Until next year...

Composing my blogs has allowed me to prolong that wonderful, relaxing vacation feeling for a few extra days. It was a great vacation and it's sad for it to be over. But, there are new adventures to be had and many more new memories to be created, so I know it is time to allow this one to come to a close. However, regardless of what we do, there are some things that always remain the same: there is nothing better than being together as a family, watching your children grow, and feeling thankful for all the joys we are blessed with. Life is good. Life is very good. And that, we can feel every day.

Two monkeys

Franny and Cole wore their matching monkey shirts on the trip to and from Sunriver. Despite much effort, I was not able to get a good picture of the two of them wearing them together. But I thought they were just too cute not to post something!

Sweet feet

And, of course, a sweet face, too!

Through Cole's eyes

We knew that Cole would have a great time at Sunriver, but we were also a little nervous about taking that fair skin into the hot desert sun. Needless to say, Cole was lubed up everyday with sunscreen from head to toe. And thankfully, his skin came back to Portland without burn or blemish. Of course, now Cole likes to be outside all the time. I'm foreseeing a future surge in the stock price of California Baby...

A great way to end the day

Since Cole was barely two months when we went to Sunriver last year, this trip was Cole's first real summer vacation. Not surprisingly, excluding the bike rides, he loved all of it--hiking, swimming in the pool, wading in Cultus Lake, playing in the grass at Fort Rock Park, and noshing on fries at the Deschutes Brewery. But, without a doubt, Cole was happiest when he was hanging out with Franny and Megan, and especially loved the nightly baths with the two of them. Three crazy kids, one big tub, lots of suds, and one daddy getting it all done--it was chaos at it's best, and sweet, silly Cole was in the middle of it, giggling away with the biggest grin on his face!

Life in the fast lane

With 37 miles of paved bike trails in Sunriver, we were very excited that for our vacation Cole was finally old enough to ride in the bike trailer. Unfortunately, his initial enthusiasm quickly gave way to helmet frustration, and the emphatic complaints that soon followed only subsided with onset of sleep. Hopefully, his sweet smile will soon return and he will enjoy bike rides in the future. For this trip, however, I would have to say that these pictures don't tell the whole story...