Spectacular Summer Weather

 Daddy tells Ezekiel the story of the flood and the first rainbow.

A little run in the big raindrops.

Double rainbow over the vineyard across from our house.

We've been having some unusual weather lately. (Well, unusual for Walla Walla, at least.) Every evening the sky will cloud over and we will get some awesome thunder and lighting and sometimes even a little rain. Tonight we had a lovely double rainbow right around sunset.

Intrepid Explorer

Cutting a swath through the giant thistles.

Helping to water the tomato plants (and himself).

There is just so much exploring to be done. Zeke wandered around this evening with Daddy and Saphira and tried to find as much mischief as possible.

Impromptu Floatery

Getting a late start Friday we wanted to get on the river real quick like. going down the frigid river until we were shaking in our boots. Setting up camp in a frozen rush Corren got a fire blazing while I set up the tent. That next morning with ice clinging to EVERYTHING we ate beautiful fluffy pancakes with sweet, sweet maple surup. Once the sun warmed stuffs up a bit and after the river otters checked us trespassers out we were on the river once again. With our stomachs full of wonder and our bodies feeling like non ice cubes we were off! And 6 hours later we were off again! Home that is. It was really fun.

Splashdown

Zeke can't quite figure out what just happened.

Ladybug clusters.

It was probably inevitable. In the blink of an eye Zeke took three giant steps into the river and then tripped and fell. Jesse was right there to pluck him up and I quickly stripped off his soaked clothes. Then he got to wear daddy's shirt and Rachel's coat sleeves for leggings. And, as Jesse now had completely soaked shoes, that cut short our adventure for the day.

Southfork Sabbath Afternoon

Dad takes a break to tie his bootlace.

Jesse and Rachel let Zeke explore the riverside.

Ezekiel practices his new phrase; "Go, go go!"

What could be more fun than throwing rocks in the river?

After a lovely morning in church and Sabbath School, we were anxious to get outside and enjoy the beautiful weather. I'm not even sure we've ever taken Ezekiel to South Fork, so it was time. Jesse and Rachel were able to join us, so it made for the perfect afternoon excursion.

Videos from the Zoo

Here are a few short clips from our day at the zoo. We were too busy soaking up all the sights to get enough video, but oh well...

Evening Fun

Making popcorn with Grandpa Harold.

Everyone was feeling like snacking when we got home, so after polishing off Grandma Ellen's macaroni and cheese, we had popcorn and fruit and homemade applesauce. Then it was such a beautiful evening that we took a stroll down the road and along the river.

African Lions

The majestic, and somewhat timid male.

Enjoying the super, close-up view of the lionesses.

Robb tries not to be nervous.

By the time we reached the lions, it was a blazing sunny day and they were out enjoying the warm rocks. Then the zookeepers dropped in some boxes for them to explore and they headed right over to the window we were in front of. They were so close it almost made you twitchy.

Africa Animals

After the excitement of the lions, we cruised through the rest of the Africa exhibits. The cheetahs were cozied right up next to the window. The rhino was up and about, the little caracal was nesting in the sun and the hippo was putting on quite a show.

Asian Elephants

 Looks like Packy has to stay inside today.

 Jesse and Rachel posing it up at the elephant overlook.

Zeke is enamored with the giant creatures.

50 years ago an elephant named Packy became the first elephant to be born in North America in 44 years. Since then, the Portland Zoo has become known for their Asian Elephants, and they are pretty amazing. There were some younger ones out in the overlook that were play fighting. Or really fighting, it is hard to say.

A Little Time Out

 Zeke frolics in a little water display.

Could anything be better than eating elephant ears
on a sunny day at the zoo? Rachel thinks not.

 Did you know that vultures need lots of sunlight so the UV rays can kill off all the nasty bacteria they get into?

We finally decided to pause for a bit for refreshments (and a diaper change). We headed out to the parking lot for a mini tailgate party around our well-stocked cooler. It also started to warm up nicely (which was great, as we were about to head into Asia and Africa for the afternoon). Some of us actually needed sunscreen.

Primates

This guy decided to show us his bum.

Zeke and Robb witness a turtle fight.

So, there were some pretty miserable looking primates in this section. The chimpanzees looked like they might need to go back to bed. But there were a couple of pretty cute gibbons that looked utterly bored when we got there, but then decided to start swinging on branches and showing off in general. There was also a small section of Amazon Flooded Forest.