Greg's Graduation

June 16, 2012

Greg graduates from Residency!  It was an unexpectedly festive occasion with him earning top awards.  I have to admit, I wasn't too surprised!  He has shown the ultimate professionalism and dedication throughout the whole journey, from Medical School, through Internship and then Residency.  We are so proud of all your hard work, and grateful for the sacrifices you have made to accomplish all your goals!  

*For the record, I wasn't allowed to post any of this on Facebook, but there was no mention of the blog being off-limits*

Ella's 5th and Quinn's 3rd

In February Ella turned 5!  She had a Rainbows and Unicorns party with 6 friends.  They painted unicorns, had a treasure hunt to find the gold at the end of the rainbow, ate rainbow cupcakes and jello, and had fun playing together.  Grandma and Papa were here for the festivities, including her real birthday.  Lucky girl also got a unicorn cake!

Then in April, Quinn turned 3!  Her birthday was more low-key, with Dad in Ethiopia, and I recovering from pneumonia.  Grandma came to help us celebrate (and survive) and she actually had a great day!  We went out to lunch for bagels and cream cheese and played at the park, and she chose chicken nuggets for dinner.  And of course, she got to pick out her cake...a penguin!  Super cute.

Swimming Lessons

We were able to squeeze in a couple sessions of swim lessons this spring in preparation for having our own pool later this summer.  Ella is doing very well.  Her only challenge remaining is getting over a fear of deep water.  She swims freestyle breathing to the side, backstroke, dolphin kick, and elementary backstroke.  I think after a few weeks of swimming everyday she will be a regular fish.  Quinn is still hesitant to put her face in...actually she won't do it on purpose, and if she does accidnetally she cries.  I'm hopeful that she will improve rapidly once we get her in the water more regularly.  

Quinn did gymnastics

Quinn was finally old enough to enroll in gymnastics at the Community Center.  The awesome teacher Ella had at 3 is no longer there, but she still had fun.  I think her favorite activity was the dancing (Chicken Dance, Itsy Bitsy Spider)...I think her next activity will be a true dance class instead.  

Ultrasound Pics of #3

This pregnancy has been a breeze thus far.  Aside from a bout with the flu and pneumonia between 8-12 weeks, I have felt great.  Hardly any nausea, plenty of energy, only a couple weeks of food aversion.  Maybe it is because it is my first boy pregnancy, but I think it has to do more with working out regularly both before and since I became pregnant.  If only I had known the first two times around!  His heartrate at all ultrasounds so far has been comparable to what the girls had (in the 170's early on, now in the 150's) and is measuring exactly on target for my dates, also like the girls.  Hoping to stay well through the stress of the move (10 days!!!) and settling into life in Tucson.  

Coming out of retirement

It is going to be difficult to keep up on here in the coming weeks, but our lives are changing so much so fast that I felt I needed to at least make an effort to document the goings-on around here.

Greg is graduating from residency this coming weekend. After eight years, the end is finally here- and with it a new beginning. He signed on with Old Pueblo Anesthesia in Tucson back in October and will start August 2nd.

Which means we are moving, yet again, on July 4th, to our 6th home in 8 years. We are hoping to be in our forever home when we arrive, but are at the mercy of BofA to approve the short sale.

Ella graduated from Preschool and will start Kindergarden August 8th, full day, every day. She seems to be accepting of this arrangement, showing no nervousness, sadness, or worry about moving. I can't even imagine putting her on a bus before 7:30am, then not see her again until after 3pm. Surely it will be an adjustment for us all! As she says, she will only have to hear the baby cry in the evenings and weekends!

Yes, that's right, we're having a third kid. And it is a BOY kid. Somehow we beat the odds and will welcome the first boy to the family around Halloween.

We had a busy May, with finishing up school for both girls, travelling to Tucson to check out the house, vacationing in the Bahamas with the Franklins, and getting in some quality time with our friends before the big move.

Sadly, upon our return from Sun River, Hailey became very, very sick. She had a hard time walking when I picked her up at the kennel, and by the time the vet checked her out that night she could hardly stand up. We put her on strong steroids and antibiotics to try and treat whatever could have caused her condition. This thankfully gave us a couple days with her to prepare for saying goodbye. She most likely had cancer, and a tumor finally invaded her spinal cord between the shoulders and brain. The steroids brought down the inflammation enough for her to have one good day before deteriorating again. We said good bye at the vet on June 5. We all miss her so much, but remember all the good memories of her long and full life. So much adventure in the past 12 years, and she was there for it all.

First Day of School

*This is really going to mess up the organization here. Oh well*

Monday, September 12th was the girls first full day at school. Quinn is there two mornings a week and Ella has three. This was much easier the second time around!!! I remember feeling the emptiness of my car driving home from the first drop off with Ella two years ago. I knew she was fine, but felt like I lost my kid somewhere. Yesterday, Quinn waved good-bye and I raced off to meet a friend for coffee and worked in my sweatshop (details of this endeavor to come). I did, however, be sure to keep my cell phone nearby in case of a first day emergency.

