Why We LOVE Oregon!

I feel compelled to write on this subject after the FOUR STRAIGHT WEEKS of rain we have experienced. This rain not only canceled the last four weeks of Andrew's baseball season (which is short to begin with!), but it has put everyone in a mid-winter, cabin-fever-like, generally bad mood. Not a good thing when it's the end of May and everyone is expecting SUMMER. It really has been enough to make you want to pack up and move someplace warm and dry.

However, rain doesn't stop Oregonians from getting out and living life. Lauren and I still make it to Stroller Strides three to four times a week at the local parks. Me soaking wet, her snug as a bug in her jogging stroller with rain cover and snacks. Andrew's recesses are held under cover, as the kids desperately need to get outside and run run RUN! We even managed to keep the On The Move program running during lunch recess, many days in the drizzle, allowing a record number of kids to earn their Marathon Shirt (Andrew got his!).

All this rain makes it easy to forget why we love living in this part of the country. It's easy to focus on the gloomy gray skies, the missed baseball games, the cold, wet workouts, and the bad moods. It's hard to look past all of that and remind ourselves what all this rain gives us. So I'm taking some time to remind myself of that very thing. Because I have been whining about the rain far too much these days!

A "sunbreak"

1) I grew up land-locked. No, the Mississippi River doesn't count. Being able to drive one hour West and end up at the Pacific Ocean is amazing, and it never gets old. The beach towns in Oregon range from quaint and artistic to touristy. All have one thing in common...they are close to our home! We have taken many day trips to the coast. Once, right after we first moved here, we drove out there to eat dinner. Yep, just for dinner! :-) It was so cool eating overlooking Haystack rock, watching the tide come in, and listening to the waves crash. We were hooked. Now, the kids beg to go to the coast. We pack up our kites, sand toys, sunscreen, baby powder (the only sure-fire way to get sand off), sweatshirts (we've learned the hard way to always prepare for chilly weather), and snacks. We spend the day on the beach, playing in the sand, Whale Watching, exploring the tide pools, collecting shells and rocks, eating lunch, followed by ice cream, we've added Geocaching to our activity list, flying kites, and just having FUN together. Sometimes we even stay for a sunset, and then head home. It just doesn't get any better than that.

Yaquina Head Tide Pools

2) And hour in the other direction, and you are witness to some of the most spectacular scenery, and year-round skiing around. Mt. Hood, the iconic image for Portland, lies just an hour East of our home. We look forward to exploring Mt. Hood, and the surrounding areas, more and more as the kids get older. We took Andrew sledding here for the first time, and visited the historic Timberline Lodge overnight with my parents. I even attempted to ski on Mt. Hood. I made it down a few runs. Maybe when the kids are skiing circles around me, I'll get braver. Regardless of if we are traveling to Mt. Hood or not, just being able to SEE the mountain as we are driving around town never gets old! It is the most spectacular sight!

View of Mt. Jefferson from Mt. Hood

3) You-Pick Farms/Farmer's Markets... OK, I know every other state has farms that they can go to and pick produce. I can guarantee that all that rain really does give us an edge in this department. And the farms are everywhere! And they're amazing! We have just begun strawberry season here in Oregon, and if you've never had an Oregon strawberry you are missing out! The seasons for each berry are short, but my new-found interest in "jamming" has helped to preserve the delicious flavors year-round. The craziest season is the wild blackberry. These berries grow everywhere. And I mean EVERYWHERE! You can walk to any park, path, green space, and pick wild blackberries till your heart's content. And they're FREE! And then there's the Marionberry, native to Oregon. I love giving the kids the opportunity to see where their favorite foods come from. We've started our own little vegetable garden this year, and are hoping to harvest our own peas, tomatoes, lettuce and carrots. We have also planted four blueberry bushes, but will have to wait a few years before harvesting anything from these. The kids are still under the impression that they will be freely picking blueberries this summer from our yard...

"Picking" strawberries, 2009

4) Green Year-Round... yes, even the grass. My husband seems to think that we have the longest "mowing season" out of any state. I have to agree with him on this one. In addition to the natural beauty you find yourself surround with year round, Oregon is also one of the leading "Environmentally Green" states. This makes me proud. I'm happy to be raising my kids in a part of the country that respects the environment, and encourages it's residents to do their part. From recycling centers, to major no-smoking ordinances even in public areas, to being one of the friendliest Bike Cities in America, Portland and Oregon really have this Green Thing down.

