All Things E

Evidently, it is going to be more challenging to post multiple times a week than I imagined! Encouragement... I need lots of it. ;)

E Places/Activities in the Pac NW:
* Eagle Landing Mini-Golf (Happy Valley)
* Eastbank Esplanade (1200 ft. of floating walkway along the Willamette River downtown)
* Edgefield McMenamin's (Troutdale) - this is one of their most popular locations
* elephant ears (yummy treats you can find at Portland Saturday Market)
* Elephants in the Park (our family's favorite lunch spot in downtown Portland)
* Elowah & Upper McCord Creek Falls (along the Gorge)
* Enchanted Forest Theme Park (south of Salem)
* Enchantment Lakes Trail (central Cascades)
* Engleman Park (Wilsonville)
* Esther Short Park (Vancouver)
* Experience Music Project (or EMP... in Seattle)
* Explore! (there are endless places to do this...)
* Evergreen Wings & Waves Waterpark (McMinnville, OR)
* other E restaurants in the Portland area

More E things we'll be doing:
* Excitedly entertain visitors from our home state of IA!

The original E is for... list includes places to go, things to do, foods to eat, Bible verses, and photos from my oldest's photography summer. Photos of my daughter's E photography can be found here.

As always, please feel free to share my blog with friends and be sure to read the beginning of my ABC summer story. Fabulous and fun F ideas are forthcoming!

All Things D

Determined to keep posting at least two letters per week! Diligently plugging away... ;)

D Places/Activities in the Pac NW:
* The Dalles (home of the Columbia Gorge Discovery Center & Museum)
* Dave & Buster's (family-friendly restaurant/arcade)
* David Douglas Park (Vancouver)
* Deception Pass State Park (Oak Harbor, WA - north of Seattle)
* Der Rheinlander (a popular German restaurant)
* Devil's Punch Bowl State Natural Area (Otter Rock, OR, along the coast)
* Dog Mountain (beautiful wildflowers along this hike; great for older kids)
* Dorothy Fox Park (Camas - adjacent to Fox Elementary)
* downtown (Portland, Camas, Vancouver, Seattle... whatever downtown you wish to visit)
* Dry Falls (near Coulee City, WA... was once 5 times the width of Niagara!)
* Duggan Falls (much closer - and wetter - falls to play in along the Washougal River)
* other D restaurants in the Portland area

More D things we'll be doing:
* Donate stuff to Open House Ministries (whatever is left from our garage sale... )
*Draw in the dark

The original D is for... list includes places to go, things to do, foods to eat, Bible verses, and photos from my oldest's photography summer. Photos of my daughter's D photography can be found here.

As always, please feel free to share my blog with friends and be sure to read the beginning of my ABC summer story. Expect excited E ideas soon!

All Things C

Certain that no other moms I know are sitting on their rears watching "American Ninja Warrior," I decided I'd better at least blog another letter while I watch and listen to crazy commentator Matt Iseman try to make his voice even deeper and impressive...

C Places/Activities in the Pac NW:
* Camille Park (Beaverton)
* camping in any of the hundreds of options around here (this is something my husband and children enjoy... not so much my idea of fun)
* canoeing (we did purchase a canoe last year, but the last time I went was long before children entered my life... I will attempt to pull on my big-girl panties this summer and go once)
* Cannon Beach, OR (still my favorite of those I've seen so far)
* Cape Disappointment (southwest WA where the Columbia River empties into the Pacific Ocean)
* Cape Horn (our family just spent our Memorial Day morning climbing the first leg of this - beautiful view of the Gorge!)
* Cascade Lakes Highway (90 mile scenic route from here to the Bend, OR, area)
* Catherine Creek (near Hood River; best in June)
* Cedar Flats (great for younger children; just east of Mt. Saint Helens)
* Central Library in downtown Portland
* Children's Museum (Portland)
* Children's Playground at Washington Park
* Chuckanut Drive (near Seattle)
* Columbia Hills State Park (north of The Dalles on the WA side)
* Columbia Park (Portland)
* Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area
* cookouts (we enjoy them in our backyard, but they're great in parks, too!)
* Cooper Mountain Nature Park (SW Beaverton, OR)
* Council Crest Park (SW Portland)
* Cove Palisades State Park (Madras, OR)
* Crater Lake National Park, OR
* Crown Park (Camas)
* Crystal Springs Rhododendron Garden, Portland
* C restaurants in the Portland area

More C things we'll be doing:
* Cheer up someone who needs a boost (derived from Bucket Filling from A to Z)
* Crayon art (if we get this accomplished as planned, I'll post photos)

The original C is for... list includes places to go, things to do, foods to eat, Bible verses, and photos from my oldest's photography summer. Photos of my daughter's ABC photography can be found here.

