just Jasper

I take a lot of pics of the dog. :) He's very generous in his willingness to pose, as well as to go on long forest walks with me.

bball weekend

While Seb was basking/burning in the Nevada sun, we were here enjoying Liesl's end-of-season basketball tournament and the usual rain/sun of a Portland February. Jasper and I did a very muddy run in Forest Park; Steve and I went bouldering together at PRG (yay!); Liesl bought Ella a talking bunny for her birthday.

soccer in Vegas

Seb's soccer team traveled to Las Vegas for a soccer tournament this President's Day weekend. They flew out on Friday after school and played 4 games over two days, with Monday for sightseeing. I asked him to send me photos periodically -- even crappy ones -- as proof of life.

 

On Saturday, they tied their first game 1-1 and the second game 0-0. Seb thought that tying the second game was a miracle -- the other team was pushing forward all game and were very good. On Sunday, they tied again 0-0, which was a bit disappointing -- it seemed possible to score more against that team, but the boys looked a bit tired. Then there was a final consolation game late Sunday afternoon, which they won 1-0.

 

 

On Monday, with the games concluded, they took a tour of the UNLV campus and then got to wander the strip.

 

And then they flew home on Tuesday. I picked Seb up from the airport, tired and smelly and hungry, but happy with the trip overall. Such a fun experience.

happy Valentine's day

It was mid-week, we had work and basketball games and homework, but we still managed to celebrate with some sweetness. I made waffles for breakfast; Liesl requested a dozen red roses to distribute to 12 of her closest friends at school; Steve ordered far too much chocolate (yum!) from LA Burdick and Lilac in New York.

7th grade dance

Liesl and friends went to the 7th grade dance on Friday night. They had pizza and got ready together at Ella's, and then I picked them up at the end of the night -- it was loud in there with the music and over a hundred kids singing along, but it seemed pretty fun.

 

Halimat, Ella, Diya, Liesl

 

 

And then today, Liesl accompanied Ella's family to a Danish festival of the new year. Ella's mom works for the Nordic nonprofit running the event, so Liesl helped out by running games for little kids. They dressed up as characters from Super Mario -- Liesl was Toad. 

man and dog

Steve and Jasper racing a lap around the field. The photos are blurry, but I like them -- they're both grinning as they run.

 

J asleep in the sun on Seb's bed -- his preferred cozy spot in the winter.