July 2008 - Here's to Good Friends

July was a busy month. We spent time with friends, we visited family and we took a few quiet moments to just enjoy each others company. It's nice that even with summer being so busy, we always make time for the things that matter most.



There's nothing like a big party to start the month of July. The annual 4th of July Party at the Bradshaw's was once again a hit. Friends, a parade, great food and a Firework Finale. We all enjoyed ourselves and look forward to another one!







On the 5th of July, Sean and I and 8 of our good friends piled into a limo for a day of wine tasting. The day started out quietly with a trip to our local Starbucks. After dropping the boys off at the Farm with Grandma and Grandpa, we headed off to a few wineries. Our first stop was Aramenta Cellars, then we were off to Penner-Ash, followed by Domaine Serene and finally Lange. See the progression below! It was a great day!



















The following weekend we headed to Sunriver to hang out with the Weselaks who were vacationing there. Sunriver is one of our favorite family destinations. On our way down, we stopped in Bend and had a tour of Anjou Spa and Salon....Aunt Jen's latest venture. We're excited about the grand opening which is coming up later this summer. It will be yet another fun reason to visit Central Oregon. The weekend in Sunriver was great! We spent time at the pool and both boys loved it. It was also nice to have a cup of joe from Bellatazza...one of my favorites. We're grateful to the Weselaks for inviting us to stay with them. It was a very fun time and we all really enjoyed ourselves.











Since we were so busy the previous weekends in July, the boys and I decided to head to Arizona the next weekend. Sean had plans to head to the Gorge games with the Sidestreet team because they had done some work with the Gorge games. Oweghn, Kelan and I boarded the plane early Thursday and headed out for a long, hot weekend in Arizona. Oweghn had a blast playing with his cousins...so much fun that when Sean called, he him that he was "having so much fun with his cousins that he forgot to even miss him". Good thing Dads understand these things or Sean's feelings might have been hurt.

We spent lots of time in the pool. Both boys loved the water which was truly as warm as bath water. It was very nice. Oweghn did an excellent job in the water. His skills improved drastically over the weekend. He is so brave in the water and has absolutely no fear. His swim lessons are definitely paying off. Kelan is pretty fearless himself. His favorite activity was climbing out of the pool and jumping back in. We had to really watch him every second because he would walk to the edge of the pool and jump right in. Lots and lots of fun this weekend...it was a great visit!












On July 24th, Sean and I celebrated 9 years of marriage. Since our actual Anniversary was on a week night, we kept it simple, yet meaningful. We packed a picnic in the picnic basket we received as a wedding shower gift and went up to the Pittock Mansion (one of our favorite Picnic places) and all 4 of us enjoyed dinner, dessert and family time. Oweghn showed off his photography skills...see the great picture he took of Sean and I. It was a beautiful day and we enjoyed running barefoot through the grass and taking in the breath-taking city and mountain views. What a great location. It was nice to relax on the blanket while the boys chased each other around the main lawn. Sean and I sat and smiled at how our lives have grown over the past 9 years. Ah memories!









Saturday the 26th turned out to be more exciting than we expected. For the boys there was excitement because Grandma and Grandpa decided to take them to the Washington County Fair. Oweghn got to milk a pretend cow and go on some rides. Kelan enjoyed hanging out with Grandpa and playing in the Corn pit.













Sean and I had a fun night out. I was asked to be a model in a Kimono Fashion show held at Sake One Brewery. We enjoyed an evening of music, sake and Kimono Fashion. The show was really fun and all the models were great. Check out the beautiful Kimono I got to wear for my first trip down the runway.








After all the fun on Saturday, Sean surprised me with a wonderful anniversary dinner followed up by an overnight stay at Hotel Monaco in downtown Portland. The boys stayed out at Grandma and Grandpa's farm and Sean and I enjoyed a romantic evening downtown including a "Romance Package at the hotel with champagne and rose petals. What a wonderful Husband. It was a great way to celebrate 9 years of marriage!

Our finale for the month was a trip across town to the Last Thursday Alberta Arts walk. Grams met Sean and I and the boys on Alberta street. The weather was beautiful so it seemed that everyone in Portland was there. It was a lot of fun. We had a late dinner outside at a new restaurant. We sat next to an open fire pit and warmed ourselves as Kelan slept quietly in the stroller next to us. It was a lovely evening.

So there you have it...July was very busy and we move on to August. Only one month until the school year starts and we get into a new routine. Time flies.

June 2008 - Life at home

June has come and gone...another month of memories. We had a lot of family time in June which was really nice. The summer months seem to go by so quickly. Life gets busy and we often forget about just being together and enjoying that part of life. It was good to look back over this month and see that we took the time to just 'be together'.

We started the month with a trip to Mt. Hood with some of our Japanese friends who were in town visiting. After a day at the mountain, we met at Jakes for dinner and Oweghn enjoyed his first oyster. He was quite proud of his adventuresome self.


Early in June, Oweghn also had his final field trip with his Japanese Class from the International School. We went to the zoo on a sunny June day and enjoyed a picnic, ran around and also saw the new dinosaur exhibit. All the kids really enjoyed it. It was a great day.

The following day was his final day of school and his promotion ceremony. Although it was a little nostalgic, we made it through the class song and presentation of his certificate. Coming up next...Kindergarten! Slow down.

Later in the month, we decided to head down to the Rose Festival and check out the Waterfront Village. It's very close to Oweghn's school, so he'd asked about it a number of times earlier in the week. On the final day we went down early and beat the rush. Oweghn enjoyed the rides...although we're not sure if he really enjoyed the scary ride as much as he says he did. Nevertheless, that ride has made for some fun stories.


On the 15th, we celebrated Father's day. The boys and I got Sean a mini tri-pod for his point and shoot camera. And of course I also completed this year's edition of Sean's Father's day album which has been updated with pictures and memories every year since 2003 when Oweghn was born. This is probably Sean's favorite gift and he loves to sit with the boys and look through it from the start...making his way up through the last year.


Later in June we visited Gramma Dee. She was so amazed at the boys and how much they've grown and changed. It was very interesting watching her watch them. So much expression in her eyes. I'm sure they wore her out, but she really enjoyed the visit...as she always does.

The rest of June was simple family time, hanging out in the yard, working on projects, playing games with the boys, playing in the big pool, working in the garden and whatever other fun we could find. Here are several of our favorite pictures from this month.