Adventures in Photography

RODEO!

2012-10-03T11:54:00.002-07:00

We couldn't go to Wyoming, home of the legendary Chris Ledoux, inspiration for the sweeping song Stampede and NOT go see a Rodeo! ESP...since my son has been all about "cowboys" for a while (he sings "Shoulda Been a Cowboy, by Toby Keith daily), and my husband considers himself a Scottish Cowboy. In the way that he's Scottish, and likes to wear Cowboy hats...he couldn't resist buying ANOTHER one in Wyoming either. I've yet to coax him up onto the back of a horse though...

Anyway, Cody makes it easy...It is The Rodeo Capital of the WORLD, so they claim (and really Who'd disputing it?) ANYWAY, they have NIGHTLY rodeos from June 1-August 31st so no matter when you're there, you won't miss out!

The Rodeo had an odd effect on my son...or maybe not so odd...he now has requested to move to Cody so he can be a Cowboy and "Learn to Rope and Riiiiiide" (totally singing the song in my head now)...of course, being a country girl at heart this is pretty OK to me...

I wasn't able to take many shots that night. While her BROTHER was sitting still (well as still as required for a rodeo when you're hootin' 'n hollerin' for the cowboy down in the arena...) KAYLEIGH however, was having none of it...I mean it was 9pm and past her bed time and she couldn't see really over everyone in front of her, and frankly she just wanted to run around. Which is not easily done on metal bleachers. So I took a few shots, but mostly just sat back and enjoyed the evening.

Of all the places we went on vacation, Cody was the one place I would have stayed longer just because of the town. It was quaint, but not too quaint (there was at least a Walmart and soon a STARBUCKS!...come on, I'm from Seattle give me a break.) But it also had a TON to do. We got to most everything in the 3 days we were around Cody, but could have easily stretched it out, and it's close proximity to Yellowstone is a HUGE plus. :) I'd totally go back.

So here are the Rodeo pictures...Next up will be the Old Trail Town... Where we walked the boards that Butch Cassidy and The Sundance Kid once trod...pretty cool huh? Stay tuned! (I promise it won't be so long this time...really!)

This is one of my favorite shots from the entire vacation, the dust, and the lights and the cowboys sitting blurry on the rail in the distance... I just love it...

Yellowstone: Part Deux : On to CODY!

2012-08-29T12:49:00.001-07:00

Sooo after our time in yellowstone our next stop was Cody Wyoming. Let me jus say, we all fell in love with this little town. For a small town, it had a LOT going for it. But for us, it was the slower pace, the down home, real ness that it oozed.

Cody is also the Rodeo Capital of the US...they have NIGHTLY rodeos in June July and August. We didn't go to the rodeo our first night in town, and I regret that, we had that much fun. But we DID go our last night. Which caused Liam to BEG (and still is begging) for us to move to Cody so he could be a cowboy. He loved it, Allan loved it...Bug finally calmed down from the altitude (Cody is only about 4500 feet above sea Level...under her apparent 5000ft cap..) And I well I've always been a cowgirl at heart..and my excursion into Wyoming made me re-think my "if we ever move it has to be near seawater" stance....I think as long as I'm near any water I may just be able to cope...Wyoming was indeed THAT beautiful.

On our way to Cody we had to go through yellowstone again...and came across this Valley of Buffalo...it's just such a clean view that I could imagine myself 150 years ago seeing this exact same thing.

Horses that were housed next to our campsite in Cody...they ran trail rides from our campground.

Our first Cody Sunset

Bug eating a crayon...I gave up trying to keep her from munching on them....esp when we were trying to set up the tent and get dinner going...if she'd sit happily and color, (i.e. eat crayons) Then we were good. Her other favorite past times were filling a bucket with dirt...and ingesting it as well.

Night time Sparklers for a fun treat!

Now, in Washington, we have JUST started selling hard alcohol in non-state stores.

So MAYBE I'm a little behind...but this seems a bit counter active on the whole

"Drinking and Driving" front

So aside from the rodeo...our other favorite stop was the Old Trail Town . The cool thing about this is that the buildings are ORIGINAL from their time periods. They are cabins and buildings that were brought from all around the area and placed on and old "street". The coolest was that the ACTUAL "hole in the wall" cabin that was the hide out for Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid...as well as the Saloon they frequented.

Next up? The RODEO!

