Reading is Fundamental

In case you hadn't heard: Summer's On

Outtakes

There was a lot going on on that camping trip, I tell you. Here's a few more glimpses. For instance, here's Miki pointing at the big eagles and vultures flying overhead. She was quite entranced by them.

The tent, though; that was a more extreme situation...

Ida guided that innertube through some very dangerous and shallow rapids. Extreme concentration and occasional consternation were necessary.

Some of ERV's more remarkable moments were not captured. I also did not document Ida's great pleasure and talent for standing up and "peeing like a boy"; this is impressive, but doesn't work as well when you try it at home and you're not as tall as the toilet. Anyway, Ella really had this outdoor kitchen humming:

This is a haphazard post. I just want to get it all out there before ELSIE has returned. Which happened last night, so we can see her today. While she and Long A were gone, we did our best. We even had some fine moments like this one, where Theo's careful diaper changing seems to cause Miki to begin pooping...

"Our First Camping Trip"

One of the best things about camping is that it allows you to see new outfits from familiar people!


Let me back up. Okay, we went camping. Actually we camped on the secret land of some friends, the architect LeRoy Landers and the dermatologist Maeran Landers; it got kind of crazy, especially Miki and Ida crazy.

It did allow us to use our "new" six person tent. Enormous. Big enough?

I cannot tell you where this place is located, as there are numerous NO TRESPASSING signs posted. It is on the scenic Umpqua river, however, and that is one nice river.

I tried a little fishing, and managed to catch this fancy innertube that floated downstream all by itself. Hopefully its owner did not drown, or we would be cursed; most likely it was owned by one of the groups of people rafting and tubing down the river (one with a dog), but Ida hid the innertube when they passed, as she'd been instructed to do.

One of us forgot any swimwear and was left to cavort in his underwear, but no one seemed to care. It's easy, in these parts. (This brought to mind the time that the same individual was given a speeding ticket in California while wearing no pants [don't worry: he was wearing underwear]). Also, those are not calf implants. I've been liftin.
We moved outdoors and had a delicious feast!

And then we began to get ready for bed. Or did we? This is where things really went south on the trip. Very little sleep was had.

While the rest of us settled down, Ida insisted on going back outside, taking off her pants, and sitting on the innertube while pretending to "ride the waves" on the river below. After some extremely dramatic interactions with her mother--in which she returned to the tent, flopped around like a fish in her sleeping bag, threatening to wake up Miki, was exiled to the darkness where she wailed and threw her Therm-a-rest around, etc, etc. And when she wasn't going crazy, Miki was engaged in nurse-a-thons or just manifesting her complete excitement about being inside the tent.

Imagine this at about two in the morning:

Miki vs. Talulah

Over at Tumbleweeds, Talulah is Miki's best friend. She can walk, and we're hopeful that she'll teach Miki French and German.



Her mother was once a professional badminton player.


Ain't life grand?

Ferocity

Films: Miki vs. Ida

Miki is kind of out of control. She can't walk and can't hardly talk, but she can climb anything and likes to yell with enthusiasm.




Ida decided, this evening, to catch up with Cat. If he's singing at the piano, she sits; if he's standing and playing the guitar, she stands, too.

Mostly Miki, July 2010

We've been busy. We've done some notable things--just this morning we went double baby seat on the bikes and rode all the way downtown to the PSU farmers market, where we ate many delightful things. In fact, Miki and Ida ate a quart of strawberries in approximately three minutes, so we had to buy another. Blueberries and raspberries, too--but we haven't had the camera. So here we are fooling around in the driveway. Here's Miki, actually:


Miki, aka The Mikster, is still knee-walking, though she's taking some more steps on her feet. Her knees are callused like an elephant's. She can kind of say Mama, Bag, Up and various other things, if you're generous with your interpretation.



Ida? She was playing with a magic wand. Lately she has informed me that "A lightning bolt is actually not hot, it's cold; it comes through the cold rain and hits you! It's like the icicle we saw at Grace's house." She also says, "It's been a long time since Chandler was here. If she was here I'd say I miss her and I love her and I want her to come here."


Ichiban: still mean and hungry. Eating some grass out here, throwing it up over there.