Tis' the Season!

We've really been getting into the holiday spirit lately. Here are some fun pics and a hilarious little video clip!


Portland's traditional Christmas Ships! Our first time, and we went to a potluck on a floating house right on the Columbia River!

 

 

 

Family Advent service at Grace. The moral of the children's sermon: give to those in need. We've been giving to those in need this season in many ways.

It's hard to imagine that Makenna wasn't here last year, thankfully my mom made an extra stocking for her, now we just need to stitch her name!

 

Kieran thinks that Santa only comes to the Portland Water Bureau's annual holiday pancake breakfast...he's never seen one in a mall! This year he had our director placing bets on whether he would come back for another sausage...he ate 5 big sausages, two pancakes, and eggs!

Kevin: "Oh my God that's hilarious!"

Civil War - Go Ducks!

If you live in Oregon, you would have to live under a rock to have not noticed the Civil War frenzy. One of the longest college football rivalries, the annual match up between Oregon State University and University of Oregon is not to be missed. The game lived up to the hype, and the Ducks were victorious.

Previous season game, Kevin couldn't help but get her the cheer uniform.


Makenna hasn't learned how to sign touchdown like Kieran used to at her age, but she sure has the cheer squeel down! Now she's got until the Rose Bowl to learn her touchdown.

Giving Thanks!

Two-thousand and nine has been an exceptional year for our family. I know that this is not the case for many others who have lost their livelihoods and homes, or for those who live in unimaginable poverty around the globe. This is why it is so important to give our thanks. This week Kieran has been very ill with the flu, and today is his first day out of the house in six days! So, I'm going to take this moment of rare silence to reflect on all that we are thankful for:

- Healthy family, and health care when we need it
- Friends and family who love us and keep our life interesting and fun
- Abundance of good food...almost too much a good thing yesterday
- Meaningful careers where we can make a difference in our community
- Excellent place for our children to be cared for and learn, plus we can visit
- Kiki, who teaches us about our humanity and is always ready for lovin'
- A loving marriage and friendship, this week marks 10 years since our first date!
- Warm home with things that comfort us
- Vibrant garden to grow food and flowers, connect us to nature, and play
- Beautiful place to live and grow, mountains and beaches, rivers and trees
- Connection to the web of life...via the living spirit or the Internet ;-)

Here are a few photos from our Thanksgiving 2009! We hope you are enjoying this relaxing holiday weekend.

Niels og Naira Besoege

We had a very hyggeligt (cozy) visit recently with my host brother Niels, and his Swedish girlfriend Naira. It was wonderful to reconnect after so many years...it's been over ten years since we've seen each other, and it seems like a lifetime since I lived with his family in a quaint Danish countryside home. As I expected though, we reconnected immediately, and it was so nice to get to know Naira.


Naira with Kieran and Makenna

Lots of tickling!
And nibling too!

Kieran and Makenna wearing their favorite Danish clothes from Smaafolk (Tusind Tak Susanne!)

To cap off a fantastic visit, Kieran showed us his dance moves on their last night here. I know I'm biased, but I have to say that his dance moves have gotten more impressive since his class began two months ago :-)


I ran out of space on my camera, so this is the finale:

It was only too bad that I totally ran out of space for Kieran's last blues song, he was squinting his eyes and sagging his shoulders like a natural. He was so serious that it was hard to not laugh. Niels and Naira were duelly impressed... ;-) Once he was all tuckered out, Niels read to Kieran from some of the new Swedish books they brought him. We also got some treats for our upcoming julfest...Tusind Tak!!

Det var en rigtig hyggeligt besoege!

Halloween x2

It felt like Halloween lasted for days this year, and in fact on Monday, November 2nd, Kieran woke up and asked "Is it still Halloween Mommy?" Halloween with two kids is certainly more fun than one. Even though a week has now past, I've finally got a moment to post my favorite photos and video clips. Part of the reason Halloween seemed to last for ages is because we celebrated on Friday at "school." Makenna was a fairy and Kieran a superhero (after wanting to be a red door, ghost, and scarecrow.)





