Tacoma Rainier's

Connor has become quite the baseball player and fan this summer. He and Ryan love to watch the Mariner's on their new HD TV. Our friend and neighbor Daryl's bank are major sponsors of the local minor league team , the Tacoma Rainier's , and so he was able to get us some sweet tickets. When we first arrived Connor requested pizza for dinner, so after we got seated , I went to get us some. When I brought it back, he said, "I'm too busy watching the game to eat." He never took his eyes off the game, even to eat treats. Sadie was a different story, but she was pretty good as long as we kept her occupied (mostly with treats)! Connor was sad when the game was over, but we got a special treat of fireworks afterwards. It was a really great Friday night. Thanks again to Daryl!

Connor's Birthday From "Texas Grandma"

Before Grandma left she took Connor shopping for an early birthday present. One thing I have always liked about Connor is that he is VERY decisive. He makes up him mind quickly and easily and then sticks to it . Whether he is choosing what to wear, what's for lunch, a movie to rent, or a new toy, he always knows what he wants. This was the case when my mom took him to Target. He went straight to the Clone Trooper Helmet and we were at the checkout 2 minutes later. He was so proud of his new gear he took a picture of it to document. Thanks Grandma! We had a fun visit with you!

Northwest Trek

The kids, Grandma, and I decided to take a trip to the Northwest Trek Wildlife Park before my Mom left. It is a pretty unique animal park in that all of the animals on exhibit are residents of the Northwest. They try to make their habitats as natural as possible. There are also hundreds of acres set aside for free roaming animals. I think the highlight was the hour long tram ride to see what we could find. Connor was our photographer for the day. He took all of these...

Cougar

Wolf

Deer

Moutain goat's backsides (Connor thought this was SOOO funny!)

Grizzlies

Happy kiddos

The Grandma

The Mom

Buffalo or are they Bison??

Bald Eagles

Cannon Beach with "Texas" Grandma

We decided to make the short drive to Cannon Beach to show my mom the Oregon Coast. It was the perfect day. Everyone (even Cooper) loved the sun, sand, water, and good company. A trip to Cannon Beach is not complete (according to Connor), without a trip to the Lumberyard for lunch, and Bruce's Candy for treats.

The Girls at the Beach
I buried Connor in the sand

Sadie LOVES to lay out...such a diva!

Connor eating his candy treats

The famous "Haystack" Rock

"Texas" Grandma Comes to Town

My mom came to town at the end of July. We had a great visit, jam packed with fun! The first couple of days she was here we had record heat-over 100 degrees. We spent the first full day at the pool and in the backyard. Then we headed to Portland to show her around some of our favorite spots. Ryan's parents were in Montana visiting Anett's parents, so they were gracious enough to let us stay at their house. When we arrived in Portland we went to lunch at Elephant's. Yummy! Then we tried to go ride the zoo train, but it was out of service. Sadie was pretty bummed. Luckily the roses were still blooming and beautiful. The kids even took a dip in the fountains. Yuck! I was just going to let them put their feet in because it was pretty hot, but before I knew it they were both in all the way! Then we went to the playground at Washington Park and had a fabulous time playing. By then the playground was nice and shaded and cool, and we practically had the whole thing to ourselves. Sadie and Connor had a blast on the metal twisty slide. They probably went down it over 50 times each. When we had had enough we headed back to Grandma and Grandpa's for a good nights' rest. Ryan and I snuck out (Mom let us) and hit a new cupcake place we had heard about, Saint Cupcake. It was good, but not as good as Cupcake Jones. Then we went to Northwest 23rd and got our favorite salted caramels from Moonstruck chocolate. Ryan called it our version of "Bar Hopping", or "dessert hopping." Its a miracle we are both not fat, given our love for sweets! It was a great day!

The favorite twisty slide at Washington Park

Swimming in the Fountains

The Girls at Elephant's (Connor took this...pretty good I think)

Kids and Grandma at Elephant's

Sadie enjoying her pizza

Connor's First Loose Tooth

Connor lost his first tooth in July. I took him to the Dentist who happens to be a good friend, and he said, "Did you know Connor has a very loose tooth?" I had no idea...bad mom I guess. I just thought he was too young to lose a tooth. Just another sign my baby is growing up. He was pretty happy to have the Tooth Fairy leave him 2 dollars. When I was little I got 4 quarters and had to give one to each sibling so that left me with one. It was sort of cool because anytime anyone lost a tooth we all got something, but not so cool, in that 1 quarter couln't get you much , even when I was little. When we lost teeth my dad also had to call the Tooth Fairy to tell her. He would get out the phone book and look up her number and have a nice conversation with her about her upcoming visit to our house. Too Funny!

Trying to show his loose tooth

"Choo, Choo", and Rose Gardens

Always fun to splash in the Fountains
Red Roses

Smelling the Pink Roses

Since our wonderful Grandparents babysat so we could go to Coldplay, we got to stay in Portland and spend Satirday exploring Portland more. Although it seems I had been to Portland quite a bit over the Spring and Summer, Ryan was usually stuck back at home working so it was fun to have him with us this time. We visited one of my favorite spots in Portland, Washington Park. Sadie was dying to ride the "choo, choo" around the park and zoo, so we started with that. Then we went to the Rose Gardens. It was the first time we had ever gone when the roses were in bloom. They were soooo beautiful. The kids had a fun time running around , until Sadie tripped and fell into a rose bush. She was surprisingly tough and wanted to pose for her picture to document her "owie."

Us in front of the red roses again...there were many other beautiful colors, but Connor only wanted to pose in front of the red ones. I guess they are the more "manly" roses???

My little buddy

Sade and Grandma on the Train


The Guys

Cold Play

In July, Ryan and I met our friends the Foutners' in Portland to see Cold Play. Ryan and I don't have a lot of common interests as far as music goes, but Cold Play is one of the few bands we both like. We had decent lawn seats, but in this venue it was still difficult to see the stage very well because of the cover over the seated area. I was excited to see that Coldplay set up little stages in in a few different spots out further in the audience. I think they played 2 or 3 sets out closer to us, so that was pretty cool. It was a really beautiful night, filled with great music, and great company.

Daryl thought he was pretty funny...with his alcohol wrist band...such rebel:)
Us

Fourtners