Missing Nicole

My Girly Girl...Wendy was SO EXCITED she got to go out to eat even though she's fussy!


A beautiful mini cupcake from Thursday morning...
Thursday Morning at Cafe Sip N' Play.
I think this pic Nicole took is awesome.



I'm missing my bf now and she left her cell phone under her pillow so I can't call her now. I'm gonna mail it to her Monday. She had two productive touring days before we drove her to the airport. She hiked the Falls, revisited Cascade Locks, took the Sternwheeler cruise down the Columbia River, and plucked fruit off the vine at the Fruit Loop. There is no way Wendy could have gone and done all that. She's been one little pittiful pearl. She got up at 4:30 the morning of Nicole's last day. That evening, however, we took her to this really trendy restaurant called Beaches. We enjoyed ourselves as the restaurant was loud so Wendy's fussin' didn't bother anyone, and she was well taken care of, reclining in her comfy shaded stroller, but was fussin' just like she would have at home. I'm glad we went out for one last hurrah. Here are some pics Nicole took and some we took that evening.

Today

Nicole's out and about, and I'm home with Wendy as she begins to recover from her ear infection. This morning we went to Cafe Sip N' Play, and watched her play. Even sick, she's just so cute and fun to watch! She got me up at 5:30 this morning again, so I'm looking forward to catching up on sleep this weekend with James' help. We'll be taking Nicole to the airport at 4 a.m. Saturday, so we'll just need to go back to sleep, all three of us, as a family, and then one of us will rise with Wendy and let the other sleep in, and then we'll switch and the other will go back to bed I'm sure. Thank goodness James and I have each other for such emergencies! In a bit, I'm grabbing one of the energy drinks from the fridge so I can keep up with everyone tonight as we play a round of Settlers of Catan! I love that game.

Meeting Celebrities and Going to the Urgent Care Clinic (Yup, quite the day!)

Well, Nicole, Wendy and I had an eventful day. We started our day with a stop at this amazing Candy House that sells baked goods and candies and has a ministry as well. The whole interior is covered with astonishing murals and, hanging from above are faux cookies, pies, candy canes, etc. I love the feeling of being a child again, as if I'm at Willy Wonka's Chocolate Factory or something! After that guilty trip (for sweets that I don't need), we returned to Caprial's Bistro (Monday it was closed) and MET Caprial and John of the TV show, "Caprial and John's Cooking for Family and Friends!" Nicole had seen the show, maybe 8 times, in San Antonio, TX, and had e-mailed me asking if we could go. "SURE!," I said. Sidenote: my next-door neighbor, Colleen, went to highschool with Caprial, whom they affectionately called "Cappy." After our scrumptious lunch of calamari pasta, burger, Sangrias and Lattes, I asked our waitress if Caprial and John were there. Her reply, "Caprial's at the bar, and John's covered in ground beef, but they'd love to meet you both!" So, John came up and was very friendly, and offered to hold Wendy in the shot we took! Then, Caprial came up and was very warm and remembers Colleen, so that was cool. UNfortunately, Wendy was fussy in the restaurant once again, so after checking out one antique shop, we drove to the urgent care clinic and got medicine for Wendy's ear infection, which wasn't bad but is just beginning. She'd been touching her ears a lot the past 3 days, but I'd figured it was due to her teething. She cut another bottom tooth three days ago. Next on the agenda is some home time for me and Wendy so that she may recover and not be confined to her carseat, and Nicole's gonna blaze her own trail (literally) at the Falls, and on Friday, she'll see the blown side of Mt. St. Helens. Things Nicole and I may do together before she flies home: Cafe Sip N' Play, Ikea, parks, etc. We've had a blast today, but Mama is whipped from wrestling with her as she was soooooo beside herself. She was like a large, writhing, twisting, fighting muscle in my arms all day long, arching and twisting in her stroller, in the highchair, you name it. Sigh, I'm glad to be home, with Daddy feeding her and loving on her, and My Big Fat Greek Wedding playing in the background while munching on pizza and mushroom snacks. Ah...

Woo Loo spending Mama's last breaths of energy...
Portland's flourishing hanging baskets.
Whipped cream soothed Wendy momentarily... Us with Caprial~the woman who made it big on TV and with her restaurant!
Wendy's FIRST CELEBRITY, John of "Caprial and John's" cooking show!
Nicole tried too, but did not have much luck calming an unhappy Woo Loo...
Twisting, inconsolable Baby Girl Tanneberger at the clinic fixin' to get examined by the doc.
The Candy House we visited before reaching Caprial's. I got a cookie, chocolates and various candies I grew up with and, gulp, still love.

