Party Pugs

The kids and I were on the news in Phoenix, discussing the important topic of pancakes.
 
On the 30th we took off for Portland, stopping at Namaste of course.
 
Boppa is recovering from an altercation with a ladder, so he enjoyed napping with Gryphon.
 
Mimi and Boppa treated us to some tasty phở.
  
Jared, Alyson, Billie, and the Party Pugs were gracious hosts.
 

Hello, my deer

We took another trip up to Hurricane Ridge now that the snow has mostly disappeared. 
 
 
Gryphon and I practiced our nature photography.
 
 
Glaciers around here have lost 30% of their surface area since the 70s, due to climate change.  Here’s Carrie Glacier:
 

Fair play

We had lunch at the county fair on the 18th – the tractor sales exhibit was the children’s favorite part by far.
 
I got up early one morning and did a brief interview on Skype with Good Day Sacramento …about pancakes.

 
When we were leaving Saipan I lamented having to do without coconut water… luckily it’s suddenly become popular (and you can find it without added sugar).
 

Hovander

We took a trip to Hovander Homestead Park in Ferndale with Dar Dar on the 15th, while Mom entertained book group ladies.
 
The remote-control observation camera was Gryphon’s favorite. 
  
The tractor was pretty good too though.
 
We made a stop at the Marine Life Center before heading back to Port Angeles on the 17th.  Gilgamesh the octopus was changing colors.
 
 
But how did we get home?  Luckily craigslist came to the rescue with a new used car.  We call it Big Blue, in honor of our Saipan CR-V, Big Red.

High school friends

The kids and I hitched a ride back to Bellingham while Cheri got ready for some extra shifts at the clinic.  On the 13th we got to meet my friends Eric and Amber’s new baby, Charlotte.
 
Gryphon and Alice enjoyed Whatcom Falls Park a little too much.  We planned for water the next day.
  
Various Masters of the Universe joined Gryphon and Alice in the bathtub throughout the week. 
 
We were back at Whatcom Falls the next day, first to play in the water in the morning, and later to meet even more school friends and their progeny: Mike and Melissa brought Quinton, Teegan, and Hudson.