Book Club at the Beach...

So book club came to Oregon to see Kristi Rose who is doing her intern year at SUNY in Long Island, NY and she has only two weeks of vacation for the entire year, and she is choosing to spend a few of those days with us...Teresa, Patty, Marnie, and her daughter Ellie made the trek from Boise to spend time with us. This is Patty conferring with Matt feet from the ocean...which is feet from our front door...

Eagle Scout Matt packed everything for us to make the trek...and remembered everything but a jacket...so after an emergency stop at Eddie Bauer and found a jacket...but didn't remove the tag...his wistful look.

This is Kristi and Matt trying to fly a kite...a perfect beach activity...but no wind...normally not a complaint-as it was actually quite nice temperature on the sand...the downside is it is difficult to fly a kite with no wind...so Harry Potter was beach bound.

Matt the Eagle Scout packed all these sand toys for Mateo and Ellie to play with...

This is us all dressed up at the fundraiser for AC Gilbert House...one of Mateo's favorite places. We went with our friends with Greg and Angela Murphy...Angela works as the book keeper at AC Gilbert House. The fundraiser was out at the Willamette Valley Vineyards...so there was even good pinot to be had.

Love you all and especially grateful for time with good friends...Sarah

The month of celebration begins...

Yeah!!! What a magnificent day...I slept in today because of a bad head cold (not so fun)...but by the time I got up, I already had a text from my dad and four voice mails wishing me a happy birthday. Throughout the day, people I know and love showered me with affection. A guy who works for me got me flowers...Matt brought Mateo to work carrying a Happy Birthday Frog Balloon Bouquet and some yellow tulips...and I connected with my old boss Barry. Then, Nona hosted a fabulous feast for dinner...Alaskan King Crab topped off with Lemon Chiffon Pie. There were presents to be had, and cards from friends.

But the best part of today, the thing that makes me smile the most? It begins twenty days of celebration in our family...we go from my birthday (Feb 5) to Valentine's Day to our wedding anniversay (Feb 15--6 years this year) to the first day we met Mateo (February 18) to Matt's Birthday (Feb 25)...this month is for celebrating life, and love, and family.

Here's hoping the joy spills from this day to the next, and the next, and the next...

Love from Silverton, Sarah & Matt & Mateo

Just in time...

Since our blog debuted, we have never had a month without a post...and lucky for me, this post will occur just in time to make that still a true statement.  Today is an interesting day to return to blogging as it is the nineteenth anniversary of my mom's death.  It seems sort of morbid to number it like that...which is definitely not what I mean to do....but it really caught me off guard about how long it has been.  Today, I stayed home to honor her memory by being mom to Mateo full time today...we made sugar cookies in the shape of hearts, footballs, and helmets...it was a blast!!

Mateo has bilateral ear infections so we are on a second course of antibiotics...which of course is challenging when you are potty training...actually, he is almost entirely potty trained now...wearing diapers only at night...we've only had one accident this week.  Yeah for Matt...who is of course doing all the hard work in this task area.

I have been mostly focused on all things Montessori Charter School...the pictures attached here are from our open house last Sunday out at our new school location...we are so excited to see the dream finally become a reality.

Matt and our friend Miranda Traeger...

Miranda and me (sporting a new Community Roots School hoodie!!)

Our new school's logo...our graphic guy Bart is PHENOMENAL!!

And the other two pictures are of Mateo at the beach for New Year's...which is a fitting way to end the post as the ocean had special meaning for my mom.  She found it relaxing, and I must admit, that gene was passed to Rachel and me both, I think.  I am centered there...so, tonight, my prayer is that mothers are honored and appreciated while they are around, so that there is not remorse when they are gone.  I pray for daughters growing up without mothers that their burdens are light and their support systems are strong.  I pray in appreciation for my mom, who I think would be proud of me, and whom I hope to be half the woman and mother she was to me.  

Peace and Oceans be unto you all, Sarah

We're back...sort of

Hi friends,

So sorry for the long time since the last post. All our pictures are stuck on a computer that has not had internet access, and then it is a big project to fix it. But, we got iPhones for Christmas, and so I have a few pictures we took of the festivities...so here is an interim post, until we can get some of the back pictures moved to the laptop...

Mateo got to carry up a lamb as part of the nativity scene at church. I was in the back with him, so worried that he wouldn't follow the directions, that he would stop when he saw Matt, that he would get to the front of the church and then not want to hand over the lamb. All my worries were for naught, he did exactly as he was supposed to--and by several accounts was the cutest boy in the whole procession!

Cousin Tegan also has an iPhone and took this picture of Mateo and Uncle Dan. Mateo is wearing a shirt from Tegan with "Everyone Poops", while reading a pop-up snowman book from our friends Robin & Jill.

Tia LaLa made this coat and hat for Mateo last year, and it fits way better this year!! Notice the special jingle bell adornment...he didn't want to take off the hat for anything!

We learned from our friends Jim and Marnie that a noble fir that is untrimmed, looks so nice. So we went in search of one just like their...we were in luck when we found out that our vegetable co-op supplier had trees just as we wished for. This was the before picture...no after picture, because it took all day for Mateo to open his presents and then it was too dark for a pic!! He wanted to open it, play with one, have someone play with him, then onto the next one.

And the Christmas morning spread...always more to eat than time to eat it. One of the few times, I rejoice in having cookies for breakfast. Warm wishes from Oregon where it has been snowy for days, but finally, is warm enough that our street is open for the first time in more than two weeks. We love you...more posts soon, I promise.

Hugs from Oregon, Sarah & boys

California Dreamin'

Early this October, Matt and Mateo had a chance to go to their first football game together in San Francisco. Matt's been a long-suffering Patriots fan (since 1973!) and has found the last 7 years most gratifying. (Notably, the week after I first saw my good luck charm Sarah at a Boise State game, Tom Brady stepped into the starting New England QB slot, and the team's run to their first Superbowl began - can there be any greater sign that we were meant to be?!!) Pre-child, we'd done our best to get to a Patriots game each year. But we'd taken a pass for the last few years, until the vagaries of schedule put the team out on the west coast for 4 games this season, not to return for several years. So we decided try for Seattle tickets (eventually proved unavailable, due to the Ticketmaster/Seahawks legal scalping racket - Don't get me started!), and added on a trip to the bay area. Sarah's Dad's family is from Sacramento, and are still scattered around central California. We decided it would be a great chance for Mateo and family to see each other - and Mateo got to see his first football game with his Papa, who came down from Idaho for the trip, and Sarah's Aunt Cathy, as devoted and eternal a 49er's fan as Matt is for the Patriots.
We flew into Sacramento, where visited with Sarah's grandparents, Don and Pat, and her Aunt Marcia and husband Klaus. Above, Mateo puts himself in the picture at the Sacramento Zoo. I think we've tried to pose in half a dozen of these things before; This is the first time he really got it.


We picked up Mike in Sacramento, and he had a great outing with the grandson. Mateo had changed so much since the last time, and he loved the zoo and the chance to play with Papa.


Mateo was still in an animal watching mood once we got to Marsha and Klaus's, and he spent a lot of time in front of their tank, staring at the fish (and experimenting with turning on and off the lights and pumps!)

We found this little frog curled up underneath a patio lounger cushion at Marsha and Klaus's. Mateo spent ages just quietly observing it, and then we let it go in the garden.


Mateo with Auntie Marsha and Uncle Klaus. We had a wonderful visit there, great food and company, and talking into the night. Their home is on a golf course, and like many of the residents, they have a golf cart that's used to tool around the development (they don't golf, but it came with the house) Mateo really loved riding around in it, and he even got to drive.