Wedding weekend

We spent a few days in Chico, California to celebrate our friends, Jon and Julie's wedding. I've known Jon for as long as I've known Mike and am so happy that he met Julie. I've watched him go from wild party guy to serious businessman ready to settle and have a family.  Jon was at our tiny wedding in Scotland eight years ago when we were among the first of our friends to get married.

I knew nothing of Chico except a vague idea of location and the fact that there's a big university there. We flew to Sacramento (first time with two kids) but luckily it was a short flight and our friend Cody who was also heading to the wedding helped us lug all our stuff. Yes when you travel with kids you can't just take a carryon. It's: luggage, milk, snacks, pack n play, car seats, stroller, toys...

The weather was 90 to 100 degrees but didn't feel too hot with the breeze. There was a park with a natural swimming hole we explored and the town itself was cute.



The first night we were invited to the "un-rehearsal" dinner.  Luckily, Jon matched us up with a babysitter who did not appear to be a psychopath--we set the bar high for babysitters you know. She was sweet and had a couple big kids that Collin was excited to see. Then we got to enjoy a six course custom meal with wine pairings designed by Jon, Julie and the chef.  The chef explained each course and the way the wine matched the meal. My favorites had to be the "appetizer" which was really a meal in itself of a fried chicken and fried green tomato salad (yummy and naughty) and the second course, a beet and watermelon salad with pistachio crusted goat cheese. Everything was delicious and I managed to eat most of it and leave with a nice buzz.

The next day Jon took us to a river next to the wedding venue which was gorgeous. We sat on the rocks with friends, snacking and wading/swimming in the freezing cold water full of salmon. Collin loves "Uncle Jon" and had fun splashing and jumping in the water. Mike floated down the river although I'm pretty sure there was some shrinkage happening.











We also drove by an old fashioned covered bridge. I had to stop to snap a photo.



That night we went to another dinner that was specially planned for Jon and Julie and was positively yum. Mike and I shared small plates like bacon wrapped, chorizo stuffed dates (the best ever), caesar salad, and Thai chicken skewers.

Collin also met Millie the flower girl, (Julie's sister's daughter) who has Shirley Temple curles and proclaimed Collin her "boyfriend." The two hit it off and I was so glad that Collin met someone his age he could have fun with.

Milo also shared his cuteness with everyone and was proclaimed a good baby because of course he doesn't cry too much, smiles a bunch and as long as you provide him with food he will sit and be content. And yes this kid can eat! Milo scarfs down pretty much anything we eat now as long as it's not too hard or big. He loves bread, pasta, pretty much any vegetable and fruit, and except for trying out an Indian garden burger that was apparently too spicy, I don't think there's anything edible he hasn't liked. Of course he would also eat cat food, paper and bugs so I'm not sure if we can count on him retaining his unpicky appetite when he's older.

The day of the wedding we stopped by a monastery where they also happen to sell wine and maintain a vineyard. Mike and I tasted some wine, the reds being our favorite and snagged a bottle. I also overheard some monks chanting which was beautiful. Random moment, it also happened to be corvette club visiting day or something (which apparently the average age of corvette club member is 70?)



Collin had an important part in the wedding: ring bearer. He is a seasoned pro as he also bestowed this role at his Uncle Tom and Auntie Virginia's wedding (holding the ring in a vintage lunchbox). There's nothing much cuter than a 4 year old in a pinstripe suit.

Collin and Millie posed for the camera before the wedding. Let's all scream, "freaking adorable," together now. Millie appeared a little bored while Collin hammed it up and also looked a little smitten with his new friend. She warmed up as everyone continued taking photos and the two of them whispered to each other.







The wedding was beautiful with a view of the river, copious amounts of wine and beer and more good food. And of course we got to share it with friends.









The reality of taking two kids to a wedding however equals being interrupted in the line for food/drinks by a baby with a blow-out (twice), Collin sucking down Sprite and going on a sugar high with Millie and attempting to jump into a fountain or go down to the river himself. Still we enjoyed ourselves and did bust a move or two on the dance floor. Well, Collin and Milo and I did anyway.

The last day we enjoyed a big brunch and said goodbye to Julie and Jon. 

Then we were delayed at the airport for a couple hours (sucky). But besides that annoying ending, it was a nice break from our crazy, stressful lives and we wish Jon and Julie many years of happiness and beautiful tall, blond children!