The girls out front before heading up to the car.

Ella's solo shot. Quinn refused hers, chasing Ella around the yard for a hug. Their love runs deep these days!

Sneak attack solo photo at pick-up. She didn't even notice me coming into the room, so this was actually her first glance up at me. She had a great day.

Seattle

Two weeks after the reunion, the girls and I packed back up in the car and headed north to Seattle for a few days mid-week. This was a great way to get in some much needed girl time and avoid the summer doldrums during the gap between school letting out and summer activities starting. We had so much fun with the Freises and can't wait to head back, hopefully with Greg in tow.

At Discovery Park on a beautiful day. The Sound put on a good show for us- giant sea snail (huge!), squirting clams, and...something else that I can't remember since I'm so behind in updating. Julie, can you help me out here?

Quinn face-planted in the water in true Quinn style.

Cheering for Jeremy at his softball game. The three big girls were all yelling for "Daddy" to hit a homer. So cute.

Haircut

**This picture is amazing to me. 3 months ago only, and she looks so young compared to now!!!**

Grandma Visits (and Mom and Dad get a weekend off)

The first weekend of June was Greg's 10 Year College Reunion at UPS. We were lucky enough to have a willing and able Grandma come stay with the kids so we could enjoy a little R&R. This was the first time we left Quinn overnight, and only the second time we left Ella more than one night. The kids obviously did great in Grandma's care, and we came home more tired than when we left, but had a great time acting like college freshman. Grandma came a couple days before we left town and we had a lovely visit. Here are just a few pics from a trip to the Chinese Gardens.

And one of most of the Logger guys:

Family HIke

This Spring/Early Summer was especially coldy-rainy, making us wait until August for some solid sunny and hot stretches. Since swimming in 60 degree weather is not so appealing to the over-30 set of the family, we spent some time hiking in Forest Park. Greg the pack-mule carried Quinn, enabling us to hike up to 3+ miles at a time. Ella is such a trooper on the trail, only sometimes requiring a song or two to keep her mind off of being tired (or maybe bored).

A Visit from the Hutchins

We were lucky enough to have our good friends, the Hutchins, come out for a nice long visit the end of May. Despite the especially cold rainy spring this year, we had a fantastic sunny week exploring downtown, playing at Washington Park, hiking Multnomah Falls/touring the Gorge, and just hanging out at home while the kids played. The big kids had a blast playing together in the yard, riding the streetcar together, swimming in the kiddie pool. They are both "thinkers" so related pretty well. Quinn and their youngest played around eachother, and Quinn wanted to be just like A for weeks after they went home. Thanks for coming to visit, friends!

The kids (Quinn and M snapping their fingers like the grown ups trying to get A's attention) after completing the 3 mile hike. Quinn got to ride in the backpack.

Ella and M consulting her home drawn map.

Yay! Hutchins family at Latourel Falls.

Me and my girls. Greg was working alot this week and sadly missed out on most of our adventures. :(

Easter Weekend

Yay! The Freises are back in the NW so we got lucky enough to have a visit Easter weekend. The girls spent Friday afternoon playing outside in the sun and dyeing eggs. This was the first nice weather we had in a long time so we all felt pretty euphoric about it.

These were the coolest little q-tip egg dye markers for coloring on the eggs. Big hit, way more exciting than the dye baths.

Quinn napped through the eggs dyeing, but was more than happy to have a baby to hold for a couple days.

On Saturday we met up with some friends for an Egg Hunt. Not much hunting involved, just eggs scattered throughout a field. The kids had a blast and the weather was amazing. Afterwards we had a lovely picnic with the Moehls.

Next year, Kate.

Quinn at the 0-3 hunt.

Ella at the big kids hunt. She was biased towards the pink eggs, so ran by several that could have been hers. More coaching next year...

Still Early 30's

The ooohs and aaaahhhs I heard coming from the dining room, turns out, were not just from visual delight. Poor girl was so upset she cried herself to an early bedtime and missed yet another birthday candle blowing out celebration.

An attempt to get just one photo with my girls on my birthday before Quinn went to bed.

Thanks to Susie, we got to go out for a fabulous dinner at Nostrana while she babysat the kids. Notice Ella's fanciness for the occasion.

Cake Pops

Maeve brought a Cake Pop book on her visit for Quinn's birthday. Of course, Ella was really excited about this. They take our Kid Cake book to a whole other level. I knew she wasn't going to be content to wait for a party to make them, so we made a few varieties for Easter/Spring. The chicks were the cutest, but she of course loved the pink butterflies. Quinn just thought they tasted good!

Jumping

Quinn learned to jump on two feet in April. We thought it was fun to take action shots. They loved to take a few photos, then check them out on the camera. Full rainy afternoon's entertainment.

The best action shot of them all. She was "all pinked up." Bracelet, ring, socks, and all.