Summer lovin

• Parker Turned 4 on the 11th of June. Every year in the past we have done little birthday parties for him and have been pretty prepared. But as his birthday rolled around on a Saturday we had nothing planned. I knew Chase would be at the station so celebrating it without him was not an option. Since he was at the station and Parker loves going to visit him, I took him and Oliver to go for a visit and a little birthday fun. The boys had a great time running around the station, going for a ride in the truck, opening presents and eating cake.

Oliver and Parker having fun on the ride.

Parkers birthday cake made by Chase, decorated by another firefighter.

Parker is getting sung to by all the firefighters, this the look on his face, he was trying not to smile.

Chase didn't capture them singing but this was right after.

The older guys were more impressed with Parkers toys then he was. It was funny.

Chases Captain in the background showing off the toy fire extinguisher

Playing with the fire truck

again

and again. He really was quite impressed.

• Parker had a great time at the station and later had another birthday party with friends. I will post those pictures when I get them. My mom was the photographer. We are Love our little Parker boy so much. He is a ball of energy and keeps us on our toes constantly. Yes there are days we want to pull our hair out, but when he calms down for the night and climbs up on the couch and asked to snuggle, it makes it all worth it.

• And just a little on Paisley, she is now crawling everywhere. She started crawling around 9 months. She pulls herself up on everything, and trys to stand on her own. We had high hopes of her walking as soon as her brother did, but he was walking by 10 months and that time has come and gone from her. I am ok with that though, so I don't have to chase her everywhere. She has started to develop a cute personality and has slowly become a happier baby. Sleep could still be better, but I suppose in time it will improve. We love our little Paisley and the joy she has brought us.

• A couple of weeks ago we went to Portland to go to the zoo. When we saw that it was going to 85 degrees, we knew it was the perfect weekend to go. Parker has been once, but it was 2 years ago, so I figured it was time to take him again. I was hoping he would appreciate it more this time, and actually care about seeing the animals. So we packed up the car, drove to Vancouver to stay with family friends, Jack and Lisa Bodner, and headed to the zoo the next morning. Turns out we were not the only ones who thought it would be a good day to go to the zoo. They were really busy, but we left around 1:30 when it really started to pick up. Parker had a good time, and it was fun to see his reaction of the animals. I still don't think he really cared, he just wanted to run everywhere. Paisley was not to thrilled about being in her stroller the whole time, but we made it through without any major fits.

Look closely at Parkers face and you can see that he is making tractor noises as he is pretended to draw. He is really good with his automobile noises.

I would have to say this exhibit was my favorite part. I was just amazed at how human like these monkeys were. It was amazing to see their features up close and to watch them use there hands to pick up things. I could have sat and watched them for quite some time.

Parker even found an area where he could do what he does best, and that's being a monkey. He loves to climb and swing on anything and everything.

Paisley even got a chance to play

And of coarse we let her get out to stretch her legs. She loved being on the blanket but wanted nothing to do with the grass.

This is an "owe mom it's hot on here" and me saying "to bad take a picture with me"

Parker enjoying the telescope, to bad he didn't use it to look at the animals.

We decided to fork out the millions of dollars to go on the train ride. It was ok, relaxing, but for me kind of boring.

Parker enjoying the train

• I haven't posted any pictures of our new place, not that it matters because we are leaving in 4 weeks, but I need to get them up anyways. We could not have done any of this without Chases parents. They came and spoiled us like no one would believe. We are so grateful for their generosity and for their help in making our place a lot more like home. Liz you are awesome with such a great talent! I hope your ready to do this again in a month :)

This is our entry way as you first walk in the door

this is when you first come up the stairs

This is our computer area, eventually will have some more decor to go with all of this stuff.

Here is our living room before. Where the armoire is, is now where the computer sits. And I did take this picture when we were still moving in, so don't judge at the random placement of things. And the pic was taken on my cell phone.

After. The sides of the entertainment center will have doors. The top will be glass and the bottom is solid. We will eventually have things to put on the shelves.

Living/dining before

Dining after. This pic was taken on my cell as well, but the colors are so bright and cheery!

Kitchen before

After

BeforeAfter

• We have loved this place the short time we have been in it, and are very sad to have to pack everything up again. Not to mention the nice amount of space we get for a good price compared to Portland area. Oh well, here's to the next chapter in our lives!