Attack of the 50 Foot Couple and One Teeny Baby

2 months old...

2012-02-03T12:08:00.000-08:00

Our little guy is 2 months and changing every day. He is starting to smile, (but one must work very,very hard to experience this delightful moment)has decided bath time is not meant to be torture and is sleeping for longer stretches at night.

Height: 23 inches
Weight: 11 pounds 13 ounces

That there's one big bottle o' wine...

2012-01-25T11:38:00.000-08:00

Sure hope you're thirsty Henry!

*We have been really bad about uploading pictures of Henry from our camera to computer. Let's blame Jake. This was way back when Henry was three weeks old (seems like an eternity ago).

Bring on the Cloth...

2012-01-14T11:27:00.000-08:00

Baby boy seems to be stoked to give cloth diapers a shot. His mama is just slightly hesitant.

Not so teeny tiny...

2012-01-10T13:58:00.000-08:00

I thought that when I was home on maternity leave the blog might actually get a little more love. Silly me, why blog when one can sleep...or at least stare off into space.

Our teeny tiny baby, is now a chunk. At four weeks he was a little over ten pounds and at the rate he is eating he'll probably be twenty pounds by the time he is three months old.

Housh seems to be getting used to the fact that unlike all the other babies that have been to our house, this kid isn't going anywhere anytime soon. He does his best to ignore Henry but has moved back to sleeping in bed with us- this may be because it is the only room in our house that is above 55 degrees at night.

Merry Christmas!

2011-12-21T13:53:00.001-08:00

2011-12-15T20:50:00.000-08:00

Henry James you have stolen our hearts. And a lot of mommy's sleep.

The Two Henrys

2011-12-13T09:37:00.000-08:00

Henry Duman

meet Henry Denbrook

This little kid has a lot to live up to being named after this wonderful man. Miss and love you tons, Grandpa!

He's Here!

2011-12-07T08:12:00.000-08:00

Just a quick post to say that Mr. Henry James decided to come 2 weeks early! Our little man (and yes he was actually little, no world record for length this time) joined our family Friday evening, December 2 at 9:00 just as the Ducks won the Pac 12 championship. It really was a little too much excitement for Jake. Henry was 19 inches and 6 pounds 10 ounces of pure adorableness.

We had a really smooth labor and delivery. I was at work almost all day on Friday thinking I was experiencing Braxton Hicks. Apparently I was unaware that Braxton Hicks do not intensify and get closer together...only real contractions do! I already had a 4:30 weekly appointment that afternoon so we kept the appointment. I had three contractions while in the waiting room, was quickly seen and then sent straight to the hospital where we had Henry four hours later.

We are all doing well and loving our sweet boy...although Housh still hasn't decided if he's a fan or not!
First Family Photo

More photos to come shortly!

Babymoon

2011-11-24T16:31:00.000-08:00

A few weeks ago we decided to take advantage of being able to get away without a baby! We found an awesome deal that got us a great room at the Oregon Gardens, dinner (you can choose anything on the menu- Jake got filet mignon and I had shrimp penne pasta),a bottle of wine and breakfast all for $100. Seriously an amazing deal with amazing food.

This is Jake's best "I"m rich and fancy and drinking all of the wine" face.

And when you can't drink wine, you definitely order dessert.

Maternity Pics

2011-11-03T19:31:00.000-07:00

These were taken at 33 weeks. We can't believe our baby will be here next month!

At 32 weeks...

2011-10-24T19:23:00.000-07:00

You get really excited about cake. This cake was also very heavy and I was very fearful that in my ever so clumsy state, it would topple to the ground before anyone got to taste its wonderfulness. Thankfully this was not the case.

Our good friend Vanessa is due about four weeks after us. We're so excited to have such wonderful friends expecting at the same time as us.

Thanks to the incredible generosity of our friends and family, Henry's nursery is starting to come together. We grow more and more excited about meeting this little guy and can't wait to put him in all the adorable clothes that we have been receiving.

On a side note, one of my kinders informed me today that when I have the baby the doctors will "have to wipe him off cuz I have lots of blood and stuff in my body...and did you know babies come out naked, Mrs. Dembrud?" Oh, I love the things that that five years old say- even when they tell me I don't have a baby in my belly, just a fat stomach!

Practicing

2011-10-16T15:21:00.000-07:00

Next up....swaddling the pumpkin.

We have heat!

2011-10-08T18:10:00.000-07:00

And this is where I shall plant myself until the sun comes back out next summer...

Anyone else find it odd that we have an electric fireplace right in front of a real one?

Bigger and Bigger and Bigger

2011-09-26T17:50:00.000-07:00

We're 7 months and sailing right along. The nursery is a disaster, the cat is already wanting more attention and I have been asked at least half a dozen times "Mrs. Denbrook, why are you STILL pregnant." Apparently I also have started to waddle a wee bit. Life is good and grand and wonderful.

5:30 AM

2011-09-07T18:29:00.000-07:00

Call me a fool, but this kid looks pretty excited to be working before 6 am. Jake scored himself a sporadic part-time job that entails grading online tests from 5:30 am- 2 pm from the comfort of our home and with a certain black cat on his lap.

And here I am at 25 weeks. Pretty sure I have a big fella in there. I swear it's him who is hungry all the time, not me.

Fancy Schmancy

2011-08-25T12:16:00.000-07:00

Jake's been working away on a new website for Accendo Images. It's now live and up and running and pretty dang sweet. Check it out!

www.accendoimages.com or click here.

We've got a Kicker!

2011-08-24T16:27:00.000-07:00

Summer has flown by and not only am I nearing the end of summer vacation but also the end of my fifth month of pregnancy! We'll be 24 weeks on Friday and are feeling absolutely fantastic. Henry has started to be quite the kicker. Jake can now feel him moving around and today we both spent quite a bit of time staring and laughing at my belly as the kid rocked out to Jake's guitar. We are hoping and pleading that this little guy gets his father's aptitude for music instead of my inability to even clap on beat. Yesterday at our doctor's appointment the doctor commented on what a strong kicker the baby was for his size. This leads us to believe that Henry may also be inheriting his father's massive feet. Anyone wanting to contribute to our son's future shoe fund can contact us privately. :)
I really should think about buying some maternity clothes at this point...

In the words of Monica Gellar...

2011-07-26T18:59:00.000-07:00

"I'm going to love you so much no woman will ever be good enough for you."

Our sweet Henry James.

And a not so exciting picture of me at 19 weeks 4 days. I can't believe we'll be half way on Friday. Let the nesting and shopping begin!

Our newest nephew!

2011-07-25T13:55:00.000-07:00

We're in love with this sweet little guy and can't wait to find out tomorrow if we are giving him a girl or boy cousin.

Jake at his finest.

2011-07-13T19:43:00.000-07:00

This look can mean only one thing; it's mosquito season in the Cascades. And for anyone wondering- "Family Safe" bug spray is also bug safe. I'm pretty sure I put our baby at more risk by the 88 bites I received than if I had doused myself with deet. Our faces, of course remained bite free and did so while looking amazingly attractive.

Zee Baby Bump

2011-07-08T19:11:00.000-07:00

Here we are at 14 weeks.

And now at 17 weeks (just after dinner and feeling very uncomfortable).

Baby's First Jump

2011-06-29T22:02:00.000-07:00

If there is one thing this baby is going to have to get used to, it's jumping.

(At the beach in Yachats celebrating our 4th wedding anniversary.)

