Aunt Miranda and cousin Alivia came to town about a month ago and we had a complete blast! There is nothing better than family and it was great to show her around our little town and this beautiful part of America. On Thursday the 13th of August the kids and I drove up to Portland to pick them up from the airport. Friday morning we hung out and then that afternoon we took a short drive to visit Wildlife Images. I have been there several times but this was the first time I saw the big Grizzlies. They were huge and incredible! We were also privileged to see the wolves out for an afternoon walk.
In order to put all the pictures on that I wanted to, I made these collages. If you click on them, they will enlarge!
In order to put all the pictures on that I wanted to, I made these collages. If you click on them, they will enlarge!
Saturday morning we headed south to go visit the Redwood National Forest and the Oregon coast. First stop....the BIG TREES! We hiked, played, and ate a picnic lunch among the giants.
Next stop, the beach! Miranda and I had been planning for a long time to do our family pictures on the beach. Our sister Michelle made the girls beautiful dresses, I bought a new shirt and we color coordinated the family against the boys wishes. I guess the wind didn't hear about our plans because it was unbelievably windy! Poor little Alivia had never been to the beach and she was crying because the sand kept pelting her in the face. We attempted a few pictures but Miranda decided it was the worst picture taking conditions we could of asked for! So we stayed and played for a little bit and then headed home.
After church on Sunday the girls and I took Aunt Miranda and Alivia to visit the neighborhood goats. We picked apples, grapes and a bunch of leaves to feed the critters. There was 2 new baby goats that La-La fell in love with. We also fed some horses apples! On the way back we picked fresh blackberries. YUM!
Sunday evening we drove to the river to make a second attempt at family pictures. This time...SUCCESS! Miranda is so talented and we love all the shots she got! It helps that we live in such a gorgeous area so the backdrop was beautiful! The kids thought it was so funny when Miranda would have Justin and I kiss.
Playing around before and after pictures!
The weather forecast for Monday was HOT HOT HOT so we went swimming at a friend's pool. Even though it was 100 degrees the kids all preferred the hot tub. A little smaller and not so intimidating! La-La worked on perfecting her dive and Jaco showed Aunt Miranda how good he is at swimming. It was a lot of wet cool fun!
All summer long my kids have been asking to sleep outside so I decided it would be even more fun to do it with cousin Alivia. So Monday night, we set up the tent, blew up the mattresses and warmed up the barbecue to roast marsh-mellows! Camping at home! The smores were fun like always and Care Bear taught us how to really do it. She decided to do a double toast by cooking the marsh-mellow first, building the smore and then toasting the whole thing again! When it came to actually sleeping all night in the tent, La-La, Care Bear and I are the only 3 that made it. Jaco was a little too loud and crazy so he had to go inside. After listening to all kinds of neighbor dogs barking and cars driving by, Miranda decided if she wanted any sleep she better go find a real bed and took Alivia with her. It still was fun and I am sure we will do it again sometime.
Tuesday was the the day we did Care Bear's friend birthday party which I already posted. (-: That evening we had a barbecue at the river. We made shish-ka-bobs, corn on the cob, watermelon, and yummy salsa made by Miranda. Jaco spent the whole time skipping rocks, something he is getting quite good at! It was a beautiful evening! After dinner Miranda and I went to a movie together "The Time Traveler's Wife" It was really good but my brain didn't do quite as good a job understanding the whole idea as Miranda's did!
Wednesday, our last day to play, we wasted money at the County Fair. OK, it wasn't a waste because everyone had fun but man are the rides expensive! As I watched Jaco and La-La maneuver the bumper cars for 3 minutes all I could think was it cost almost $10! Yikes! The animals were my favorite part. There were tiny new goats, sheep, horses, cows, pigs, chickens, bunnies, and other farm type animals. Miranda bonded with a loud goose and I would show you the video I got of her new friend but I do want her to come back sometime.
Wednesday evening while Jaco and Justin were at scouts, the girls and I played at the park by the river. Alivia figured out she could walk up the slide with her shoes off and said she must have magnets in her feet. La-La and Care Bear would live at the park if they could. They love to run, slide, and of course swing. I have to limit swing time or I spend the whole time pushing little bums!
Our fabulous week with Miranda and Alivia went by way too fast, Thursday came and it was back up to Portland to take them back to the airport. Only problem was it appeared that everyone within 100 miles of Portland wanted to go to the airport too. Traffic was unbelievable! We literally went 7 miles in two hours. It was so frustrating to be so close to the airport and not be able to do anything about it. Unfortunately we missed Miranda's flight along with at least 13 other passengers that were stuck in the same traffic jam we were in. So instead of saying good bye we all shared a hotel room for the night! (That was after wasting time shopping at IKEA!) The kids loved jumping on the beds and after hours being confined in car seats we didn't have the heart to stop them. Plus it made for fun pictures! The next morning when we went to take take Miranda to the airport for the second time, we discovered that I had a flat tire! A nice grandparent type couple took Miranda and Alivia to the airport for me while I waited for All-State to come fix my tire. Finally after getting a new tire, we made it home and Miranda made it to Idaho. We decided that she missed her flight because of the bad tire. If I had of dropped her off and then headed home immediately like we had planned, who knows what could have happened. I am just very grateful I didn't have a blown tire while going 65 mph.
