In Cursive: zane

Well, we've been having a really great summer, and consequently have had no time to blog about all the fun we've been having. So prepare for a long catch-up post with a lot of pix, a pause for the Olympics, and another long catch-up post. Lets get to it!

We've finally figured out that REI can be a great resource for fun (after having been members for, like 9 years now). I took a mommy's day off to go to their paddle demo day up at Vancouver Lake. They haul out a bunch of their kayaks and canoes, hand you a paddle and a PDF and turn you loose, more or less. It was awesome, and I am now scheming for babysitting jobs so that I can buy my own ocean kayak. No pix for this adventure as I was blessedly on my own for a while. While there I picked up a list of other events, one of which was a kids rock climbing class. I signed Willow up and we trekked by MAX train into Portland's pearl district where the REI has a two story climbing wall. (a note about the MAX: Drunken ladies at 1pm on a weekday are a bit of a hazard, but I guess it's never to early to talk to your kids about drugs) Willow only made it about four feet up the wall, but kept on trying at every opportunity. I was really proud of her. She said she had fun despite being afraid so I've signed her up for a parks and rec class to start on the 21st.

Up next was the family reunion, which was awesome despite traveling alone with two kids. I didn't have it as rough as my cousins, who had the sickies, and no husbands. The air conditioning was out in the big car, so I had to take our little Aveo, but this turned out to be a good thing. It averaged 33.36 mpg with the ac cranked and all kinds of stuff plugged into the accessory outlets. Willow was a great helper, and had such a great time with her cousins and of course my Aunt Diana's horses were a huge hit. Zane seemed convinced that they were big dogs and he got his first chance to sit on one to have his picture taken. The day after we got home, we went to the zoo and saw the anamatronic dinosaur exhibit...from a grown-up's point of view, eh. Willow was impressed, and Zane, non-plussed. Give him a year and a half and it will be a different story.

At the end of the month was Tualatin Riverkeeper's Discovery Day. The Tualatin is the a nearby river that is famous for being quite polluted, unfortunately. The Riverkeepers work to clean it up and raise awareness, and to that end, they hosted a 5.5 mile paddle down the river. I rented a canoe for Willow and I , left the boys at home and off we went. It was very well organized (and REI was there with free snacks and stuff, can you tell I am a fan yet?) It is kinda funny to just be turned loose with a great big canoe, a six year old and no idea what you are doing. My most recent memory of being in a canoe was some sort of test for girl scouts and it probably took a mile to re-learn how to steer. Willow was gung-ho about paddling at first, but since I didn't know what I was doing, I had a hard time explaining to her what I needed her to be doing up in the bow and it quickly lost its charm. It was really hot and she was totally worn out by the end, but I had a really good time. She waffles about going paddling with me again (I think she wants her own boat) Oh well, I guess I don't have to save for a tandem! Oh, and btw, everyone loved her hat!