Still No Camera!

Well, the camera did take awhile to return home, but it is back now. Here are some pictures from our trip to Seattle in August. Thanks Grandma Daddy for sending them our way! Einar and I had a really great visit in Seattle for the 2 1/2 weeks that we were there. We rode Metro busses, played in the dirt, walked around the lake, went to Vashon Is. on a Ferry (he's still talking about Vashon and the Ferry boat!), and just got to spend time with the families. It made August go by a lot faster and we also skipped the first heat wave of the month while we were enjoying the cool breezes and occasional rain shower in Seattle.


Einar loves reading his library books and we made a trip to the Northgate Library a priority in our first week. He also loves the playground at the new library and community center.




Watching downtown traffic from the skybridge between Nordstrom and Pacific Place with Grandma and Grandpa.
Playing in the dirt pile that Uncle Tor has set aside for Einar when he comes to visit.


The wading pool at Greenlake was lots of fun for the little guy on the hotter afternoons.
Watching freight trains while waiting for our table at the Spaghetti factory. It sure was a long train!
A bedtime story with Poppa Dennis before tucking in on our last night in town.
Watching all of the construction action at a downtown building site with Grandma.

Grandma Daddy took Einar across the street to the lake to play in the sand with his trucks. At least he was dressed warmly since he sure came home WET!

Exciting News......

Einar is going to be a Big Brother!
So far whenever we ask him if he wants to be a big brother or if he wants a baby he gives a definite "No!" but he has until the end of March to change his tune because I'm pregnant!

The picture that I've posted here is of him one night this past week having snuck into our room after we thought he was asleep in his big boy bed. I don't blame him for wanting to sleep on the Tempurpedic mattress over his futon, but he was pretty sneaky. He is passed out in this photo and I had no trouble getting him back into his big boy bed. It's going to take us a little while to free up that crib of his for the new baby since he still is taking some naps in it and chose to sleep in the crib last night as well.

Unfortunately, the camera also broke this week and I had to take it into the West Coast Olympus service office on Thursday. They said that the repair would take 1-2 weeks and that they would send it back to us. So until the camera returns...

Relay For Life Pictures

RELAY FOR LIFE Event from two weeks ago (the color theme was purple!):
Einar drawing the winning ticket from our basket raffle.

After packing up our tents and camp, those who are left pose for a picture.

This is where Einar spent most of his time during the relay. The infield was directly across from our camp, we just needed a Truck Crossing sign to warn the walkers as he crossed the path back to our tents and tables. Thankfully the infield was packed down solid and he wasn't able to scoop out any dangerous divets!

Sunny Summer Days

Like much of the West Coast this past week, we've been enjoying some lovely summer days. It's been so clear and the ocean so blue that I had to take a picture of the place so that you can all enjoy it as well.

This morning I watched Hailey and Nathan and the four of us walked around the neighborhood, fed the animals (only the donkey and the sheep since the horse didn't come down from the corral today), and ran around the golf course to burn of excess energy before lunch. Then it was back to our house where I made a yummy veggie and noodle stir-fry that was quickly gobbled up by the crew. Once Kathleen and the kids had left and Einar was down for his nap I noticed that my 30 spf didn't work to well on my shoulders this morning and they are now in need of some aloe vera gel.

One exciting thing in Einar's life is that he is now sleeping in a big boy bed instead of his crib. This afternoon when my friend Kelly came to pick something up, Einar came down to meet her and said "Come, Look My Big Boy Bed!" and he gave her a tour. We got it all ready for him about a week ago and he's been doing very well with the whole idea. The crib is still set up in case he chooses it over his big boy bed, but the biggest reason it is still up is because I haven't figured out where I'm going to store it. He stays in his room and doesn't wander around, but we have caught him bringing books into bed and reading. If he hears us coming down the stairs, he chucks them out as quickly as possible and pretends that he's been laying down. At least he enjoys books as much as I do!

