Update on Baby

I haven't posted anything for awhile and we really haven't taken too many pictures. We have spent the last month getting ready for the new baby and just trying to stay cool. Nathan is in his new room and wakes up every morning saying, "new bed" because he has slept in his new bed. He points to the baby's room and says "baby." I think he's going to be a great big brother.

I am scheduled to have a c-section on September 4 at 7:30 a.m. Today was my last doctor's appointment and everything looks good. My doctor thinks this baby will be between 7 1/2 and 8 pounds with a big head. We'll see. She thought Nathan was going to be around 8 pounds and he ended up 7 pounds even, so who knows? We just hope he is healthy and that everything goes well with the delivery.

We'll post pictures as soon as we can.

Oregon Trip

We had a wonderful vacation last week. We drove to the Oregon Coast and spent time with our family. It was a beautiful trip and we had a great time playing on the beach and seeing all of the sites. Nathan absolutely LOVED spending time with his cousins - he and Dallin especially had fun together following each other around and yelling "birdie" every time they saw a seagull. Dallin would say it and then Nathan would repeat and they would both start yelling. I had a hard time picking just a few pictures, so there are going to be several posts from this trip. Hopefully I can get it all scrapbooked as well!

There were so many pretty places we saw, but these pictures are what I will think of when I think of the scenery of Oregon. The first one is on our hike to Munson Creek Falls. Everything is so lush and green! The second is a picture of the coastline. It was almost like looking at a painting.




We loved the cool weather that we enjoyed there and definitely felt the difference coming back to Utah and the dry heat. We are happy to be home and happy to have so many great memories now, too.

On the Road

It was a long drive to Oregon, but we all did very well in the car. We stopped and saw Jeff and Kim and their family in Boise on the way up and stayed with them on Friday night. It was fun to see the kids play together. Nathan loved the ice cream - surprise, surprise! Then we went the rest of the way on Saturday. It took a long time, but there were a lot of pretty things to see and Nathan enjoyed watching DVDs in the back seat - The Wiggles, Baby Einstein, Higglytown Heroes. We all have most of the songs memorized by now.

Enjoying ice cream with Ethan and Maddie



At a rest area about 20 minutes before Pendleton, OR



Backseat Boy

At the beach

Our condo was right on the beach. We just had to walk down a little path to get off the cliff and we were there. We loved going down to the beach to play in the sand, watch the waves, get a little wet and just enjoy the beauty of it all. Some days were overcast and some were clear and blue. Nathan called the ocean the "big wa-wa" translation: big water and liked watching the waves. He also liked the bubbles that stayed on the beach when the water would recede. Nathan liked digging in the sand with sticks, stacking rocks, and kept very entertained.

Flying Kites

On Monday night for family home evening we had a lesson that compared flying a kite to our lives. We talked about the things that kept us flying, but not flying away. Then we all went out to the beach and flew kites. It took us a little while to get the kites set up the right way, but once we did, they flew great. It was fun to see them all flying up in the sky. Nathan wanted to hold his own kite and did pretty well, but would sometimes let it go. Luckily we were able to catch it.





While we were out there, we saw a whale in the water. There may have been two of them. It was very exciting and we all ran down the beach to keep sight of them. They were quite close to the shore. This is a picture of one of the fins. It was hard to get a clear shot, but we saw it blow it's spout, saw it's head come up and the fins several times. It looked like a mom and a baby whale. Perhaps they were playing in the waves for their family home evening.

Playtime

We spent a lot of time just playing in the pool, at the tennis courts, and in the puddles (for Nathan and Dallin). Dad, Ryan, David, and Alan also managed to get in a round of golf at the Salishan resort just next to where we were staying.

Pool Time



Tennis


Nathan and Dallin racing down the sidewalk - this kept them entertained for a long time. Nathan still says "set, go."


Puddle Time - it always started out just the feet, but Nathan couldn't resist more and would end up soaked from the waist down.


Racing through the puddles


Golfing at Salishan

Newport Aquarium

Nathan absolutely LOVED the aquarium and all the fish. He kept saying "big fish" or "big shark" when he saw them. He was so fun to watch as he kept seeing new things.

Dallin, Nathan, McCae, and Traeton looking at the fish



Entering Passages of the Deep


"Big Shark" - a leopard shark


Ryan and Nathan in the mouth of a very big shark


Kadyn, Traeton, Nathan and Michael


Watching the water


Japanese Crabs

Newport

We were about 20 minutes away from Newport, Oregon and spent a couple of days down there - to visit the aquarium and also for crabbing. These are some pictures that I took while we were on our way and also on the dock where we caught the crabs.

A View from Devil's Punch Bowl



Dallin pushing Nathan in the stroller


Nathan eating ice cream from anyone who'll share with him


Newport Bridge

Crabbing

In Newport, we spent a little time crabbing. It was pretty interesting and exciting. We just watched mostly as Alan, Dad, David, and the boys pulled up the nets and caught the crabs. There were starfish in the nets a lot of the times and crabs. There were two types of crabs and the good-eating ones had to be a certain size and male before you could keep them. We were right on the dock and other tourists were very interested in what was going on, too.

Lowering the Nets


A Male Dungeness Crab - big enough to keep


Checking the Nets


All the Boys and a BIG Starfish


Cleaning the Crabs - not a real pleasant job

Munson Creek Falls & Tillamook Cheese Factory

We drove up to Tillamook and stopped at Munson Creek Falls on the way up. It was a beautiful little hike that took us to the tallest waterfall on the coast.

The Start of the Hike


Julie, Nathan, and Ryan at the base of the falls


Running down an incline -"set, go"


Kissing the cow at the Tillamook Cheese Factory


Enjoying Ice Cream

Lighthouse

One of my favorite things was visiting the lighthouse at Yaquina Head. It was a beautiful day and there were some pretty neat views from the top of the lighthouse. We got to go up and learn about the history of the lighthouse and how it works. I love lighthouses, so it was really interesting to me.

Ryan and Nathan by Yaquina Head Lighthouse


Heading to the Top-Ryan, Alan, Carmen, Michael, Kara, Traeton, Kadyn


Views from the Top