Our family got to have some of our bonus Ws hang out with us during spring break. So fun! Here are some highlights of the last week.
SATURDAY
Shon, Devry, and Michael arrived last Saturday afternoon and I, as usual, had to get a picture with them soon after they walked through our door. Having these guys around always makes me happy.
SUNDAY
Although they've visited us several times over the last couple years, schedules and pandemic closures have kept them from ever joining us at church. This time, though, they were all able to come with us Sunday morning. They watch our church's kids' program from home each week, so the boys thought it was cool to actually attend a live service.
Shon took off once church was done and the rest of us headed home. Later in the day we went to Centennial for some baseball fun. Tim played coach, working on catching and throwing with the little boys (but all six of us played catch in rotating pairs) and giving batting tips to all four kids.
The kids wanted to spent a little time at the playground before we wrapped things up, so we hung out for a while longer and let them run around. One of our kids' favorite things to do there is have one kid crawl on top of a spinning thing and get it going while the other kids stand below. I'm pretty sure I have pictures of Silas and/or Devon on top from years past, but this time around Naomi was the biggest kid and took the position.
They loved it!
MONDAY
One of our other bonus Ws spent Monday with all of us. We've really missed having Gabi here on a regular basis, but the combination of his family moving away from next door and all the C19 stuff has made it tricky to get together. Needless to say, we absolutely loved having him for the day! The four boys had posed for a picture together in July 2019, so they lined up in height order again for another picture.
Here's the original shot, which is from
this post.
It's fun to see how much taller they've gotten since the first picture! They built a giant fort, jumped on the trampoline, played tetherball, and just hung out together all morning. I pulled out a few library books and read to them before we started down time in the afternoon.
I walked in the living room later in the afternoon to discover that Devry had pulled out a giant dictionary we use as something to set a lamp on. He spent at least an hour flipping through it and I snapped a picture at one point.
"Wait, take another one!" I complied with his request and got this pose, a look of shock at how big the dictionary is. Goofball!
A friend recently offered up a mostly unused box of 3D puzzle that could be colored before assembling, so I snagged them for some spring break entertainment. Devon and Devry each ended up assembling one later, but Naomi, Gabi, Tyler, Michael, and I chatted as we worked on ours first.
TUESDAY
We decided to take a mid-morning walk on Tuesday. Devry and Michael visited a free little library near us during one of their previous visits and asked if we could stop by it on our walk. Deal. In fact, we walked the opposite way first so they could check out another one that's also close to our home, where we also dropped some books off, then backtracked to the one they already knew about. All the little boys ended up with a stash of books to take home. And Michael, as he did last year, was sure to grab ones for his grandma that he thought she'd like.
We got back home and just hung out for the rest of the morning. Devry used some of that time to make a paper bag puppet.
I told everyone to get shoes on and grab water bottles after lunch, then drove everyone to the
Hallie Ford Museum of Art, where I'd reserved tickets ahead of time. We'd been there once before, a couple years ago, and I said we'd be sure to visit again. But we never have. And what I thought was a couple years was actually
four years ago. Yikes! The museum is always free for minors, but everyone can get in free on Tuesdays. The only charge is metered parking in the area, so it's a super affordable outing. We took a quick group picture with the sign in the background for we masked up and headed inside.
We went through each room slowly, pointing out the artwork we liked best in each one. These are just two of the museum's several colorful windows and the boys wanted a picture to remember what they looked like.
The museum is across the street from the
Oregon State Capitol, so we strolled around part of the grounds, got a picture with the
Oregon Pioneer in the background, and admired some of the material, design, and sculpture that are part of the building. It's possible that I was asked if Governor Brown was there and if we could talk to her. Ha! I explained that I wasn't sure where she was at that point in the day, but that governors can't just come out and visit with people walking by. I think there was an element of ... I don't know ... maybe awe that a leader a kid has only heard about or seen on the news could actually be in the building they're standing in front of.
Next up,
Bush's Pasture Park. I love that place! We only spent about thirty minutes there, but the boys had fun playing lava monster on the playground while Naomi and I relaxed. Then it was home for dinner, followed by Tim taking the kids back to Centennial for more baseball practice while I got a little bit of time alone. That night they gathered around as he showed them some pictures and videos from a crane class he's taking.
WEDNESDAY
In our family, people who get up before everyone else find a book (or a stack of them) to hunker down with. So that's what Devry and Michael do while they're with us. I found Michael buried in
Where's Waldo in Hollywood? on Wednesday morning. The Where's Waldo? series is enjoyed by everyone around here!
Devry had asked me on Monday if we could have
oatmeal pancakes, a favorite of his from other visits, while they were here and said he wanted to help make them. So he and I teamed up Wednesday morning and made a bunch of batter.
