Dee Wright Observatory

In July we visited the Dee Wright Observatory. It's about an hour away from us and it's built in all the lava fields. It's pretty random, but there are great views of all the different mountains surrounding us

July 4th!

Okay, so I know it's September already, but we had such a fun Summer and I figured it's about time I caught up with posting photos on our blog! We got to do lots of cool things with the kids and because there is so much, I have to break it down into several posts.

On July 4th was the Bend Pet Parade. We went to watch and it was fun. We saw the flying dog, and lots of dogs not flying, many wagons and bikes, and lots of people. William got sick later that day, so in hindsight his miserable fed-up look and lack of excitement was for a good reason.

At the end of the day, Aunt Jess and I took Pippa out to see the super-fabulous fireworks on Pilot Butte. They didn't start until 10pm and Pippa had a tough time staying awake, but alas she made it and loved the fireworks!

First Day of School + A Lesson in Tolerance

Nick here. It was the first day of school last week and I took care of the Reese family tradition of taking photos of the kids outside the front door before sending them off to school.

William, nervous about his first day at the 3's class.
"What if they eat crayons different than the way I eat crayons?"

Pippa, ready to start her first day of pre-K.
"Don't worry, whether it's blue, orange, purple or yellow, it all comes out the same color."

"You're right, Pip. No matter what our skin color, our religions, our political leanings or the way we consume Crayolas, we're all the same on the inside. That is to say, filled with wax."

Sniff, sniff, they grow up so fast!

School itself has gone well. Pippa has taken to it like a sparkly unicorn at an all-you-can-eat magic jellybean buffet, making friends, doing art, singing songs and basically laying out her case for pre-K Prom Queen. William, out in the world on his own for the first time without a big sister to boss him around or take his toys or boss him around some more, has been a bit more reserved, content to sit back and observe and figure out the angles. He's a bit shy with the teachers and other kids and prefers to just play with toys, but then again, that sounds like a good way to spend a few hours, so you can hardly blame him. Hopefully once the novelty of the train table wears off he'll start interacting with others a bit more. But then if you know how Will likes trains, that could be a while yet.

It's a dolphin!

'Look, it's a dolphin!' said William as he ran over holding a sandwich he had nibbled into the recognizable shape of a dolphin. It made me smile for several reasons; one being that he noticed his sandwich looked like a dolphin and another that he is talking full sentences of independent thoughts. I had to take a picture!

Look, the one on the right looks like a dolphin!

Anyway, it's Labor Day weekend so we decided to do a small day trip out to Newberry Caldera before the weather turns snowy. It was fun to finally go see the crater and the big obsidian flow. The obsidian is so black and shiny and the kids got to climb over and collect lots of rocks. We went and got an ice cream treat at one of the campground shops and ate them overlooking Paulina Lake. It was a fun day and only a 30 min drive from home!

View of Paulina Lake

Reading the sign

Roarrrrr, I'm a bear in my cave...

William Turns 3!

Last week William turned 3. In typical Reese family fashion, we kept it very low-key! There was the birthday breakfast doughnuts, balloons, presents and birthday cake. It was a very fun day of just playing, mostly with the foil helium balloons I bought for them!

For me, once a child turns 3 it seems to open a door of new opportunities. There are so many classes he can now enroll in and it will be this upcoming year that we really see him become William. He talks a lot right now, but by the end of the year he'll be having conversations. He no longer wears diapers in the day, but still has the occasional accident. This time next year I won't even be able to imagine a time he wore diapers. He draws, he plays games, he laughs at funny things and he tries to make Oliver feel better when he's crying. He is maturing into a real child, a sweet child who just wants to have fun and do good. Turning 3 before the Sept 1st deadline also meant I could enroll him in preschool for this year. So, starting Sept 9th he'll be away for me for 2 1/2 hours twice a week, socializing, playing and learning. I'm so excited for him!

Going Potty!

Oh, so much updating to do about our Summer adventures, but for now you'll have to wait. Just one quick update on my adorable little William; he's finally using the potty! We're by no means ready to leave the house without a diaper, but there's certainly no going back now. He's going to be ready for when he begins preschool in September! His biggest reward is a high-five! GO WILLIAM! We're so proud of him.

Warm, Hot, Cold

We actually got some Summer weather last week just to tease us, so that the cold today makes us extra grateful for the warm. While it was hot last week we spent most of the time in the yard playing with water. This is also how we intend to spend a lot of the Summer. Luckily they all love playing in the pool and with the hose, especially little Oliver. He can not get enough of it!

Pippa began her Summer Buddies class last week, which she LOVES! It's 2 afternoons a week filled with singing, crafts, running around and swimming! I signed her up for the whole Summer, so 8 weeks of this! Then a few weeks break until her and William begin their preschool programs! It's going to be a busy year for us.