the promised video

I had to shorten it, but here is the video I mentioned at the end of the last post. 

Summertime

Ah, summer in Portland.

I just love this city.  We have been taking advantage of the beautiful weather with some quintessential summer activities.

First up, berry picking.

Grady, Clara and I went black raspberry picking in nearby Hillsboro to give Daddy a chance to build Grady's sandbox (more on this later!).  I was really excited to do this - growing up we had rows and rows of black raspberries, which my dad turned into fabulous black raspberry jelly.  You may not be able to tell from the picture, but Grady actually was getting some good berries, which he carefully put into his bucket before not-so-carefully putting them into his mouth.

Unfortunately, it was pretty hot and the berries were few and far between, so Grady didn't have the best time.  In memory, though, he thinks he had a great time - asking all his favorite ladies at daycare to go berry picking with him.  (He's getting to be a bit of a flirt that one!)  We nonetheless collected enough to make a few pints of blackberry jam.  Not nearly as good as Dad's, but still tasty.

Inspired, Clara and I have gone back a few more times for blueberries and loganberries.  We hope to make one more trip next week. 

So back to the sandbox. Matt has been spending much of his "free time" (such that it is) making Grady a beautiful sandbox.  This past weekend, he put on the finishing touches (except for the seats, still to come).  Grady is beyond thrilled, constantly mentioning what a great job Daddy did.

We also cashed in on a birthday present from Uncle Cliff and got Grady this dump truck and a "bulldozer tractor." They are in heavy rotation.  And Grady wants to say "Thanks Uncle Cliff" and when asked if he wanted to say anything else "Thanks again Uncle Cliff."

Next summer fun activity?  Open swim at Sellwood Pool!  Here we are pre-swim getting psyched for the big event.

It's impossible to get a picture of this kid where he's not talking

Pre-game strategy session

Before swimming, though, we stopped at the park to do some swinging - a first for Clara.

Not sure whether this is awesome or terrifying

Clara seemed to like it at first, and then sort of transitioned to being scared. Sometimes the dividing line is hard to tell.

Open swim was quite an adventure for everyone because it doesn't start until 7:20 PM - so about 10 minutes before Grady's new bedtime and about an hour after Clara's. Nevertheless, we gave it a go.  And it went really well!  Grady was SO excited to show off his skills learned from his swimming classes with Daddy.  He blew bubbles, was a terrifying dinosaur, a big lizard, back floated, and did all sorts of other tricks.  He especially liked running through the fountains.

 And some stills.

 Clara had her first swim experience too.  She was stoic about it.

But it got a bit chilly, and we were both okay with hanging out on the sidelines and watching the fun in the pool.

Despite the late bedtime, everyone woke up at the usual time. But we were a tired lot by the afternoon.

Clara is just rolling out the milestones over here.  She got her first tooth already.  I'm so not ready for this - both from a practical and an emotional standpoint.

See it?  Middle bottom, on our left

She's also trying her hand at sitting.  She's got the strength, but gets too distracted by happenings around her and loses her balance.  Nonetheless, here's a shot.

She's also moving around.  She can get several feet away from where she started, mainly by rolling from back to front, and then scooting backward.

Another big thing for Clara right now is spitting.  Raspberries are pretty much the new black around here.

We've also started offering Clara some whole foods.  She's not getting much down, it's more just for fun.  So far we've tried green beans (awful), yellow pepper (what?) and pizza crust (YES!).

First family dinner

She's also continuing to emerge as a beautiful, cheerful girl.

The main big thing though is watching the brother-sister relationship evolve over the past few weeks.  There has been a bit more jealously on Grady's part - mainly wanting toys that Clara is holding - but there's also been a lot of concern for Clara and a desire to be with her. There's an amazing video which isn't uploading.  I'll try again later.  But for now, you are caught up.

Beach vacation

Grady was off school last week for a summer holiday, so we decided to take advantage by heading to the beach!  I was worried that Grady had psyched himself up for it too much - he could not stop talking about it - and that he would be disappointed when we got there.  I didn't need to worry.  He LOVED the beach.  Absolutely loved it.  From just about the second we got there he started telling us that he "don't want to get in the car and go back home!"

We had one big adventure going to the Oregon Coast Aquarium.  It's a great aquarium - manageable size, largely outdoors - perfect for a preschooler.  

Demonstrating Grady's anti-Daddy phase

What's the seal doing?

Tunnel of sharks

Ray!

Here's Grady showing the seal how to splash -

We had a few other small trips.  We took a morning trip to Yaquina light house and its tidal pools. We saw sea lions, starfish, and almost fell down several times on the huge rocks that littered the beach.

Starfish

We also went to downtown Newport for some ice cream and the farmers market.  But for the most part, Grady was content to play with his toys in the sand.  (Daddy is getting on making that sandbox for him in the backyard!)

Clara wasn't quite as big a fan of the beach - it was low 60s and very windy most of the time we were there, and she's not quite up to braving the elements yet.  But luckily Clara has been napping pretty well during the day, so Grady was able to get out with Matt and play while Clara and I hung out at home.  I even managed to read one of my 57 backlogged New Yorkers.  (Unfortunately I don't think that's an exaggeration and may in fact be a low ball number.)

Despite Grady's protestations, eventually it was time to go home.  We were all pretty sad to leave, but it was a really wonderful, relaxing family adventure.  The signs of a great trip -

Aftermath of Grady's bath

Heading home

Clara has been brimming with milestones over here.  The big one is that she is now rolling from back to front.

I feel safe saying that she is now completely over her colic.  She is such a joyful, smiley baby.  She loves to flirt, especially with her brother, and she loves being kissed on the corner of her mouth.

Modeling the sweater I finally finished for her, which is now too small!

Post-kisses

We have also rediscovered some of Grady's bigger toys, which have been hiding away in the garage.  I'm not sure who is more excited about them - Grady or Clara!  (Or, frankly, me for the few moments of distraction it grants me!)

Reintroduction of the Circle of Neglect

Jamming on the music table while sitting on a container of marbles

A few other odds and ends from the past few weeks -

I forgot to mention on the last post that Grady graduated from his daycare's infant house to its preschool house.  That means he's now in a bigger group of kids and is among the youngest.  He seems to be handling it well, although he is definitely pretty wiped out by the end of the day.  He has been really fighting bedtime nonetheless, and we have moved his bedtime back from 7 to 7:45 or so. He's getting so big!  Even using the big boy swing at the playground!

A cute picture of Grady and Rose from a playdate yesterday - we will be showing this one on their wedding reel I'm sure -

And the weather has officially turned gorgeous in Portland - 80s and sunny for the past week.  Today we enjoyed the sunny weather by setting up the splash pool in the backyard.  Joy!

Jump!

Clara contentedly played in the shade.

Until big brother came along - what the what?

I think that pretty much brings everyone up to date!  Loving the summer!