The Wright Family

Astronaut Parker

2010-11-16T14:36:00.000-08:00

If you know me, you know that I love space. I met my first astronaut in 4th grade and have met about 15 since, including 4 out of the 7 Mercury astronauts (America's first astronauts). I have been to 2 shuttle launches and worked at U.S. Space Camp, California for 2 summers before teaching. My little boy had to be an astronaut for Halloween and so did my husband. Love it! My 5th grade class came to the Evergreen Aviation and Space Museum (where the Spruce Goose is) for a field trip and we took Parker back there for a little after Halloween photo shoot.

Parker loved running around the museum to find the many airline seats. Time for a trip somewhere?

All About Parker

2010-11-16T13:49:00.000-08:00

Let me tell you about my incredible son, Parker.

We had a parent-teacher conference with his daycare provider, Karen. She said that his biggest strength is his heart. He is a very sweet boy and is very considerate of others. He is going to be an excellent big brother. The other day I told him that his baby brother is almost here and he will cry a lot. He said, "No, he won't cry. I will bring him a bottle of milk. Glug, glug, glug (and he held a pretend bottle up to my tummy.)"

She also told us that she thinks he will be an early reader.

He knows all of his upper case letters and many of his lower case.

He has been able to count to 20 for some time now and to 10 in Spanish.

He knows all of his colors and knows green, red, blue, yellow, and white in Spanish.

He has known his shapes for ages now- circle, oval, rectangle, triangle.

Parker "reads" several books. Some of the words are so difficult. It is really suprising that he can remember so many things.

He says long, complicated sentences, "I want my purple truck with the motorcycle in it."

He understands pronounces and uses them correctly most of the time. You, your, our, him, his, he, she her, their.

Parker has great manners. He says Please, Thank You, You're Welcome, No Thanks, and has recently made comments like, "This tastes great, Mommy!"

We were all laying in bed in the dark and Parker stood on Grant’s head to reach the ceiling fan light. Grant said, “Parker you are standing on my head. I don’t like it.” Parker replied, “Oh, c’mon! You love it!” We cracked up! I don’t think either of us have ever said that to him before. So funny!

Parker likes to tell stories. "Once upon a time...." He usually retells a story we've read or a movie we've watched. He loves when we make up stories where he is the main character.

He acts out scenes from Toy Story 3. “There’s the fire, Jessie. It’s getting close.” Holds our hands and bows his head and closes his eyes. Then exclaims, “Look, Jessie! The claw! We’re safe!”

He will play with his stuffed animals or with Buzz Lightyear and will have conversations with them. He wants us to be the voices that talk back. He said the other day to Buzz, "OK, Mr. Lightyear... prove it!"

This is his reaction to his new race car bed. Now we have a twin mattress in it. He loves it!

At his 3 year appointment, he weighed 37.5 pounds and was 3 feet 4 inches tall. He is in the 95^th percentile for height and in the 75^th for weight. “I’m a big boy!” is right.

We love Parker so much. He is so funny and smart.

Parker is 3!

2010-11-16T12:31:00.000-08:00

I can't believe my little boy is 3! We had 2 parties for him. In the morning we went to Safari Sam's, which I explained to him, is like Pizza Planet from Toy Story 1. There is a huge jungle gym and lots of games. He loved running through the minature golf course because his socks were glowing from the black lights.

Toy Story Playdough from Grammy.

Bizzzz! Parker had his Buzz Lightyear lazer on his arm and was bizzing people.

Grant and I bought him a big Buzz. He says 60 sayings and his head moves. He is Parker's favorite new toy.

Celebrating after blowing out all 3 candles on his cake.

In the evening, we had a second small party at our home to watch "Toy Story 3." We had watched it twice in the theaters, but now we own it. I borrowed a screen and projector from the school to create our theater. We had popcorn and lots of candy.

The refreshment table.

Parker with his best friend from daycare and cousin.

Parker loved his parties. He did think that he should have a third party because he was 3. :) We would talk to him about his upcoming birthday and say, "You are going to be 3" and he would say, "NO! I'm 2!" He didn't want to be 3, but now has accepted it and says he is a big boy.

Baby Shower & last week of school

2010-11-16T12:14:00.000-08:00

My last day of work was November 1st. When I was pregnant with Parker, I worked past my due date. This is a different pregnancy. I have gestational diabetes and have to do 4 glucose tests per day and administer an insulin shot every night. I also have had low fluid around the baby and have to go to 2 appointments per week for non-stress tests and ultrasounds. My doctor and I thought it would be best for me to take off work early to get more rest and stay off my feet. He put me on modified bedrest. It is great being home. Much less stress and I'm feeling more ready for a second baby.

My awesome 5th grade team threw me a baby shower before I left. Isn't that diaper cake so cute?! I got an infant car seat (Parker's was a hand-me-down that was 7 years old), diapers, a new bottle system, clothes, and many other neccessities.

Halloween

2010-11-16T11:49:00.000-08:00

"I'm Astronaut Parker!"

Aunt Kristen brought over her kids to Trick or Treat with us.

Grant was an astronaut too. He wore my flight suit from Space Camp. One neighbor laughed and said that Parker had the best costume of the night. Watch the video.

Disney on Ice

2010-11-16T11:40:00.000-08:00

We woke up one Saturday morning and wanted to do something fun, so we headed to the Rose Garden to try to get tickets for Disney on Ice. We got pretty good seats.

My attempt to take a picture of the two of us. Parker would see that the flash was coming and close his eyes every time.

Parker's favorite part- Toy Story!

My 35th Birthday

2010-11-16T11:23:00.001-08:00

34 weeks pregnant
Grant booked this amazing hotel (The Elizabeth Street Inn) for a night. All the rooms have an ocean view. Our room had an electric fire place. It was wonderful! They serve smoked salmon chowder and warm chocolate chip cookies every night and have a great breakfast. I'm so glad we got away before the baby comes. Thanks Mom for watching Parker!

The view from our room.

Grant and my Mom suprised me with a laptop for my birthday and some friends watched Parker on my actual birthday so we could go to Benihana for dinner. I was totally spoiled! I can't believe I'm 35!

Fall is here

2010-11-16T11:07:00.000-08:00

I love Fall! We went to this apple farm and to a couple of pumpkin patches. I love giving Parker these experiences of tractor rides, seeing farm animals, and running through mazes. Such fun!

A special treat- A ghost donut from Krispy Kreme. He just ate the frosting off.

Riding "Scout" at Lee Farms.

We invited Grant's sister, Kristen and her children to the farm.

This was a very bumpy tractor ride. I should have skipped out on this one at 8 months pregnant.

The chicks were so cute and so was my niece!

Carving pumpkins. Parker just made holes. I've never used a template before and it did not work out for us. We also carved our pumpkins way too early and they all rotted before Halloween rolled around. I guess we were too anxious.

I love these pictures. Parker was practicing blowing out his birthday candles with the candle in the pumpkin.

End of Summer

2010-11-15T21:53:00.000-08:00

Parker and Daddy playing at our favorite park's sandbox.We went to the Oregon State Fair with my best friend, Niki and her family. I love his smile in this picture!

Oregon Zoo with the cousins.

Checking out the dinosaur walk. This was a mixture between excitement and some fear.

Our finished playground. Grant worked SO hard on this project. I'm very excited for my boys to use it for years and I feel lucky that we got it for free!

