The Great Outdoors

It was at the beginning of June that Addy had her first "camping" experience in the living room, so now that summer is in full swing it was time for an upgrade. I am not, we are not quite ready for a full blown camping trip, so Addy and Brian made it work by camping in the backyard. It was actually quite perfect. It was a nice night, we had a fire going and anything you could need was only a few steps away in the house. Addy loved it and got to enjoy her first s'mores! (I know, what's wrong with us?). She wasn't so sure at first, but then loved it and it ended the way campfires always do where we tried to burn everything we could find. The best was just throwing marshmallows into the fire and watching them expand then then ooze onto everything. When it got dark we made use of the sparklers we had from the 4th of July. Again she wasn't so sure at first but then loved them. She slept like a champ through the night, but woke up very early and was hungry. Best part? A stocked kitchen (and bathroom) just a few yards away for them, and a warm cozy bed for me all night and no packing and unpacking of the car!

Another One Bites The Dust

Two teeth in one week! Addy lost another tooth this week. She was eating a peach, one minute her tooth was there, the next it was gone. Literally gone. Brian noticed she didn't have her tooth and it was nowhere to be found. Luckily the tooth fairy didn't require proof, she still came to visit. I can't believe my little girl has already lost two teeth. Doesn't seem possible!

First Official Hair Cut

While Brian likes to brag that he hasn't paid for a hair cut for close to a decade now, I will admit I had bragged about the same for Adelyn and Cameron. Neither had ever had a "professional" hair cut, there was never a reason to take them anywhere. Adelyn didn't really have any "real" hair until she was almost 3 and then it was just so easy to have Wendy cut it every time we saw her. Wendy also gave Cameron his first hair cut on her last visit together. However, it was becoming unavoidable that Cameron was in desperate need as he was getting pretty shaggy. It was finally time to take them both in for a professional cut.

We decided to have Cameron go first as he needed it the most. At first he was reluctant but once he sat on my lap and realized it didn't hurt, he was actually quite good for the whole thing. He sat patiently and didn't scream at all. It wasn't the best haircut I've ever seen, but it definitely did the job and I can't get over how much older he looks now! He officially looks like a big boy to me now. So cute.

Lost Tooth

Big news! Adelyn has had a loose tooth for awhile and on Monday she lost it! It was funny because she didn't even know she had lost it (she thought the berry had something in it) and since Brian and I were just barely starting to recover we weren't sure what happened either. Luckily we put two and two together and we were saved by the tooth fairy who did her part overnight and Addy is officially a "big girl" with her first lost tooth. Congratulations Adelyn!

24 hours before the lost tooth

24 hours after the lost tooth

Yucky yucky

I'm not gonna lie, the last 24 hours have not been my favorite. In fact, I can't think of a more difficult 24 hours that we've had in awhile. It all started when we got home last night from a HS graduation party. I wasn't feeling the best and then got sick right after we got home. I felt terrible because I just couldn't help Brian with the kids at all. I was just so weak. I went to bed at 8:00, next thing I know it's the middle of the night and Brian is sick. Really sick. We were miserable. A few hours later Addy comes in to tell us that she threw up in her bed. When Cameron woke up he was just so weak and tired, he cuddled with me for about an hour and then he threw up. It was terrible. Luckily the kids were really good all things considered but it was a pretty horrible day.

Party at the Zoo

Adelyn got to go to a birthday party at the zoo for one of her friends. It was awesome! It was a Frozen themed party which was really cute. Addy got to ride the carousal and then we went and checked out some animals. The penguins were our favorite.

19 months

Cameron is 19 months and this week he couldn't stop talking about the potty. He wanted to go on it every morning and I couldn't believe it that he actually peed on the potty several times! It is just about the cutest thing ever to see him on it and he is so proud of himself when he actually goes. I can't believe what a big boy he is.

North Cascades

We had a long drive back on Sunday so we tried to get on the road early (as early as you can packing up a family of four!). The drive was long, but it was absolutely beautiful. We drove through the North Cascade mountains and it was some of the most beautiful scenery I've ever seen. We stopped at a few of the look out points and got some great photos. 

I don't have photos of all of the whining and crying that took place on the drive back, but you can imagine that. We heard a lot of "are we there yet" and "this is taking a long time." And Cameron just yelled "OUT" over and over and over again. At one point he actually just got so tired of crying he stopped for a break before starting again. And then he finally fell asleep. 