YELLOWSTONE: Part one

2012-08-22T17:28:00.000-07:00

Yes, we just braved the great unknown...okay so maybe not unknown..but definitely Great. It's been in the works a while, and finally a couple weeks ago we packed up our XTerra (poorly), plunked our 18 month old and 7 year old in the back seat at 6am and set off for the longest road trip we'd ever done.

The trip took us through Yellowstone, to Mt. Rushmore and back via the Grand Tetons. It would take us through 7 states, and over I think 5 mountain passes.

We learned a few things...

The wind and rain of the Wyoming prairie was too much for our first tent so we had to purchase one mid way.

Apparently the largest Harley rally there is takes place in Sturgis SD the first week of August. so we saw people from as far away as Australia riding in from every direction in PACKS I've never seen so many bikers...and we camped along side them every night...nice guys/gals all.

Our Little Miss Bug does NOT (and I can NOT stress that enough...NOT) like high altitudes... Anytime we were over 5000 feet for any length of time she would FREAK OUT...and since MOST of Wyoming is 5000+ feet it seems you can only imagine our joy. Nights were the worst...If anyone from West Yellowstone KOA who were there when she was having night terrors all night I apologize for waking you up.

We also learned that Liam is quite the photographer. (He took over 800 shots...the best of which I will feature in one of the Yellowstone posts)

And that Bug, loves to get DIRTY...I couldn't keep that girl clean for more than two seconds..I swear.

Oh, and that AC is not optional on a trip like this....we had to have the windows down the ENTIRE TIME...and were STILL dying most of it. We went through 3 cases of water.

So...that's it for now..I have a WHOLE TON of photos... (between Allan and I we took over 4000!) I won't be posting all of them though... that would be excessive.

On the road through Montana....I'm sure parts of MT are LOVELY...but all we saw was pretty dull Until....

We started coming into West Yellowstone MT.

Shopping in West Yellowstone....and wearing Daddy's favorite color.

This was a happy accident...Allan was obviously to the right initially(as seen by his shadow there) then he went and turned on the light not knowing I was still exposing my shot...But all told I LOVE how it turned out!

This was our first "stop I have to take a picture" moment.

And it paid off...as we were about to get back in the car, this eagle took off and I RUSHED to get my camera...and Voila! Eagle in flight

Our first hot spring...and our first introduction to the smell that is yellowstone.

This was the Artist Paint Pots...

Yes, it was a stinky walk that day..

We dubbed this the Vanilla Bean Frapacchino spring

Buffalo!

This final bunch were all taken in the Norris Geyser Basin.

Steamboat Geyser....not as regular as Old Faithful, but when it DOES go off it's higher....we saw a few smaller eruptions...and it was quite interesting.

American Heroes - Helicopter Show

2012-07-15T22:22:00.000-07:00

So this weekend we headed out to a FREE helicopter show down at Boeing's Museum of Flight. The kiddo's got to go in some helicopters, and we got to watch one land as well...Over all it was a great day...hot, and it was only like 10am! I'm so a PNW girl, heat is simply not for me.

Also I got to get out my wide angle lens and give it a jolly good testaroo... (is so a word)...in the end, if you get the change to head out to one of the "American Heroes" events I recommend it. It was a fun, free, and totally family friendly activity.

Mash bubble front helicopter...apparently the only one left in existence...

Fort Nisqually

2012-06-25T11:25:00.001-07:00

We recently took a trip down to Point Defiance Park in Tacoma. We happen to like the Zoo down there MUCH better than the Woodland Park Zoo in Seattle, which is...Nice, but huge, you really can't get it all in sometimes, and the habitats are so huge as to make it difficult to see the animals sometimes. Point Defiance also is an Aquarium, and the walruses are just cool. Anyway, this time, we didn't go to the zoo...though I definitely recommend it to everyone with small kids.

What we DID do this time was head over to Fort Nisqually. What is that you ask? Here's your answer (from their website...because I'm too lazy to type it all out...) "Fort Nisqually, the first European settlement on Puget Sound, was a bustling center of trade that expanded into a large-scale agricultural enterprise." (website here)

At least that's what it WAS, back in 1855. NOW it's a living history museum. With some of the original buildings still intact and others rebuilt over the years..the staff dress in 1855 era costumes and tell you about how it would have been for them in that job in 1855. They have special guests come different times of the year, it was a sailing master telling all about ships and sailing the day we were there. (With my extra active/young ones they weren't too interested in this) apparently we went the wrong weekend, the next week was going to be a cooking weekend, all about how they cooked in 1855 with cook offs and everything...my chef of a husband was a bit peeved to say the least...I mean, SAILING isn't nearly as interesting as a GIGANTIC fire in an outdoor oven... :)

Anyway, we split off while we were there...(and I haven't gotten my hands on Allan's photo's yet.) I had Bug, and he had Liam...while they climbed to the top of the turrets at the corner..something I just can't do. I walked around with Bug..who was FASCINATED with the blacksmiths shop...

