Nate and Chris.
Chris drew a self portrait on the driveway. 
Nate drew the sun---with a mole---just like he has!
These tulip flowers made their annual appearance in our front yard this week, which means that Spring is just around the corner! Hard to believe, especially after waking up to a dusting of snow this morning.
I thought that I should show off the necklace that I got for my birthday. It's actually even much cuter in real life. One side has a lovely floral design....... 
Today was the Valentines Day celebration at preschool. Seeing a bunch of 4 and 5 year-olds open up their valentines from their buddies is a really sweet ritual. Tyree, Nate, and Aiden sure know how to party! 
Walking home from school with lots of love in hand. Happy Valentines Day!
Remember this?
We spent the weekend camping in a yurt at Cape Lookout State Park...and it was fantastic! The Mistkawi family stayed in the yurt right next to us and we enjoyed a sunny February weekend at the beach.
Nate and Chris playing at the beach. Chris looks kind of like a sand troll!
Our family portrait from the shadows on the beach. Can you tell who is who?
We had tasty appetizers before our grilled dinner.
Dan took his wooden clogs that he got many years ago to impress Patricia, since she's from Holland. We were all impressed to see him clomping around in wooden shoes in the woods.
Me and Patricia. She is awesome, and my favorite camping buddy!
We had heart shaped brownies with a candle to celebrate my birthday this weekend. They were very tasty, and the perfect compliment to the red wine we were drinking to stay warm on the inside! Patricia made me a lovely hula-hoop as a birthday gift.
Chris, Nate, Maya, and Liv were all playing in the yurt, so we got some grown-up time around the fire. Ah, what a treat......
But then we had to drag all the kids back outside because Rocky Raccoon came right up to our campsite! He was extremely bold and got right into our garbage as we stood 5 feet away. I threw some marshmallows at him to try and scare him, but it actually just made him happy. Mmm, marshmallows! He was definitely an exciting highlight of the evening.
A wild and crazy late night round of poker. Chris and Nate took David for all he was worth. Seriously.
It wouldn't be a camping blog post without the gratuitous 'boys poking at the fire' picture. This was in the morning. Brrrrr!
After breakfast we walked down to the beach, but were met by a very angry looking ocean, and an extremely high tide. It was fun to watch, but it did freak all the kids out a bit. They hid behind a big log. What a great weekend!
Brother Mark made the front page of the Statesman Journal this morning. My mom was so thrilled to open the paper and see this picture. There was a tragic shooting of several people in downtown Portland last week, and as a homicide detective, he had this case. I am really proud of the work that he does, and thinks that Portland is lucky to have him.
Yesterday 3 out of 4 people in this household earned certificates. Chris and Nate completed their "otter" swim level class at Dishman, and Dan came home with an award too! He was named Project Manager of the Year at Neil Kelly at their annual Forum last night. Need a kitchen remodel? Bathroom? Whole house transformation? I know who can help you get it done just how you want it. Job well done....we're proud of you!
I took the boys to the zoo today. One of our first stops was at the bathroom so that Nate could take care of some business. I was in the stall helping him, and Chris was waiting for us out by the sinks. "Mom, I want to buy a bar!" I heard from over the stall door. "You want to buy a what?"......then I realized what he was referring to and of course, like any good blogging mom, grabbed my camera first. Yep, a 'candy bar' from the 'vending machine' is what he wanted.
