Category Archives: places

Dad is Rad

Jonathan and Avery went on a couple of special outings at the end of summer. A few weeks ago they attended their first Seahawks game together. We’re not much of a sports family – never watch games at home – so this was pretty foreign to Avery, not to mention a little noisy/overstimulating. Overall, he seemed to have fun just being out with Dad. Although Jonathan reported later that when they left (right before half-time, Avery was getting tired), he said to Avery, “I had a good time at the game with you,” to which Avery replied, “I didn’t.” Wow, brutal honesty.

The following weekend Jonathan took Avery on his first camping adventure. We surprised him after preschool with a sign that read “We’re going camping!” We sounded it out with him, and his reaction when he finished the last word was so incredibly cute. Shock, excitement, followed by, “let me go get my flashlight!”

They left on a Friday afternoon, and planned to stay one night, two if things went well. Fortunately, Avery was in good hands with his father, the Eagle Scout, and he rated this experience far better than the football game, so they stayed until Sunday. The pair had a blast hiking, exploring, building campfires, roasting hot dogs and marshmallows, telling ghost stories, and enjoying each other’s company. Plus, there was the added bonus that without cell reception, Daddy could not possibly be distracted by the iPhone. When it was time to come home, Avery tried to convince Daddy to stay a few extra nights, and even suggested that Daddy could bring his laptop and work from the campsite.

Heading out to their first Seahawks game together

“Camping is so much fun!”





With a railroad tie he found

Collecting wood for the fire







Expert s’more chef

Sunday morning

The boys say bye to Daddy before he leaves for work in the morning

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Blueberry Picking

We went blueberry picking a couple of weeks ago at our regular spot, Bybee Farms, in North Bend, WA. Avery was a much better picker than the previous year. Kieron, who doesn’t like blueberries, stayed occupied in the jogger with snacks as long as they lasted. After that, we let him out to roam a little, and he wandered among the bushes collecting dandelions. In the end, we picked about six pounds of berries, not bad with our little monsters in tow.



“Personally, I prefer dandelions over blueberries.”




Our bounty

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The Oregon Coast

After returning from Texas, we stayed home long enough to do laundry and repack our bags. Then we piled into the van and headed down to spend a long weekend with Nana and Grandpa at their condo in Neskowin, Oregon.

The boys had a blast digging in the sand and playing in the creek. Kieron can entertain himself for a long time with a shovel and rake, and enjoys the feeling of sand running through his little fingers. Avery is all about building sand castles and sand kingdoms, often favoring the role of project manager over brut laborer. And Mommy and Daddy got in another date night while Nana and Grandpa watched the boys.

On our last afternoon we had a nice walk along the beach with Avery while Kieron napped. It was fun to get out with just him, since these days he usually has to share us with his little brother. There’s an ancient forest on the beach that becomes visible at low tide, and we checked out the tide pools around every tree stump looking for marine life. To get to many of the trees, we had to run out while the waves were out, take a quick look, and then book it back in before the waves “got us.” Of course Avery loved the thrill of it.




Posing with his sandcastle




Avery in front of Proposal Rock




Date Night!


13 week bump shot




For his sweetheart

Avery took this pic of Mommy & Daddy

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Texas in August

This was our first time visiting Texas in August, and if there’s one word to describe it this time of year, it’s HOT. You certainly wouldn’t know it here in Washington, but there really are heat waves going on in much of the country! The day we travelled, we experienced a 40 degree increase in temperature, which was fine by me!

We got in lots of visits with Uncle Scott, Aunt Manivanh, and Nicole & Andrew. We also visited with my cousin Laura, and her family. I got out with Grammy one day to see a movie (The Help) and and have lunch with her Garden Club. On our anniversary, Grammy and Papa watched the boys and we went out to a nice French restaurant for dinner, but forgot to get a picture.

As you’ll see from the pics, we spent the majority of our time in the pool goofing off. Avery made great strides with his swimming. For the past month he’d been talking about how he was going to jump in the pool this year and launch off Daddy’s shoulders. Then when it came time, he froze up and wanted no such thing. On about the third day, we remembered Nicole’s old swim vest was in the pool bath, so we put it on Avery. It was all he needed to transform into a full-on stunt devil. This was Kieron’s first time in the pool, and he took to it like a natural. He really loved floating on his back, I think because the water felt good in his helmet. He also enjoyed observing the mayhem from his turtle raft.

Nicole, Avery, Kieron, & Andrew




Coloring paperdolls






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Snoqualmie Tunnel

Jen, Oliver & Bjorn came to visit in early August. One afternoon we hiked through the Snoqualmie Tunnel on the Iron Horse/John Wayne Pioneer Trail. We tried to go a couple of years ago, but it was closed due to falling debris. It reopened in July after renovations were completed.

The tunnel is 2.3 mi long (each way), and quite chilly inside. The boys had an awesome time, but I’m so glad we did this with friends. I don’t know if Avery would have been such a trooper without a buddy. Kieron enjoyed himself in the backpack. He fell asleep on the way out, and on the way back he spent much of the time making noises and listening to the echoes in the tunnel.








The Smiths


The Kings

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