The end of August means the first day of school around these parts. We walked an enthusiastic second-grader down the hill to her school.  She was a bit anxious on the first day of school with a new teacher, but quickly settled in once she saw a few smiling friends.

Her best buddy G is in her class, so the teacher will have a time keeping those two from getting into too much trouble.  Clare loves seeing her friend each day.

So far we really like her teacher.  He has a blog and updates Facebook, so I love knowing what’s going on in the classroom.  Here is a quotes from it, reminding me why elementary school teachers are special people:

“Now that its here, the first day of school is actually here, my heart’s beating a little bit harder, my palms a little bit sweatier.  It’s a mixture of nerves and excitement.  I want this year to go so well.  I want this group of kids to feel challenged, pushed to places they didn’t they were capable of going.  I want to push myself.  I want to bravely lead this new group and give them experiences that they won’t soon forget.  I want them to love school.”

The school year means a little extra push to our usual crazy schedules. There are endless lunches to pack, PTA meetings and Back to School Nights to attend, sniffly noses and colds to pass around, and permission slips to sign and return to school.  There is stress at school and work that makes us tired and cranky in the evenings, but there are also new friends to make, new books to read and new things to learn and discover.

Summer 2016 has been one for the traveling books.  It’s the first summer that we have taken trips with two full-on kids.  No diapers, no naps, carry your own backpacks, get dressed yourself, walk on your own two feet kids.  Sure there’s the occasional whiny fit, there are still meals and snacks that only Mom and Dad can take care of, tired feet call for piggy-back rides and the kids fell asleep in the car a few times (they are only 4 and 7 after all).  But traveling with kids is soooo much easier than traveling with babies.

We learned this on our big summer trip to Alaska.  We hiked, we explored, we stayed in a couple of different places, we ate at restaurants, took early flights and  stayed up late talking around the campfire.  We had long conversations about big issues.  The kids handled it beautifully.  I think we all enjoyed ourselves.  Not to mention, we all got to fall in love with one of the most beautiful places on earth – Alaska.

The flight to Anchorage started with a disturbance in the seat next to J.  Fortunately it was resolved quickly and efficiently and we continued on our way.

Where we were met by an enthusiastic welcoming committee and that beautiful Alaska scenery.

The reason for the trip was Grandma T’s long-awaited retirement from BLM.  We attended a really lovely retirement party for her and then got outta town to a little cabin in Hope, Alaska.  The cabin was appropriately rustic and relaxed, so we built a campfire and enjoyed long days and light-filled evenings of stories and laughter.

We drove out to Seward to explore the aquarium and the coast.  We took a train to Whittier and had clam chowder against a rainy backdrop.  We checked out Alaska wildlife at a rehabilitation center.  More than that, we soaked in the incredible Alaskan scenery and time with family.

It was a lovely time.

Summer 2016 – you’ve treated us well.  You didn’t stay long, but you were a good time while you were here.  You left us with memories of trips, hikes, bike rides, baseball games, BBQs, outdoor adventures and precious little time spent indoors.  Here are a bunch of pictures (and very few stories) to commemorate Summer 2016.

Our beloved friend Carrie (Auntie Carrie around these parts) had a beautiful baby boy.  So we spent as much time as possible snuggling with him.

There was swimming…

There was some time spent exploring our beautiful part of the world…

And some time relaxing on our back deck….

There was a trip to the baseball field.

There were lots of bike rides… (Clare now on a two-wheeler and Sam on the tag-along).

And there was ice cream eating…

All in all – it was a pretty perfect summer when you’re 4 and 7.

Oh there was more to it than that.  There were trips, there was camping, there was weeks spent with grandparents… But this a taste of the sun soaked days of an Oregon Summer.