Over all, unless you go on one of their bigger weekends, (like the food one with the cook off) while extremely interesting, it doesn't take a whole lot of time to go through. It was perfect for us, NO crowds and a lot of room for the kids to just run around while we read all the information and talked to some of the staff...and of course, we took plenty of pictures...I mean, it IS us, what else would you expect?

I didn't take a LOT because bug is now ALL OVER and it's hard to take time out when it's just her and I to take a lot of shots....but I was able to get a few nice ones, and a goofy one of her and her brother "wrestling" on the grass....

Fathers day!

2012-06-18T13:54:00.002-07:00

Ahh, so it's been a while. Sorry for that. Life has gotten a bit crazy...But I will endeavor to post more often, I have a few adventures to share but we'll start with Yesterday's excursion to Snoqualmie. Last year, for our first Mothers day w/ Bug, we went on the Snoqualmie train...it's a 65 minute ride from Snoqualmie, to north bend, then up to see Snoqualmie falls and back. And on mothers day and fathers day the corresponding parent is free. So last year we went and it was a ton of fun...the sun was shining, everyone was in a good mood.
Yesterday, it was POURING down rain, and we weren't all in the greatest of moods, we (and in we I mean *I*) locked our keys in the car...BUT...when it was all said and done it was still fun. Kayleigh did well. We were a tad worried about containing our now running 15 month year old wild child...but she loved to just look out the grate that covered the floor to ceiling door in the cattle car... which, is way more comfy than the rest of the 'train seats" since they have nice deep wicker chairs in there...She also was able to stand on said chair and it was just the right height to look over...and chew on...the railing.

So without further ado...pictures!

I had to show this one first...this is us last year...same cattle car with a new baby (she was only 2 months old!)

And now my big kids...Bug's learning to make silly faces..(more of those later) and Liam's getting handsomer each day.

This is one of those "if only it were in focus" ones...but I couldn't help sharing it...it's one of her new faces...

And yes, those lashes are 100% natural...(I actually had someone ask me that once)

Looking over the railing...

She likes wind....so this was perfect for her!

Ha...she is chewing on the camera strap of the camera taking this picture...When you have a teething baby...everything becomes a teether.

Now, it was after all Fathers day. And this is a capture of my husband and daughter just playing around. He loves being a dad. It's what defines him. He also happens to be very good at it. His kids love him to bits, and I'm often second fiddle (third for the bug often because her brother also comes in above me) BUT, since so many kids now days don't seem to have present fathers, I'm not about to complain that my kids love theirs. I didn't have a daddy, my kids do, and I am thankful for, and love every moment of it.

See they are so sweet together...

And of course two seconds later... with little ones the sweet, tender moments can go by quick as a blink between the goofy, fun loving, antics..

That was our fathers day...how did you celebrate yours?

All About BOYS!

2012-06-05T10:22:00.003-07:00

It's JUNE! Time for the I Heart Faces "All About Boys" photo challenge...Having an immensely photogenic little boy I could offer up many a shot of his destined to breaks girls hearts grin, dimples and all...or shots that make even the most blessed girl jealous of his eyelashes... I could also show my so very handsome husband, who HATES it when I photograph him but recently posed for me.

I figured I'd go a different route. This shot is from a wedding I shot a couple weeks ago. My son was also the ring bearer. This was one of those shots that I grabbed because of the fun they were having. And my son, with his attempt to "head spin" and break dance stole the show, and often on the dance floor.

So, once you have a good laugh at the fellas boogying it up on the dance floor, head on over to I Heart Faces and check out all the other entries for this month!

I Heart Faces - Hey Girl

2012-05-11T07:38:00.000-07:00

I have MANY pictures of my sweet baby girl smiling and being goofy. Pictures I also love though are those where her emotion may be something OTHER than happy, because in all honesty, while she IS overall a happy baby, she also has her tantrums and her tears and I want to capture those moments too.

