Crandalls visit!

It had been almost two and a half years since they left Italy, and one year since we had seen them briefly in Santa Barbara, before we finally got to spend some significant time with the Crandalls, our traveling buddies from four Tuscan Thanksgivings, French Riviera Labor Day 2013, and Greece 2015. It was so nice of them to make the 15 hour drive up to see us, stopping at several national parks on the way here and back.

Juliet sitting with Luca (Luke), now 5, and JJ (Jessica), now 2. Their kids were so cute and well-behaved. Ben is a little hard on them when he is tired or cranky, but who isn't? :)

Charlotte, Ben, Georgie, me, and Isaac with his back turned, having dinner on the porch.  Just like old times in Europe!

The kids were still in school, so the first day we got them either to school or on the bus and then drove to Silver Falls State Park to see the water falls.

The whole group at the South Falls. This guy was so nice to take our picture I didn't have the heart to ask him to frame the falls better!

The Crandalls at South Falls. Not gonna say who took this one, but it is really well framed! :)

Luca and I on the trail. He kept telling a joke: "Knock, knock." "Who's there?" "Cary" "Cary who?" "Carry me!" I carried him a few times but Ben kept telling him not to ask. It's okay if our friends' kids, nieces/nephews, or grandkids are spoiled, but not ours!

Lower South Falls. Underneath the waterfall you can barely see Charlotte, Ashley, Luca, and me.

We cut the hike short because it is over 8 miles to see all 10 waterfalls, and we turned around at Lower South Falls. We then headed up to Portland and ate food at Pok Pok NW, a super trendy Thai food place in Portland. It was almost 3:00 pm so there were no crowds. Ben counted the adjectives describing their signature dish: eight. We then walked through the Pearl District and along the Willamette Riverfront park. 

The Crandalls have this great tradition of taking a photo of Luca flying through the air at all kinds of famous sites in Europe and the US. Ben chucks him way up and Charlotte snaps the picture. For the famous Portland sign we got a double flier shot. JJ is significantly lower because 1) Ben is stronger and 2) you can be a lot riskier when you are chucking your own kid!

Next stop was the world famous Voodoo Doughnuts. Some of their menu items are quite risqué. They were huge and unusual and good, but on some level, a doughnut is a doughnut.

That evening we met up with the Stuarts at The Country Cat, a hip comfort-food joint. We then drove back to their house to see their kids and hang out in Jeff's "shed" for a while :). We didn't get home until late, but our kids took care of themselves and were in bed with dinner eaten, dishes done, and teeth brushed by the time we got home!

The next morning we got the kids off to school again, arranged a babysitter for Luca and JJ, and then got ready for an excursion to some wineries in the Willamette Valley.

During breakfast Charlotte accidentally broke one of the Vetri plates that Megan Trifilo had bought for us in Italy. Which reminded Ben of the time that I broke a dish at the house in Cannes during Labor Day. He had taken a picture of me and put it on Facebook, so he was able to do this:

Che vergogna!

We first went to Bethel Heights Vineyard, then Cristom Vineyards, and finally Brooks Wines. The first two were smaller and produced their own Pinot Noir, Pinot Gris, and Chardonnay. We had a lovely tasting with a great view at Bethel Heights and a very entertaining host at Cristom. Brooks produces its own as well, but is better known because it serves food. Good food!

The garden at Brooks with the Willamette Valley in the background.

 The vineyard at Brooks.

 Our amazing lunch. It felt like being back in Europe for a day.

 Goofing off. You can tell how much Ben is enjoying my cuddling up to him.

Ben's shirt was a gift from me. One our favorite people in Aviano was a certain MDG spouse who wore a similar shirt quite frequently. I bought these shirts for all the Famici Fellas for practice Thanksgiving 2014. It is now one of my work shirts that I wear under my scrubs!

That night we stayed up late playing card games and snacking. Ashley had bought some queso dip for Isaac's birthday and we killed it off. Not wanting to waste any food, no matter how processed, I took a rubber spatula and scraped the sides of the jar, as I am wont to do. Ben couldn't get enough.

The final day we lazed around and then went to Juliet's dance rehearsal. We technically weren't supposed to be there, but the Crandalls were leaving the next day so we snuck in. I have been to at least one dance recital per year since Georgie was little, and this was the best one by FAR. Juliet's dance was so creative and fun to watch, none of this plie-and-point-your-toe-while-standing-still garbage.

That night we ate at Block 15 and hung out until late, laughing our heads off at Tom & Jerry and boats. The Crandalls left a Crandall-sized hole in our hearts when they headed off to Crater Lake the next day. They are probably moving back east for their next assignment and then hopefully back to Europe at some point. If they do, I will seriously consider going to visit.

Georgie's Play and Birthday

May was the last month that we had yet to experience in Corvallis, and it did not disappoint. After all of the winter rain, spring brings it's A-game here in the Willamette Valley. Unfortunately, that means an epic level of grass pollen as well, but it is worth it.

This is the view from our front walkway. I was not prepared for the rhododendrons, the blue and red flowers on both sides. I didn't even know we had any until they started blooming like crazy.

May 4-20 were the dates of Georgie's first community theatre play, Chitty-Chitty Bang-Bang. She had been rehearsing four nights per week since February, and opening night did not disappoint.