Andrew wanted a "gear bike" so he could keep up with Dad

5) Mild Weather... Yes, I find it ironic that I started this post whining about the rain, and am including the weather as a reason I love living here. But the mild temperatures really are wonderful, especially after growing up in the Mid-West. Sure, there is the occasional "Arctic Blast, 2008," but snow is rare, and drastic temperatures are even rarer. Summertime humidity is non-existent, and we rarely have to use the AC (I wouldn't have a house without it though...I'm not crazy!). The only time you need a parka in the winter is if you are skiing Mt. Hood. In my book, this make any amount of rain worth it!

6) This is our HOME. And really, that's what it comes down to. We would adapt and change to any area that we found ourselves living, and hopefully find many wonderful things to love about it. We love Oregon because it's our home. It's where Chris got his first job, that allowed me to stay home and raise our kids. It's where Andrew has grown up, and where Lauren was born. It's where I've become involved in many different organizations to better our family's experiences. And it's where we've made our friends that our children will grow up with.

Could we have done all of these things somewhere else? Of course. But Oregon is where we landed.

And we love it. Rain and all...

Baseball

Well, if you know our family, you know we're fans of Baseball. More specifically, Cardinals Baseball. And as life-long fans of our hometown team, we felt it our moral obligation to brainwash our first-born son so that he, too, would become a Cardinals Baseball fan. Maybe he would enjoy playing catch, or watching a big game. We would have a token jersey for him in whatever size he happened to be in a given season, and maybe if we happened to be visiting St. Louis during the season we would catch a game. Little did we know what we were in for.


And so it began...




Before we even left the hospital, we made sure to swaddle him in Baseball Footie jammies.



At 6 months, our little slugger was properly outfitted in Cardinal attire.




At Eighteen months, he had all the right equipment. "Ball" was a favorite word!



By three years, he had already been to a few big league games, and watched countless games on TV. He graduated to a "real" jersey, complete with Pujols on the back! He enjoyed T-Ball at the rec center, and could swing a bat like a natural. Mommy was so proud!




At age seven, Andrew played his first season of Little League.



Baseball is his passion. He wakes up in the morning wanting to watch Baseball Tonight, not only to find out how his favorite team did, but he also enjoys watching all the great plays highlighted from the day before. He puts up a fight every night I make him go to bed before the last out is made. He has so much fun in the moment of the game. The neighborhood kids are subjected to countless games of "driveway ball," and Andrew would love nothing more than to play catch for hours on end with anyone who will put on a glove. He was so proud of himself when, in the final inning of a game, he made two key outs at first base. That night, when he was having trouble going to sleep, I asked him what he was thinking about. His response was, "I can't sleep because I'm still excited about the two outs I made in the game." How sweet is that?!


Andrew's first hit!


He scores a run!


His first season of Little League was a great start to endless possibilities. Unfortunately, the season was a bit washed out. We experienced record rainfall in the last four weeks of the season, and all of those games were rained out. Every day, Andrew would come home and ask if he was going to get to play ball that night. We were all pretty down about not getting our baseball fix. I even resorted to Wii baseball! Regardless of the rainouts, Andrew still talks about his baseball season fondly. Every story he writes these days has one central theme... Baseball!

Chris and I are so proud of him. And not just because we love baseball as much as Andrew. I don't want to be one of those parents perceived as forcing an activity upon my child. Andrew has a natural athletic ability, and he enjoys so many different sports! He would play them ALL if I let him. We're sticking to one sport a season for now. He could play fall ball, but he chose soccer. And he's excited for basketball next winter. He's over-the-moon excited about the new golf clubs his Grandpa just sent him, and wants nothing more than to go to the driving range tomorrow. We're proud of how he is trying to learn the values of good sportsmanship. We are doing our best to surround him with positive experiences at this young age, and trying to keep him from being overly competitive. It's just too early for that. Right now, it's about having FUN.

And boy, are we EVER!

Welcome to our Blog!

Well, here it is. My first Blog post. I don't have the first clue what I'm doing, so bear with me. I hope you enjoy reading about the special events in our life. We feel so blessed to have technology in our lives, keeping us connected to our friends and family. Thanks for reading!