Portland Blues Fest

Erin, Meadow and I headed down to the Blues festival last weekend. We arrived at the perfect time to hear a couple great bands. It was nice to be able to show Erin this annual event in Portland that raises money for the foodbank.

Toddlerdom

Just wanted to let you all know that my cute little girl has fully entered the toddler days. She is Miss Independent and wants to explore the whole world now. Eating out has become quite the adventure. She is very social and wants to make friends with everyone she meets. So, we are on alert at all times trying to keep her safe and as injury free as possible. She experienced only a minor tumble this morning that resulted in a minor scratch on her head. They should really make some more stylish helmets and knee pads for this stage of childhood. Just had to share a little bit of our world recently. Our backs are a bit sore from following her adventures.

Future Fun

Just had to post the link to this really cool bed and breakfast we will be staying at for my friend Sarah's wedding. We will be staying in a tee pee. You have to check it out because these teepees are so cool. They also have renovated old camper trailers on site that are so cool looking. Just click on the name of this bed and breakfast and it will go to the website. Cherry Wood Bed and Breakfast and Barn

Meadow's New Friend in Minnesota

Welcome to the World, Zoe Kathleen Wagner!
Arrived on Monday July 7, 2008 at 7:01 AM Central Time
Weighing in at 8 lbs. 9 oz. and 21 inches long

We are so excited to meet Jerri and Mark's precious little one. We will be out to visit in September.

Hiking Pictures

We didn't have our camera, but did have a cell phone so the pictures are a little bit blurry. Notice the snow underneath our feet. It was a beautiful day on the mountain. We actually headed up to Timberline afterwards and enjoyed a drink at 6,000 feet.

Mirror Lake
The mountain is behind us, but it is too hazy to see.

Rafting and Hiking Adventures

Yesterday, I was able to go rafting with Todd and some good friends on the Clackamas river. It is too bad we don't have any pictures for proof of our adventure but we had such a good time. It is always so nice to be able to share the rivers and hikes that we live so close to with friends who visit. Erin and I paddled in the front of the raft for most of the trip and definitely endured the most splashes and full body wave impacts. It was also great to have Todd guide our raft. He has been such a kayak snob the past few years, I have not been able to get him in a raft. He did a fabulous job of heading us in the right directions and putting us through all the meat of the rapids. The day before we hiked up to Mirror lake. The hike was beautiful and we were even able to have a snowball fight by the lake. Yes, there is still snow up there in July. But, most of the trail is open and there was just a little bit of snow to hike over around the lake. I wonder what other adventures we will find before Erin has to leave on Monday. She is having so much fun she is thinking of staying a few more days.

Erin Arrives

My good friend Erin arrived on Tuesday evening. She is a good friend from college and was my roommate/housemate for four years. She has been living in Germany for the past two years working as a school counselor at a military/international school. I was able to see her right before she left for Germany but haven't had a chance to meet up with her since then. I hope to be able to go visit her someday while she is still working in Germany. We literally "lucked" out on Tuesday because an Irish band was playing on the lawn at Edgefield. I guess they have Irish Tuesdays all through the summer. So, to commemorate my irish friend's arrival to Portland we got to do a little Irish dancing. Meadow was definitely the star of the show and made a few new girlfriends. I love getting compliments from four year olds on how cute my baby is. She actually just starting clapping her hands that evening too. She really enjoyed herself. We have a lot of fun things planned for Erin's visit, including a rafting trip down the Clackamas. It should be an action packed week.