Our American Life

Stickers

Brett — Mon, 06 May 2013 04:26:38 +0000

I pulled my bass drum away from the wall this evening to see what my son had done. He had added own sticker to my collection. He had stuck his Cars sticker from the dentist over a sheriff sticker I’ve had. My BKG sticker that use to fill the blank spot in the middle was ...

2012 in Review by Numbers and Pictures

Brett — Sun, 06 Jan 2013 01:57:32 +0000

We thought we’d present a review of 2012 through numbers and photos that tell part of the story. It was an exciting year for all of us as we had two great road trips to California and enjoyed all the new experiences of having a kindergartner. We hope you’ve had a terrific 2012 and 2013 ...

Honorable Mention in the 2012 Washington Trails Northwest Exposure Photo Contest

Brett — Wed, 02 Jan 2013 21:31:03 +0000

After entering our family photo in the 2012 Washington Trail Northwest Exposure Photo Contest last October, we were excited to hear that our photo of Laura and Ethan hiking on Boardman Trail was selected as honorable mention. There were 13 winning selections and 10 honorable mentions and editor’s picks. You can view all the selected ...

Thanks for Everything Grandma!

Brett — Sun, 07 Oct 2012 02:15:00 +0000

Grandma always made you feel she had been waiting to see just you all day and now the day was complete. ~Marcy DeMaree My Grandma died this evening. She was 87 years old and lived a full life. I know that she loved her children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren with all her heart and we ...

Ethan’s Jam Session

Brett — Wed, 03 Oct 2012 02:33:51 +0000

Ethan showed off his singing, strumming, and dance moves tonight. We’re looking forward to his first stage performance.

A Perfect Day for 38 Years

Brett — Fri, 17 Aug 2012 21:20:42 +0000

It was my 38th birthday last Friday and we kicked it off with donuts. Donuts and special events go hand in hand in this family. Actually, donuts seem to go well with anything in our family. I even brought in a dozen to work Friday morning to celebrate my birthday. Our Branch has a practice ...

Day 19: Welcome Back Home!

Brett — Sun, 22 Jul 2012 21:12:44 +0000

Day 19: Lassen Volcanic National Park to Seattle, WA | Total Drive Time: 13 hours | Total Distance: 700 miles I’ll be the first to admit that it was an insane drive home. But after being on the road for 19 days and over 3,000 miles there is an urge to return back home when ...

Days 17, 18: Lassen Volcanic National Park

Brett — Sat, 21 Jul 2012 21:10:17 +0000

Days 17, 18: Lassen Volcanic National Park | Total Drive Time: 7 hours | Total Distance: 375 miles We’re back ‘home’! We called this wonderful area home from 2002 to 2004 when we lived at the park headquarters in Mineral. I worked for the Park as a wildland firefighter and Laura taught at the local ...

Days 14, 15, 16: Family Camping at South Lake Tahoe

Brett — Thu, 19 Jul 2012 21:05:36 +0000

Days 14, 15, 16: San Jose to South Lake Tahoe | Total Drive Time: 4 hours | Total Distance: 190 miles The last time the Holt brothers camped together was May 2006. There were no kids at the time and we spent Memorial Day weekend at Yosemite National Park. This trip had the addition of ...

Days 12, 13: Birthday Celebrations in San Jose

Brett — Wed, 18 Jul 2012 21:09:10 +0000

Days 12, 13: San Jose, CA | Total Drive Time: 0 hours | Total Distance: 0 miles Our couple days in San Jose were spent celebrating birthdays and relaxing. Ethan celebrated his 5th Birthday and Laura her 33rd Birthday with my family. We BBQ’d, swam, ate cake and finished off with the pinata. To Ethan’s ...

Days 9, 10, 11: Catalina Island

Brett — Sat, 14 Jul 2012 16:17:13 +0000

Days 9, 10: Catalina Island | Total Drive Time: 0 hours | Total Distance: 0 miles Our visit to Catalina Island was relaxing and low key (except the part where we thought my Grandma gave the condo to someone else for the week and we were suppose to leave a day early…but it was a ...

