Curious George...close relative?

Kai has always loved climbing...lately it's trees.

He's getting cuter all the time. I realized that I have a habit of saying "Be nice!" when he hits me. Today, when I was changing his diaper against his will, guess what he said? "Be nice!"

Ah, summer!

The summer weather in the Pacific Northwest has been fabulous as usual. We've been busy lately. Playing at the beach, picking berries, hiking the trails, even riding bikes. We also found a used bike trailer so Kai can enjoy a free ride while he's still small enough. Check out a few other pics.

Kai's first camping trip

Kai and family and friends ventured to Central Oregon for his first camping trip. Highlights included the mountains, the Painted Hills and Smith Rock. We stayed in a yurt at Tumalo State Park near Bend. Kai loved throwing pine cones, wading in the Deschutes and the live music at one of the coffee shops. For the most part, the trip was a success. A slight slip on the Misery Ridge trail near Smith Rock was our only mishap--I'm sure Hong is saying "I told you so!" See the other pics.

Back to our roots...

Kai visited the Midwest for the first time last week. It brought a handful of firsts including a ride on the MAX, meeting the cousins, a visit to Kings Island and a 3-way.



Kai again turned out to be a good traveler. He managed the fiasco that was our return trip better than could be expected despite the fact that it took us to six states (Ohio, Indiana, Arizona, Utah, Idaho, Oregon) in a single day.

Check out the other pics.

Day at the beach...

I know what you're thinking... Sunshine, swimsuits, and a leisurely day at the beach. Nope. Try winter clothing for Kai (and goosebumps for the rest of us) and enough wind to blow sand in your eyes. At least the sunshine part was correct.

Kai did like playing in the sand, but his favorite activity of the day was hanging out of the sunroof (while we were parked of course). As usual, we have a much easier time catching Kai's serious face than his silly face. See more pics.

Thumbs up, dude

Yes, we recently learned the thumbs up. And enjoyed a "walk in the park." I can now vouch that carrying a 30 pound munchkin plus gear for 6.8 miles with 2,000 feet of net elevation gain carries consequences. Other pics also posted.

Need to ask Sree if we can post the GPS data/graphs.

The zoo

We finally made it to the zoo. But only after some persistence. And a long wait to find a parking spot. Next time we'll be parking at Sunset and taking the train.