first injury

heron (aka "toughie tugboat") just sustained her first bloody injury yesterday. i'm not sure how it's taken this long, since she's totally rambunctious & brave. but here it is--a skinned lip & nose. she was dancing to a-Ha's "the blue sky" when she tripped on the rug, diving straight into a corner of her dollhouse. awesome.

aunt teal

josh's sister teal has been living with us for the past week & a half, & will be here with us for the next few weeks as she is in transition, figuring out what's next. teal is such a lovely person, lively & sincere, & she has brought much laughter & joy with her. she's become a part of this household so seamlessly. while josh was in california for four days recently, she helped out a ton with the kids, and we had such fun! heron adores her aunt teal. here are some pictures from our days with her...

: brunch at tin shed :

( a classic heron face )

: home :

: the kennedy school soaking pool :

this is a warm saltwater pool. it was our first time here. even the kids loved it, & before we knew it two hours had gone by!

: home again :

: another classic heron face captured :

: the four together again :

multnomah falls

we've lived in portland for six months, yet we'd barely ventured to the surrounding areas of the city until our recent beach excursions. this past weekend we finally drove out to the gorge & hiked around multnomah falls. what a beautiful day!

seaside retreat

a few days before easter we took another trip to the coast, & this time stayed for three nights. josh had been wanting to take a writer's retreat, & our friend andee recommended a cabin in seaside where she stays called "birdie's cottage". ("birdie" was my nickname for heron when i was pregnant with her). kay, who owns birdie's, owns the neighboring house, too, "gracie's cottage". she is wanting to build an art studio in the back yard the two houses share in hopes of renting out the houses + studio as an art retreat. the two houses are furnished with the cutest, kitschiest collections. vintage collectibles & memorabilia from the bygone seaside days.

josh's parents joined us from seattle, as well as his sister teal. marti was glad to join josh on his writing retreat, as she is currently editing a laboratory manual she wrote/published. teal accompanied us as nanny, mostly to heron as shepherd is still so attached to his mama, his food source!

: birdie's cottage :

: gracie's cottage :

: shepherd + the souvenir wall plaque collection :

: the kids loved hanging out with their aunt tealie :

: mike + the snow globe collection :

: catching up with josh at the end of the day :

: mitchy, shepherd, & the trophy collection :

(secret: to get me to "look natural" in photos, josh usually has me repeat something ridiculous, perhaps even crass. this time it was something like "titty time!")

: coffee time at gracie's :

: the salt + pepper shaker collection :

: ooh, that handsome boy :

: heron helping aunt teal prepare dinner :

: an afternoon at cannon beach :

josh finished three songs on the retreat. we all enjoyed the change of pace & scenery, & look forward to taking creative retreats more often--perhaps quarterly?

p.s. more photos here.