Flying High

2010-11-15T18:22:00.000-08:00

Albany's Art and Air Festival was started by my Dad 11 years ago. Last year we went with Parker. I look back at this post and tear up. He was still a baby. He has changed so much this past year. The weekend did not go as we planned. We got down there too late and missed the Night Glow. Parker woke up with a rash all over his face and torso, so we made an Urgent Care trip up to Salem and missed the launch of hot air balloons. We hung in there though, and I'm so glad we did. We were taken up for free airplane ride by a pilot that knew my Dad. What an amazing, unforgettable experience.

I wasn't sure how Parker would react to flying in a small plane, just sitting on my lap. He LOVED it! He was laughing louder than I've ever heard and pointing out all the train tracks, cars on the freeway, etc. He saw a dry field and said, "Look, a desert!"

2010-08-31T17:45:00.000-07:00

Our little underwear model. We are working on potty training. My goal was to have him potty trained by the end of the summer. We were so busy going on little adventures that it was hard; we really needed to just stay home for several days and dedicate lots of time to it. We'll get there. These are Toy Story underwear, so he was pretty excited about those.

Powder Fresh

2010-08-31T17:29:00.000-07:00

Parker usually does not get into much he shouldn't, but this day was an exception. After his bath on Sunday morning, while Grant and I were busy getting ready for church, he went into the spare room and grabbed the powder Grandma left out and covered himself! He was SO proud of himself!

Karin's visit

2010-07-30T17:06:00.001-07:00

Evergreen Air and Space Museum- home of the Spruce Goose, or as Parker would say, "The biggest plane EVER!"
We met Karin and her friend Sara and son for dinner on Friday and then Saturday I met them at the museum. Afterwards we went to dinner at The Brazil Grill. I highly recommend it! Sunday and Monday Karin was at our house. Monday we missed a boat tour of the Columbia Gorge by 2 minutes, so we toured the falls. It is always nice to have Karin up here visiting. Parker was really sad to see her go. He said, "I'm really, really sad! Karin go on a plane. Watch the plane take off."

Inside the Spruce Goose.

Parker and Cooper enjoying a snack.

Parker said, "The planes are really sad. They can't fly." He was upset that they were grounded.

Horsetail Falls.

The pictures of Karin and Parker together did not turn out. He is so squirmy and hates his picture taken.

Base of Multnomah Falls.

Parker loved hiding in this tree stump and then scaring people.

The start of our playground

2010-07-30T16:46:00.000-07:00

Our sister in law, Wendy, forwarded me an email about a free Rainbow play structure. It is approximately 13 years old, but in great shape. I was the first to respond... so it is ours! :) It was originally $3,000! It doesn't have the rock wall, binoculars, or ship's wheel, but it is still awesome.Grant rented a sod ripper and spent all day ripping out a section of our grass and another day preparing the ground for this delivery of gravel. The missionaries came over to help spread the gravel and the three of them got it done in 2 1/2 hours. This free play structure has now cost us about $600 in materials and rentals. Hopefully, our boys love it and use it for years and years. Parker was SO excited about an actual dump truck in our driveway leaving him a present of a rock pile! He immediately climbed in. I'm not sure if he'll play on the play structure more or in the rocks! More pictures to come when we get the structure up.

Fun and the farm

2010-07-30T16:03:00.000-07:00

We had quite the heat streak for a bit. One way to cool off- the fountains in downtown. This is the Salmon Springs fountain at Tom McCall Waterfront park.

I took Parker back to Lee Farms. We were there around Halloween and again in December. This calf was a day old when we visited in October. Parker has a special bond with him. :) http://lifeofthewrights.blogspot.com/2009/10/pumpkin-patch.html

Awwww. A nice hug. This calf was following us everywhere.

Parker thought this guy was a cow too. His coloring is right for a cow, but he's a goat. He'd say, "Hi cow! Want to play?"

Watching him pee.

Bulldozers!

We played at a cool park in Sherwood for 4 hours with Cam and Wendy and the kids. Parker had so much fun!

Carousel Workshop

2010-07-30T15:52:00.000-07:00

We made a quick trip down to Albany to see my mom. She took us to the Carousel Workshop near Monteith River Park. Each animal was bought by a donor and they got to design it. The carousel and the building it will be put in won't be done for years. It is so neat to see the progress.

We went to Cool! Swanson Park Pool. This was my Dad's vision for Albany. He helped with the design and raising of funds before he passed away. I thought they should have named it the "Dave Clark Swim Park". He has a bike path named after him. My mom took some pictures of Parker and I, so when I get copies of those, I may share those.

Our 7th Anniversary Trip

2010-07-30T15:05:00.000-07:00

We chose to go to Seattle to celebrate our 7th anniversary. Luckily, my mom and Grant's mom took a 30 hour shift of watching Parker. We decided to stay 12 miles outside of Seattle and take that savings of hotel rates and do some fun stuff. We went out on a 2 1/2 hour boat tour. It was amazing! It was really cloudy when we started out, but cleared up towards the end of it.

Norwegian Cruise Ship- Alaska bound.

Beautiful skyline

There were so many boaters out. Our tour guide told us that 1 in 8 people in Seattle own a recreational boat.

Entering the locks.

The Wizard- the star of "The Deadliest Catch" TV show.

A 42 million dollar scientific vessel turned yacht. Equipped with a helicopter landing pad and submarines. Maybe Grant and I will charter this ship for our 10th anniversary. Yeah right! http://www.fraseryachts.com/Sale/sale_gallery.aspx?YachtID=Y14_MR_SD View this gallery of pictures. Incredible!

This is the houseboat from "Sleepless in Seattle." It was recently listed for $2.5 million dollars.

I now want to kayak someday.

No trip to Seattle is complete until you visit Pike Place Market.

After Pike Place, we headed to dinner at Ipanema, a Brazilian restaurant. It was amazing. Their salad bar is incredible and they bring around meats on swords. Yum!

On our way out of town, we walked around Tacoma's Glass Museum.

This is on a bridge going over the freeway. It is definitely the most artistic bridge I have ever seen.

The building in the background is the old Amtrak station.

These glass columns are huge. Look at the bottom to see Grant standing inside one.

These gorgeous glass pieces are overhead on the bridge.

Not the best picture. I am holding the camera above the ground and bending over it.

When we got home, we raced in to see Parker. He was SO excited. He wanted to hug and kiss us at the same time and kept saying, "MY FAMILY!" When we sat down in the living room, he kept running back and forth between Mommy and Daddy to give us big loves. Sweet boy! He did great with both Grandmas.

Grant's 35th Birthday & 4th of July

2010-07-30T14:45:00.000-07:00

There were lots of cars, trucks, and tractors in this parade. Parker was in awe.

When Parker was not sitting on one of our laps, he was filling a bag with candy that was thrown.

Grant and his Aunt Sydney

Some local beauty queens.

We went to an awesome Salmon Bake afterwards and got a close up view of some of the cars.

We got home from the parade and celebrated Grant's birthday with a little cake. Grant didn't eat any, but Parker loved it. My mom watched Parker while we had a date night to The Melting Pot. YUM!

35!

Parker was kind of scared of our little fireworks.

The Clark Grandkids

2010-07-30T14:42:00.000-07:00

We'll sure miss these girls. They are so much fun!

Rose Festival

2010-06-24T18:05:00.000-07:00

While at the parade, my brother's wife, Julia, called to say they were close by. She drove her three girls from Cheyenne, Wyoming. They met us at the Rose Festival. It was a great reunion. It was the first sunny day we had had in a long time.

Sophia and Parker

Ava

Parker had missed his nap and fell asleep with a corn dog in hand while Grant was carrying him. He got passed off to me.

My fair, Oregon skin did not like all the sun we got that day. I put sunscreen on Parker and wiped the excess on my face, but did not get the rest of me. Ouch! I'll be more careful from here on out.

