Lost

Oh, what an afternoon it was.

We started to realize that the cat hadn't been seen in quite a while, and around the same time, Nate came in with a freshly picked bowl of tomatoes. After an extremely extensive search of our entire house, we figured that Harry had escaped when Nate was outside, via the back door that was most likely left open.

This was not good.

We walked the neighborhood in the 95 degree summer heat looking for a lost cat---our lost cat. After a solid hour of searching, (with a few caring neighbors) a drive around the neighborhood, and tears starting to flow from the boys and myself, we needed to step our plan and get LOST signs in the area. How far could he have gone in this heat? He doesn't even know the neighborhood and he must be so scared. I was feeling sick to my stomach at the thought of having to call the very nice couple who gave us the cat and telling them that we had failed only 4 hours into being Harry's parents. Dan ran to his office to print our flyers, and I gave the boys some dinner. I went back outside by myself to call for kitty.
When I came back in, Nate told me that he heard a cat meow. I told him it was probably just me, calling for the cat in the alley. He didn't take my answer and he got up from the table and walked back to their bedroom. There was Harry, sitting up tall on Christopher's bed looking as if he'd just woken up from a good nap. Where he was we'll never know. Our sad tears changed to happy tears, and we called Dan and told him to stop the presses.

cool cat

Meet the newest addition to our family, Harry Caray Moore. The whole process of acquiring this cat was so easy, it was clearly just meant to be.

Dan had a cat of this breed when he was in college, and he thought that Hobbes was just the most amazing cat ever. Since they're known for being extremely smart, fun, and a great pet, we thought that someday it would be fun to get one. I just happened to look on craigslist yesterday, and lo-and-behold a couple had just posted that they needed to find a new home for their Bengal cat, and they lived in basically our neighborhood. I emailed him with a few questions, we decided to zip over and meet the cat and put him me through an allergy test---if I got any itch, it would have been a deal breaker. Luckily, I had absolutely no reaction to his fur, he was engaging and cute on our visit, the people could see that he was going to a good home, and that was it----Harry would be ours in the morning! The boys got up with cat on the brain, started making toys for him, and then he arrived at about 11:30. Now we are a family of 5.

Science Inquiry

Q: Can you fry an egg in the car on the hottest day ever in Portland, Oregon? (107 degrees)

Well.......kind of.
But it would be a very chewy egg.

stuff

Sorry for my lack of posts over the past week. After Nate was finally feeling better from his pneumonia, it was my turn to be sick. I have spent the past 5 days literally laying in in bed with a fever. I am now on antibiotics and can see the light at the end of the tunnel. No, not that light..the one pulling me towards it as I die..but..the one where things will return to normal around here.
Dan probably thinks that I am totally cuckoo but I can't help but obsess on this dumpster and it's contents. I saw the family move out a few weeks ago, with a moving truck, and several trips with cars packed to the brim. So imagine my surprise when this large heaping dumpster and supplemental mound on the sidewalk grass appeared yesterday after their final 'go through' of the house.
Where did all of this stuff come from? I guess that is why I am so intrigued (or is a better word bothered?) by this large mound of stuff. I don't collect stuff and hoard it through the years if I don't use it. I hate clutter. I don't over-consume. I feel guilty throwing stuff away if it can be used by another. This pile just represents disposable America to me. It made me think of this video. Are you a 'stuff' collector?

The coolest dog ever makes home visits!

Meet Ivan. He is an amazing Great Dane that belongs to the boys' pre-k/next year Kindergarten teacher, Wendy Wager. She heard that Nate had pneumonia, and offered to bring Ivan over for a little cheering up visit.

....And cheer up he did! I really don't even think that these pictures do justice to the amazing size and presence of this dog. He is just huge, and seriously, is as sweet as can be. Having Ivan around just makes you feel happy.

Kind of like Marmaduke....Ivan gets a drink of water out of our big blow up pool. Just the right size for this big boy. Thanks, Wendy! Your visit made our day.

riding in the streets

What a fun way to spend a Sunday morning! Today was Sunday Parkways, and the route went right down Ainsworth, which is just a few houses away.
Nate has been sick and was not able to do the ride with us, but Chris and I got on our bikes and were a few of the first people on the route at 9 a.m. It was a beautiful morning for a bike ride around N.E. Portland, and we did the whole loop! (7.5 miles)

Alberta Park was one of the hot spots/stops. Ainsworth has such a great greenway, and it was perfect for bikers--a whole lane for each direction.

Along the route, I noticed that Chris would go out of his way to run over the sewer covers. I asked him why he was doing that, and he told me that he was getting a point for each one that he rode over. He had 45 points by the time we returned back home.

After we did the loop, we went back home for some lunch. We were feeling sad for Nate, who has been sick with an awful cough and a fever for the past few days. He really wanted to see the action, so he did a quick ride down past Alberta Park, then back home. That was ample for both him and myself---a boy who has been laying around sick is no match for a bike ride in the sunshine with lots of other bikers around.

