We do not remember days, we remember moments...

A thought from Cesare Pavese. Here are some pictures of some lovely, sweet moments with Finley and Evelyn last Monday, May 12.

A Mother's Day to Remember

I had a friend from college out visiting his brother and sister-in-law who live in Portland, Oregon, so we decided to go visit him this past weekend. What began as a somewhat stressed out trip turned into a very pleasant Mother's Day weekend get-away and a good visit with an old friend. It was fun to meet his wife too, since we'd only just talked on the phone and had never met. Great to revisit old memories and that part of my life and fuse it with who we are now.



Finley took this photo of us! Matt's brother and sister-in-law are in the background with their 15-month-old daughter, Zoe.


Matt and Donna. Matt is one of the handful of friends I've kept up with from college.

Here are some photos of our Mother's Day visit to the Japanese Gardens at Washington Park near Portland, Oregon last Sunday. It was a lovely day and a nice side trip in addition to our visit with Matt and Donna on Saturday. We met a friendly family on the shuttle ride up the hill to the gardens. The mom was pregnant and they had a three year old daughter named, Mackenzie. She and Finley really hit it off and we had fun running into them throughout the Japanese gardens. Sorry I didn't get a picture of her, but Finley stepped right into one that Mackenzie's dad was going to take of her and we thought it was so cute they just took the picture with both of them. They are expecting a boy. The mom said, "I hope our son is as cute as Finley!" Ahh, shucks....






Finley was getting tired and had to go to the restroom. Poor Todd was trying to be patient with having his glasses and hair messed up!



Finley strikes a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle pose in the Japanese Gardens.









Todd and Finley in the Japanese garden.



Finley, Evelyn and me on the shuttle ride up to the Japanese garden at Washington Park outside Portland. It was a steep walk up to the gardens which would have been good for us, but the shuttle ride was too fun to pass up!



After we visited the Japanese Gardens we went to the Oregon Zoo, also at Washington Park. What a fun time!



Very funny black bear exhibit, complete with a campsite and picnic basket to pillage.



Cool underwater viewing of the sea lions in the coastal exhibits.


This zoo is so cool! They had a covered area that housed a gigantic sandbox with toys to play with. Idea for Samish Island campgrounds????






The scary roaring Tyrannasaurus Rex! This exhibit nearly did Finley in. It was quite impressive and intimidating even for older kids with moving models and sound effects. Finley was so brave and made it through, although he was a bit rough on Todd's shoulders and face when he got scared. Ever see a cat trying to claw its way out of your grip in the vet's office? He didn't want to miss any of it though.




A handsome man I sat next to on the zoo train and with whom I flirted unashamedly.




An optical illusion attempt: OH NO! The dinosaur ate Evelyn and now it's going to eat Finley! AHHHHHHH!!

Finley and Todd waiting outside the Zoo Store for me to see if there was anything we couldn't live without. There wasn't. :)


An exhibit at the Oregon Zoo, Portland, showing the inner workings of the mechanized dinosaurs in the special dinosaur attraction.