A man who dares to waste one hour of time has not discovered the value of life.
I am fairly certain that if I have ever met a person that embodies this particular idea, it's my absolutely incredible mother in law, Nora. She is definitely NOT a person to squander her time - whatever she's doing, she's enjoying herself and she has created the way she wants to feel and her comfort makes others comfortable around her. It's really nothing short of amazing. I am thrilled that my family has expanded in this beautiful way and that I have been fortunate enough to be a part of Nora's life.
Now, this easily could become an Ode to Nora blog post but the real point is to share with you our adventures in Bend, OR while we were visiting with Nora and I think you will have a better idea, if you don't already, of what I'm trying to say. There will be a LOT of pictures. Yay!!! Right?
Let's see here, I think we stayed with Nora in Bend for about a month, some part of July to some part in August. Hey, it was that kind of summer. We arrived at Nora's in Oregon after traveling away from Colorado. If I'm not mistaken there had been a problem with the camper at our last campsite and we made the decision to spend extra time in Bend instead of doing the extended West Coast part or our trip. Meh. We live on the West Coast now. I'm sure we will manage to find a way to work in some of those trips that we didn't get to do this summer. No biggie. Alcatraz and the Winchester Mansion for Aydan's 16th birthday? There's an idea...ANYWAY!
I'm going to start adding in the pictures already and then maybe this will start forming into something less tangent like...
Aydan and Rosie first morning in Nonni's house. That couch is fantastic for family movie time and naps :)
Something has taken over Aydan that makes him want to climb everything. I blame Andrew entirely. But I love and encourage it in both of them :)
Pretty pops of color along the pathway.
Rosie
loves
the
backyard. No joke. Anytime she could get her happy doggy body outside to roll around in the grass or dirt and lay in the sunshine, she did it! Fenced in backyards are really a dog and dog owners best friend.
Naturally, I am the person taking pictures of my dogs and not people. Oh, Traci. But! This was a super delightful night. Nora had invited members of BUGs (Bend Ukulele Group) over to play music, sing and enjoy a fire in the backyard. There were lots of ukes and a guitar or two, I believe Nora even brought out her flute at one point. Can't really think of a better way to spend the evening.
Speaking of ukuleles...
Here's my pretty little tenor uke, a gift from my sweet little brother, Mike. We had been traveling with a soft case for the ukulele but we also always keep it in the back of the truck with dogs that leap unexpectedly and forcefully and we were thinking something a bit more rugged for protecting my uke would be nice.
Nora and I visited a local music place that carried lovely hard cases. We bought one, brought it home and gave it a little personalization. The quote says "we are the music makers, and we are the dreamers of dreams", Nora's handwriting :) I love it.
One of our first outings was to Pilot Butte - it's basically this big, steep hill with a spiral path that takes you up to the top.
One of my favorite parts of this visit was the amount of mother/son time that happened. Each time this mother son pair had time with each other, I had some extra mom and Aydan time.
It was a bit of an overcast day so seeing the mountains off in the distance is a bit of a challenge but I swear they are there!
Another view of cloudy mountains in the distance.
One of our other excursions was a visit to the lava fields. This was such a neat place to romp through.
Lots of action shots for the day. A bit blurry, a lot fun :) This streak of green and blue is Andrew jumping down after climbing the pole to the ceiling.
Leap!
Nora says "I'll catch you!"
Me and my sweetie! I don't get to be in pictures often because I'm generally the photographer and I'm not much for having my picture taken. With Nora around, it was nice to have pictures of all of us together. She does such a good job of making everyone feel included.
Photo bomb from Aydan.
Sneaky picture of another mom and son moment.
Jump! Once he gets going, Aydan will pretty much climb, jump, and leap over anything he can. Yes, this makes his mother a bit nervous but Aydan has, thankfully, always had a practical, cautious side and I don't worry TOO much :)
One of the few moments where I flipped the camera to try to grab all of us in the backseat of Nora's car.
Aw :)
I have SO many photo series where it's just me and Aydan and one photo after another. It's heart warming to catch this expressive, fun kid when he's being...you know, expressive and fun.
This isn't as much a high five as it is a "get out of my face, Mom" :)
Look at those three dance :) I love to watch my family play!
Aydan.
Fun family picture!!!
And then there was the day Nora took us all horse back riding! What a TREAT!!
We each had to brush down our horses before riding them.
Nora and Aydan getting ready before the ride.
Just another mom and son moment for Andrew and Nora :)
Me getting to brush out my pretty horse for the day.
I really like this picture of all of us too!
Nora grabbing a photo of the line of us all riding together.
LtoR: Andrew, me, Aydan and the nice gentleman who took us out on the trail.
Picnic lunch!
Me on a horse!
Crossing streams on the horses.
So, one day we were hanging out at the lake.
With the mountains in the background.
Flying a kite.
In the warm, warm sun...
And then the next day you might want to head up the mountain.
Where winter coats and snuggling are needed for warmth.
Have I mentioned how much I adore my husband? And I LOVE this moment where I am leaning into him and he is kissing my forehead. This man takes THE BEST care of me and my son. I am a lucky, lucky woman.
This is Smith Rock.
These are the guys getting ready to climb Smith Rock. Nora's treat for Aydan for his birthday was a trip to Smith Rock for a real, outdoor rock climbing adventure.
View of the park.
I can't say how tickled I was by this bathroom. It was the first outhouse I have ever been in that I didn't feel I had to hold my breath in and you use WOOD shavings to cover up your business like a kitty with litter. Smart!
If you look VERY closely, you can see Andrew in the black shirt and jeans climbing.
This was one of our warmer walks and Rose definitely wanted a bit of shade by the time we had been walking for a while.
Another pre-hike and climb photo.
One of my FAVORITE pictures from this summer. We had SUCH a good time!
Getting ready to climb.
My kid is braver than I am...
And there's a bit of a recap of our first visit to Bend. We were back again in October and are heading there this weekend to drop off Aydan to spend Spring Break with his Nonni. After being without my mom and dad for so long it feels amazing to have a parent and grandparent back in my life again. The best part about this relationship with my mother in law is that it is still at the beginning and there is so much room to grow.
Ok, well, this has been a bit more of a slapped together mess than I would normally like but I hope that if nothing else, the pictures are enjoyed.
Love to all!
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