Breaking News:

please read on to the next post for the continuation

of our "State of Oregon" whirlwind tour

-thanks

Brother Duck has received his State of Oregon Provisional Learners Permit. Any of who may live in the mid-Willamette valley in Oregon are encouraged to stay in your homes and off of the highways, byways, streets and sidewalks... the oldest boy is driving!

gratz Duck, we love you and (as always) are very proud!

Woot!!

3rd stop: Central Oregon Coast!

What is it about the beach that demands writing? Is it our desire to place our mark upon a landscape (errr oceanscape) that makes us feel so small? The desire to be contected to the vastness perhaps? Indiana has put his own mark on the beach. It shall wash away in the neaver ending surf, or perhaps be blown and dusted away by Oregon's capricious Pacific wind... but never fear, next time, Indy will make his mark again. Random bits of beauty from the Newport, Beverly Beach, and Cape Foulweather areas:Oregon is beautiful, no doubt. The diversity of just a few hours drive is amazing. From high desert plateaus to the vastness of the pacific; from the extreme heights of the cascades, to the fertile Willamette Valley, the multicultural delights of a thriving metropolis (Portland) and the rural appeal of small hamlets nestled in the midst of spraling farmland or cradled in foothills, Oregon has it all.

2 more stops on our two coming up!

On a different note... I love dandelions picked and presented by my handsome mister.

2nd stop: Crater Lake

So, the itinerary went like this (and we thought this was a good idea for a toddler...) :

1)Leave our home at 10 am. Drive an hour to Foster Lake/Reservoir. Take a few pictures like this one:2) Dive on another near hour and stop at a pull out along Hwy. 20 at a small wayside and Pier to take a few more pictures. Like this one:3) Drive SEVERAL more hours into eastern Oregon turning from Hwy. 20 to Hwy 97 and following it south through several very small towns. Arrive in the "lava and pumice fields". Take yet more pictures, like this one:(note how life finds a way even in this harsh and unforgiving yet thoroughly beautiful landscape)4) make our way to the Oregon's own National Park. Crater Lake.A brief history lesson will tell you that once a long time ago (when my dear blog friendHoss was a young lad in leading strings... OK maybe not THAT long ago) a very very large volcano name Mount Mazama exploded, leaving a heck of a mess and a 2 thousand foot deep crater, which filled in with glacier melt, rain water and assorted other moisture to become the deepest freshwater lake in the nation. It is now an amazing national park that attracts visitors from all over the world who go there to see natural beauty, and of course freeze our "bums" off:(incidentally... after that trip i wish the temperature gauge in the truck was less accurate... i didn't need to know how bloody cold i was) On the positive side, the Florida boy whom we were escorting around on this whirlwind tour got to see his first snow. There was a very small amount on the ground and it did "spit at us" a bit as well.Oh, and of course, here's a bit of the lake and the famous Wizard Island. Wizard Island is actually the "cinder cone" of the old volcano.

5) Drive our freezing cold behinds out of there via the longest route home possible without backtracking. We found a place where we once again pulled off, parked and explored. I think it was called Clear Water Falls. Should have been called COLD water falls. We got a few more pictures including these (one from the top; one from the bottom):6) On the road again for several more hours, traversing some even-numbered hi-way (even s go east/west odds go north/south) out to beautiful downtown Roseburg where we caught 1-5 Northbound for two more hours home.

Fortunately, the windshield wasn't to filthy and i was able to shoot this out the front window of the truck as the sun set over the middle of nowhere:We arrived back home around 1130PM. Indiana wasn't as happy arriving as he was leaving. But of course, he and his daddy had a great day. (as did I and the Florida boy)(you didn't think i would have a post this long without a good shot of Indiana, now did you!?!)

for more information about the Lake check out Crater Lake there are other great resources out there, too! It is interesting and beautiful and although we spent 13 hours in the truck with the car sick toddler, it was worth it. Oh and i will admit of one last mommy bit... Indy made the entire trip without an "accident", telling us when he had to "go" and "holding it" until we got to a restroom! way to go Indy!

a little more of Silver Creek:

By request, actually. My mom said she hadn't been up to the falls in ages and that her and a friend would like to go... could they see a little more. Here ya go mom:

And of course this gives me the opportunity to post another one of Indy... He terrified me on a lot of the walk because there are very very steep drop offs on some of these paths, and he insisted on walking where ever he pleased... (meaning too close to the edges for mama not to have a stroke about 10 times).

Stayed tuned for the 2ND stop on our whirlwind tour!