Thanks Miranda for coming to see us! We love having people come visit. The kids still talk about your trip and the fun things we did. Care Bear comments daily about "Aunth Aranda this and Aunth Aranda that."
Next stop, the beach! Miranda and I had been planning for a long time to do our family pictures on the beach. Our sister Michelle made the girls beautiful dresses, I bought a new shirt and we color coordinated the family against the boys wishes. I guess the wind didn't hear about our plans because it was unbelievably windy! Poor little Alivia had never been to the beach and she was crying because the sand kept pelting her in the face. We attempted a few pictures but Miranda decided it was the worst picture taking conditions we could of asked for! So we stayed and played for a little bit and then headed home.
After church on Sunday the girls and I took Aunt Miranda and Alivia to visit the neighborhood goats. We picked apples, grapes and a bunch of leaves to feed the critters. There was 2 new baby goats that La-La fell in love with. We also fed some horses apples! On the way back we picked fresh blackberries. YUM!
Sunday evening we drove to the river to make a second attempt at family pictures. This time...SUCCESS! Miranda is so talented and we love all the shots she got! It helps that we live in such a gorgeous area so the backdrop was beautiful! The kids thought it was so funny when Miranda would have Justin and I kiss.
Playing around before and after pictures!
The weather forecast for Monday was HOT HOT HOT so we went swimming at a friend's pool. Even though it was 100 degrees the kids all preferred the hot tub. A little smaller and not so intimidating! La-La worked on perfecting her dive and Jaco showed Aunt Miranda how good he is at swimming. It was a lot of wet cool fun!
All summer long my kids have been asking to sleep outside so I decided it would be even more fun to do it with cousin Alivia. So Monday night, we set up the tent, blew up the mattresses and warmed up the barbecue to roast marsh-mellows! Camping at home! The smores were fun like always and Care Bear taught us how to really do it. She decided to do a double toast by cooking the marsh-mellow first, building the smore and then toasting the whole thing again! When it came to actually sleeping all night in the tent, La-La, Care Bear and I are the only 3 that made it. Jaco was a little too loud and crazy so he had to go inside. After listening to all kinds of neighbor dogs barking and cars driving by, Miranda decided if she wanted any sleep she better go find a real bed and took Alivia with her. It still was fun and I am sure we will do it again sometime.
Tuesday was the the day we did Care Bear's friend birthday party which I already posted. (-: That evening we had a barbecue at the river. We made shish-ka-bobs, corn on the cob, watermelon, and yummy salsa made by Miranda. Jaco spent the whole time skipping rocks, something he is getting quite good at! It was a beautiful evening! After dinner Miranda and I went to a movie together "The Time Traveler's Wife" It was really good but my brain didn't do quite as good a job understanding the whole idea as Miranda's did!
Wednesday, our last day to play, we wasted money at the County Fair. OK, it wasn't a waste because everyone had fun but man are the rides expensive! As I watched Jaco and La-La maneuver the bumper cars for 3 minutes all I could think was it cost almost $10! Yikes! The animals were my favorite part. There were tiny new goats, sheep, horses, cows, pigs, chickens, bunnies, and other farm type animals. Miranda bonded with a loud goose and I would show you the video I got of her new friend but I do want her to come back sometime.
Wednesday evening while Jaco and Justin were at scouts, the girls and I played at the park by the river. Alivia figured out she could walk up the slide with her shoes off and said she must have magnets in her feet. La-La and Care Bear would live at the park if they could. They love to run, slide, and of course swing. I have to limit swing time or I spend the whole time pushing little bums!
Our fabulous week with Miranda and Alivia went by way too fast, Thursday came and it was back up to Portland to take them back to the airport. Only problem was it appeared that everyone within 100 miles of Portland wanted to go to the airport too. Traffic was unbelievable! We literally went 7 miles in two hours. It was so frustrating to be so close to the airport and not be able to do anything about it. Unfortunately we missed Miranda's flight along with at least 13 other passengers that were stuck in the same traffic jam we were in. So instead of saying good bye we all shared a hotel room for the night! (That was after wasting time shopping at IKEA!) The kids loved jumping on the beds and after hours being confined in car seats we didn't have the heart to stop them. Plus it made for fun pictures! The next morning when we went to take take Miranda to the airport for the second time, we discovered that I had a flat tire! A nice grandparent type couple took Miranda and Alivia to the airport for me while I waited for All-State to come fix my tire. Finally after getting a new tire, we made it home and Miranda made it to Idaho. We decided that she missed her flight because of the bad tire. If I had of dropped her off and then headed home immediately like we had planned, who knows what could have happened. I am just very grateful I didn't have a blown tire while going 65 mph.
Thanks Miranda for coming to see us! We love having people come visit. The kids still talk about your trip and the fun things we did. Care Bear comments daily about "Aunth Aranda this and Aunth Aranda that."
3 comments:
Wow do you guys ever know how to have fun! And I love your family pictures! I hope you have a huge print of it on the wall! you really do live in a beautiful place.
OHHHH! That makes me miss you guys so much! You did a great job on this, the summary and pictures are perfectly placed and worded. I love it, can't wait to show Livi tomorrow. We had such a great time! Thanks for everything! What an adventure!
That post was incredible! It looks like you guys had so much fun! You have really amazing photos! Do you have specific software for the collages? How did you do them?
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