July 17 - 18: da Vinci Days!

I can't believe it's been since the 12th that I've last updated this. My apologies! We've had many adventures and are continuing to adore where we now live. A couple weekends ago we took advantage of a local tradition: da Vinci Days! The three-day festival includes a parade and a kinetic sculpture race, as well activities, performances and booths by local groups and OSU students. Their website's explanation is much better than any words I could put together, but let me just add this: what a treasure in this little town, and how proud we were to support it.

Taken from www.davincidays.org:

"da Vinci Days is a weekend summer Festival that features races of all kinds, art to create or admire, music and street performers, hands-on activities that teach in a fun way, movies to watch, speakers who inspire, and nerdy stuff for now and the future.

"Back in 1987, a group of community-spirited citizens decided to organize a festival that typified the unique features of Corvallis--our vibrant arts community, university-town benefits, and high-tech industries. So it was only fitting that we name it in honor of Leonardo, the quintessential Renaissance Man, who was himself an artist, scientist, and inventor.

"Our goal is to showcase the innovation and creativity of our community. The Festival is a mix of music, artistic expression, and opportunities for all ages to learn about how innovative technology and scientific advances influence our daily lives."

How could we not go?

This town is just bursting with creativity and much of it rolled past us on this parade. Here are some samples of what we saw:

There were too many booths to describe, but our favorite was the Geocaching booth. A very nice lady spent about 45 minutes with us, answering all of our questions and helping us find staged caches with her handheld GPS. Leif's pretty excited about starting this as a hobby. I am too, but am a little apprehensive about venturing into the difficulty level possibly requiring parachutes or scuba gear! (http://www.geocaching.com/)

Other highlights:

This was a science booth hosted by OSU students. The trough there is a mixture using corn starch and water. If you stood still or moved slowly, your feet would sink into the goopy mixture. If you ran on it, it would barely stick to you and your feet would stay atop the goop! This picture is of a gal who allowed one foot to sink while she kept tapping the other to keep it from being swallowed up. There was a terrific sucking noise when she had to extract the sunken foot!

Joshua and Leif examining the solar panel electric car.

At the children's village: Daddy is revealing his true identity: Marvin the Martian! There were astronaut costumes for the kids to try if they wanted, but as you can see it was the adults in our family that enjoyed this exhibit more.

For more pictures from the parade and the event, go to http://s752.photobucket.com/albums/xx167/jwpmommy/2010-July%20da%20Vinci%20Days/. (The password is the city where my grandmother lives, all one word and lowercase.)

Detour to the farm

Leif had read about several beautiful waterfalls by the Alsea Falls Recreation Site so we headed south out of town with this as our intended destination. Somewhere along the way we passed a ranch with a hand-written sign advertising their petting farm so we reversed the car right there on the road and pulled into the deep driveway leading to a farmhouse and barn. We were the only visitors to the Alpine Acres Petting Farm and a friendly farmer led us into the barn area to introduce us to the goats, Vietnamese pot-bellied pig, miniature horse, bunny and weeks-old calves. I fell in love with the calves with their huge eyes and gangly legs, but Joshua was quite a bit more apprehensive of the friendly animals used to snuffling up feed from yielding palms. He did enjoy brushing the miniature horse, but his favorite by far was the snuggly bunny safely nestled on Daddy's lap.

Here's Joshua, showing a much greater interest in the grain dispenser than in the adorable dairy calves!

We had such a nice visit with the owner whose dream this was that we never did make it to the falls! Another weekend...