We are in our second trimester and are feeling wonderful, which is a very nice change from the never ending nausea experienced during that delightful first trimester. I have gained exactly zero pounds which is not very exciting at all. We are trying to remedy that but my diet consists mostly of strawberries and string cheese, which apparently are not high caloric foods.

Our next doctor's appointment is July 26th and will include a ultrasound to find out what we're cooking. Can't wait!

A Return to the Blogging World

2011-06-05T19:15:00.001-07:00

I've been doing a lot of this lately.

Mainly due to this.

We're due December 16th and are very much looking forward to this new adventure into babyland.

Avalanche Smavalanche

2011-04-07T20:40:00.000-07:00

There once was a boy who had a dream. A dream to photograph Crater Lake during the winter, after fresh snow and with clear skies. Too much to ask for? Maybe. Perhaps. But luckily not.
The original plan was to drive up to the top and then snowshoe gracefully around part of the rim. Unfortunately there was a wee bit of an avalanche closing the road, so we instead got to snowshoe straight up to the rim. It was a really great reminder of just how out of shape we are.

Our view from the top made all of the sweating and whining well worth the effort.
Awww, so beautiful.

While Jake shot his heart out (that just doesn't sound right), I froze my hiney off. One might think the cold temps might inhibit our ability to pull off a jumping photo, but we're pretty professional when it comes to this obligation.

Because we are Jake and Jill

2011-03-24T17:59:00.000-07:00

This last week has been our Spring Break- a time when most people tend to visit warmer climates, but alas because we are not like most people we opted for a very wintry SPRING break near Crater Lake.

Here's the charming little cabin we stayed at with our good friends Kris and Allison. There was no heat in the bathroom and barely enough room to turn around in the rest of the living space, but totally delightful and fun.

Our first adventure was snowshoeing at Diamond Lake. It turned out to be a bit blizzardy, and you couldn't quite see the lake. In fact there was so much snow, you could barely see the sign itself.

Here's our lunch break spot. There's nothing quite like sitting in the snow to eat your bagel sandwich. At this point we tried to imagine sitting on a nice warm beach. Kris almost makes it seem believable. Almost.

We even wrote Spring Break 11 in the "sand."

Next up...why an avalanche didn't stop us from getting up to Crater Lake.

Have Goggles Always Been Sexy?

2011-03-01T19:20:00.000-08:00

My mom does not like the word sexy, so to her I apologize. She also does not like the word snot, for anyone keeping track.

Jake used to say that January and February were the absolute worst months of the year. He hated them with a deep dark passion. Kind of like how I hate when kids sneeze in my mouth. I was always a little offended by this hatred as both my birthday and our dating anniversary fall in February. I may have told him this many times, but it did little to alleviate his winter hatred. "What's there to look forward to?" he would whine.

Snowboarding, however, has taken away any and all feelings of angst towards our first two calendar months. Strap a board to his feet and a pair of sweet goggles to his noggin and all of a sudden life in the Denbrook home is much more manageable. Fresh powder of course helps as well. To be honest, snowboarding scares the bajeezes out of me and I am not good. Not even a little bit good. I am a professional snow plower but any sign of acceleration leaves me sweating and praying that I don't break my neck. But hey, at least I've got one hot pair of goggles.

Snow Day

2011-02-24T09:37:00.001-08:00

Well thank goodness they canceled school today. It was definitely dicey outside. In fact, Jake feared for his own safety as he drove to get Starbucks this morning. Luckily, we have an AWD vehicle otherwise this treacherous weather may have gotten the best of him.

The Firm

2011-02-09T18:04:00.000-08:00

Long before the germs of sticky handed five years olds took down both human members of our household there was a dream. A dream of flat, shapely abs. Our late twenties were in full gear and our 6 packs were a thing of the past (if ever present).

So what did we do? We did what any other reasonable adult would do. We moaned. We pouted. We talked of the past. And then we took our cheap selves down to the local Goodwill and picked up the first DVD we could find that seemed remotely related to exercise.

Cha-ching!

Oh Nancy Tucker, I do believe you and your southern accent are heaven sent. With phrases such as "now move your fanny lifters", "eww, that hurts," and Jake's favorite, "come on ladies, you can do this." We are bound to have the abs of our dreams in mere weeks.

Cats, Jello and lots of Meowing

2011-01-31T18:20:00.001-08:00

I once heard a kindergarten teacher describe her day as "herding cats and nailing jello to the wall." Oh boy was that my day today! Now normally my Mondays are cheerful and delightful and full of little bodies following almost my every direction. Today I really do believe my kinders resembled cats more than children. The type of cats who meow really loudly and tempt you to toss them across the room. Not that they didn't say anything funny today...one child did ask if "that was lion fur on coat."

Gloveables

2011-01-23T15:56:00.000-08:00

Are you dreading cleaning the bathroom, doing the dishes, or any other less than fun household chore? I am pleased to recommend Gloveables- "guarenteed to class up your day."

As you can see, while wearing my stylish gloveables, cleaning the toilet* has never been so much fun!
*Please excuse my rusty toilet brush.

Influence

2011-01-18T19:25:00.000-08:00

Whenever possible we like use our positive influence to mold the little minds around us. I mean, we're teachers, right? I'm pretty sure we took some sort of oath in college about making the world a better place one precious child a time. Which is why we really had no choice, but to introduce this sweet little thing:

to this:

Yes, that is bacon on a maple bar. Whoop, whoop.

I think this is normal for Wyoming.

2011-01-11T17:23:00.000-08:00

Have you ever watched TV in such a terrifying room?

Born Before 1990

2011-01-08T15:29:00.000-08:00

I need your help. Usually whenever I get carded it's a happy day. Today not so much.

Cashier: Dear, can I please see your ID?

Me: (soft chuckle while celebrating that I look young today): Of course you may. Here you go.

Cashier: Oh my! (Clears her throat and quickly hands back my card without another word.)

So the question is...what caused the startled "Oh my!" Is my picture more horrifying than I once thought? Was she shocked that my vibrant youthful face was in actuality near the age of 30? Or perhaps does she have some deep seeded hatred towards the Denbrook name? I always had a nagging feeling that I should have kept my maiden name.

$5,000 Smackers

2011-01-04T18:36:00.000-08:00

Thanks to anyone who voted for my school in the Pepsi Refresh grant. We placed in the top ten for December and will be receiving $5,000 for our positive behavior program. We are so excited to be able to promote and reward positive behaviors at our school.

Pepsi gives over 1 million dollars each month to different organizations. To vote for more worthy causes (and there are a ton to choose from!) go to: www.refresheverything.com or click here.

We hope everyone's new year is getting off to a great start. We, like a majillion other Americans, have decided to eat healthier. Jake's dessert tonight is carrots and peanutbutter. It's a wee bit difficult to try and trick your mind into thinking a hunk of carrot is a piece of chocolate, but we're giving it a shot.

Merry Merry Christmas!

2010-12-25T18:27:00.000-08:00

No jumping in this year's Christmas photo. Housh will probably make a comeback for next year's card.

We hope everyone had a delightful Christmas.

Love, Jake and Jill

To see our last two Christmas photos go here

2010-12-16T19:58:00.001-08:00

You might be tempted to think these shoes/sweet little feet are nothing but pure joy. My shins would tell you otherwise. I'm thinking of investing in a pair of sturdy shin guards. I'm not kidding.

Other than incessantly swinging their feet and thus kicking their favorite teacher, my kindergartners are treating me quite well. We had Christmas in our room this week and I got to experience what it feels like to watch a solid week's worth of wrapping get unwrapped in 2.5 seconds. I might have to invest in gift bags next year. :)

Teeny Tiny

2010-12-01T19:17:00.000-08:00

It makes perfect sense that with a combined height of 12'5, we would purchase a 4' tree.