Chris and I returned to the obstacle course that was held in the baseball diamond at Alberta. Hot doggin' in the dust.

Camp party for Aidan's 5 1/2 b-day

What's a mama to do when her kiddo has a birthday that falls between Christmas and New Years, and is somewhat forgotten about amidst the holiday shuffle every year??
...She throws a half birthday in July! Last night Christopher and I went to celebrate Aidan's 5 1/2 birthday at the McMullens house on Sauvies Island. (poor Nate was sick with fever/cough so he missed it) Needless to say, it was good old fashioned fun-- complete with a tasty bbq, a big trampoline, pinata, tasty chocolate b-day cake, fun friends, and a campout in the yard overnight with the closest buddies after roasting marhsmallows under the stars.

Aidan and Chris. What buds!

Late night round' the campfire. We told stories, and Chris shared about Old Man Thomas. (a story that Dan shared with them up at Timothy Lake last weekend) ooOOOOOOOO!

Just me and my boy in our tent right before falling asleep. It was actually really fun to have such special 1:1 time together. What a fun party!

Constellations and Crawdads

We spent the weekend at Gone Creek Campground at Timothy Lake. Uncle Greg and Aunt Susan came with us too, and we had lots of fun.
After we got our campsite all set up, we went down to the lake. Chris and Nate swam out to a very large tree stump and got up on top. (Survivor challenge style)

After they returned to shore, Chris decided that he wanted to try it by himself...so off he went!

Typical scene around the campfire as dinner was cooking. The boys were determined to make fire with the flint and moss. No luck.

The big goal for this camping trip was to be successful at catching some crawdads, which are plentiful in Timothy Lake. We tossed the trap out with a ham-hock, crossed our fingers, and waited.

We only caught 2 crawdads--one big guy and one smaller one with only one claw. They were pets in the bucket for a bit, but then it was time to cook em' up.

We had our very own crawdad festival at the campsite. Both boys tried the meat. Can't say that it was their favorite, but at least they tried it!

Uncle Greg got the boys their own headlamp lights, which were a huge hit! They were perfect to light the way as we headed down the trail to the lake to do some star gazing and bat watching at dusk.

Astronomy 101. The big excitement was seeing Saturn and the Big Dipper. We all had a lesson on the constellations, and it was a very beautiful night sky.

Our campsite had an amazing clearing overhead, and we were able to see lots of stars and satellites as we sat around the campfire before bed.

Beavers game on a Sunday afternoon

As if there wasn't already enough fun over the weekend....these boys went with Dan, Todd, and Henry to see a Portland Beavers game on Sunday afternoon. They had a grand ol' time and will be back for many more this season, I'm certain.

A full house of baseball fans! There was even one foul ball that landed about 2 rows in front of them. After the game, they got to run the bases, too.

This exciting air t-ball was outside the stadium, and for a mere dollar, your child could have a chance to hit the ball that was magically floating in the air. Of course, this got Dan's wheels spinning, and upon their return home, our leaf blower was once again put to good use.

All it took was the leaf blower, 8' of wet-vac tubing, 1 safety cone with the appropriate amount of holes drilled in it to modify the airflow, several plastic baseballs, and they were in business. These boys are lucky to have such a creative dad!

A Fantastic 4th, and a terrific 2

We really had a most awesome 4th of July/ celebration combined with Will's 2nd birthday party yesterday over at Mark and Claudine's. Seriously...beautiful weather, all the family, delicious food, yummy drinks and lots of other wonderful things.
All of the cousins (and two neighbor friends!) poolside with a tasty treat. The sun was really shining and it was perfect 4th of July weather.

The whole crew. I am so glad that we actually remembered to take the group shot!

I love this little boy. We had yummy Thomas the Tank Engine cake to celebrate his 2nd year.

Claudine (hostess with the mostess!), Sookie, Greg, Susan, Dad, and Mark. Good times, good times.

Brothers and Sisters...Susan, Mark, myself and Greg.

Susan and her girlies. It's always so much fun to have the cousins in town!

Will loves to swing at balls...he's an Ace at golf, and we thought we should get him started on the t-ball skills.

Mmmmm, Sookie's ribs. But not her usual ones. These were spare ribs with a Korean flair. They were SO good, and these boys cleaned theirs down to the bone.

We ended the evening with neighbors and fireworks, which Chris and Nate really loved. We didn't get home until almost 11:00! I hope that this birthday/4th of July combination is now officially a tradition in our family.

Happy 'Independents' day to all of you

Overheard at the breakfast table this morning--

Dan: "Nate, what is Independence Day?"

Nate: "It's when you do stuff by yourself all day."

Summertime and the livin' is easy

Chillin' with Rhett poolside. What a great sunny day in the backyard!
Autumn and Mezmur. Oh, how she wanted to get in that water with the big boys!