Last Summer Beach Trip

In an attempt to live it up this last full week before school starts, and because it is 100 degrees in Salem and a whopping 80 degrees at the coast, we drove out and enjoyed a thoroughly lovely gift of a day with plenty of friends. I think we were there for 5 hours. Other people left but I just couldn't get up the motivation to leave the absolute glory of a warm day at the Oregon Coast.

At one point, Boy Howdy asked me to come over and inspect his sand creation. I had seen him over there working hard at something, I just expected it to be a castle. I was floored and pretty amazed at his moles he had lovingly built. The two poking their little heads out of the ground as well as the other lounging in the sun soaking up some rays (complete with claws). When I told Zachary to pose next to his sculpture, he decided to become a mole as well.

I wonder when I will stop being happily surprised by this sweet boy. I constantly awe at the creativity that flows from his quick mind.  Happy Beach Day!!!

Chewkie Turns 6

Chewkie turned 6 this year on a Sunday and since we were gone on our family vacation the week before, we opted to do her friend birthday party on the Monday after. She was most forlorn about having to postpone her birthday by one day but we had a great weekend celebrating our sweet girl. Saturday, we decorated her birthday cupcakes with help from her darling friend O and O's older brother L.

Sunday, my sister and her husband were out of town, so we invited their children over Saturday night. They went to church with us and helped celebrate Chewkie before going home. Chewkie got a new baby doll and carrier along with a suitcase of LOL dolls (which came with a ridiculous amount of packaging)

We saved the cupcakes she decorated for her birthday party and made another cake to eat on Sunday with family. I love that she was "wearing" her baby while we sang to her and she blew out her candles. I thought, this is a true mother in the making.

Monday could not come fast enough for this cutie pie. For her first friend birthday we went to Super Bounce which is a warehouse with lots of bounce houses for the kids to climb in, slide down, and jump on.

We invited lots of kids because we didn't want what happened to Doodah to happen to Chewkie, but somehow all but two were able to come which made for a big party for the girl. I'm pretty sure she was in heaven all day.

Oh how I love this little girl. Her zest for life and kindness still amazes me every day. She is so sensitive to the feelings of others and still cries when others are sad or hurt. She consistently thinks of those she loves before herself. She shares easily, brightens up every room, and she naturally draws people to her. I love listening to her pretend play, especially when she is playing by herself. I love that she is such a sharp reader and that she was reading chapter books by herself while she was still in kindergarten. I love that she constantly kisses and hugs me and wants to "cuddle" me even if she is still one of the most wiggly girls I know. I love that because of dance she is started enjoying makeup and yet she still wanders around outside barefoot digging in the dirt. I am so blessed to call her mine for eternity. I love you my sweet little girl.

Family Vacation at the Oregon Coast

I knew when we went to San Diego for family reunion in July that Matthew wouldn't be driving down with us. But I thought he'd make the trek back with us. When he called to deeply apologize for abandoning us due to a hectic work schedule for all but three days of the trip, I made him promise that at some point this summer we could spend time together just us. 

Since then, we've been looking at different vacation rentals on the Oregon Coast. We finally picked one solely because it had an amazing view for Matthew, bunk beds for the kids, and wasn't overly expensive for me. We were supposed to go camping the week before, but my niece got married instead, which bumped our excursion to the week after. It maybe wasn't as warm as we would have liked and one of the days rained more often than not, but we were together for one whole week just us as a family. I was in heaven.

The first day we got there too early to check in to our house. We played at the beach for a time, but soon we got hungry and it still wasn't time to check in. The kids aren't big road-trippers so we had to convince them to get back in for the drive to Tillamook for food and, of course, ice cream.

Wednesday was cold and rainy so we decided to go to the Oregon Coast Aquarium in Newport. I've heard good things about it but hadn't ever gone. It was on the more expensive side of adventures, but as a fun vacation splurge I thought it was totally worth it. We saw so many unique sea creatures (like cowfish and sea horses) that I could have watched for hours. We walked in tunnels with sharks and other cool fish swimming around us on all sides. We watched the feeding of sea lions and walked along the estuary. I loved it all even if it meant getting rained on while we were viewing the outdoor exhibits.

The path to the beach was a steep hike complete with basically rappelling down the last bit of rocks to the sand. And because of that, we mostly had it all to ourselves. The kids were on a serious hunt for sand dollars at their grandmother's request, so each day we took LONG walks along the beach looking for treasures. On our last full day there, Matthew and I breathed in the perfectness of the moment.  The day, while wasn't hot, was lovely and sunny. The kids, at a beautiful age of independence mixed with a healthy amount of innocence, were playing happily together in their make-believe world of sand and rocks. The beach had only a small handful of other people making us feel completely isolated in our own little dreamworld. Despite all the stress Matthew is dealing with at work, our lives at that moment in time were utterly peaceful, contented, and perfect.

When we got back home, we immediately went into birthday mode for Chewkie and Matthew was off again on work trips, so I am so thankful we had one week just for our family.

The Hammock

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A couple of weeks ago, Matthew and I were out on a date and weren't quite ready to go home after our activity ended so we wandered into Sierra Trading Post. I found a hammock for sale and on a whim decided we needed one for our home. I've decided it was an inspired purchase.

The kids love playing in it and spend more time in our backyard because of it. Chewkie in particular LOVES to cuddle with me. But I have simply fallen in love. This summer I took up reading again. It's been so long since I've done it as a hobby, and this hammock has been the perfect spot to be reintroduced. The wind, the summer warmth, the solitude, the engaging stories. I am sure I must be in heaven.

Love Notes

Doodah is thoughtful in his own way and I know he loves me, but his love notes make me wonder if he loves me in spite of myself - "From Zachary thanks for being a graet mom even you are mean I still love you". I couldn't help but love this note mainly because I tell the kids, "even if you are not making good choices I still love you."

Chewkie's love notes make my heart melt.
The first one she gave me a few months ago - "I love this family so much"
The second one is a little harder to decipher. She wrote it while near the end of our family reunionnand although I was trying desperately to be a good, happy mom, I found myself stressed with all the driving and parenting by myself (Matthew joined us for just a few days) and was short more often than I would have liked. She says - I epreteate (appreciate) you because youve bee acting nice kind. You ar like a dimond in the sky you shin so brite that peple are . . . I love you Your Butiful Love Adelae.

This girl is so thoughtful and kind. Just today she wrote a letter to a boy that will be in her new 1st grade class next month who is rumored to be mean. She says she is excited to meet him, will he be her friend, and she likes cupcakes and all things blue. She's also written a note to her soon to be teacher introducing herself and expressing her excitement to be in her class and learn lots of new things.

I hope she will always be this eager to radiate her love, especially to those who need a little extra.

Chewkie Takes Jazz

A year and a half ago I put Chewkie in a ballet class. She loved it, and I was proud of the progress she made, but somehow I never thought ballet really fit her quirky and energetic personality. So after the term was over, I enrolled her in the studio's brand new tap class. I really loved not having to get her into a specific outfit, she loved not having to have her hair in a bun. But, for anyone who has ever seen my daughter she is almost ALWAYS on her toes, making tap moves really difficult for her.
She wanted to quit and go back to ballet, but then . . . the studio started a jazz class for her age group. Perfect.

We were both excited for this compromise between the two disciplines. Today she started. She is only one of two little girls in her class so hopefully more kids sign up, but here's hoping she's found her dance style.