On The Road Again

We have ventured off on another family adventure.

This time we are making a loop around the Pacific Northwest.

Mixing business with a little pleasure...

On our way, we stopped by the Oregon Trail Interpretive Center in Baker City, Oregon.
We ate our picnic lunch overlooking the beautiful valley.

Westward HO!

Thomas and Sarah Traveling West

Our first destination was Portland, Oregon.

Portland is one of our favorite cities and holds many good memories for our family.

While my husband spent the day working, we enjoyed a lovely walk through the
Rose Garden up in Washington Park.

The roses were in full bloom and gave us quiet a show.

The children enjoyed running and playing through the rows of flowers and
we all took some time to stop and smell the roses...

Later in the day we enjoyed a visit with some of our dearest friends from the area...

Sweet friends...

My beautiful friend Kristi Knifong...
showing off the quilt I made for her new little one.

It is always a joy to sit again with friends
and start up where we left off...
as if we have not been apart at all...
friends like these are a true blessing.

A trip to Portland would not be complete without a visit to the Oregon Zoo...

The kids and I had a great time exploring the new exhibits
and making a few new friends along the way!

Happy Birthday Thomas!

This past week my son turned seven years old...

Where does the time go?

The Reading Days of Summer

Summer is a time when we don't have a minute by minute schedule. Moments are flexible and there are many purposeful hours of quiet throughout our day to just sit and ponder... Reading is a huge part of our lives and this is the time to just read to our heart's content...

Our favorite outing has become our bi weekly trek to the library to check out as many books as we can carry home.

Sarah is always reading a book. Lately, she has had an interest in historical fiction. She currently has her nose in, "Caddie Woodlawn"; I just finished reading a wonderful Lamplighter book, "Worth More than Gold"; and I am also reading aloud "Little Pilgrim's Progress" to Thomas, one chapter at a time... in the evenings before bed.

What a blessing today to peak out my window and see my son with a stack of books, recently borrowed from the local library, on the back porch..."reading".

Is there anything more wonderful?