an early spring walk in the burbs

April 9, 20121 Comment

So, I want to blog about our awesome weekend, but I need more time than I have tonight.

We’ve had some incredible spring weather here in the Pacific Northwest and we’ve been out enjoying it.

Our tulips are blooming and I couldn’t be happier about how our new landscaping is looking. We get daily compliments from neighbors.

We’ve had to use ladders for multiple projects lately and our monkeys are quickly learning how to use them!

And, after dinner we went for a walk around the neighborhood. Something that Ryan loves to do with the kids.

Lala brought her baby and Bobo brought his “weapon”.

There were new decorations in a tree in the neighborhood that the kids were fascinated by. I am not sure if they are there to scare the birds away (it might be a cherry tree) or just for fun. Either way, the kids liked them!

He was attacked by a bad guy and I had to save him.

Yeah, good mommy moment…too busy taking photos on my phone…”Hey, she fell down!”

But, if I hadn’t been taking pictures, I would have never caught this moment, right?!

Baby girl was fine.

She’s tough.

We live in the burbs. We only need to carry a nerf gun for protection.

But, leave it to Ryan to make sure we are safe.

And, we got home and the monkey wanted to climb…barefoot.

This guy has no fear when it comes to physical activity!

home is…a beautiful spring day.

spring break is here

March 26, 20123 Comments

And, so is Meme!

My mom is visiting for the week.

Yipee!!

The weather is supposed to be rainy.

We’re going to do some crafting, some shopping {thrifting}, and some hanging.

So, I may, or may not, be blogging.

For now, I will leave you with some of my finds from recent thrifting adventures…

Yahtzee…from 1961.

A beautiful globe…

And, a metal toy top…

home is…a bright and happy spring break (even if it’s grey and rainy)!

unexpected

March 22, 20121 Comment

It’s been quite a week.

Ryan’s been traveling for work.

Ben has been sick.

And, the weather has been wacky!

We have had more snow showers in the last week than we had all winter.

That’s not saying much for Portland, but it’s also saying a lot for Portland.

We don’t get much snow.

Rain, yes.

Snow, no.

So, while the rest of the country was enjoying spring or summer like temperatures today, let me remind you what winter looks like.

It started around 5pm on Tuesday Wednesday night…

Just falling, not sticking.

If you follow my Instagram feed (homeisablog), you may have seen some photos taken at 1am…I couldn’t sleep.

This morning we got outside early.

And, built a snowman.

“Hello, Snowman. I am Lala.”

(for the record, she no longer wants to be called a baby girl)

Ryan was worried about our recently sowed spinach, lettuce, and kale. I found (and knew from experience in Colorado) that snow insulates, so you shouldn’t cover your plants in the snow.

Despite the fact that it wasn’t even a normal school day for the little guy we declared it a “Snow Day!”

The little guy plowed snow with his new monster truck.

Our snowman watched happily.

The little guy decided the shovel was a better plow.

Lala gave it a try, but she wasn’t into the hard labor. According to her, snow pants were not acceptable fashion this morning.

So, I took some photos.

The little guy visited with the snowman.

And, posed for a photo.

Lala decided sitting in a chair under a blanket was warmer than playing in the snow. (Did I mention the not wanting to wear snow pants?!)

She’s smart, but…

…she’s got to learn to be tough if she’s gonna hang. We’ve got camping, skiing, and lots of other outdoor activities to do.

So, I snapped some more photos while the kids rested and played.

The blue sky was peeking through.

I am sure the Camellia would have been just fine without the snow.

There are definitely more to come.

By the afternoon, our snowman was all the snow that was left of our “Snow Day!”

He’s slumping a bit.

Looking watch over our garden.

By dinner, the kids were over the snow.

Lala moved on to dress up.

“Bat-Lala to the rescue!”

She was telling me that she needs a Lalaloopsy costume.

I agree.

These kids were raised in Oregon…they’re not used to snow.

We’ll have to see what our snowman does at night.

Stay tuned…

home is…an unexpected winter storm during the first full week of spring.

{thrifting} a new adventure

March 8, 20128 Comments

I’ve done my share of treasure hunting and antiquing, but thrifting is a new adventure.

I went last Saturday with the kids.

{these game pieces remind me of baby girl and the little guy}

And, again, this morning while we waited for it to warm up.

Here is what we found…

Not sure what I will do with these, but I picked them up anyway.

I have no idea who Edward L. Lawson is, but he crossed the Arctic Circle before I was born. I thought this was intriguing.

I have big plans for these embroidery hoops.