1st stop: Silver Creek Falls

We toured a LOT in five very short days... so i will handle them each individually:


day 1 of Oregon's AMAZING beauty... Silver Creek Falls located between Stayton and Silverton.

And of course, the obligatory shot of Indy being a ham:

There are a LOT of magnificent waterfalls to see, and approximately 20 miles of fairly easy hiking trails... even if WE did pick the Ridge Trail that is like straight up. Sigh. Anyways, it was a lot of fun. Next Stop? Crater Lake in Southern Oregon.

still touring...

We have been on the road a LOT in the last couple days. We will still continue to show our guest around the state for two more days. Thus far we have toured Silver Creek Falls, the Metolious River, the town of Sisters, Crater Lake, and also the Central Oregon Coast. I have over 750 photographs to sift through already! Anyways, no time for a true photographic extravaganza tonight, but i do have this one: Most of you KNOW that I am not fond of having my picture taken, much less sharing it, HOWEVER, this one (taken at Crater Lake while it was 34 degrees Fahrenheit and SNOWING)... well i like it.

SO, tomorrow the Oregon Zoo and then Duck's 15th birthday party. Saturday we are planning on visiting Multnomah Falls in the Columbia River Gorge.

More, as always, to come...

Acomplishment:

Well, the company is due in about 16 hours and the house is finally ready. The sheet and blankets have all been washed, the air freshened, the fabric of the davenport refreshed. The dishes are clean, the laundry is finished, the carpets are vaccuumed. I don't even know our guest and yet i have been working steadily for two days doing spring like cleaning. I love my husband, and it shows in what i am willing to do for his visiting friend.

The truck had been parked for winter already so we "un-parked" it on Friday for one last fabulous end of season road trip; And also because its fun to show off not only the truck, but the whole wonderful state of Oregon to unsuspecting friends. Anyway, for the road trip, we will be heading to Crater Lake on Wednesday, returning home Thursday via the coast road (hwy 101) as far as Lincoln City (so we can go to Spirit Mountain Casino for a late dinner). We should be stopping at places like Wildlife Safari, Sea Lion Caves, the Oregon Dunes, and etc.

Expect lots of picture updates next weekend.

a smile (or two) to brighten your day!

So, as always, we went to the park yesterday and i took several pictures of Indiana. The dilemma i face is this: so very many of the pictures show him smiling in such a happy way i cant pick just one... The resolution? Here are several glimpses of my handsome smaller son's sparkling smile and joy captured for your enjoyment:

random bits of beauty:

There is beauty in everything;

if you take the time to look.

I know I have said that before.

I am sure i will say it again.

Today, my heart needed a lift, so i seek-ed out unusual beauty. Here is what i have found:

Where do you find your unusual beauty?

another day in the park

We spend most of our life in the park. Yesterday was better than usual. We had a neighborhood black party in the park. It was fantastic with everyone contributing, children everywhere and, (as always) my husband at the grill. We love this neighborhood.

there were several great pictures of the event (and Indy of course) that will be surfacing over the next few days! oh and at some point i have to show y'all the pictures from the pool. I didn't take them, but a neighbor did and sent some on to me. oh wait, you don't want to hear my to do list.

Inny all WET!

Weiyhoy:

This video was SUPPOSED to be of a sweet ocean walk with our buddy John Big Jew, the girl we had with us for a while, Nicole, and of course Indiana. It turned out a little more intense than that. This is Indiana's favorite video of himself, although at the time, he was NOT thrilled.

Everything turned out OK, so in retrospect it is funny. OK, i admit it, i am the one laughing DURING the clip. Yes, I am a horrible person. Indy was never in any danger and the entire clip is just 15 seconds long.

Don't forget to go to the next previous post (also posted today) and check out the ankle injury video. When the sound is WAY up, you can hear Indy (after he says "ow ow") also say "my ankle"! He was NOT injured in that video either, but his brother (who is also in the video) had a sprained ankle and was on crutches at the time. That clip is just 28 seconds of your time.

Enjoy.

An old one...

So, i decided to try out the video feature. This one was taken on the Kodak (the old camera) in the old apartment. It is just a few seconds of the boys playing with the new puppy. Barbosa has gotten so much bigger since this was shot, but its a cute first time with video on the blog.

I always say that one day i will print out the entire blog and use it as a sort of baby book for Indy (since i really didnt keep a "real" one, just this online journal). I wonder how video will effect the printing.

Perhaps this is just an excuse not to print.