October already

As you can probably infer from my lack of posts, I have been busy this school year. I have no idea how half the semester passed by so quickly! Our family has enjoyed the fall season. Some of the recent activities include:

• Birth of Luke's second cousin, Amaya
• Mark's (our nephew) 4th birthday
• Oktoberfest in Mt. Angel
• Several UP soccer games
• (oh, and Tammy took a very quick trip to MN last weekend)

Luke loves to swing


Tammy and Amaya (born 9/9/09 to Matt and Renee - my cousins)


mmm...what are you eating, Luke? Wayne always feeds you well.


Jim, Tammy, Maddie, Luke, and Mark


Dagny, Mark, and Caleigh (Dagny and Caleigh are my cousin's kids)


Riding the cars at Oaks Amusement Park


On the train at Oaks Park


Enjoying Silverton folks at the Oktoberfest


Luke enjoyed the blow-up play area at the Oktoberfest


Class of 99 Gustavus reunion

All good things come to an end...

Summer is coming to a close now for me. School starts in one week! It has sure been fun watching my little guy grow up a little bit. During the past few weeks, we have had fun in the sun. We especially enjoyed a family vacation to Eagle Crest for our anniversary (mom joined us, so Tom and I got to golf one day...mom and I golfed together on a different day). We also had fun with our friends (Bridget, Matt, and Ben) at a Beavers game last week. Enjoy the photos:


Have you figured out gravity yet, Luke?


Luke loves water


Fun at OMSI


mmm...ice cream


A walk at Eagle Crest


The splash park


Cutie pie


Swim time


Enjoying mini golf


Mini golf


Having fun with Ben at the Beavers game


Luke's first karaoke

Kiddie Rides

I took Luke to Oaks Park on Tuesday to enjoy the pre-school kiddie ride time. He was a real trooper and enjoyed every minute we were there (and fell asleep less than 30 seconds after I started the car for our drive home). He rode the kiddie cars and motorcycles by himself (rode the cars about 6 times!!). The two of us rode the train, the rocking ship, the giant slide (several times), Lewis and Clark Adventure, the hot air balloons, the carousel, and the tilt-a-whirl. What a fun morning!!

Luke also saw baby Mary last night when we had Steve, Lacy, and Mary over for dinner. Luke took some interest in the baby, but was most interested in playing with the bouncy seat.


On the train


Luke loved driving the car


On the motorcycle


Steve (with Mary) and Lacy (with Luke)

A Visit From Uncle Doug

Tom's brother, Doug, came to visit us for a long weekend. We managed to keep ourselves busy with a Beavers game, a day at the beach, and a day at the family golf tournament. Everyone had a good time, including Luke.


Hanging out with Uncle Doug


Enjoying the game


Love the sand


The boys


Running on the beach


Riding the carousel


On the train with Doug


The boys


mmmm...ice cream


At the Beavers game with Anna (and her parents)

We're having a heat wave

Yes - it's been hot in OR. I don't think it has ever been this hot since I have lived here. We are so lucky to have a house with a heat pump (which means we have A/C in the summertime). We enjoyed the heat on Sunday at the pool in Silverton. Luke always enjoys the water, so he had a good time getting wet, but he was unusually unsettled while we were in the pool. He kept wanting to walk out of the water (there's a ramp into the kiddie part of the pool). My mom was sitting in a lounge chair on the pool deck and he kept looking over there. We finally figured out what he wanted when he walked out of the pool, grabbed grandma's hand, and walked her into the pool (and she was not wearing a swimsuit).

Luke has been trying to keep cool this week, too. He enjoys the sprinklers and his daycare went to the wading pool park downtown on Tuesday. I'll take him to the spray park at our local park tomorrow morning (it should be about 85 degrees by 9 AM!!). We also have a wonderful treat for Luke tomorrow...Uncle Doug is flying in to see us.


The kiddie pool


Family fun


At the park after the pool

More Fun in the Sun

We had a busy week! We took the opportunity to enjoy the sun at the Beavers game last Sunday afternoon with some friends and their two daughters. On Thursday, Luke and I spent the morning with Kari/Anna and Judi/Macy. It was unusually cool in the morning, so we did not hit the splash park as intended (but the coffee shop and Judi's back deck was just as fun). We did tiny tots at the library yesterday morning. Today we went to a Hawaiian festival (thanks to Luke's teacher at daycare who told us about it). We went with our friends Jim/Kari/Anna, so it was fun to spend time with the dads for once, too. And we topped off a great day today with an impromptu dinner with our neighbors across the street (Zoe, their daughter, is about 3 weeks older than Luke).


At the baseball game


The Beavers game


A little kiddie pool time


Chasing balls


Swinging at the park with Anna


Macy, Luke, and Anna


Bubbles!!


At Tiny Tots Library Time


Watching the hula dancers


The hula dancers

Grandpa and Grandma Visit

Tom and Nancy came to visit us in Portland for a few days. We picked berries at a local farm, spent a day at the Enchanted Forest (a kid amusement park), had dinner with Eileen, visited a state park, and had dinner with my brother's family. It was a fun time for everyone.


Picking berries with Anna and Kari


Picking blueberries (or, rather, eating blueberries)


At Sauvie Island Farm


At Enchanted Forest


Luke liked the "saloon" (a wobbly floor) at Enchanted Forest


Having fun on the train


Grandmas


The grandparents


Eileen, Tammy, and Luke


With Grandpa at Champoeg State Park


The cousins