The Swifts

Growing up in Portland, I had never heard of Vaux's Swifts at Chapman Elementary School until a couple years ago. Suddenly they were all the buzz. I kid you not, I thought people were talking about a band or something. Then I learned the Swifts were indeed swifts, as in those black birds that fly in formation. Apparently every September as many as 12,000 swifts roost nightly in the chimney of Chapman Elementary School in northwest Portland.  It's a massive event with crowds gathering on blankets with picnics to watch the birds. Apparently it was a pretty cool free show. Last year, I planned to go but got sick so this September I was determined to make it.

We went with Mike's parents to have a picnic and I wasn't quite sure what to expect. Would a bunch of birds flying into a chimney really be that interesting?

We got there an hour before sunset to eat and wait. Apparently the fun stops when it gets dark. There was a mass of people sitting on the hill ready to watch the show with kids squealing as they slid down on flat pieces of cardboard. It was a perfect night, just cool enough to wear a light sweater but clear and beautiful.















At first a few birds started flying and I hoped it wouldn't be a let down. But then the magic begun and black specks filled the sky. The crowd whooped and hollered as a hawk would try to grab dinner and the little birds teased it and drove it away. The crowd also cheered for the predatory bird who snagged one. Nature at its best.

The birds looked like clouds as they swirled and dove into the chimney. We watched until the last group disappeared.

Awesome. Would I do this again? Most definitely. Except next time we'll bring wine to enjoy the show.

Growing up

7 Months

It was once again a struggle to take a photo of Milo without trying to eat the paper.





Collin's 7 month photo is pretty similar (except he had a lot more hair)



Milo you have to stop growing so fast!

He's still doing his army crawl though likes to rock on all fours too. And today he sat by himself for the first time. The biggest bonus yet is that he has been sleeping through the night consistently. Being in his own room and crib probably helps. He loves exploring our new house and the soft carpeted floors. And of course also tries to kill himself by going for anything dangerous such as tiny toys, electrical cords and Hurley's tail. We've scooped cat food kibbles out of his cheeks a couple times now too, sigh.

Our little babbler is making da da da sounds. He loves solid food and has tried everything from the standbies of bananas and avocados to black beans and cauliflower and chicken. I was also told by my pediatrician that apparently babies need a lot more iron once they taper down the breast milk so the new recommendations are to give them red meat. The idea of pureed red meat grosses me out but I guess I'll try it mixed with some veggies. Apparently it's common in Europe and the rest of the world! She also said once he's about 8 or 9 months he can basically eat everything we're eating (with the exception of nuts)  just chopped fine enough to eat so he gets exposed to lots of different foods and maybe...once he's older, he wil want more than chicken nuggets and mac and cheese!

Milo also started a French immersion daycare while his big brother is in the pre-k program. Of course we don't expect him to start chatting up in French anytime soon, but we figure if he stays here through pre-k, he might be close to fluent by the time he heads to kindergarten. And we can go to France with our kids as interpreters. The school seems great with diverse, caring teachers. They also make baby food purees for him to try.

Collin also likes his new school and has been practicing his French with ipod flash cards. Sadly, J'ai oublié françaises so whenever he asks "what does this mean in French," I'm pretty much of no help.

Farewell house

Seven years ago, freshly married, Mike and I went on a quest to purchase a little slice of the American Dream and own our own house. We were pre-approved for an amount we couldn't possibly afford (and we know how that ended up for the country). So to avoid an eventual foreclosure, we found a house within our price range in inner NE Portland, a few blocks from MLK Blvd. This was a neighborhood I never would've driven through as a teenager growing up in Happy Valley. It was in the "ghetto," full of shootings and gangs in the nineties. Now there were some new shops and restaurants starting to come into the area. People scoffed at our decision, "Don't get shot!"

We knew we didn't want to live in a new development in the trenches of suburbia so we took a gamble on the inner city. The house was big and romantic, full of character, built in the turn of the century and sure it had some work ahead of it, but we saw potential.

Of course moving into an "up and coming" neighborhood had its drawbacks and if we had kids there was no way we would've chose it. There was the time Mike was almost car jacked. Solicited by a prostitute in front of our house. Multiple shootings blocks away. Hand to hand drug buys. Stuff, sheltered me, had not been exposed to growing up. My personal favorite was the knock at our door at 3 am by a woman who wanted to borrow a metal spoon for her kid to have "ice cream."

