Feeding the Ducks

We (Steph, Lisa, and Grandpa Chris) went to take Phoenix to feed the ducks for the first time at a small (man made) lake in Albany last week. Steph went all out and bought 5 loaves of "cheap" bread from the Franz outlet store. There were a lot of ducks and geese, so they had no problem gobbling it all up! Phoenix thought is was a hoot watching all of the ducks fly over from the other side of the lake and land like sea planes, en mass, to eat the bread he'd already been throwing into the water. He even let some of the ducks and geese eat out of his hand. And, then as we finished off the last loaf, he shouted out "GO GUCKS!" (That's what he shouts out during Oregon Ducks football games... "Go Ducks" or as he says, "Go Gucks"!). I laughed out loud!

Picking Blackberries

Mormor (Phoenix's grandma, Lisa's mom) came to visit and help us unpack / organize, as we have moved to a much smaller house than we were living in and seem to be "stuck" trying to figure out where to put things!

She was of invaluable help and on the second to last day she was here, we (Mormor, Steph, Lisa, Phoenix, and Bobbi, Steph's mom) went to pick (thorn-less) blackberries at a u-pick farm. Here are some pictures... I also included photos of Phoenix leading his Mormor through a small hay maze at the same u-pick farm. We also visited the market and bought other fresh vegetables to take home. And, Lisa's mom bought us a nice bouquet of fresh flowers to grace our dining room table that we can now see and use!

Dinosaurs at the Woodland Park Zoo in Seattle

Phoenix and his Mor (Lisa) went up to Seattle for the weekend to visit with Mormor and Morfar and go to the Woodland Park Zoo to see the dinosaur exhibit before it left town. Now, Phoenix thinks we can go to the zoo any time to see the BIG T-REX. We'll have to let him know they don't always live there... that sometimes they need to migrate! He was very excited to see all of these dinosaurs. They had animatronics to make them have movement and there were sound effects piped in, too. And, one of the sets even spit water at the people walking by. His favorites were the big Brontosaurus, the mamma and baby styracosaurs (he noted on his own that this one matched the hand stamp he got at the gate), the Edmontosaurus eggs hatching, and the big "mamma" T-Rex.




Unfortunately, Mommy (Steph) couldn't come because she had to catch up on her studies / tests at work! Hopefully we can catch the dinosaurs when they return to the Portland zoo (next year?).

I couldn't find my camera, but tried to take video of Phoenix and his reactions. I only got the first 2 dinosaurs recorded before I tried to change the settings on the camcorder to try to capture still shots, and somehow it changed the way the normal video recording changed, and I only recorded "in between" dinosaurs (the ground!).

Thankfully Mormor (Lisa's mom) took pictures on her camera! Here are some photos of us at the dinosaur exhibit and at other parts of the zoo, too.

Phoenix was holding his stamped hand in a fist very carefully throughout the rest of the zoo, making sure nothing happened to his hand stamp. We went ahead and made a second trip through the dinosaur exhibit when we were done with our walk through the zoo. It was just as exciting the second time through! Phoenix talks about it still every day!

Balloons over Bend

My Mor (Lisa) has always wanted to go to watch the hot air balloons take off during the Balloons over Bend festival, but since that means we had to get up at 5 am to get ready and then drive to Bend, to get there by 6 am to watch, she said she didn't think she'd ever go... she is like me (NOT early morning people!).

But, since Mommy (Steph) was home for the weekend, we decided to give it a shot! I thought it was SUPER COOL! I was very tired... but, once we got there and I saw what was happening, I LOVED it!

We even went back that night for the "night glow" event where the balloons are filled with hot air, and then they blow "yellow" flames to make the balloons glow! My Mor took some pictures with her cell phone, but she needs to find her USB cable to download the pictures onto the computer... but, she will post those photos when she can!

4th of July 2011

Although it was our intention to be IN the 4th of July Pet Parade in Bend this year with Phoenix and all 3 dogs, it didn't work out. Mommy (Steph) wasn't feeling well, so we were only able to get to Bend to watch the last half of the parade. But, it was the best part... we saw the cows, horses, and best of all the "flying chihuahua"! He is being held aloft with a large bunch of balloons and held by 2 tether leashes, so he doesn't fly away! He even has doggles (dog sunglasses / goggles) on! And a small dog with a bee outfit with motorized wings!

Even though we won't be living in Central Oregon, we have discussed coming back next year, just so that Phoenix can be in the parade with his beloved "Cho, Bo, and Ka" (Nacho, Sable, and Lucky). 

After the parade, we came home and visited Malachai in his inflatable pool in his front yard (photo at the top).
 
Phoenix missed his nap, so he went to bed early... but, before he went to bed we lit a couple of sparklers and some dinosaur fireworks we found that emitted "showers". He was not too sure about it all. He fell asleep before the big fireworks went off at the county fairgrounds.

DD Ranch again!

We (Phoenix and Lisa) go to the DD Ranch in Terrebonne at least once a week, sometimes twice, to help break up the monotony of being home alone, with no "Mommy" (Steph)!

Here we are again at the ranch. Our visits are shorter now that it is getting so hot out (30 minutes to an hour, instead of an hour or two)! 

They've been moving the animals around, so we got to get "close and personal" to the baby cow (calf) and the goats and sheep... with no fence. And, we got to pet the baby pigs who were moved from their corral to the big pig pen area.