These guys are already working.

Storing art supplies for the kids.

These beauties are the MAIN reason that I took my first trip to Goodwill last Saturday. I found the white one today and the others on Saturday.

The little guy found this and I LOVE it! Obviously, handmade.

These games will go to good use, too. We have both of them already, but I love the look of these “vintage” ones.

I love the red and white theme here…great for the backyard movie night I would like to do this summer!

Last June, at the Farm Chicks Show, I contemplated over croquet mallets which were $4 a piece. I didn’t get them, but this made up for it…the whole set for $7.

We even had an amazing day to try out the croquet set in the backyard!

I am addicted, now.

To thrifting, not croquet.

Although, I could become addicted to croquet, too.

home is…a new adventure.

some catch up and a couple of firsts

October 20, 2011Leave a comment

The week before our landscaping project started my wonderful mother-in-law came for a visit, and along with doing some of the fun things on our fall list, I was also able to get some work done around the house and do some things for myself.

It was awesome!

Here are some of the things we did…

I was able to go to the little guys Tae Kwon Do class and actually WATCH him in action rather than try to keep baby girl amused.

We had a fall campfire and roasted marshmallows.

We took a trip to a nearby pumpkin patch…check that one off the fall list!

Ryan and I had a date night…dinner and a movie (the first movie that we have seen together in a theater in over 10 years)!

We also made a stop at a local apple farm and had some more fall harvest fun.

I attended the first of four Adult Beginning Sewing classes that I will be taking this month.

I was able to run lots of errands without kids in tow…I went to JoAnn Fabric 3 times!

I finished painting the little guys ceiling so that I can finally get his bedroom redesign finished.

I made some rose hairclips, a headband, and a “baby tutu” for our new niece in New York.

I also tried some new recipes since I was able to cook without kids pulling on me in the kitchen!

*******

After my mother-in-law left to fly back to New York the kids and I went to get their first full season ski passes! For $20 a piece I couldn’t pass it up.

I am inspired, invigorated, and excited for the fall season…the upcoming holidays, the chill in the air, and some new projects!

So inspired, in fact, that I will be having my first giveaway on my blog!

It will give you a taste of some of the projects that I worked on last week and a little taste of fall here in the Pacific Northwest!

Check back early next week!

home is…feeling inspired by the change of seasons.

{summer rewind} bella beach

October 14, 20115 Comments

My post from yesterday about our road trip to Idaho inspired me to catch up on some of the fun adventures we had over the summer that I did not have the time to post about…because we were having too much fun!

Anyway, I think I decided to bend the rules sometime in June so I have some catching up to do!

I’m going to start with our trip to Bella Beach with Meme and Topher to celebrate the 4th of July and the little guy’s birthday.

Here it goes… On Friday, July 1st Ryan picked Meme and Topher up from the airport, drove them to our house, we had lunch, and headed to the beach! The kids napped on the way. The boys beat us to the house (we had to drive separate cars since we were bringing the dogs) and were already checked in and unpacking when we drove up. We settled ourselves in and headed down to say hello to the ocean. My dad loves seafood, so he ran to the store and they grilled these for appetizers. After dinner, Ryan, the kids, the dogs and I took a walk down to the beach. After a halfway decent nights rest (we did have trouble getting the kids to sleep and had an accident with the safety gate and a baby girl falling down the stairs) we were all ready for a day at the beach. Topher and I drove in to Newport to get a few things at Walmart and then we were ready to go! We played in the sand, flew our Elmo kite,fed squirrels that live in the rocks, and finally got baby girl to take a little nap in the Ergo!

I believe we also saw the first (and only) whale that we have ever seen on the Oregon Coast! We watched it swim down the beach for a long time.

After our fun at the beach we went back to the house for a little “quiet time” before drive to Lincoln City to find a kite store and have dinner. I think a couple of us sat in the hot tub, some washed beach toys, and eventually we all got cleaned up to head in to town. We found some kites, ate a lot of fried seafood, and stopped to have some ice cream. We all slept a bit better after a full day and a big meal to get ready for a trip to the aquarium. Meme, Topher, the kids and I went to the aquarium while Ryan stayed back at the house to get some work done. It was a quick trip. The little guy was cranky and baby girl only wanted Meme to carry her. So, we got them in the car and met Ryan at Rogue where we picked up a growler for later. We also made another stop at Walmart (it’s amazing how there is always something you “need” at Walmart)!

