action figures were playing basketball and Buzz was the referee.