OUTSIDE Fun

 The fishing poles are finally getting put to good use.  Still haven't quite tied on a hook, but the practice casting and reeling has proven to be great entertainment.

Our yard is a wonderful place to watch Spring unfold.  The tulips we planted came from our trip last summer to Holland. The flowering trees are super fragrant and colorful.  And the veggie garden next to the house holds tons of seeds for our summer time enjoyment.

Mother's Day mushroom hunting!  An adventure in the woods, YES, sign us up.  We had troopers, lots of scrapes and bruises from tromping through the trees, and we even were lucky and found ONE Morel mushroom!

We celebrated the rest of the afternoon at the lake!

Our budding photographer Piper captured this series on the log of Scout Lake near Sisters....

Me and my girl posing for some Mother's Day silliness!

I feel so lucky to be sharing my life with 3 little monkeys.  The joy, the laughter, the frustration, the pride, the LOVE, the snuggles, the fears, the failures, the successes and the simple everyday moments we share.  Every bit of it I cherish and am thankful for.  Being their mom fills me with feelings deeper than I'd ever felt before.  Watching them grow and learn and explore the world we live is a privilege and an honor.

I am proud to say we successfully took on the first camp out of the season.  We joined a group of friends who have dubbed these outings as COCKS (Central Oregon Camping with Kids Series)!  Super cool group of people who happen to be rock star mountain bikers and like getting out in the woods with kids.  The mountain biking was stellar and the kids had so much fun too, a success all around.

We were packed to the gills!  Bikes, beer, pillows, hammock...we didn't forget a thing.  

Between the hammock, tents, trailers and slack line, these guys stayed busy.

Marshmallows were an obvious highlight.

Waking up to rain the last morning didn't stop the bacon cooking!

Awesome camp site along the river.

The hot springs on the way home was a nice stop.  A bit murky when the silt got stirred up, but felt great and we had the whole place to ourselves most of the time.

Spring

It seems that I have been letting the pictures pile up on my camera.  Here are a smattering of some of my favorites this past month.

These Easter Bunny outfits were such a hit this year.  They are special hand me downs from the Shaw family who also happened to be part of an older sister and twin brothers dynamic.  Thank you Pat Shaw for saving these gems for 30 years to pass on to us!  =-)

We were invited out to Sisters for an annual Easter Egg Hunt Party, it was a beautiful day!  Fun friends, good food and TONS of hidden eggs!

Me, Maggie and Piper had a biking date in Shevlin Park a few weeks ago.  Lots of stops to explore in the woods.  I love where we live!

Notice the T REX face in the rocks

We had a nice visit with my mom who came for a visit the beginning of April.  Unfortunately I got super sick, ended up with this crazy 2 week flu - so my mom got more than she bargained for as I was  laid up on the couch! =-(  Thank you mom for the endless laundry doing, clean up and love you poured  onto me and my family.  You are the best!

Any guess how this picture was captured?

Biking and hiking and climbing...getting dirty in the dirt...this is just the beginning of the summer I have planned for these monkeys.

Well when it really gets warm the pool will be a big part too, but for now...we are at our best when we get outside!

This was a recent Monday where Piper had the idea of double dates.  First Piper and I headed out on the trail-a-bike for a long ride that ended at a frozen yogurt shop.  Meanwhile Dave and the boys enjoyed the  indoor kiddie pool for a special "boy's outing."

Then we switched it up and Piper and Dave headed out for their date to the toy store, while me and the boys went treasure hunting in the woods.

We started out on bikes, but they ended up ditching them and running off trail to climb hills, explore gullies, scale fallen trees.  There were lots of treasures out there, but the best were the metal dragon and old weeble wobble I had hidden for them to "find" as part of the hunt.

Love this girl.  Now 5 1/2 years old officially on April 26th!  We celebrated with a doughnut in the morning and pumpkin cookies for desert!

David and I got to sneak in one more spring skiing date while the kids were in school.  We stuck to the groomers, but had so much fun on the soft, soft snow.  It felt like we were water skiing it was so slushy in some sections.

Mostly just great to be out with my man!

Calvin the Great...out enjoying some spring snow in town.  It was a surprise dumping that all melted by  the afternoon, but fun while it lasted.

Look out PUMP TRACK!!! We have big fans here of riding in the dirt.  Calvin and Piper loved hitting the trails, it is so fun to watch them!  Here is a quick youtube video below...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YIJJtR3LD1c&feature=em-upload_owner