Discovery Village

Katrina had an extra week off for Spring Break so we made plans to do something fun together with our boys since Ronan is only in school 2 days a week. She needed to turn in a portfolio for work at Willamette University in Salem, so we thought it would be a good excuse to take the kids to the AC Gilbert Discovery Village while we were there. It is a fun little interactive museum with lots of activities for kids of all ages. We packed lunches and ate in the picnic area which also has a gigantic play structure. It was a great place for our busy boys to exert some energy! Katrina and I were wiped out by the end, too! (:

Ronan crawling through a giant mouth. Fun stuff! (:
Finley checking out the triceratop chair.
Ronan in a dinosaur nest (:

The dinosaur room was a big hit with all three boys.

Outline of Katrina's 8 month-pregnant belly in the shadow room. (:

Magnet Wall

Lunch Time

Quick picture with my boys before leaving. Everyone napped on the way home (except me-the driver). It was such a fun day!

Happy 60th, Retirement, and Graduation!!!

On Sunday, March 29th, there was a big party for Josh's dad to celebrate some exciting events that have happened recently in his life. A few years ago he decided to make a career change and he went to school to become a hospital chaplain. After graduating he was offered a position at Sacred Heart Hospital in Eugene, which allowed him to retire from his job of 29 years! Everything has come together in an amazing way and we are so proud of him for his hard work & dedication in achieving this goal! He also turned 60 years old in March, which added to the list of reasons to party! (: Grammie and Grandpa Lermo reserved the community room at their apartment complex, which worked out great because the room was filled with family and friends for the party. It was a very happy occasion!

Our boys were most excited about the cakes!! (:

Amy put together this display board with fun pictures of Dad through the years.

There was a picture taken just like this on Mom & Dad's wedding day almost 39 years ago!. (:

Four generations of Ruddick men.

Ethan and Ronan playing together.

This walker was given to Dad as a gag-gift from his friend, Brian. (: The kids had fun playing with it.

Happy Birthday, Dylan!

Saturday, March 28th

We went up to the Creager's house in Albany for our nephew Dylan's 4th Spider Man Birthday Party! He was so excited about having everyone over and we all had a great time celebrating his special day! The weather cooperated at first and we were able to play in their backyard before it started raining.
Such a big boy!!
Uncle Josh riding a tricycle~still a kid at heart (:

The girl cousins (minus Emma)

Amy and Ronan attacking Brad at the BBQ with pool noodles!

Grammie and Lydia

Griffin shooting hoops (:

Ethan, Griffin, and Dylan swinging together.

Dylan with his cool cake! He was SO excited about it!

Dylan posing with his big sisters.

Party time!

This was Dylan's expression with every gift. (: He got so many cool toys!

Spring Break

My friend Kelly and I took our boys to the Wildlife Safari in Winston during Spring Break. We had such a fun day! The kids did great despite having to spend most of the time in the car. When we first got there we walked through the village area where we saw cheetahs, monkeys, and other various creatures in cages.
Eli, John, Ronan, and Griffin

Thanks for posing for us, Cheetah!

There is a small petting zoo with goats and miniature horses--Eli was a little freaked out by the goats at first since they were so close to his eye levle. (:

My Little Lambs (:

Checking out the monkeys

The ways these monkeys played (and fought) reminded me of my boys. (:

Then we were off to drive around the safari. The sun came out as we were driving, and all the animals were active and close to the road for us to see. It was such a fun experience for the kids!

Something new to the Wildlife Safari is an Elephant Car Wash! The elephants are trained to spray water from their trunks onto the cars, then they use a sponge to "wash" your car. We didn't want to pay to have it done, but we were able to get close enough to see the whole process. Pretty cool. (:

These bears were playing around up on their hind legs.

Griffin was excited about the zebras!

Ronan's favorite part was watching the ostrich come right up to the car window!