SO, when going through photos to try and decide what to put into this challenge I figured I'd be a rogue and put one of my baby girl not so smily. (She had dropped her ice cream cone..and believe it or not it was over about 2 seconds after this photo).

Go on over to I Heart Faces and check out all the other beautiful ladies in this challenge!

Fix It Friday!

2012-05-05T11:32:00.004-07:00

Sooo it's been a while since I have participated in I Heart Face's Fix it Friday. But Since I have a wedding shoot coming up, this one caught my eye...thought I'd give it a go this week.

Spring in the PNW

2012-05-04T16:22:00.000-07:00

Ahh, Spring....when the Northwest's weather is even more unpredictable than a pregnant woman with the third trimester carrying triplets. BUT, as with that pregnant woman, who has the joy of her children to look forward to, who can see their little feet pushing against her abdomen, spring brings hints of the gloriousness that is summer in the Pacific Northwest. We don't get SEARING hot like the south (though still a bit muggy for my tastes) and we do still have some cold dreary days..but when summer really hits it's perfect. The right mix of a hot summer day with a cool breeze of whatever body of water you happen to be closest to bringing you the smells of ocean and farms, city and smog.

With views of the mountains ALL around that are still snow capped even into late July and August. If it ever gets TOO hot you can always escape to either the glaciers in the Cascades where the Ice Caves lower the temperature about 30 degrees due to the cool wind blowing down over the glaciers you stand next to. Really...it was a 100 degree day, in the SHADE...the walk to the caves was muggy and miserable through a beautiful forest...but once you came into the valley where the glaciers were even in direct sunlight the temperature had dropped to a refreshing degree, and sitting in front of one of the cracks it was almost chilly!

OR if on a hot day the mountains are not your style, any of the parks along the Puget Sound, with the wind whipping of the sea water cooling it to nearly autumnal degrees is lovely. Add to that the prospect of possibly spotting a Humpbacked whale or sea lion, or even a pod of Orca's migrating through the Sound and you have a fantastic day.

Now, while I have done ALL of these things in the last few years. This will be the first year with our new addition to really get to enjoy it. Last summer we did outings but since she was so small, much of it was spent in a carrier..but now that she's walking...we're planning a few more interesting outings. (not that last years outings weren't interesting)

Also, this year, with my ligament reconstruction having been a success and me NOT feeling like my ankle is going to roll constantly we can try a few more...non-paved type treks.

SO, that said, this last month we did a number of Spring activities. A couple I will share with you today... :)

One was the Skagit valley Tulip Festival. Now we went last year when Bug was only about 3 weeks old. On April 1st. The 1st day of it. And WOW we fell for the April fools. While the company was good (granny was still here) The tulips had yet to make an appearance, the ground was so sodden you couldn't walk the roads to see the ones that HAD decided to reach for the sun and it was raining...buckets. SO this year we waited a couple weeks into the month, and went on a warm Saturday...It was perfect. Not too hot, not too crowded, and Bug decided to make THAT the day she walked for any length of time. She loved the daffodils and Dad found himself with everything right in the world as he took pictures in a sea of yellow. Liam got to run the dried out road which was rather fun, the top layer had dried and cracked, but it was obvious the under layer of mud was still there...because the road was like walking on a giant foam pad.... almost trampoline like.

The other was Bug's first day at the beach. We went to Birch bay and had fun mucking about in the sand, kicking a ball around and blowing bubbles...more sand was eaten than I'd like, but then she IS teething and that shovel just was the right size for her mouth.

Sunsets & Silhouettes

2012-04-26T18:10:00.000-07:00

I LOVE sunsets...it's taken me a loooooooong time to learn how to photograph them properly..But..we went down to the Mukilteo beach a couple weeks ago...right at sunset...and played with silhouettes and thought I'd share my favorites..

I know, I've been remiss

2012-03-09T08:33:00.000-08:00

Okay...I KNOW I've been gone from the blog world...We've had a lot on our plates...I've been laid up with surgery...and just in case you were ever considering ankle ligament surgery with a 10 month old and no help...let me tell you it's no picnic...don't do it.

I have also been scouring the web for job/housing pretty much anywhere I can in between the chaos that is my life. :)

I have still been taking pictures though not as much...and not nearly as interesting well unless you are me, in which case I find pictures of my children to be the MOST interesting...hehe.

So this set was a couple days ago...There was some sun (I know shocker in the PNW) coming through the window and I figured why not...