Kieran has his dance classes on Fridays; here's a cute clip of him and his friends dancing as ghosts...Kieran is the one saying ooooh the loudest the whole time. Parents were asked to participate as much as possible, so since it was my day off, I spent the morning with the kids...in a purple wig...Kier doesn't know that it's me behind the camera :-)


The fun was just beginning though, as we carved our home grown jack-o-lanterns. The big one fell down both sets of steps as Kevin scolded Kiki for eating the pumpkin guts. Thankfully, I managed to carve a small design on the other side...we also still had a second small pumpkin left to carve, so Kieran wasn't quite as devastated.



The day was capped off when my host brother, Niels and his Swedish girlfriend began their visit. The power went out briefly (for the third time that day!) right before they arrived, so we had a very "hyggeligt" candlelit dinner of homemade tomato soup. Then we headed out to trick or treat around the neighborhood. It was fun to show them the neighborhood and catch up between houses. This year Kieran was able to make a 3 block route, and got enough lout that we are just finishing it up!

Fall evening w/ Friends

Following a productive weekend of getting our place back in order after a weekend away, lots of laundry, and working on a few house projects, we enjoyed a nice evening with our friends Hans and Ana, and their children Alan and Valentina.

Kieran and Alan have been fast friends for over two years as classmates at Pennisula Children's Center, yet since our "transfer" to CityKids we've extraordinarily busy. So, we hadn't seen each other in about two months, and with the girls being so young, they had sure grown in that time.

 

Hans & Valentina

 

Ana & Makenna

 

Hans, Kieran and Alan


Boys were all smiles and energy

D.C. visit

No, we didn't make it all the way to the nation's capital this weekend, but we did make a family trek to my home "town" of Days Creek (or as the locals call it, D.C.). Once I think back, as a little kid our house was white, and we loved to say that we lived in the White House in D.C.

Now, back to the original point of this post, sharing tidbits from our trip:

We enjoyed a nice relaxing fall weekend with my parents, or Grandma and Papa Roger as they are more often called these days. The unfortunate news of the weekend was that the annual Pumpkin Festival was canceled due to a big storm that was forecast, but the good news was that the storm blew in to the north and the weather was glorious. So we got in quite a few short walks, especially since we brought Kiki for his first trip to D.C. He loved the countryside, and made himself quickly at home there. Kieran and I collected acorns on one excursion, and the "guys" all headed to try to see the salmon spawning while the "girls" did a little shopping. Kevin also got a good dose of college football and a Penn State game and all the channels we don't have without cable. Makenna entertained herself by going after houseplants and watching us all chase after her. Like I said, a nice relaxing weekend for everyone.

It's all been pretty friendly so far, but the toy give-and-take has begun...Makenna was successful at stealing back her first dolly!

Reunited "at last", Kieran now starts asking about plans to visit/see Grandma before we've even parted. His past two trips to D.C. were sans parents, so this time around his was a little put off by the fact that Kevin and I were coming with him. He told us that only little kids were allowed to stay at their house!

It never fails to surprise people, but my Dad LOVES babies and they love him. Makenna kept grabbing his beard and squeal ling.

Kieran loved all the extra storytellers, and we were excited because on our drive home he started reading out loud to himself for the first time.

Makenna is getting ready for Halloween, and loved these monster glasses.




As a disclaimer, this video clip is not really very exciting. But it does show where Makenna is developmentally these days, standing lots and reaching for everything!

Thanks Mom and Dad for a nice visit "home"!

Showered with Love

This past weekend we hosted a co-ed baby shower for good friends of ours who are expecting their first child, who is affectionately dubbed "Sprout" until the true identity is revealed. We've enjoyed welcoming them to the world of parenthood, and if our friendship is any indication, Stacy and Geordie will surely be fun-loving, thoughtful, caring parents. We look forward to meeting you Sprout!


Everyone brought a favorite children's book to the party, and there were lots of favorites to be had. I managed to find two of my favorites used, On the Day you were Born and Oh, the Places you'll Go, plus a few board books.



Everyone had their share of ooohs and awwws.


