Phoebes on parade

After weeks of anticipation the day of the Tillamook Dairy Parade arrived.
The girls wanted to ride their bikes in the parade this time around. They got the idea to decorate their bikes in red, white and blue after seeing it done (for 4th of July) in one of my Martha Stewart Living magazines. We bought streamers, pinwheels, bows and more from the dollar store so they could go to town with their creations. I admit that I got in their way at first trying to show them how I thought it should be done but then I caught myself and graciously stepped back, letting them have at it. They had so much fun decorating them and making their visions come to life.

There was a last minute change of plans with how Kevin and the girls would be in the parade resulting in Baby L and I having to walk in the parade as well. I am your typical wallflower so I struggled with that idea, but I knew how much this meant to my little ones so I made myself get over it. Well, I had help in getting over it -Kevin had to fly drive the 'mini jet' in the parade and oh my I had to fight back giggles over that. He was a bit embarrassed but he has a lighthearted way of dealing with humiliation by poking fun at himself. I could learn from him. When I snapped the picture above he was pretending to be Maverick (Top Gun)giving the thumbs up. Anyways, we marched on. Of course in typical Oregon fashion, it rained on and off. The girls wore their dresses I finished up the night before and their Phoebe sweaters but they had to cover them up with raincoats. That didn't stop the endless comments on their Phoebes, though. I seriously have never had anything get as many compliments as these Phoebes do, but then again it's not hard to see why! It's such a beautiful design.



After the parade we briefly stopped at the Tillamook Cheese factory on the way to the beach. C and K snuck off to look at lollipops. C told me, "Just to look at, Mama. I know we can't have them." But I am curious to know how 'looking' means licking the wrapper with your tongue...











The beach was nothing but perfect, as expected. We hadn't been back since last September and were really missing it. Baby L was able to get down and play, much to his delight. He kept doing his little knee walk/crawl as fast as he could to try to catch the waves. He got wet but kept going back for more. The waves were a bit too rough for a baby to be playing in (for my taste, at least) so we placed Baby L behind a large piece of driftwood and stacked rocks with him, instead. Daddy found a large piece of driftwood of his own to nap on, but that quickly changed when the girls found him. Something tells me he didn't mind.

Tillamook is such a treasure in Oregon. I hope to bring my children out to visit a few more times this summer. Now I just hope I am brave enough to stick with that idea!





About their dresses: The girls really wanted fabric with stars and stripes and what have you but I talked them into this pretty red, white, and blue (and pink) calico instead. I wanted them to be able to wear their dresses all summer long. Since I only had three days to whip out two dresses I knew I needed a simple, fast, tried and true pattern. So I went with the CLAIRE by Portabellopixie pattern. I made the peasant dress version (the same one I sewed for C's birthday dress), but omitted the elastic shirring to make it more loose and comfortable. I know most people can sew up a dress or two in an evening but for me this was really a struggle and an unrealistic goal. It all worked out in the end though.(phew!)

Phoebes on parade