Madras Oregon Here We Come!

I'm Leaving on a JETBLUE plane!

Ty and I got the awesome opportunity to fly standby on JetBlue to go and visit Kathi and her Family in Madras, Oregon! Ty was such a great little travel companion and I am so thrilled that he and Josh were able to play so well together and really became little buddies! I love Josh and Luke so much but there is such a great amount of time that elapses between my visit's I was just THRILLED that we were able to spend such quality time together and now Josh is old enough he will remember us!

Ty and I took turns taking pictures of each other.

We flew into Portland and then rented a car for the drive down to Madras. Ty was pooped and fell asleep in the back on the way down to Kathi's

Josh and Ty played games and watched movies.  Josh had a new Cars game for the Wii that Ty just fell in love with.

Ty got that bandana for free from the incredibly nice man working at the western store.

Josh is getting SO big!!!  Love the red jacked and red boots!

Love that SMILE!  He is such a happy boy :)

Kathi and Mike's jobsite....was so excited to get the grand tour from Kath

Here is my bestest friend in her office at work!  I miss working with her.  The jobsite was AMAZING!  Kath explained everything to me but I am going to copy the official description:
After several years of planning, PGE and the Tribes settled on a solution to restore fish passage: a underwater tower and fish collection facility 700 feet upstream from Round Butte dam. With its unique design, the tower mimics the natural conditions of the river, drawing warmer water off the surface to modify the reservoir currents and water temperatures and attract fish into the collection facility. In this facility (the only visible part of the structure), the fish are gathered, sorted by size and piped to a fish handling facility. The fish are then transported downstream to continue their migration to the sea.
The existing upstream passage of fish ladders and truck transportation will be put to use once the fish return to spawn. The plan also includes projects to improve the habitat along the creeks and streams above and below the dams to provide shelter and protection for the young fish on their journey downstream.

Our boys know how to play hard!!!  Look at those red faces!

The most wonderful part and the whole reason for my visit was to see my darling new Godson

Lucas Jefferson Jenkins!!!! 

It was LOVE at FIRST SIGHT!

He has the most sweet face and the kindest eyes.  You can already tell tha the is a gentle soul.  One of my most favorite parts of the visit was being able to watch him, Josh and Ty so that Kathi could take a much needed nap.  They have no family close and I remember being a new mom to Ty and having a two year old little Emily to take care of as well and how hard it is to get enough rest.  I wish that I lived closer so that I could do that for her on a regular basis. 

It was sure hard to say goodbye. Thanks for the most amazing trip Kathi, Mike, Josh and Luke.

I am already ready to come back!

 

Kath and Hil BFF :)