A Special Weekend Away

Brian and I spent a relaxing anniversary weekend at the coast. The fresh air, and having NOTHING to do was absolutely wonderful!

Two young bucks greeted us as we pulled up to the house.

Thanks again Shelie and Dr. Gibbs for your generosity!

Of course we brought Wickey Dawg with us!

We think it was her first time at the beach.

She seemed to like it okay, except for the sand and salt water getting in her mouth!

Wickey playing with Brian!

It was beautiful at Oceanside. We had one clear, sunny and windy day, and one stormy day.

Both are my favorite ways to enjoy the Oregon Coast.

There is such beauty in the sun and the storm.

It's hard to believe that it has already been one year since we were married!

They say time feels like its passing faster and faster the older you get.

Well, if that's the case, we had better make each year count!

:: XOXOXO ::

One Down . . .

and the rest of our lives to go.

Today, Brian and I celebrate our first year of marriage.

It's been the easiest, the most frustrating, the happiest, the most sad.

We've had the most fun and worked the hardest.

It's been the best.

We plan on making ever year from here on out, the best one yet.

Brian & Mari McDonald

September 27, 2008

A Luau Send-Off for Jon and Chelsea

Our good friends Jon and Chelsea are heading to Colorado.

They'll be "commuting" back to Portland for the next few summers while Jon

attends a very prestigious art school in Denver for a few years.

Since Colorado is anything but tropical this time of year, we decided to throw them a LUAU!

The LEI monkey

We had a really nice turn out. Jon and Chelsea will be missed by many!

The kids really liked roasting marshmallows in the fire pit!

Even baby Trek Gibler was in the Hawaiian spirit.

There was lots of yummy food and a TON of great desserts!

Thanks everyone for helping out!

It was a great night for all!

We decided not to say goodbye to Jon and Chelsea, but instead, wished them well because we know they'll be back soon!

Portland will miss you!

A Night With the Swifts

". . . a fabulous display of birds whirling and swirling through the skies, dodging falcons and chasing them, and finally, tornadoing into a chimney, the SWIFTS are back." - Craig Sheahan

Craig and Laura Sheahan invited us over to their side of the river to check out a local phenomenon - the Chapman Elementary School Swifts.

Here, a local Portlander describes the amazing event much better than I could:

EVERY SUMMER thousands of tiny Vaux swifts swoop into Portland, Oregon, to spend several months feasting on flying insects during the day and roosting in the tall chimney at Chapman School at night. NW Portland is a regular vacation stopover for swifts during their annual migration from Alaska/Canada to Mexico/South America.

Historically, migrating swifts roosted in big hollow trees they found in Oregon's old growth forests, but now, thanks to logging and urban sprawl, most of those trees are gone. In 1994, some adventurous swift scouted out new digs in the brick chimney atop Chapman Elementary School. The little birds, 4-5" ("cigars with wings"), like the rough surfaces and cracks in the bricks that give them lots of convenient toe holds, plus the chimney is big enough to accomodate between 20,000 to 40,000 birds.

The school children and their teachers welcomed the swifts in their chimney. They researched the swifts and other migratory birds, drew and painted pictures of their feathered friends, and even elected the swift as the school mascot. As the days grew colder in late September and October, students wore their coats to class so that administrators could postpone starting up the school furnace until after the swifts left the chimney to fly south. At last, the Portland Public Schools and the Audubon Society teamed up to raise grant money to stabilize the chimney for the swifts and to install a new gas heating system for the school. The renovation cost approximately $60,000 (that's not chicken feed!), and was funded by the Collins Foundation, the Metro Central Enhancement Grant Committee, and the Autzen Foundation.

Nine years have gone by, and the swifts are still summer celebrities in Portland. If you wander over to Chapman in the early evening, you'll find a crowd of spectators sitting on a grassy bank overlooking the school. Some bring their picnic suppers, some bring champagne, many have binoculars and cameras. All ages come to watch the swifts as they congregate and prepare to call it a day. At first, there are just a few of the little birds circling the chimney, dipping close to the mouth of the chimney stack, then abruptly pulling up and flying away to repeat the cycle. As more and more birds arrive, from a distance, they look like a cloud of bees, wheeling round and round the chimney. Other birds - predators - also appear. A hawk sits on the rim of the chimney, watching, waiting, then suddenly strikes and carries off his unlucky prey. Occasionally, the tables are turned, and a gang of irate swifts attack the hawk, driving him away, at least for a short time.

The flock grows and grows until the cloud of birds turns black, and still they circle. What are they waiting for? Maybe they're waiting for late arrivals? Maybe they are still catching insects as they fly? (Swifts eat in the air, and during their migration, sleep midair, too). Maybe they're waiting for the air in the chimney to be the right temperature, or for the setting sunlight to fall at a certain angle? The Audubon Society has put an information kiosk in the schoolyard; perhaps it explains what finally triggers the birds' descent.

Gradually the circling picks up speed. The birds fly several rapid last laps, and then.....Swooosh! They dive down the chimney and disappear. The sky is suddenly empty, blank. The sun is going down, too, and evening is here. Time to go home. The swifts will stay a few more weeks, until the days get shorter and the weather gets colder. Then mid-October or so, possibly when we fall back to standard time, they will fly away to winter in Mexico.

Portland is such a cool city, even the Swifts think so!

A Quick Trip to California

My good friend from high school, Mark Pekarek got hitched this weekend!

Brian and I thought it might be fun to road trip it down to central California for the festivities.

MIGHT being the operative word here.

Before we even got on the freeway, some last minute car maintenance was necessary.

We didn't leave as early as we had planned, but finally we were on the road!

I drove the first leg. . . Brian just tanned HIS legs.

We couldn't believe how LOW the water was in Lake Shasta!

Here are some pictures I attempted to take as we drove by.

Of course, our first stop (besides rest areas) HAD to be In-N-Out!

The closest one to the Oregon border is in Redding, CA on Dana Road, and we stopped for a late lunch/early dinner!

We had been looking forward to this little treat for a while!

Pretty Field of Rice

A beautiful northern California Smogset- I mean Sunset!

We pulled in to Livermore, CA at about 9:oo p.m. Friday night and went straight to bed!

:: Saturday, September 12, 2009 ::

Martinelli's Center, 5:oo p.m.

Grant and Susan Rider, and Susan's son Mark, the groom!

[Fun fact: my dad with to High School with Susan, I went to HS with Mark,

so we've all known each other for a very long time.]

Here comes the Bride, Stacy!

The Kiss

Awwww, they did it!!

Mark's sister April and her husband Matt.

DINNER TIME!

Me and Mark's mom Susan.

The first dance.

:: Stacy, Mark, Me and Brian ::

Grant and the rest of the gang were dancing up a storm!

Susan and Grant

Mother::Son & Father::Daughter Dance

Cutting the delicious cake!

Flip Flops for those who couldn't dance in their heels any longer!

These were THE BEST idea ever!

Making their get-away in a sea of sparklers!

Grant was so excited!

And. . . one more stop at In-N-Out to end the night!

Animal-Style!

It was a quick weekend full of TONS of driving, good times with Friends and of course, plenty of In-N-Out to last us until next time.

Congrats Mark & Stacy!

We had a great time, but we're flying next time we come down!