Onion Obsession!

A while back we harvested the biggest crop in our garden...onions!
Donald grew enough onions last year that I only went to the store twice for onions before our crop this year was ready!
That's a lot of onions and this years harvest was even bigger!!

Now we are all very proud of Donald's garden.
We pick the fruits of his labor, but really...it is his labor and he does a great job!
But no one is more proud of his onion crop than him!
So, when harvest time comes...many pictures are taken.
Some of these pictures are with, as he calls them, the Onion Queens.
It's their job to showcase the onions with pride and glory!

Sometimes an Onion King is allowed to present the onions!

But usually he's off doing other important things...

Pretty soon I said, "Hey, that's enough pictures of onions I think".
But I guess I was wrong...
I got called out later to take some very unusual onion shots!
Very.
Unusual.

But, when you are proud of your work, you showcase it right?
So without further ado - here is the masterpiece I call "Onion Obsession"!

Onion rings anyone?

Dear Old Golden Rule Days!

They are here again!

This year I have a fourth grader...

A sixth grader...

And an 8th grader!

Do you notice something different about this picture?

Ivan is finally getting to wear something other than blue and white!

When you're in middle school, you change to khaki bottoms and either navy, white, green or light blue shirts.

He told me this morning that he is very excited to be out of "uniforms"...now he wears "dress code".

I'm going to just let him believe that its a huge difference...

Another Ivan funny of the morning...
He came out of his bedroom after getting dressed and shouted, "I don't even know who I am!!"
He felt so different.

Partly because of the uniform and partly because of his back-to-school haircut on Sunday.

Before...

And after...

That kid can grow a lot of hair in three months!
And while his summer locks are great, the short hair sure makes those blue eyes POP!

Jenelle was excited about her Converse shoes this year.

And they are fun!

They came with black laces but we hunted down sparkly silver and I think they look much better!!

Hannah's favorite 'back-to-school' item this year was probably her backpack.
I was surprised by her choice - its not like anything else she has - but I LOVE what she ended up with!

Each year the kids do a "crazy" picture after I take their official first day of school pictures...
So, I'm certain they will appreciate my sharing this with the world...

Ivan has just figured out how to make himself look really nuts with his new short hair.
Jenelle is doing a favorite pose...not quite sure what she calls it.
And Hannah's doing "duck lips" - thankfully she's mocking them - not quite sure why so many girls think this is a good look!

And so their day began!
It was only a half day...I was back to pick them up at 11:30.
Tomorrow starts their full days.

Oh my...what will I do with myself!

:)

I'll figure something out!

Portland and Home

The next day we spent at OMSI.
Oregon Museum of Science and Industry.

We spent a lot of time with the hands-on exhibits and then took in both an IMAX movie and a Planetarium show.

Very cool day, but I did not bring my camera so you'll just have to trust me.

The next morning we left Portland and headed home on the Columbia River Gorge.
Most of you who have visited us have been treated to this beautiful scenery.
Its definitely worth a visit every couple of years.

We took a hike to Fairy Creek and on the way there were so many beautiful stone moss-covered walls on the switchbacks.

 A lookout point along the way...

It was a cloudy day on the river, but still a lovely view.
I love pictures of the highway to give perspective to how high up we were.

Really?
How beautiful can you get?!?

Exhaustion was setting in, so we headed to The Dalles and ate at Burgerville (Tillamook cheeseburgers!  Yum!).

We crossed over the river to Washington and made our last stop at Maryhill Museum.

Lots of interesting sculptures and art...

 This throne art caused us to get into serious king & queen modes.

Very...

 ...very silly!

And then home!
Always good to get home!

To the Coast

So after our day at the zoo, we headed back to Boeing and picked up Donald.
We had dinner at Ivar's in Mukilteo and it was delicious!
Fresh seafood!!

We spent the night in Seattle and the next day we took a drive south and headed down towards the Oregon coast.

Our first stop was at Fort Columbia State Park in Washington - just before we crossed the river into Oregon.

Donald and I came here years ago...before we were married.
It was on that trip, in fact, that we both decided that we would want to live in the Northwest if we ever had the chance.

You can read more about Fort Columbia here if you are interested.

This picture of Ivan and Jenelle reminded Donald and me of my dad many years ago when he was in the US Navy.

Except I'm pretty certain the gun he was sitting on could actually do some damage!

Isn't he so handsome!?

Right afterward, we crossed the bridge to Astoria, OR to see the Astoria Column.
This trip makes twice for the kids, five times for Donald I think, and four times for me.
Its a neat place but...
...and I'm only speaking for myself here,
but just like the zoo - I think I'm done.

I don't normally hold my kids like this anymore.

They're a little big.

But we were trying to re-enact a pictures from our trip in the summer of 2006.

Close, but not exactly.

Wow!

Six years makes quite a difference!

Next we stopped at a spot on the coast called Arcadia Beach and hung out there for a little while.

The beach was summertime-crowded and the tide was out and the day was cloudy, so we didn't stay too long.

But we will return...very soon!!

Our last stop of the day, before we headed to our hotel in Portland, was Tillamook.
This is a favorite stop!
I have been here many times as well, but am always keen to return.
Unfortunately, so is the rest of the world!
In the years that Donald and I have been coming to visit, their cheese, ice cream and general reputation have been gaining popularity.
The place was packed to the walls and we could just manage to get upstairs, take a quick peek at things, get an ice cream cone and get the heck out of there!

The kiddos have been here before as well, so I leave you with another picture from the summer of 2006.

Next - the last leg of our journey!