My Sangria. Mmmmmmmm....
"WHY are we at another restaurant??!! I think I remember telling you I did NOT want to eat out again! I want to be at home with my toys and I'm just gonna start fussing...NOW!"
"Mmmmm..Fruity!"
"I'm gonna refuse to eat any meat, or bread, or fruit, I'm gonna eat this table."

Tuesday With Aunt Nicki!

The view of the forest through our ride...


Haystack Rock (from the movie, The Goonies!)

Ah, life is good, and I am one happy baby girl!

Okay, I WAS one happy girl. Now, I'm ready to quit and go home. No, I don't even want a bit of Mama's gourmet chicken.
Today we drove out to Cannon Beach, and immediately ate lunch at Morris' Fireside Log Cabin---shrimp and tuna sandwiches and champagne! We shopped around a bit after that, and Nicole found a cute straw hat and shades for her upcoming cruise! We then walked along the sandy beach, and I dipped Wendy's diapered bottom in the water, but she fussed, so I removed her wet cold diaper and held her little bottom in my hand as her legs wrapped around my waist. Then, while strolling along, Nicole noticed Wendy's ankle was bleeding quite a bit! She said, "Laurel, something's got Wendy's ankle!" I looked down and saw a slimy booger thing that was creating a dribbling pool of blood on my baby! I swept it away, and Nicole, who got a better look at it, said it was slimy and grey. As we headed back to get an alcohol wipe, I felt a warm current spread a wide circle on my belly and down my waist. Yes, Wendy was tinkling in response to the nice, pleasant, cool breeze! We laughed and Nicole asked, "Why didn't you set her down right away?" I don't have an answer. We took her to the Information Center, and they said it might have been a bit of jelly fish, but Wendy hadn't reacted to the bite, so could it have been a leech, or do they not live in salt water? We washed it off with water and used their medicated ointment, but still wanted alcohol, and they did not have any. We poked into a store and I bouth a new T to replace my tinkle-saturated top. Then, we passed an RV and smart Nicole asked the owner for a first aid kit and he grabbed it and gave us the wipes! We wiped her ankle down, and she appeared to be fine. We drove around the town for a while and then dined at Newman @ 988, Italian and French quisine, however, by then, the Woo Loo-nator was not in the mood. I wrestled with her and tried everything, and then finally, we had to move our plates outside to the tables out in front, and it was chilly, but we still ate our chicken picatta and wine. Sigh, can't expect perfect behavior from babies all the time. Still, a fantastic day!

More Images From the Past Two Days

Here are five more shots from the past 2 days' activities. Below this is the other post and journal describing what we've done so far!

Nicole's Visit!

My best friend of, gosh, like 10 years (we met our freshman year at A&M, so that would've been 1997), is visiting us! She got in Saturday night, and will be with us through Saturday, 4 a.m., when we drive her in the dramatic dark of night to the airport. We've had a ton of fun already. Let's see. We got up Sunday, went to church, grabbed Nicole (who was a bit jet-lagged--2 hour difference) and ate Mediteranian (sp?) food at Jeruselem Cafe for lunch. Then we picked blueberries (and later as we walked around the neighborhood, blackberries along the trails) drove her up to Multnomah Falls to see the water falls and chomp on snow cones. Then we drove her around a bit and ate dinner at The Charburger in Cascade Locks. (I'm probably misspelling everything.) Vanilla icecream with the berries topped off the day in a lovely way! Yesterday we ate apple pastries and headed out to the famous Caprial's Bistro, which was closed, so we instead ate at Pizzacato and enjoyed the delish pizza, hummus plate and salad. Then, we went to Laurel Hurst park and strolled through the beautiful trees and pathways. Then, for dinner last night, I whipped up a delicious grilled chicken salad with lettuce, shredded carrots, red seedless grapes, fried onions, parmesian cheese, cashews, soy and flaxseed chips and peanut vinaigrette. We sipped wine and watched home improvement shows. Man, are those people creative and man, do they do awesome things with walls, headboards and mirrors. Lamps in front of mirrors create such elegant lighting. Large, as in 8-foot headboards make a dramatic statement. Very inspiring. Today, we're heading for Canon Beach, so more pics to follow!

Playing at Cafe Sip N' Play Today!

It's raining today, so we got out of this stuffy house and headed for Cafe Sip N' Play, which has THE best tuna sandwiches ---amazingly tasty! I got a coffee and joined the other first-time moms in the baby section. Wendy enjoyed herself thoroughly. Found out about their moms group (http://www.cafemoms.com/ I think). Gonna get in with their crowd as they were so chatty and sweet!

Vacation Bible School

Here I am with the ladies helping out with registration for VBS at Calvary! It's fantastic to hear their stories and such. Fascinating women.

Play Date at the Park

At the park with Leslie and Hayden and Marilyn and Autumn...