The Adventures of Dave, Lindsay, Cora and Edie

There have been too many reminders this week of just how precious life is.  It makes me just want to snuggle up with my sweet little girls every chance I get and really spend time with them.  There will always be things that need to get done but they are only this age once and time truly does fly by. Who cares if we eat Trader Joes pre-made meals several nights in a row.  Who cares if we have piles of clean clothes upstairs or floors covered with crumbs.  Out of respect for those who have lost people they love this week, I am really going to work on this moving forward.  It puts things in perspective. 

Today was a perfect Fall day in Portland so we headed out to the pumpkin patch less than five minutes from our house and enjoyed a variety of Fall activities - tractor rides, hay maze, staring at farm animals and, of course, pumpkin hunting!  We came home with two nice, large pumpkins. This past weekend, we also did a quick overnight with our friends at McMenamins in Forest Grove and enjoyed the Fall colors as we drove through Oregon wine country.  Edie joined us on the trip and Cora spent the night with the grandparents! And the highlight of our Fall so far....Dave completed the Portland Marathon last weekend and we were all there to cheer him on at mile 20 and again at the finish line.  Go, Dave, Go!

Cora started at Sprout Academy this week.  She'll be at the local community center two mornings a week for fun, crafts and social time with other 2-year olds.  Our little social butterfly is already loving it there and doesn't even notice when Dad leaves.  Surprise, surprise!

We had one more gorgeous weekend at the Oregon Coast with Papa and Grandma Tanna before letting go of our Summer.  Now we're getting into our new routine with Lindsay back at work and Dave home full-time with the girls.  Things just got a little crazier around here!

There will never be another summer like 2011! With me on maternity leave, Dave only taking one class, and both our girls with us....we've truly enjoyed all that Oregon has to offer. In the last few weeks, we did a 4-night camping trip in "Stan the Van" on the Oregon Coast, had a visit from Uncle Matt, Aunt Amy and Cousin Eli and headed to Bend with friends where we rode bikes and Cora even got to take a pony ride. Sadly, I'm heading back to work on Tuesday so reality will soon be upon us. Dave will be staying home full-time with the girls and taking a night class. Life is about to get a little crazy so we're happy to have made the most of our fabulous summer!

Just like the summer after Cora was born, we decided to head out on a road trip to Idaho and Montana to introduce Edie to a bunch of family and friends. Plus, it gives us an excuse to visit the Flathead Valley in the summer! Our first stop was Post Falls and Coeur d' Alene where Edie met her Grammy Jill plus several aunts and cousins. We were also able to sneak in some time with good friends that had gathered in Coeur d' Alene for a triathlon. Dave flew home from Idaho so he wouldn't miss midterms and the girls and I headed to the Flathead. We spent most of the week in Kalispell visiting friends and hanging out at Grandma Karen's house. Once Dave flew up to meet us, we spent a gorgeous weekend on Flathead Lake with Grandpa Bruce, Mimi, many more aunts and uncles, and LOTS of fun cousins! Cora had a blast chasing her big cousins around and playing in the lake. Edie was snuggled 24/7 and loved every minute of it. As always, it was tough to say goodbye...

Here's how the day went: Drawing with new sidewalk chalk on the back deck, play-doh time with Willa (who slumber partied at our house with her family), berry picking then a little party with Uncle Brent, TT, Grandy and Bev. Not a bad birthday if you ask me! And today, we're heading out for a roadtrip to Idaho and Montana to visit family and friends....