Spring

Ah, spring.  We have been loving spring here in Oregon.  It has really felt like spring since February, so I have loved being able to send the kids outside on good days with no rain for so much of the winter.  Now, flowers are out and trees are blooming, so it really is Spring!  We have been singing "Popcorn" on our car rides around town for a couple weeks now.  I really like spring here.  Blossoms seem to linger longer, and really, the rain isn't bad at all.  As part of spring, we decided to experience the Tulip Festival that is held each year here in Woodburn, Oregon.  Brad is in the midst of a long stretch of work with no days off, so he decided to at least take a half day off so we could go and enjoy the sights.  We were not disappointed.  We have never been to a tulip festival, so this was pretty amazing

Mr. Ivan basking in the sun and loving all the colors and sights

In typical Christian fashion, Christian was all about the tractors sprinkled throughout the tulip fields.  And, in typical Christian fashion, he was too enthralled with the nobs and wheels to take the time to look at the camera for a pic.  This was the best pic, and is was on the PINK tractor.  Christian's favorite color of tulip was yellow and orange. 

Ellie looking cute next to the tulips.  Her favorite color of tulip was pink, red and purple.  

OK, here's a smiling Christian on a tractor

The sweet kiddos in the fields

Our "two lips" kissing in the tulip fields

The company that runs the festival is The Wooden Shoe Tulip Company, so there was a shoe carving shop with a bunch of wooden shoes of different sizes.  We had fun trying on the wooden shoes

A view of the colorful fields

We  brought home a bouquet of tulips to enjoy at home. It is called the Judith Leyster tulip and very beautiful.

On the first day of Spring, March 20, we found out that we will be coming back to Utah this summer.  Brad was matched as one of the first residents for Intermountain Healthcare's Ambulatory Care Program.  We are pretty happy about being able to be close to family again, but we will be leaving some great friends that we have made here.  The idea of moving back is definitely bittersweet due to the great people we have been blessed to meet while living here.   We have about 3 months left in Oregon, so we are going to try and soak in all that we can of this beautiful place while we're here.  We have already counted all of Brad's weekends and made a list of all the things we still want to experience here.  We're going to be busy to say the least.