Friday, July 22, 2011

Family Vacation

These two boys amaze us with their ability to seek adventure with an unlimited supply of energy! Our first stop of our vacation was spent at McKay crossing with some special friends. Even Halee was able to join us on this one!
After setting up camp we ventured to a nearby waterfall and found this great toad on the way!
This would be the first of many beautiful waterfalls we would see on this trip.
Releasing Mr. Toad
This right here is a shocker! Canyon is not a big fan of water and for him to bravely cross the creek was exciting to watch!
Sawyer enjoyed the water from the sidelines while throwing any nearby object in it.
Game of bocce ball with team Chase. Love this family!
Lasagna camp style:)
The girls went on an amazing waterfall hike in the evening. Three generations and sister Karen:)
One of the fun falls we explored.
The excitement of the tent for the first time (that he can remember).
Morning after. We all slept great!
Breakfast by the fire.
We stopped at our favorite coffee shop in Sisters, OR to refuel before starting our next adventure.
Another lunch break stop before making it to our destination.
We made it! We arrived at Silver Falls State Park.
Right away we found some fun puddles to soak ourselves in while daddy set up camp.
And then we went on a great hike to find some waterfalls...and BIG leaves!
We adapted quickly to the wet rain forest setting.
It truly was beautiful.
This trail has 10 waterfalls on it and they are all spectacular!!
A couple of them you can walk behind.
And feel the power up close.
Stunning!
Mommy's boys!
Snails everywhere!
Daddy's boys!
Moms favorite view:)
Chicken and rice by the campfire.
Sawyer planning our next adventure.
Ready for bed!
Before leaving Silver Falls we did another short hike to check out more falls.
More snails were found!
Lots of salmonberries were consumed on our hikes. They grow wild and are super delicious! We weren't sure what they were until we stopped at a fruit stand on the way home and bought some more of them:)
Again amazed at how breath taking these falls were.
A mazing!
After packing up camp we headed to Hood River for a much needed bath. We splurged on this room with a veiw but it was so worth it!!
The boys enjoyed the white sheets and thankfully we had swimming clothes for them to wear since all of their clothes were filthy!!
Snuggle bugs.
The Columbia River is gorgeous.
On the way home we stopped to stretch our legs and do one little final hike...not even sure what it was:)
Fun as always to see the boys in their element.
A memorable vacation for sure. Hard work? YES, but so worth it. I am so very thankful for this gift of family. Greg and I never imagined ourselves exploring the world with two kids. It's a journey we are embracing together and I am so thankful to have such a great team mate. We balance each other perfectly and I wouldn't want to share this life with anyone other than him. I love you Greg and glad you are all mine:)

Sunday, July 10, 2011

Sunday Adventure

Guess What? This is our friend Josie and her mommy! We were so excited to take her to our favorite place the High Desert Museum!
Sawyer was super brave and touched some poo!
And we had fun making shadows with our animals!
We showed Josie the different tracks animals make...
And got to see and touch a very special turtle.
The museum had some other friendly turtles we had to check out!
Our favorite part of the museum is playing in the dirt.
Green bean anyone?
It was a beautiful day!
Chipmunk!
Tunnels!
Fish!
Caterpillars!
The Museum just has it all!! Thanks for coming with us Josie and Suzie!!
ChEEEse...with tomato seeds:)