Small town life

Today was the quintessential kind of day we'd envisioned when we fell in love with Corvallis and dared to imagine living here. We started the day at our local favorite morning spot, New Morning Bakery in downtown Corvallis. First off, breakfast out is an entirely different experience. The pace of life is so much slower here, and it's starting to rub off on us hurried FCs (former Californians - sshh!). We pick out a scone or muffin (everything is delicious here), pay for two coffees and the additional 50 cents per mug to allow for refills, and add butter and jam for the scones and walk away with about seven bucks less in our pocket. We fill up our mugs, meander over to a booth, spread out the local two-section paper and leisurely (what an unfamiliar term) enjoy our breakfast. Of course, it's near to impossible to describe the lively activity coming from Joshua, who has recently discovered uncontrollable ants in his pants. Yet, despite his bouncing on his knees, crawling back and forth under the table as he switches allegiance between his parents, spilling his oatmeal on his t-shirt and shrieking at it sticking to his fingers, it actually is a very peaceful experience. The two-section paper is just long enough for his attention span and we leave it behind for the next patron to learn about the local events (there are many), the crime reporter with a wry sense of humor, and the letters to the editor by citizens with time on their hands. Reading a local paper really does provide quite a bit of insight to the flavor and feel of a town!

Since it's Saturday there's a farmers market going on, coinciding with Crazy Days downtown. The merchants have dragged out tables and racks to display their wares, and it's a great way to check out some stores that haven't yet caught our eye. And because we have a three and a half year old in tow, we spent a good half hour in a fun store that sells about 50 kinds of sun hats, ranging from cowboy hats, outback-style coverings, fedoras, and stylish hats beyond my ability to name. I'm sure the owner was thrilled when we walked out - and not surprised at all that no purchases graced our hands (or heads).

The farmers market was just what you would expect on a summer's day in a thriving community in the heart of good agricultural land and rich culture: fragrant and plentiful produce, three separate groups playing music, lots of people, and men ogling the scantily-clad belly dancer displaying her...talent.

And that's not all! We returned to downtown a couple hours later to act as tourists in our new town as we took a free hour-long tour on a trolley throughout the historic district! The styles of homes were practically lost on me, but I could admire the history behind them and especially those who held that history so dear. Many of the homes were in very good, restored condition, but interestingly enough, some of them had eventually been sold and currently are rented out to OSU students.

And if all that wasn't enough to win in the category of The Most Staid and Boring Folks Around in our age category, we went out to our local Fred Meyer and purchased our first Scrabble board (ooh, on a turntable with a raised letter grid! Does it give you chills?) and spent the evening playing (and convincing our son to give us back the tiles he kept "borrowing"). We've missed our weekly Scrabble tournaments with my MIL and her SO (significant other) (see? we were Staid and Boring before moving here) and we didn't want our skills to get rusty. Ha - skills is a loose term where I'm concerned. Leif scored an 84 point turn while I kept the computer nearby and looked up questionable words. (Shh! Don't tell my MIL - she would be quite aghast.)

A quiet breakfast out with the local paper, strolling through downtown and the farmers market, taking a trolley on a guided tour through the historic district, and a night of Scrabble...now that's a day in the small town.

And we love it. :)

Friends!

Having come from an area with a thriving moms group, I am starting to feel a tiny bit lonesome. Leif goes off to work and Joshua and I stare at each other. It doesn't help that he's at an age (or perhaps it's due to the recent move) where he's resistant to ideas. "Want to go to the library today, Joshua?" "No." "Let's go to the water fountain today! Doesn't that sound fun?" "No, I don't want to do that." "Want to sit around all day and be bored?" "Yes, that sounds about right, Mom." (Ok, that last one is obviously not his words, but if he could articulate that, and grasp the sarcasm, then they would be!)

So the search for friends continues. We're doing the library storytime, but right now we're just the "new people." You know, the ones all the regulars stare at, as if to say: "You're not from around these parts, are ya, stranger!" I know, because I've given this look myself. Not meaning to, of course, but I think we've all done it. Theoretically, we'll keep going and soon will be not so unfamiliar, but in the meantime we just go and smile, playing right along. It's like there are secret rules to meeting other mommies: we like to assess each other first, finding out what kind of mom and person you are. Do you let your child run wild? Are you a bit too protective? Do you bring food in to storytime? Do you (and yes, I actually saw this happen at my old storytime) actually bring in your laptop, open it up to do some work, and then top it off by taking a cell call, pretending you're subtle by holding your hand over your mouth while you conduct that critical call? So we sit there, on our best behavior, knowing we're being subjected to this mother scrutiny. I would say the scrutiny goes both ways, but let's be honest: I'm just inwardly ecstatic when someone dares to make eye contact and even smiles.