Some things however, we never skimp on.

Go Beavs

2010-11-23T18:54:00.000-08:00

Although Jake would like for all of you to believe he does not have any orange and black clothing, he definitely has his fair share, and gasp is even an OSU season ticket holder. While he claims, he only does it for the love of certain members in his family, we have enjoyed cheering the Beavers on this season (minus the WSU splattering).
OOOOOOOOOOOO SSSSSSSSSSSSSS UUUUUUUUUUUUU !!!!!!!!!

A few things to consider before accepting a ride from us...

2010-11-13T19:04:00.000-08:00

Jake and I make excellent car partners. Rides with us are full of fun and excitement- especially if you like to hear off tune singing and 90's music. However, before accepting a ride from us it would be wise on your part to know a thing or two about our car.

*The defroster must be run at all times. On high. And yes the AC will be on full blast. If it is 40 degrees outside, it will probably be colder in our car. Dress accordingly.

*If you sit in the front seat, you may be asked to squeegee the windshield while we drive. The squeegee and a towel are by your feet. And no, this task does not replace offering to give us gas money.

*Speaking of sitting in the front seat, it would be beneficial for you to wear waterproof shoes. It may be true that whenever Jake turns left, water gushes out of somewhere and gets the passenger's feet wet. Jake will not be happy if you scream every time this happens. In fact, he will get very, very annoyed at you.

*At some point during the drive you will probably be asked to roll your window down. We value your safety, so please do as you're told.

*Did I mention the temperature dial will not stay on heat? Try as you might it will wind right back to the frigid cold temperature.

*If you sit in the backseat, pay no attention to the rips on the ceiling. It is the direct result of Jill having too much time in the backseat with an axe. Yes you read that correctly. If both Jill and an axe are in the car, you might want to consider driving with someone else.

*If you happen to see any sort of dark substance, do not panic. The axe was never used on anyone and what you are seeing is not blood. Nope, it's just some syrup that was spilled and never thought of again. Sheesh who spills syrup in someone's car and never cleans it up! How rude. It is sticky, so watch out.

*And lastly and probably most importantly, the tape player does not work. As much as it saddens us to say, your Amy Grant tape cassette will be unable to play in our car. A real deal breaker.

So...anyone want to roadtrip with us?

All was Quiet...

2010-11-10T21:39:00.000-08:00

We were all sitting so nicely on the carpet. For once we were all criss-cross with our hands folded politely in our laps. We weren't picking our nose. We weren't eating yesterday's snack crumbs and at the moment we weren't even petting Mrs. Denbrook's foot. The room was quiet. We were focused. We were engaged. Until.....Ruthie unexpectedly shouted out, "My tonsils are touching my uvula!"

Help My School, Pretty Please

2010-11-02T18:46:00.000-07:00

Hello All!

Last month I sent an email to some of you asking you to vote at Pepsi Refresh for my school, Hawthorne Elementary. Long story short, Pepsi is giving away a lot of money to schools to fund various improvement projects. If at the end of this month (November) our school is in the Top 10 we will receive $5,000 dollars to fund our Positive Behavior Program and oh how lovely that would be for our kiddos in Sweet Home. You can vote EVERY SINGLE DAY until the end of the month by simply clicking on:

"I want to fund Hawthorne's program/Vote For This Idea" (to the right of this post)

or by clicking here and then typing: Hawthorne PBIS into the search box

You can also send a text to 73774 and put in 102716 in the subject line to vote for Hawthorne.

One text per phone and one vote per email per day. Have multiple emails? Vote multiple times.

If you have any questions, please let me know. :)

Thanks so much for your support.

Love, Jill

It's That Time of Year..

2010-10-31T18:30:00.000-07:00

Happy Halloween, everyone!!!

Oh and please ignore the ridiculously ugly Duck beanies we are wearing. :)

The Old Pumpkin Patch

2010-10-23T10:43:00.000-07:00

Earlier this month, we took our traditional trip to the pumpkin patch. Unfortunately this year we went home empty handed....someone must have put bricks in the pumpkins this year.
Hopefully someone with muscles in enjoying this guy.

Mmm good.

2010-10-17T19:26:00.000-07:00

We have a really great fresh fruit and vegetable program at my school. Every day during morning recess, the entire school gets free fruit and veggies. It is delightful. However, I'm not sure if it was the result of a miscommunication or what, but on Thursday this is what was delivered to my kindergarten room for snack.

Yes, indeedy it is a pineapple top. And a fresh one at that. And yes that is all they sent us. The leaves were mighty tasty.

Lost in Translation?

2010-10-05T19:32:00.000-07:00

For the past two and a half years, we have sponsored a young boy from Colombia. We've exchanged many letters and pictures over the past two years. Cristian has often said Jill was very beautiful, so imagine our surprise when we received his latest letter and drawing. Hmm, now who was it that Cristian was finding attractive this whole time?

You can click on the picture to make it larger. :)

Accendo Images Photography

2010-09-25T16:57:00.000-07:00

Our photography website is up and running! Check us out here or go to www.accendoimages.com

Thanks!

B is for Bear!

2010-09-20T18:24:00.000-07:00

Another sweet black bear. We call them sweet because they were always sighted eating berries and not humans. That's sweet in my book.

A mama grizz and her cubs ran right across a very heavily populated trail near Lake Louise. We like this angle...when the bears are running away from us.

And yet another mama grizz and her cubs. We saw these guys from the road and proceeded to get stuck in a very long bear jam. Eventually the rangers had to come and break up all the cars. Stupid tourists taking pictures of bears. :)

Not a bear, but check out the sweet mohawk.

The Skyline Trail

2010-09-12T19:26:00.001-07:00

After spending a day exploring the sights around Jasper, we headed out on our first big backpacking trip- the Skyline Trail where 22+ plus of our miles were spent above the tree line with amazing mountain range views. This trip was filled with anticipation/fear of bear encounters by one member of our two man team. This fear was not dissipated when knowledge of the Yellowstone grizzly attacks was shared with our group. Who in their right mind tells a girl already paranoid about bears, a story about grizzlies pulling hikers out of their tents? Oi. On the way to the trailhead we did see our first bear, but he was just a cute black bear. Not a great picture, but hey, it's a bear!

Here we are before the hike. Showered and with no bug bites. Such a nice feeling.

Aw, the lovely marmots. Did you know they hibernate 9 months out of the year? What a life! I wonder what we interrupted here...

Our first day was a relatively easy 8 miler with great views and tons of nasty mosquitoes. We camped at a place that should have been called death by mosquitoes but instead it was lamely named Snowbowl. Jill suffered 16 bites along her forehead and 37 along her lower back....errr...buttocks. Bites were in all the normal boring spots as well.

Here, Jake is hanging our food and toiletries in a nice little bear hanger. I was so paranoid about the bears smelling our food and then coming to eat us that we hung up our food the second we got into camp (only to get it down about 50 times before bed).
Better safe than dead,I say.

Our second day-a 12 miler- took us up over both Big Shovel pass and the Notch (8800 feet). Big Shovel was a piece of cake, but the Notch took us by a bit of a surprise. We weren't quite ready for either the steepness or the snow that we had to cross over. It is miraculous that no pants were wet during this section of the trip. Luckily we were with our new best friends (fear makes strangers best friends quickly) and the group aspect helped a lot.