Sling shot

2010-06-24T17:49:00.000-07:00

This is the third year Grant has rode the Slingshot at the Rose Festival. I thought this deserved its own post. I cropped some pictures enough to get a good look at his face.

Oaks Park with the Clark cousins

2010-06-24T17:29:00.000-07:00

On a BENCH on the carousel. :( Parker did NOT want to get on an animal. He said they were scary.

My brother, Cameron, and his youngest girl Natalia.

Cameron and Julia took the little ones down the slide.

Parker loves people in giant animal costumes.

This is quite the car full of cuties!

I never thought Parker would go on this ride (he doesn't even like the carousel!), but with his helpful, older cousin, Sophia.... no problem.

Julia took him on his first roller coaster. He hated it and did not crack one smile. He dug into her arm and was saying it was scary!

It was a great day. Beautiful weather. I was glad we went to the Preschool Ride Morning. It is every Tuesday and Wednesday from 9:30-11:30 am and kids 6 and under are only $6.25. Parents are free. They end the day with story time and cookies and milk. Some of my summer plans include, free movies at Regal Cinemas Tuesday-Thursdays at 10, Oaks Park, and the public library.

After Oaks Park, we went back home for naps and then off to the park. Long, tiring day, but we formed some great lasting memories.

Water Park

2010-06-24T16:19:00.000-07:00

We headed to Murase Plaza Park in Wilsonville. I love this park. This slide on this huge mound is awesome, but the water park is incredible. Parker and I will be spending lots of time there this summer.

Natalia

Sophia

Parker is a very cautious boy. He didn't like getting splashed by anyone and loves to be in control. He liked filling his bucket with water and later would run through the fountain and got used to the idea of getting more wet.

Ava

Love this picture. Sophia had soaked up lots of water in this splash football to surprise her mom and Julia was getting her revenge!

These girls are water babies.

Ava trying to warm up and dry off.

Parker running through the fountains. Had to put his shirt on him because he kept climbing up and down the rocks and scraping his belly.

The daddies and Grandma came and joined us towards the end.

And I'll end this post with this series of pictures:

OUCH!

Thank goodness they bounced right back! Horrible, but I can't help but laugh at these pictures. Kids are so resilient!

May

2010-06-24T15:55:00.000-07:00

May was filled with birthdays. We went to 3 birthday parties... our niece Molly's 6th birthday, niece Laurel's 1st birthday, and friend Sofia's 1st birthday.

Laurel
Sofia

Sofia's party was at Gymboree. Parker had so much fun... his favorite thing was the parachute.
And the cake. 3 parties in one month. When they were all over he was asking to go to another party to eat cake.
Molly's 6th birthday was at Safari Sam's. Parker had a great time playing in the play structure and running around. It was very fun. I'm sad we forgot our camera.

Other things in May:

Parker likes to sort things. We discovered this on our fridge. Parker sorted all the magnets by color. Funny boy!Lining up his cars.This is my last field trip of the year. We went to the Aurora Colony. It was a fun, hands-on field trip. The last month of school is definitely challenging with 5th graders.

I'm happy summer is here. I'm starting to feel better. Lots of nausea with this pregnancy. Swollen ankles already. A very different pregnancy this time around. Will find out the gender of the baby on July 13th so stay tuned!

Baby News!

2010-05-11T21:03:00.001-07:00

Parker is going to be a Big Brother!!!
We are so excited! The new baby is due December 10th. We have hoped and prayed for this pregnancy for almost a year. We actually met with a Fertility Specialist. We sat there listening to all the costs of tests and Dr. visits and I didn't feel right about it. She had reserved an appt. with the Dr. and I asked her to cancel it. I told her that I should have started my period that day and that I would like to go to the lab and take a pregnancy test; maybe I was actually pregnant. I prayed I was. She assured me that she would not leave the office until she found out the results and that she would call me. My mom was watching Parker and we went out for a date night. I got the call in the movie theater. I ran to the side and answered it on my way out the door. She told me it was positive. I asked her a couple of times if I heard her correctly. I was so happy! I ran back inside and called Grant over to the hall. I told him and he was completely shocked. We hugged and I cried. We went back to the movie and were just holding hands with big smiles on our faces. Many times during the movie, we would turn to each other and just smile or hug. It was great news and we were so happy to not have to go through the expensive and emotional trials of Fertility treatments. Parker will be a great big brother. He will be 3 years 1 month old. We are really crossing our fingers for a girl. I've always wanted one of each. Of course, we will be thrilled no matter what. I can't believe I have to wait 10 weeks to find out!

P.S. This little photo shoot may look like I had a very cooperative, smiley boy and how easy to photograph him, but NO... this took some bribing with cookies. I had to sing the Cookie Monster Song with cookies in my hand, "C is for Cookie that's good enough for me!" Well, it finally worked. I love these shots. I love this boy!

Oaks Park

2010-05-11T20:41:00.001-07:00

Flying High with Mommy.

It was such a beautiful Saturday before Mother's Day after almost an entire month of rain. We wanted a day in the SUN, so we headed to Oaks Park to ride the rides.

Parker loves driving the cars and motorcycles.

He's in heaven!

Mommy and Parker on a boat ride.

I had a wonderful Mother's Day! I got to sleep in, was served breakfast in bed, got a wonderful card from Grant and Parker, talked to my mom, went to church and heard the Primary sing "Mother Dear, I Love You So!", and was spoiled the rest of the day. Grant got me a gift certificate for the spa and booked the appointment for the 20th. Can't wait! Ahhhhh.

I love being a Mother. Parker amazes me everyday. He is so smart, funny, sweet, loving, helpful, and is just so darn cute! I'm so happy to be his Mommy.

Tulips & Tractors

2010-04-16T13:28:00.000-07:00

Today was a teacher workday and I had most of my progress reports done, so Parker and I headed to the Woodburn Tulip Festival. I'm so glad we were able to go on a Friday morning to miss the crowds. When we left, the parking lot was packed.

Parker taking his own pictures.

I think this is my favorite picture.

We had a great time and it was a gorgeous day.

More Easter

2010-04-12T20:59:00.001-07:00

Dyeing Eggs

It was hard to get him to stop. We had some dyed fingers too.

Before the eggs went in the egg tree, cars filled it. Kind of artsy.

Is a ham supposed to look like this? This is the first ham I've ever cooked. It looked really unappetizing, but it tasted ok. A little dry.

Our pretty eggs in my egg tree.

Got our cool planters filled. Grant's mom got these for us last year. I love them!

I wonder what percentage of Easter Sundays have been dry in Oregon. I'm thinking 10%. Wish we could have done more outside Easter egg hunts/ activities, but we still had a great time.

Easter morning

2010-04-04T10:19:00.000-07:00

Our cute boy with his new cars the Easter Bunny brought him. All dressed up and no where to go. The first Sunday in April is General Conference, so we didn't attend church, but watched the Prophet and other church leaders speak on TV. We still dressed Parker up so he'd understand it was church and got some pictures of him on the deck. Oh, how I love this boy!

Easter

2010-04-02T22:17:00.001-07:00

Easter Egg Hunt at Day Care

This was a very different experience this year, than last. Parker knew just what to do and ran around gathering up 2 loads of eggs. Unfortunately, the weather was horrible! It was fine at first, then changed to a sprinkle, then a DOWNPOUR and HAIL! Really?! Geez.

Can you see the raindrops? This is Karen, our wonderful day care provider.

