Father/Son Zoo Trip

I took August to the zoo on a recent Friday, just the two of us, which he really enjoyed.

I treated him to a camel ride--something he'd been wanting to do since last Christmas when we first saw that they had this at the Tacoma Zoo. He didn't want to ride alone, so we paired him up with some other boys in line.

Still my all-time favorite attraction at the Tacoma zoo (okay, it's really the "Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium") is the walrus tank. They've got three enormous walruses (walri?) and a big underwater viewing window where you can watch these incredible behemoths swooping past the glass.

This is Auggie's head silhouetted in front of the glass. In the background is a walrus swimming towards us headfirst but on its back (i.e. bellyup), which seems to be their preferred way to glide around.

It swoops by upward brushing against the window.

Grandma Gloria's visit.

Becky's mom Gloria came for a visit recently. We had a great time showing her around our new house and Tacoma. As is often the case, we had so much fun we forgot to take many photos. Each of the twins got to stay home from preschool one day to spend it alone with Grandma, and they also stayed home with her together one day. That is always their favorite part of her visits.

This photo was taken as we waited for the circus - August and Rose's first - to start at Cheney Stadium.

The twins took a ride on an elephant before the show.

We also took a trip to Titlow Beach during low tide to collect shells and sea glass. Of course, the kids were most fascinated by the dead things we found - dead crabs, dead jelly fish, dead flounder...

Rosie and Grandma pose with the Tacoma Narrows Bridge in the background.

July 4 Camping trip.

We had a great time camping with friends for July 4th weekend. The Wagners, Squireses, and Oride-Groves joined us at the Tumwater Campground near Leavenworth for the weekend. The kids had a great time playing together and things only got out of control a few times. Here are August, Rose and Becky with Eileen, Hamish, and Emmett
Eileen gets the prize for hardest-working-camping mom as one of her goals was to keep her son, Hamish clean despite his rompings in the forest with the older kids. Here he is getting a bath in the parking lot.
Charlie and dad Tom at the campsite.

Charlie and Emmett hard at work gathering firewood.

Rose's Dance Recital

Rosie has been taking a dance class through her preschool for several months. At the end of this session recently they had a "recital"--more of a little show set up by their instructor. They did four dance numbers, and the instructor supplied all the little costumes you see in the photos and videos below.

Rose is in the very middle of these photos.