Although she couldn't make it to the festivities, Stacy and Geordie's good friend Elizabeth made this amazing cake! It was deeeelicious...I seriously don't know if I've had much better. Thanks as well to my pre-party helper, Karen, and clean-up crew of Geordie's sis and Mom! It takes a village... :-)

RARE Friends

This past weekend we celebrated 15 years of the RARE program that Kevin served as an AmeriCorps through in 1998-99 PD (Pre-Darcy). RARE stands for Resource Assistance For Rural Environments and is organized by the University of Oregon as a service-learning opportunity statewide. Kevin served his year in Talent, Oregon where we were later married, just north of Ashland. It was a great chance for him to dive into the day-to-day life of small town planning after years of studying.

After finishing his Master's in Community and Regional Planning at the UO, he was lucky enough to land the job of his former manager at the City of Talent. So that's why after a brief year of living together in Portland we moved down to Southern Oregon for a few years. During Kevin's year as a RARE volunteer (participants get a meager stipend), he met some exceptional people who were equally dedicated to public service. Among them were Chris and Shareen, and when they moved down to Southern Oregon we became very close friends. We were together almost every weekend, and they were the type of friends you could call up on a moment's notice to take a hike or grab some food. Not really a short story, but that's the story...

Fast forward a few years, and we both have young kids...not quite able to run off on hikes anytime we like, but still enjoying a new pace of life. Chris and Shareen stayed at our place for the RARE celebration/reunion, and we enjoyed a night out on the town (while my cousin's daughter, Jessica, patiently babysat our three kids!) Then we got up early for a morning service event out in the Gorge at Cascade Locks. The guys painted while Shareen and I prepped for the lunch-time bbq and were entertained by our kids. It was great to see and meet other RARE friends, and it feels great to be part of such an organization.

Kevin and I both agree that we want to raise our kids to give back to the community, and to show them the tremendous positive impact our actions can have on a place, even small ones. I may not have served in RARE, but as a girl from rural Douglas County, I certainly see its need and put in my share of community service growing up. Individuals do make a difference. And RARE shows us that together we can impact communities and create life long friendships.

Green Means Go!

In honor of the new MAX Green line, today's post is all green...

I haven't written much about our work on this family blog, but that's obviously a big part of our life too. Kevin is coordinating a street fair today for the opening of the new light-rail station in Lents Town Center, the Urban Renewal Area that he is working hard to revitalize. Kieran and Kevin went out to Ramona Street last weekend in the pouring rain to clean up the street, and were on the local news for their volunteer efforts. So, when Kieran wakes up from his nap, we'll head out to celebrate the new train....which, needless to say, is a 3-year old's greatest fantasy!

Green also means go for our little girl these days...I just caught this pic of her gleefully pulling herself up:

Here's a video from the street fair itself...a fun time was had by all:

Back to "School"...Back to Work

Makenna and Kieran had their first day at CityKids, the childcare and preschool center in my building. While it will be a transition for us all, we definitely think that it will be best for the kids and our family. It was so nice being able to nurse Makenna on breaks today!

Kieran was super excited about starting at his new "school," and last night when he picked out his clothes, he told me "Mommy, I want to look like a really nice boy, not a mean one!" I wish I had a photo, because he did look pretty darn sweet. When I visited Kieran in the morning, he told me "Mom, go back to work!" I also overheard him telling an administrative staff person "My name's Kieran, nice to meet you!" Another teacher told me that at one point he her the babies out in the common area, and he told the class "That's my baby sister crying." In the evening, he didn't really want to leave the climbing wall and other kids bouncing balls, but going on the bus is still enticing enough to lure him away.

In addition to a new school, I'm back to a full-time schedule. I'm also switching to a flex schedule, so I'll be working an extra hour to get every other Friday off (we had been spending that time commuting before, so the kids are still in care the same amount of time.) It's still a long day though...up at 5:45, walk the dog, get dressed, breakfast, out the door by 7 to catch the bus, back home by 5:45, make dinner, eat, clean up, play for a little bit and then off the bath and bed...oh and prep for the next day. Needless to say, our full-time schedule will take a lot of stamina. Don't worry, we'll still have fun along the way (although, Kevin's home sick today, so that has forced me to go to plan B on some things...like schlepping all four bags, and making mac n' cheese and tomato soup instead of steak fajitas) But if we can flow with the change, we'll continue to learn and grow together from our everyday adventures.