After hunting Easter eggs, we headed to the mall with my mom to see the Easter Bunny. (For those of you who never knew this, I was the Easter Bunny at Heritage Mall in Albany for a couple of years. I took pictures some days and had to be the Bunny other days. Kind of humiliating when friends and family members come and tease by sitting on your lap!)

Parker wanted to see Santa instead of the Easter Bunny and on the way into the mall, he began singing, "Frosty the Snowman.... Happy Soul!... button nose..... eyes... coal!" He doesn't understand that Santa is on vacation and will be back to work soon, but we won't see him for quite awhile.

Parker got to groom the Easter Bunny.

I have lots of pictures of Parker just hanging out next to the bunny with no smile. I couldn't get him to smile for anything!

He just likes interacting with him instead of just sitting there. High five!

Play time at the mall!

Now we just need to figure out what Easter traditions we are doing. I don't have a dinner planned, eggs dyed, or any Easter gifts bought. I think we are going to dye some eggs and I may buy a small ham. Parker's Easter Basket is somewhere in the garage. It doesn't feel like it could possibly be Easter because of the winter temperatures and rain. Maybe we'll get some sun soon.

HAPPY EASTER EVERYONE!

Grammy's Bubbly Birthday

2010-04-02T21:58:00.000-07:00

The cake was supposed to say Grammy, not Granny. Granny just sounds old! Sam is definitely a Grammy, not a Granny. It was still beautiful and tasty yummy!

Last year for Sam's 60th Birthday, all of us planned to go to the Woodburn Tulip Festival, but it was pouring down rain. Luckily, this birthday was on a sunny day and we threw Grant's mom a great party.

Cameron brought a bubble machine to entertain the kids and it worked wonders.

The Birthday girl with her newest grandchild.

Spring Break

2010-03-28T18:45:00.000-07:00

This Spring Break was the busiest week off work ever! Saturday we went to my Mom's house and painted her spare bedroom. On Monday Grant and I decided to go carpet shopping to replace the nasty bedroom carpet. We picked our carpet at the third place and could get it installed on Thursday. SO, the week was filled with cleaning and emptying 3 bedrooms out and shoving all of that furniture in the living room, dining room, and kitchen. I also painted our master bedroom. We did get away for a night and a day to the beach for some relaxation. Thank goodness! It was beautiful weather and we had a great time. Our carpet was installed on Thursday and we love it! Thursday night and Friday were spent putting everything back and Saturday Grant's whole family came over for his Mom's birthday.

Sunday I spent 8 1/2 hours standing in line to audition for Biggest Loser. It was crazy! I went with Grant's sister, Kristen. Over 4 1/2 hours were in the cold and rain... all for a group interview of 15 people in front of 1 casting director. We were asked 3 questions. I'll know tonight if I get a call back. I would be very surprised. It is hard to stand out amongst 2,000 people! 30 people will get called back and possibly 2 will be cast on the show. What a day! Not sure that I would do it again. I may still submit my 9 page application and make a video to send in.

Parker's sayings

2010-03-13T19:25:00.000-08:00

Parker is doing and saying new things everyday and his sentences are getting more complicated. He is now 2 years 4 months old. Here is a list of some of the fun things he is up to:

Counts up to 20
Knows colors: Red, blue, green, pink, black, white, brown, yellow, but sometimes mixes them up.
Knows planets Earth, Mars, Saturn, Jupiter, and Uranus. Says Outer Space too.
Shapes: circle, oval, triangle, square, diamond
We were driving on a rainy day and he said, "Raining in the clouds."
He woke up yesterday morning and said, "Captain of the ship boat!" I didn't even know that he knew what a captain was. I asked him if he was the captain and he said, "YES!"
When he woke up from his nap that same day he said, "Horse loves carrots."
He talked more about captains and I asked him what a captain says, and he said, "Argh!" I guess captains are all pirates! :)
I picked him up from daycare and asked him if he had a fun day. He said, "Yes. Play trucks and cars Zack and Rylan." I said, "Are they nice to you?" And he said, "YES! Share!" I was amazed at how many words he put together!
If anyone comes to our house, he thinks they came to play with him. He has taken people he's never met by the hand to play in his room.
Parker is really getting a great imagination. His cars talk to each other and yesterday he stood behind the coffee table and served Grant and I imaginary cheeseburgers and would say, "Here you Go! Cheeseburgers! Eat it!"
After we read a book to him, he says, "I read it too!" and he reads it to himself.
"Oh, my pants falling down!"
"Bird fly in the sky!"
"I want some more orange juice, please."
"Elephant has long trunk."
"Umm.... No thanks."
"Yeah, sure."
"Oh Boy!"
Last week some snowflakes fell and we watched through the window and Parker said, "Where Frosty the Snowman?" He remembered that we had a snowman decoration in the lawn for Christmas.
"Santa live in the South Pole?" and I say "No, Santa lives in the North Pole. Penguins live in the South Pole." Parker smiles slyly and says, "Santa lives in the South Pole!" I say "No." He says, "Penguins live in the South Pole?" We've had this little argument at least 10 times.
Makes faces for Show me... sad, happy, surprised, and scared.
"Why?" has progressed to "Why not?"
I picked him up from the nursery at church and he shouted, "Sun BEAM!" and did the hand movement. He loves that song and many others.
He's great with puzzles.
Will show you he means business or is unhappy by folding his arms dramatically or putting his hands on his hips.
Knows tons of character's names from books and TV shows. Knows most of the Cars characters and we don't even own the movie. We do have a couple of books we read lots and he owns about 4 McQueen cars, Mater, Doc, and now Ramone. Oh, and the big Mack truck that holds them. "My truck called Mack."
He will list off things that live in water: "Dolphins swim in the water. Sharks swim in the water." And continues with... frogs, turtles, fish, goldfish, and even Daddy.
"Zebras run in the grass" and "Giraffes run in the grass." "Giraffes eat leaves."
This week he has thrown 2 toys in the toilet. To teach Parker a lesson, when he threw his truck Mater in the toilet, Grant made a big deal about it by getting tongs out picking up Mater with a disgusted face and he boiled Mater to try to deter Parker from doing it again. Well, Grant accidentally boiled Mater a little too long and his wheels don't turn so well anymore and his eyes are falling off.
He has a silly little dance. See video.

We are totally in love with this little guy and his fun personality!

OMSI

2010-03-13T18:08:00.000-08:00

OMSI (Oregon Museum of Science and Industry) hosted 2 teacher open houses and we attended both. We wanted some free, fun evenings with Parker. My brave boy! I wasn't sure if he was going to touch the snake.

He wasn't scared of the dinosaur, he just didn't want to take a picture.

My mom.
Future Astronaut

Sleeping in the moon base.

Oh, did he have fun in the sand!

Our little scientist checking out some x-rays of bugs with some magnifying glasses.

We hope to buy a year pass at the end of the month when our Children's Museum pass expires.

A sign that we need more sleep!

2010-03-12T14:53:00.001-08:00

Incident #1: Grant carried Parker and his library book out to the van and put the book on the roof of the car as he strapped Parker in his car seat. He then drove off and went a few blocks, came to a stop sign, and saw something flash by the window... the library book! He got out and retrieved it. No major harm done.

Incident #2: I grabbed a diet soda, took a few drinks, put it on the top of the car as I strapped Parker in and drove off. Went up our street and realized I didn't have my drink. Stopped the car, got out, and it was still there. Duh!

