July Oregon trip

Well, we had another round of travel for Team Twilight. I'm a bit behind on my blogging due to raod time nad a visit from Aunt Toby. So, it all started with a trip up to see Grandma Donna and Grandpan Ken in Corvalis/Philomath, Oregon. We got to spend Fourth of July and Birthday with Donna. It was such a wonderful trip. We're really looking forward to gettign back there as soon as possible.

Where to start? It was especially relaxing for me because it felt like a real vacation. Usually when I head to New Mexico, I've got my hands in all sorts of honey jars. But, this time, no work, no cell phone. Our whole focus was just to take it all in and spend as much time with family as possible. Well, actually, both Daryl and I did bring some work with us. We made time to do some by going to the library adn leaving G&G in charge of baby. Luckily, our self employed status allows us to travel a lot, but it also means we never really get away from the work. So, if you want us to come see you, please understand, the laptops have to come, too!

The flight in went fine. Oh, that reminds me to mention I finally got around to tinkering with YouTube and uploaded some videos of Phoenix onto the web. There's a video of Daryl and Phx on a people mover at one of the airports. It's pretty neat. I'll post a seperate blog on accessing the videos. Lots more vids to come!

We kind of got into a nice rhythm of sleeping in, heading downstairs for a nice family breakfast on the back deck. Then, Daryl would head out to get some work done and I would piddle around the house with Donna and the baby. In the early evening, we'd start planning dinner and would usually meet up with Larry, Terry, Ken & Chris. Games might follow and then maybe a walk in the woods. Oh, I musn't forget 2pm brownie breaks, too! A great tradition that we will start once I shed a few more of my post baby pounds.

It was record breaking heat that week, so a lot of our activities revolved around getting wet, as you will note from the photos. The first day we were there, we went to the town park to listen to a live concert, a weekly tradition for Philomathians. Young Ken ran up to meet us as we approached. I hardly reconized him as he had changed a great deal from the last time I saw him when he visited us in Washington, DC. He gave out warm hugs and I was already comfortable. We all plopped down in the grass on blankets and chairs next to Larry's family. I was introduced to them and finally got to meet Ken's younger brother, Chris. I felt instantly at home as if we had all done this many times before. Some of us took Phoenix to the playground to test out the swings. It was the first time Phoenix sat in dirt. He was thoroughly entertained and I was surprised he didn't try to eat it. As the concert went on, I got lost in the charming small town moment. I must have conveyed the feeling on my face because it was jsut then that G. Ken and Donna asked what I thought of their little town. I told them it was "creepy perfect in a Norman Rockwell kind of way." And it was. Families out on a beautiful evening enjoying a free concert. No lines, no funnel cakes, no fighting, no drunks. It really made us revisit the topic of where we want to raise our family. It was especially touching when they played each of the theme songs to the various branches of the military and asked the veterans to stand. Ken stood and Daryl stood holding Phoenix as the band played Wild Blue Yonder.

Although Phx was on the cranky/clingy side (he sprange 4 new teeth that trip), I was so glad he got so much family time with all the members. I was reluctant at first to put his shrill cry upon any of the ears of Daryl's family, but they all took turns patiently getting to know him and helping him forget Mommy was in the next room. Larry and Terry were so great with him. When he was in good spirits, he was a ham, as usual and got along well with his cousins Kenny & Chris. Donna showed me lots of tricks to keep his mind and body busy while I got stuff done. My favorite trick was giving him plastic lids. I've made a special drawer in our kitchen that Phoenix can access to pull out lots of interesting things to investigate. To say he is at a very curious age is an understatement. Donna also taught me several tricks to help me get meals on the table with less work. We've already implemented a few of those tips in our home routine, too.

