19 Months

This girl is sweet, full of spunk, curious, loving, and determined.

Busy in the kitchen! 

Playing with her good buddy.

Resting on the couch while sick.

Words:
Mama
Dada
JB
cheese
baby
doggie

9 teeth

Colorado Road Trip: WA to Durango

At the end of September we hit the road for a two week road trip to Colorado. I was pretty nervous about how the girls would do and spent the weeks leading up to our departure coming up with good activities to keep them busy along the way and snacks, lots of snacks!

It took two and a half days to get to Durango. We camped along the Snake River at the Oregon/Idaho border the first night, then outside of Provo, Utah the second night. The time passed pretty quickly as we talked, played some car games, listened to music and read. Clara's favorite car game was "Car Hunt". Someone would choose a color for the game, then anytime you saw a car or truck that color you got a Mike & Ike. We had to limit this game to once a day for twenty minutes or so depending on the car color! Along the way we read Little House on the Prairie. Clara loved it and we have since read a couple of the others from the series.

We arrived at Diamond Campground outside of Provo as it was getting dark. We had stopped in Provo for dinner when we realized there was an In & Out! That might have been the highlight of my day! It was a welcomed surprise after 8 hours of driving that day! The next morning we woke up to a beautiful sunrise and surrounding landscape. We packed up and had breakfast on the road. (By day two we had learned that eating in the car was a good way to pass the time with the girls! Stops were inevitable, but not spending an hour or two stopping to eat AND stretch helped a lot.)

Clara loves to camp! This was her favorite camping spot. We woke to the sound of cows mooing. They sounded like they were right outside our tent, although they were across the river. We also spotted wild turkeys that morning.

We drove out of Utah and into Colorado that day. In the laste afternoon we drove through Ouray and through the passes to Durango. It was a narrow road (with no guard rail!) with steep drop-offs at points. Once we got through the first pass we were greeted with brillant colors of fall and pulled over to get some pictures.

 

Upon arrival in Durango we settled into the house where we were staying for three nights. It felt nice to be able to unpack (and reorganize!) after a couple days on the road.

We spent the next couple days exploring Durango. The house was just a quarter mile from the Animas River walking trail which led to town. We took off on the first morning to walk downtown and check out the Silverton/Durango Steam Train Museum. It was a beautiful day and was great to be out walking around!

Clara has been really into taking pictures. She took these two pictures. I was happy we were actually in them! But the one below was pretty impressive!

The next day Clara and Matt road the Silverton/Durango Steam Train. Clara was so excited she hardly slept the night before! She was all smiles at breakfast, but she looked exhausted! The train left at 8am and it was a cold morning. That didn't stop them from sitting in the open air car as planned. As they made the trek to Silverton for their lunch stop, the snow began. 

Looking a little blurry-eyed at lunch in Silverton and the saloon.

 One of my favorite pictures of her from the day! What a fantastic memory for her. And she loves spending time with her Dad!

 On their return trip, they were delayed because of a large boulder that had fallen on the track. It took them three hours to repair the track. So, instead of returning at 5:30, they got in at 8:30pm! Talk about a long day. I was so thankful that Maggie and I had stayed in town that day! I'm not sure Maggie would have held up as well as Clara did!

Love this one two. Just so joyful! My favorite moment of the day was when the train pulled into the station. Matt had Clara's window opened (they were in an enclosed car for the return trip) and she stuck her head out of the window. I was holding Maggie and when she saw Clara she laughed and wiggled with excitement. She was so glad to see her sister after a long day apart, it just warmed my heart! Clara was just as excited (and I was too, for that matter!).  

Snuggling up, making up for a day apart! =)

Next stop Colorado Springs!

August Staycation

Two weeks ago Matt had a week off. It was so nice to have some downtime together as a family. This was the first year we didn't do an August trip to California, and as much as I missed seeing family and lazy days in Carpinteria, it was good for us to have a little staycation. We enjoyed hiking, getting to go to a church in downtown Camas, going to the zoo, camping for a couple nights and the week ended with a visit from my sister, Aly (aka Auntie).

Ready to test out the waters of the Deschutes River

S'mores, of course!

Always ready with a smile!

This was right next to our campsite, so we spent a lot of time down by these rocks,
climbing around and dipping our feet in the water.

Maggie learned how to climb into her stroller and a few moments after I took this picture she turned around and sat correctly for a minute, then rolled face first to the ground. I raced over to grab her, but she just looked up as if nothing had happened and started climbing again. What a girl!

The recreation area we stayed at was really beautful, lots of grass & open space to run around on and right next to the river.
(I have to point out that Clara is NOT wearing shoes, which is a big thing for her!)

Maggie, not wearing shoes either, loved playing in the dirt, discovering "treasures" and just roaming around.

Auntie's here! A little reading before we headed to church.

Multnomah Falls

Love these two!

August in Pictures

I went to download pictures the other night and realized I hadn't done so all month! So here is August in pictures!

Grandma B & Grandpa gave Clara a new ballet outfit and her first ballet shoes for her birthday. They have been getting A LOT of use!

Maggie has inherited Clara's former tutu, a little big, but so cute!

The first week of August we joined Matt and 45 middle school students on the annual Bike Hike trip. This year's trip was in Florence on the Oregon Coast. The girls and I went for 3 nights. The trip started off with a dune buggy ride. Three years ago, we took Clara on it (she had just turned 1), but I didn't dare take Maggie! I think she would have squirmed her way off! I didn't know if Clara would want to go once she saw the buggy drive up, but she went and had a fun time. 

The students loaded into 2 buggies that each held 25 people. 

Clara had a grand time with the middle school students. They were so sweet to include her in different activities throughout the time we were there. One morning she spent a good hour "making" friendship bracelets for people, which consisted of her cutting off pieces of string for them. It was very cute & the students graciously received their bracelets!

Clara & Jessica

 

Maggie also had some fun! She wasn't quite walking when we were camping, so she spent a lot of time being held, in the carrier or stroller. She discovered the bike though and recruited some good helpers to wheel her around!

Maggie & I took a few early morning walks to allow the rest of the camp to sleep a little more. Maggie is usually an awesome sleeper, but we had a couple rough nights. 

Breakfast at camp
(Notice all the bikes lined up behind them?!)

Clara loves her daddy!

On our way home from Florence we stopped at the Newport Aquarium. It was fun to explore!

Clara at the aquarium sporting her Bike Hike shirt! She was so pleased that a small one was ordered just for her!

Maggie took a few steps here. This was taken on Wednesday and by Saturday she was walking across the living room! Something clicked and she took off!

The discovery that every child makes sooner or later! 

Clara's sidewalk chalk portrait of Maggie

Sweet smile

She's become quite a little daredevil lately. Climbing on chairs, boxes, etc and always so proud of herself! (And probably pretty tickled with the quick response it elicits from other family members!)

Daddy is her favorite snuggle buddy!

I just love this picture of them.