We always have dessert as a family when our church's midweek service is done on Wednesday nights, which the boys know, so Michael asked to help me make it this time around. He didn't know I'd decided on
polka dot cookies until after he'd already committed to helping, but once he knew the plan he quickly (and quite discreetly, as he knew he'd landed some special treatment) asked if I still had a rule that the baker can eat one, and only one, plain chocolate chip when a recipe calls for them. Yep, that's still allowed. I did make him wait until all the dough was made and the mess cleaned up, though.
One of the first things Devry and Michael did during their first week with us last year was to build little sidewalk fires with Devon. They asked about building one this time and I'd promised them we would at some point. Devon was out of the house a lot during the week, but was a champ and took time to build a fire with them on Wednesday afternoon.
We already hit two free little libraries on Tuesday, but there are two others a little farther away. The little boys all asked if I'd drive them over to see what was available, so we did a quick blitz to some other neighborhoods. Three silly faces and more books!
They all dug into their new books as soon as we got home, then we heard a squeal from Devry when he found a dollar bill in one of his. He was super excited!
THURSDAY
Our bonus Ws had asked to go to the
Woodburn Public Library with us while they were in town. We're there at least once a week, so I planned on taking them, as well as any little Ws who needed to do library stuff, on Thursday. That morning I happened to see a Facebook post from
Bauman's reminding people about their petting zoo, so I piled everyone in the van and headed out early. We spent about an hour checking out the animals and enjoying the playground.
One of Michael's trips down a slide.
Followed by one of Tyler's.
Then one of Devry's.
Finally, all three of them, one right after another.
They posed for a picture in front of slides for a size reference. Those slides were a hit with my little crew!
Then it was time for a regular library. The little Ws all have their own library cards and got their own stuff, but Devry and Michael chose some books that I checked out for them. Pretty sure they'd have stayed longer if they could have!
And more books! Because there's always a shortage in our home, right?
Speaking of imaginary book shortages, the little boys all wanted to do one more free little library trip to return some books they'd picked up earlier in the week and were done with. And, perhaps, luck out in finding some new donations to pick up. Hence the backpacks. They were prepared! So we went on a one mile walk that ended with two book stops. I love seeing them trek down the road together.
The bigs were all gone for the evening, so the guys had a low-key evening of popcorn (they think Tim makes the best popcorn) and Clone Wars while I read a book and did stuff online.
I had a great view of the pretty sunset from my seat and asked them to pause their movie for a minute to come check it out. They looked, then pointed out to me that it matched the sunset on the screen at that moment we hit pause.
FRIDAY
Devry's always creating things, so I wasn't surprised when he asked me to look at something he'd made on Friday morning. He'd found a broken toothpick and turned it into a mini pencil.
Later he showed me something else. At the beginning of the week I'd shown all the kids a collection of brand new twisty ties that had been in a kitchen drawer for ages. I have no idea where they came from and we have no use for them. I'd just about tossed them the week before our bonus Ws arrived, then decided I'd offer them up for potential projects.
Good thing I saved them! Inspired by the slew of Native American baskets we saw at Hallie Ford on Tuesday, Devry made a little basket from twisty ties.
He even made a twisty tie baby to put in it later.
So glad I saved those for a few more days!
We picked up Gabi in the afternoon, then joined a couple friends and the four boys between them at
Aurora City Park. Two hours. Eight boys in grade school and younger. One girl in junior high. Three moms. Unfortunately, we were all so busy playing and talking that it didn't get occur to me to snap a picture until we were halfway home. It was definitely a highlight of the day, though, so I'm mentioning it in spite of the lack of picture proof it happened.
Later that evening, as we were chatting around the table and wrapping up dinner, Shon walked in the house. Devry and Michael were pretty excited to see their dad!
SATURDAY
Today was time to clean up and pack up, so the little boys posed in the door of the fort they built at the start of the week before they tore it all down. That space got put to good use this week!
Alex texted at one point in the morning, so I sent him a quick picture of me and Shon. For those who don't know who either of those guys are, Alex and I were two of Shon's closest friends in high school. Both of them are still part of my life (and my family's life) all these years later.
We ended our time together by being treated to Chinese food for lunch, a promise Shon had made earlier in the week. When you can't eat in the restaurant and going home isn't practical, but the sun is shining and there's a short, unused segment of sidewalk by your vehicles, you sit down and have a picnic.
When the kids willingly agree to it, even though you know it's not their favorite thing, you take a last minute group picture. One with Tim hunched over to be closer to the boys, making him look way shorter than Shon. One with all the boys making weird faces because we were staring right into the sun. One that's less than perfect, but you still like because it's a realistic, fun reminder of the day.
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