our favorite portland trek

 Im bouncing julia in my lap as i write this because she's really gassy from all the garlic and onions I ate today.  Anyways, so I asked my bro to tell me what we did today in his words, he said:  "we walked and walked and walked.  No we woke up made some breakfast, went to OMSI..........."  Then his wife picked up the phone and so I'll put it in my words.

 We woke up i made sick spinach pb smoothies that no one ate except me.  Then we packed the kids in the car (after I fed julia of course) and we went to OMSI (anna's favorite place in the whole world).  We played and fed the kids lunch there then took the riverside trail to the saturday market for adults lunch (we were hoping the kids would be asleep but they werent).  We ate lebanese ( nicoles favorite - falafel, hummus and tabouli - anna also loves them all).  Rich let anna play in the fountain while I got the food, she didn't know the sprayers were coming on and she got SOAKED!  She had an amazing time (she's the little kid in yellow running the water....note the only one because it was pretty cold!).

 Bryan kept E warm and dry.

 We walked back over the hawthorne bridge.  A ship came through and we had to wait for the bridge to opena nd close, that was pretty cool.  While we waiting a captured a ladybug for Anna.  Here's me and Bry.......we look special.

We hung out at home after that.  I did some yoga.  and fed julia.  The girls played outside together.  Then I decided I wanted to try Sushi since my bro loves it and I've never had it and Rich wont try it.  It was SO GOOD!  After that bryan and richard went to play raquetball.  Now im preparing my sunday school lesson, blogging, bouncing julia's farts out and listening to bryan talk to his wife.  It's been another good (but exhausting) day.

1 month and 26 years

I started this yesterday....but its just getting posted today.......ah well.

Today was my birthday and Julia's one month birthday!!  Julia is a good baby.  Here is a video of her skills at 1 month.

To celebrate, I fed Julia, then Richard attempted to get anna to sing happy birthday to me.  No success she's a grouchy pants.  But she does like to do BELLY BLASTING YOGA movies with me.......if only yoga could remove the extra skin too.....

After yoga I fed julia and loaded up 3 carseats in the corolla (wow, thats intense, but doable)
and picked up my brother at the airport - he and his daughter E flew in from Denver to help me celebrate my birthday!

We went to a kids concert at Milagros in downtown portland and I fed Julia while we ate lunch.   Milagros is a little boutique - they had a little play area, doesn't anna make a nice mermaid.  Walking to milagros we past BEAST the really good french restaurant that I will someday be spendy enough to go to.  Anna was peeping in, all the chefs waved and loved it.  I thought they would bring her a snack like in lady and the tramp - no luck.

After Milagros, we decided to take a stroll around sherwood.  2 hours and 2 naps and a half hour at stella olsen park later....... we made it home.  Surprise!  I had a present and flowers at my door, thanks mom and kristin!  I felt so loved!!

Bryan made me dinner while anna and elizabeth hung out eating popcorn and watching Barney.

  After our portobella quesadillas, I had richard get anna to bed while I made my cake - grandma's lemon poppyseed (nicolized - meaning whole wheat with applesauce and less sugar = a savings of 100 Cal per slice).   100 calories is a lot when you eat 4 slices. Yes, I ate them by myself while they were putting together my birthday present (composter, bryan and richard are assembline it in the pic below - it took 3 hours - that's an expensive composter if you add up their billing rates!)

Pretty good day if you ask me!

attempted photo shoots

 anna has to try out all julia's chair's first.

 CUTENESS

 anna being GENTLE!

sleeping mom, stop trying to wake me up!

 this is julia's usual face - im so tired and sleeping - why are you bothering me??

 cuteness

look at her mowhawk

sleep eat and poop

 thats what newborns do!

 toddlers on the other hand.........require much more attention.........which is why it's handy to have a baby loving teenager for a neighbor

 (julia's anna radar is going off here)  It stops when anna backs off a couple of feet

 I'm so grateful for Hannah Spencer!  With her assistance I was able to mop the floor today!  Wahoo!

 Hannah took all these pics.  Here's the outtakes of anna:

rain rain go away!

 These are pics from tuesday.  In the morning, avrie came over to visit.  We did a stroller swap - anna adores avrie's car stroller and was thrilled to borrow it for a day.  After Avrie left, anna's friend Gracie came and took her for the morning (thank you Emily!) while Julia and I took a long nap.  Julia had a rough night monday night - up every hour.

 Later in the day we went over to Avries to get our stroller back and to hang out because I locked us all out of the house.  Anna and avrie ate oatmeal at a small table.  Pretty cute!

 When dad got home we walked back home.  Julia fits nicely in the back part of the stroller.  She's pretty cute back there and I can see her while I'm walking.  It's also nice because she's safe from anna back there.

 Julia in the back

 Anna reading books in the front.

 Later it poured rain.  Since julia was napping I took anna out for her favorite activity - puddle splashing!

 Running anna - a rare sight.

 Splash splash splash.

 who me? 

Video below is Avrie dancing and Anna chasing her.  I think Anna might have thought about dancing - but mostly she just runs around - again, anna running, a rare sight (: