Helmet Head

We recently bought a helmet for Jasper so that we could start biking with him. He doesn't like to wear the helmet at all. As soon as we put it on, he tries to pull it off. So, in an effort to get him used to it, I've been slipping it on him while he's playing or eating. He usually doesn't even notice what's on his head until a few minutes later. Anyway, here's a little picture of him with his helmet. It makes him look so grown up!

My mom

In honor of mother's day, I want to write about my beloved mother. I have the most fabulous mother in the world. My mom was the kind of mom who loved us kids to go outside and play and get dirty. When I'd come home from school with holes in the knees of my jeans or scuffed up new shoes, she never got mad or yelled at me or anything like that. I remember friends of mine, who would get introuble if they soiled their clothes, and I always felt so bad for them. My mom let us kids be kids. I never had to grow up too fast because my mom just let me be a kid as long as I needed to.
My mom was the kind of mom who would roll down the car windows, turn up the oldies station, and sing along to "It was an itsy, bitsy, teeny, weeny, yellow polka dot bikini" or "It's my party and I'll cry if I want to, cry if I want to...". I remember singing along for many years, and then going through the faze where I'd slouch down and try and hide from onlooking cars. Now, I sing along with her again.
My mom is popular. She's so fun! People love to be around her. She has spunk and spark. She's a bee-bopping queen. She dances in the living room. She and my dad used to put a record of Peter, Paul, and Mary on and dance in the living room. My dad would always dip my mom at the end. It was so cute.
My mom likes to play scrabble and do crossword puzzles. I love visiting my mom. Even when she's super busy, she always has time to sit down and do a crossword puzzle in the morning and play scabble with me in the evening.
My mom loves people. She is so service oriented. She's always running food to someone, or driving someone somewhere, or visiting someone. She's done so many things for her community, they should seriously name her town Corv-alice.
I feel so honored to be her daughter. She has taught me everything I know about how to be a mother. She's been my example throughout my life. I love her so much!

We just got back last night from Oregon. We had such a great time. We spent three days at Salishan Spa and Resort- what a treat!! It was amazing. I led a hike up Drift Creek Falls for my dad's annual Oregon Family Doctors Conference. I had about 20 people and it was the perfect size. We then went down to Corvallis and my mom and I celebrated mother's day together with breakfast in bed (thank you Rob for the yummy buckwheat pancakes)! We played two games of Scrabble with my folks, ate delicious food, went shopping, and just had a jolly, fun time.

Jasper and his friend C

Once a week, my friend Kathleen and I do a swap. It's been working out really well for both of us. Jasper loves C. (I'll just use her initial for confidentiality). She's a year older than he is and Jasper loves to watch and follow whatever she is doing. Today, we went to story time in Shoreline (it was the only place having one on a Monday) and in the car, C sang songs to Jasper and handed him crackers to keep him happy. She kept saying "I'm making baby Jasper happy!!" It was super cute. Later, we took a walk to the park and C began "reading" Dr. Seuss's ABC's (she actually knew quite a bit of it word for word) to Jasper. He listened better to her than he ever has when I read to him. It makes me want to have another baby when I see how fun it is for Jasper to have a playmate. Anyway, here are some shots from the park:

The next Olympic sport