Camping in Oregon 2009

Back in November, Becky and Leslie decided it would be fun if our families took a camping trip together and choose the Oregon Coast as the destination.

On August 6th we headed south to make their dream a reality. We camped in cabins at the Astoria KOA. Linda and Sasha came too, setting up at a tent site directly in front of our cabin.

The Astoria KOA was definitely a step up from the one we stayed at in Port Angeles. There was an indoor swimming pool, a free daily pancake breakfast, and a massive inflatable jumping pillow that was conveniently located across from our cabins. Kyla and Asher spent hours on that thing bouncing with the other kids.

We spent some time at the beach, visited the Seaside aquarium, and roasted marshmellows by the campfire. We also brought our bikes with us and my new trailer so we could take the kids for rides with us. I got a kick out of taking them off road to bounce them around a bit (they seemed to enjoy it too).

Overall I would say it was a nice trip. We may try to go back there someday, if only for that bouncy pillow.

The Emperor's New Clothes

Blake's pajamas were starting to really look worse for wear, so Becky took him to Fred Meyer and encouraged him to pick out new clothes, offering anything he wanted.

She was thrilled when he picked out a normal flannel outfit that had the same feel of his comfort clothes. She then explained to him that his jammies would be going bye-bye and he seemed fine with it.

Then on the way out he spotted the pajama rack, and he went straight for it. He found some new pajamas and handed her the other outfit and explained that it was "crummy" and that these new jammies were what he wanted.

Becky bought him two sets of his new uniform. It's not the outcome we had hoped for, but it is still an improvement.

Mommy's Garden

A couple of months ago, I bought the book In Defense of Food by Michael Pollen from Audible, and both Becky and I read (listened to) it. We took the content seriously and it changed our attitudes towards food in significant ways.

I have made it a point to buy food from the Issaquah Farmers Market every Saturday (however I often don't manage to make it) and to read ingredients lists on packaging to avoid processed foods with made with components that I can't pronounce.

Becky on the other hand decided to grow a garden in the backyard. By this I don't mean she planted a few vegetables, she basically repurposed every usable square foot of the backyard to grow food. Thus far she has planted tomatoes, broccoli, cauliflower, artichoke, cabbage, beans, peas, cucumber, watermelon, honeydew, pumpkin, orange, carrots, corn, strawberries, blueberries, potatoes, onions, chives, parsley, sage, rosemary, and thyme, as well as planted plumb and apple trees.

The makeover took all of her free time over the course of a month. Finally, she seems to be satisfied with it and is content with just maintaining what she's got for now.

So far I've had a few tasty fruits and veggies from Becky's labor, but it won't be too long before it will yield a healthy portion of our diet.

Raggedy Blakey

Blake finds his comfort zone very important to him. For the past month or so, he has refused to wear anything other than flannel pajamas, and recently he has even limited himself to just one specific outfit.

Actually we have been able to get him into other clothes, usually by driving him somewhere interesting and explaining that he needs to change to get out of the car, though even this technique has become hit or miss.

He couldn't have picked a worse time to attach himself to long-sleeved flannel clothing since the past month has had the hottest weather I have ever seen in Seattle. He insists that he's not too hot. I am very thankful for our air conditioning.

Now his pajamas are starting to really look worse for wear. We sneak them off to the washer whenever we get the chance, but they have several stains that won't come out.

The next time he takes a bath I will be very tempted to run off with his jammies and burn them.