4th Of July

We woke up on the fourth of July happy to have made it safely to the KOA the night before.

We promptly got ready for the day (but not before having a muffin and some hot cocoa in Aunt Julie's famous disposable to-go coffee mugs) and headed to Rockaway Beach, where my grandparents live.

We arrived just in time for the small town parade.

When it was all over we visited and then headed back to my grandparents house.  

Then it was on to lunch at the Cow Belle (our favorite restaurant in Rockaway) and then we were off to go play at the beach.

It was a gorgeous day. My grandparents even moseyed down for a while.

The boys played some frisbee, and then let my boys bury their feet in the sand.

I so enjoyed sitting on the beach, watching kites fly,

and watching my boys enjoy one of my favorite past times.

Rockaway just has a piece of my heart.

This little firecracker had so much fun in the sand!

When we were done playing in the sand, we all got ice cream cones.  We ate them in the sunshine and then decided to head back to the campground.

On the way back up the coast, we stopped at a view point and I snapped these beauts.

I just can't get enough.

I miss the vastness of the ocean so much when we're back in Alaska.

We said goodbye to the ocean and trekked back up Highway 101.

These kids took a little snooze.

Then it was time for dinner, followed by smore's.

Wyatt loved marshmallows,

and he also enjoyed the double dipped malt ball I always buy for camping from the bulk section at Winco.  I will admit, I have been known to have my cheeks stuffed with them as well.

Our nephew Isaac made some tasty smores as well.

Everyone enjoyed sitting around the campfire and talking while the kids made and ate smores.

We opted to forgo any fireworks and instead laid low after our busy day.  The boys didn't miss it, and I had gotten my firework fill at the rodeo, so we were all content!

It was a beautiful fourth of July, filled with all things American: 

sunshine, family and, of course, Hershey bars!

Getting There...

July 3rd we set out to go camping with Josh's sister Julie (who doubles as my best friend) and her husband and kids.  The night before our camping trip, Josh and I had gone to the rodeo.  So we awoke tired, but hopeful that Josh could fix the car, load it up and that we could all head out.

Josh looked at the Pilot again in the morning and it was running fine.  Then he ran some errands in it, and it was acting up again.  (No speedometer, trouble shifting...)  Then it was fine again. sigh. Seriously?  So we started loading it up, in hopes that whatever was wrong had been resolved and we could go about our day as planned.

We finally got loaded up, met with Josh's brother Samuel, fiance Tiffanie and her brother Kyle and got about three blocks from our house when the speedometer went out again, and we were back to super hard transitions from one gear to another.

Josh's mom had offered us her car for the whole camping trip if we needed (which was so generous) so we called to let her know we would need to take her up on her offer.  Then we began shifting camping gear and luggage from our car to Samuel's Suburban.  When we got enough out of our car we limped (again) back to Josh's parents house.  Meanwhile, Wyatt wet his pants, so when we got there, we switched cars, changing car seats, moving DVD players and emptying all the nooks and crannies we had jam packed with things we'd need while camping, and I used Wyatt's spare change of clothes from his backpack to freshen him up.  Then we were on our way again.

Almost.

First we stopped at Burger King to get the kids some french fries and nuggets.  It was shortly after that stop that we heard it. It was unmistakable.

We looked back and, sure enough, Wyatt had thrown up all down his front and on his car seat straps.  It was mostly water, but still. We had to stop and change the poor guy!

So we stopped just twenty minutes into our journey and the guys climbed up on Samuel's Suburban to scavenge through our luggage in search of another change of clothes for our little boy.  While we were stopped Samuel decided to check his oil and found it to be three quarts low.

Then, just as we were ready again, Kyle, riding shotgun in the Suburban, noticed that Josh's mom's front tire was low.

The guys stopped and did a little investigating.

Sure enough, there was a screw in the tire.

The guys changed the tire, putting on the spare, and we went to yet another gas station in hopes of finding a patch kit so we could drive the rest of the way to the coast on a real tire.

We got lucky and found a patch kit that Kyle was able to use to repair the tire, and voila! we were on our way again!

We hit the road well after 8pm and got to witness a beautiful Northwest sunset on the way.

It was truly stunning.

Somehow we managed to make it all the way to Astoria without falling asleep, and once there we unloaded everything as our kids snoozed away in Grandma's car.

The biggest blessing for us was that Julie had taken our tent and kitchen cover with her, so they were already set up when we arrived at nearly midnight.  

It had been a long road, but we had made it!

Now the fun could begin!

The Rodeo

For all the years of our marriage (eleven next month) I have been asking begging Josh to take me to a rodeo.  This year he surprised me by setting up a date for us at the Molalla Buckaroo in Molalla, Oregon.  He arranged a sitter and looked into tickets, etc. 

Unfortunately as we set out to take the drive from Vancouver to Molalla our car started acting up.  The speedometer quit working and the check engine light came on.  As we limped the car back to his parents house (where his mom was watching our kids) we thought it must be the transmission going out, which was distressing not only because it would cost about $3,000, but also because our car only had 76,000 miles on it. Not near enough to warrant a new tranny.

