EKjourney Backup

After the Birthday Party (see following post), we went up to Chehalis and met Grandma Tracy for a surprise scenic train ride. Hello Cars! It was very relaxing! Birthday cake and red vines???  You lucky children!

Cousin Zellee had her 4th Birthday Party up in Castle Rock this year.  It was a beautiful location and fun to see people that we hadn't seen in a long time. My this boy is handsome, even with a snake on his face! Auntie Tina is such a good host! Rainbow cake!  The inside was all swirly with rainbow colors.   Zell wearing the hat that I made for her.  (It isn't pulled down all the way LOL.)

We joined some friends for our first camping trip since Evi was B's age.  That one wasn't so successful so we wondered how things would go this time....Well, we did have a blast but I drove home at 1:00 in the morning with B and put him in his own bed (luckily, we were at Silver Falls which is less than 30 minutes from home)!  He wasn't naughty, he just couldn't sleep so neither could Phil and I since he was between us.  We arrived late Monday night and set up camp, had dinner, and smores.  Tuesday was our fun day!  It was in the 80's and we visited and played until evening!  The children has a great time! Breakfast Making a spear The little creek next to the Wibel's camp site. Lots of muddy entertainment! Phil up a tree (better than up a creek, I suppose...) Lots of friend's to play with!  Not pictured are three baby boys.  Rock throwing (and looking a little sleepy after a long late night and no nap) Little Miss Proper!

I haven't blogged in quite awhile because I haven't had a moment to sit down and write! Here is a recap of our busy busy week!  Ironically, all 4 children had colds!  There were also 3 appointments (chiropractor and a midwife appointment that I drove to at the wrong location) thrown in the mix. **Thursday (June 16th) was Phil's last day of work.  He came home a bit early so I could go to a homeschooling curriculum fair.  We then went down along the Willamette River for a little hike. **Friday, Phil had to go back in to work for meetings and some final clean up. **Saturday, was rainy and I don't think we did much besides housecleaning...the calm before the storm! **Sunday, church and a Father's Day get together at A and T's. **Monday, watering hook up in the morning and camping in the evening. **Tuesday, all day play day with friends up at Silver Creek Falls. **Wednesday, all day at the job site with Phil.  He painted, and the children played! **Thursday, Phil wa...

I know, I rearrange a lot!! When we redid the kitchen, we took out the tiny pantry closet to make room for more counter space and bought the white cupboards (below) to use as a pantry in the garage.  This works great when the weather is cool but because the garage isn't insulated, it super heats in the summer.  We have put dried goods here and there during hot weather but with a growing family and growing appetites, I am buying more items in bulk and we need more storage. This year, I decided to turn the "living room" area into the pantry/dining room/school room instead.  It works well to have this space not only for eating but also schooling.  The playroom/school room (even though it is my favorite place to school because of all the natural light) wasn't working anymore so we needed to move to the table. The dining area (if you want to call it that) is now the library/sitting room.  It is cozy and the loveseat blocks the entry area to the outside so the laund...

Finally, an 80 degree day and we were ready for it.  Pool set up, popsicles in the freezer, laundry line up, water balloons, croquet set up, and plans to work on the urban farm!  We worked hard and played hard all weekend long.  Maybe a little too hard!  I was one tired 33 week pregnant momma after rearranging furniture all day Friday, then yard work the next two days. Little B in an outfit that Sawyer used to wear. The water wall.  I saw this idea on link from facebook of all places.   We don't have an "official" pool up as of yet but the duck pond worked just fine.  Are they not darling!!! The precious gift that our children love are siblings.  Sure, they have their squabbles but they adore one another and they adore the babies and can't wait for the new little one to make her appearance. The library.  I got the girls tutu swimsuits and they wore them all day. The boys.  B loved having Sawyer "read" to him.  

We got so much accomplished on the weekend!!  I was so excited to see how much the farm came together. This is Phil's massive undertaking....retaining the hillside.  He started on the 3rd layer.  Soon the ducks will be moved to a shadier spot up higher on the hillside and the first layer will become garden space.  With the concrete, we add the great element of heat retention which is perfect for urban farming in the Pacific Northwest.   Tomatoes in!  Also, peppers and eggplant.  All the cabbages, broccoli, and cauliflower were killed by some sort of root eating bug.  Grrrrrr! My water feature tucked up against the concrete wall.  We have a frog that lives in there.  I was not so thrilled to discover that a raccoon had been digging up the water plants that I freshly potted up.  Grrrrrr!  Between deer, spraying and pooping cats, raccoons, skunks, and bugs, we have had quite the challenge in our endeavors! This isn't the prett...