Snowy Day in Eugene Oregon from dave.merwin on Vimeo.

Simply wonderful.

But when dang it?

From Emma:

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lhggg

This morning my son called me.

Called me at work to ask if I would pick him up after school. To buy Sarah flowers.

He’s 6.

6.

Faith can now say….

“I luf OO! Hurray!” At which point she throws her hands above her head and dances.

And Emma can sing the scale from Little Mermaid. She sat on the couch and practiced yesterday with Sarah.

I have enough.

This past holiday was sort of magical. The kids and I spent a great deal of time outside, despite the weather. Sarah was in Seattle tending to new babies with Faith.

Noah, Emma and I hiked into the fort and had lunch. Elk and deer used the trail with us and the kids enjoyed figuring who was going where. Our jaunt ended at the fort where Othar the Giant lived. Eagle’s Rest lean-to is reconstructed stop over for the local mule supply trains. The story is here.

On the way back down the hill, we stopped at the Goodman Creek outflow. The valley’s connection with the reservoir is cut off by highway 58, but is not stopped. So the outflow is a valley and this time of year shines in many shades of green and brown. Stunning.

We played in the mud, and tracked the herds of elk prints. Emma fell into the streams several times and was none the worse. Getting stuck provided constant threat/amusement.

The kids are sponges. They learn with every step, and if provided the opportunity will quickly out pace you with their depth of knowledge. To that end, Noah and Emma have begun to construct their own world, complete with private stories and games.

While leaving the evil pizza parlor, (Pappa’s charges $30 for a large pizza. WHY DO WE KEEP GOING? Because they put kid crack in the pizza and it calls out to children at regular intervals. CURSE THEM!) I was surprised by a moment between Noah and Emma. I had asked that they get their shoes on, there is an indoor playground. I peaked into the play area to check on them and Noah was at Emma’s feet, helping her put her shoes on.

I could not have been more proud.

Some of my fondest memories as a kid are of camping with my dad. We had many adventures that I still remember today. As a kid I never wanted the trips to end. They were so much fun.

But I now know why we did them. It was for my dad. I mean, spending time in the woods was awesome for me. Foundational. But the parent is the one that really benefits.

I think as an adult, you know what is possible. You know what the kids could not be doing. They could not be on this trip for example. They could be somewhere else, or stuck at home. But they are not, they are here, seeing this and it is beautiful.

So I loved this trip. Noah swam, played, and caught his first toad. Emma played, floated, and ate A LOT of marshmallows (see video here). We had some rough moments, like when Noah’s toad died cause I didn’t want him to bring it in the DQ. It was 105 and the little bugger just roasted in the car. That sucked. But for the most part I felt like I was in an alternative universe, where kids are kids and nothing else.

It was perfect.

Hood River Oregon Is Amazing.

Thomas the Train was in town this past weekend, so we drove the 3 hours to an amazing place called Hood River OR.

Videos:
Amazing Toy Car
Local Flavor
The Bridge
Derailed

To be honest, I had no idea what to expect. My limited experience in the Gorge pertains to gas stations and rest stops. But Hood River is an outdoor person’s paradise. World renowned windsurfing and kite boarding start it off. Then there is serious mountain biking everywhere. Outstanding fishing. Snowboarding on Mt. Hood Year Round. Out of every three cars, one will have bikes (Road or Mtn.), another will have windsurfers, and the rest are filled with families.

I intend on going back and doing some exploring in the near future.

But we were there for the Thomas the Train event. They take a train and attach a Thomas Car to it. Pretty cool stuff. We traced a section of the Hood River railroad, which seems to have a pretty nice dinner tour. One passed us while we were on the way. We could see full linens, nice cutlery and air conditioning.

Noah and Emma had an amazing time. Noah loved the idea of riding on a train. We went with four other families, and all the kids got along really well. We stayed at a wonderful bed and breakfast called Jollyn House. It is on the other side of the river, but everything was about a mile from the b&b. The house was wonderful. They took kids, and had plenty of rooms. The food was great and the rooms were very reasonable. If you are in the area, try em out.

I can’t wait to go back and have time to explore the town and trails.

I thought I knew joy.

Yesterday, little Emma was exhausted and showing signs of her head exploding. So we laid her down for sleep as soon as we got home from a friends house.

Noah and Emma share a room now as we get Faith’s sleeping schedule normalized. Noah was doing fine, so we went outside and he had an ice cream cone.

I said, “Lets go for a ride.”

Noah just started riding without training wheels. Last week he told me, “Dad, when I took the wheels off, I just kept wanting to ride. I didn’t ever wanna stop.” I grinned, knowing very well what he meant.

So last night I got out my bike, and he got out his and we rode around the athletic complex by our house.

We rode off curbs, over bumps, up banks. He crashed, I crashed, we laughed, and he talked my head off. I rode up stairs, and down. He rode up ramps and down. I saw fear in his face and joy when he didn’t crash. When he did, he decided to try again, with out my bidding.

Now. Now I know joy.

Right around when Walk The Line came out, our house went through a huge Johnny Cash kick. We played his greatest hits over and over. The kids love ‘em.

It has been a while since we have listened to Johnny, but the other day Ring of FIre was on a mix CD. As soon as it cam on, Emma came running into the room saying, “It’s Ring of Fire by Johnny Cash”. What ensued was caught on video. You’ll need Macromedia Flash 8.

What a great day at a typically crowded Oregon beach. A much needed time away and some innocent curiosity from the kids as we climbed on the rocks, looked in the tidal pools, and ran from the waves.

We loved poking and prodding and playing in the sand and the water.

Lately, I have been missing my friends on the east coast that I used to surf with. Matt, Pete, Nick, Brian, Brian, Sam, the Knechles, and more. We really had a special time. As we were newly married or falling in love or out of it, there was always surf. The movement of water to hide ourselves form the outside.

For a time, I mourned it. I though that I would never see that time again. I would never be able to laugh or cry like that again. That the joy or fear would never be the same.

But it will.

Living in Oregon now, when I surf, I usually surf alone. That’s a new fear by itself. Mr. Whitey is always on my mind. Or the really big freaking waves.

But today I saw a hope for the future. A time when I will camp on the beach. Maybe not with my “bros’ but instead with my children. And they will see anew what I have seen. And we will together, learn and laugh.

So now I know. It will never be the same. I can’t go back. But that doesn’t mean it’s over. It just means it will be different. And maybe better.