Did I mention how beautiful the scenery was? It really made up for the rest of the drive. 

Wild Wild Winthrop

The downtown part of Winthrop is built to look like an old western town and they pull it off very well. We got up early on Saturday and took a little walk through the town and checked out the shops, walked by the river and headed to a local park. It was a great way to burn off some energy before heading to the pool in the afternoon. It was one of the best kids pools I've ever been to and the kids just loved it. Of course, I didn't bring my camera, but Addy really swam! She is really catching on and has no fear of going under the water. She even started opening her eyes and trying to touch the bottom. There was a little slide that the kids went down a million times. Cameron just loved it and couldn't get enough, until of course I helped him down the slide and I was so nervous to let go that I waited to long and he bonked his head. Luckily he was fine, but I felt awful. Go figure that he's safer when I'm not trying to "protect him." 

Of course we were exhausted after that as well, but we had more fun hanging out at Chuck and Robin's. They were the perfect hosts & spoiled the kids rotten and they loved every minute of it. They bought Addy some fairy wings and I swear she hardly ever took them off. They were a huge hit, as was their rocking chair. Cameron just kept saying "rock, rock". It was a wonderful weekend. 

Good 'Ole 4th of July

This year we headed over to Winthrop to celebrate the 4th of July with Chuck and Robin. We got in late Thursday night which meant we had all day on the 4th and we filled it up! We headed over to the next town over, Twisp, for their parade. It was a classic, small-town, old-fashioned parade and we loved every minute. We got there early to stake out the perfect spot which meant we got to enjoy the pre-parade entertainment of the local line-dancing club. They were awesome! They even did a "country version" of the electric slide which Robin and I joined in on.
The parade was super cute. Lots of candy for the kids (even Cameron participated) and great small town floats. It brought me back to my childhood days. After the parade we headed to the festival down the street where there were tons of activities for the kids. Addy made a fancy hat, a button and a boat! Cameron actually took a nap, but then had fun on the playground and playing with Addy's boat. It was a super fun day and we had visions of heading back for a nap afterwards to relax. Of course, that didn't happen, but the idea was enough to get us through the rest of the afternoon and it was an early night for most of us. The only thing missing were the fireworks (banned there because of dry weather) which we actually didn't miss too much. It's a lot easier to sleep when you don't hear explosions every few minutes. It was a great 4th!

Dance Class

Addy has been talking about taking a dance class for awhile and we've spent a fair amount of time researching various class options. Something always raises a red flag for me though, either the steep rates, the ridiculous schedules or the intimidating rules and regulations. I just can't go forward with it and I'm completely intimidated by "dance moms", so we continue to postpone. Well, recently I asked Addy if she could wish for anything in the world, what would it be. Her answer? To take a dance class. Of course.

So Brian saved the day and found a 6 week "princess dance class" for beginner dancers. It has a schedule that works for us and a price that we can live with if she ends up not loving it. My only complaint? The dress code. We basically had to buy a new wardrobe for a 6 week class, seems a little overboard to me. Luckily I found some deals at the consignment shop and we've got the list covered.  Light blue leotard- check. Pink tights- check. Black tap shoes- check. Chiffon skirt- check. Hair in a bun- check. A little princess ready for her first dance class- check.

Can't wait for dance class to start next week!

Portlandia

While in Portland we got to see some of the sites as well. We headed down to the Saturday market on the waterfront, hit up Powell's bookstore and had an awesome lunch at Deschutes Brewery. While we were there Cameron saw someone who he thought looked like our neighbor Bob, so he kept walking up to him and calling him Bob. Luckily he was a very nice man who thought Cameron was quite funny, so they swapped sunglasses for awhile!

We also went to the awesome park by their house, the "amazing" Paul Bunyan statue, the Adidas employee store and of course had to eat from a food truck. What could be more Portland than that? A few highlights in photos below.

 The kids enjoying the water fountain. Cameron wanted desperately to go into it.

 Addy excited to find the elephants from the "Larry and Pete in Portland" book

 Cameron charming it up with "Bob" from the restaurant. Can you guess whose glasses are whose? 

Cameron falling asleep on the 10 minute walk back to the car and not taking another nap all day. 

Some lovely family photos in front of the Paul Bunyan statue. 

 The kids enjoying the giant Adidas shoe statues. Cameron was not as impressed with giant shoes as he is with the real thing.

Both kids asleep within 10 minutes on the drive back home.