Incident #3: We were heading to the school's 5th grade program. Grant put Parker's shoes on the roof of the car (sound familiar?) and buckled him in his car seat. I drove us to the school and Grant looked around the car for his shoes. Luckily, I brought his fireman rain boots, because the shoes were no where to be found. The next morning, I'm driving on the on-ramp to the freeway, and what do I see?.... my baby's shoes!!! I couldn't believe it! I drove right between them and watched in the rear view mirror other cars drive between them. I didn't react fast enough and didn't have a spot to pull over, plus I was running even later for work than normal. Those shoes are my favorite so I called my mom, who was at our house watching Parker, and asked her to retrieve them, if she could pull over and get out of the car completely safely. She did. I called Grant and we swore that we would do better about not putting things on the roof of the car.

Incident #4 (yes, another incident! And these incidents are all within a 2 week period!)
Grant went to the store to get a few groceries. He came home and told me that he also rented a movie from the Red Box. He started to tell me about it as he was looking for it. He thought he had slid it into his pants pocket. He looked in the dirty clothes, on the kitchen table, in the car, and around the house. He then figured out that he had put it on the roof of the van and driven off!!! He drove back to Fred Meyer to look around the parking lot, in carts, and talked to Customer Service. No luck! He looked online to find out what happens if you have lost one of the Red Box movies. He told me I didn't want to know what the charge was to replace it... $25! We just hoped that a good Samaritan would find it and turn it back in to the machine. Grant checked our credit card and we were just charged $1. Thank goodness!

Incident #5
Even after all of this, I was getting in my car Monday morning and put my bowl of steaming, hot oatmeal on the top of the Jetta as I loaded the car with my purse, bag, and lunch, got in the car and drove off. I passed a girl on the street waiting for the bus, and she must have thought I was crazy. I went up our hill, stopped at the stop sign, turned the corner, and looked around for my breakfast. Ahhh! Not again! I pulled over, grabbed my oatmeal, and headed off again.

We definitely need to get more sleep! Or carry less stuff out to the car at once. Geez!

Cathedral Park

2010-03-07T19:25:00.000-08:00

I love this park. We have gone there before and I've photographed it when Parker was 9 months old. See that post here. It is in North Portland and I first discovered it because several photographers at Saturday Market had pictures of it and I asked them where it was. It is called Cathedral Park because the underneath structure of the bridge has those arches that make you think of a Cathedral. It was a gorgeous, sunny day. We had a great time walking around.

Snow Day!

2010-03-02T10:56:00.001-08:00

President's Day... No work! What do we do? Go to the snow!
It was a beautiful day and I wanted to make sure Parker got to use his snow boots and bib overalls at least once, so we headed to Mt. Hood. We bought him a sled for $1 at a garage sale last summer. Grant hated the idea of buying a sled and storing it in hope that it gets used, but I'm so glad we did. It was perfect for Parker and seemed really safe.
It was a bright, sunny day. Not too cold. This was one of my favorite days.... ever. Parker was so intrigued by the snow and had so much fun on the sled.

He looks like such a big boy dragging his own sled through the snow.

MY ANGELS!

Bombing Daddy with a snowball!

Mommy's turn to get hit by a snowball.

Grant was circling around fast! He loved it!

My favorite picture!

And the real sledding begins!

There was a big dip here. You can see where Grant's boots hit.

All smiles. Again! Again!

Happy Valentine's Day!

2010-02-14T15:13:00.000-08:00

These pictures start in the upper left hand corner on my 15th birthday, to Winter formal, long distance dating, the day were we engaged in the middle, our wedding and early married life.

Happy Valentine's Day to my sweetheart of 22 years!

When I met you in 7th grade, there was an instant connection. You were not like the other boys. You were thoughtful and caring even as a 12 year old. You always made me laugh and feel special. My journal on January 13, 1989 says, "Grant is really like old-fashioned. He carries my books, opens the door for me, and takes my lunch tray. He is also very funny. I REALLY want him for my 8th grade boyfriend." You made a huge impression on me. Every guy I met I compared to: first- my father and then to you.

I would always have butterflies in my stomach when I knew I was going to see you and stressed about what I would wear. I remember times we would spend together, like when we went to the beach in college where we sang Chicago songs the whole way, where I wished that our friendship was more. I got my wish. I got the best husband possible.

I love you more and more every day. I feel so lucky to have you as my husband. You are the most amazing man and father. Not a day goes by where you don't show me how much you love me. I appreciate all of your support, your partnership in our family, your fun-loving personality, and your positive outlook.

I love you honey! Happy Valentine's Day!

Parkerisms

2010-02-08T13:05:00.000-08:00

Parker is doing and saying so many new things. Here are some:

Parker used to say “All done!” when he was full, now he says “All finished!”

"I see ________." Fill in the blank.

I picked him up from daycare and he got in the car and said, "Zebra has stripes." Then he talked about ladybugs, hippopotamus', horses, and dolphins.

He has his favorites now and calls them by that. “Want favorite blanket.” “Favorite car.”

Counts objects, but usually does not stop when he gets to the end. He'll just keep going back and forth.

He knows his letters. He impressed my students when they were quizzing him with his letters and shapes.

He compliments! “Good turning” as I drive the car. Grant jumped on the bed and Parker said, “Good jumping, Daddy!” He even compliments himself: “Good singing Parker!”
I get to a stop light and Parker will say, "Green means go!" or "Red means Stop!"

If you say anything about a party, he talks about birthday cake, but if there is cake, he doesn't really eat it.

On Sprout they made a little art project and he said, “Crafts!” They do a lot of crafts at daycare.

He took silverware out of the drawer and lined up all the spoons and said, “Train!” (Like he doesn’t have enough trains, he has to go and take my clean silverware out of my drawer!)

In the tub, he put two frogs in the water and said, “Frog in the pond.”

Going down hills he says, “Slide down the mountain.”

He draws lines that rise and fall and calls them mountains.

Parker would be an awesome Pictionary partner because he knows quickly what we are drawing. I drew a horrible train and he said, “Good train drawing Mommy!”

Yelled “HELLLLOOOO! anaana In THERE?!” with his head in a bucket. anaana is anybody.

He was laying on the kitchen floor with paper and a crayon and he said, “I draw clouds.” They looked like clouds to me. Dark, rainy ones (he had a black crayon).

“I hear dog barking.” “QUIET! DOG!” He knows how frustrated I am with our neighborhood dogs right now.

"NO WAY!"- got this from the rescue pack on Diego. Drives me crazy! Considering not letting him watch Diego now. I’ll say, “Parker, would you like mac n’ cheese?” and he’ll say, “No way!”

"Dolphins swim in the water. Goldfish swim in the water. Dolphins swim in the water. Sharks swim in the water." We’ll ask him, “Do horses swim in the water?” He will say "Nooooo!"

We checked out a book at the library last week. Grant asked him, what is this book called and he said, “Fire Trucks in Action.” We hadn’t read for at least 2 full days. I couldn’t believe he knew the title. Grant says that he had said it a few days before that.

He interacts with the TV. Diego will ask, “Do you see the boat?” Parker replies, “Right there! In the water!”

He loves to wear Mommy's shoes. He can take his fireman boots on and off. I thought it was funny that he had both pairs on.
At his best friend's 3rd birthday party at McDonald's, he stole everyone's chipmunk toys from their happy meals and played with them under play structure. He would just line them all up. He gets nervous around bigger, loud kids who are running around in those play structures.

Parker is such a fun, sweet boy. I love his personality! It is amazing how much he is learning and growing.

Fireman Parker

2010-02-08T12:11:00.001-08:00

On our way back from California, we went into a consignment store and I found this coat for 50 cents. I was pretty excited. We picked up the rain boots a week later. Now we just need a hat. Not sure that he would keep it on though. Pants might be good too. I've seen some pretty good looking firemen-- I bet ladies wouldn't mind too much if some were only in their tidy whities.