It was foggy and misty when we left the house and by the time we returned the sun was shining and it looked to be a perfect day to spend at the beach! We took our supplies down to the beach…lunch, blankets, towels, umbrella, sand toys, and our new kites! Topher got the kind that you fly using both hands…he figured it out pretty quick and it was fun to watch. We got a box kite that was easy to fly!

The dogs also got to come down to the beach for a while…they were very happy.

After our fun at the beach baby girl fell asleep on Meme’s lap around 6 pm and slept until at least 6 am the next morning. Ryan, the little guy, and I went down to the beach around 9:30 pm to see if we could catch one of the official fireworks shows on the beach. There was still sun on the horizon at almost 10 pm. The wind and the smoke from the campfires and non-official fireworks was getting to me, so I headed back to the house while Ryan and the little guy tried to light a few sparklers.

Eventually they made it back to the house and we all went to bed to the sounds of fireworks.

The next morning Topher headed down to the beach early to set up a spot for all of us. The boys drove in to Lincoln City to look for some fresh seafood and get more kite string for Topher’s new kite (Topher also came back with a second kite…he LOVES toys!).

In between our beach fun we also played with some of the new toys that the little guy (and baby girl) was getting to open each day to celebrate his birthday, the dollar store toys that I brought along (bubbles, airplanes, etc.), and a cool t-shirt craft that Meme taught us!

We made a lunch while the guys were out and headed down to the beach to celebrate the 4th of July. We flew kites, shot water guns, played in the sand, and people watched.

Once again, baby girl fell asleep before dinner. No naps and lots of fun will do this to an almost two year old!

We decided to celebrate the little guys birthday on the 4th since we would be leaving the next morning to head back to Portland and Meme and Topher would be going back to Denver, too.

The little guy declared his 4th birthday a “Batman-Lego-Mario” birthday, so a lot of his gifts followed that theme. As well as the decorations (superhero) and cupcakes.

Baby girl woke up from her “nap” just in time for cupcakes!

As always, we enjoyed great food and wine (and beer) with Meme and Topher, but what I loved sharing the most are the memories that we made for ourselves, and especially, the little guy and baby girl.

This is why I write this blog. So our loved ones can be a part of our adventures whether they are with us or not. And, so the little guy and baby girl have a record of our adventures when they might have been too little to remember.

Our last morning was spent packing up the cars and taking one last walk down to the beach to say goodbye…or in our case, see you next time!

home is…creating memories.

{You can read about our other visits to Bella Beach here, here, here, here, and here!}

impromptu idaho

October 11, 20118 Comments

I mentioned yesterday that we took a road trip to Idaho over the weekend.

Just about 12 years ago Ryan made contact with Mike Gould. Ryan was looking for a hunting dog and had read Mike’s book, The Labrador Shooting Dog. One night when we were having dinner at a friend’s house they pulled the book out, called information, and asked for Mike Gould’s number in Kamiah, Idaho.

Mike answered the phone and Ryan spent about an hour talking to him about a dog. Soon after that Ryan sent Mike a long letter about what he would like to see in a hunting dog. Ryan and Mike talked on the phone weekly, and by March of 2000 we were on our way to Utah on a quick road trip to pick up our Grand River lab, Ben.

Through the years we drove up to Idaho from Colorado multiple times a year. We spent hours driving the logging roads, talking about hunting, nature and dogs.

By 2004 we had 3 Grand River labs. At the beginning of May 2004, Oak (our female) had a litter of four puppies in our garage. We had 7 Grand River labs living in our small house near Cherry Creek in Denver.

One of the reasons we moved to Portland was to be closer to Idaho.

Something about our drives and visits to Idaho make it feel like home.

I’d have to say it is one of my happiest places on earth.

The little guy made his first trip to Idaho when he was less than 3 months old. We have spent Thanksgiving and Christmas with Mike and the friends we have made there.

Every fall Mike hosts a Grand River Seminar in Kamiah, Idaho. It had been 3 years since we had been to one. In fact, the last one we went to I was pregnant and we told everybody there before anybody else in our family knew…mainly because I wasn’t drinking beer around the campfire like I usually do. {I miscarried a month later, but that’s another story}

It was about time to make a visit to Kamiah.

Ryan had been trying to figure out how he could make it work. He was going to fly out there alone. He was going to drive out with Odyssey. He was going to fly out with Reece. Finally after we calculated how much time it would take to fly and drive (from Spokane or Lewiston) we figured we could drive out there in the same amount of time…and ALL of us could go.

So, on Friday night while I took the little guy to a birthday party Ryan packed up food and supplies for our road trip.

We left Portland for Kamiah Saturday morning at 5 am.

