i've BEND to london

So all week we've told Owen that we are going to go to Bend this weekend, and he kept reciting the line "I've been to London to visit the Queen." (It's a line from a nursery rhyme.) We tried to understand why Owen thought Bend sounded like London, then we realized it was "been to".

Anyway, we went to Bend this weekend, on our annual Anniversary trip, this time bringing a miniature chaperon with us. It wasn't a romantic weekend, but a fun family get away. Bend is on the other side of the Cascades from Corvallis- about a 2.5 or 3 hour drive. We saw Tumalo Falls, went to a great museum, drove up Pilot Butte, and walked around town. Owen said that his favorite part was the waterfall, though I suspect he also liked sleeping in a King bed together and watching TV in bed. The weather was crisp all weekend- a little too chilly this morning but perfect fall temperatures the rest of the time.

the view

Here's a couple of pictures of the view of Sisters from our porch. It has been a beautiful and clear couple of weeks, and it has been a nice treat to get to see Sisters. One is at sunrise (a small concession for having to get up so darn early now that I'm back to full time!).

san diego

We had an anxious week, listening to the news about the fires in San Diego. The area hardest hit was in Rancho Bernardo- where the HP site is located and where many of our friends and colleagues live. We kept reading emails and web sites- hoping to get word that everyone and all their houses were safe. Luckily, as far as we know today, everyone at HP appears to be safe and accounted for. Their houses are not so lucky. Several of our friends have lost everything. It is hard for us to internalize what they are going through right now- our thoughts are with them.

The first picture on this link below is Henry and Adriana D'Souza's house- our good friends who watched Owen when he was 6 months to 1 year. Their house actually didn't burn down.

http://www.pbase.com/ahuse/image/87701744

a walk on a perfect fall day

i want to do the dishes!

Owen's current favorite activity? Doing the dishes and helping in the kitchen. He likes rinsing the dishes and putting them in the dishwasher. He likes to pretend to make dinner- usually eggs and birthday cake, sometimes pancakes.

toys for the boys

Owen and Richard got new toys. Richard's came from Home Depot, Owen's from my friend Wendy in Japan. Both are very pleased.

pumpkin patch

We went to the pumpkin patch last weekend while Gramma was here- my mom flew in for the week to help out while I went to San Diego (again!) for work. It was a beautiful fall day and we had a great time at the farm. We took a tractor ride down to pick out our pumpkins. We went through a corn maze and got only a little lost.