Big Shovel Pass

And the Notch

As soon as I was over the Notch the following words were heard from one sweet husband, "I didn't think you were going to make it!" And if you look closely at my face, you can see exactly how I felt during this time.

We rejoiced when we got over the pass and then realized we had many, many more miles before reaching our campground for the night. During this time we were dropping into the trees (where grizzlies like to eat berries and/or you) so we decided to sing to let them know we were coming and to get the heck out of there. One of us sang in a soft and pretty voice (not effective in grizzly scaring) and one of us sang in a very off key, boisterous voice that could only remember the words to kindergarten songs. Thanks to the latter voice, no bears were encountered.

Jake woke up early the next morning and took this picture near our campsite. Wowsers!

Our last day found us hiking out 9+ miles. Unfortunately many of those miles were on a really old forest road that was overgrown with trees and berry bushes with our only views being bear skat. Lots and lots of fresh bear skat. Too tired from the previous days we didn't make too much of an effort to make extra noise. Instead we chose to believe we could outrun our fellow hikers should a beastly grizzly appear while we dreamt of this.

Welcome to Canada

2010-09-07T20:23:00.000-07:00

On our way to Jasper, Canada--- not a bad view from the car!

One of our first stops was Mt. Edith Cavell

Angel Glacier

If we were normal people, we might consider using this as our Christmas photo, but we have something much stranger in mind.

Bainbridge Ferry to Seattle

2010-09-02T20:26:00.001-07:00

This is the story of a boy (or maybe a man?) who took a few too many pictures while riding the ferry, and got pooped on by a seagull...twice!

The beginning of many posts about our trip...

2010-08-29T10:58:00.000-07:00

Let me just say before we start the next few postings that I love my husband dearly. However, there were many times during our three week adventure that I thought his intent was to kill me. Jacob is very efficient in planning trips, but he apparently believes that we are super human. I am definitely not.

Our trip was supposed to start off nice and easy. Drop the beloved cat off at his loving grandma and grandpa's (they were oh so thrilled to have him for three weeks), visit friends outside of Seattle and do a quick and painless overnight backpacking trip to get us warmed up and ready for Canada.

The drop off and visiting off wonderful friends went as planned. The backpack along the Olympic Coast, not quite so much. You see, someone who planned the trip didn't read the tide chart and we found ourselves beginning the hike two hours before high tide. This wouldn't have been a problem if there hadn't been a long stretch that required a low tide to cross. Being the determined (or maybe foolish) couple that we are, we started the hike anyway.

Not too sure on her feet, this hiker was not excited to be rushed along these boulders- especially when the guidebook described them as "it is the rare hiker who manages to get through here without slipping at least once." This hiker was not rare.

After scrambling for a mere one mile with the tide rushing in, we ran into a couple who informed us we would not be going any further until the tide went down. So we waited...............for SIX hours. So we waiting in this little nook with our new friends.

When the tide was at a manageable level, we continued on towards this:
That would be a sand ladder. As yes that is what we climbed up, but no worries it was simply " a ladder that hangs from the cliffs above and is made of solid wooden rungs between two parallel metal cables. A rope hangs down the middle for hikers to pull themselves up- it is functional but quite strenuous for the typical hiker." Good thing we're not the typical hiker....

Atop the headland (and excited to not have fallen) we skirted along a cliff edge.

A few hours later and we would find ourselves putting up our tent. In the dark. Only to get up at 6 am the next morning and hike back out to avoid the high tide once again. The rope ladder was even more fun trying to go down- especially when you factor in all the slimy mud on the rope. And thus concludes our first adventure.

Seattle and Jake's battle with the seagulls...

We're back!

2010-08-22T13:08:00.000-07:00

After 22 days of sleeping in our car or the back country, we are back! We had a wonderful three week adventure in the Canadian Rockies and can't wait to share our pictures and stories with everyone. While Jake narrows down and edits the 1000+ pictures he took, I'll leave you with this gem:

Yep, that's Jake on an open air toilet. Pretty sweet if you ask me.

Sneak Peak for Carrie and Jake

2010-07-25T20:19:00.001-07:00

We had the pleasure of photographing Jake and Carrie's wedding last weekend at The Dalles Ranch. It was a fantastic venue and a beautiful wedding. We feel so thankful to have been part of their special day.

Haley and Mark Photo Shoot

2010-07-21T18:57:00.000-07:00

Jake recently started a photography business called Accendo Images. The company website isn't up and running quite yet, so we'll be posting some of his work on here for the time being. We're very excited about this new adventure.

Miscommunication

2010-07-13T13:41:00.001-07:00

A few weeks back, we went on our first backpacking trip of the season. It was a nice simple jaunt on the coast around Bandon, Oregon where we had the beach ultimately to ourselves. As with any long hike there were times of silence. Jake broke one bout of silence with the following question:

Jake: "So, do you think we should have two?"
Jill: "Babies?"
Jake: "No, trekking poles."

It's nice to know we think about the same things during our moments of reverie...

Grandpa Duman

2010-07-08T16:48:00.000-07:00

My grandpa passed away last Thursday. He was the sweetest (and by far the cutest) man I have ever known. He was loved and adored by all who knew him and will be missed greatly.

Love you so much, Grandpa!

Four Years Until the Itch

2010-06-24T11:33:00.000-07:00

June 23rd marked Jill and my third anniversary, and we decided to invest in the "Urban White Couple" package (not a real package) and stay in downtown Portland (one of the whitest cities in the nation) for a night of fine dining and drinks. Jill scored a 70 dollar room at the Hilton on Priceline (fat William Shatner is so jolly!), and we scored this view of the west hills.

The hotel was three and a half stars, although I'm somewhat skeptical that Hilton charges you by the minute to play a Nintendo 64 game on their entertainment menu (is this 1999?) I guess Daddy Hilton needs plenty of money to pay for Paris Hilton's legal fees. Other than the Nintendo anachronism, Hilton had a lovely pool complete with a trio of rich, bored white businessman's wives talking about real estate in the hot tub. We played many swimming games, which I lost badly at. Jill told me "I love this; swimming is one of the only things I can beat you at!" Why do I feel like Jill's going to want to swim everywhere now. "No, Jill, we can't swim to the library."

After checking in with 14 bags each (neither Jill or I are good at leaving anything at home on vacation), we headed to "The Melting Pot" for a night of fondue extravagance.

The idea is to dine for about two hours with cheese fondue appetizer, salad (in this case lettuce wraps), a main course of wine sauce fondue, and a dessert chocolate fondue. In addition, you're compelled to pay 10 dollars for a glass of wine, because, what the Hell, it's your anniversary! We had a nice, if a little glib waitress who told us in so many words that she was "tired of working at this restaurant because her dog wouldn't leave her alone when she came home smelling like fondue every night." When I asked her if she got burned a lot when flambeing the chocolate she said, "I can't really feel the tops of my hands anymore." (saying this as the flames are leaping onto her fingers like an Arizona wildfire).
Anyway, the joy of "The Melting Pot" is that you have a different taste on your palate every few seconds, and you get to eat lobster, pork, beef, chicken, veggies, and a ton
of other stuff. It's really American gluttony at its finest. Go meat!

After Jill and I finished eating, we realized that we were both engorged and tired as a result of our bodies shutting down to maintain status quo function. Jill asked me if she had anything in her teeth, and the following resulted from me telling her to "get in proper lighting."

