Our Trip to Oregon

It's been awhile since I wrote, so as you can imagine, there's a lot to say. We've been extremely busy: we moved to Wickenburg, I had to take care of my sick kitty, Buster (who ended up having to be put to sleep), I've worked hard to be a good mom and wife, and of course, Maddie and I took a much-needed trip up to Oregon.

Our trip was wonderful! First of all, Maddie is a pro at air travel. On the way up, we were seated in our row, Maddie started to do her, "I'm tired" screaming thing, and then we lifted off and...silence and sleep. Maddie literally slept from take-off to landing. Perfect! On the way home, she didn't sleep the WHOLE time, but she was quiet and loved looking out the window and reading her books, so the trip back to Arizona was just as good.

We spent three days at the beach during the first week of our trip. Maddie had many firsts: her first trip to an aquarium, her first splash in a swimming pool, and her first time with her toes on a sandy beach. We had a wonderful time.

Maddie was considerably awed by the aquarium. The first fish tank she saw prompted an open-mouthed stare down. I think in the end, the fish won, because I had to show Maddie all the other neat things. We saw the jellyfish, the fish, the OddWater exhibit, AND we got to touch things. I "helped" Maddie reach into the touch pools so she could experience the unique sliminess of the skates, the stickiness of the anenomes, the hard shells of the abolones, and the cool salt water. She's a very tactile baby, so she really enjoyed feeling things. By the time we got to the shark tubes, which I know she would have loved, Maddie had about had it. She was a very tired and cranky baby. So what's a mom to do? I put her down on the floor, of course, and let her crawl all over the glass. I like to think that she was intrigued by the sharks and fish, but more realistically, I think she saw the reflection of the lights and herself. Either or, she was happy.

The swimming pool that we played in was outside (yes, in Oregon, in the spring), and it was COLD. Maddie was a good sport, and put on her swimming suit and a swim diaper for the first time, but we didn't last long.

On this trip, we also got the chance to see Grace and her sweet little boy, Zeke. It was so neat to watch the two interact and play off one another. I'm still hoping that Maddie (and I!!!) will make some friends like that here.

Like every trip to Oregon, this one was wonderful and FAR too short.