Family – my journey

It’s beginning to look a lot like…

In Family by admin / December 2, 2022 / No comments

Christmas?

Wow… yeah Christmas is right around the corner. How has another year already gone by? December is here and it feels like last December was just yesterday. We have been busy the last month or so. We’ve had so many visitors and life has been pretty non-stop. We took the kids to the Portland Japanese Garden for a field trip. They enjoyed being outside and seeing all of the fall colors. School this year has been a lot of fun. They all seem to be enjoying themselves.

November was pretty eventful. My mother flew into town on the 17th and J’s parents drove in later that day. My dad’s birthday party was on the 19th. We left the kids at home and drove out to attend. I don’t even know the last time all of my siblings have been in one place all at once (My little brother Michael was the only one who wasn’t there). Thanksgiving rolled around and we hosted. It’s was pretty much an open invitation and we had a nice crowd. Afterwards we went over to Aunt Minnie’s and visited for a little while.

We also visited the Mike Bennet Museum and coffee house and went to Snow Day downtown and got the kids a few ornaments. We took Grams to the Tillamook creamery, visited Multnomah Falls, chopped down our Christmas Tree and saw the tree lighting downtown. It’s been very busy! I don’t think things are going to slow down anytime soon.

And now December is here…

The kids wrote their Christmas lists. Arabella’s listed asked for a Jeep and Scooter for her OG Doll and a bunch of different books that she wants. Elijah asked for a Minis Mosasaurus Mayhem Playset, Jurrasic park jeep and anything TopGun. Luca is still into sloths and basketball so he’s going to be easy to please.

Hello November!

In Fall, Family by admin / November 2, 2022 / No comments

It’s November already! How is that possible?! Yikes that means things are about to get busy! Next week I have to deal with my Subpoena and then we need to get the holidays situated for visitors. My mother arrives in about two weeks and J’s parents will arrive the next day. The will stay with us for the remainder of the month. November is filled with birthdays to the brim. We are hosting thanksgiving since my mother will be in town. It’s rare so we want it to be memorable for the kids in particular. This may be the only time the 3 of them will have access to both sets of grandparents… ever. So bring on the photos.

The kids have been sick for the past few days and were pretty bummed about not being able to go out and Trick or Treat but the rain would have dampened the situation anyway. We let them Trick or Treat at home and they still had fun. I haven’t had much motivation to blog lately. I feel like there is just so much to get done that I need to be on the go and just being productive. But a lot has happened so it’s time for an update! The kids would really like dog training lessons for their dog Einstein for Christmas. They want to be able to do cool tricks with him. They are super excited for the holidays.

This fall was pretty decent. Here are some photos to show how much fun the kids have been having!

Visiting Oregon Heritage Farms has been a Family Tradition for the past 5 years! We have to get the Cider Donuts and Slushy

We attended Fan Fest for the Trailblazers. The kids wanted full face paint!

Pumpkin Patches

Everyday Life:

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In Family by admin / November 23, 2021 / No comments

Same post every year! It’s been such a big year too! January started off with a bang as Luca graced us with his presence and completed our family. He is such a light (as his name suggests). We hit the ground running and embraced the year by trying to experience as much as possible together. As a family we had so many adventures. We hiked through the gorge and discovered countless waterfalls. We traveled all around Oregon and explored the outdoors as a family like never before. It’s been a beautiful year. It’s also the year I’ve been recovering from my 3rd c-section and was diagnosed with Hashimotos Disease. It’s been an adventure for sure! Now as another year begins… and as I close another chapter I get the chance to cross a few things off my list and add a few more!

The List:

_ Need to be accomplished.

X Been accomplished.

