Surfin'

We hung out in Wilsonville for the weekend and stayed at our friend Sam's house on Friday night. We had a fun party for Dan's 40th birthday, filled with lots of fun on the river and hanging out with friends. We all had our fill of wake surfing and I was very happy that I was still able to do it, one year later. The best part is Darin taking Aden for a surf ride. I couldn't believe that a 2-1/2 year old was able to stay on the board. Big credits to my amazing husband who just has the best balance ever and the determination to get his kid on the board this early!!!

Aden & Darin riding the waves...

Aden trying out barefoot skiing...

Equipment Operator

The boy loves riding any big rig toys...

Waterpark

Some fun shots of Aden & Darin hanging out at the waterpark...

Aden's new ride

With all the bike riding we've been doing, Darin came home one day with a new toy for Aden. He was so psyched about it, it was fun to see him ride around in the house.

Good old George

Haircuts has been quite a challenge for us..it involves a lot of tears, holding Aden down while Darin cuts his hair. This time, we tried a different method. Put on a Curious George video and used scissors instead of clippers. It was the best haircut ever and it was even pleasurable for me to do it! Aden loved the treat of seeing his favorite monkey and got a great haircut too!

Quad ridin'

Since we took Aden to Idaho and he got the taste of riding the dirt bike, he's been eyeing our other toys in the garage. A few weeks ago, he talked dad into changing the sand tires out of my quad and they put the dirt tires on and did some mowing in our backyard. He was so happy to ride the quad with dad and he even made a special request for mom to ride with him. We had quite a blast and I did miss riding my quad. I think I talked Darin into getting us a rhino so we can start riding & camping at Florence like we used to pre-kid.

Fun bike ride

We were finally able to hook up my $10 bargain bike seat for Aden. After lots of zip ties & a couple of carabiners (safety first!), we met up with Denise, Brent & baby Jace for a nice bike ride on Saturday. Aden was so happy to be up close and right behind his daddy, he had a perma-grin the entire bike ride. On our way home, he kept talking about how he's behind daddy and that baby Jace was behind Brent. We were just cracking up.

Sunday was a bit more challenging for us. I had pretty bad allergies all day and halfway through the day, Aden started showing signs of allergies too. I don't know if it's really allergies for him or just signs of exhaustion since we've been on the go the entire weekend. After meeting the Johnsons for a late lunch, we asked Aden if he wanted to go home or go for a bike ride. Of course he picked the bike ride. We parked by OMSI and rode the Springwater Corridor trail to Sellwood, which is 3.5 miles (7 miles total). We were glad that we did the bike ride even though it was a bit cold & cloudy. It was still nice to be out and enjoying the outdoors with Aden. He didn't want to quit riding the bikes, even though he was tired from no-nap that day. He did succumb to sleep on the way home.

Yo Baby

When Aden started feeding himself using utensils, giving him his favorite yogurt, yo baby, was such a bear for me that I quit buying it. I was just not a nice enough mom to cleanup the yo baby mess. So when we were at Trader Joe's last week, Aden asked for yo baby when we passed by the dairy section. I thought that enough time has passed (over a year) and that he might be capable of eating yo baby with minimal mess.

After explaining and showing Aden how to scoop up little bites of yo baby, he ate the entire thing with very little mess. It's definitely a big realization for me of how much he's grown and learning each day. I am amazed everyday and feel very blessed that I'm able to witness all the wonderful things that he can do now. How fast it goes by...

Aden's beach friends

I think Aden will grow up thinking this is normal...

It's amazing to see the deer just wait for Aden to feed him the apple. Aden dropped pieces of apples multiple times, and each time, the deer just looked at it and waited for Aden to feed him the dropped piece. It's amazing to see a deer behave like a begging dog. It is so cool to hear Aden giggling while he's feeding the deer.

Oh Boy...

Maybe we won't need to plan an arrange marriage between these two...good thing Father Jim wasn't watching.

