Oregon!

On our second day of driving, we arrived at Multnomah falls in Oregon. We stopped here for a little runaround, it was especially great for the kids!



Here we had hiked up to the bridge - it was a nice little energy burner :)



On one of our rainy days - the kids decorated bobble-head monkeys :) It was pretty funny.


This was the beach right down the street from our house. The kids had fun running around, looking at crabs, shells & all the driftwood on the beach
Can you say strike a pose?
Hailey was working the camera too :) I tried to tell her the water was too cold, but who can pass up the opportunity to splash around in the water?
TILLAMOOK!!! Okay, so growing up, this was always the coolest place. They have cheese & fresh ice cream. It's fantastic. I think I had more fun here than the kids did!
It was fun for them to see all the blocks running through the conveyer belts :)

This is Seaside. We came here on a "milder" day. The kids had a great time playing in the water, sand & flying kites.

Yet again, hailey had no hesitation about running into the water. The outside temp was 54 degrees... plus wind! ugh! cold!
Derek & Olivia had a great time helping me bury Hailey in the sand.
I couldn't resist this picture -- TOO CUTE!

Derek did take a moment here or there to snuggle w/ his mommy to stay warm :)

We went down to Newport & hit three fun exhibits.. Ripley's believe it or not, the Wax museum & the Underwater Sea Aquarium. Here is Hailey strumming the digital harp - very cool!
We grubbed some lunch at this place called Local Ocean Seafood. It was divine. The kids could have cared less, but I had the yummiest crab "po-boy" sandwich. Divine!
Derek was trying to kiss the crab... looks more like he's taking a bite though :)
At the underwater sea aquarium, there was this cool exhibit where the kids could touch all sorts of living sealife, like starfish, sea anemone & the like.

Outside the aquarium were tons of sealions. Derek cracked up when they started barking, and he barked right back :)

This is our backyard (of the beach house). Em & I finally get a pic together :)
The kids had fun w/ the fire. Especially for smores
My brother Mike & His fiancee Leslie came out for the weekend. We had a great time!

We went to the Cannon Beach Sandcastle building competition. It was fun to rally the cars down on the beach, and play in the water. Derek & olivia most liked petting all the dogs that were there.

Notice famous Haystack rock in the background -- you know you recognize it from Goonies :)

I think the rest of my pictures cut off, but this is a taste of our trip. We had fun exploring, playing, lounging & of course... driving :) We were glad to get away before baby # 3 arrived.

Seven Peaks

The summer of Seven Peaks has officially begun! Amber & I took Cambrie & Derek on Tuesday to enjoy the park! The kids had fun running in and out of the water. Sadly - pregnant women are banned from all tube rides - what a rip off :(. .. and... the kids pool area was still being worked on, so hopefully our next trip out will be all up & running.

Derek was attempting to put his arm around Cambrie - but instead looked like he was trying to give her a clothes line!
The wave pool was a huge hit! Cambrie loved laying down in there. Derek would stay in for a few minutes, then bolt to where our towels were so he could jump on them, and then layout for a minute.
This was his layout pose. That's my boy - enjoying the sunshine :) It was a pretty nice day for our first outdoor water adventure. I'm sure we'll have many more during the summer. I intend on spending lots of time floating the lazy river this summer -- yay!

Grand Junction

Last week we headed out to Grand Junction to celebrate my niece Brittanie's graduation.

Here is part of the clan waiting in the stand for the procession to begin.

L-R, My Dad, Derek, Hailey & Abbey

Me & my sis Melanie
The one in front is my niece. She was so awesome! She was their student body president, and practically conducted the graduation ceremony. She is such an awesome lady, and a great role model for her sibs & cousins!
After the ceremony - Melanie, Britt & Bill posing for pictures

Me & Britt - She is awesome!

Thursday all the ladies went to get pedicures. I hit up some shopping before hand w/ Brittanie & scored a couple cute maternity tops & some shorts. Hooray for clothes that fit my growing figure!

Here is abbey & hailey. They did a mini mani/pedi. They had such a fun time!
Here are more of the ladies - Britt, my mom, and Brittanie's grandma
Here I am getting the treatment! I look huge in this picture.... someone must have used a bad lens on the photo!
Britt & I - matching in our purples :)
Hailey, Derek & Abbey spent the most part of every day outside jumping on the trampoline, or playing Pioneers & Indians. They had so much fun.



Friday: Brittanie's graduation BBQ. Britt & two of her close friends had their graduation parties all together at a nearby park. There was a ton of food, music & people.
Dave manned the BBQ (which was supposed to be Bill's job)
.... bill... Now you can see why Dave had to take over grilling. I think Bill ate like 4 or 5 burgers.
Derek got hooked up by his adopted "grandma" (The cousins other grandma). He loves push-up pops!~
Hailey was thrilled with all the food & treats at the bbq. (Can you see it all over her shirt) :)
The Father-daughter pair.

We had a blast - as always - in GJ. I didn't have any pictures of it, but Dave & Bill went riding dirt bikes on Friday morning, and Dave wrecked. He thinks he cracked a rib. He's bruised all over the place, and can't breath too good. Not a good sign :( But it was great to see my family, play games, eat, relax, bbq, shop etc. I love getting together w/ my family & wished they all lived closer!

Goblin Valley

Yesterday (Saturday), we took a day trip down to Goblin Valley with Jon, Amber & Cambrie. It was a gorgeous day! We left bright and early & made our trek down.

Once we arrived the kids were very ready for lunch time! We ate near the goblins, and then took them down to them to play & explore.
Here we are w/ goblins inthe back
Jon, Cambrie & Amber :)
Derek & Cambrie had such a blast playing on all the "goblins". They were excited about climbing up, sitting on, or jumping off of all the formations (especially the little ones!)
Like this little one :)


We let them pose 4 million times for pictures. They were just eating it up!
After leaving the goblins, we went to Little Wildhorse Canyon for a hike. In this one Derek had fallen & was crying wantingto be carried, so Dave stuck him in a magic hole in the rock, and he was all better:)
Here we are in a more narrow spot of the hike. This was the best place for the kids, they loved it - and it kept them confined to where we wanted them to go :)
Derek (Cambrie behind) - doing a little balancing
The kids fared pretty well, but by the time we got out of the "slots" they were ready to be carried back. Not bad though - they probably hiked a mile & a half before reaching defeat.

We had a really fun day! After the hike we drove into Green River for dinner, then stopped in Price for yummy ice cream. When all was said and done, it was a long, but very fun day!