Nicki's Baby Shower

My good friend Nicki is having a baby in a few weeks and today I threw her a baby shower. It was a lot of fun! I love the friends I have made living here, everyone is so helpful! There was so much food and I only made one dish! Nicki got a lot of really cute things for her baby girl and we all got a chance to sit and chat! I copied a lot of peoples creative ideas for this shower. Another friend of mine recently had a shower and wrote a cute poem in her invites asking people to bring a book instead of a card to attach to their gift which was such a good idea, Nicki left with at least 25 books to start her baby book library. I also copied my aunt Amanda by making a CD of lullabies and other soft music to give away as favors, they seemed to be a big hit too! Joanna came to visit me last weekend and helped me make a diaper cake that turned out super cute! I had such a great day and enjoyed hosting this party! Congratulations Nicki and John, we are all excited for your new addition!

Shawn and Paula Visit Oregon

My brother Shawn and his family came to visit us this week! It was so much fun! Although it felt a lot like I was on vacation because my sister in law Paula made dinner every night and Shawn built a step on our back porch! I had a great week but I think they had a good week too! We spent 8 hours at OMSI, we toured the submarine, played with the fun science stuff, toured the Davinci exhibit where Shawn read EVERY word of each sign :o), we watched an OMNImax movie, and we ate at a gluten free restaurant. We also visited Aunt Rachel and Jack.We went to Cannon Beach the next day. It was raining when we left but sunny when we got there so we all bought new sun glasses at the outlet malls and then we went to eat at Mo's! They have the best clam chowder!After Lunch we walked the beach and the kids found a lot of shells. They found a few sand dollars that we cracked on the bottom and 3 that were not cracked at all! That doesn't usually happen so it was a very fun and lucky day on the beach! We ran around on the beach for a while and saw some pretty neat stuff, star fish and anemones and other cool tide pool wildlife! what a cool thing to see! The kids had a blast!The next day Aaron took Andrew to the driving range and the ladies (Heather, Paula and I) got pedicures (Gracie got an at home pedicure) I am so glad they were able to come and visit! It was so nice to see them! I am hoping they come out every year! I love spending time with family!