Memorial Day Weekend

We had a fun, long weekend at the beach. Lots of friends and gathering. We went there Thursday night and stayed until Sunday evening. We all had to "work" on Friday, but we also was able to enjoy the beach during sunset. We made Aden walk from the Pelican all the way home, which is probably atleast a 1/2 mile or so. I was so impressed, it wasn't an easy walk for a toddler. He didn't ask to be carried, even when he had to scale a small dune to get to our house. I'm glad that he loves walking on the beach as much as we do!

Saturday was the best day out of the entire weekend. We all hung out for most of the day and enjoyed the hammock. The boys did get their jetski ride in and then we had everyone at our house for a dinner/birthday party for our friend, Nancy T. We even did a little bonfire at our side yard and roasted marshmallows.

On Sunday, Jenn, LeeAnn & I went to LC for a little shopping. We promised the boys we will be back in a couple of hours, 4 hours later, we were still shopping. It was a bummer that it ate a lot of our day instead of being at the beach, but it was fun to get some alone time with the gals. The rest of the weekend seemed to fly by after that. I'm glad that we got to spend a lot of time with our friends and hopefully we'll get to do this more often during the summer!

Aden having fun with the girls, Alicia & Sydney. They are such awesome kids, it's the first time I ever thought that having more than one child is not bad at all..

I guess we're buying a 50 soon

When I was still pregnant with Aden, Darin was already planning on buying a little motorcycle for Aden (and him) to play with. We procrastinated, but after riding Bodie's motorcycle this weekend and seeing the smile on Aden's face, I think I was overruled. Both Aden & Darin were having such a great time about being on the bike, it was hard not to give in. Aden was whooping and giddy, it was so cute! Maybe I can talk him into riding a quad instead...

Idaho

We went on a quick trip to Idaho over the weekend for a friend's wedding. We left Friday night and came back late Sunday. We flew there so it was such a treat for Aden. He loved watching the airplanes and was so great flying...he did not make a peep, even though his ears bothered him a bit. I was afraid that the trip to Idaho will make him start saying that all airplanes go to Idaho (instead of Fiji), but when we were reading his airplane book in the plane, he still said that the airplanes go to Fiji. I was glad for that!

The funnest part of the trip is hanging out with our good friends Kimberly & Bodie and the tater tots. Annelise & Bodie are the cutest twins and they are such good kiddos. They were troopers with getting packed around everywhere we went, it's awesome that their mommy is so great about not letting the kids stop her from doing anything! Thank you guys so much for the hospitality, we had such a great time hanging with you and just talking! Can't wait to see you all again soon!

Ocean dip?

The boy just loves the water, so much that he willingly wades in the freezing ocean water. We let him play in the little tide pool while walking on the beach. Darin had the great idea of taking his jacket off, just in case. Sure enough, 10 minutes later, Aden did a face plant into the water. He was drenched, but didn't want to leave the beach. So we just stripped him down, put on the jacket and had him play for a while until it was time for lunch. Crazy guy.

Testing the freezing water...

This shot was taken a few seconds before he fell into the water!

Mother's Day weekend at the beach

For Mother's Day weekend, I chose to spend a long weekend at the beach. It's the place we, as a family, love so much. Aden was just ecstatic to be there and be able to play at the beach and do the things he loves to do. Friday was just gorgeous, a preview of what our summer could be. Although Saturday was rainy and cold at times, we still enjoyed the day with a long stroll through the neighborhood and of course the big dune climb. Aden did climb the dune on his own, and enjoyed the slide down it. Sunday was also a beautiful day, although it did make me sad that we had to pack up and leave. Oh well, there's always next time...

I love this shot, it shows how much Aden has grown and how much he enjoys our walks on the beach.

Jumpin'

We "had to" setup our trampoline for Darin's party and it was just a hit with the kids. Lucky for Aden, since he's going through this jumping stage.

Darin's how old???

It seems like yesterday when I threw Darin a surprise party for his 22nd birthday. Now, 9 years later, I threw him a totally differnt party. Although there were still some libations involved, the party needed some G-rated entertainment due to the kids present at the party. It's amazing to look back and see how much we all have changed. It was fun to see all our kids having a good time and playing together, but my favorite part of the night was showing Darin the slideshow of pics I put together of him over the last 10 years we've been together. He loved that so much and appreciated it, it was definitely the best present I could've ever given him. Memories are just so precious!