The rest of May

It finally warmed up for a few days - we pulled out the pool (that's been out since Trevor was here) and filled it - everyone had a blast! We swam in it with neighbors and friends and alone. We filled it with hose water and water from the bathtub - depending on the temp of the day. Everyone loves water!!

We were also lucky enough to have Grandpa Terry come for a visit in May! We so looked forward to it and had a terrific time! We played hard and Grandpa was a really good sport - indulging us in all our crazy and hairbrained ideas. :)

We took a trip to Smith Rock to go rock climbing and had a blast! This was Coleman's first outdoor full on harnessed climbing experience. It was very entertaining for all of us. He was so excited and a little scared. It was very similar to the skiing experience from last December. He was a little stiff during the whole thing, but couldn't stop talking about it afterward!! :)

Getting ready...

Cole's favorite climnbing - "climbing ON rocks" (a.k.a. scrambling)

Also a big fan of the rope in general

Ty putting up the anchor and rapelling down... sad we didn't get real shots of him climbing

Tying in and getting ready

Belay is on

Climbing - he did a really good job! What a monkey!

Some scary shots of me climbing... a little more practice would be good. He told me it was a 5.3. He fibbed! Ask Terry - we agree it wasn't as easy as it looked. I'm sorry there were no pictures of Terry on the wall... I had a kiddo in each arm while he climbed. :( Next time!!

Kiddos enjoying the outside. These picnic tables are great! Love this climbing spot! A little snacking, lots of dirt, some diaper changing and hugging. Good times.

Our carefree girl with the wind in her hair. Asked her if she wanted to climb. She said no. I think she was having too much fun.

Cole was a little grumpy that he had to wear his coat and the rock got a bit of his skin. I call this kind of rock - rough/smooth (hard on your hands/not a lot to hold onto). We're just glad Mom and Dad can still kiss owies better. :) It's amazing how fast they heal that way!

Cole's second attempt - a little grumpier 'cause it was the end of the day, but he did well. :)

After climbing we checked out a climbing shop and went to a pizzeria/arcade for dinner. The kids played the driving arcade games w/o quarters for a long long time... :) So funny!

We also got to celebrate Grandpa's birthday while he was at our house (we've been with all of our parents on their birthdays in this past year). We spent the day hanging out and swimming at the Kroc center. The kids were in heaven. We finished off the evening with hamburgers (another favorite) and grandpa's favorite cake with candles (the most favorite).

That night we (Ty and Terry) decided to take some goofy pictures. I'm a little embarassed, but I posted 2 less scary ones. I think we may have been A LITTLE tired. Should have just watched a Monk.

(the blanket I've been working on for 5 years...)

Grandpa came to the carousel with us. We rode our favorite horses (Cole likes the Native American paint with arrows and feathers and Brookie chooses a different pink or purple rendition every time). We had a blast!

We also made a trip to the park afterwards because it was finally NOT RAINING!!! Brookie ran right over but Cole was a little more interested in finishing the popcorn first... After playing at the park we walked down to the dock and watched some people fishing. One guy caught a 3-incher while we were there. Cole was in heaven. He really wants to fish... hint hint males in the family!!

We even took a trip to McDonalds for Happy Meals and the play place. Grandpa really spoiled us! :)

We so loved having you here, Grandpa. We can't wait for you to come back in July!! Maybe we can go to OMSI again! (We went to OMSI twice this trip - it's definiteley a favorite place!)

Thanks so much to all our family who have come out to visit this month!! We were missing you terribly! Christmas was so long ago! We're so happy to have seen you and caught up on some good laughs and hugs! We're looking forward to seeing you all again soon!

xo, us