Christmas Morning

2010-02-08T12:05:00.000-08:00

I forgot to post this video from Christmas morning. I love it!

California, here we come!

2010-01-15T22:51:00.000-08:00

We wanted to go somewhere for Christmas vacation. Somewhere not too far, cold, or expensive. We decided to go visit my old friends in California. Wyoming and Utah were out. We'd like to visit family there this summer.

We left my mom's house on Christmas night and drove all night (while Parker slept peacefully) to Sacramento. We went to my friend Elizabeth's house. Her daughter is only 2 months younger. They were so cute together.

We went to Old Town Sacramento to the Train Museum. Perfect museum for Parker. He LOVES trains!

Love this picture with his reflection!

He was so cute to push around Brianna as they ate their snack. Anything with wheels!

Me and Elizabeth.

California friends

2010-01-15T22:40:00.000-08:00

Whenever I come into town, Karin throws a party and invites some of my favorite people over. It's a good time!

Karen, Karin, Karen's mom from Bend, Oregon, and Janice.

Me and Angela. We worked together at Space Camp. She came to our wedding and I had only seen her once since then. It was great to catch up.

Mike and Sandy. Sandy works at Curtner Elementary, where I taught for 5 years. They were also our neighbors. They are great. They rescued us whenever we needed it. Mike set mouse traps and fixed things we couldn't do on our own. They are moving up to Oregon this summer, but to Southern Oregon. :(

Some of my former students... the teacher's kids. Ixchel, Carissa, Cassi, Ammon, and Ishmael. It was so fun to see them. They are 17-21 years old. Great young adults!

Janice was Curtner's secretary. She was mom away from home. When I tore ligaments in my ankle, she drove me to the emergency room and sat with me for 3 hours. She's the best!

Karen and Ixchel. Karen taught 4th grade when I was at Curtner and I taught Ixchel for 5th and 6th grade.

Nicole and Joey. Nicole is Karin's long time friend. I'm happy to call her a friend too. She is such a sweet person. We had a good time playing poker. I was the first to go out. :(

Carissa and Carrie. Carrie taught 4th grade when I started at Curtner. I had Carissa as my student in 5th and 6th grade. I also had her brother, Cameron. When I saw a picture of him, I couldn't believe how the little boy I had once taught turned into a man!

Very fun evening! These people + some that could not make it, are what I miss most about California!

San Jose Children's Museum

2010-01-15T22:35:00.000-08:00

I remembered the Children's Museum from Space Camp days. The Tech museum was closed for awhile, so our field trip was here. Very fun. Grant and I took him in the morning for a couple of hours and then Karin and I took him again that afternoon after his nap for another 1 1/2 hours.

He played with this maze wall for at least 20 minutes.
We need to get one of those marble mazes. He loved it!

He loves stacking things as high as possible.

Bubbles!

Grant got his hands wet and put his fingers through the bubble.

Bubbles fell from a machine in the ceiling. Parker caught a few.

This hurricane would suck the balls down. Awesome! He got pretty wet here.

At the right, you would put a ball in the tube and it would shoot it up into the big hurricane tank.

Karin and Parker drive the fire truck.

We have a family pass to the Portland Children's Discovery Museum, but it's not nearly as cool as San Jose's.

San Francisco

2010-01-15T22:15:00.000-08:00

I love this picture of my boys and the diggers in front of the most recognized bridge in the world.

Me and Karin

Running free

My handsome boys

My second favorite place in San Francisco... The Palace of Fine Arts. Beautiful!

Parker looks like he is explaining the history behind this structure.

My #1 favorite spot in San Francisco... Coit Tower. I love going there at night to see the city lit up. It is on Telegraph Hill. Grant proposed there, so it is a very special place.

This is the grassy spot we were sitting at when Grant proposed on January 25, 2003. We were married less than 6 months later. It was a clear night and the city was glowing... very romantic!

We left San Francisco and headed north on 101, since we heard there was 8-10 inches of snow predicted in the Mt. Shasta area of I-5. It was a long, windy road, but GORGEOUS and I'm glad we went.

Redwoods

2010-01-15T21:14:00.000-08:00

Humboldt Redwood Forest was not on our itinerary, but the predicted snow along I-5 had us looking for an alternative route home. I'm so glad we took this route. It is a gorgeous drive. We were going to pass it in the night and drive from San Francisco to Eureka and arrive at midnight, but Parker woke up at 11pm and threw up.... so, we stopped early. We stayed at a little motel and realized that we were 5 miles from Humboldt State Park.

This is inside the Chimney tree looking up.

I drove THROUGH a redwood tree. How cool is that?! There are 4 in the Humboldt State Forest. This is the Shrine Tree.

Close!

Made it!

Looking back.

Redwood Tree house

Parker kissing the bear

A big, wooden vehicle.

I loved how the light shined through these trees.

While driving, I saw a sign for wild elk, saw a good size herd and quickly pulled off the road.

I was actually standing in the road taking these pictures. I planned my escape route to the car if one started to charge me.

Paul Bunyon and Babe, the Blue Ox

My new boyfriend

The gorgeous views on the way home

We made it home safe and sound. It was a great trip!

Christmas

2010-01-15T19:09:00.000-08:00

For Christmas Eve, we went to Grant's brother's house. The kids opened their presents and we had a great dinner.

Grant with Molly and Finn.

Max's reactions are the best! I wish every kids reacted like this when they opened presents. He is so excited and appreciative. Love it!

We kept it pretty simple again this year. Just a few toys from us and some hand me down toys from Cam and Wendy. Parker did love opening presents this year and kept asking to open more. Even a week after Christmas, we wrapped up a couple of his pocket cars after he begged to open more presents. He got plenty from family and friends too.

It was a wonderful, quiet Christmas. We went to my mom's for Christmas dinner and opened presents there too. I loved this Christmas with Parker as he could understand more of what was going on. I loved that he loved Santa. I loved starting some family traditions and spending time with my family.

Zoo Lights

2010-01-15T18:25:00.001-08:00

The train at Zoolights is the place to be on a Winter night in Portland. We attempted to go to Zoo lights a couple of weeks before Christmas, but my mom slipped and fell on a metal plate in the sidewalk and hit her head as we were heading in. An ambulance and fire truck came to check her out, but she didn't want to go to the hospital. She was ok, just sore. The zoo employees were great and encouraged us to come back and said that we could ride with the conductor on the train and skip the line. AWESOME! Maybe I'll try falling next year so we can do that again. So cool!

In the "hot box." My mom and I sat on top of a flat bed train car behind them.

My mom under the dragon light.

"Ooooh... pretty lights!"

Parker with a baby elephant.

He really liked the alligator.

This courtyard area is full of lights. Beautiful.

He had so much fun playing these drums.

This band was so funny. It consisted of a group of old guys that really liked to rock. They started with a Christmas song, then went to Green Day, and the last song we heard was a Metallic song. Rock on!
We were freezing. I think it was 37 degrees that night. I really needed some gloves and socks. Luckily, I had a hat my friend Melissa made. Brrr. We had a great time though and will have to go again next year.

Giddyup Horse! Yee Haw!

2010-01-15T18:11:00.000-08:00

My mom had a gift certificate to Lee Farms so it gave us a good reason to go. They have Christmas trees and a cute little gift shop. We went there during pumpkin season and played with newborn calves and rode this same pony, Scout. It was fun to go back and see how much the calves grew. The only good pics and video were of the horse though. Watch the videos! So cute.

We were in Sweet Tomatoes this week and Parker saw a guy in a cowboy hat across the restaurant and yelled, "Yee Haw!!!" So funny.