I also was snacking on something I can't remember what, when Kayleigh noticed I was eating something...

So of course, being the little food horse she is, she wanted it....and decided to give me the puppy eyes...

That didn't work though...since I knew she'd just eaten.....so she tried her GIVE IT TO ME NOW...model-ish look...Watch out ANTM I just found your winner in like cycle 1000

I think she's even Smizing? What you do you think?

So then we get to the...HAHA I'm only kidding, (maybe if I pretend to NOT want it and be all cute she'll give in..he he he)

And because I am a coooold hearted mommy, and I wanted my lunch to myself (and she'd already eaten..I'm not THAT cruel as to eat when she's ACTUALLY hungry...promise :) She decided to move on to one of her favorite activities....

That's my bug...a reader...can't keep her out of books...here's hoping she grows up a TOTAL nerd like her momma and the boys (until that perfect right one comes along) stay far away...for I fear she's going to be a looker on top of it....

Hope you have an adventurous day!

Liam Turns 7!

2012-02-13T15:21:00.000-08:00

Concerts in and of themselves are festive affairs. Add to that the excitement of a 7 year old boy on his birthday, going to see his very favorite artist for his 1st big concert and you have one BIG NIGHT. That was our evening, we had 5th row tickets right on the cat walk to see Brad Paisley. And of course, we brought our cameras.

Liam was a dream. He remained calm as possible for a 7 year old who is that excited.

And of course we got a fe shots of Brad himself

I heart Faces Weekly Challenge: By the Book

2012-01-22T21:48:00.000-08:00

This is a fairly common scene around our house. Liam was learning to read just as Kayleigh was born and as she laid on the floor Liam would read his wee books to her. So, when I saw this weeks challenge, this is totally the shot (well one of the shots) I thought of.

Make sure to go check out all the other bookworms at I Heart Faces!

SNOW!

2012-01-18T14:12:00.000-08:00

Okay, so to many around the country, and all over the world, a little bit of snow is nothing big.

To children the world over it means playtime...of course, not all of it is NICE play time esp if you aren't in the mood for snow down your shirt or in your face. My hubby is one who hates snow because of the brutal use of rocks within the snowballs thrown when he was a kid...of course, in Scotland, snow wasn't so much a novelty as a normal winter occurance.

However, for those in the Pacific Northwest, we dream of snow...(well those of us that don't fear driving in it, and are big children at heart) Or I guess I should say *I* dream of snow...I am a December baby...and NEVER have I seen snow on my birthday. I mean, come ON!

As a child when we would get that first flurry of snow I would be out the door and in the road playing...it was a different time *cough* years ago....it didn't matter the time, it didn't matter the day if it was snowing I was outside...taking a walk, sledding when there was enough snow, and even when there wasn't...in Seattle where I grew up in the valley between two hills...and there was a fantastic hill at the school a few blocks away.

As I got older and off to college, snow days were a prayer many a finals week in order to have a few more hours to study...though I didn't use it for that, usually I'd still put on my boots and coat and take a walk in the snow...

To me, snow is peaceful. even in it's ferocity...the hush it brings over the world, the glistening white of the snow, the sparkle snow frozen in the moonlight. The crunch beneath my feet....I think I could live in the more northward areas just for the snow. I find it relaxing...maybe it's because when the snow falls in the PNW things slow down. Maybe it's because in the cold and the hush I can truly hear myself think...often I have heard God whisper to my heart when I was out in the cold.

I've missed that this year with the snow...with a little one not yet walking, and the countdown to ankle surgery for me, I've avoided walking in the snow...I've stayed on the sidelines...and I've missed it. But that won't stop me from capturing what I can on film (well pixels anyway) So please, if you are around the snow, enjoy it! ESP if you are in the PNW, go, take a walk, frolic in it like school children. Stand and listen to the shhhh of the snow in the trees and the muffled sounds and just enjoy it. It won't last long...much like sleeping children...or shoot children being babies, toddlers or children, like the snow, they fade to the next season so fast. Enjoy them, and the snow when you can. For now, I offer my wanderings into the snow (yard) :)

Trying to capture the flakes

In the sunrise...

Our street after a day of snow...

As the snow begins.....

