Tag Archives: Portland

Summer in the City: Mississippi Street Fair

Attending the Mississippi Street fair is somewhat of a tradition in our family. I was a little disappointed when we missed it last year – although we were in Australia so that helped ease the pain a little. The year before we took our Japanese visitors and found it to be the perfect opportunity to immerse them in a slice of real Portland – even if this version of real Portland was a lot more crowded and noisy (and just a little more crazy) than the average day. I can’t find our post from 2010 so we may have missed that year as well, but I did find our 2009 visit and let’s just say that I was not prepared to look at photos of my teeny tiny little babies on a Monday morning. I may have to go curl up in a ball somewhere to get over the realization that “Super Why” is about to turn 8!

This year I decided to take the boys to the street fair while Kei stayed at home to work on the yard. Pretty sure I got the better end of that deal. We arrived at 10am to beat the crowds and I’m glad we did because it started to get insane when we left at about 12:30, although we missed a lot of the live music which was a shame. Still, the boys had a great time and were incredibly patient with me as I insisted on visiting every single booth. I love this age because they still like to hang out with their mother and yet don’t need a stroller or other sort of containment device to ensure they stay close (most of the time, anyway).

Here are a few highlights from the day.

Starting strong with a few Mexican wrestlers running down the street because… well I have no idea why.

The ninja nesting dolls that caused me to say “no, we are not buying them” about 20 times over the course of a couple of hours.

An impromptu art opportunity courtesy of OMSI.

I get so excited when my kids use color – it’s a rare occurrence.

Shave ice! (and the last piece of evidence before Thomas lost his cap).

An alien. Note to self: must visit the Pecularium sometime.

This painting was a favorite.

And I wanted that suitcase but have no idea where I would put it.

I definitely DID NOT want to take these home.

A sidewalk shave – comes with free whiskey

So, I feel like I have to explain this next photo. I really liked the look of these hand-painted flasks and I thought Kei would like the Sake one so I took a picture. And then I got home to review my photos and realized that I also took a photo of a really cool rooster with a slightly offensive message. My apologies.

Quick stop to climb some fake trees (notice that the cap has gone).

And a honey stick because they hadn’t had quite enough sugar yet.

We ran into a friend – and bigfoot.

This guy was blowing bubbles off his balcony. Great way to get into the spirit.

And, just before we decided the crowds were getting too much for us, we enjoyed a little music. I love that there’s always at least one person who dances like nobody’s watching. I tried to encourage my kids to dance but they were having none of it.

And that wraps another fun year at the Mississippi street fair.

 

Water Babies

I think we can call 2013 the Summer of swimming, well for the kids anyway. After years of intermittent swimming lessons, we decided this year to enroll the boys in six weeks of daily lessons.

It was risky move given Samuel refused to enter the pool when we last tried this approach. He’d sit on the stairs and refuse to budge despite bribery, threats and pleas.

I’m thrilled to say that, this year, Samuel is like a different child. Or maybe he’s just the same child with a couple of extra years under his belt. He was a little tentative getting into the pool for his first lesson, but as soon as his body hit the water he was all giggles. My stubborn little boy even decided to participate. That’s huge!

Thomas, meanwhile, has been swimming underwater, practicing his freestyle and overcoming his fear of the deep end of the pool. He’s becoming quite the little fish.

So, swimming lessons have been a huge success for us this year. The only thing that would make it better would be if they let parents in the pool on 95 degree days. It’s really not fair to make me watch the boys enjoy the nice cool water while I sweat on the sidelines, although I have managed to read a book or two and, when I get tired of that, I can close my eyes and pretend I’m on a beach in Maui.

July 4th Portland-Style, Part 1

I grew up in a country where displays of fireworks were a special event and handled only by professionals. They were massive displays that lasted 45 minutes to an hour and were sometimes accompanied by a radio soundtrack – and ONLY on Australia day or New Years Eve. (I also grew up in a place where you couldn’t buy alcohol in grocery stores, but that’s another story).