Georgie's entry in the playbill

Isaac showing just how excited he was for the play to start. Also, that hair. Good grief.

The first of Georgie's non-ensemble roles was as the assistant to the sweet factory receptionist, and although she didn't have a line, she had some excellent pantomime and expressive body movements. Her next was as an inventor in the country of Vulgaria. She had one line, "They have terrible tortures!",  and did a dance routine with the other inventors. Her final role was as a server at the dance party for the king's birthday. She looked lovely with her hair done and all made up in costume.

Nann and Craig were disappointed that they couldn't make it, so they gave Ashley some money to buy flowers for Georgie. I was able to buy two different bouquets with it and Juliet was very excited to give them to her afterwards. My beard was over two months old at this point and only lasted a couple more weeks. Not a beard guy.

Here she is in her server costume after the play. She was almost 12 at this point but looked 16 or 17 on stage. We thought looking older would be a hindrance in her acting career, since looking younger is more advantageous, but with an abundance of kids and a dearth of adults trying out for community theatre, Georgie was able to fill multiple adult roles.

The bouquets on the dining table.

May 12 was Georgie's birthday, and Ashley had cooked up something special not just for breakfast, but also for her matinee performance that day.

Georgie made some really good friends at Cheldelin Middle School this past year, and Ashley had arranged for five of them to come to the play in secret. Georgie honestly had no idea.

Here are the girls waiting for the play to start.

When the play finished they all came over and rushed at Georgie, hugging her and congratulating her. It was a magic moment that I failed to capture because I was in "photo" rather than "video" mode. Dad fail.

Georgie normally hates taking pictures. She gives you a forced smile that is not the most photogenic. But this isn't acting. She was so happy and surprised to see her friends there. Great job, Mom!

The girls came over to our house afterwards, ran around playing on the property until the sun went down, and then hung out in the hot tub for a good long while. We capped off the night with cake and presents. I told Georgie that she was a young woman now, but she retorted, "Twelve is still a child." Fair enough. Seeing her running around playing with friends, she definitely still has a child within her. But her work ethic in school, her dedication to acting, her stage presence in the downtown theatre, and her deep, thoughtful mind belie her tender age. Love you, Georgie!

Spring Break in the Redwoods

For Spring Break 2018 we headed south to see the Redwoods of Northern California. I had to work the first part of the week so we couldn't go anywhere too far. Thankfully, Jedediah Smith State Park is only about five hours south of us. We stopped in Grant's Pass for In 'n' Out (mandatory) and then headed west to the coast. We set up camp the first night at the state park and then the next morning headed into the forest.

We brought Naxi with us without realizing that dogs are not allowed on the trails. So before we ventured out we played and explored with her in the area right around the road.

 Juliet at the base of a fallen redwood.

 The way the wood comes apart it almost looks like planks of lumber.

 Georgie on top of the stump with the trees overhead for some perspective.

 Isaac and Naxi at one of the smaller trees (!)

 Georgie on one of the fallen trees.

Isaac and Juliet at the base of one of the bigger trees. I think this one was actually a double tree, which a lot of the bigger trees were.

 Walking across a fallen tree.

 I love this shot of Isaac between two giants.

On the trail now. We hiked to the Boy Scout Tree, one of the oldest and largest redwoods in the world. I think it is called the Boy Scout Tree because it was an orienteering destination for scouts using their map and compass skills.

The tree itself.

 Family picture just across from the Boy Scout tree.

Back at the campground, the girls shared the big tent with Ashley while Isaac and I were in the smaller tent. The campground was really fun. It was right on a river that the kids loved to explore and play around. There were paved road loops that they could ride their bikes on and just go exploring.

Cooking was a challenge. No wood collecting was allowed, so we bought some firewood at a gas station that ended up being very green and wet. Finally we broke down and bought charcoal. I felt stressed trying to get enough food cooked well enough to eat and fill everyone up.

The second day, we drove out to the coast and down south. This was the view from a widened area along the 101 shoulder. I of course was geeking out about the 2001 bike trip when we rode this very highway.

Naxi is full grown and still small enough to hold. I love that she is not a huge dog. 

We then stopped at this beach which we randomly found. It was lovely, not crowded at all, and just gorgeous.

 Juliet played in the sand and used the bleached, smoothed wood to build creations.

Here you can see me sitting on the left amongst the driftwood. There was a small stream that came down to the ocean and all these trunks had washed up into it, creating a roof over the stream.

This is the stream bank, which has been etched into a mini Grand Canyon.

We let Naxi run free and she loved it. I collected some of the dark sand for our collection.

This is the Babe the Blue Ox at the Trees of Mystery farther south. We stopped here because on the bike trip I stayed in the Motel Trees across the street and remember waking up in the morning to see the enormous Paul Bunyan and Babe across the highway.

This was our destination, the closest drive-through tree to our campground. There is something hokey about driving through a tree, but the kids loved it.

Our van fit through just fine (unlike some Italian roads), and we could even keep our box top carrier on because they have increased the height clearance. I wonder how long until this tree falls over.

We then headed back to camp and started the drive home, stopping again at In 'n' Out. Driving through Crescent City we saw this woman with her dog on the back of her motorcycle. Love those goggles!