_ Publish a book

X Teach someone to read

_ Swim with turtles

X Graduate high school

X Try Sushi

X Go to at least one dance

X Learn to play an instrument

X Take an advanced course

_ Watch a play in NYC

X Dance at a Powwow

_ Go horseback riding on the beach

X Climb a mountain

_ Skydive

X Ride a Harley

X Watch a thunderstorm in the south

_ See the northern lights

X Spend a night trying to count the stars

X Learn how to use a gun

X Take a Self Defense course

X Spend the night in a castle

_ Go rock climbing

X Learn to swing dance

X Learn to play the drums

_ Learn to play the piano

_ Learn to play the guitar

X Learn to play the native flute

X Play a bamboo flute

X Learn to paint

X Get the lead in a play

X Direct a play

X Write a play

X Learn how to sketch

X Go on a mission trip

X Sing a solo in front of a crowd

X See the cougars at the zoo

X Pet a tiger

X Go to college

X Graduate college

X Go to graduate school

X Get my masters

X Get Married somewhere beautiful

X Have My Dream wedding

_ Fly a plane

X Shake hands with the president of a country

X Ride a train

X Get a tattoo

X Learn to drive

X Get my drivers License

_ Read a Tale of Two Cities

X Give an inspirational speech

_ Change someones life for the better

_ Hold a baby in a third world country

_ See a giraffe outside the zoo

X Get 7 piercings

X Send 100 letters to people I have never met

_ See the Red Sox play in Fenway

X Eat a dodger dog in Dodger Stadium

X Hold an office

X Plant a tree

_ Develop my own film

_ Learn Spanish

_ Learn Korean

_ Learn Japanese

_ Learn Potawatomi

_ Learn Sign Language

X Learn to cook

X Live in Portland, OR for a little while

X Live in Los Angeles For a while

_ See all 50 States

_Roadtrip across the states

X Visit San Francisco

X Visit Seattle

_ Visit Boston, MA

X Visit Hollywood, CA

X Visit Colorado Springs, CO

X Visit Potawatomi Reservation

X Visit Reno, NV

X Visit Las Vegas, NV

X Visit Mexico

X Visit Canada

_ Visit Venice

_ Visit Zurich

_ Visit Rome

_ Visit Sydney

X Visit London

_ Visit Manila

_ Visit Japan

_ Visit Korea

_ See the Great Wall

_ Visit Ethiopia

_ Visit Peru

_ Visit Prague

_ Visit Cairo

_ See the Museum of Cairo

X Visit Lochness and look for Nessie

X See where C.S. Lewis lived

_ Visit Brazil

X Go Sailing

X Go on a roadtrip

X Sing Karaoke at least once

X See the Shakespeare Festival in Ashland

X Start a drama group

X See a palm-tree in California

X See Yellowstone

X See Yosemite

X See the Redwoods

X See the Sequoias

X See Red Rock

X See the ocean

X Go Snowboarding

X Go Puddle Jumping

X Go Long boarding

_ Windsurf

_ Have a candle light dinner under the stars

X Swim in the ocean (not just wade)

X Go Backpacking

X Experience Love

X Do an independent research project

_ Go Surfing

X Go white water rafting

X Call my FP’s

_ Ride an elephant

_Ride a Camel in the desert

_ Take horseback riding lessons

_ Own a horse

X Color my hair

X Go to at least one reunion

X Take a million photographs

X Meet someone famous

_ Learn to read music

X See more than 50 concerts

X See my mother again before she dies

X See an Opera

_ See a ballet (Live)

X See a Broadway show

X Dance in the rain

X Write a song

_ Do one thing that scares me everyday

X Drive a Jeep

X Own a Business

X Be my own boss

_Apply to a doctoral program

_ Get into a doctoral program

_ Get a doctorate

_ Learn to Sail

_ Own A Sailboat

_Throw a mega party, invite everyone I know, and not care if anyone shows up

_Swim with dolphins

_Fold 1000 origami cranes and give them to random strangers

X Visit a Volcano

_Go on a Disney cruise

X Go to Disneyland

X Go to Grinchmas

_ Tell someone my life story to a complete stranger without being afraid to spare the details

_Have a food fight at a restaurant

_Go Whale Watching

X Go to at least one major sporting event

_Milk a Cow

_Go Scuba Diving somewhere tropical

_Visit a concentration camp and never forget

X Be the member of an audience on a tv show

X Eat Green Eggs and Ham

_Tango dance in Argentina

_Write a letter to my favorite author

_ Have my portrait painted

X Visit the place I was born

_Watch a lightening storm at sea

X Have a meal with a stranger

X Swim in a pool with all of my clothes on

X See Fireflies

_ Drink Chamomile tea at The Pink Door

_Have a pet goat

X Own a home

X Try Scallops

X Eat at one of Gordon Ramsey’s restaurants

_ Spend a Christmas at Disneyland

_Ride in a horse drawn Sleigh in the snow

_Visit Disneyworld

_Have a HUGE family reunion

_Feed Some Sharks

_Make sure my children experience many cultures

X Drive Maui’s Road to Hana and then continue the loop around the island

X Adopt a Dog

X Get a Passport

X Buy a Car

X Take my kids to Disneyland

_ Get Mommy and Me Pedicures

_Take a Cooking class

x Write my will

_ Visit the White House

_ See the skull of Phineas Gage

_ Visit the Museum of Neuroanatomy in Buffalo

_ Visit the International Banana Museum in Mecca, CA

_ Spend a night at June Lake

_ Do Financial Peace University

_ Pay off my student loans

_ Buy a home and stay there until we retire

X See the Dodgers win the World Series

X Take family photos somewhere beautiful

_ Visit the San Diego Zoo

_Stay at Hotel Del Coronado

X Take the kids to an aquarium

X Try a mint julep

X Color my hair something crazy

_ Try beef Wellington

_ Spend a Christmas in a wintery cabin

_ Spend an entire week on the beach with the kids

X Take the kids on an overseas adventure

X Stand at the northern most point of the USA

_ Stand at the southern most point of the USA

_ Sleep in an ice hotel

_ Visit a warm waterfall