I’ve lived in the States for 10 years and I still find it shocking that I can walk into a grocery store and spend $29.99 on a packet of fireworks that I am allowed to set off in my backyard. I’m sure others in our neighborhood cross the border into Washington State and spend way more than that. I won’t do that on principle – and also because I’m a big chicken with two little boys who love fireworks in a way that makes me fear for their safety.

Last year we were in Australia on July 4th, so it’s been two years since my boys have witnessed the light show. And what a difference two years makes. Thomas was 5 last time, timid and shy. Now he’s seven and wants to light the fireworks himself (we didn’t let him). Two years ago, Samuel was an oblivious three year old. We may have even sent him to bed before the real fireworks began. This year, he’s five and his excitement freaked me out just a little bit, but he was incredibly entertaining. The friends who joined us for the 4th of July get together have children the same age – a boy and a girl. Looking back through the photos, it’s clear that firework are very much a boy thing, although five year old girls enjoy sparklers.

I’m breaking this post into two parts because I took way too many photos (or maybe just the right amount). The size and intensity of fireworks grew over the evening.

We begin before the fireworks.

I have no idea what’s going on here…

Look how sweet she is… oh, a how I wish for a little girl (until puberty anyway).

Bring on the sparklers.

Our sparklers come with a declaration of “Wingardium Leviosa!” Although I’m sure that happens in every family…

This is Edie. She almost makes me want to get a dog… almost…Perhaps if we could clone her…

After the sparklers we moved into the alley behind our house and started with the louder stuff.

Right now, they have no idea what’s coming.

Samuel was unable to keep still from excitement. See? He’s levitating.

Three, two, one…LOUD!

And then the light show started.

We took a short break for S’mores…

And then kicked it up a (small) notch.

Impressive and exciting, but the most impressive fireworks came courtesy of our neighbors. I’ll share those tomorrow.

Visiting Old Friends at the Oregon Zoo

It was a 75 degree Sunday, Kei was playing golf and had to get the kids out of the house. We arrived at 9am when the gates opened and stayed for 4.5 hours, saying hello to every single animal. We’ve had a zoo membership for about 5 years and so now some of the animals are like old friends. It felt good to be back.

Thomas put himself in charge of the map which only resulted in a few arguments.

As we walked around, I posted on Facebook about how grateful I am that our stroller days are behind us. We now have so much more freedom to relax and take our time without having to find ramps or stop for endless potty and feeding breaks (although we had a couple).

I am also grateful that I can stop and take a photograph without the fear that one my kids will run off while my back is turned for 30 seconds

We arrived just as the bears were being served breakfast.

This is the crowd that we had to navigate for a glimpse.

A favorite from the day. Goats are pretty cool – and able to stand still for a long time.

A quick stop to climb some statues.

It amuses me that his fingers are in the Lion’s nostrils. Looks uncomfortable.

Another favorite.

A tip for managers of Zoos around the world – if you want kids to read about animals, put the information on some sort of screen. Printed signs were ignored but if there was a screen around, we stopped Every. Single. Time.

Crickets and Scorpion lollipops. YUM!

This is the first time that we’ve been through the bird walk in a while. Samuel’s verdict? “It smells really bad in there.”

Overall, a wonderful, relaxing, sunny day at the zoo. I’m sure we’ll be back soon.

 

(Second) Best. Karaoke. Ever.

I know I’ve mentioned this before, but Karaoke has to be one of my favorite pass times.

My first Karaoke experience was in Japan with a group of Postal Workers. It was at the end of my “Postmaster for the day” celebration, which was one of those crazy only-in-Japan things that I now look back on and wonder if it really happened or if it was a figment of my imagination. I shared the honor with Ultraman and was required to sign a few fake postal documents. I’m pretty sure it happened…

My point is that this very first Karaoke experience set me up to enjoy Karaoke the RIGHT way – without inhibition and with as much enthusiasm as you can manage. Also, with Sake.