The big plan was to go out to drinks somewhere downtown and watch drunk dudes with spiky hair and popped collars trying to take home the fakest looking girl in the room. Jill and I watch people so often in public, I wonder if other people think we are having a fight or are bored with each other. Don't judge us; we're busy judging you.
But I digress; instead of going out for a drink, Jill and I waddled the half block back to our hotel room, and I'll let the following pictures tell the rest of the story in a sort of photo-essay.

Here's to one more year!

Album Cover

2010-06-16T16:16:00.000-07:00

One day this will be the cover of a very popular and well selling album.

Try not to be too jealous of how amazingly hot most of us look. Recording for hours obviously didn't do us any favors.

Girls Weekend

2010-06-13T19:22:00.000-07:00

9 am

5 pm

I could do this every weekend.

My Real Name

2010-06-09T20:08:00.000-07:00

Student: "Mrs. Debook, what's your real name?"
Me: "You mean my what's my first name? My first name is Jill."
Student: "OH! Likes someone's daddy went to jail!"
Me: "No, honey, it's J...iiiii...ll"
Student (No longer impressed with my name): 'Oh, when's lunch?"

Thank you, Michelle!

2010-06-02T19:36:00.000-07:00

I know one thing, and one thing only about Michelle Bisesto: She has the most ridiculously good brownie recipe. It's super easy and super good. You should definitely give it a shot.

1 1/2 cups flour ( I used 3/4 whole wheat and 3/4 white)
2 cups granulated sugar
2/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/4 tsp. salt
4 eggs
2 sticks butter (yep, that's why it's so darn good)
2 tsp. vanilla
6 oz. chocolate chips

Mix all dry ingredients. Mix eggs, vanilla and butter. Blend on low speed. Add dry ingredients. Beat on high for 3 minutes. Add chocolate chips and mix well. Spread in two greased 8 x 8 inch pans (if you feel like giving half away) or pour her all in one 9 x13 inch pan. Bake at 350 for 25-30 minutes. Do not over bake.

Yum, yum, yum!

Dreaming Of...

2010-05-27T20:46:00.001-07:00

Bright Blue Skies! Will we ever see you again?? I'm ready to complain that it's too hot already!

Sub Notes

2010-05-16T17:23:00.001-07:00

Jake is subbing for me this week while I do testing for the District. I thought I would help him out by writing a list of things to watch out for.

P. is a projectile sneezer. Practice your duck and cover.
J. pees on the floor. Wear shoes with good traction.
M. picks his nose all dang day. Sanitize him whenever you are near him.
J.'s dad will pick him up early and then will call you "love", "baby" or "honey." Give him your most disgusted but polite smile and walk away.
O.'s mom is never, never wrong and neither is her child. O's mom is very large and scary. Do not contradict her. She will hurt you.
K. likes to give unexpected kisses. Never sit down.
J. also likes to give unexpected kisses, never kneel down.
You will not be able to understand a word D. says. Always say "yes" and chuckle lightheartedly.
K. is lactose intolerant. Never, I repeat NEVER give him anything that even resembles dairy.
S. Kicks and kicks hard. She also kicks high. Watch out.
H. is the brightest child on earth. Be prepared to let his parents know how you challenged him in class today.

After a few minutes, I realized that I didn't want to scare him away from my dear kindergartners, so I stopped writing. He'll have to find the rest out on his own. Good luck, Mr. Denbrook!

I've Been Replaced

2010-05-10T19:34:00.001-07:00

This used to be my job. Over the course of three years, I gave some pretty good hair cuts. We saved money. We were happy.

But then this happened.

I laughed. I cried. Jake called for a replacement.

Now how exactly did the tragedy happen? Jake hands Jill the clippers. Jake hands Jill attachment number 3. Jill puts attachment number 3 into her pocket instead of onto the clipper. Jill shaves Jake's head. Jake is silent for many minutes and then takes the clippers away from Jill forever.

I love my job.

2010-05-02T20:05:00.001-07:00

Last Friday, our school had a Soap Box Derby. Students from each class raced against each other in homemade carts. My kinders weren't quite old enough to participate, but myself and another Title 1 teacher raced against the principal and counselor. Any day when you can talk to your superintendent while wearing a turtle costume (that of course includes mens underwear)is a good day. While we did break every school rule while racing (be responsible, be respectful and be safe) it was well worth it.

Our amazing pit crew made all the difference.

Silly string is a must.

Victorious!

God vs Jesus

2010-04-22T19:28:00.001-07:00

This is a little conversation I heard at one of my tables. I couldn't help but smile.

5 year old #1: (randomly out of the blue) God had parents.

5 year old #2: No he didn't.

5 year old #3: Yes he did. He had a mommy and a daddy.

5 year old #2: I have a Bible.

5 year old #3: I have three.

5 year old #2. I have a Bible with sparkles.

5 year old #3: Yeah, huh, God's mom was Mary and his daddy was Joseph.

5 year old #2: Oh yeah!

5 year old #4: (muttering under his breath) Ugh, you guys are talking about Jesus not God.

5 year old #1: Mrs. Debook, when's snack?

Big vs Tall

2010-04-20T20:42:00.000-07:00

5 year old: "Teacher. You sure are big."

Mrs. D: (smiling sweetly) "Oh you mean, I am really tall, like a tall tree."

5 year old: "No, I mean big. Like you weigh 200 pounds, teacher."

Mrs. D: (forcefully smiling) "Please go away and do something else."

The Redwoods

2010-04-07T19:04:00.000-07:00

For some people, Spring Break means: Mexico. To some it means: Caribbean Cruise. And to others it means: Mr. Fancy Pants place. To Jill and Jake it means: camp in your car and look at tall trees while attempting not to freeze. Oh, and to all you non teacher/student folks, it means: work as usual. Mwahhhh.

While we may have very much enjoyed bathing in the sun for our Spring Break, we did have a great time exploring the Redwoods and making our car our temporary home.

J and J happy in the car. This was not taken on the night we had chili for dinner. No one was smiling that night.

We went on a lot of great hikes. One of our favorite hikes led us to a private beach. Unfortunately, we had to cross a "very narrow and treacherous" walkway. Here is Jake 27 minutes before he made the crossing.
Another hike took us through a canyon that involved crossing over water multiple times.

If you've read our blog for awhile, you might remember that a few summers back Jill fell flat on her face while crossing a stream. She has since been terrified of any amount of water that she must cross. Instead of taking it slow, she decided to leap ever so ungracefully from log to rock and ended up with very wet shoes, but no fat lip.

We had beautiful camping spots every night. Although we about pooed our pants when we had to pay $35 a night to sleep in our car.

Hats were a necessity not only because it was chilly at night, but also because we didn't shower the entire time we were gone. Delightful, we know.

We saw quite a lot of this.

It was amazing. To see more pictures of this type, you can go to Jake's facebook page.

We knew it was time to head home when we discovered a slug on the bottom of our wine bottle.

Spring Break

2010-03-31T17:48:00.000-07:00

It's been three days since Spring Break* ended. I thought I had adjusted quite nicely back into work life. My kinders were lovely on both Monday and Tuesday but then today happened. Today was Glitter Day and Barf Day. I had planned on Glitter Day, but not so much for Barf Day. I had to clean up after both and I must say I am quite proud of myself because I didn't even have to put my head between my knees like I did when Sarah showed my the stitches in the back of her head. I'm canceling glitter for the rest of the year.

*S.B pictures to come from Jacob shortly.

A Picture's Worth a Thousand Words...

2010-03-26T16:10:00.001-07:00

What happens when...

2010-03-16T21:39:00.000-07:00

4 best friends meet up in Boise for a girls weekend?