Gradually things started to change. Neighbors banned together to force the cops to act on the crack house up the street and then crime started to disappear. Families emerged with kids. New expensive boutiques and restaurants with rave reviews started popping up around us. Suddenly we were in one of the hippest 'hoods in the city. Gentrification was a hot button topic and were right in the middle of it.

The house was project after project after project. Instead of hiking and spending the summer outdoors, Mike was often pounding away at the basement. We added a bathroom upstairs, upgraded the kitchen, refinished the fir floors, made the basement livable, added a kick ass deck, and of course other odds and ends that pretty much consumed the whole of seven years.

We also became spoiled with so many delicious food options nearby. If we didn't want to cook, we could walk five blocks to four different restaurants or ride our bike to more. There was Middle Eastern, Cajun, Thai, pizza, comfort food, burgers and fries, you name it. When Collin came along, we met other families in the area, explored kid stuff and went to the many parks in the area.

And then Milo was born and our house seemed so much smaller. We considered an addition but we'd basically be the spendiest house in the neighborhood and it just wasn't worth it. And although major changes had occurred and it was much family friendlier place to live than when we moved in, our neighborhood still had a ways to go. Part of me was tired of the dilapidated houses, garage bands, gangsters that drove by and syringes that still showed up at the park.

We had grown to love NE Portland though and we wanted to stay in the area. Ten to fifteen blocks made a huge difference. We hoped we could find something a little further "up the hill," with at least 3 bedrooms and a better layout. We were also open to other parts of the city that were close-in and near hip restaurants and shops.

Then disillusionment set in. Living in one of the hottest areas has its drawbacks. Houses we looked at that were up to half a million dollars left us with a total taste of "meh." Our choices were paying a crazy amount of money for a house that wasn't that great and would still require more work, or move to another "up and coming area." Sorry, did that, not interested. We were open to the idea of cosmetic changes, little things. But most of the houses we saw would require something major. And I realized to get the ideal house in NE or SE, we'd need about $600K. And unless we won the lottery that wasn't happening.

We used to live in SW Portland and liked it so that was our first inclination. The downside, less pedestrian friendly, definitely more driving, and far less hip. Priorities change, however. With two little boys, I suddenly saw the appeal of the cul-de-sac or a dead end street. I dreamed of a neighborhood like I grew up with little kids running around and a responsible teenager that could babysit my kids (who didn't have babies of her own). This gave us that option without moving too far out. We would still be close to downtown. SW also had diverse restaurants, farmers markets and lots of wooded areas and parks. Of course we couldn't just walk up the street when we didn't want to cook. Upside: save money.  Schools were also highly rated and most of all, you could get much more house for a lot less money. And of course there was nothing stopping us from driving to our old 'hood once in a while.

It just made sense/cents for us and so we decided to trade in our urban life for something a little quieter.

So here we are. Ready to begin a new chapter.

July photo challenge: Week three - four (or as much as I got complete)

Portrait


Sunglasses


Close-up/Macro


Blue


Action


Flowers


Going Places


Sunset


Shapes


Eyes


Cooking


Green

6 months, oh my!

It was a struggle to take a photo of Milo without him attempting to eat the paper.





I didn't think we'd have to worry about babyproofing at this point but he's pretty much a full fledged crawler. Sometimes he looks like he's trying to take off into flight while he flaps his arms and kicks his legs 

and then he's off. 

I was in denial at first. No way my 5 month old baby was crawling. But sure enough he could get around the room fast and has perfected his skills. His favorite thing to go after is Hurley the cat, shoes, or anything dangerous/chokable (e.g. small toys or cords).



Collin does a pretty good job of picking up the tiny toys but today I pulled out nearly disintegrated paper out of Milo's cheek from a paper sword. He loves watching his big brother and squeals in delight when Collin plays peek-a-boo by running out of the room and back again or when Collin plays with his toys. Now that Milo is not just a blob that lays there and sleeps, Collin's annoyance level with his brother has increased. There are times Collin is really sweet (e.g peek-a-boo and kisses) and other times he has no use for a baby and demands attention if the spotlight is off of him.

Milo loves eating solids and so far has tried bananas, avocados, apple sauce and sweet potatoes. He makes lots of sounds and his newest favorite is blowing rasberries. Although he's quite the mover he has no use for sitting apparently and has not yet mastered doing that by himself without falling over.

I have a feeling I'll have two very busy boys.

It's hard to believe my little baby will be celebrating his first birthday in another six months. We'll soon be in a new house with carpets for him to explore and gates blocking the stairs.