So I've started the online hunt for moms groups. And I have to admit, I was humbled today at discovering my short-sightedness, and yes, sexism. I had been Googling all sorts of terms with little success: Corvallis moms group, Willamette Valley moms group, mothers group. I found a couple, but they seem to be primarily message boards. Today I checked out Craigslist and under the platonic section (which I was still a little apprehensive to click) the very first posting was for a Corvallis parents group. Mothers group? Get with the times, girl! Parents group! Of course, I joined right away, but it remains to be seen if this will be more chat boards and virtual friends, or actual physical beings who would like to join us at the park. In the meantime, it's so much harder for Joshua to stare at me while he watches a train video...which, I guiltily admit, he is doing this very minute. :)

Beach at milepost 168

We've been here for a week and a half and really should be doing more home-shopping, but darn it, it's 4th of July weekend and we're going to the beach! Newport is only about an hour away and close proximity to the coast is part of the reason we moved here, so we're thrilled to head out. We drove south along the coast for quite a while until we found a beach near Waldport (Cape Perpetua area). Parking was close, the walk was short and not that steep, and the sand was wonderful for building and sculpting. Isn't it funny how beach sand can be so different? We've found grainy, gritty sand that almost hurts the feet; sand that's dry, hot and yields to your feet making for a difficult trek; and flat, wet sand that you can run on forever. This sand was smooth and pliable, yet stiff and damp. We used a scraper and a thick salsa bowl (what? you don't use thick, plastic bowls as sand toys?) and scraped and scooped to loosen the sand for building. Of course, you can plan and build and be as careful as you like, but the 3 1/2 year old will always be the King Kong of the beach, knocking down entire towns with a single stomp. :)

4th of July Fun

After years of CA bay area living, attending the local Corvallis parade on the 4th was a lesson in small town living. Parking? You mean, near the actual parade route? And space to stand - wait, actually sit and still have a great view? We arrived about 15 minutes before the start of the parade and not only were we happy to find lots of available sidewalk space, we were even happier to discover that the space did not continue to shrink around us as more folks came by. Of course, once the "anyone can join in" parade started, we realized why there was so much room for observers; it looked like half the town was participating! It was fabulous to see so many kids and adults riding their bicycles, dragging wagons, pushing strollers and walking in the parade. It was such a casual event, with even the parade route open to traffic until just before it started. The kids in the parade threw candy, bewildering Joshua who wanted no part in darting out to the street to collect it, which in turn drove the nearby candy-scavengers to a frenzy. We managed to swipe a couple tootsie rolls and smarties that came our way, and the looks the other kids gave us! It's like they knew our son had no interest in that candy at all and we were just taking it for ourselves.

How did they know that?

The best thing we saw, though, had to the be the biggest bicycle (quadcycle, really!) I've ever seen, most likely made in honor of the upcoming da Vinci Days. It was pedaled by 5 people and had four wheels, so the question is, what is it called?

That night we got to experience another unusual occurrence for us former bay area folk: legal fireworks. Remember that part of our apartment complex, the cul-de-sac directly behind our bedroom windows designated as a smoking area? Turns out it also doubles as the prime location to set off fireworks, bags and bags of them. At one point we peeked out and it looked like a field of soldiers, varying in height and scattered over the entire area.

And we're off!

