Giga Baby

Posted at the request of Aunt Hannah---this is how we spend rainy days inside :D

Claire Rocks the Oregon Coast

Claire is moving with her family to Eugene Oregon in September so that Daddy can go to UO. We just came back from visiting Lane County to see about where to live and what to do. She thinks the ocean is awesome (and her Northwest-loving parents agree)!

We went to the Sea Lion Caves--just an hour from our future apartment in the university family dorms. Claire got to see hummingbirds, bald eagles, seals, sea lions, lots of sea birds and grey whales. She was most impressed with other little kids and she bent over backwards to catch their eyes and make friends.

The interior of the cave is the largest sea cave in the world and it stinks to high heaven. Claire barked back at the sea lions to be friendly.

We can't wait to have views like this for our Saturday outings. Eugene is also just an hour from the Cascades, so we can fish and hike or beachcomb alternately. Eugene itself is very green in every sense---people bike or walk rather than drive, they recycle like mad, have year-round farmer's markets, are fiercely protective of their parks and trees and generally seem like odd, intelligent people. Most of the babies in the city live in the family dorms and they have their own co-op preschool right in the shared tenant clubhouse.

Happy, if a bit chilly, family of future Ducks.

Claire inspects the moss on a tree at Heceta Head lighthouse trail.

Claire thought this crib at the hotel was beyond cool. It was on wheels, so she could push it around like a walker and take all her toys with her. Here she is mutilating a cup and dragging it across the bars as she yells for freedom...

Beautiful Heceta Head. It's nuts to think this will be part of our county!

We're pretty enthusiastic about moving to Eugene!

Claire thought the local cuisine was great too. Eugene is big on gourmet and ethnic offerings. Looks like Foodies are very welcome in this town.

Claire and Adam have a trick...

Visit from Grandma Kay

We were delighted to have a visit from Grandma Kay recently. We took her to Big Juds (home of dinner plate sized burgers, as well as normal sized excellent ones) and to Mesa Falls. We had a wonderful time and Claire especially liked basking in the love and praise from her family :)

"Uh-uh" Captured!

We finally caught one of Claire's "words" on camera. This is her, "Trying to bribe me with baby toys? No way! Give me the electronics!" expression. I call her Nods Bods when she gets like this. She's pretty close to getting locomotion down and I'll snap that when we get there.

Aunt Awesome

Hannah's first grade class had a "Dress as your favorite musician" day today; so of course she went as John Fogerty from Credence Clearwater Revival! The shirt was once Grandpa Bob's and the wig was from the infamous Belle Halloween costume. Hannah is also wearing a badge that identifies her as Fogerty (just as she wore a "Johnny Cash Fan" badge last year). Hannah had me cut her "hair" this morning and she took a little plastic guitar to school. Aside from the age, gender, lifestyle and general proportions---she looked just like him! Claire was thrilled. She loves Hannah's flamboyant projects like this. It's fun to be a family of hams.

Rockhounds

Here is a shot of Claire and I as we hiked Pass Creek Gorge in the Challis National Forest last weekend. Claire is really good at finding agates--they are shiny and green! Daddy found some great chrinoid fossils as well as ancient seabed life and Hooma found some huge quartz shafts. Hannah mostly danced up and down the hillsides, but she took time out to locate some nice jasper specimens. It was a great Spring day--warm and fresh with enough cloud cover to shade the pale princesses among our bunch.