You spend half of your month's grocery budget on one dinner. Mmmm, yummy fondue at the Melting Pot.

Where you may or may not eat for three hours straight.

You read as many trashy magazines as possible while getting a pedicure.

You take pictures before you go anywhere. Here we are on our way to a Leahy concert. I'm not quite sure what I was doing.

And you make your dear 7 month pregnant friend jump 47 times until you get this picture.

Thanks for the memories, Diane, Noelle and Becca! Can't wait for our next reunion.

Today I...

2010-03-08T17:17:00.000-08:00

tied 27 pairs of shoes.

headbutted a child three and half feet shorter than myself.

was called "grandma, dad and Mrs. Deverbrook".

played spin the bottle 4 times.

unsuccessfully hid from my boss.

wore my hair down at work for the first time in 27 days. It only lasted til lunch.

sounded out the word "sat" 13 times.

stepped on two sets of fingers.

was kicked 6 times.

was sneezed on once.

was hugged many times.

forgot to sanitize my classroom.

What did you do today?

The Sweetness

2010-02-24T15:02:00.000-08:00

Somehow, Jill has coerced me into celebrating our "dating anniversary" in addition to our real anniversary every year. Luckily for me, our dating anniversary happens to be February 13th (day before V-day), so I can kind of give it the combo treatment that every kid hated who had a December birthday. Jill's Valentine's Day/Dating Anniversary gift? A snowboard helmet. Wow, what a lucky girl. It's kind of like giving someone a stick of deodorant.

However, we also went for a hike in the coast range at Sweet Creek Falls near Florence, after which we enjoyed some fine Mo's seafood and a jetty walk. Jill got to timidly venture out onto mossy-slick rocks where I was scouting for photo spots of kayakers. She still hasn't recovered from her bedrock sandwich she ate a couple summers ago.

Unfortunately, the Coast Guard had to play party-police and kick us off the jetty because of "rogue waves." In another life, I would have knocked both of those Coast Guard troops unconscious, and run to go kick the rogue wave in the face, but instead I said, "Sorry, Sir, we'll leave immediately."

That's all, Cheers!

J and J

Proof

2010-02-11T21:07:00.000-08:00

It has been rumored that Jake and I are incapable of taking non-jumping pictures while out and about in nature, with a group, or just casually hanging out at home while throwing our cat in the air.

Ha, we prove you wrong. Here we are with Chris and Allison on a wonderfully warm winter day on top of Mount Pisgah with our feet anchored to the ground.

We may not have a child, but we do have a Housh.

2010-01-31T19:22:00.000-08:00

It seems like just about everyone who has a blog has children to show off, or is on some sort of adventure in a far off land. Well, at one time, we ourselves were on an adventure in a far off land. Now life is a bit different as Eugene is not exactly an exotic place and we still have no children to post adorable pictures of. However, we do have a Housh and for now that will just have to do. We even think he is pretty darn adorable.

Housh doesn't really believe in personal space. If you look closely you'll see that I am trying to pluck my eyebrows. Very difficult with a purring cat on your shoulders.

Not sure what Jake is doing, but Housh wasn't about to be left out of the fun.

This is what Housh looked like when we came back from Lakeview for Christmas. The car was a bit packed and the drive was a bit long.

Housh versus the feather duster. Always a good time.

I know, I know, you wish you had your very own Housh too.

A Swan in Love

2010-01-26T17:02:00.001-08:00

Exciting Times

2010-01-20T19:48:00.000-08:00

Life at the Denbrook home sure has been exciting lately. Just recently we became the proud owners (or maybe just renters) of four digital thermostats. This has made our ongoing game of "how cold can we keep our house before the cat freezes?" even more fun.

Just remember if you ever choose to spend a night at our lovely abode (and we do love visitors) it is definitely a BYOH (bring your own heat) situation.

Life in Kindergarten

2010-01-07T20:49:00.001-08:00

Today was a good day in kindergarten. Nobody peed on my floor, there were no chairs thrown,I discovered a designated shoe tie-er and all members of our classroom left smiling, teacher included. I love these days. These are the days when the kids make me laugh and I love my job. Days when chairs fly and I find puddles on the floor- not so much love.

This morning, we asked the kiddos what they wanted to be when they were "all grown up". Here are a few of their answers.

I want to be a.....
Princess
Superman
Toy Store Shopper
Jet Pilot
Teacher
Dirt Bike Rider
Cop who will arrest the dirt bike rider

And my absolute favorite: When I grow up, I want to be a happy meal maker!"

A few weeks back, I emptied my pockets after school and found this:

Life in kindergarten- there's nothing else quite like it!

Christmas Card Photos...

2010-01-02T17:14:00.000-08:00

We are starting quite a collection of unusual Christmas card pictures. If you didn't get a card from us, sorry! There really is no good excuse except for that I was lazy and didn't quite get all of the pictures out this year.

A few of you got this photo from us last year...doesn't anyone else dress up in 1980's workout gear for their annual family Christmas photo?

This year, we had to work Housh into the picture, so why not dress up in nice clothes and throw him in the air? We thought it was a really great idea- Housh not so much.

Hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas!

Just a Couple of Naturals...

2009-12-28T18:50:00.001-08:00

If there is one thing in life that we are destined to be great at, it is definitely snowboarding. The pure grace and talent we showcase on the mountain is quite exquisite. Oh, how I wish that I was not full of lies.

Many thanks to Jake's sister, Erika, for capturing pictures of us while we are actually standing up and are not face down in the snow.

Snowboarding was a full two days ago and our bodies continue to scream in pain. Are we really only 26?

Ugly Christmas Sweater Party

2009-12-21T13:30:00.000-08:00

I don't think you need too much of a narrative here. And yes, Jake's ugly Christmas sweater was actually a dress. He really is a special kind of man.

We also had a homemade ornament exchange. Some people went home with ornaments that you might actually see at a store.

And some people came home with a very scary (but creative) chicken ornament. Nice work, Linds!

The night wrapped up with a blind wine tasting. These two fools tied for first. Nice Christmas button down, Neal. :)

Dear Mr. Denbrook

2009-12-05T23:06:00.000-08:00

Dear Mr. Denbrook,

I'm sorry I lied to you about having amnesia. I will be better the next time you sub.

From: Kevin

************************

Dear Mr. Denbrook,

Mrs. Jones had a note on Hammy's cage to not take her out. I ignored the note and took Hammy out. Sara asked me if I read the note, but I didn't care what the note said. I am sorry I lied to you. I won't be dishonest again.

From: Jennifer

Hard Work

2009-11-28T19:47:00.000-08:00

Thanksgiving is hard work.

Looking Old

2009-11-22T13:13:00.000-08:00

This picture in my desktop on my school computer. One of my little guys walked by, stopped, looked at me, looked back at the computer and then asked "Is that you and your dad in China?"
Apparently Jake is not aging well.

Generation Gap

2009-11-15T20:45:00.002-08:00

When it comes to electronics, Jake displays his age well. He's hip, he's hop and he's even a little trendy. With his sleek ipod Touch and his tiny little earbuds, he fits in perfectly with the crowd at our local Gold's Gym.

Jill, on the other hand, struggles to keep up with her CD jogger and giant headphones. She appears to be in her early fifties and has no idea what an ipod is. She does, however, have massive biceps.

Turtle Power

2009-11-05T20:58:00.009-08:00

Who: The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
What: A 5k race
When: Halloween
Where: Bend, Oregon
Why? To show off our sleek physiques

So we may not have won the running part of the race, but you better believe we won that costume contest.