I Heart Faces Weekly Challenge: Silly Holiday Photos

2012-01-02T11:12:00.000-08:00

I just love the utter abandon with which babies laugh. They are always SO excited to express their joy that it often takes over their entire little bodies... this is one of those shots where I can't remember what she was laughing at..I think her brother was doing something to my right that made her laugh. Doesn't matter...I ended up capturing a perfect shot of her smiling..even if it wasn't at me.

Take a look at the other Silly Holiday antics over at I Heart Faces!

I Heart Faces Weekly Challenge: FEET!

2011-12-04T20:48:00.001-08:00

Nothing is as sweet as baby toes...as every mother knows. Goodness knows we count those toes, kiss them and tickle those feet enough....before too long they pitter patter but when they are young...they are just too cute.

Head on over and check out all the other little feet at I Heart Faces!

Paper Mamma Challenge: October Favorite

2011-11-09T08:48:00.000-08:00

So, over on The Paper Mamma, she's having a contest...it has to include your kid(s) and this month it has to be about Halloween type things....

Well, we took the kiddos to the pumpkin patch, and while Allan and Liam meandered their way through through the corn maze I took pictures of Kayleigh with the pumpkins....I think she liked them, but maybe I'm biased, you be the judge...

Check out some other fantastically cute kiddos over at The Paper Mamma's blog...

I Heart Faces Weekly Challege: Black

2011-11-07T07:35:00.000-08:00

This week the focus is on black...I have MANY silhouetted shots of my kiddos but this has got to be one of my favorites. I love the cheeky look my son is making that you can just barely see as he's hiding in the shadows on a beautiful sunny day.

Make sure to check out all the other wonderful "black" shots at I Heart Faces!

She's On the move!

2011-10-25T13:58:00.000-07:00

So, in keeping with the "Let Them Be Little" idea...It's amazing to me how fast Kayleigh's growing up. I regret SOO SOO SOO much not having the tools I have now with her when Liam was little. Now he rarely wants to be in a photo, and tells me daily that he "quits" when I pull out my camera. Or else he's photo bombing by jumping in with a goofy face in front of his sister...

But the last couple days have been big big days...the Bug has really started to get crawling down and is now scooting around the living room at will instead of scooting herself backwards under the couch and getting stuck. So today, I decided to capture her just being the bug...

Finally, She decided to look at me and smile....

Of course, she found the fact that I was lying on the floor extremely funny...

She wanted my camera strap...so decided to investigate...

Here she comes......

Oh, wait, whats THAT?

I'll go get that instead.....

Just had to crop in close...

All that crawling makes for a tired Bug Bug...

After a long day of go go go, this is what we get....is there ANYTHING more peaceful than a sleeping baby?

I Heart Faces Weekly Challege: Let Them Be Little

2011-10-24T06:08:00.000-07:00

This is Kayleigh. Otherwise known as "Kayleigh Bug", "The Bug", "Missy Bug", "Bug Bug" and other variations on "Bug". She is now 7 months old. Yesterday, she said Ma Ma clear as day for the first time. The day before she crawled across the living room. I love to watch this stage of infancy, everything is new, they are discovering their bodies and how to move them. They are learning language and relationships. It's the age of firsts.

What I DON'T like, is watching it go by so fast with my own kids. My son, is a 16 year old in a 6 year olds body (back seat driving and all), and it seems like yesterday I brought him home from the hospital. This little thing, she's my baby, I'm going to miss holding my sleeping baby. Her sweet snuffle of baby snoring in my ear as I try not to wake her as I lay her down. I'll miss the complete joy she gets on her face when I simply say "Bug bUUUUUUg" in a silly way to her as I come into the room to get her up from a nap. I'm going to miss her wee cute noises in the background of my day. Pretty soon the word NO will come into her world. I'll be chasing a toddler instead of cuddling my baby.

There are TONS of other cute little ones over at I Heart Faces...Check them out!

OKTOBERFEST!

2011-10-23T10:41:00.000-07:00

I grew up going to Leavenworth every year around this time. We had a family reunion every year. All the extended family would meet to celebrate birthdays all at once. (There were like 6 or 7 right around late Sept. early October)

Leavenworth is this little town, nestled in the Cascade Mountain range that has a Bavarian theme. ALL the stores..even the Starbucks, the McDonalds and the Subway are in "Bavarian" style buildings. It's quite quaint. Now, if you have young children, it's a good destination for winter time, the main street of town has a large hill that beckons even the most fuddy duddy old guy to sled down it. It's beautiful all lit up in the snow for Christmas. And in the fall, for Oktoberfest, it's a brilliant display of fall colors everywhere. It's also very busy. And if you have issues with people drinking around you I'd advise not going there during the HEIGHT of the Oktoberfest festival.

