Summer in Portland

Our first activity in Portland on Saturday morning was a yummy breakfast at Bread and Ink.  Forrest and Alyssa each had a beautiful plate of waffles like this.  My omelette was yummy but not nearly as eye catching as this plate.  I did get a bite of Forrest's and it was delicious.  I keep thinking I'll have the waffles the next time I go to this restaurant, but their egg dishes are so good, and besides someone at the table always gets the waffles so I usually get a few bites anyway.  Then we went to Lloyd Center to do some tax free shopping.  During the heat of the afternoon Michelle, Suzanne, Alyssa and I went to walk through the gardens at Edgefield.  We saw two bridal parties.  I felt a bit sorry for the gals in formal dresses as it was 90+ degrees.
It figures that one of the few times Forrest actually smiles in a picture my eyes are nearly closed. This was part of a mass photo op after Forrest and dad grilled salmon, potatoes, and portobello mushrooms.  We took lots of group shots. 
Mom and dad posed with Suzanne.
Three 40 something cousins who still look great.
Here's one of our traditional photos of the kids.  By height Alyssa is now in the middle.  I think in a few years she'll be in Rowan's spot. Noah is 6'2", Fuller is nearly 5'9", Alyssa is 5'7". I'm sure Grayson and Rowan will pass the girl up by the time they're teens.
Here's the group arranged by age:  7, nearly 10, 13, 14, and 18.  They're a lovely group.  They get along so well.  Noah took on Fuller on the basketball court and Alyssa kept an eye on the younger ones at the playground. I wish we could have stayed for a longer visit, but Forrest and Alyssa had to work today, Noah had basketball camp, and I had a dentist appointment.  I'm glad we were able to get away for the weekend to go to Portland while Suzanne was in town.  Unfortunately we didn't get to see Jim and Enid, maybe next time.

Summer is Finally Here

The chickadees have built a large nest in this planter on my deck.  They whiz by our heads as the travel back and forth to feed the babies. They're getting very brave around people and the dogs. In the beginning they wouldn't visit the nest if we were outside.  They'd sit on top of the roof and chirp at us.Our walnut tree has grown tremendously this year.  We're expecting a bumper crop of nuts in the fall.  The nuts are weighing down the branches.

The weather has warmed up enough to encourage the lavender and roses to bloom.  The yard smells amazing.

After we dropped the boys and coaches at the airport to go to San Diego on the 9th for a basketball tournament I spent the day in Seattle with a couple of other basketball moms. We explored Pike Place Market and had a yummy seafood lunch outside by the water.  It was a great day. We deserved a day to play after getting up at 4:30 AM to get everyone to the airport.

Noah came back very tan with a bag full of dirty laundry on the 14th.  He's hardly been home at all this summer between Hoopfest, camp at CWU in Ellensburg, and San Diego.  Tomorrow he'll start training at the Redmond Athletic Club with a coach who works with college and pro players.  I'm hoping to get pictures from some of the coaches and post them soon you and I can see some of his activities in San Diego.

Hoopfest 2010

Coach Forrest dispensed words of wisdom and Alyssa cuddled with her youngest girl cousin, Savannah.
What a hectic weekend we had!  We managed to combine Hoopfest in Spokane with Alyssa's college orientation in Cheney at EWU.  This left us with no time for sidetrips to visit grandparents, cousins, and friends.  Our nephews, Roland and Kris came downtown to see Noah play.  Roland brought his girlfriend, Sydney, and daughter, Savannah.  Roland helped out by keeping score during one of Noah's games.  Noah hit the game winning basket in this photo.  Alyssa met up with a friend from high school who had a sister playing in the tournament.  The weather was much cooler than we've come to expect from Hoopfest, temperatures in the low 80s instead of 90-100 as in years past.