The family goes to summer camp!

Every July some of the patients I take care of get to go to summer camp in the San Juans. Because they have some special needs, we send a few docs and some nurses to help out. It's a rough job hanging out in the San Juans for a few days, but someone's got to do it! This year I went and got to bring the whole family along as well.

The above are photos of Larson and Cora hanging out while we waited in the ferry line. For those unfamiliar with the ferry system in Washington, it's a pretty efficient and indispensible mode of transport around here, but on weekends and busy summer days, can involve a long wait in the "parking lot" that is otherwise known as the ferry line. Most people get out of their cars and hang out. We ate some snacks and enjoyed the sunshine and scenery!

Family pictures on the windy ferry deck.

The kids enjoyed playing on the beach, and we had great weather the whole time we were there.

Cora dipping her feet in the very cold water:

How's this for a view right outside the dining hall?

Cora enjoying one of her morning runs with dad:

Not one, but two jellyfish were spotted on this trip out in a rowboat with Larson, Brett, one of the other docs and her daughter!

Summer swimming

Cora's introduction to the wading pool! Her poor little knees got a little abraded from crawling on the cement, but it didn't seem to bother her in the least. Have I ever mentioned that we live in a very eco-conscious city? This carries over into summer fun, with lots of neighborhood wading pools scattered around to discourage people from wasting water on their own personal pools. It's more of a hike to get there than stepping outside your front (or back) door, but the water is actually treated and we think it's more fun with lots of other kids around, anyway!

Riding the Thomas Train

A Day out with Thomas came to our town this summer. For the uninitiated, it's basically a train ride with a giant Thomas engine in the front (that I'm pretty sure is just for show, but it's a cute idea) plus a bunch of other activities for kids around the train depot. I'm not typically a big fan of these commercial-ly types of events for kids, but Larson is pretty into Thomas so we decided to give it a go. Things started out pretty well, with Larson excited to pose for the following shot with Sir Topham Hat...

And the train ride itself was a lot of fun and took us through some beautiful mountain scenery:

After that was when things started to go downhill. I don't know about the rest of you parents out there, but when our kids get hungry or tired, things can deteriorate pretty quickly. We held off lunch a little too long - oops! Overall it was a pretty fun day, but I can't handle too much manufactured fun at a time. Going for a walk, playing in the yard or park - so much less stressful (and there's no gift shop!).

I get an email once a week from a local parenting magazine with weekend "activities" in our area for families. I used to want to go to *everything*, but now I know better. Thomas, Bob the Builder, Santa, fairs, festivals, etc...I think enjoying them in moderation is going to be the order of the day.

I love this picture of Cora peering over the top of the school bus seat on our ride back to the parking lot.
"Goodbye, Thomas...Goodbye engineer!" (maybe next year we'll bring more snacks...)

Visit from Nana & Bompa

July brought a wee bit of extra call for me, so to keep Brett's sanity for the 7 day stretch, Nana and Bompa paid us a visit to help out. We had great weather and both Larson and Cora enjoyed all the extra attention. The boys headed to the beach on a beautiful day for exploration and cooling off. I just love how kids are all programmed to do the same things at the beach: filling up buckets with water...

...and digging holes in which to pour it! Never gets old.

The best find of the day was a jellyfish floating in the water just offshore. Is it just me, or does it look a bit like a fried egg? Good thing no one got too close.

Larson and Bompa heading home...I think this was after the Amtrak train went by, another bonus to our favorite local beach.

Summer means birthdays in my family: it starts with dad in early July, then my sister later in the month and now August means three birthdays: my Aunt Phyllis, Cora and me. We decided to bake Bompa a cake on one of his last nights here. Larson was more than happy to oblige in the "clean up."

He also decorated the top of the cake. I think those are valentine's sprinkles, but who cares? :)

On the last day we decided to *try* to take some family photos. Of course, this was pretty much exactly the time of day when the weather decided to be really windy. And per usual, there is at least one person in almost every photo who is not looking at the camera, but here is the best of the bunch. I just tell myself that these are more "candid" shots that allow everyone's personality to show. Trying to get the perfect shot is next to impossible! (well, my sister could probably do it, but she's not around 24/7 just for Buchholz family photo-documentation!)

Very shortly after this visit, my dad became pretty sick and needed to be hospitalized and have surgery. He's now recovering at home, for which we are all so grateful. Even though I was working for the majority of the visit, we had such a great time and are so thankful that Nana and Bompa came to stay for the week before this "curveball" came our way. We love you both so very much!

Big News!

The last time my sister and I lived in the same town/city was the same year that this movie came out:Melrose Place was on the air, Ace of Base and Soul Asylum were on the radio and there was (gasp!) no internet or email. That was 16 years ago! Now we've recently learned that the Pacyna family is moving to Seattle and we couldn't be more excited!
Welcome to the Pacific NW, guys! Can't wait to share some salmon, blackberries, hikes, re-usable grocery bags, biking, rainboots and great times with you!!!!!