Allan has swapped over to a Canon 30D camera. (I'm just a SMIDGE green) He's also gotten a nifty fifty to play with. This was our first real outing with the new camera.

We ate at Uncle Uli's (great little place BTW) where Allan had the Bratwurst Burger...it basically replaces ground beef for ground bratwurst...and he said it was the best burger he's EVER had. It was also very kid friendly, long benches outside seating, but under a balcony so you stay dry on a rainy day.

Allan and Liam passed the wait time (it was Saturday of a festival day and VERY busy) by playing thumb war and rock-paper-scissors, which Allan kept cheating with by adding in, Fire and Rain...a la Joey from "Friends."

I did say it's beautiful. The lower right picture on this collage is from a spot where about 15 years ago was destroyed by a forest fire. The fire was on either side of the 2 lane highway into Leavenworth, and before it was over the fire threatened the town itself. The beauty of the vibrant colors through the scorched land is breathtaking, believe me when I say the photo doesn't do it justice. It's amazing how much it's come in just the last few years much less the last 15!

For a week, we had a dog, and he joined us on this outing. He was a sweet little thing. A mix of Cairn Terrier and Dachshund. But, alas, both Allan and I were terribly allergic. Here you see again the recovery of the forest fire, and the Willkommen banners in the wee town.

And NO post would be complete without kiddo collages...I gotta say, I may be biased but she's just too cute. Also, Allan upstaged me this time around with pictures of The Bug. All but two of these are Allan's, my favorite included, which is the top left.

And of course, there's Liam. Who really doesn't like having his photo taken anymore :( But we still manage to get a few here and there.

Hurricane Ridge

2011-10-02T12:51:00.000-07:00

So finally...new post! YAy...

A couple weeks ago we headed over to the peninsula yet again....We tend to find a lot of fun stuff to do over there. This time we decided to do a impromptu camping trip...if you can call renting a KOA cabin for a night camping.

Our PLAN, was to get going DIRECTLY after Liam got out of school at 2:30. After all, a 3o minute ferry ride and an hour or so in the car and we should be able to be at the campground and hang out for a while, build a fire, make some smores etc. HOWEVER, one thing on top of another, and we ended up not getting to the cabin until 9:30. The next morning, we went to a little diner in Sequim...and then coffee of course (we are Seattleites, born and converted after all). And off we headed to Port Angeles, and then up and into the mountains.

I haven't been to Hurricane Ridge for around 15 years, and things haven't changed much. Due to extreme heat, and my issues with my ankle we thought to do the 6 mile walk to the tiiiiiiiippy tippy top of the mountain. But ultimately we decided to do the smaller set of trails...to keep it fun and easy and be able to take our time rather than have to RUSH through 6 miles.

Turns out our choice was a good one. Like a previous walk (that I will eventually add as well) that took us into the upper altitudes, after a little bit, Kayleigh just lost it. Between teething and that we're at the HOLD me ALL DAY stage, she won't sleep in her buggy. But we managed to get a number of great photos to commemorate our crazy weekend.

Notice the picture here with the white in the background. Due to the area having an extra 10ft of snow this last year, and a cool summer there was snow over the trail and along the side of the mountain as well. (Of course, I didn't snap a picture of Allan pushing the buggy over a large pile of snow!)

Keep an eye out...coming up is also, the Iron Goat Trail. Not to mention a number of just fun pictures of the kiddos etc to come.

I Heart Faces - A Touch of Sunlight

2011-09-18T20:51:00.000-07:00

So this weeks challenge is A Touch of Sunlight. I just so happen to have captured this shot while taking pictures of Kayleigh for her 6 month shoot.

Make sure to head on over to I Heart Faces.com to check out all the other touches of sun!

Back to School!

2011-09-18T13:01:00.000-07:00

So, we've been busy in the McGregor household. Kayleigh's beginning to get mobile..(she's mastered the backwards scoot)...Allan's been working crazy hours (70+ a week for a couple weeks there) and then of course, BACK TO SCHOOL. My Little boy has become a big boy. Headed off to 1st grade. Here's a little collage to commemorate his 1st day.

Apparently, a summer away from each other doesn't dampen childhood crushes...

We have been out on a number of outings in the last few weeks. I will be editing and telling you all about them soon!