It was the single most fun Karaoke experience of my life.

A couple of weeks ago, I followed up with arguably my second most fun Karaoke night ever. I don’t know exactly what made it so great. It could have been the great mix of friends, a diverse song list or the the just-enough alcohol consumption. I’m pretty sure it was a mix of all three. All I know is that it was the perfect recipe for a night of fun, laughter and some killer dance moves.

On to the photographs. Excuse the funky lighting and out-of-focus shots – although I much prefer the photos of me that are out of focus. Thanks to Suzi for picking up the camera.

And if you make it to the end, you might just find our eclectic playlist.

Apologizing in advance for the next one – sorry guys, but it’s awesome.

The next one’s blurry, but I love it!

I also love the photos that show of some of the complicated lyrics.

And that we’re not afraid to go a little gangsta.

Please don’t judge the playlist, although I think everyone can agree that we ended on a high note. 🙂

PLAYLIST

Title Artist
Things We Do For Love, The 10CC
Son Of A Preacher Man Springfield, Dusty
Willkommen Cabaret
Just Give Me A Reason Pink feat Nate Ruess
Don’t Let Me Down Beatles , The
All I Wanna Do Crow, Sheryl
Good Morning Starshine Hair, The Musical
Cream Prince
Amish Paradise (Gangsta’s Paradise) Yankovic, ‘Weird Al’
Faith Michael, George
You Might Think Cars, The
We Are Golden Mika
Rumour Has It Adele
Seven Nation Army White Stripes, The
I Don’t Feel Like Dancin’ Scissor Sisters
F#ck You Cee Lo Green
What I Like About You Romantics, The
We Belong Benatar, Pat
Can’t Get You Out Of My Head Minogue, Kylie
I’m Your Baby Tonight Houston, Whitney
Is Anybody Goin’ To San Antone Pride, Charley
Bad Bad Leroy Brown Croce, Jim
Groove Is In The Heart Dee-Lite
Play That Funky Music Wild Cherry
Me, Myself And I De La Soul
Party Rock Anthem LMFAO Feat. Lauren Bennett and Goonrock
I’m Yours Mraz, Jason
I Knew You Were Trouble Swift, Taylor
I Don’t Want To Miss A Thing Aerosmith
Stayin’ Alive Bee Gees, The
Your Woman White Town
You Oughta Know Morissette, Alanis
Creep Radiohead
Time Of The Season Zombies, The
Empire State Of Mind Jay-Z & Alicia Keys
Criminal Apple, Fiona
Everybody Wants You Squier, Billy
Harper Valley P.T.A. Riley, Jeannie C.
All Night Long (All Night) Richie, Lionel
Sweet Child O’ Mine Guns N’ Roses
Raise Your Glass Pink
Don’t Stop Me Now Queen
Metro, The Berlin
Home Sweet Home Motley Crue
Sex (I’m A…) Berlin
Nothin’ But A Good Time Poison
Nuthin’ But A G Thang Dr. Dre
Bullet With Butterfly Wings Smashing Pumpkins
Moonage Daydream Bowie, David
Get The Party Started Pink
Mama I’m Coming Home Osbourne, Ozzy
Total Eclipse Of The Heart Tyler, Bonnie
Somebody That I Used To Know Gotye feat Kimbra
Love Shack B-52’s, The
Elderly Woman Behind The Counter Pearl Jam
What It Takes Aerosmith
I Want Your Sex Michael, George

Catch Up Wednesday: Karaoke, TEDx Inspiration and Everything in Between

Wow – it seems it’s been a week since my last post. You can blame my absence on the following:

  • Good weather (editing photos is tough when the sun is shining)
  • Game of Thrones
  • More Game of Thrones
  • Three whole seasons of Game of Thrones (and one big O.M.G at the almost end!)
  • Work
  • End of school year insanity (Field day, Pajama Day and don’t even get me started on teacher gifts, ugh!)
  • Gardening and house organizing.
  • And did I mention work? Drowning.

