Last Day of School Campout

On the last day of school this year, Peter took the boys camping at nearby Fishhook campground.  They had a blast playing by the river, watching a beautiful sunset, and roasting hot dogs and making s'mores.  The next day they visited the dam, where they got to watch the salmon migrating up the river.  We're making this a tradition every year!

Tyler Playschool Graduation

Tyler had a great year of playschool with his friends Kye, Emry & Natalie.  They were such a sweet little group and got along so well. 

We had to take the picture in front of the fence, just as we did on Parker's last day of playschool with his buddies.  We are blessed to have great friends here.

Silverwood

Near the end of May, I kidnapped Peter and the boys for a weekend trip up to Coeur d'Alene, Idaho and Silverwood Amusement Park.  It was such an unexpectedly fun time for us and much needed.  Coeur d'Alene was BEAUTIFUL.  Such a fun little town to explore and stay in.  We LOVED (especially the boys!)Silverwood and hope to get back next May!

Time Out

In May, I got away with some friends to Spokane for a "Time Out for Women" conference.  This was my third time attending.  It was wonderful, as usual, and I had a fantastic time exploring Spokane and being with great friends!

Parker's Birthday

Also in April, we celebrated Parker's 7th birthday.  On his actual birthday, he wanted to eat at a Mexican restaurant.  I warned him about the sombrero thing, but he was all about it.  He would do anything for the free sundae!   

T-bone, however, was bummed to be left out of the sombrero club.

Presents!

About a week before Parker's actual birthday and a couple of weeks after Tyler's, we headed to Portland so the boys could receive Birthday Kings' Treatment from Grandpa & Grandma Stewart.  They were served all of their favorite foods and were treated to a trip to OMSI, the science center in Portland.  What a fun trip!

In early May, we celebrated again with our favorite Washington cousins, Aunt Mollie, and Grandma & Grandpa Brown. 

Grandma's birthday is in May, so we did a combined cake for them.  Aunt Mollie got a pinata!  It was a great time, as family always is, and celebrating our Parker boy that we love so much.

Parker and Baseball

This was Parker's first year of Coach Pitch Baseball and he did awesome!  We had so much fun watching him get his coordination and were so impressed by how fast he caught on.  He had practice once a week and games once a week.  His coaches were Coach Nate & Amy, his best friend Connor's dad & mom and good family friends of ours.  Coach Nate is so awesome.  At one of his games, Grandma & Grandpa Brown, Aunt Mollie & cousins came to watch him play.  Of course, the nerves hit Parker and instead of slamming the ball out of the park like usual, he kept striking.  The rules at the Y are that you keep swinging til you hit, but those darn nerves wouldn't let him do it.  Poor little guy was getting so frustrated and nearly in tears.  Coach Nate knew he could hit that ball, so he pulled him over right after the game and pitched to him (outside of the pressure of the game) until he hit it TONS of times in front of his family.  You did a great job, buddy, and we are so proud of you!

Spring Break

We had ourselves a little "staycation" for spring break and had fun hitting library storytime, the mall and the park.  There's no place like home!

The Flight of the Paper Airplane

In April, Parker participated in his first Science Fair at school.  Our boy loves science.  His project was entitled "The Flight of the Paper Airplane."  He, with the help of Daddy, engineered several paper airplane designs and hypothesized about which one would fly the farthest, and which would fly the longest.  It was a very fun experiment to try and despite the threatening stormy weather, he came up with some results and presented shortly thereafter at the Fair.  He made a good impression on his judges and was very proud of himself! 

We celebrated afterwards with root beer floats from A & W!

oh my, oh my...

I fear that I have SERIOUSLY neglected this blog!  More importantly, I have seriously neglected keeping a history of our family's happenings.  Time for a little catch up....

Freezer Cucumber Slices

If you are finding yourself with an excess of cucumbers from your garden, this is the way to store them.  You wouldn't think that by freezing them they would retain their crispness, but with the brine solution they really do!  We have enjoyed them all year long in salads, or even right out of the container!

1. Wash 6 to 8 firm, slender cucumbers.  Slice thinly with a food processor (or by hand).  Peel and thinly slice 1 medium-size onion (we like red onion).  Measure out 2 quarts of sliced cucumbers.  Mix with onions and 2 tablespoons of salt in a large bowl.
2. Let stand for 2 hours.
3. Drain vegetables well.  Rinse thoroughly with cold water.  Drain well again.  Return drained veggies to the rinsed bowl.  Add 2/3 (that's two-thirds) cup each of oil, vinegar, and sugar.  Add 1 teaspoon celery seed.  Mix well.
4. Cover and refrigerate overnight.
5. Pack in freezer jars or rigid freezer containers.  Leave 1-inch headspace.  Freeze.

**Cucumber slices can be defrosted and eaten after 1 week.  Store defrosted cucumbers in refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.  Enjoy!