As always, please feel free to share my blog and be sure to read the beginning of my ABC summer story here. Don't worry, D will be here soon!

All Things B

Believe me when I say that I have every intention of blogging more than once a week to get this ABC summer stuff going! The days just fly by and get away from me...

B Places/Activities in the Pac NW:
* Bagley Community Park (Vancouver)
* Hellen Baller Elementary playground (Camas)

* Battle Ground Lake State Park

* Beacon Rock (even our youngest has climbed this on more than one occasion)

* beaches - take your pick! Or...

* Beaches Restaurant
* Beaver Marsh Open Space (Vancouver)

* Belknapp Hot Springs (McKenzie, OR)

* Bend, OR
* Benton Park (Camas)

* Best of Portland walking tour (our whole family did this with my dad last summer... it was a lot of walking, but we all found it to be fun and informative)

* Big Four Ice Caves (North Cascades area)

* Big Obsidian Flow (Newberry National Volcanic Monument near Bend, OR)

* Big Stump (Forest Park in Portland)
* Blue Lake Regional Park (Fairview, OR)

* Bonneville Lock & Dam

* Bridal Veil Falls (Central Cascades area)

* bridges - Portland is known for them (the Broadway Bridge is in many films)

* Bridge of the Gods (cross to OR, walk around the island, and play in the park)

* Bull of the Woods (hiking along the Clackamas River - best in August/September)

* Burgerville 

* Burnside Skatepark under the Burnside Bridge downtown (let your kids watch the crazy boarders)

* (other) B restaurants around Portland 

More B things we'll be doing:

* Be a bucket-filler for your siblings! (borrowed from Bucket Filling from A to Z)

* Bendy Buddies (pipe cleaner people)

The original B is for... list includes places to go, things to do, foods to eat, Bible verses, and photos from my oldest's ABC photography summer. Photos of my daughter's ABC photography can be found here. 

As always, please feel free to share my blog and be sure to read the beginning of my ABC summer story here. Letter C soon to come!

All Things A

I am finally getting a letter accomplished! Here is the plan: for each letter of the alphabet, I will be posting a list of things to do or places to see here in the Pacific NW. I'll also be linking this post to my original list of ideas that begin with this letter. While I'm at it, I'll probably link you to the photos we've taken for this letter, too. Might as well include it all! :)

A Places/Activities in the Pac NW:
* aerial tram in downtown Portland (take the 4 minute ride up to OHSU)
* Airplay Cafe's Open Tike events (where children get the mics)
* Andy & Bax Sporting Goods (military surplus and gear for camping/backpacking... sounds boring, but they supposedly have some of the oddest products in town)
* Ape Caves (hike through lava tunnels - Take your lanterns and dress warmly... It's cold and wet down there!)
* apple tree farm tour... I don't have a specific farm in mind, but my kids thought it would be fun
*Art ala Carte (cute little "all you can make" art studios set up in old salad bars in Vancouver and Portland)
* art museums (we'll likely hit the Portland Art Museum, which was founded in 1892 and is the seventh oldest in the US)
* Ashland, OR, for the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, which has performances February - November
* Astoria, OR (for the awesome Astoria-Megler bridge or just to check out the quaint town where part of The Goonies was filmed)
* Audubon Society of Portland (150 acres of nature preserve with 4 miles worth of hiking, bird-watching, and an interpretive center)

I love that the Dining Channel has an alphabetical listing of area restaurants on their website. Here are the A restaurants around Portland.

In addition to fun activities the kids and I do this summer, I am attempting to come up with a way to help us all think more of others... Last year I picked up the children's book, Bucket Filling from A to Z, by Carol McCloud and Caryn Butzke, since I am naturally drawn to ABC items. Some of the ideas in it are great, others are so-so. The A plan is to: Ask someone if you can help him/her with something.

My original A is for... ideas include places to go, things to do, foods to eat, Bible verses, and photos from my oldest's ABC photography summer. Photos of my daughter's ABC photography can be seen here. If you think of great ideas that I have ignored, please let me know!

As always, please feel free to share my blog and be sure to read the beginning of my ABC summer story here.

ABC Summer 2015...

It's getting so close! Granted, it would be much closer if we were still in IA, and it would be one day closer if our teachers weren't holding a walkout on Wednesday (only to be made up at the end of the school year)... Nevertheless, I am deep in the planning process of our big summer.

