a busy couple of weeks

now that i have a few free moments, i'd thought i'd catch everyone up on what has been happening with the phoenix dunn family. we just got back this weekend from our trip to washington and oregon. the vacation couldn't have come a better time. when life gets stagnant and even getting up in the morning to greet a new day seems tiresome, it's time to take a step back and relax to gain perspective again.



before we left for vacation, we had a doctor's appointment to do our anatomy ultrasound. the purpose of this visit to evaluate the growth and development of the person growing inside you. our doctor's office finally realized that parents have a hard enough time telling what the gray, white, and black without having to squint on the tiny ultrasound machine. they put in a nice mounted flat screen on the wall and you can watch in comfort as they navigate through the process. the baby looks great. he......yes, it's another boy.....is growing at just the right pace and all his bones and organs look good. it was the perfect way to begin the trip.



landon, jordan, and i flew into seattle with little fuss from landon on the flight. we flew at night and that helped. we stayed the night in a cinematically scary motel with a hunchback front desk attendent who called us at 2am to notify that she didn't know how to work a credit card machine. the phone in our room rang loud enough and eerie enough that it sent chills down my spine. the next morning, the dunn family came to pick us up! it was so good to see them. it's amazing how intact and whole you feel when you're surrounded by family.



we made our way down to seaside oregon. although it was spring break and it was the begininging of april, the oregon coast did not fall in line with typical beach weather. it was about 40 degrees out, windy and raining. being the tourists that we were, we tried not to let it stop us from strolling the streets in search of local fare. seaside is a not a place for those on a diet....it's shore food to the nth degree. corn dogs, salt water taffy, fudge, candy, ice cream, and the like were everywhere. we attempted to enjoy the actual beach but it lasted only a few moments when because the wind almost knocked us off balance. the next day was better weather wise. we started the day with a nice, hearty breakfast at a place called pig and a pancake. we spent the rest of the day at the beach, on the boardwalk, and eating. landon got to take a ride on a carousel for the first time. he loved it, although he sat on some freak of nature flying bunny and then on a giraffe. he loved walking in and out of all the stores. some of the stores were not kid friendly and the "you break it, you buy it" policy was in force, so we kept him close.



after seaside, we drove down the oregon coast and although the drive was long and brought out hte three year old side of my sisters in law, it was so amazing. living here in arizona, there is no blatant beauty. you have see the desert as a beauty in itself, unless you go up north and take in the splendor of the trees and snow. driving down the coast, you see the ocean in all its glory. you can see out to the place where it meets the sky. the worn cliffs are an indicator of how long they've been waiting for you to pass by in awe. we stopped in newport and the sun came out and shined so bright that it sparkled off the water. my little landon headed down the beach, right to the edge of the ocean. he wasn't afraid of it. he approached it as though it should be intimated by him. he put his little feet in the sand and