We arrived at the seminar (after checking into our cabin at the Lewis and Clark Resort) around 1:30 pm.

The little guy did NOT want to go to Idaho on Saturday morning.

On Sunday morning he did NOT want to leave.

The property that the seminar was held on was FULL of fruit trees…some wild, some planted on purpose at some point.

Apples, pears, plums (we picked 3 different kinds).

The kids and I drove back to the cabin around 9 pm…Ryan finally made it back after 1 am. I am glad he had the time to catch up with all the guys.

After eating breakfast by the campfire we visited with friends for a bit longer and then got back on the road.

The kids earned some new toys for being so good.

We could hear geese down on the river, so they guys started calling.

We left Kamiah for Portland Sunday morning at 11:30 am.

And, made it back home just in time for baths and a good night sleep.

It was well worth the 15 hours of driving for the time spent with friends…new and old.

And, here is my favorite series of photos from the trip.

Our good friend, Dr. Duck, made quick friends with baby girl by helping her with her shoe after it fell off.

home is…dropping everything to go on an adventure with our little family to see great friends.

UPDATE: I forgot to mention that the little guy played baseball during a lull in the afternoon. Man, he was hitting the ball HARD and far. All the guys at the seminar were really impressed with his left-handed hitting skills…I think we have an athlete on our hands! I wish I had taken pictures of it…I think I was making a run back to the cabin for a diaper, or down to the store for M&M’s!

8.14.2004

August 14, 20111 Comment

Remember this photo from this post?

I told you there was a story behind it.

Here it is…

My husband and I spent a lot of time in the Colorado high country when we lived there.

One of our favorite places were the Flat Tops.

We camped up there in the same spot year after year.

My husband named it “Sunny’s Camp”.

On August 14th, 2004 we drove up to our camp for a weekend of camping, hiking, and probably scouting for Blue Grouse.

On the way up the long dirt road we passed by one of the trailers that they sheepherders use for a base camp. The young man came over to our truck and asked us if we had seen a horse on our drive. He said he had the sheep down in the canyon the night before and some bears came through and spooked the horses. He found one, but was still looking for the other one. We let him know we would look for his horse and told him where we were going to set up our camp. We kept on down the road, through the herd of sheep with the Kuvasz keeping watch as we passed.

Once we pulled into our camp we let the dogs out and started to unload the car and all of our gear. After a while I heard our dogs barking. We called them back to camp, but they kept barking and running up a small hill behind our camp. Finally, we tied them up while we continued to set up camp.

A short time later, while we were still settling in and unpacking we heard a loud noise coming up from the canyon below. I ran out from the trees that surrounded our camp into the open park and waved at a large Army helicopter. As I waved it got closer and closer and then landed in the park.

“Oh no,” I thought. “What if they think I am waving at them for help?!”

We had low flying planes and helicopters fly over our camp numerous times as the Army did some of their high altitude training for Afganistan from the Eagle Country airport nearby, but never had one land!

One of the men, looking very official, hopped out of the helicopter and came running over to me.

He asked me if the horse up on the hill was ours.

Immediately I knew what the dogs had been barking at and whose horse it was.

I told him no, but that we knew whose horse it was.

He explained to me that he knew the family who ran their sheep up there and they called to see if they would be able to run any of the training missions over the area to look for the lost horses. I told him we would take care of the horse and he said he would give the family a call.

So, Ryan and I walked up the hill to find the horse and get it free. It had gotten loose when the bear spooked it and run out of the canyon and finally tangled it’s lead (or the rope that they tie it up with for the night) in a tree near our camp. Ryan (who was not very fond of horses at the time) and I worked for a while to get it free and once we did, we had no idea what we were going to do with it!

We slowly led it down to our camp and decided to tie it to the old rail fence that ran along the trees on one side of our camp.

{this is a photo of the rail fence on a different day}

Once we tied the horse up we got in our truck and drove to the sheepherders trailer to leave a note to let him know we had his horse and where he could find us.

After about an hour (or maybe 2) we heard a pickup drive up the road towards our camp. It was the sheepherder coming to get his horse. We told him the story and he tied it up to the back of his truck and slowly drove down the road back to his base camp…he had to get back to work.

And, we had to get back to relaxing.

{Sunny’s Camp}

It’s hard to remember all the little details…in fact, I couldn’t remember if we saw the horse and then the helicopter, or vice versa…I still might have gotten it wrong.

At any rate, it was an exciting little adventure.

That helicopter landing right next to our camp after I was waving to it from the park sure got my heart pounding.

home is…reliving adventures from the past.