Oregon Vacation {West Linn}

The Bates clan headed up to Oregon for a few weeks in one of our favorite places in the world, Black Butte Ranch! I took an unbelievable amount of pictures (or maybe, knowing me, you CAN believe how many photos I took...) and so the best way to share them may be in segments. 

First up: Hometown visit.

We hopped off the plane in Portland and skipped over to the little town where we grew up: West Linn. 

The first place we hit was our favorite pizza spot. Round Table pizza was a tradition growing up - we'd run around with friends in the arcade and make suicides by mixing every single kind of soda they had.  (I'm sure they loved us!) Round Table was a sponsor for nearly every sports team in the town and so year after year, we celebrated wins, losses, and ends of seasons with pizza!

Here we are! It seriously looked JUST the same as when we were kids. We looked at every single team picture and found ourselves on the "wall of fame"! And the pizza is still as delicious as we remembered. Can you guess where Cooper was occupied while we walked down memory lane? Yep, loved that arcade!

After lunch, we headed over to our old neighborhood. We truly had the most wonderful childhood, so the memories of this place are so sweet. We lived on a street filled with kids and our house backed up to this 3 acre park. The old wooden playground equipment has been replaced, but it is still as beautiful and special as I remembered. No wonder my parents took one look at this house and bought it! Mom could see us playing at the park from the kitchen window and there was never a shortage of things to do.

Cooper couldn't get to the playground fast enough. Good thing he had a playmate!

We all had fun at the park - -

Some of us more than others!!

We had to snap some pictures from the edge of our old backyard.

Cooper and Colin did some serious swinging!

We toured all around the little town and even swung by our old school, Stafford Primary. Colin remembers dominating at kickball under the pavilion at recess and I remember years of carnivals and pioneer days and rafting trips down the little river adjacent to the school. What a special place!

Next up: Lake Oswego

SUMMER!

All smiles at the pool? Must be SUMMER!

Pancakes!

We are on a pancake kick around here. Like an every breakfast and every lunch kind of a kick. I’ve tried pancakes with every combination of topping in our pantry and Cooper has our favorite recipe memorized! Our dear friends, the Langemeier’s, make THE BEST pancakes I’ve ever tasted and since they shared the recipe, we’ve never tried anything else! Here it is:

Langemeier Pancakes and Waffles

Stir together 1 cup buttermilk and 1 egg in a mixer. Add each dry ingredient and stir after each addition.

1 cup flour

1 Tbsp. sugar

1/2 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. baking soda

1 1/2 tsp. baking powder

1 Tbsp, oil for pancakes and 1/4 cup oil for waffles

*This recipe makes 6 large pancakes, so I typically double it and make enough to freeze for later in the week!

Back on the Bike

Cooper’s had about a year of inexplicable fear of his bike. Last summer he was riding it everywhere but over the course of the year, his interest waned and turned into a fear. He would rather run alongside his friends than hop on his bike! Even with a new bicycle for Christmas and countless lessons, he wouldn’t even get on it. My sweet Dad decided that he’d try to help encourage Cooper to at least TRY riding again. The deal? One lap around our little street circle on Pop’s scooter in exchange for one lap with Cooper on his bike.

The scooter scooted along at a snail’s pace, but Cooper LOVED it!

And….. it worked! Coop’s back on his bike!

A little yard work

Just watering the lawn after school… nothing much.

However, it NEVER is that simple.

Oh, the joy of being five (and a half).

Watering the lawn easily turns into an evening running through the sprinklers. Fun!

Look at me, Mom! I'm so brave!

Poor little buddy now has a regiment of bloodwork to accompany his medicine. Not the most fun thing to do every 2 months! I was so proud as he decided to "be a big boy" and have it done without sitting in my lap or holding my hand.

"Look at me, Mom! I'm so brave!" If he hadn't requested a photo of his courage, I would still be looking away and taking deep breaths. Needles aren't my favorite - even when I'm not the patient!!


He did great! The nurse says he's a pro and he can come back to her chair anytime!


Just a few photos from

This is us…

If there are any photos that represent “real life” at the Bates’ house, here they are!

“Look Mom! He’s got 8 legs… this one is HUGE… it’s moving!” Every day after school, we’re in the yard, watering plants, looking for bugs, and soaking up the sunshine.

I propped my camera on a bucket to take a few shots with the timer.  Mom needs to be in the pictures, too! Someday I hope to look back on these sweet days with a smile…

Even if my landscaping rocks are always out of sorts and my knees are all dirty.

: )