Hi all! A little wave from way up north in Corvallis. We've arrived and have somewhat settled in our temporary little apartment. The drive up was long, roughly 14 hours. We didn't get going until about 4:30 pm so we ended up in the thick of afternoon traffic through the Walnut Creek area. And boy did I get my comeuppance after all those years of darting in front of others! I drove the 26 footer and went at a crawl through the bumper-to-bumper traffic, and you better believe I gripped that steering wheel when those impatient whippersnappers darted right in front of me. I wouldn't even take a peek at the packed - and I mean packed - Penske truck before we left. I just didn't want that visual as I careened around mountain curves or braked in traffic. We made it to Yreka after midnight, then resumed our journey the next morning over the Siskiyous to arrive in Corvallis after 3. Sure is a long trek with a caravan of 4 vehicles and lots of bathroom, meal and gas stops. Oh, and did I mention that the truck had a faulty fuel gauge? The gauge didn't move even slightly for the first 80 miles, so I gradually began worrying that I was truckin' on fumes. Silly me, to worry about fuel when what I should have worried about was driving through the mountains, in the dark, with no shoulder for any turns taken too quickly. Those who know me will be shocked to discover I actually can drive slowly; in fact, so slowly (with the continuing caravan of three vehicles behind me) that semis actually passed us as we crept around curves. Hopefully they were laughing at the silly Penske gal and not shaking their fists at me!

So now we're here in beautiful Oregon, living in a teeny apartment. It's clean and mostly quiet, though our lovely non-smoking complex has one of its

designated smoking areas in the cul-de-sac right behind our unit. Plus there's no A/C, which isn't really necessary but a few days out of the year - but would have come in handy on our first day! The apartment's assistant manager let us in for the walk-through when we arrived, hot, grimy, and covered in road dust, and with a sheepish giggle she said, "Whoops! Guess we left the heater on since the carpets just got shampooed!" And of course, we silly Californians said, well, we'll just turn the air on... nope. Not even fans - just wall heaters that poured out a nice stream of heat that would have been lovely under different circumstances. :) Unloading the truck and all our cars took only a couple of hours, which was an amazing fraction of how long it took to load up. Of course, loading was from our 2 story condo, 2 flights up and a good walk from the parking lot. Our Corvallis place is downstairs and close to the parking lot. So we unloaded and Leif took my Mom and Scott over to the hotel to check them in so I could take a shower. Driving around in a big truck with a sticky steering wheel, then moving into a heated apartment and garage just begs for a rinse off. Sadly, it was not meant to be. After rummaging around for a towel, soap and clean clothes, I was all set to scrub when it dawned on me that the shower had no doors...and only a lovely bar awaiting a shower curtain, which, of course, we did not have. So we all took our stinky selves to a quiet dinner, then headed immediately for a shower curtain and some fans. Showered and exhausted, I think we fell onto our beds and passed out. I don't really remember. :)

Since then, we've unpacked, settled in, gotten some groceries, changed our auto insurance (half, I repeat HALF of what we were paying before) and signed up for accounts at the local credit union and library. Oh, and looked at houses. Just a few...dozen! More than that, actually. It's fun but daunting at the same time. And we've been to a Teddy Bear picnic at the park put on by the local library, and attended storytime too. We've been to coffee at our local favorite spot several times, and visited the farmers market. People ride their bikes everywhere - all kinds of people, all kinds of bikes. I saw an older man yesterday riding a three-wheeled bicycle with a large basket, and a much older woman riding a bicycle with her collapsable walker (with a tiny seat to rest on, no less!) strapped to her back as she pedaled along. Hours later we saw the same woman pedaling through the farmers market! We love this town. This weekend we'll probably take in some 4th of July fun at the festival downtown. The local baseball team, the Knights, will host fireworks on the 3rd, and the city hosts them at the riverfront on the 4th. We could easily become baseball fans at $5 general admission, and it seems like a popular team. It certainly hosts lots of family-friendly events.

At any rate, we're here, we're thrilled to be here, and excited for what's to come!

(note: this posting originally from an email dated July 2, 2010)

Just beginning...

Hello and welcome to my little blog. While this may or may not be of interest to anyone else besides a family member here or there, I am primarily intending for this blog to help record our adventures in relocating to Oregon. Not sure how often this will get updated, or how worthy it will be to read, but hopefully it become a fun way to jot down some of our memories before they slip through my sieve of a brain. :)

Thanks for reading!