Cannon Beach

We took a day trip to the beach last weekend and had a fun time. We started out at a little park for a picnic and the kids were able to feed the seagulls their leftover bagels and crackers.

The beach was very crowded, but we found our place and got to work on the sand castle that Dominic had been talking about making for several days prior. Our first attempt was very, very weak. As you can see in the pic it just looks like a sloppy mound of sand, but Dominic didn't care at all. He shouted "yeah, a sand castle" over and over again like it was the greatest thing on earth. It's nice that kids can be so easy to please sometimes.



Despite the overcast skies the kids still wanted to be in their swimsuits and splash in the water a bit.



Tessa was a bit nervous at first, but once we sat her down with a bucket and shovel she literally did not get up for over an hour. She was very content just digging and dumping the sand.

We bundled her up and sat her on the chair as we were packing up and she laid down and when we would peek at her she would smile and say "I hiding." She's getting to be a lot more fun these days.


It was a great last trip to the Oregon coast, but we're looking forward to trying out a much warmer Virginia Beach very soon!

A Trip to the Dentist

The kids got to go and get their teeth cleaned from their favorite Dentist this month. They had such a fun time at Cole's school pressing the buttons, spraying the water and wearing the sunglasses. Macie and Dominic were both very good (which probably wouldn't have been the case if it wasn't their dad) and Macie said it was fun. The token at the end was more than enough to make it worth it for them - Dom got a Ninja, Macie a penguin and Tessa a rock star rubber duck.

Before we had even pulled in our driveway at home Dominic had already brushed his teeth again in the car. The "cool" Pirates of the Caribbean tooth brush won him over very quickly. The next day I went to get my teeth cleaned and Dom was so excited for me. "Mom you're gonna get a cool toy at the Dentist!" He wasn't too crushed by my news that Mom's don't get toys, only kids do - "Oh, well you're gonna get a Princess tooth brush!"

No more teeth cleanings from Papi - it's braces from here on out!

Signs of Summer

We are having fabulous weather here in Oregon! We've planted a few flowers, played outside a lot, examined bugs and let ants crawl up our arms.

Watermelons are in the stores and we are loving it! Last week the watermelon I choose was pretty delicious, but this week it was a little more gritty and not as good. I've heard many ways to pick a good watermelon (knock on it, look for the lines on the outside that are "bee stings").

How do you pick out the best and juiciest watermelon?!!

I'm in need of a tan! We've got a graduation dinner coming up for Cole and then another dinner as soon as we get to Virginia and some nice tan legs would be nice. I've always been a fan of the Jergens Natural Glow (or store brand) and think it works pretty well, but I need to get better about using it everyday.

What is your favorite sunless tanner?!

30 Days!!

I kinda feel like the theme of my life right now is
"This was no time for play.
This was no time for fun.
This was no time for games.
There was work to be done."
(I hear this phrase a lot as Macie likes to read "The Cat in the Hat Comes Back" to Dominic while we're in the car.)

Sure, work is a part of life. In fact I recently gave a talk in Sacrament meeting about Hard Work and Sacrifice and how there are many blessings from it. I'm just wondering why all my work has to be piled into one of the busiest times of my life. I have had more 30-notices for tenants moving in the recent month than I ever had while being an apt manager. We pulled in from being gone all day and there was an envelope staring me in the face when I opened my front door. I sighed and picked it up and then my heart dropped as I read the first line . . ."this is my 30 day notice that my last day in apt ___ will be June ___." Then I turned to Cole and said "We're being cursed!" and started to cry. So now I have 2 vacant apts and 2 others moving out in early June! Insanity is what it was feeling like for a few days but things have calmed way down and now I've decided that everything will be ok because I just gave my own

30 DAY Notice

to my boss!! There is a light at the end of the tunnel! Yes, our time is winding down here in the NW and although it's been a fabulous 4 years we're ready for our next adventure back east!! Life is hard, but so good. We are happy and enjoying our last days with friends and family here!! Our day of play is usually Saturdays - Cole just finished up another season of football with his brothers and friends. I really enjoy going to the games as I get to visit with all the wives (we do watch the game too) as our kids play together. We're sure going to miss it here!