McKenzie Makes a Shake!

Usually when I invite McKenzie to cook with me or to do something in the kitchen, she doesn't jump at the chance :) However, she helped me pick 13 1/2 pounds of strawberries the other day and then wanted to learn how to make a milkshake. She was excited to learn something new and made delicious shakes for her and Conner.

Girls' Weekend 2010

Mom, Mary, Amy, and I had a great time at our annual girls' weekend. This time we stayed at the Gearhart House in Gearhart. The weather was absolutely amazing - on Saturday it was sunny without any wind. We enjoyed spending several hours on the beach, reading, people watching, visiting, walking, sleeping, and watching quite a few cars get stuck in the sand. Both mornings we went to my favorite coffee shop. We did lots of shopping and eating and had fun playing Boggle and Farkel. This year Sara joined us for a couple of hours since Saturday was her 10th birthday and she was camping nearby at Fort Stevens. She was excited to be a part of our special weekend, and we had fun being with her on her special day.

Fun Day at the Beach

My friend Janette and I took our kids to the beach yesterday (along with a couple of McKenzie's friends). Leaving Portland the weather was warm and sunny, but as we came within 10 miles of the beach, it was very cloudy. We were tempted to turn around and go back to Portland, but we decided to keep going. We made the right decision, as most of the clouds quickly burned off, the weather was warm, and there was NO wind. Conner and Aaron spent 3 hours digging holes and trenches, the girls did a little shopping, and Tristan and Kelsey used a magnetic wand that Tristan brought to collect something magnetic in the sand (it does have an official name, but I have no clue what it is). They had fun burying each other, having a picnic, playing catch, crossing the river, and chasing seagulls. Kelsey got some help crossing the river as it was a little too cold for her :) Of course, no trip to Cannon Beach is complete without a trip to the ice cream or candy store. Janette and I pretty much sat on our blankets, watched the kids play, and talked the entire time!

Softball Season

McKenzie is once again playing softball and is enjoying spending lots of time with her friends (that's what softball is all about!). I loved this picture of her with 2 of her very best friends. She has been with the same coach and many of the same girls for at least 6 years. Now that they're older, though, they have some games that start at 9:00! I hope I will be able to stay awake while I keep score.

Conner's Last Day of Middle School

Today I was quite sentimental (and still am) as I said goodbye to Conner and McKenzie on Conner's very last day of middle school. I watched them walk down the street together, happily talking to each other as they went to catch their bus. Today was the last time that they will walk to the school bus together. I smiled thinking about how great of friends they are. They definitely do their fair share of fighting, but they still hug and kiss each other and tell each other "I love you." After they left today, I spent time thanking God for our kids and kept thinking about how Conner really is growing up. Wasn't it just yesterday that he finished preschool at Little Green Apple? Wasn't it just yesterday that he was on top of the world as a big fifth grader at Rock Creek? Wasn't it just yesterday that he started sixth grade at Stoller? Time sure has gone by quickly, but we are all really looking forward to his new adventures ahead as a high schooler! We got a newsletter in the mail from Westide Christian that was written by freshmen students. They encouraged the new freshmen to take risks by trying new things and making new friends. After Conner read the whole newsletter, he said that he is thinking about wanting to play basketball. My heart felt so happy to hear him say this because we know that he really enjoys basketball and plays it almost every day during lunch at Stoller. However, when he played on a middle school team he really seemed to lack the confidence because others were better than him, and the team was so competitive. It is so refreshing and inspiring to read in the Westside newsletter that there are so many different ability levels on their sports teams. They encourage kids to try out for teams even if they have never played the sport! Sure, they may not have the most skilled athletes and are a 3A school, but they have coaches who believe in the kids, inspire them to try new things, and challenge them to be the best that they can be. As Conner hears about and reads about what his new school stands for and believes in, you can visibly see him feel more secure in taking risks and see such a glimmer of hope and excitement in his face. We are so grateful that he is about to begin a new chapter in his life and feel so blessed that he has such an exciting opportunity ahead of him. So we say goodbye to the middle school years and can't wait for high school!!

