Camping Fun

We made one last little weekend trip before summer ended and school began, joining Colleen and Rigo back at Wheeler Gorge. They got this photo of our car from the creek as we drove over the ford.

Some other friends of theirs came up for the weekend, too. And Cora handled bacon duties in the morning.

Such a perfect spot to spend the night! The creek was just beyond the tents, over the ridge.

The girls had a great time tadpole hunting.

And Cora in her happy place, up a tree.

It was a nice, relaxing way to end summer!

Violet's Seattle Trip!

It's been an exciting week for Violet! She flew solo up to Seattle on Friday afternoon, for a five-day adventure with Uncle Bill and Aunt Patty. Her flight was delayed a bit, but otherwise was smooth and easy.

Friday night is pizza night, and Violet got to help. Yum! 

Cousin Will came over, and showed Violet how to shoot a BB gun.

On Saturday, Violet and Aunt Patty picked soooo many blueberries from the bushes in the yard! They also had help from a neighbor girl who became friends with Violet.

They baked up those blueberries into a gorgeous pie, and some smaller hand pies. Oh, I wish they could have shared! (Though Aunt Patty sent home some delicious cookies and brownies, for which we were grateful.)

Violet had fun taking photos on her trip. I love seeing things from her perspective.

They spent time at beautiful nearby parks...

And they even went kayaking, one of the things on Violet's list of hope-to-do's.

Near the top of the tree, see the bald eagle on the branch hanging off to the right? Gotta love the beauty of the Pacific Northwest.

Aunt Patty and Violet also made a trip into the city. Violet enjoyed Pike Place Market, especially the artists selling their wares.

She wasn't as impressed with the infamous gum wall!

She also loved their trip to the Seattle Aquarium. She had a fantastic time, and I'm so thankful for the time Uncle Bill and Aunt Patty poured into her!

Fun with Cora

Cora and I had Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday together with Violet having her Seattle adventures.

On Monday, we went to her junior high school for registration. It took an hour or so to handle all the paperwork, pay for all the things, take school photos and get her school books from the library.

The students came in based on their last name, so Cora saw her friend Sophi.

She's a junior higher! She is excited for that first book she's holding, on history.

Cora and I did some shopping at Old Navy with a gift card Aunt Patty and Uncle Bill had sent for her sixth grade graduation. She found a lot of earrings and some mascara to bring home.

OK, this isn't Cora, but Stace and I got out for a date night while Cora went to see a movie with Grandma. Stace and I enjoyed the Cheesecake Factory.

Cora and I also got Panda Express for lunch, since Stace doesn't like it but he was at work.

Blueberries were on an amazing sale, and Cora tried to sneak five big boxes into the cart. Ummm, we can't eat that many before they'd go bad, kid!

We also took a bike ride to the junior high, as a trial run to see how long it would take when she starts school. (About 18 minutes, for the record.)

Our last bit of fun was a mommy-daughter trip to Hurricane Harbor. We spent a couple of hours on the slides, in the wave pool and in the lazy river. I'm so glad she still wants to spend time with me!

Working Weekend

Violet got a little snuggle time with her sister and the big guy Friday morning, before she flew to Seattle to visit Uncle Bill and Aunt Patty. More on that later! This post will be about our weekend while she was away...

With Violet away, and our internet and phone service down for a week - long annoying story that I don't feel like blogging about - it was the perfect opportunity to tackle Cora's closet project. Here's the before shot - wish I had one with the books and stuffed animals still in place, but oh well.

Stace and Cora made quick work of dismantling the old unit, which was very well constructed, with good wood. Kind of a shame to take it apart, but our growing girl needs a real closet now.

Their progress ground to a swift halt when Stace, bent over to investigate this hole in the dry wall, stepped up into the nail you see here and got a gash in the head.

He washed the deep cut in the bathroom sink, and then off to urgent care we went. It was immediately clear he needed medical treatment.

Stace bravely accepted his staples without any anesthesia, because he knew from past experience that the numbing shot also hurts like heck.

Poor guy!

Later that evening, we went out for ramen.

And on Sunday, we went to Home Depot after church for supplies. Cora is taking a very active role in this project.

But she's not too old to play in the door displays.

Not a bad weekend's work!

Summer Fun

 On Monday, we had our long-awaited reunion with Maya, Natalia and Juliana. As usual, they were returning from a long summer trip to Brazil, and we had lots to catch up on.

The girls all played Minecraft, we ate lunch, and we spent some time in the pool.

 On Tuesday, we went to the Getty museum with Jen, Trent and Jack. Jen is an art history expert who loves the Getty, and I was disappointed to not make it to any art museums in Paris.

Additionally, we had a complimentary parking pass from Cora's 6th grade field trip to the Getty, so we used it on our return.

All the art exhausted poor Trent.

This was Violet's first trip, so I wanted to be sure she got a look at the beautiful gardens.

 No words needed!

 Violet's favorite painting of the day.

 Couldn't get them to copy the pose, but they're pretty cute anyway.

 Cora was complaining that there were so many dogs in the various paintings, but no cats. Then, we turned and looked, and there it was! Cora's new favorite painting.

 Looking over West L.A. after a fabulous lunch in the cafe.

 On Wednesday, Violet went to Victoria's house to play, while Cora and I met up with Kelly and the boys at the Aquatic Center. None of us had been for a few years, and it was nice to see the kids having fun in a place they loved as little kids.

Who knows, it might be the last trip to the Aquatic Center!

We all went to the beach together on Thursday, just didn't get any great photos of our day.