Day 8: Disneyland to Catalina Island (Part IV of IV) [Video]

Brett — Thu, 12 Jul 2012 06:40:03 +0000

Day 8: Disneyland to Avalon, Catalina Island | Total Drive Time: 2 hours | Total Distance: ??? Final day at Disneyland and we found Ethan’s favorite ride: Cars Land Radiator Springs Racers. Laura and I both agree that it was also our favorite. We had planned on doing the Racers today since we had an early 7am ...

Day 7: Disneyland (Part III of IV)

Brett — Wed, 11 Jul 2012 06:30:18 +0000

Day 7: Disneyland and California Adventures | Total Drive Time: 0 hours | Total Distance: Lots of walked miles We opened Disneyland at 7am. Closed Disneyland at 12am. What a long, exhausting, and terrific day! I’ll let the photos do the talking, but here are some highlights of our second full day at Disneyland and California Adventures. ...

Day 6: Disneyland (Part II of IV)

Brett — Mon, 09 Jul 2012 18:35:00 +0000

Day 6: Disneyland and California Adventures | Total Drive Time: 0 hours | Total Distance: Lots of walked miles Yes, it was a great day! Our feet are sore from a ton of walking, our bodies are drained from a lot of sun, and our children are passed out in bed without a single peep for the ...

Day 5: Disneyland (Part I of IV)

Brett — Mon, 09 Jul 2012 06:20:15 +0000

Day 5: San Jose, CA to Disneyland Resort | Total Time: 7 hours | Total Distance: 400 miles We arrived at the Disneyland Hotel today. Except for Laura, who stayed here as a child, none of us had been here before. Having plenty of relatives in the area always meant I never stayed in a hotel when ...

Day 4: The Calm Before Disneyland

Brett — Sat, 07 Jul 2012 18:54:05 +0000

Day 4: San Jose, CA | Total Time: o hours | Total Distance: 0 miles Tomorrow we head to Disneyland. This will be Ethan and Autumn’s first visit to “The Happiest Place On Earth” (happiest?…except for our house, and some killer National Parks, and….nice marketing Walt!) We’re not so much looking forward to our experience as we ...

Day 3: Welcome to California!

Brett — Sat, 07 Jul 2012 06:35:04 +0000

Day 3: Medford, OR to San Jose, CA | Total Time: 8 hours | Total Distance: 400 miles Welcome to California….we only have 7 more hours until Grandma’s house. Today’s 8 hour leg of our trip is our 2nd longest travel day on this trip. Keeping our kids occupied and engaged is no easy task but we’ve ...

Day 2: Road Trips Aren’t Trips Without Visiting Friends

Brett — Fri, 06 Jul 2012 06:43:22 +0000

Day 2: McMinnville to Medford with a stop in Eugene | Total Time: 7 hours | Total Distance: 273 miles It was a leisure day and we like it that way. We enjoyed our early morning at Laura’s parent’s house today. I slept in a bit, Sam cooked up a mean breakfast of pancakes, eggs, and bacon, ...

Day 1: “Mom! Dad! Do you know what today is?”

Brett — Thu, 05 Jul 2012 06:53:55 +0000

Day 1: Seattle to McMinnville | Total Time: 4 hours | Total Distance: 226 miles “Mom! Dad! Do you know what today is?” Ethan blurted out excitedly as he came into our room at 6am today. “No, what’s today?” we teased him. “Summer Vacation Day!” he exclaimed with his classic smile! What a great kick off to ...

Goodbye Preschool, Hello Kindergarten

Brett — Sat, 16 Jun 2012 22:15:49 +0000

Ethan graduated from preschool today. It was a bittersweet moment watching our little guy leave the school, teachers, and friends he enjoys so much. He has grown so much and his preschool has had a tremendous impact on him. The school has always supported the values we hold in our family: treat others with respect, ...