Spring is here!

It has been sunny all week! Of course we've been at the park every day! :-) Yesterday we met some friends at a nearby park with sack lunches. Everyone played hard & Cate fell asleep as soon as we got home. Our girls love the sun!

My New Camera

Conrad said he was so proud of how I've been doing with my photography business that he surprised me with a new camera. I am in heaven!

Hooray for Weekends!

Conrad & I took the girls down to Portland to celebrate my dad's birthday this past weekend. What a great time! Natasha & her boyfriend, Ty, spent over four hours cooking 12 of us an authentic Italian meal (they MADE the noodles) & a delicious dessert. Bronwen, Ava & Cate had a great time getting into all of Grandma's things ;-) & it was nice for Conrad & me to visit with everyone.

The next day we drove down to Woodburn, OR for their annual tulip festival. I had two photo shoots there (Yay!) & the scenery was beyond beautiful. Our boots were covered with mud, but when I saw the resulting photographs, it was definitely worth it. The photos were so beautiful that I already have three more clients booked! Check them out! :-)

https://sites.google.com/site/michelledouglasphotography/

Surprise!

On Sunday Conrad noticed that his rear tires were wearing out unevenly, so he made an appt & took it to the shop. At first they thought it just needed to be realigned ($100), but upon inspection they realized the tie-rods were messed up ($600 + realignment + new tires = $1700). Ouch! Not a nice surprise! On the plus side, Conrad telecommuted since he was without his car. We even all went as a family to pick up Bronwen, & on the way home stopped at Papa Murphy's Pizza. By the time our pizza was ready, the car was done -we were across the street, so it worked out perfectly! Great surprise! We ended up eating pretty early, so I decided to take advantage of the sunshine & start working on the garden. Of course all THREE :-) girls wanted to go out & help me. Even Cate started digging with her little shovel! We were in the midst of pulling out all the dead brush, when SURPRISE, this little guy hopped out!

Cate cried when it was time to go inside, but a sticker (she's patting it on her tummy) made everything better.

A Day at the Park

After Cate's 15-month check-up this morning -she's perfect!- Ava & I decided to go to our neighborhood park. As we were walking there, I saw a grandmother & her grandson leaving. She was holding his hand, he was swinging his lunch bag & they were walking along a beautiful landscape. I couldn't help but think of how wonderful this little boy will feel when he is all grown up, looking back on his childhood, & remembering small moments like going to the park with the Grandma. It's incredible how quickly time slips through our hands & it's important to recognize that when interacting with the people we love. Conrad & were talking about this in the car the other day. How we'll look back on this time with our little children, functioning together as one, & remember it as the best time in our lives.

Bronwen is the leader of The Three Musketeers. She helps me so much with her little sisters. She comes up to me & puts blankets around my shoulders when I am on the computer working & they are in the living room watching TV. She always kisses & hugs us & says, "D (dad), you're the best!"

"Sister, where did you go?! I was looking for you!"

Cate is starting to want to do things herself. I thought it was appropriate that she's wearing her Nike "Just do it" shoes while trying to climb. She gets so excited to go to the park that when we drive by it she says, "Weeee!" talking about the slides & swing!

Ava, who tells me, "Mom, you're the best mom I ever had." She is the best daughter anyone could ever have.

Cate & her "concentrating" face -notice her cute, spongy pink tongue sticking out?!

We got to see a Bald Eagle flying around while we were at the park! Amazing!