Waterfront Park

When we were done with the aerial tram we headed over to Waterfront Park that was only 3 miles away. We were waiting to hear from Sean if he was going to be getting off early so we could go to an amusement park together. The park was beautiful and there were bums sleeping on the grass, people riding their bikes and running along the river and then on the other side was the busy downtown streets. A great place to people watch while the kids enjoyed the water. The boys were a little wary of the fountain when we got there because it was shooting water so high in the air. After a little while it changed and Lotus ventured in and after watching her for a while they both were soon in there too. Then Sean called and said he was on his way back to the hotel so we met him back there had some lunch and headed out on another adventure.........

Portland Aerial Tram

We decided to head to Portland, Oregon for a few days while Sean was working down there. I got online and started searching for some fun things to do with the kids. It is never fun traveling and being stuck in a hotel room with 3 kids who all end up bored after 10 minutes. The drive down was fast and uneventful, we left at lunch time so everyone would be full and happy. Brayden took his nap while we were driving and we got to Sean's hotel room in time to unload and decide where we were going for dinner. We ended up going to T.G.I.Fridays and we went past where Sean was working along one of the freeways. The next morning we got up and started our day by heading from Beaverton to downtown Portland. As we were driving down the road Hunter yelled out "there's a bubble in the sky mommy". I asked him if he wanted to go in the bubble and he yelled "yes", Lotus thought I was kidding and when she figured out that I wasn't she was smiling from ear to ear.

I decided for my first stop with the kids to be the Portland Aerial Tram. There isn't anything exciting at either end of the tram just a lot of specialty medical offices. Sean was working up at the top when he was in Portland before he went to Wyoming. He told me that the view was beautiful and so I decided to take the kids and see what they thought. Hunter was in love with the gears and how things worked, Lotus loved the view of the city and was excited that we were going to be traveling on wires and Brayden was just happy if the other kids were happy. Hunter was thrilled that we were going in a bubble so high off the ground and that made my whole day! It was a short trip up and we found the bathrooms and then took it back down, it was a really great way to see the city views. It was cool to see another project of Sean's and Lotus and I really got a kick out of the walkway between two of the buildings that looked like it was suspended in air. It was fun playing a tourist :)

Kopachuck State Park

What a beautiful day to go explore a new beach. We had some errands to run in town today so we waited until Brayden got up from his nap and we headed into Gig Harbor. The kids were really wanting to go to one of the parks close to our house but I wanted to go explore a new State Park that we hadn't been to. I have heard a lot of great things from other family's about Kopachuck State Park. I have also been told that it is a little bit of a hike down to the beach and I figured that all the kids are mobile now so we would try it. There are a ton of hiking trails all around and it is so wooded and beautiful, but what a site once you reach the beach. Today was so beautiful and mild out that with the breeze off the water it was perfect! We heard the motors of nearby boats and even watched a sea lion splashing around not far from where we were on the beach. There were people out swimming, kayaking, and a couple even had an inflatable raft out there. Lotus loved the big rocks and was flipping rocks over and collecting crabs. Hunter was just fascinated by everything and even found a sand dollar. Brayden loved the water and was enjoying throwing rocks in and giggling at the splashing. The people that were out swimming said they found a huge area that was just sand dollars and I remember people saying that it's the best place when the tide is out for collecting sand dollars. I guess we will just have to go back!

Pirate Ship

One of Sean's presents came in a big cardboard box. The kids have really been in this make believe world together lately and so they decided that the cardboard box was their pirate ship. The playing pirates has gone on for the whole weekend. If they weren't playing it inside with maps of treasures and swimming up and down our hallways, they were outside on the swingset playing with that as their ship and searching for their lost treasures in the rocks. It is a really cool thing that even with the age differences that all 3 kids can play pretend together.

Sean's 33rd B-day

So today is actually Sean's birthday but since he was going to be in Portland and we were going to busy all weekend, we celebrated when he got home from Portland on Friday. We had a cake after dinner and he opened his presents from the kids and we had a great time being together as a family. The kids were in great spirits and everyone was joking around and of course thrilled that we were having cake!

A Puppet Show!

Last night Lotus and Hunter put on a puppet show for Brayden and I. They were working very hard on each making a puppet of themselves and then I brought out a stage and some finger puppets that I have had set aside waiting for them to get to this age. Lotus wanted to know where I come up with all of these things and I told her that I try to think ahead and be prepared for fun things like this. Now that she is sewing I told her that she could make some curtains for the front of the stage and we could put them on a dowel. Brayden and I were given tickets to attend the show and we really enjoyed all 3 performances. At the end of the performances there was some dancing and we all had a great time! Then it was off for baths, showers and bed time. A wonderful ending to a busy day!