Rafael, Leonardo, Donatello, Michaelangelo. Otherwise known as Lindsey, Jill, Neal and Jake.

Without the shells, I'm pretty sure we would have won the race.

Before the race, a little boy came up and said to Jake, "I have a book about you!"

This is what felt natural to me.

Can't wait till next year. Whatever shall we be?

Pumpkin Land

2009-10-18T17:56:00.006-07:00

We decided to join the masses today and make our way out to the pumpkin patch.

Jake found a delightful head sized pumpkin.

This particular pumpkin also appeared to be the size of a baby to Jake. He insisted I take a picture of him throwing "our child" up into the air. Won't he make a great dad (in two to ten years)?

And here I am buckling our children in the backseat. Oh come on, I had to continue to the storyline! If Jake can throw a pumpkin child in the air, the least I can do is to make sure they have a safe ride back to our house.

Our Latest Victims

2009-10-14T18:30:00.006-07:00

This past weekend, we went hiking with our newish friends, Allison and Chris. In fact we are such new friends that they didn't know of our history with jumping. When I say "history", I do of course mean obsession.

Sometimes the out-takes are the best ones. The North Sister makes for a nice backdrop, don't ya think?

We had a great time hiking in the snow. Our original plan was to spend the night, but when we heard it was suppose to drop to 10 degrees during the evening, we opted to instead spend the night in front of our heat dish at home.

Jake will post all of his artsy photos from our hike sometime soon!

Hope everyone is having a great October!

He did it, He did it! Guess What He did?

2009-09-28T20:14:00.003-07:00

A man hard at work....

Our new homemade antenna. Works like a charm.

First homemade detergent, and now this? Whatever will we make next?

Look what I did!

2009-09-17T21:29:00.007-07:00

I'm just a little bit excited about my newest project.

It all started with three little products.

A little grating-that's Fels-Naptha, not cheese.

Some food processor action. Jake looks thrilled to be helping.

And voila, we have our very own homemade laundry detergent. Yipeee.

Happy Jake

2009-09-17T21:09:00.000-07:00

Why's this guy so happy?

He made his first cent since March 2007. This definitely called for some high class champagne. If you need a substitute a teacher, give him a call- rumor has it that he's pretty dang good.

Portraits Without Photoshop Gimmicks

2009-09-15T15:01:00.004-07:00

Hello, all.

A couple weeks ago, in the last throws of summer, I took Jill onto the UO campus and shot practice portraits of her. This is all in the hopes that I might someday coerce high school students to abandon the option of expensive and impersonal corporate senior photography, and let me tailor my portraits to their lifestyles for a cheaper price (I love undercutting when I can).

Anyway, here are a few of the results, albeit without Photoshop gimmicks (or even photoshop on age wrinkles, much to Jill's dismay). For a fun game, look for Jill's most forced smile; can you tell which shots were taken towards the end of the shoot?

I will post a link to the rest of them soon.

I am the Teacher

2009-09-02T19:12:00.001-07:00

I promise never to yell in class,

and I promise not to talk in line.

I promise not to throw things,

or to hit or punch. I promise not

to have temper tantrums, and to always be good.

I will set a good example for all of the children.

because, I am the Teacher…

I am the Teacher…

I am the Teacher.

The Big Graduate

2009-08-11T19:00:00.011-07:00

The Board of Regents, Faculty and the Graduating Class of The University of Oregon are pleased to announce that Jacob Daniel Denbrook is a candidate for the degree of Masters of Education in Teaching and Learning.

In a private backyard ceremony, Jacob Daniel proudly accepted his diploma. It was a joyous occasion, and all the new graduate could say was "I couldn't have done it without my wife's constant love and monetary support."

Looking good in a custom made mortarboard, the graduate makes his way across the lawn and receives his diploma.

Everyone in attendance was in awe of Jacob's accomplishment.

------------------------------------Class of 2009----------------------------------

Big D's 60th

2009-07-27T20:50:00.010-07:00

Birthdays are like hangovers; you love the buzz, but then you wake up feeling like sun-hardened crap. Luckily, with all of the family in Lakeview this weekend, we hoped to give Darrel Denbrook a little more buzz, and a little less sun-hardened crap. 60 years, and 60 beers later, we have officially celebrated that oh-so sacred birthday for mi padre, Darrel. In a rare convergence of Erika, myself, Jill, Michael, Sara, Mom, Dad, Cam, and Karen in Lakeview, we partied for the better part of a weekend. Here are some of the highs, lows, and everything in between.

Can you believe such a young looking lad turned 60 this past weekend?

The pool was officially open for its annual 2 month stint. Owning a pool in Lakeview is about as efficient as slicing an apple with your finger, but my parents always have their pool blue and swimmable when we arrive in later summer. We spent about 4-5 hours a day in the pool, surfing on foam floaties and tapping a "Bratz" beach volleyball that my mother must have stolen from one of her former students.

Sculpted from butter...I mean marble.

We began a game (called "the game") which required four of us to keep the beach volleyball from hitting the water surface. Mom, Karen, Jill and I decided that our goal was 50 taps without a water hit in order for us to win a Corona beer with a slice of lime (my family must make everything a game with goals, rules, and optimal cost-benefit ratio ie beer rewards). We shattered the 50 goal, and extended to 60 before the beer caused sluggish arms.

Erika, too lazy to jump with us, soon ate the wake of 860 pounds of water displacement

Random Quote of the trip: "Darwin had it right. The reason I drink to excess, is because I want to eliminate the weakest brain cells." Cam (after several martinis)

On Saturday, we decided to enact our stock jumping routine picture, but with a pool twist. As you can see, we've brought extreme glee into the grey shroud of mid-life drudgeries (I'm just jealous because you have money). The looks on everyone's faces are priceless, and by priceless I mean embarrassing.

No one born after 1957 was allowed in this picture...

Happy 60th Dad!

Random Quote of the Weekend:
Jake: "In most families, everyone just ignores the elephant in the room."
Karen: "Well, in our family, we just hope the elephant will go away once we invite it for a drink."

My dad got many Harley Davidson novelty items for his birthday, including a knife, cook book (and then Erika coming in un-thematically with SHAM-WOW!). My dad proved he still has some child in him as he pretended to stab himself with slight-of-hand knife tricks. Growing up with Curly and Mo Stooge, Dad learned from an early age that all violence is okay if you're goofy while doing it.

The point is, I don't think any Hell's Angel who actually gets in bar knife fights uses an official Harley Davidson knife. That takes the "cool factor" of the knife fight down by like 90 percent. It's like robbing a bank with a gun that has a Clint Eastwood's face on it. Corporate logos don't need to appear on bad-ass items.

Anyway, that's about the extent of the weekend. Good times were had by all, as was imbibery (my word) and bursting bellies. And the best part about it? That oh-so present elephant in the room that seems to happen at all family gatherings? He took our offer of several lemon drops and passed out somewhere in an alley.

Until next time,

We're out!

18,000 Middle-Class White People at a Coldplay Concert

2009-07-15T18:35:00.011-07:00

Hello, all.

Jill and I have just returned from one of our most polarizing experiences (I'll explain polarizing shortly). We went to the Coldplay concert at the Clark County Amphitheater in Ridgefield where our faces were melted all over the lawn by Chris Martin and company's piano riffs and laser light shows (think epileptic seizure--but in a good way). And now many of you might be saying, "well, isn't Coldplay a band that homosexuals, republicans, and teenage girls listen to," and I'm here to tell you that stereotype is completely unfounded. I dare any of you naysayers to say you wouldn't be sucked in by an acoustic version of Billie Jean on the mandolin. I'll document our concert experience in a time-log, as is popular among journalists these days.