She's crawling...

Makenna started crawling almost two weeks ago, and she's really moving now. Just give her a ball or toy to go after, and she's on her way...

Great Grandma and Papa Mackie's visit (slightly belated post)

Summer is cruising by, and it's already been a few weeks since my grandparents came to visit us, but I still want to share some photos and short stories:

Makenna was all eyes on her Great Grandma Mackie and Kieran loved talking with Great Papa Mackie non-stop. He also loved being read to, and thankfully they brought him a new favorite book about a little bear cub who was saved in a forest fire in Northern California last summer, entitled Saving Lil' Smokie. He was spoiled by us reading it to him about a dozen times a day! Kiki was well-loved too, as Grandma Mackie reminisced about the black lab my Dad had growing up.

Kevin and I also enjoyed the relaxing visit, just sharing each other's company and hanging out...finally a weekend home without projects or errands. :-) Grandma Mackie and I also bonded over a steam mop of all things...they wanted to buy us a belated house warming gift, and I have been wanting a new mop. She shared about her favorite cleaning weapon, The Shark, and after watching the video online, I was sold. It works really great, especially with all the new dog hair and slobber...just in time since, Makenna is crawling now...hope to post a video this weekend!

These smiles say everything! Thanks Grandma and Grandpa Mackie!

7th year married, best camping trip ever!

We just returned from a four day camping vacation to celebrate our 7 year wedding anniversary.

We are a big beach family, and our very favorite beach is Tillicum Beach. Long wide sandy beach that seems to go forever. It's a bit remote, but worth the effort. On this trip we lucked out by getting one of the best camp sites. We visited the Oregon Coast Aquarium and the Rogue Brewery on our way there, and then drove through Alsea on the way home (one of the most picturesque and windy roads we've ever taken). I've got a squirmy 7 month old who just woke up on my lap, so we'll see how long this post ends up being...Hard to pick my favorite photos:

Beach time fun.

Football season is almost here, and these boys are ready!

Relaxing and reading the paper together.

Kieran found a buddy to play snakes and catchers with...they were so cute together.

Explaining how the sun sets and rises is one of the best things about being parents.

PS And no, I didn't manage to write this in one sitting, turned out she was squirmy for a reason! Thankfully, she's snoozing on my lap now, much easier!

Dog Days of Summer

We have officially survived the summer heatwave of 2009!

With temps over a 100 degrees all week and no A/C, this heatwave will definitely be one for family lore...remember when we slept in basement and went to the mall just to cool off?! Remember when Kieran took baths outside and played bongo drums on the metal bowls?! Or when "Daddy" jumped in the kiddie pool naked (thankfully, our yard is rather private)?! For better and worse, it's been a memorable week...and, yes, yesterday I was at my wits end melting home with the kids and Kieran asking me for a Popsicle every ten minutes, which were in the process of freezing...not quite something a 3 year old has the patience for...and neither did I.

Yet, hot weather or not, summer has been non-stop for us and packed with fun activities. Our biggest news is rather large, a big black labrador named Kiki! We've been his family now for just over two weeks, although he will celebrate his fifth b-day come October. His previous owner could no longer walk him, with bad knees and arthritis, and thought he deserved a more active life. Well, I think he's found the right family. Kieran adores him (although he likes to play like Daddy and order him around too), and Makenna has laughed while petting him. Kevin has been diligently getting up early to take him on walks, and Kieran usually joins him in the evenings, which helps wear out everyone's energy. Kiki is very lovable and always wants to be right in the action. There is still a learning curve for us all, but so far he's fitting into our little family quite well.

PS Our laptop melted and hence no blog postings. We've ordered a new one, and should be posting more regularly again.

Public Transit City

We love Portland for many reasons, and a big one is our public transit. The other morning we walked to the MAX train, then jumped on the streetcar, lifted off in the Tram, then took the streetcar back to the Pearl to catch the bus back home. The only tough part was being a "Mommy Mule" for the last few blocks with Makenna strapped on my front and Kieran almost asleep riding piggy back...almost 60 pounds! It was a fun adventure though, and nice to leave the car at home.