It's hard to leave the beach!

Manzanita views

A quick outing to Cannon Beach (mostly because a certain toy store was calling) was worth it just for the drive by all the ocean overlooks.

Dune jumpers

The kids spent a lot of time running through the dunes--I'm glad I caught up with them long enough to snap them in midflight.

Gorgeous weather

OK, it rained a bit, but this is the weather we'll remember.

Beach boys

This is why we can't go to the beach without a midweek laundry stop.

Dog on beach!

After we got home, we weeded our photos from the week, and if you were to judge solely by the photos, you would think we love our dog more than our kid. Or each other. But it's really that she's the best looking one of us. At least until she rolls in saltwater and seaweed. (More beach photos here....I really need to work on labeling posts better!)

Nehalem Bay State Park

This has to be the best state park in the U.S., or at least very close. Our tent was pitched steps from a sandy path through the dunes that led straight to the beach. Lack of laundry facilities (necessitated by the fact that kids at the beach go through about three pairs of trousers a day, and we never remember this while packing) was the only thing marring its perfection. So Stacy and I spent a rainy afternoon in the Tillamook Coins-n-Suds while Cliff and the kids visited the Air Museum.

By the way, we pitched a tent for the kids, but by night 2, all six of us were in the tent trailer. It got a little messy at times, but it didn't stop us from spending all week making plans for next year! (Or from wishing we lived in a commune year-round. :-))

Trip to Seattle

I see a lot more of downtown now that my research project has moved from Kirkland to Swedish Hospital. A visit to Pike's gave me a chance to see some beautiful things, some hideous things, and ... helloooooo, Doctor! (Amazing comic book store!)

If it weren't for that darn glare, you'd think he was right there looking over my shoulder wouldn't you? I'd naturally turn down an invitation to travel time and space with him, but I'm not going to lie and say it would be easy. ;-)

The first camping trip of the year

Cliff had to be at Hat Rock Friday night for a student vespers, so we decided to make a weekend of it. I surprised Ethan by arranging for a buddy to come along, which made me feel like Best Mom Ever.

Not only was this the tent trailer's first outing of the year, it was also Ethan's first outing with his birthday kayak. He took right to it. We also had the blow-up raft so he could swap out with several other kids who joined us for supper.

Silver Creek hike

We spared the grandparents this adventure...a hike around the falls that wasn't too long (about 2.5 miles) but turned out to be fairly exhausting for all of us. Probably the heat and lack of water...bad planning. Anyway, here we are with my brother-in-law the genius, my gorgeous niece, and my goofy nephew (who takes after his goofy cousin).

Balloooooooooon stamPEED!

(Ethan always says it just like the announcer; it's a tradition since he could talk.) We missed the first of the launch, but it was still worth watching. Our major disappointment was missing Charlene and Carlotta and the Wild Goose, but they were already on a wild goose chase by the time we arrived. The price you pay for sleep.

Spokane: Bloomsday 2009

We made it! Must admit I was a little worried that we would freeze, get rained on, or just be too exhausted to go on (OK, that was mostly me). But it was fine. We didn't set any speed records, mind you, but we felt pretty good about our 18-minute miles.

I took a few photos on the phone, but haven't yet put them on the computer. So these are Mom's shots.

Ethan's news anchor debut

After Julie Sanders Keymer interviewed Ethan, Carrie Fernald and me to promote the ALS candlelight vigil April 23, Bill Colson set up Ethan with a teleprompter and played "news anchor" with him. Made Ethan's day--I think this may have been even more fun than the actual TV appearance!

We got home to find the ALS vigil on the front page of the U-B. Sheila Hagar rocks! (She did even before this, but especially now.)




June update: April 23, 2009, was our third ALS vigil, and I really wanted it to be good, because Carrie was starting to slow down a bit and I felt like she needed the rest of us to step up to the plate more than ever. One wish she had was for a band to perform the unofficial ALS anthem "Learning to Fall," and because I have genius co-workers like Kevin Stauffer and Eric Turner, and they have incredibly talented friends like Bob Shafer, Adam Kirtley and Jerry Yokel, we had our band! (This was good, because I was prepared to learn a few chords and sing it myself if necessary, probably accompanied by Ethan on the kazoo. Not pretty.) Dave Warkentin, the head of the Chamber of Commerce, agreed to speak about losing a close friend to ALS (and it probably didn't hurt our publicity efforts to have a local public figure on board!). Carrie's friends went crazy putting up posters all over town as fast as I could print them (courtesy of Coffey Communications, my employer). Coach Carter and the WA-HI baseball team hosted the event as always and did an amazing job of handling the candles, introductions and other logistics; they presented the facts about ALS, and one of the players wrote a great speech about Lou Gehrig. The best part, though, was probably the sharing time. We put our favorite extrovert, Julie Sanders Keymer, on the mic, and she roamed through the crowd so anyone could share ALS stories. Ethan couldn't resist a shot at the microphone to share about his grandpa, and he always manages to get a laugh, even with a sad subject. It was wonderful hearing so many people talk about their love and appreciation for Carrie, the kind of speeches that we too often save for when it's too late.

So I guess this is a blog post with a message. Whatever it is you need to do...do it today.