Helping with the Laundry

Jonah can be such a good help sometimes...

... the only problem is that I was trying to put the laundry IN the dryer.

Mattole

Last week Lee and Jill rented out a farm house in Mattole.  Mattole is on the coast of Humboldt County a little over an hour south of Ferndale.  The road out there is crazy- windy, steep, bumpy, and BEAUTIFUL!  Erik, the kids, and I went out there for three nights and got to enjoy everything the area had to offer- perfect weather, great scenery, berry picking, the Mattole River, and a small look into the country life on a horse ranch.  Nick, Kyoko, and Mei came out a few days later to join us.  It was great spending quality time with the family we see so little of during the majority of the year.

Whether it was a horse, cow, cat, or dog, we were surrounded by animals.  Jonah was very excited about all the "dog-dogs" everywhere.  No matter which window he looked out he would find one.    When we needed to distract him, we would just ask him where the dog-dogs were.  One of the highlights of the trip for Cairo and Mei was riding a horse.  Though Mei was hoping to ride a pink horse, they got to ride a big brown horse with pink bridals named Curly.  The girls look so tiny perched there up on top of the horse, holding on all by themselves.

A good part of our time was spent wading, swimming, and floating in The Mattole.  The Mattole is not a raging river.  It was calm enough and shallow enough that we can cross it on foot, but there were also swim holes deep enough to swim in.  We set up camp each day on a sandy stretch of shoreline next to a shallow, warm water hole.  The kids had a great time splashing in the water.  The sandy beach kept Jonah busy for the majority of the time... and Erik enjoyed frolicking in the water with his mask and raft.  On our last full day there we had, at Kyoko's request, a hot dog roast on the beach for lunch.

During our stay there we took a few little trips.  We visited the local blueberry patch a few times and loaded up on fresh, hand-picked blueberries.  The area we stayed in is just over the hill from The Lost Coast.  There is a really great 23 mile trail to backpack on that hugs this desolate part of the California Coast.  One morning we ventured out to mouth of the Mattole River where the Lost Coast trail begins.  The fog closed out the sunshine, but we still had a great time walking around searching for shells and rocks.

The rest of our time was spent eating, reading, lounging, and playing bocce ball.  There was a great wrap around porch with plenty of comfortable seating- perfect for reading a book (which I took advantage of whenever possible).

Erik, the kids, and I left after dinner on the fourth day.  The kids fell asleep right away and Erik and I got to enjoy the magnificent scenery as we climbed and descended the three hills between Mattole and Ferndale.  The fog was rolling in and we would find ourselves falling in and rising above the fog bank over and over again.  We stopped and snapped a picture of once we reach the top of the second hill.

... and the summer continues....

Summertime means that we have more time to do things that the blur of our typical workdays doesn't allow.  For example, it means that Erik gets to do a lot more cooking and baking.  While a dutch baby may not be all that abnormal during the school year, homemade blueberry muffins are!  Summer also means that we get to enjoy a large variety of yummy fruits... many of which are hand picked with love.

Dutch baby (and I don't mean Cairo :o)

A reward for Cairo's good behavior was to help make- and eat- chocolate cupcakes.  As soon as she heard that we were going to be baking she ran back into her room, put on an apron, her cooking hat, and her baking glove and came out ready to go.  One must ALWAYS accessorize and Cairo has it down to an art.

She looks a lot like her Ba-Chan in this picture.

Jonah is a little-man on the move.  Though he isn't quite walking yet (we're mostly there- he takes between 3 and 7 steps before plopping back down on his buns), this summer he has finally conquered crawling and uses ANYTHING he can as a walker.  It doesn't matter if it is small or has no wheels.

He's been pushing this chair around like a little old man with a walker.

One of the other really great things about the summer is that we get to spend so much of it with friends and family. Uncle Alvin visits regularly and always makes time to play.  Going to Uncle Nick and Aunt Kyoko's is a double bonus because not only are they fun, but they have the neatest park a few feet from their house.  Plus, Mommy and Daddy have lots and lots of time to cuddle and play and read books... it doesn't matter if it is the beginning, middle, or end of the day.

I am enjoying the time I get to spend with my kids.  Having a whole day together sure does beat the busy few hours I get with them once I get home from work.  Even though the kids aren't always in the best of moods...

 ... I'll take what I can get.  Time is too short to be picky and before I know it they will be off on their own.