So, I’m taking a brief respite while waiting on some project feedback to share some photo teases and a little inspiration.

The Boys

We’ve been spending a lot of time outside, playing with soccer balls, wall balls and baseballs and planting vegetables, flowers and grass. We’ve also enjoying family movie night – Peter Pan and The Fantastic Mr. Fox are the most recent. I need to take more photos of these guys. Thomas and Samuel are growing up very quickly. I know this because it seems like they grew out of every pair of shoes and item of clothing within the past couple of months.

More photos coming soon…

The Girls

I promised these photos over a week ago. They’re still coming together but here’s a tease for the ladies who joined me on, arguably, THE. BEST. EVER. karaoke night. The photos are a little “artsy” (dark and blurry with weird disco lighting), but I love them.

More photos coming soon…

The Inspiration

My two favorite talks from TEDx Portland are now available on YouTube.

First up is a very high energy and inspirational presentation by Graphic Designer and illustrator Kate Bingaman Burt. If you need a 15 minute pick-me-up then I highly recommend this one.

As an immigrant, the next talk from Ben Huh hit very close to home. It might make you look at the immigration debate in a different light.

I’ll be back to post more photos soon but for now, back to work.

A Sing-a-Long with Storm Large, Pink Martini and the Von Trapps: Aka, Just Another Sunny Sunday in Portland

I mentioned last week that I spent a sunny Sunday afternoon in Portland’s Pioneer Square for a free concert/sing-a-long. Well, I’m finally getting around to posting a few pictures.

First let me mention that this particular Sunday was the type of day that Portland likes to tease us with in April. It happens just once or twice during the month- the sun comes out, clouds disappear and temperatures are more Summer than Spring. People start packing their coats away for the season and bring out the sandals…. then two days later they bring out their coats when the rain comes back and we are, once again, plunged into darkness.

Still, for two days we are reminded why we own a pair of sunglasses, and it’s fantastic!

Here’s proof that blue skies do, in fact, exist in Portland.

The concert itself was a lot of fun, although it turned out to be more of a giant Karaoke party than a concert. Not that I don’t love Karaoke (you know I do), but I wish we’d heard a little more from Pink Martini and Storm Large.

I also wish the woman lacking any sense of personal space had not sat down right in front of me. Good thing the sunny weather contributed to my sunny disposition.

The almost 90 year old clarinetist (is that a word?) was great. You can see him sitting on the left. A few of the Von Trapp grandchildren are on the right. Their presence was a little random but I enjoyed it when they sang the yodeling song from the Sound of Music. It made me wonder, though, how tired they must get singing of those songs. And are they allowed to sing anything else or are they contractually obligated from birth?

I think the highlight for me was a passionate rendition of “I will Survive” near the end of the program. Nothing like a women’s anthem to get the crowd excited.

I was secretly hoping for this song (not safe for children or work…unless your boss is REALLY OK with the “V” word), but that may have pushed us way too far in to Portlandia territory.

Thanks for a great afternoon ladies.

Before They Disappear

I see these trees every morning on the drive to school. They’re in the distance, on the downtown side of the Willamette River, and I catch them for a few seconds as I drive 50 miles an hour on the freeway. I’m often running late and a little bit frazzled and sometimes (more often than I’d like to admit) I’m yelling at the kids to stop yelling at each other in the backseat of the minivan. But I always take a moment to look across the river and see if the trees are still in bloom.

When I lived in Japan (many, many years ago) I was surprised to discover that Cherry Blossoms only bloom for two, maybe three, weeks. I suspect that why I love them so much. They appear only fleetingly as a promise of Summer to give those of us in the NW a little hop that the rain will eventually stop and we’ll remember why we live here.

This morning, I could see flecks of green in the trees across the river. If it rains this weekend then I suspect the blossoms will be gone by Monday. Still, despite the anticipated rain and cold, I know that Summer is on the way.