On the town with cousin Rachael

Evan and his cousin Rachael painted the town one Tuesday in August, an outing that didn't end until late in the day. We started out with lunch at Pioneer Place, then took MAX to the Portland Children's Museum.

Rachael built herself a fort out of cardboard tube Lincoln Logs ...

... while Evan caught up on some ZZZ's.

Rachael built a small neighborhood in the craft area. The only thing missing is a matching hard hat.

Taking a break between activities.


In the grocery store area the cash register works and the scanner actually beeps.

Evan wasn't so sure about all the commotion.


The face painting area.


Finished product!


We took the streetcar to Green Frog, a toy store in the Pearl district. This is part of my effort to promote public transportation and sustainable living, a message that was most certainly lost when we got to the toys.



Then we listened to street musicians.


Jeff met us for dinner before we all went home.

Rodrigo y Gabriella

The three of us went to the Rodrigo y Gabriella lawn concert at Edgefield. Let me tell you, this is a great place to see a concert. Most of the area is under shade, and there is a good view from just about anywhere on the lawn. Some people queue for hours, but we got there only about an hour before the show began and we could still see the stage pretty well:



Evan wearing outfit #2. The music was so good, Evan just couldn't contain himself!

The Bite of Oregon

Summer in Portland brings festivals on the waterfront, one of which is The Bite of Oregon. Better some years than others, at a minimum it offers a selection of local food and live music. This year the weather was perfect - not too hot, not too cold, best of all not raining - and we spent the better part of Friday wandering through the stalls and listening to jazz.

This expression has earned Evan the nickname "The Serious Man" by Aunt Rachel.


Notice the Pepto booth? Conveniently located at the end of the line of food stalls. Nice touch.


For some reason there was a Lewis and Clark pelt exhibit.


Plenty of shade for everyone.


Ahhh, our little banana.


Me and Evan just before we called it a day.

Reading

It was to our amazement and joy that Evan shows an interest in reading Aviation Week, the weekly periodical that delivers the latest scoop about the industry in which Jeff and I work.

We also read Evan regular stories - you know, to keep him well-balanced and all that. This story is about Clifford's bed time, namely that he must go to bed in order to be a good puppy. Evan hasn't quite made the connection between his own need for sleep mirroring Clifford's need for sleep.

A few more minutes of play time before bed. This Taggies blanket keeps Evan entertained for hours.

Still amateurs

Parenthood has increased the number of trips we make to Target. By a lot, actually. When Evan was just born we were there once a week, and even now we're there a few times a month. During these trips we noticed that the more seasoned parents adorn their carseats with toys - colorful toys, toys that make noises, toys that entertain while weaving about the store. We have therefore added toys to Evan's carseat as well. This makes us feel like semi-professionals, or at least very good amateurs. Here's Evan looking past the toys while we walk to our neighborhood cafe.


We've also been able to get a few pictures of Evan smiling. He smiles all the time now and even laughs on occasion, but these moments are quick and difficult to capture with the camera. In this one Evan is happy to see Jeff home from the office.

True professional child rearers (e.g., our friends who have older kids) have told us of a number of things to do with babies. Evan and I still take lots and lots of walks (that kid can probably navigate downtown by himself by now), but we have added a few more things to our list of options.

Mommy Matinee
These are at the Kennedy School theater Tuesday through Thursday at 1 PM. The seating here is couches with side tables in between, plus they serve food during the show. Patrons at 1 PM typically come with a child, so no big deal if he of she were to cry during the movie since everyone's in the same boat. Evan sits on my lap watching the movie, just like the big kids.

Tennis
You can bring the kids while you play tennis! Here's Evan and Apollo at the Westmoreland courts, too tired to watch us miss the ball (is there a hole in my racket?). In a few years Evan can be the ball boy.



Farmer's Market
Evan likes going to the Farmer's Market, probably because there are a lot of trees for him to watch. These pictures are from the market in the south Park blocks. I used to go to this one while I was in school, back when it was just a few stalls and I needed a break from building circuits. I went primarily for the cheese stand. Even on my meager research assistant earnings my senior year, I made sure $14 for a pound of pecorino was in my budget. Now the market has become both trendy and large, and has even more cheese. This particular week we went with Rachel and listened to musicians while we had lunch.



Shopping
In the last few weeks we've come across a number of nice children's boutiques. Little Urbanites is full of fun unique things you won't find at other stores. Many thanks to Dennis and Alexandra for helping us find this place! Posh Baby has a lot of the basics; wish we would have found this one earlier. We have most of the stuff they carry, including the Aden + Anais muslin blankets Evan loves (thanks Pam and Stu). Kids at Heart Toys carries high quality educational toys and games, plus they have books in the back.

These stores and various activities are full of parents who really know what they're doing (and not coincidentally usually have more than one child). We're still new at this, but we're getting better. For example, we can now distinguish between cries for food, sleep, attention, etc. We recognize that Evan's ability to sleep through the night, usually around 11 hours non-stop, is because we have a kid who likes to sleep rather than a kid who has veteran parents. So we're still amateurs, but at least we're having fun.

Lions, tigers & bears (oh my)

A trip to the zoo was in order last Friday. Jeff didn't have to work and the weather was in the mid-70's, so away we went. I dressed Evan in his shark suit to ward off any potential predators. Don't mess with Texas.

We had lunch at the first zoo restaurant we saw. We sometimes have to explain to Evan that he's not the only one who gets to eat.


The mountain goat exhibit in the back, with mountain goat statues below and to the side. If you were to venture into the Goat Rocks Wilderness in Washington you would see many more goats, along with marmots and clear lakes resting at the base of mountains. It's an amazing place to backpack. This will do for now.


Yes, we actually saw bears. Black (below), sun, and polar.


We also went into the eagle enclosure. If you've never been inside the cage, you should go.


Taking a break in the shade.


The baby elephant Sam next to his mom. Sam was born at the zoo two years ago, and Jeff and I came to see him when he was a few weeks old and around 300 lbs. Now he weighs 2,000 lbs.


Evan has a lot of giraffes in his room; he didn't seem to recognize the real thing though. Pointing and repeatedly saying "Giraffe!" didn't help.



The zebra is keeping the grass neatly trimmed.


The zoo wore Evan out! As Jeff and I say, "This is a data point..."

Concours d'Elegance

Many classic vintage cars could be seen at the Concours d'Elegance, and so we found our way to Forest Grove for a warm and breezy Sunday afternoon. Jeff is a car guy, and if he has his way Evan will be too. I went for the hot dogs. I love a good dog.

We saw more than one couple dressed in the fashion of Tom and Daisy Buchanan, and they brought their cars to match.

A Ferrari 308 GTS, Magnum's car. This is an ancestor to the 430 Scuderia, Jeff's dream car.


A home built teardrop trailer, one of the cutest things on two wheels I've seen. Sleeps two with a kitchen in the back.




Marty: "Wait a minute, Doc. Are you telling me that you built a time machine... out of a DeLorean?"
Doc: "The way I see it, if you're gonna build a time machine into a car, why not do it with some style?"

This one came with a Flux Capacitor, a deluxe model to be sure. "If we could somehow harness this lightning... channel it into the Flux Capacitor... it just might work!"


Jeff and Evan posing in front of a Triumph, similar to the one owned by Jeff's dad. You'll have to ask Evan why he's wearing a different outfit...


This Concours was all-inclusive, being held in Oregon after all. These are pedal cars for the younger crowd.

Santa, don't be surprised when Evan asks for a Wiener Mobile! A car and a hot dog - such a perfect combination.