Steam training with Grandma

Grandma: "Hey Abraham.... Koh.... wanna go for a real steam train ride?" We didn't even know she was a train nut when we replied by nodding "EY!" and off we went to a special weekend run of this old fashioned train we could see and hear right from our windows at home. It was real smooth and we got to hang over the railing with no seat belt or silly boosters and see the sights speeding by just like all the big people. And wow was that steam whistle loud! "Oooooh" says Koh. Then we go to walk around the Oaks Park and dance at the live band stand. Here are more pics like these.

Love letter from Dad #5

Dear Abe and Koh,

It's been some time now that you smile when you see me near the end of your day, and that's really nice ...I like coming home to those baby whites. Those open mouth kisses are pretty fun, too - are you being selective as you hand those out? I mean eventually you have to stop makin' out with at least each other.

Something really important just happened, though, and it made me recognize that what's going on between us is getting more serious ...for me anyway.

What's new and different is that you're paying attention to what I do and occasionally even what I say, and I have a feeling that this is a watershed I can't cross back over ever again; On the old side it just didn't matter too much what I was doing when you were around, but now I'm thinking maybe it really does.

You mock me. You listen closely to new words, even though you don't say any. You pay too close attention to what I do, then sometimes follow along. You signal certain bodily functions; Well, Abe, you think farts are funny. You know "no" or "no touch" by my tone; you've even cried after stern talk before. You like to tumble with me, body language at its best. You want to eat what I eat, drink what I drink. You still like banging your head on the window long after I showed you that move one day. You like face mashing with me. You pump-fake me with offers to share food.

Fading fast are the days I can do whatever and nobody notices. You notice, you copy, you might even be recording what I'm saying. Oh my, I have to be careful. I don't think we'll ever go back to the old days. I love you guys. -Dad

I wanna be an indoorsy kid some day

Abe: It doesn't look good for us being hip kids with favorite TV programs and video games ...at least until we can get away from our mom and dad. They keep taking us outdoors where we get dirty, cold, wet, hungry and real tired sometimes. I even heard them bragging that we know how to drink from a camelback... so? We get thirsty, too! But they told me I wasn't supposed to drink from those other people's tubes like I did at the Mt Hood Scramble last weekend. How come they left it there on the ground then?

Yurt Yurping

Koh: I warned them that I wasn't feeling well, but Mom and Dad decided the family yurt camping trip to S Oregon to attend Ben & Tonya's wedding reception was a GO anyway. ..and off we drove with Grandma for almost 5 hours to set up for two nights in this swell heated YURT on a lake in the woods. Click here to see our fav pics.

It was a nice weekend, with lots of people around I didn't know and then some nice quiet time around the campfire, throwing rocks into the lake, and hiking around - Abe and Dad those nuts even went swimming in the cool water. It was one of those really quiet times when me and Abe were sleeping in the yurt that I decided to yurp up that wedding cake and ice cream into the PaknPlay and all over Mom's clothes when she came to rescue me. I warned 'em!

What's that noise?

Koh: So I'm quietly finishing my dinner last night when I hear this loud explosion. "What is that?" I convey to Mommy with my big blue eyes. Her blue eyes get big too and she starts saying "What do I do now?" and "What do I do first?". That noise was Abraham. Actually it was Abe's dinner leaving quickly out the backdoor. And since he was sitting in his highchair too, there weren't a lot of places for it to go, so it went down his leg and onto the floor. Monday Abe showed me how to quickly explode food out his mouth too, while in the car. Mommy keeps telling me to stop bugging him because he doesn't feel well and that in a few days I'll probably understand just how he feels. Does that mean I get to do explosions too?  I think I'm going to wait to do them until we get halfway through our 4+ hour drive to our camping trip and cousin Ben's wedding reception this weekend.