A Great Big Thank You Note

Kelsey invited her friend over after school so that they could make a thank you poster for their teacher. She is planning on having all of her class sign the poster. Kelsey continually amazes me by how thoughtful she is - she thinks of things to do for other people to make them feel special. Kelsey really enjoyed her 4th grade year and loved her teacher. She is sad that she only has two more days of school left.

Beach Getaway

Peter and I had a wonderful night away at Cannon Beach last night. Mom and Dad gave Peter a gift certificate to the Ocean Lodge for Christmas which also included babysitting! We were so fortunate to get away for some time together. I had prayed yesterday morning about us really being able to talk and to be completely real with each other about our marriage, our family, worries, etc. It seems like we get into such a rut of coming home from work, making dinner, doing our own separate things, etc. God completely blessed our time as we had great talks about lots of different things. One of the best things we did was take different scriptures and talk about how we each thought that they applied to specific things in our lives. It may not sound like fun, but it really was....we read the scripture about how God can take faith as small as a mustard seed and do incredible things. As Peter faces a potential layoff at the end of the month, we know that a little bit of faith in the situation will go a long way. It was so great to actually take the time to have a deep conversation. We also went to our favorite coffee shop and drew chalk designs on the table, went on several walks to look at all of the cool beach houses, ate lunch at our favorite restaurant in Gearhart (Pacific Way Cafe), and got woken up in the middle of the night by the hotel fire alarm....! We thought there was a fire or a tsunami, so it was quite scary. Luckily, it turned out to be nothing. The kids had a blast at Grandma and Grandpa's house. Kelsey went to sleep tonight with the happiest smile on her face as she noticed that her blanket smelled like Grandma. She also smiled as she talked about Grandma reading to her, talking about having a playdate, and spending time with the dogs. Thanks, Mom and Dad, for everything!

Kelsey's first piano recital

Kelsey did a wonderful job performing at her very first piano recital. She was so confident and enjoyed dressing up and straightening her hair. She did not seem nervous at all! She played a duet with our neighbor who she spends time with almost every day. Grandma and Grandpa came to cheer her on. McKenzie even came even though she stayed home sick from school with a very sore neck. Kelsey was so sad at the thought that McKenzie might miss it.

It's Almost Summer!! :)

One of the first signs of summer approaching is the strawberry fields opening! I have been dreaming about sitting out on our deck drinking fresh strawberry lemonade (with the new drinking jars I bought at Pottery Barn). To celebrate this beautiful, sunny day (after 21 straight days of rain), Kelsey and I went strawberry picking with Jim, Drew, and Mags. Amy couldn't come because she had to get her hair done.... Since the parking area was too muddy for cars, we rode up on a tractor - it was fun except for inhaling some of the exhaust. We had lots of fun picking berries and talked about all of the smoothies and shakes we could make with them. We had the Guses (including Buddy Guse) over for a quick barbecue (Peter made great steak and burgers) before Kelsey's game and enjoyed our strawberry shortcake and strawberry lemonade.

One of my Favorite Things

At work today I met a very nice family during a home visit. Right when the speech pathologist and I entered their home, the child's parents greeted us so happily and warmly. I absolutely love working with the Hispanic community, as they are typically very grateful, friendly, and eager to help their children. After spending time with this family of the almost 2 year-old boy who hasn't started talking, they gave me the most beautiful flowers. They repeatedly expressed their gratitude for our ideas and time. I am continually amazed by the families who always offer me something, when they appear to have so little. I'll always remember one visit at a migrant camp (with 8 people living in a small room), the family turned over buckets for us to sit on and gave us Cokes and corn on the cob. We sat and ate with them while chickens ran around next to us!

New Recipes :)

Yesterday Conner (notice the much shorter hair than the previous post!) and I made the richest pie I have ever tasted in my life! We spent a few hours making Mother's Black Bottom Peanut Butter Pie from my favorite cookbook. I'm sure it has enough calories in one piece to last for at least two days! It has a peanut butter shortbread cookie crust, with a layer of chocolate fudge, and then a peanut butter, cream cheese, and whipped cream filling. Chocolate fudge is drizzled over the top (in our case it turned out to be more like polka dots :) I've also been on a Triple Chocolate Chubbies kick, my new favorite cookie recipe. We took them to Silver Falls with us this weekend, and they were gone within minutes. Kelsey helped me with the most recent batch. I always love baking with the kids.