Fun Visit with Paige and Remy

May 4-17

My sister Paige came out to Portland for a few weeks to hang out before flying out to South Korea to spend some time with her husband, who is stationed there with the Air Force.  We had so much fun!!!  My kids were still in school all day so that gave us a lot of time to play during the day.  We had fun hanging out in Portland, went to the Children's Museum and even went out to the coast.  It was super fun having her here!

Julian loved having a little "brother" to play with.  

Happy Mothers Day Paige!!  Zach ordered flowers to be delivered to my house, what a sweet guy.

Playing at the Children's Museum

There was a man at the museum with a bunch of different reptiles to show the kids.  Remy was soooo NOT afraid of this giant snake.  I mean, look at him, he is seriously loving on that snake!  Paige...not so much:)

Remy wanted a turn to "wear" the snake.  I was so impressed by how brave this kid was!

"Good things come in pink boxes"  Of course we had to stop at Voodoo donuts!

Get on your bikes and RIDE!

Remy at the beach.  This was only the 2nd time he has been to the beach in his whole life and really loved it.  I don't think he liked the cold water but he really liked digging in the sand.

Making a stop at the Tillamook Cheese Factory is a must!

Remy on the train.  He loved looking out the windows and walking around on the train.  He is such a happy guy.

Jumping on the trampoline with Mommy.  Paige is such a great Mom.  I gave up jumping on the tramp when I turned 15!

Julian reading Remy a bed time story.  It was so cute to watch these two together.  My twins basically ignored Remy and Paige but Julian really loved having them visit...and he even had to give up his bedroom for them!

The Boys Go Camping

April 15-16: Scout Campout and Hike through the Ape Caves in Washington

Getting ready to go into the caves

I think they really loved all the climbing around you had to do to get through the caves.  Of course my monkey children had no trouble getting past obstacles:)

Taking a little break with a friend after the cave hike.

April 25-27: Townsend and Emerson 6th Grade Outdoor School

I wish I had better photos to post of this event but since neither of my kids brought a camera I just had to settle for the few photos the teachers took.  The boys said they had fun (except the food was "gross")  I think they enjoyed being away from home and hanging out with their friends 24/7

Townsend and his cabin group sitting down for a meal.  Townsend is on the left, sort of hidden by the leader.

When I picked them up from school after Outdoor School they both were "starving" and I had to take them to KFC!

May 13-14: Fathers and Sons Campout

Julian is pretty much our only child that will allow us to take photos of him anymore:)  They got to camp right near this little stream.

Having fun with a camp fire.

Our Duck Babies

We became the parents of 6 little baby ducks after their mommy was hit by a car.  We came upon the scene and just had to rescue the poor babies.  All the websites we read and all the people we talked to said we shouldn't have taken them but my tender "mother" heart just couldn't resist.  We brought them home and only later found out it is a Federal crime to keep wild water fowl on your property...

Look at these gorgeous little guys, how could I just leave them by the side of the road to be eaten by cats??  They were so tiny and so cute!

We made them a little enclosure so they could spend some time outside each day.  We still brought them in at night to sleep in our closet.  We have raccoons and neighborhood cats we were worried about.

The first casualty occurred after we had them for just a few days.  They were so quick and would run around so fast that Julian accidentally stepped on one.  He, of course, felt super bad about it and came to me with tears in his eyes to tell me what happened.  Poor little "stomper"...he will be missed.

The babies getting bigger...it seems like they grew up over night!

"Stomper" 2.  This also was an accidental stomping.  He had gotten out of his enclosure and just ran right under our feet as we tried to catch him to bring him back to safety.

We were down to just 4 babies:(

Here they are about 1 week before we released them back into the wild.  They had a nice big swimming pool to play in.  They had a covered little area to sleep in at night.  They had lots of grass to walk around on (and dig duck holes into!)  They were getting so big and even starting to flap their little wings.

We found a beautiful little wet land near our neighborhood that we released them into.  They were a bit confused at first and didn't really swim around much.  After about 30 minutes they started exploring more and eating from the pond weeds.  They seemed happy but cautious.

After just a few days in the pond our babies were comfortable.  They were welcomed by the other few ducks that lived there.  Two of the babies were flying and I'm sure the other 2 will be there soon.  I miss having these little guys in my back yard.  It was sort of nice having them to watch and grow.  But in the end I'm super happy that they are back in nature where they belong:)

Random April

Julian was the Super Student for the week.  He was so proud of the poster he made.

He is so dang cute!

The 6th graders at the boys school had the chance to hear from a Holocaust survivor.  This was a very special opportunity to hear first hand the experience of someone that was sent to a labor camp when he was about the boys age.

April was a very beautiful month...the weather was just fantastic!  Hyrum and I took the opportunity to go for a few sunny bike rides.

Our little helper

Our first trip to Sauvie Island for the year.  Like I said, April was just warm and wonderful!

We bought an air popper for our popcorn and our boys were fascinated with this 1980's technology:)

Happy Easter...Happy Birthday Rachelle

We got back from our fun San Francisco trip just in time to celebrate Easter with our friends and family.  We had a great Easter egg hunt at Katrina's house on Saturday followed by a yummy family dinner on Easter Sunday.  We are so lucky to live close to the Doxey's and have the chance to celebrate so many fun holidays with them.

Easter egg hunt group

Townsend with his candy

Fun Easter bunny rolls and a lamb cake:)

Happy 39th birthday to me!!  I got spoiled by lots of yummy chocolate, cake, good lunch with friends, and a fun trip to the coast with Hyrum.  Sometimes birthdays are the best!

Lunch at Costa Vida with some friends.  Sure, we had to drive 45 minutes to the closest Costa Vida...good thing I'm worth it!

Yes, my friends all know what to bring me for my birthday to make me happy!

Happy Birthday to me!

Very fun trip to the coast with Hyrum.  We stayed in a wonderful hotel right on the beach.  Had a couples massage in the morning.  Ate some really yummy food and walked around the town of Lincoln City looking at the shops.  Mostly it was wonderful to be kid free and relax all weekend!