April showers?

It's actually been a great month in Portland. We had two amazingly warm weekends and not-so-bad weather in between. We spent the majority of the month at home, and even completed a yard project this weekend (shocker, I know!).

14 adults & 2 babies set out for the hut
(Photo courtesy of Jen Gardiner)

Nick's first Easter was actually spent at a ski hut near Mt. Rainier. Unfortunately, the Easter Bunny did not make it up to the hut (it was quite snowy) but he did arrive a few days early in Portland (thanks Mimi!). We skied/snowshoed up to the Copper Creek Hut with a gang of Portlanders and a few folks from Seattle and spent two nights there. The weather didn't bode well for backcountry skiing while we were up there, but we did build a sweet kicker, get in some quality sledding, and partake in all sorts of games. We had a great time and appreciate our dear friends being so patient and helpful with the babies. The kiddos were awesome, but I have a feeling it might've been a good dose of birth control!

Lily (French) & Nick at the hut

Andy got a new (to him) road bike last month and has been getting in rides whenever possible. He's even been out on his mountain bike once or twice. I have been able to ride to work a few times which has been great and we've had Nick out in the Burley too. Before long, he'll need his own bike!

Nick has had a month full of accomplishments and set-backs. He's perfecting his crawling, learning how to pull himself up, broadening his language capabilities (he's mastered all sorts of consonants), and showing signs of being able to wave. However, he's also had bronchiolitis, an ear infection, a chronic cough and runny nose, explosive diarrhea, and most recently the rotavirus (self-diagnosed; maybe it's the swine flu). The joys of daycare...Lucky for Andy and I, he passed that last one on to us. Oh yes, and he's had a black eye and several bumps and bruises. We're hoping at this pace, he and his immune system will be bulletproof by his first birthday.

Speaking of the swine flu, Andy is heading to a wedding in Queretaro, Mexico later this week (flying into Mexico City). His good friend Paul Boyer is getting married (to Vero Gomez, who's from Queretaro) and Andy's in the wedding. It was a bit too far and too expensive for us all to go, but I think Andy will have a good time celebrating with his old friends from Spokane (without the old ball and chain).

All in all, it's been a great month. Business continues to be busy for Andy and work is going well for me. We are crossing our fingers that Nick is through the worst of his woes! And hopefully this nice weather will stick around for a while.