Mother and Daughter

One of my favorite things about Wilsonville is all of the beautiful parks. And they aren't just the normal parks. We have hills, grass, trees, play structures, water fountains, rock climbing, and more! When my husband and I were looking at houses here, 4 long years ago, we found a house that he loved. I thought it was alright, but I really fell in love with the neighborhood when I walked down a little path and ended up at a GORGEOUS park. Right then I knew that I had found the neighborhood where I wanted to raise my children.

I was recently able to photograph the sweetest, most fun family! We met at one of our wonderful parks and just walked around finding different places for pictures. I love the way they turned out; so much variety. By looking at all the pictures you wouldn't even know that they were all taken in the same place!

The Dirt Road

This was a very fun session. We went to my favorite new spot-a dirt road surround by tall grass (not for those who have grass allergies!) and lots of beautiful trees. Each time I visit this area I find a new spot that I want to return to for pictures. I love the simplicity of it. The background of the portraits often just ends up being a blur of several shades of green and brown with spots of shimmery light.

Short Hair

Both of my girls have been begging to get their hair cut short. I told them they had to wait until after their dance recital, and then if they still wanted short hair they could have it. The day after the recital the nagging started up again. Ava went first and LOVES her new super short hair cut! Being partial to long hair this was a bit hard for me, but seeing Ava's big brown eyes light up when she looked in the mirror was priceless!

Wilsonville's Macho Men

Last night was the much anticipated Innovative Dance recital. Of course all of the kids did great, and the dads were a big hit too!

Happy Birthday to Me

And what a wonderful day it was, in all the little ways that truly matter. Brook and Ava woke up at their usual time (as soon as the sun started rising) and I stayed in bed. They watched TV in the family room, as quiet as little mice while I "slept." Brook made breakfast for herself and Ava (originally they were going to make toast with peanut butter, but when they couldn't find the bread they aborted that mission and settled for cold cereal). I lay in bed enjoying their whispering voices and quiet giggles.

In the afternoon Ava gave me a special birthday hairdo. She brushed my hair for a considerable amount of time and then gave me two "hurricanes," (similar to braids but very messy and tangly and a lot of pulling is involved when putting them in).

At the end of the day they planned a surprise party for me, all by themselves. They put my favorite music on, made a banner and blew party blowers while singing happy birthday, complete with "cha cha cha's."

I really do feel very lucky.

The Beauty of Nature

I am always on the look out for pretty places to take pictures. I had planned to go over to a park this afternoon, but after walking my dogs on a construction road (don't worry, construction comes to a halt on Sundays) I saw an old picnic table sitting under an oak tree, surrounded by tall grass. Everything was quiet and peaceful. And so beautiful.

It Is Official...Dr. 97070

Dave is officially a doctor. He graduated on Tuesday and will start working at Legacy in downtown Portland in a couple of weeks. Getting the the ceremony was no easy feet. Seriously, what should have been a 30 minute drive took almost an hour and a half because traffic was so bad. Once we made to downtown Portland there were several roads closed because of construction. Finally, when we were in the vicinity of the Schnitzer auditoriam Dave got out of the car, grabbed his cap and gown and started RUNNING. He made it...just as the graduates were being announced :)

I hate to admit this, again, but while taking pictures in the lobby MY CAMERA BATTERY DIED!!!! Grrrrrrrr!!! I wanted to get Dave's picture with everyone who came to his graduation, but oh well. Live and learn...oh yes, lesson learned...my battery was fully charged for Ava's preschool graduation the next day :)

Busy-Ness

I have been struggling to get my new blog up and running for several days now. After days of frustration it is still not ready :(
In the process of creating a new blog I just realized that I have not been updating this one. Here are a few random pictures from the last couple of weeks...

This week is "Dress Rehearsal" at Innovative Dance.