More with Santa

2010-01-15T17:58:00.001-08:00

Karen, Parker's daycare provider, told us about JC Penney's Santa portrait packages. I'm so glad we did this. He ate a cookie with Santa, read books, and got lots of pics taken. We bought just these two. Love the top one!
The following is a visit with Santa from Washington Square Mall... a much better looking Santa!

So I want trains, cars, balls......Oh! Thanks!

I love visiting Santa. We probably went 4 times. For those of you who do not know this about me... I was Santa's helper for a few Christmas'. I was the photographer/ elf. (I also was the photographer/ Easter Bunny in the spring! :) )

New Toys

2009-12-13T16:55:00.001-08:00

1. Mr. Potato Head

Aunt Wendy opened the toy-filled trunk of her car on Thanksgiving & said take what you want. We are so lucky to get all the hand-me-downs! Parker has been having so much fun with his Mr. Potato Heads. We have kept most of the other toys for his Christmas presents. I have only bought him one thing.
Love this picture! I really want to take some photography classes and want to learn how to edit, but I was pretty happy with how these turned out. I thought the lighting was good (for once) in our living room.

Trying one on for size

2. Parker Train

Karin sent him this train for his birthday. I love when he brings me one and tells me the letter. Such a creative gift!

Grammy

2009-12-13T16:51:00.001-08:00

Parker is lucky to have Grandma Day every Friday! My mom one week, Grant's mom, Sam, the other. I just love these shots I got last week.

What you get out of a silly 2 year old

2009-12-13T16:32:00.000-08:00

Had to post a progression of pictures that we took for Christmas cards. I envisioned something different. It is SO difficult to take Parker's picture! At least he sat still for a bit.

Not sure where this smile came from. So silly!

He started ROARING here.

Teethy grin.

Love this picture of Grant. So handsome! Parker is being silly.

Running in front of the camera. Darn, because I like this one of Grant and I.

2 year Photo Shoot

2009-11-15T21:19:00.000-08:00

Grant was trying to show Parker how to stand still so Mommy could take his picture. It was QUITE challenging, but we got a few good shots. I must say that both of my boys are so cute!

After our photo shoot, we went to the mall to play at the kid's play area. We saw Santa! He's already visiting Tigard, Oregon! I just happened to bring my camera and they let me take my own pictures. We will go back for another photo shoot when Parker has changed out of his Fall outfit and into something more Christmas.

Parker liked Santa OK. No tears, but not a whole lot of smiles.

Happy 2nd Birthday Parker!

2009-11-15T20:40:00.001-08:00

I can't believe my little boy is 2! It is Sesame Street's 40th Birthday this year, so that became the theme. He loves Sesame Street, but Caillou and Thomas the Train are probably his first and second favorites.

Parker would open one present and immediately want to play with it. He was very happy with everything he got.
Parker and cousins Max, Molly, and Finn. Baby Laurel was being held.

Yum! We got the cake from the Thriftway Bakery. It is the same Lemon Drop cake we've had for my baby shower and Mom's birthday. SO good. He really only ate the ice cream. He kept saying, "Birthday Cake!" though.

Grandma and Parker after everyone went home. The Elmo doll they are holding is one that my Grandpa sent for him several months ago. It is a puppet and he loves it! My mom made the blanket that is in the background.
It was a great party. We are so happy to have Parker. He is so much fun and I just adore him! Happy Birthday sweetheart!

Our Living Room Redesign

2009-11-15T19:21:00.001-08:00

BEFORE

This is our living room after we got our new sectional and after Grant ripped out the old tan carpet and laid down flooring, but before the rest of the redesign. We got our old couches when we got married. They were big and light tan. Our room was very beige with the carpet, couches, and walls, and I was SO over it. We had some purple in the room and the curtains made it very dark. The rug was horrible and had many snags. We love the new room!

AFTER
It all started with the rug. I searched and searched for a rug I liked with blues and browns and this one won. Then, we found a paint color we liked and Grant painted the room by himself while I was at work and Parker was at daycare. He did a great job. He did the flooring all by himself too when Parker and I were in California for Spring Break. I love a good Honey Do list!

Love the tree art! What is on the fireplace mantle keeps changing. I recently bought a brown metal leaf art, but am not sure if I love it either.

Other changes we have made in this room since we have lived here are: removing the big, black cast iron wood-burning stove and putting in this brushed silver insert with glass doors. We also removed the short, scuffed and damaged brown moulding and we painted and installed thick, white moulding and replaced all of the doors in the house with solid, white, six panel doors that we bought for $10 each from a friend whose house was being demolished for a new neighborhood.Goodbye, dark purple curtains and hello new, fresh white curtains.

I bought the clock and it was a strange light orangish brown color and Grant spray painted it silver.
We framed our favorite picture of Parker. It is one I took of him when he was 10 months old.
The second Parker saw this rug, he grabbed his cars and started driving them on winding road that is on the rug. I never thought of that when I ordered it.
I would love to get a new coffee table. Not sure what I want. Maybe an oval or round glass one with silver border or maybe a big upholstered ottoman. Matching colors would be hard though. I would probably want the aqua color. We'll see. We need to get new carpet in the bedrooms, redo the bathrooms and kitchen countertops first. It never ends!

Any comments or suggestions would be appreciated.

What Parker Does

2009-10-31T15:32:00.000-07:00

He embarrasses us sometimes.

He went up to a girl at the park, who was Latino, and pointed and said "Dora! Dora!"
He saw a bearded man at Sweet Tomatoes and shouted, "Jesus!"
He announces his bodily functions... toots, burps, and thinks fake sneezing is hilarious and will say ah-ah-aH....ah-choo! over and over. We were at Red Lobster on my birthday and he projected loudly, "Mommy, I fart!"

He loves animals.

I took him to a park with lots of trees and we saw lots of squirrels. He chased them and would shout, “Squirrel, come here!” He'd point at them up in the trees and follow them. He'd get a little whiny because they would not come to him.

He loves to see them temple.

We drive past the Portland LDS temple everyday and he points to it and says, "Tembull!" in a whiny voice because he wants to go there.
If he sees any temple or even a castle, he shouts, "Tembull."

He loves people.

We can’t talk about either grandma without him whining that he wants her.
He loves his friend from daycare, Zach. When we take the exit to Tualatin, he knows we are getting close to his house and gets excited.
At the ward's Trunk or Treat Halloween activity, Parker gave his friend, Sophie handfuls of candy from our bowl.
He says, "Sorry" lots... really, he overuses it. If a kid at the park runs too closely to him, he says sorry. He shows compassion to others and if he hurts us somehow will pat us or hug or kiss us.
He does get nervous around lots of people, especially at my school when Grant and Parker visit on Mondays and everyone is saying, "Hi Parker!", but he ends up giving high fives and fist bumps.
He does well with other kids at nursery and his day care. Sometimes he is good at sharing; sometimes he's not.
"Daddy, where are youuu?" and "Mommy, come here" are come commonly spoken phrases. He is saying more and more complete phrases and sentences.
He must have my sense of direction. If we are heading in the direction of home and within a mile, he will announce, "HOME!"

He loves all vehicles.

Because he loves vehicles SO much, we look for opportunities to expose him to them. We have taken the bus to downtown Portland and taken the Light Rail several blocks. We have run around the Bus Transit Center. Parker and I have taken the train down to Albany to see airplanes and hot air balloons. We have been out to PDX and to the Hillsboro airport.
He is fascinated with anything that moves. From the car, he will call out everything he sees, “Car, car, TRUCK, digger, train, car, flag, hamburger (when he sees McDonalds).

