Mini Vacation to Bend, OR

We took a mini vacation this past week to Portland and Bend, OR. Tim had some work to do in both locations and decided he wanted to have the family with him. Let me start out by saying that this trip certainly had it's highs and lows. The first low is that even though I took my still camera and video camera I didn't take one picture.

Wednesday was an easy trip to Vancouver, WA. Tim went to his meeting while Malaika and I hung out at a play area in the mall. After picking Tim up from the hospital we headed to our hotel in Portland for the night. Malaika had traveled so well however, she did end up with a fever that night and was just worn out.

Thursday morning Tim headed to his meeting in Salem, OR while Malaika, who was feeling much better, and I took a really nice walk along the Willamette River (Portland waterfront). Later that morning we headed to Salem to pick up Tim and head out to Bend. On our way to Bend we stopped at Suttle Lake for a swim...beautiful! On arrival to Bend we headed to our hotel and what we thought was a suite ended up being a very small room. This was not going to work but of course they didn't have anything else available. Well, that night Malaika decided that she wasn't going to be able to sleep well and she woke up around 2am for about three hours. You know what that means...no one got any sleep that night. Believe me the idea of packing up and driving 5 hours to Seattle was VERY tempting.

On Friday Tim had a fair he had to attend in the morning, poor guy he was dragging, while Malaika and I slept in and then took a nice walk around Bend. When daddy returned we went for a swim and then while daddy took a little nap Malaika and I went into the Old Mill District and spent about 2 hours at Working Wonders - their Children's Museum. Friday night was probably her best night sleep. Even though she woke up for a bottle (which never happens) she went right back down.

Saturday we went for a fun family outing to Elk Lake near Mt. Bachelor. What a beautiful location. The water was cold, the sun was hot and we just had a lovely time. That night Malaika was thinking the she needed to wake up again, this time for about 2hours. What the *@#% was going on!

On Sunday we decided that we really wanted to go floating down the Deschutes River. If you are ever in Bend I think everyone should take advantage of this really relaxing and fun adventure. We had brunch, took naps and then headed out on the river. There was live music being played in the amphitheater as we floated by, lots of people watching and a great way to just chat as a family and show Malaika some really cool things. It was another rough night of sleep but we knew home was just a day away.

Although our weekend ended up being a little stressful we did enjoy our days together. We arrived home around 6:30pm on Monday evening and that night Malaika was right back into her regular routine, she slept through the night. I guess there's something to be said about your own bed or in her case - crib.

A Fun Weekend

More cabin pictures here

We're blessed to have some wonderful friends that are always happy to have Tim invite himself to their cabin. The weather wasn't perfect but we could still enjoy the company, go for walks on the beach and Malaika's first boat ride.

Avenue Q

Last month my neighbour and I went to watch this fantastic performance. Two grown women heading to the theater to watch puppets. Let me explain, this was no place for a child I'm not even sure I would've allowed a teen to go.

The Paramount describes Avenue Q: "Avenue Q is the Broadway smash-hit and 2004 Tony Award winner for Best Musical, Best Score and Best Book. This hilarious show is full of heart, hummable tunes and big dreams - the perfect mix for an outstanding musical theatrical experience."

I describe Avenue Q: Amazing and funny with a little bit of everything. I loved the way they touched on some very important issues in today's society. From being gay to dealing with sex and race to much more. For puppets they were very entertaining and I must say more graphic than I expected.

If they're in your neighbourhood - GO!

Splish Splash

Playing in the water

Malaika had a few friends over on a very hot weekend so daddy got really creative and decided that it was time to play in the sprinklers. Then, our neighbour Jenny found her pool and that's where ALL of the children (including Tim) ended up. It was a fun weekend.