Transformer

Djeryd is finally coming into his own. I personally believe it has a lot to do with his not being in the public school environment for the last 6 months. He is thriving at home and in homeschool. Today held a host of examples of his wonderful transformation from a caterpillar to a butterfly.

1. He is telling jokes that actually make sense: "Q: What did one ghost say to the other? A: Do you believe in people?"

2. He sang "Simple Gifts" (a Shaker hymn) to Grandma Wilcox and Great-grandma Bavlnka without getting embarrassed or giggly or inaudible.

3. When I say "Wear nice clothes; we're going to Grandma's house," he actually wears jeans without holes and a fresh shirt that has not been worn and slept in for the past three days (disgusting, I know). As I was admiring his attire today, Djeryd said: "Look, Mom, I even have my nice tennis shoes on."

4. The hugest testament to Djeryd's transformation is his changing relationship with the gummy hair-shaping substance commonly known as gel. This is a boy who used to spend Sunday mornings begging me, with tears in his eyes, to please not put "icky stuff" in his hair. Occasionally he would resort to screaming. I always respected his wishes and backed down. Well, this afternoon marked his third submission to hair gel with a smile on his face! I think he has made a definite break-through in his chrysalis. Keep your eyes open for the complete unfurling of his new wings.

On Wisconsin

In August we were fortunate enough to fly to Wisconsin for a week. It was gorgeous! The weather was incredible (warm, not muggy; no mosquitos; and a good, old fashioned thunderstorm). We saw tons of relatives the kids and I have never met. Everyone was so kind and friendly. Everything was so green, unlike Oregon in the middle of August. It was one of the most beautiful places I have ever been. They also have the tallest corn I've ever seen. Check out the photo of the four cousins below.




The highlight of our trip was surely a trip to the pig farm. We saw grown-up pigs and teenage pigs and baby pigs and they were all adorable. The kids got to sit on a horse bareback and one of the horses tried to eat the skirt right off my person (somewhat embarassing).



This trip marked the first plane ride (4 actually, when it was all said and done) for all three kids. It was long and definitely not fun by the time we boarded our last plane. But it was an experience to be remembered, if nothing else. And let me tell you, walking on solid ground never felt so good!

Swimming Lessons

This last summer the boys took swimming lessons in Canby (I like thier pool better than Oregon City). On the last day of class they are allowed to jump into the water off a roape swing and jump off the diving board. Erik startled everyone, including the swim instructors, by doing a front flip off the board on his second turn. By a stroke of luck, I managed to catch him in the act. Not a crystal clear shot, but you get the idea.

And here he is practicing on the trampoline months before swimming lessons.

He gets some pretty decent air, as you can see. ;>

The Reason Why

Hello everyone! I have resisted blogging until I can resist it no more. This is actually my second attempt at this crazy medium, and I am determined to give it a fair shot this time. Last time I got completely hung up on layout and simply gave up after a few hours. I will take it slower this time and enjoy the process.

I just want someplace to brag about my kids and show off all the pictures I love to take. So here it is. I don't promise to have much to say, or anything very interesting, but at least there will be some record that my family actually existed.

All of our trips are over, so I may go back and post a couple of pictures from Wisconsin and Disneyland, just to say we were there. In the meantime here are some pictures I took of Anna last night while trying to create a studio portrait.