Thankfully Josh's mom knows the importance of date night, and when we arrived back at her house in our sad car, she insisted that we take hers (A Daytona Charger) instead.  So off we went.

When we arrived at the rodeo, I was instantly excited.  There were cowboys and cowgirls as far as the eye could see, and the energy in the place was palpable. Plus, they had elephant ears. And this girl LOVES her some elephant ears.  I had two.  They were a-mazing.

Our seats were great and not too expensive.  We were right up close to the action.

We got to watch barrel races, bronc riding, steer wrestling and of course bull riding.  Counting down those eight seconds was so exciting as the cowboys struggled to stay on. 

The announcer did a great job of explaining the points, how they were earned (or not) and what made a rider good (or not).  By the end of the rodeo, my voice was hoarse from cheering them on!

The best part, though, was just sitting, quietly with no distractions, next to my husband. We were able to give each other all our attention, finish our conversations, and just be together in a way that three kids don't allow!

After the rodeo there was a spectacular fireworks show.

Holding Josh's hand as we watched the starbursts in the sky,

I felt like the luckiest girl on earth.

I love this man of mine.

And what a good man he is.

The Happiness Project :: MINDFULNESS :: July

For July I chose to focus my Happiness Project on "Mindfulness".  

July is probably the least stressful month of my year, where I get to sit back and truly enjoy life.  With that in mind, I set out to make some goals with the intention of improving my ability to be in the moment.

If you recall, April's goal was Energy; May's was Parenthood; and June's was Friendship.  And if you have no idea what I'm talking about (What is a Happiness Project? How can I create one?) I suggest you purchase Gretchen Rubin's book.  It is so inspiring.

So, on to this months' goals:

1) Pay Attention to my Body

-breathe

-keep my shoulders down

-eat

-pee

-be warm enough

Funny as some of those may be, I find that when I listen to my body's cues, I am a much happier girl!  And when you are chasing three littles around, finding time to eat and pee can sometimes be a challenge!

2) Take Time to Listen to my Instincts

There have been times where I haven't trusted my gut and later I regretted not listening to my inner voice.  This month I hope to slow down enough to hear my own thoughts and follow my instincts.

3) Meditate :: Relax :: Do nothing

To put it simply, I want to enjoy life!

I love this quote from One Thousand Gifts (another great read):

"Every time I surrender to stress aren't I advertising the unreliability of God?" 

-Ann Voskamp

I want to trust in the goodness and the happy times.  I want to enjoy the beauty around me.

4) Practice Self Appreciation

Last month I worked on extending grace to my friends, and this month I want to do the same for myself.  I will be keeping a "Good job Journal" in which I can record things I have accomplished or overcome.  I think it will help to quiet my inner critic.

5) Allow Myself to Feel How I Feel

It's important that I let my feelings exist without censoring them in any way.  Generally that means sharing them with my husband or writing them in my journal.  Once I feel them, I can let them go.  And that's the quickest route to peace.

6) Be Present, Slowly

Most of all this month, I want to stay in the moment. I want to worry not about the past, nor about the future.  I want to be right where I am, as I am, experiencing life to the fullest.

***

Pool Party

Yesterday the boys and I got to go to my old neighbor's house to swim in her pool.  It was a great reunion with tons of moms, kids & grandma's.  So much fun!

The twins got in the pool and didn't exit until it was time to leave.  Wyatt swam less, but still wore himself out and spent the last hour and a half asleep in my arms.  It was the perfect summer day.

"Summer afternoon- Summer afternoon; 

the two most beautiful words in the English language."

-Henry James

our days...

Hi!

How are you?

This hilarious picture is intended to start your Tuesday off right!

We're good.  Spending our days going to movies, riding bikes and visiting parks.

Enjoying driving in the car, and seeing all our favorite places in Vancouver.

Last week we went swimming, camping & saw the Pacific ocean from our favorite place-- Rockaway Beach, Oregon.  I can't wait to post pictures and share with you.  Oh man we had a great time!

Wyatt's still talking about marshmallows & chocolate!

Jack was excited to spend some time with his cousins.

I gave the boys haircuts.  I just can't do long hair styles.  I lack the barber ability to keep it under control and looking cute... So I pretty much shaved off all of the twins' hair.  Their hair is so straight and so blond.  It's completely unforgiving.  It shows every cut.  Wyatt's hair is the polar opposite. It's dark brownish, has some wave, and looks good no matter how horribly I hack at it.  Eh, I guess you win some, you lose some!

*

These sweet pictures are from Father's Day.  Josh was napping on the couch and Wyatt crawled up and told Josh he wanted to sleep with him.

Those two melt my heart.  

*

The boys were totally blessed for their birthdays with toys galore.  So when we had a few rainy days here, we managed inside just fine!  Play doh, Imaginext and some awesome Goodwill finds have kept us content.

Our next agenda item (once the car is fixed... but that's a story for another post...) is to get these kids to a library!  We are all tired of the same stories for bedtime and I can't wait to see Wyatt's eyes when he walks into a house full of books!  Like mother, like son!