Musika

 This evening my sister Katy was gracing the household with beautiful piano music.  It's no surprise to Dustinn and I that Olivia loves music and quickly found her way to Katy at the piano.  Katy pulled out my mom's box of musical instruments and almost immediately they drew a crowd that jammed together for the next hour. 

Good times.

 

 

 P.S. Bradshaw was displaying the recorder's shrillest notes at the dinner table, when my Grandfather with a grin said, "Maybe we should give him a hammer and ask if he knows what's inside that whistle."  lol.

P.P.S. This man deserves some sort of award:

Yes, my 1-yr-old is busy texting her friends

Portland!

We're in Portland!

Dustinn has been wanting to visit the northwest (specifically Washington & Oregon) for several years.  So naturally he was very excited when my parents moved out here.  Queue Thanksgiving holiday and the rest is history.

They live in rural suburbs (but surprisingly just 20 minutes from the airport).  There are so many waterfalls you could spent 2 weeks visiting different ones.  They also live along the Columbia river where my dad has seen sturgeon 12 feet long.  Lewis & Clark ventured here as well.

Columbia River

Multinoma Falls (you can only see a portion here.  The falls are larger than Victoria Falls and Niagara Falls.) See the bridge behind us?  Several years ago a bridal party was taking pictures there when a 460 ton chunk of volcanic rock broke off from the cliff.  No one was seriously injured but you can imagine the amount of water that displaced.   They were soaked!

view from the neighborhood

Navy Pier Ferris Wheel

Today we went to Navy Pier (the Santa Monica Pier of Chicago.)  It was a cold, rainy day but we still had a good time.  We were surprised how much Bradshaw & Olivia enjoyed the Ferris Wheel.  Bradshaw said "This is fun!" probably twenty times.
Lately, I been daydreaming about taking the kids to Disneyland/Disney World (maybe to celebrate when D graduates?) and this added fuel to the fire.

family picture attempt #1

attempt #2

happy girl + skyline

Them Bones, Them Bones...Gonna Walk Around

(does anyone remember that preschool song?)

Walk For Adoption

If you run in the some of the same blog circles we do, you know November is Adoption Awareness Month.  :)

Last Saturday, we went to a Walk for Adoption (put on by Holly & Christy of Families Supporting Adoption).  There was energy in the air.  There's something really special about a group of strangers being united by gratitude.

So I thought it would be cold.  Boy howdy, was I wrong.
We were all drenched with sweat when we got in the car afterwards.

the reason

He wanted to enter the raffle...but he couldn't pick up a pencil with his mittens on.  :)
Our very own Randy Parker.  Can you name that movie?

See the ribbons?
Yellow=Adoptive Parent
Green=Adoptee
White=Adoption Supporter

Thatta boy.
Run after those other kids with your big stick.  J/k

More Bradshawisms

Bradshaw: I tink I'm going to cwy...my baby is sooo cute.

Dustinn: that really hurts my feelings Bradshaw.  that will make me cry.
Bradshaw: you cwy?  impossible.

[Bradshaw is carrying around a couch cushion] 'Dis is my monster wallet.
Me: oh yeah? what's in it?
Bradshaw: my i.d. ...dere is a liddle pweeseman who tells peoples my name fer me.