3:20: Concert starts in 4 hours. Gotta get there before everyone else, because I'm extremely competitive in large group situations in which there's nothing at stake (a fault, not a virtue). Uh, oh. Stuck behind 43 SUVs with tinted windows in Friday traffic, all going to Coldplay.

4:00: Uh, the Clark County Amphitheater has one restaurant within 10 miles, and it looks like one of those "out in the country" places you see at the beginning of an action movie where everybody gets shot by a guy in a leather jacket (I think there was a juke-box playing George Strait).

4:30: I've just eaten the saltiest Clam Chowder I've ever had. Jill has a grilled cheese sandwich. I ask the waitress, "You're probably busy on concert nights." She responds "yes" with a look that tells me, "thanks for reminding me my life sucks."

5:00: We park with a line of mini-vans and SUVs. I quickly realize there are going to be 18,000 middle-class white people at this concert. I see their market-research department has been smart in choosing Portland (one of the least diverse cities in the nation).

I look back at where we've driven in, and realize we're parked in the farthest lot from the escape route (foreshadowing). I quickly do the math, and realize there's probably 12,000 cars for 18,000 people, all of which will be trying to get out on a two lane road. I get that icy I'm-in-too-deep fear, like when a person's talking about children on the second date.

5:30: We stand in line with the rest of the "lawn-seating" crowd. We're ready to run to our land stakes and squat for all our worth. I tell Jill, "let's not run for our spot" as if my dignity is above that. We both know that we're running and diving to grab a lawn-spot as if it's a gold claim. Jill makes me pop my collar to shield the sun. Suddenly, a videographer crew starts filming and tells us to make "fan-screams." Oh great, I'm going to be on a Coldplay dvd, my dumb 6 foot 6 inch head with a popped collar floating above everyone else's hair. Somebody will watch that DVD and say, "Coldplay fans pop their collars; they're so annoying."

6:00: Gates are released. Hope we don't trip, or we'll get trampled. It's like Wal-mart at Christmas. We both start running.

7:00: Waiting; waiting.

9:00: Finally done waiting. The loudspeakers start blasting a U2 song; everybody stands up.

9:15: Still waiting; What the eff? They teased us like dangling a piece of chocolate cake above a fat, hypoglycemic kid who's pinned down.

9:15: Finally, they start blasting the light show and "Life in Technicolor" This concert is going to be incredibly loud. Very nice intro.

10:00: Great concert! These guys know how to put on a show. I can tell, because the marijuana starts blazing around us (I guess it's dark enough). People are looking to get the best of the crazy lights. They play "Yellow," and kick a bunch of giant yellow balls around the crowd. "Let's get some for the back!" Chris Martin yells. An updraft takes them right over the wall before anyone can touch them.

10:30: They head out into the crowd to play a techno-set on electronic drums and keyboard. Chris Martin does a solo "The Hardest Part." He says, "This is where I pretend to be Justin Timberlake and realize I need to crawl back to my band." I can smell the humility melting female hearts.

10:45: They come to an upper stage in the lawn section about 50 feet from us. People begin rushing the stage; Jill and I are thinking the same thing: if we leave our blanket we're never going to find it again in the dark. Acoustic "Billie Jean" comes out along with an 18,000 person cell phone wave. Chris Martin rouses the crowd by saying we're "f--cking awesome." When rock stars cuss, people go nuts, which would be beneficial in battle. Chris Martin: "Go get those f--cking guys with your bayonets!" Everybody would go.

11:00: Getting close to the finale. Chris Martin says, "this is where I say something about the town we're in. I heard you don't have sales tax. Is that true?" Audible groan as the people from Vancouver get pissy over being counted as Portlandians. Out comes the video montage for "Osaka Sun." Confetti being dispersed into the crowd. Several high people are still looking for their blankets and stuff. I can tell Jill wants to use her teacher voice: "Well, what did you learn from this situation?" (don't smoke and run the stage is the correct answer).

11:15: Concert over (except for the inevitable finale). Sometimes, I just wish bands would stay out on the stage without the long cheering. Everybody knows there's a finale. It's kind of like when your pushover mom said "maybe I"ll buy you that candy if you're good," and you knew it was going to happen whether you were good or not. "Mom, let's forgo the formalities and get this candy, alright? I don't have time for this."

11:30: It's over, and people are filing out. I enjoy having a tall head in this case as we're butts to nuts in this place. Somebody does the inevitable and moos. "Ha ha, we're like cattle." Hmmm, never heard that one before. We get a free CD at the gates, and it's time to hit the road (yeah right)

11:30-1:45: Here's finally where the foreshadowing pays off. It takes us 1 hour and 45 minutes to move from our spot 100 yards to the parking exit. I really hope whoever engineered the parking in this place doesn't still have a job in architecture. It's like trying to funnel 45 gallons of water through a partially clogged straw. I spend most of the 2 hours looking around wildly like a trapped beast, seeing how I can cheat the system. There's no cheating in this game.

1:45: We get into a closed third lane and cut about half-way in line. When I merge, the car behind me gives me the "wait your effing turn" look, and I give him the "Oops, I didn't know this lane was closed" shoulder shrug. If ever there's a demonstration for human nature at its worst, just look to clogged parking lots where people will kill over a merging...

2:30: We're home, but what a show. Best concert I've been to, and the fan-friendliest band. Next time, I'm going to skydive into the stadium, and fake a seizure so I can get Air-lifed out (Insurance covers that, right).

Until next time, folks.

J and J

Look Who is Employable!

2009-07-10T21:14:00.000-07:00

And only four more weeks until his Masters is done! Whoop, Whoop.

4th of July

2009-07-09T19:04:00.002-07:00

Jake watched all of this year's festivities through a 35mm lens. I don't think he even realized that his wife was sitting next to him. And, no, I am not bitter, just amused.

Camping

2009-07-07T18:28:00.000-07:00

Last weekend, we met the Richards for some good old car camping. Deciding to go camping the weekend of the 4th without reservations wasn't the best of planning, but thanks to Jake's driving trickery we snagged the last camping spot at Clear Lake. We had a great weekend of hiking, floating on the lake and swatting mosquitoes.

Lydia was a happy little camper, and somehow managed to escape the bloodsuckers.

A mosquito's paradise.

More mosquito paradise.

If the water had been about 35 degrees warmer, we may decided to take a dip.

Not even babies escape the jumping picture.

It's Summer!!!!!

2009-06-19T14:21:00.001-07:00

We survived the school year and it is officially summer vacation. Wahooo! Unfortunately, Jake starts classes on Monday so his summer vacation was a mere 4 days. We've been busy cramming as much fun as we can into the last week.

The Wrights came to visit. Andy and Jake went on a man date to the bar via classy bicycles. The girls stayed home and drank margaritas.

We celebrated Erika's birthday by wine tasting. She's the one in the front who doesn't appear to be having a great time.

We hiked Eagles Rest.

The view from the top was ruined by Jill's need to use the bathroom numerous times.

Kurt and Emily, our Idahoan friends, stopped by for a visit. We, of course, made them jump with us.

We celebrated our two year anniversary (a few days early) with a trip to Florence to see the Sea Lion Caves.

We enjoyed fine wine on the beach. Thanks Cam and Karen, we enjoyed a break from Charles Shaw.

We stopped at Three Rivers Casino. This only cost us $11.95.