Win a $200 Shopping Spree!

If you cruise on over to Challies.com in the next 7 days you can enter to win a $200 gift certificate for the Monergism Bookstore. You can either click the banner on the right side of our blog to get to the giveaway, or you can just click right here. Check it out!

If you have never heard of the Monergism Bookstore it is an online Christian bookstore, and it is actually based in Portland, Oregon. Their prices are good and their selection is awesome. You should really check it out.

Marshall's First Sprinkler

We have been having HOT weather here in Salem this past week. So, we got Marshall his first kid's sprinkler for playing in the backyard. He has been having a great time in our backyard with his sprinkler, sandbox, and water table - we are outside all of the time. Our next door neighbors, The Pools, have a son named Etai who is 2 and 1/2 and is one of Marshall's favorite friends. And, Etai has some great water toys too. Eric and Stanford (Etai's dad) have been spending their evenings talking at our fence - passing the boys back and forth while they play in each other's backyards. It has been a great start to our summer!!

Marshall has also learned how to ride his tricycle by himself! He is still having a hard time learning how to steer :) But, he is doing great with pedaling.

And, of course Eliza has been enjoying the sun too. She is officially crawling and she loves standing up. She can hold onto a small activity table and play with all of the toys!

First Swim of the Summer

We are SO thankful for sunny weather! Today Gram and I made our first trip of the summer to the swimming pool and the kids had a great time. Marshall loved swimming with Mom and Gram and working on kicking and blowing bubbles. Eliza loved swimming too and had a great time sitting on the pool steps splashing. It is so nice to have some sun!

Eliza's First Carousel Ride

I forgot to post a blog about this last week so I'm going to post it now. Last week we met Aunt Janie down at the carousel in Salem. We rode the horses and played at the park and had a great time visiting. Eliza rode a horse on the carousel for the first time and loved it. She spent the whole time looking behind her at Aunt Janie and laughing. We all had so much fun!!

Fun at Gram's House

The kids love going over to their Gram-Gram's house to play with all of her toys! She has a bedroom set up just for the kids and has all of Eric's old toys and some new toys too for them. It is always such a nice break from home to go visit Gram and have a change of scenery for a few hours. While we were there today, Marshall practiced his basketball skills - he loves playing basketball and yelling Go Blazers! And, Eliza had fun playing with the activity table for the first time :) In the last week she has been wanting to stand up with help from one of us all the time. And, today as you can see in the pictures she was able to hold onto the table and stand up all by herself!! Although, you can also tell from the pictures that her mom was tired today - Eliza's messy hair and drool covered shirt gives it away. Thanks to Gram for a fun visit :)

Mother's Day

Happy Mother's Day to all you moms!! Here are some of the best pictures from our Mother's Day :)

Sesame Street Live

Today Mom and Dad took Marshall to see Sesame Street Live at the Memorial Coliseum in Portland. (Thank you Gram-Gram for watching Eliza while we were gone!) We started our morning at our favorite Starbucks with some coffee and chocolate milk and then headed up to Portland. The show was so much fun! Marshall got to see all of his favorite Sesame Street characters live and in person, and he loved it!! And, it was so much fun for Mom and Dad to see Marshall having such a great time.

Sandbox and Backyard Fun!

Last weekend we headed out to Toys R Us to get a sandbox for Marshall! Marshall loves to play in the sand and he was so excited to have a sandbox in his own backyard. The sandbox is already proving to be well worth the price we paid - Marshall has spent every rain-less afternoon in it! Eliza has her blanket set up right next to the sandbox and loves watching Marshall play - well, as long as she's got some Cheerios nearby. We were all so glad to have some semi-summer-like weather that we spent a lot of time outdoors this week. The sandbox, Marshall's bike, the stroller, soccer and footballs, and bubbles provided hours of entertainment in the fresh air!!