He loves to read.

His favorites right now are “Goodnight Moon,” “Are you my mother?,” the "David" series, and anything about vehicles.
He reads to me. Here is how "Are you my mother?" goes: "Egg, jump, jump, drop. Cat. Mother?... NO! Chicken. Mother... NO! Dog. Mother?... NO! Cow. Mother?... NO! Digger. Mother?... NO! Nest. MOTHER!" He is really comprehending and looking at context clues. I think he will be an early reader. :)

Other cute things about Parker

Whenever he sees a picture of a big cat- lion, tiger, etc., he says “Tiger!” and puts out his hands and roars.
He will answer the question, “What’s your name?” and sounds so cute as he says “Park-er!”
Sleeps with his stuffed monkey and Sesame Street Blanket every night.
Says, "Mommy......I Me Mew", which I interpret to mean I love you.
He can say "Happy Birthday!"
He loves to sing and often hums along to hyms at church too.

We love our little boy. He will be 2 November 7th. I can't believe it. He is as big as many 3 year olds, but is still our baby boy.

Pumpkin Patch

2009-10-31T14:58:00.000-07:00

He LOVED the calves. The greyish tan one was only 4 days old and part of the umbilical cord was still attached. They were so cute and weren't afraid of Parker at all.
Staring down the Mamma pig. He was nervous around her. She was huge and protective of her babies.
He had a good time with the chicks and wanted to climb in their pen with them.

Climbing up to the rafters. I'm really glad he came down by himself. I really didn't want to go up there.

He fed the cows hay and would tell them, "Eat, cow!"

On his first horse, Scout.

He did not want to pose for pictures and would not look at the camera for anything. How do people get nice pictures of their 2 year olds?!
He loved that the stem came right off!
He counted the pumpkins.

"Mommy, more bubbles"

2009-10-31T14:24:00.001-07:00

Parker loves taking his nightly bubble bath. He says over and over in the sweetest voice, "Mommy..... more bubbles."

He is so serious as he plays with the bubbles and pours out the water.

This isn't his favorite part. This picture makes me laugh though.

Parker counts

2009-10-31T14:10:00.000-07:00

Well, he does much better than this now. He does count 1-13 perfectly, but then skips to number 20. He counts every step when going upstairs; loves to count wheels; number of cars he sees, etc.

Grant's century ride & our outings

2009-10-31T12:56:00.000-07:00

Grant has been training for a long bike ride for awhile and he completed the Century Harvest ride in October. It was actually a 104 mile bike ride. I am so proud of him. He averaged about 16 miles per hour. It was a very windy day, but the weather was nice. He rode with Nic from church. His wife and I are in the primary presidency together. We coordinated a cheering effort, which really inspired our riders.

Parker was so upset that Daddy didn't stop!

They had quite a ways to go still, so we went to an Apple Farm.

Parker liked seeing the pigs, but they were really wild at first and it scared him a bit.

My sweet boy!

He loved this hay maze. He wouldn't leave it and would just go back and forth.
He loved going to a dead end and saying, "Nooooo!"

We took a hay ride out through the apple orchard and sat up front so we had a good few of the tractor.

Inspecting the tired piggies.

He made it! At the finish line.

Looking proud.

I start school & Parker and Grant go to the beach

2009-10-31T12:29:00.000-07:00

At first he hesitates because he is getting dirty.

Then he starts to dig in.

Then he slides down dunes and ends up COMPLETELY covered in sand. It stuck everywhere sunscreen was. The bottom of the bathtub that night was covered. Watch the video.

Sealions in Newport Bay.

His reaction to the sea lions.

While Grant and Parker played at the beach, I was at school. NOT FAIR! I wish I had a 4 day schedule too (except I wouldn't want to start work at 6am). I must say I have one of the best classes I've ever had. 26 students compared to the 32 I had last year. Nice, respectful students. I also have a student teacher.

Oktoberfest

2009-10-31T12:21:00.001-07:00

This is the second year we went to the Mt. Angel Oktoberfest. The town is very cute and packed with people for this weekend celebration. Most of the buildings look like they have been transported from Germany. We had a turkey leg, fondue, and walked around the arts and crafts booths. Grant biked there, about 45 miles.
Eying the giant Turkey leg. He ate quite a bit, but the whole family worked on it and still we had to throw some out.

We took at tractor ride out to a parking lot that wasn't ours just for the experience. He loved it!

Best Slide Ever

2009-10-31T12:00:00.001-07:00

We went to a great park in Wilsonville last month and found this humongous slide there. We even went down on a piece of cardboard to quicken our ride. Very fun! I've never seen anything like it at a park.

Parker Singing

2009-10-31T11:41:00.000-07:00

This is Parker's favorite song from the Once soundtrack. Since he was just a few months old, we realized that this song had powers to immediately calm him down. He could be throwing a fit, but as soon as he heard just a few chords of the guitar, he was over it. Amazing!

Sunday Suit

2009-09-13T19:34:00.001-07:00

I love this little boy! Parker is 22 months on this day.

He loved driving his cars in the window sill.

He looks like a Senator in this picture! It cracks me up!

Funny smile!

Albany Art & Air Festival

2009-09-13T17:25:00.001-07:00

Ten years ago my Dad started the Art and Air Festival in Albany, Oregon where he was the Parks and Recreation Director. Today it is quite the event. I wanted to make sure I attended this year. Parker loves all vehicles, but has been quite interested in trains and planes SO I decided last minute to take him on the Amtrak train down to Albany on a Friday evening. Grant met us at my mom's house Saturday morning and brought his bike in the van. He wasn't there long because he biked home, 78 miles. My mom and I took Parker to the night glow Friday evening. It was so beautiful. Parker woke up Saturday morning at 6:45 and I changed his diaper, threw on some jeans and a jacket and off we went to chase hot air balloons around the fields of Albany on the foggy/ cloudy morning while my mom slept in.
By the time we hit Salem, Parker was saying "All done!" and wanted to get off and run around with everyone else. I had to grab the car seat and stick him in it to keep him from trying to climb over me and run around. I'm sure it was uncomfortable for his long legs.

He cried when we left the train. It was fun to experience it with him, but I could have used an extra set of hands.

Aren't they amazing?!

This one was so low I was afraid it wouldn't get over the trees.

This was the only balloon with an unusual shape-- Noah's Ark.

They were so close, I could yell "Hello!"

This might be my favorite picture of the day.

There were 40 hot air balloons in all. It seemed like more. There were many others behind me.
I sat Parker on the top of my mom's car to get these shots. Love the balloon going right over us.

After chasing the balloons around for about an hour, Parker and I went out to breakfast and then went to get my mom out of bed. Grant got there and did a couple of things for her and then headed out on his bike. Parker napped and then we got ready and went to the festival.
He had to ride on this little train. It was no Amtrak, but he loved it.

This is one lucky boy. He was eyeing up this motorcycle and the owners walked up and said that he could sit on it. He was nervous without being held onto.
We walked around the planes and a pilot was just starting preparations for take off. He left his door open and Parker went running full speed. He saw Parker's excitement and suggested that he sit inside. I was surprised. I was afraid that Parker would hit a button or switch that could hurt something, but he assured us that Parker could do no damage. It was really hard to get him out of there!

Notice the airplane shirt. What am I going to put him in when we go to the Oktoberfest in Mt. Angel next week? We don't have any lederhosen!

This had to be the most memorable weekend of the summer. We'll go again next year. If you live in Oregon, you should go. Children ages 8-17 can ride in an airplane for free. Several pilots participate in this program every year. Very cool.