In Loving Memory

Bear, comforter to Jadon, playmate to Rocky, ended his short battle with kidney disease. He will be missed.

November 2005 - June 2007

Castella (Shasta), CA 2007

During June 21st and June 27th our family loaded up the big civic and headed south to sunny California. We met some family and friends in the Shasta area that is about half way between our new home in Beaverton and the SF Bay Area.
We rented a house on the Sacramento River and were joined by Jim & Nancy and our good friends Jeff & Janna. Relaxation was the name of the game. Hiking trails were explored; the river was kayaked, good food and wine to be had.
Jadon went on his first hike in Castle Crags National Park and saw Castle Dome as well as Mt. Shasta. We also went on a hike that the locals recommended to Mossbrae Falls, which is a beautiful waterfall down a mossy cliff into the Sacramento River. Jim and Nancy took a day and visited the Lavender Farms in the foothills of Mt. Shasta and we have some fresh picked lavender to enjoy for the next year.
We also saw an Osprey nests, though originally we thought it was an eagle’s nest. There is a woodpecker’s nest in a tree just off of the deck and we watched the woodpecker feed the little babies ALL DAY LONG! (Boy! Do they work hard!) The score on the kayak trip was two falls for Will & Jim and one fall for Jeff & Janna. Jeff was a well-appreciated guide and things smoothed out once he took the lead. Much to Nancy's pleasure a bear was not seen or heard of on this trip. (Though, I would like to see one from a distance).
We enjoyed the company and the location so well, that we are seriously thinking about making this a yearly adventure. We will again invite all to join us, so think Shasta in June!

Diaper Changing Adventures............

This is for the present, past, and future diaper changers out there.

This afternoon, as I was nursing Jadon, he looked at me out of the corner of his eye, smiled, kicked out his legs, and proceeded to let out a nice juicy terd. The kind you can hear from across the room. Needless to say it was clean up time! It was the kind of stool that is nice and runny and gets on both sides of his diaper and into his diaper cover. He was still going as I laid him on his changing table, so I waited a few moments. When I thought it was all said and done, I proceeded with getting him cleaned up. I was focused on keeping his constantly moving legs out of his stool and the stool off of the changing pad (cause he decided there was more stool to come), when he urinated on his face! (He did not like that). It was bath time! Once he was clean (or at least I thought he was), I wrapped him in his blanket and got set to put clean diapers onto him, when he urinated again! Needless to say, eventually he got clean and clean diapers on and I was amazed that his clothes did not get dirty. Very thankful that experiences like that have yet to happen in public for us........

And because God has a sense of humor......

Later on in the day, I had dropped Will off at church for his weekend camping trip and decided to stop at Trader Joe's to pick up some groceries so that I would not have to go out again. I got ready to put Jadon in his sling, when my nose picked up a familiar odor........ Needless to say, his car seat needed a bath this time too!

If you have a diaper changing mishap that you believe tops this one, post it in the comments and we all can decide.

Jadon Update

Jadon has been "coo-ing" now for at least a week and he has a lot to say. He enjoys visual stimulation. When we were at the store yesterday, I had him in the sling and all he did was look around with those big blue eyes of his. He is also a mover and a shaker and has demonstrated his really strong legs by doing squats with one of us holding him steady. We are strapping him into his bouncy chair, cause if we don't he'll bounce himself right out of it! And he is now down to 80 diapers a week! And of course, we are still getting a kick out of all those animated facial expressions he has! I love getting pictures of them, because he may not make the same expressions when he is older and they bring us such joy.

Will and I have decided on a day care center that is located a couple of miles from our house. Thank you everyone for your prayers and support. We were able to decide on a center that was comfortable for the two of us. Jadon may not need to start day care until mid to late August. Will's school season ends in another week and I go back to work the beginning of July, so Will will be able to further connect with his son and enjoy all the time that I have been enjoying with him till the next school year starts.