Lincoln City Adventure

Our discovering Oregon trip this week was so fun! We went to Lincoln City for a couple days at the beach. We know it's like the 4th time this year we have been, but when you live this close to the coast, you have to go as much as you can after living in a desert your whole life! We did go to new beaches this time though!



For anyone looking for a cheap, but nice hotel on the coast...We stayed at the Best Western Landmark Inn in Lincoln City and it was quite nice. The room was clean and it had a nice little balcony that we could let the breeze into the room, it had 2 queen beds, mini fridge and microwave, so we were able to keep some milk, juice and snacks cold for the kids. The pool was a little chilly, but the hot tub was not all too hot and the kids were even able to be in it for a bit. The deluxe continental breakfast was indeed deluxe, with everything from waffles and donut holes to oatmeal and biscuits and gravy, with everything in between! It cost 84.00 which was the cheapest I found for a quality hotel on the coast. It was walking distance to the beach, Chad's only complaint was that you had to cross the main street to get to the beach though. Enough about the hotel, we were barely there! We went to Fishing Rock, where Tab got married and hiked down to the beach which was really cool, we got there right before sunset and had so much fun. The tide was low and the rocks were exposed with lots of starfish and little sea creatures all over them. Topher played in the sand for the first time and thought it was great till it got wet and cold, and Bekah as usual did her own thing and didn't want to leave even as it started to get dark. The next day we went to Newport and saw the Sea lions all on the docks and went to the Undersea Aquarium, it was pretty cool, they had a scuba diver go down and show us all the different sea creatures, ranging from a fiesty dungeoness crab to a playful 4 foot eel. Tickets were a little pricey at 10 bucks a pop, but the kids were free. We spent some time walking down the bayfront exploring some of the shops and then headed for the beach. This time we went to Glenenden, which was very beautiful, but didn't have any tide pools for Chad to explore so he had to settle on playing in the sand with us. Topher ate it, Bekah got buried in it, and we all had a blast in it. It was a great trip, and can't wait till we have some more time and money to do it again!

First Haircut

Bekah is getting so grown up! She got her first haircut yesterday 9.22.06! She got a good inch or more off the back and little bangs. She was very good and smiled the whole time it was getting cut. Our good family friend Vera Carter cut it and did a fantastic job. Bekah thinks she is very stylish now and shows off her little do with pride. What a little super model!

Discovering Mt. Hood

For our weekly, 'Let's see and enjoy Oregon' trip this week, we went on the Mt. Hood Loop. It is so beautiful!!! We stopped at Laurence Lake and had a picnic, and did a little fishing. Topher stuck his feet in the water for a while and loved it. The leaves were starting to change, and it was just gorgeous! Those of you who live here and would like a nice drive, you need to do this. It's kind of long, but well worth it! The little lake is nice and the fishing is pretty good too. I highly recommend it. Next weeks adventure is actually starting tomorrow-we will be exploring Lincoln City a little more. This state is absolutely magnificent!

Little Buddies

These 2 are becoming quite the little friends now.
Topher thinks Bekah is the funniest girl on the planet, and she will do anything to make him giggle.
Bekah always wants to 'play with my little brudder', or 'criffer' or 'tuffer'.
She stacks blocks for him to knock over and they giggle. They have tea parties, where Topher just eats the plates, but Bekah doesn't mind, she has a buddy.
They 'read' stories together, which is usually a slobbery mess on Christophers end, and Bekah squealing because he takes the book out of her hands, but when you try to pick him up, she squeals again that she still wants to play with him.
They are very fond of eachother and as cute as can be. I hope this will be par for the course for them. I know that there will be fights, but I hope that the laughs will out number them by a long shot.
So here's to sibling buddies, I'm glad I have siblings to have fun with, and I hope they always feel that way too.

Our Little Hero

Christopher got his 6 month pictures taken today and I must say they turned out pretty darn cute! Hope everyone is doing great like we are!

Tuesday was Chad's day off this week, and it was his first one in over a month that we didn't have to be doing something. We decided to spend this glorious free time with the family and hike to the top of Multnomah Falls. We have lived in this beautiful state for over a year now and have always wanted to see all these wonderful things, but have just been 'too busy.' We decided to make a goal and do something like this once a week, because it was just too beautiful and too much fun, not to mention great exercise. It is approx. 1 mile to the top and we all made it! Bekah even did it all by herself. Topher of course got carried by Chad in the snugli. The path was really cool, with a big old tree with roots exposed that you could sit under, (that's what Bekah and I are sitting in). Then there was a small cave thing that Bekah thought was pretty great, (that is what she, Chad and Topher are in). At the top we had a little picnic where Bekah polished off her whole Subway sandwich. It was a lot of fun and soooo beautiful. Everyone needs to do this at least once in their lifetime!

First Play Date

Bekah had her very first play-date at our house today! She has been looking forward to it for weeks. Her friend Ky came over with her little brother Bo and her mom Amy. We had cookies and played with toys in her room and played outside. We rolled chalk down the slide and rode Bekah's Minnie Mouse car. It was a fun afternoon, and she is already talking about "My next-one play date with Ky and Bo".

To Our Grandma's

Today is the day after my mom's Birthday. We had a little Fiesta for her last night and all had a lot of fun. She got lots of presents and I think almost everyone got her some Sudoku thing! (She mentions she likes something, and we all go out and buy her it, she will have a lifetime of puzzles! Ha Ha!). Anyway...She is a great mother and an even greater grandma. The kids love her so much! She spoils them like crazy, which drives me crazy, but am glad she is able to, they love it! She gets right down on the floor and has tea parties with Bekah and colors with her too, which can be a little hard to do sometimes, (Bekah colors all over what you are trying to color, or tell you exactly what she wants you to draw, and gets mad if you don't do it right!). Grandma Julie plays silly games and always wears fun jewlery for Christopher to play with too. What a fun and perfect Grandma. Which makes us think of our other fun Grandma! Chad's mom, Grandma Mona. Hopefully we will be able to see her soon! (Matt and Sandy's temple date is not set in stone and we really don't want to miss that, so we are thinking of postponing our trip till then). We miss Grandma Mona so much! We lived with her for over a year while we were trying to find our place in this world and owe her so much gratitude! Although we may have not found our permanent place in this world, she has been our guiding star to show us how we should be, to find our place in the eternities to come. We love you Grandma's!

6 Months Old

Christopher is 6 months old today! I cannot believe how fast it has flown by! He has learned so much already and is so much fun! I am not kidding, he is the happiest baby I have ever seen! That's saying a lot since I am his mother and see his down times more than anyone else, he just doesn't have that many! He is always smiling and laughing. He's doing so much now and getting so big! He is rolling, scooting, turning around, sitting, teething, eating solids, playing and just making our home so much fun! I feel like I have been so blessed to have such a wonderful little boy. I know all who have met him feel the same way. (None of Chad's family except for Mona have even met this happy little guy! They will all have the chance in 2 weeks though! We are excited to see everyone! We are leaving Thursday the 21st and should be there sometime Friday morning!) Happy half birthday little man! We sure love our little Topher!

Hewlett Blues

The kids were playing on this pony yesterday at Godfather's while waiting on our pizza. Not a great picture, but it stopped me short when I saw it. Those eyes just take my breath away every time I see a picture like this. I sometimes forget how blue and beautiful they really are till I see a picture like this. Those are the eyes I fell in love with on Chad and I am so glad my kids got them!