I was bothered by the fact that we'll be gone for three weeks straight, thus missing out on entire letter opportunities here in the great northwest. So, I decided to really mix things up this year. No, that does not mean I'll be doing letters out of order. If you have read my post The Joys of Being Anal, you are well aware that I like things in order. The alphabet, therefore, must remain in alphabetical order. Go figure.

But, there are so many things to do around here for nearly every letter, that I didn't want to miss out on celebrating any letters right here. Here's my grand idea... We are going to go through the entire alphabet not once, not twice, but THREE times this summer! Woo-hoo!

To make it all come out right on the calendar, we are going to double up on the letters that begin our first names. The first time through the alphabet there will be two days of B, E, L, N, and R. The second and third times through we'll just double up on the kids' initials (B,E, & L). We will also be pairing Q with R and X, Y, and Z together those subsequent times. My children were excited to hear that it will be different this summer. Should keep things interesting!

Beginning later this week, I will be posting my ideas for each letter. I'll also be sure to share the links to my other posts on those letters. Can't wait to get started!

First time on my blog? Check out my original post here. Happy Mother's Day!

My (One and Only) PTA Project

How you do get to know people when you move to a completely different part of the country? Well, I figured that joining the PTA at the elementary my children attend would be the way to go. I did, in fact, meet many great parents this way. Frankly, I mainly joined because I wanted to volunteer for the school's Scholastic Book Fair, and the PTA required me to be a member. Then, at my first general membership meeting, I offered to help with this year's silent auction.

I've previously helped with two good sized silent auctions for our MOPS group back in IA. I immediately had a vision in my head of how I wanted this auction to look, mostly based on the school colors of red and black. Since a friend of mine (shout out to Heather Southammavong, now living in Jacksonville, FL!) had made centerpieces for our last MOPS auction using wine bottles painted with chalkboard paint, which she then decorated with beautiful different fonts saying, "Thank You," I decided to steal her general idea.

At our first silent auction meeting, I gathered that each teacher had been asked to donate some sort of class room item. Some were special outings that students could go on with their teacher. But the items that have been most popular in the past were handcrafted items such as platters with all of the students' thumbprints or a rocking chair hand painted by the students. I jumped on this and threw out my (possibly crazy) idea of having each class sign a bottle that could then be auctioned.

Honestly, as soon as the words were out of my mouth, I was apprehensive. Was I nuts? There are 24 classes in this elementary. I'd have to contact all of the teachers and figure out when it would be most convenient for me to disrupt their class to have all of their students sign a bottle. I would have to somehow attempt to not let students smear or smudge the names their classmates had already written on the bottle. It all looked so simple in my head. Not so simple in reality... Have I mentioned that I am creative, but not so much crafty? (I have, actually... "Creative vs. Crafty")

A part of me hoped that the school principal would veto the project. Instead, he happily took the idea to a staff meeting where he claimed "everyone was on board with it." Sigh. I started begging neighbors for wine bottles, soaking them in soapy water to remove the labels, and painting with the chalkboard paint. I sketched out designs for each grade and drew them on the bottles. Then I began by asking my children's home room teachers if I could use their classes as guinea pigs. Those classes went pretty well. I was in and out in under 10 minutes with no major smearing of the chalk pen. But, those were 2nd and 5th grade classes. I dreaded watching kindergarten and 1st graders try to write small enough to allow for all signatures to fit.

This was where I gratefully took up two other PTA members' offers to help. I "let" my neighbor Lana handle the kindergarten rooms (her oldest is in K, so she was willing to do so), and my friend Wendy took on the 1st grade rooms. It was a huge weight off my shoulders, and I was happy to take care of the other four grades. Of course, at least one student was absent from all but a single class when the bottles were signed. I gave the teachers the option of having me come back in a second time to catch the missing names or to have me write them on myself. They were split about 50/50. Last Monday all bottles were completely signed!

All that was left was for me to clean up the smudges, tie on ribbons, spray paint some twigs, and tuck the bottles in the boxes that will transport them to the auction in a couple weeks. I finished it all up this afternoon! I'll be adding a single white daisy to each bottle the day of the auction, and praying that parents are willing to bid a little on them. I think they'll be pretty additions to our tables. I'll add pics from the auction night on here later, but here are the bottles today:

Not sure if I've ever been so relieved to have a project near completion. Can't wait for May 1st!

P.S. Now I should have a little more time to start working on our ABC summer plans. As always, *For those new to my blog, check out the beginnings of ABC Summers here.* :)