Here's a round up of the latest happenings.
We briefly hosted the Danilava-Smith clan before their foray down into California. Sof was beside herself with glee at the prospect of having two live-in playmates. We did some touring of Portland, and topped off the visit with a rather disastrous dinner at the Kennedy School. Under our table looked like Pizza Chernobyl...I feel sorry for whomever our busboy was. Anyway, great chaos and fun!
After their departure, Hubs also left on a 4-day "golf" (read: beer) retreat with his new co-workers. Needing entertainment and distraction from a suddenly empty house, Sof and I struck out on three days of adventure of our own. Day 1 was a visit to the Hoyt Arboretum, an amazingly beautiful place. This turned into a bit of misadventure, however, when I missed a turn and extended our hike by about 2 hours. At least it was sunny! We also got splendid views of Mt. Hood, St. Helens and the city, and even had a coyote run right in front of us.
Day 2 was a trip out to Seaside for some quality beach time. Unfortunately, my camera battery was dead. Someday I WILL learn to check these things in advance. Sof finally discovered the joys of playing in the sand. She also got to play in the waves, sort of. I held her and we jumped over waves as they came in, much to her delight. Other joys of the day included caramel corn, chasing seagulls, and helping another little girl dig a big hole. We came home totally crusted in sand and very pleasantly pooped.
Day 3 found us at the farmer's market at PSU. We came home with artichokes, pickles, berries, flowers and more. I think it was at this point that I realized I had definitely injured my foot while hiking the other day. Enter grumpiness and limping as I realized I would have to begin staying off my foot.
This past weekend, John, Sof and I loaded up and headed for Oakridge to meet a group of friends for some camping and mountain biking. Well, they all camped, we bunked down in a cheap motel. John had a blast riding on singletrack again, it's been a long time for him. Sof and I killed time hanging out at the campsite and then driving around when she needed to nap. We did manage to do a little biking ourselves on a nice flat trail through the woods. Overall, great trails, great company! Here's baby Nick trying to impress Sofia...
Speaking of trails, we discovered doggy heaven! It's an expanse known as Thousand Acres, which is, well, an expanse of 1,000 acres. It has numerous trails running through it, and runs up against at least one river (I'm still figuring out the geography). Either way, dogs can go off leash here and run their little hearts out. And bonus for the two-legged poop-scooping crew -- blackberry bushes abound!
Last night marked a notable Sof development. While running around, she took a little breather to do some, er, business in her diaper. Then she looked up at me, pointed to her diaper, and said "poo poo!" We're so proud.
Next up -- the return of the Danilava-Smiths for more merriment and exploration of the city. And, as always, safety first!
