Signs of Fall

It was 80 degrees and sunny (at least for part of the weekend), but none-the-less, fall is in the air. Drew and some friends took in Lincoln High School's first football game of the season on Friday evening, while the rest of us headed to Sauvie Island to celebrate the opening of "corn-maze- season" with a concert and bonfire.

We also took in the final Sunday Parkways event of 2010 with a bike/stroll through NW Portland. Here are a few photos.

Be sure to click here too, to see Emily and friends in a really cute music video... the latest release from the producers of the famed documentary, Bridlemile HvZ.

P.S. Happy Birthday wishes to Bella and Ruby Belle, both of whom celebrated their specials days this week!!

Reports from the Field: What's in a Name?

As their first writing assignment of the school year, Drew, Jake and Emily were asked to research and write about their names. Here's what they said:

DREW
Patrick was to remember Grandpa.
It was of noble worth, but I fell
a little short. I am the third and youngest
noble in the family, at least for now.
What happens in the future is up to me.

Like hand-me-downs can sometimes be,
Patrick is a big uncomfortable coat to me.
I am not Pat or Patrick like my dad.
I am Drew, which means sturdy and
fits a little better.

At school they call me “Drew-E or Drewshka”.
If anybody said Patrick to call me over,
I would not think to respond. Patrick is like a box
in the back of the closet that you forget is there
unless it’s needed.

JAKE
My name is Jake Alexander. My mom and dad named me. The origin of Jake is Hebrew. My name means supplanter, which is like a conqueror. I like my name because it is short and easy to spell. Some qualities that go along with my name are reliable, steady and always happy. I think these are qualities that describe me well.

EMILY
My parents named me Emily. They chose the name Emily because they liked that name. Diane, my middle name, is my grandmother’s name, but sadly she passed away before I was born. Emily was the most popular girl name the year I was born and my parents didn’t even know.

Emily is a Latin name which comes from the name Aemilia. Aemilia is a feminine version of the surname Aemilius. I like my name because it means “ flattering one”. Also it’s very musical and has a nice flow and vibe to it.

I have lots of nicknames but one that has stuck is Emers. I got that nickname from my first grade teacher Mrs. Meyer. One day she called me Emers and it has stuck.

Time for School

Well that went fast! The kids went back to school today... the backpacks were full, the schedules were memorized, and the anticipation was high.

It was a gloomy, chilly start to the school year weather-wise, but we're still forecasting a great day!

Labor Day Weekend by Land & Sea

We've been trying to take full advantage of the last weekend of summer while still getting ready for the first day of school tomorrow.

On Saturday, we took in a concert/movie at Washington Park, and on Sunday, visited our friends Rich and Gail at their floating home for dinner and water play.

Rich has created a whole new way to enjoy the game of golf off his back deck... check out the photos.

Olympic Loop - Part 5 of 5 (Sequim)

The final stop on our loop of Olympic National Park was in Sequim (pronounced Skwim)... home of the longest natural sand spit in the United States. Whereas Forks and the Hoh Rain Forest just down the road are among the wettest places in the US, Sequim sits in a rain shadow and gets less than 20 inches a year.

Sequim's Dungeness Spit stretches 5 miles into the Strait of Juan de Fuca. A lovely, sunny day and the opportunity to tour a lighthouse at the tip of the spit offered a nice incentive for a long hike on the final day of our trip. Here is a photo album.

Strong winds blew in just in time to make the return portion of our journey a little extra challenging, but we didn't let that spoil a great walk!

Olympic Loop - Part 4 of 5 (Victoria)

From Port Angeles, it's just a hour's ferry ride to Victoria, BC, so we took advantage of our proximity and took the kids to Canada for a day. They loved the busy harbor, as well as the parks, gardens and oddities we encountered as we explored the city. In the afternoon, the boys checked out the classic boat show while the girls took time for High Tea.

As if the day hadn't already been great, a couple of whales were passing through the Strait of Juan De Fuca just as our ferry was passing by! Here is a photo album from our day abroad.

Olympic Loop - Part 3 of 5 (Hurricane Ridge)

Visiting Olympic National Park's Hurricane Ridge, just south of Port Angeles, was a definite highlight of our trip. The views from Hurricane Hill trail were amazing, and topped those at Rocky Mountain National Park in our opinion. To get there, we passed the lovely Lake Crescent area, where we hiked to Marymere Falls.

Here are photos from our day in the mountains.

Next stop... CANADA!

Olympic Loop - Part 2 of 5 (Forks & Neah Bay)

Continuing our journey around Olympic National Park, we spent a few days in the Forks area so that we could explore Washington's northern beaches. Rialto was amazing! We hiked to Hole-in-the-Wall, so that we could get a sneak-peek of the coastline further north, something you can only see if you time the trip right with low tide.

Cape Flattery was amazing too, though it was a bit too damp to fully enjoy. The Cape sits at the northwestern most point of the continental US, so it was a must-see, even if it was pouring rain that day! The hike to Shi-Shi beach will have to be saved for another trip - too much mud to make that trek.

During our time in Forks, we stayed at the lovely Cabins at Beaver Creek. Our hosts - John and Michelle and their children - could not have been more gracious and welcoming. The cabins they have built and just opened in August sit on their family farm, so the kids were able to help out one morning with milking duties. This was a highlight of Emily's trip.

Click here for photos from the farm, beach and more.

Drew and Jake loved the creek that runs just behind the property - both for its kayaking and fishing opportunities. And we all enjoyed spending evenings with our hosts around the fire pit... their knowledge of the area and great stories were both much appreciated! So was the delicious salmon John brought us fresh off the boat.

John and Michelle also helped get us up to speed on the whole "Twilight phenomenon" sweeping the Forks-area. Though that is a book series we had not yet taken on, we will now... guess you could say we've been "bitten"!

Olympic Loop - Part 1 of 5 (Quinault & Kalaloch)

We are just back from a great week of exploring Olympic National Park. We started along the Washington Coast and looped around Highway 101 in order to taken in all that the park has to offer - beautiful lakes, dense rain forests, wild coastline and snow-capped mountains.

We squeezed a lot into 7 days - including lots of great hikes and a day-trip to Victoria, BC, so the kids could use their passports. We're going to post photos from the trip in sections since we have so many to share.

Click here for a photo album of the first two days of our trip, which included visits to Lake Quinault; the Quinault Rainforest; the Hoh Rainforest and its amazing Hall of Mosses; and the beaches of Kalaloch (pronouced Clay-Lock).

The photo above is of Kalaloch's Beach 2. Each beach was unique and amazing in its own way, but our favorite of the day was Ruby Beach.

Days 3-7 coming soon...

Last Games of Summer...

The kids in the neighborhood managed to squeeze in a final summer game of Humans v. Zombies last week... it was a record turn-out and a great game. The zombies won this round. Here are photos of the finish.