After his nap this afternoon, I took him down to Dana Point Harbor to throw rocks into the ocean and watch people. We had a grand old time till the tide got a little too high for our comfort and we headed back to our car. Then it was home to make dinner and get Einar to bed. Lots of fresh air today should make for a good night's sleep.

I'm Back from My Blogging Vacation

You've got to take the chance at a vacation whenever it is offered, so since Jared was conscripted to do the last entry and he had taken the camera for the previous two weeks, I've had a nice little blogging vacation here in San Clemente. We've not gone anywhere but have a handful of photos to share with you. The weather has been warming up, but it hasn't been nearly has scorching as the surrounding area due to our nice marine layer that comes to cool us down in the early morning and then burn off around nap time. This past weekend was a stay-at-home one since Jared was sick for the whole time. He's feeling much better now and Einar and I have so far managed to avoid whatever bug it was. This coming weekend, Einar and I are participating in the San Clemente Relay for Life. We'll be camping out on the San Clemente High School track on Saturday night and I'll be walking during the middle of the night while Einar sleeps in the tent. I'm sure he'll do a few laps with me during his awake hours as well. We are on our church team this year. The last time I participated in Relay for Life was in Gardnerville and I was 3 months pregnant!


Einar took it upon himself to help his friend, Nathan blow his nose. They were playing spin the other in the desk chair when Einar noticed that Nathan's nose was gooey and so he went to get a kleenex and help him out.

When the kids were getting anxious for the fireworks after dinner, I put on the Happy Feet DVD and they were mesmerized for awhile...

Lots of action on the Fourth of July in the Ogle house! Eight Adults and Seven Kids shared in the festivities. We had everyone over for a dinner of grilled flank steak, corn on the cob, potato salad, green salad, buffalo wings, hot dogs, and brownies with berries and whip cream. The San Clemente Fireworks were visible from our patio around 9pm and the kids were out there for 30 minutes before-hand chanting "Fireworks! Fireworks! Fireworks!" One mom brought glow sticks for everyone and they loved waving them around.

You won't be seeing pictures like this in the near future because Einar doesn't need to wear glasses. I took him in to see the Eye Doctor last week to calm any fears that he has inherited the Bjorklund eye genes and he not only was a real trooper during the exam, but his eyes are doing well with only a slight astigmatism that doesn't need to be corrected any time soon. When he was in the exam and had to wear the funny glasses to look at the pictures, the doctor said, "Wow, you sure look like your mom in those glasses!" This photo is of him trying on my glasses to show Jared once we got home.

As you may remember, Einar has always had a thing for pink. Some of his favorite books are the Disney Princess books too. I guess he's being influenced by those stories and the pictures in them since this afernoon at lunch he put his slice of red bell pepper on his head and said "Princess Hat, Princess Einar!" He was very pleased with himself and proudly posed for this photo. If your interested, princess eat red pepper sticks and bean, cheese, and potato burritos for lunch. After lunch we headed to the library and picked out a whole bag full of non-princess stories to read before nap time.

Jared's Trip To Virginia

WARNING! There are no pictures of Einar in this blog entry; although, there are other cute children.














I was in Quantico, Virginia for a 2 week course for the Marine Corps. While I was there, I took the opportunity to be a tourist and visit with friends that live in that area.

The first three pictures are from the National Museum of the Marine Corps, which just opened this last November. They had very smart displays with a glass ceilling center gallery.

I also visited with Karla's old school and room mate Anne Pecha, her husband Andy, their daughter Kasha and son Ciaran. I had not met them before and it was great to visit them in there home outside of Arlington

The other airplane pictures are from the National Aerospace Museum in Chantilly, VA. It was fun to go there and the collection was very inclusive, to include hang-gliders to the Concord SST and the Space Shuttle Enterprise.

There is myself sitting with Molly Hill, with her brother Jacob and dog Gunniess in the other picture. They are the children of Franc and Betsy Hill, which are friends of ours from when we lived in Neveda. They are now living in Norfolk. Franc wasn't there, but I was able to catch up with everybody else.

