i'm just a boy with a new haircut

after seeing this photo...

(which captures the "snoodgy" face that eli makes)
i decided it was high time for a haircut.

getting started...



eli is warming up to the process...

the final result. pretty darn cute.

Oklahoma!

here are some photos from our trip. it was great spending time with chris' family and chris participated in the I'n-Lon-Schka dances in Pawhuska (click the link then scroll down under "Welcome" to see photos. Pawhuska is the district where Chris dances). it's really beautiful to watch all the dancers in their regalia and the sound from their bells and all the singers is amazing. photos of the actual dancing are not allowed.









here's stella up to something in the play pen. note eli in the background cracking some kind of joke...

doesn't that face break your heart?

eli and lena having a little sleepy snuggle.

eli and stella in the tiny bathtub in the camper...perfect size for baby twins!

let's just say it was muddy at the dances, which is why you can't see lena's feet in this photo. it had been raining for days, and continued while we were there. luckily it was warm rain, but very very muddy. of course lena loved it.



lena at the airport on the way home. hmm. not long after this stella threw up all over me and the shoes of the man sitting next to me. really awful.

then this morning, chris found a tick...on his behind. a huge lone star tick that apparently made the trip from oklahoma back to portland. my tick pulling skills leave much to be desired, and i pulled the body off and left the head inside. so, he paid a visit to the medical professionals today for official tick removal and antibiotics. i was surprised at how horrified i was by this creature. really really awful. but also kind of funny.

tall grass prairie

The Nature Conservancy owns a huge area of tallgrass prairie that is being restored just outside of Pawhuska. There is a buffalo herd on the prairie, and this year we saw hundreds of them! There were lots and lots of babies, too. Check 'em out!





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we're off!

we're leaving for Oklahoma today for the Osage dances in Pawhuska. we should have lots of good photos to share next week. in the meantime, here's a photo of lena practicing her dancing at a powwow last weekend.

little bug

dinner time

all right, i'm going to try posting a video so you can see (and hear!) these little creatures in action.


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around the house

Lena's world

This week I decided that it might be fun to let Lena take some photos to post online. She liked the idea, and within a short time got very carried away and tried to photograph every single thing in her room. Here are a few of her shots that seem to capture a bit of her current 4-year-old life.

at the park

eli the little old man

stella with the big blue eyes

feels like summer!

around the house

i think lena is probably singing the annie theme song in this photo...eli is looking a bit wary of the racket.


i love this picture because you can see how much lena loves her little sissy!


stella and eli getting out some toys


eli coming to get you!


stella trying to stand up...uh oh! time to buy some baby gates.

spunky stella

stella is quite a go-getter these days. besides scooting, hair-pulling, book throwing, and almost doing a proper crawl, she's also started doing a new pose on all fours with her behind up in the air. funny girl.

a little nature walk

today it was so nice outside, we went to a local wetland area for a little exploration. elijah and stella charmed everyone we passed with their chicken-like arm flapping, and lena "couldn't walk another step" until we said first one back to the top of the hill gets ice cream...she ran the whole way! ah, bribery. works like a charm.

beach trip

this past weekend we went to the beach for my dad's birthday. the tinker kids definitely enjoyed the sand (eli and stella both had a little sand-wich) and lena did plenty of bike riding.

some random shots

we love bath time!


please oh please let them feed me something I like! (note: that's finger crossing, not flipping the bird)


rats, foiled again.