Amazing

   I've heard his name for years. I've listened to him on CDs. I've watched him on TV and online. But on Monday, I saw Itzhak Perlman play live in downtown Portland! At 69 years old, he's still a world-class violinist. I was so awestruck and blessed to be in the audience. Way inspiring. Way cool.  Dinner and a show...I could do that again!

Fall Sports Wrap-Up 2014

We love us some Fall Sports! The little gal did a great job out on the soccer field, we now have 2 Taekwondo black belts in the house, a cross country star in the making, and a little swimmer!

Sweet 16

That's right, Dan and I have had the privilege of 16 married years together! It was 5 months ago, but I wanted to get these pics up before the next anniversary. We left the kids home with grandma and stayed overnight in a cabin in the woods. We took a 5-mile hike up and around Multnomah falls. My old-lady knees were struggling to get me back down. No problems going up, just some hammering pain going down. Dang knees. We also browsed a few local antique shops. But my favorite part? Enjoying breakfast outside on the porch!

Willamette Falls Kayak Tour

Just before school started, we took a family kayaking trip on the Willamette near Oregon City, OR. We floated down the rapids near the falls, watched the jetboats zoom past us, splashed each other with our paddles, and even jumped out of the kayaks for a swim. Super fun!

 

 

 

Summertime

My aunt asked me recently how I fill my days. Without giving it much thought, I gave her the brief and super vague answer of "mostly mom stuff". But after looking through some of my summer pictures, my "mom stuff" is way cooler, productive, and demanding than I made it out to be. I could have shared with her any number of the following mom duties.

Taught 3 days of music classes to 200 young girls(with my trusty partner, Andrea).

 

  Endured whiplash with this permit-wielding, wanna-be stunt driver. By the way, I'm so calm and collected in the car with this kid. You're welcome, Braden.

 Hit up garage sales looking for items that I don't have to pay full price for, like Trevor's recent bike find.

 Started a home renovation project: painting my bathroom cabinets.

 Driven, practiced with, paid for, and enjoyed this young man's cello lessons and performances. Here he is with hundreds of other youth from church, rehearsing a medley from 'Lord of the Rings'.

 Kept up a garden with my little helpers. PS- Our pumpkins are getting huge!

 Made a big problem go away with a simple, crafty sign. No dishes have been washed more than once, nor have any dirty dishes fouled up a clean load since the sign went up. Thank you very much.

 Bossed the kids around with daily chores. I'm pretty good at it. Here they are giving one side of the house a scrub-down and bleach bath.

  

Rid my yard of two of these lawn-wreckers. Check-mate! Yeah, gross.

 

 Treated the kids to a CURRENT summer movie. Must have been feeling extra saucy this day, because usually I opt for the cheap-o theater playing the old stuff.

 

 Kept the kids cool with multiple trips to the lake.

 Dealt with puke and diarrhea for 2 straight weeks from a stomach bug passed on from cousins. Thanks a lot, cousins. Did I mention the sickness made it through 5 of my 5?!

Committed another 10 weeks of my life to staring at soccer fields while my little lady zips around improving her game.

 Camped with the whole family with nearly zero hours of actual sleep. I don't sleep well with weird forest noises, crying toddlers from neighboring tents, a ridiculous rooster, and squawking birds. Notice I'm the only one with eyes open in this picture. It was 5am. I looked the same at 12:09am, 1:09am, 3:00am, and 4:00am.

 Encouraged my kiddos in the tug-o-war competition at Dan's work picnic.

 

Kept it together when I had to watch my babies fight their sparring matches against higher-ranking black belts way bigger than them during their taekwondo tournament. Way to go Ryan on whooping everyone in your division at patterns. Awesome job!

Found out I have chondromalacia in my patellas. Sweet! I've been preparing myself for a 26-mile walk with the youth in our church this September. Ever since I hiked Mt. St. Helens 6 years ago, I've had knee problems when I go downhill. Finally went in for some x-rays this week to see what was up. Looks like I might need some knee accessories if I want to make it the full 26 miles. 

 

Then, I would have told my aunt that these were just a small sampling of my summer excitement!