I also went into Washington, D.C. to see the Marine Corps Sunset Parade, which included a close order drill demonstration, a marching band and a drum and bugle corps. All of which was at Marine Barracks, 8th & I (intersection), which is the oldest post in the Marine Corps and was built in 1801.

I'm back home, enjoying the rest of the weekend, play time, nap time, dinner time and other such things.

Welcome Summer!

Today was the first day of summer, although it's felt like summer for a week or two here in San Clemente. I've posted a couple of pictures of our trip to the swimming pool with Einar's friend Kayla last Friday. Those two had a great time playing in the pool on the stairs after we came back from their music class and held hands all the way to the cars. I got my first burn of the season since I guess I can't reach the entirety of the skin that my bathing suit exposes on my back. Einar calls my burn a "butterfly owie" since it is the shape of a butterfly in the middle of my back. He came up with that himself.

The pictures of the butter explain the challenges that I have to keep the butter safe from our kid. He now takes the whole cube when it's cold and nibbles off the end, or if it's warm, he'll squish it in his hand and then lick his hands. He really likes butter, just like his father does.

Speaking of his father, Jared is currently in Quantico, VA for a First Sergeant's Course that is two weeks long. We took him to the airport on Father's Day morning and we'll pick him up on the 30th. He is able to call every day and is having a good time. We miss him!

I'll probably post another entry in the coming week, but Jared took our camera to Virginia, so there won't be any new pictures till after he returns. Then I there will most likely be pictures of the Aerospace museum and of other things that Jared is checking out on his trip. I might employ him as a guest blogger too.

Spikey Hair-do and the Crystal Cathedral

Here are a couple of pictures of Einar's new short Spikey Hair-do. We took him to the barber and he cut it REALLY short, but now we can spike it with a product called "Einar's Arctic Freeze Hair Gel." Honestly, that's what it is called. I spike it after he gets dressed in the morning and then he goes to check it out in his bedroom mirror right away. When he catches his reflection he gets this big grin on his face and he's off and running again.

Yesterday we went north to Garden Grove, CA (not to far from Disneyland) and visited the Crystal Cathedral. They have a beautiful campus with lots of grass to run around on and we looked at some pictures of the old buildings. Having arrived 15 minutes late, we meandered around and ate lunch in the outdoor Cafe and then missed the next tour. No problem since we were able to go inside the Crystal Cathedral part on our own and check it out. The last stop on our "private tour" was the Women's bathroom which was incredibly ornate with marble and gold and over the top. I'm surprised they didn't have an offering basket in there to help support the upkeep of the facility.

I've also included a picture of some napping grandparents. This activity has been happening like clockwork in the afternoons while Einar is taking his nap.

Camping Trip and Swim Lessons

Over Memorial Day we headed east towards Palm Springs and had a Southern California Adventure. We made it to Lake Perris before lunch and spent the morning at the Orange Empire Railroad Museum (the same place where we saw Thomas in November) and rode the trains and trolleys. After a picnic lunch, we went to the Lake Perris Recreation area and set up our tent for nap time. Nap time was successful for both Jared and I as we took turns while the awake one tried to convince the nap-skipper that napping was a good idea--it didn't work. I won't say that Einar came through as a rugged outdoorsman who loves this camping stuff, but he did do better with the night time sleeping in the tent than our camping trip last summer. He was also busy with his trucks all afternoon and evening. The next day we drove to Palm Springs and rode the Aerial Tram Ride to the top of San Jacinto Park for another snacks and "hiking" toddler-style. We made it back in time for Einar's swim lesson here in town. What a fun weekend Getaway it was!

Enjoy the pictures, I'll write more later. This week we're enjoying a visit from Lynn and Dennis a.k.a. Far Mor and Poppa. We've been to the Getty Museum in LA, a new park in Laguna Beach, Einar got a haircut today, and I've been catching up on some medical appointments.