Planner that I am, I have a bucket list, despite the fact that I am still young and in good health (knock on wood). For my 30th birthday, Jonathan’s parents helped me cross one thing off my list. They watched to boys for us, and Jonathan and I woke up at 4:00am, tanked up on coffee, and headed to Newberg, OR to catch a hot air balloon at dawn.
I have to admit, I was a little nervous watching them fill up the balloon with hot air. The basket looked awfully small, and the flame looked really big. Before long, it was all set to go, we jumped in, our pilot unhooked us from our anchor (a van) and we gently lifted off the ground. According to him, the winds were “squirrley,” but I didn’t notice – it seemed like a smooth takeoff to me. The ride was a breeze, so to speak – very peaceful and still. We drifted over the Willamette river (where we attempted a “splash and dash”), just over the tree tops, and on over farms and beautiful houses on large lots. We even saw a couple of horses in a corral get spooked by a curious deer. After our flight there was a champagne toast followed by a delicious homemade brunch. This was definitely an experience I will remember. Thanks Jenny and Bill!

We spent a week in Texas with Lindsey’s family over the Fourth of July. Uncle Scott was in from Afghanistan at the same time, so we were very happy to have everyone together. The holiday was spent playing in the pool, drinking margaritas, and eating BBQ ribs.
We were particularly impressed with Avery’s increased confidence in the pool over the course of the week. Although he’s taken swimming lessons and been in and around pools often, Avery has always been very cautious in the water. But by the end of this trip, he was swimming underwater between Mommy and Daddy. Each time he came up, he took a breath, said “again,” and dove back under water. The pool really wore him out and he took some good naps while in Texas.

We spent the weekend in Vancouver with Nana and Grandpa. On Saturday they babysat the boys and we went on our first postpartum date for Lindsey’s birthday. The weather was beautiful and sunny, so we enjoyed cocktails outside in downtown Portland before dining on sushi.
Avery is now big enough to go on the swing hanging from a tree in Nana and Grandpa’s front yard. He loves going high, and swings clear across the yard.
Grandpa took a few pics of us before our big date




Avery on the swing