Starfish

Levi's really coming along in his "swimming".
He's confident jumping into the pool.
He's kicking really strongly.
He will need to be able to put his face in the water with out fear if he's going to be able to move on to the next level and swim by himself next year!

Summer: Week One

Levi and I have had a ton of fun this week!
We got to spend a drizzly (but fun) morning at the zoo with Taya and Marie.  True Oregonians still get their rain gear out in June!

We met most of my family to picnic in the park, and play in the fountain.  Levi was thrilled to run around getting wet.  That was until he slipped on the bricks and scraped up both his knees.  He was a little more timid after that big spill.

We were able to have some play time with Peggy, Zachary and Zane on Monday.  Then this morning, Peggy and I packed up the kids and tried to pick as many strawberries as we could.  All the boys picked strawberries.  But none of them had anything to show for it!

Look at the determination in that little pickers face!

Levi's showing Zane how a big boy picks berries!

This afternoon Levi and I smashed most of our berries and made freezer jam.  Gotta love that taste of summer you can enjoy in December.

Add in evening swimming lessons with Daddy, and we had one busy week.
Levi and Daddy get to go down the big blue slide tomorrow on the last day of class (Levi has two more weeks of lessons in early July).  I'll try to get back on here and post before we leave for vacation!

Happy Father's Day

Levi's excitement in this photo is because of daddy's present (that he will soon get to help open)!

Happy Father's day to the best daddy this wonderful kid could ask for!

I think the highlights of Gabe's father's day were:
1. Getting much needed car parts for the exhaust system in his project car.
2. Getting time to put those parts in this afternoon.

It's here at last!

Summer vacation is here!
Levi and I get the next 2 months to play.
Here's our Summer 2012 To-Do List:

I was home when Levi woke up from his nap this afternoon.
When I walked into his room to help him out of bed I told him I was on vacation and his response was, "I'm so excited!"
Me too!

Mr. and Mrs. Osbourne

My little sister got married on Saturday!
(The lighting in the church was really low so most of our pictures are really dark.)

Dad proudly walking Tricia down the isle.

Tricia reading her vow to Travis.

Cutting the cake.

Grandpa and Grandma Girard with Grandma Berke

A rare photo of Gabe and me together.

Congratulations Tricia and Travis!

We love you both!

Visit with the Morrisons

We've been very lucky to have my sister and her family with us most of the last two weeks.

Their first week here, Heather and Ryan went up to Orcas Island to celebrate their 10th anniversary.  So we had two boys most of the week.  Levi loved having his cousin Sawyer staying with us (and so did we).  I can't tell you how many times over the last two weeks Levi has told me that Sawyer is his best friend.  (Even though he's not willing to share his two favorite race cars with Sawyer.  Or most of his other toys for that matter.)
We spent that week with Sawyer doing lots of boy stuff.
Making pizza-

Learning how to armpit fart-

Playing Mario on the Wii-

The whole family was here for most of last week.  But with Gabe and me at work all day, and lots of wedding preparations happening, we weren't really able to spend a lot of time doing fun things together.  So, after Tricia and Travis' wedding yesterday we went downtown to check out Jeld-Wen Field.  The Timber's didn't play a single home game the whole time they were here.  Hopefully the next time they visit we can go cheer with our chainsaw in hand.

Then we went down to the waterfront to look at the big boats that have come into town for Rose Festival.

And then we had dinner together here.

Today, we met the whole family at the park for lunch and some play time.

Now they're off to spend some much needed time with Ryan's family before they head back home.  And I miss them already!  I badly wish they weren't so far away.  I love these guys!

I'll be back tomorrow with some pictures of Tricia and Travis' wedding.  I brought home some work to grade, but have yet to look at it.  Only one more week!

Double Dinners

We haven't had a Sunday supper in FOREVER!  When I looked at the calendar and realized we didn't have a single supper gathering in May I was really disappointed.  But I guess that just shows how incredibly busy the month of May was around here!  This weekend we're trying to make up for all the suppers we've been too busy for this month by hosting two.

Saturday night Gabe invited his friend Doug (the guy he co-drove for in the rally last month), his wife and 6 year old son for dinner.  Levi was thrilled to have another big kid to play with and the boys spent most of the evening using the stair railing as a ramp for race cars to jump from.  For dinner Gabe smoked a pork loin with apple wood chips on the Bar-B-Que.  It had a really nice smoky flavor!

I made a southwest black bean salad from here.  It was really good.  Here's the recipe:

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 ears corn, kernels removed

1 15-oz can black beans, rinsed

1 tomato, cored, seeded and chopped

3 tablespoons fresh parsley, minced

2 scallions, sliced thinly

3 tablespoons fresh lime juice (about 2 limes)

1 1/2 teaspoons canned chipotle chiles in adobo sauce, minced

1/2 teaspoon honey

1 avocado, pitted, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch pieces

In a medium skillet, heat 1 tablespoon of the oil over medium heat then add the corn and cook for 6-8 minutes, or until golden brown, stirring frequently.  Transfer the corn to a large bowl and combine with the beans, tomato and parsley.  

In a small bowl, whisk together the scallions, lime juice, chipotle, honey, 1 tablespoon oil, 1/4 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper.  Pour over the salad and gently mix to coat.  Add the avocado, folding gently to incorporate, then season to taste with salt and pepper before serving.  

I really like the chipotle chiles in it.  Prefect amount of spice!

Tonight we hosted a dinner party/game night for my sister and Travis.  My mom took care of all the food. My Grandma Berke flew into town last night and my Grandpa and Grandma Girard came over too.  So it really was almost the whole family.  We were able to play a big game of Bunco and enjoy time with family we don't get to see nearly as much as we want to.  Thank goodness for special events that draw family together!

The looser table

The winner table

Balloons aren't just party decorations.  They are also used for play fights!

I have to put this one on too.  It's my favorite picture of Levi from Enzo and Finn's birthday party on Sunday morning.  Love the mid-air jump Levi is showing off.  He loved that bouncy house and didn't want to leave.

Barbershop

Levi got his haircut at the barbershop this morning.  Since Tricia and Travis' wedding is a week away, we decided Levi needed a nicer cut than the usual buzz cut Daddy gives him.

He was pretty nervous.  But still managed a few smiles!

He did a really great job!
He moved when the stylist asked him to and did a great job holding still.

And his favorite part was choosing a treat at the end.  He had to dig through the bag until he found a red Dum Dum of course!

Levi has a handsome new look!