Dad's visit

Dad and Jo were here this last weekend for a few days. The weather was wicked while they were here – raining monsoon-like one minute and then sunny the next. Welcome to Oregon! The smell of rain and lilacs is something I wish I could bottle up and keep forever always … (great pic, Jenn. Was this one you took with my tripod?)

The last time they were here Maysen was 3 and Griffin was only 8 months old so it was fun with the boys being older this time. Of course that included "Silly Face Time" and most everyone participated. Nate just happened to have the camera while grandpa and Auntie played along. Maysen talked non-stop and Griffin was surprising bashful for the first day or so but when he warmed up, he warmed up big.

Dad helped Nate put up Maysen’s bunk bed. The bunk bed is actually the same bed that Nate and his brother used when growing up. This summer we’ll be putting Griffin in his day bed, and by his 2nd birthday we hope to move him in to the same room as Maysen. Maysen LOVED sleeping on the top of the bunk. We did have an incident on Day 2. Apparently “fishing” for your little brother with a blanket is a fun game … until you fall off the top bunk. Yeeeeah. “THUMP” is all we hear and here comes Maysen holding his forehead. I couldn’t get a straight story out of him until I happened to walk by about an hour later and I see Maysen hanging off the top bunk “…heeeerreee Griffy, Griffy, Griifffffffffferrrrtttty.” (I love he calls him Grifferty). He’s dangling his blanket down as Fin goes to reach for it, Maysen start slipping and the writing was on the wall.

The last day they were here we decided to go to the beach, Jo’s favorite place. It was raining but when you’re at the beach you almost don’t notice (except when it started raining sideways!). We also visited the Newport Aquarium. Maysen was having a hard time building up the courage to touch the creatures in the Touch Pools but eventually with grandma Jo's help he braved the storm and weathered through and he was happy he did!

This was before Grandma Jo coaxed him into touching things. A sting ray? "I don't like StinK Rays", per Maysen. To add, "..and I don't like sharps!" (sharks, there were baby sharks to pet in this tank)

Nice choice of finger to point with, bucko...

Fin and his Pranpa...

Seashell hunting with Pranpa and Mase.

Check out those Huck Fin pants. Nate was going to brave the current across the little river where he did and found the biggest agate I've ever seen!

Grandma reading “Green Eggs and Ham” was a hit with the boys. Apparently I never noticed that there is a mouse on every page, so they’d play “hunt for the mouse” with every page turn. One thing I can be thankful for is the fact that Jo is an exceptional grandma to those boys. She has patience, enthusiasm, and ideas for those boys all the time. I’m grateful she’s part of their lives.

I LOVE this picture of Fin. He got so excited finding the mice with grandma and she'd hold his finger and go "Buzzzbuzzbuzzbuzzbuzz" and point at the mouse. He loved it.

Nate’s last day at Weyerhaeuser was today. And as a surprise they took him to his favorite place for lunch and then told him he could go home. It’s 12:30pm and he just pulled into the driveway. That’s a nice surprise and Maysen will be just as excited when Daddy picks him up from school!