One day, Larry and Terry invited us to join them at the lake for a day of picnicking, swimming and a round of tubing. I even tried water skiing, but couldn't quite hit the hydroplane mark. It was fun to try, though. I was impressed to see Larry up on the skiis. My favorite moment from that day was when Kenny and daryl were riding on tubes behind the speedboat. Kenny fell off, so Terry immediately slowed the boat and brought it around to pick him up. Then she gunned it to head for Kenny, forgetting Daryl was still riding behind. When she hit the gas, I spun around to catch Daryl's whiplash, but he managed to hang on. I reminded her Daryl was still back there and we both laughed. I teased her that her Mether instincts were kicking in and her focus was on rescuing her child. After we got back, we unwound just hanging out. I was impressed with Donna, spending most of the time in the water with all the boys. That's the kind of person I want to be. But, not that day. Mostly I just lazed around and ate potato chips. It was a good day.

On a few of the evenings when Larry's family joined us at the Senior Anderson's, we played a variety of games. One night, we got some poker going. Daryl and I were both eager to test out some new strategies. Although the games were fun, the adults found we were shut out as Chris and Kenny ended heads up. Chris ended up taking the pot with some bold moves. It will be fun to play with them next time we get together. One day, Kenny made Phoenix his very own light saber. Phoenix seemed to know exactly what to do with it as he swung it around. I've got a video of it I'll post later.

Of course, Saturday was reserved for Fun Train day, Oregon style. We used the GPS to help us around, but Donna plotted a whole route from ads in the newspaper. We ended up hitting more than a dozen sales and found some great goodies, including some more toys for Phx. I'm trying really hard not to swamp him in too many stimuli. But, it 's hard not to. He seems like he just consumes information. but, I've also observed, if I pack all his toys away and jsut give him one, he will still spend time with it even if it's a toy he has already investigated thoroughly. We were worn out by the end of the fun train ride, but we stopped in a retirement community to visit with one of Donna's friends. I can' really remember waht I ended up getting. It's been too long!

Towards the end of the trip, Lisa hosted a party at her house in honor of Donna's birthday. It was fun to see the farm finally. It wasn't what I pictured. Not that that's good or bad, just different. They had a pool that all the boys, including Daryl (who never misses an opportunity to hop in a pool) all splashed around in. It was heart warming for all of us to just sit and watch them play. Lisa made a delicious spread. I have the recipe for Chicken Divan recipe, which I will post later. I was glad to have some quality time to get to know her boys, Shawn and Patrick and see their home. We finished the party with a massive round of WhoNu. Patrick wasn't too happy he had only earned 5 or so points, but I think I made him feel a little better when I announced my non-victorious 4 points. Lisa and Shawn ended up taking top seat with an impressive showing of insightfulness (is that really a word?). I was sad to leave, but we'll be seeing them again soon.

Phx had some firsts while he was there. He swang in the famous tire swing that all the neices and nephews have broken in. He liked it. He also rode on the plastic tractor that once was cousin Katie's. He was a pro crawler and learned to crawl "stinkbug style" on the deck so as not to scuff his knees. He tried all sorts of new foods. He loved playing with the blocks the Grandma Donna had dug up. He liked to knock the towers down.

I had gone on this trip with big plans to be really helpful. I pictured myself picking berries, canning corn, making wine and painting the house. But, this was not to be. Phoenix was entering a new stage. He needed me and not just for milk. For some reason, I felt more like a Mom on this trip then on any other. I think I really put aside a lot of my own desires and needs and put his needs first. It's really hard for me to put down the staple gun/paint brush/screwdriver sometimes. But, when I do, and when I just sit on the floor and connect with that little man, I feel dumb I didn't do it sooner. So, I still struggle with that every day. Phoenix has a lot of training still ahead of him to break me in! I was enchanted with Oregon adn it lived up to it's reputation of being the nicest state. We'll be going beck soon. Thanks to all that made it such a memorable trip! Donna gifted us an entire vat of blueberries to take home and some canned jam--the perfect souvenirs.

Oh, I also posted all the photos on the Walgreens website in case anyone wanted to print some.
http://photo.walgreens.com/thumbnailshare/AlbumID=18378626/a=12005380_12005380/t_=12005380