A very busy kid

Mom believes that summer is a great time of year to do all kinds of things, so Hazel is doing just that: spending her summer doing all kinds of things.

First up: Monday bike racing. Mom and Dad weren't too keen on taking Hazel to the bike race this week because they were both exhausted. Hazel, on the other hand, would talk of nothing else. As Dad said, "If my kid wants to bike race, I'm taking her to the damn bike race." So, off the two of them went, where Haze improved her standing dramatically and earned a blinky bike light as a prize.

Next up: Wednesday swim lessons. No pictures because Hazel is taking semi-private lessons with another 2-year-old and Mom was too busy gossiping with said 2-year-old's mom. It should be known, however, that Hazel swam underwater ON HER OWN for the very first time this week. It was a nice confirmation for Mom that, after months of group lessons, the semi-privates were worth it. ;)

Last, but certainly not least: Thursday ballet classes. Haze has been begging for a year (no joke) to take ballet class. Until this month, most of the classes in the area were in the mornings and since Mom and Dad work (hel-LO, some parents actually work!), it wasn't feasible. Not anymore! Parks and Rec opened up classes on Thursdays at 4pm and BAM! Hazel was enrolled.

Guess who loves it and spends the class trying to be the teacher's pet?

Act shocked.

Hazel was the only one who did not want her parents to participate. She also spent the time before class warming up at the bar and then much of the class trying to get the other kids to participate.

We're glad to see that she is certainly not lacking in personality.






Hazel is in daycare full-time through the end of June. She will go one day a week in July, but Mom is on the ball and already enrolled her in summer daycamp at Parks and Rec. It's perfect- two hours in the morning twice a week and then she and Mom can have great adventures during the month of July. In August, it's back to daycare full-time, but we are sure that the bike racing, the swim classes and the ballet lessons will continue.

Father's Day

Dad wasn't too picky about what he wanted to do for Father's Day; he just wanted to be with his family. The weather was a bit uninspiring so the family meandered downtown for the annual Gay Pride Parade and then, on a whim, headed up to Scappoose for some canoeing on Scappoose Bay.

It was a perfect Father's Day- weaving in and out of the trees in the canoe, exploring the swamp-like atmosphere and looking for eagle nests. Hazel was really in to the canoeing, taking her share of paddles and adamantly following the rules about staying seated in the boat. She did say, however, as canoed under some branches and through a virtual underwater forest, that this was "a little scary". :)

She then proceeded to talk about canoeing for the rest of the week. Given that she already knows about campfires, setting up tents, hiking, and cooking outdoors, we fear that we may have ruined her for future summer camp experiences.

Uncle Clay's grajuashun

Only two short weeks after Memorial Day, everyone went back to Grandma and Grandpa's cabin, this time for Uncle Clay's "grajuashun" (as pronounced by Haze) from Central Washington University. It was, yet again, a beautiful, sunny weekend with temps in the 80s and a light breeze.

Paradise, Mom and Dad say.

Whatever, Hazel says. Why do I have to share Mom's lap with cousin Eli??

Hazel wasn't so keen on after-ceremony pictures, given that she had just sat through two hours of adult boring-ness. She also forgot to ask Daddy and Uncle Ritchie to be in the picture. Oops.

And she wasn't much in to pictures back at the cabin either, even though Mom and Dad insisted because everyone was so dressed up.

Hazel WAS happy to dance around and eat Fruit Loops(!) given to her by her grandparents. She maintained a death grip on those Fruit Loops all weekend. What can we say? Grandparents.

She finished the weekend sharing another lap with cousin Eli- Grandpa's. Nobody seemed to mind.

Hazel's first bike race!

Remember this? Well, 2011 is apparently an entirely different year than 2010 because this year, Hazel was bound and determined to race. Evidence of that can be seen in the video below:

Hazel performed admirably and spent the ensuing hours proclaiming that she had won. No one dared tell her otherwise.

A camping domestique

'Twas a sunny Saturday for a criterium. Hazel and Daddy acted as domestiques and Mommy raced. Their cheerleading led Mommy to a win. And then everyone went camping, where they met up with the Stiles for a sunny good time on the Columbia River.

Crit racing is serious business, especially if you're the domestique:

Hazel was concentrating so much, she couldn't focus on what Eli was saying:

Mommy gathered up two toddlers in celebration:

Sometimes, the best part of camping is just playing in the tent: