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Five simple things

Hello.

This week was hot! We stayed above 95 degrees all week and had to keep a constant run of our air conditioners upstairs and downstairs. I'm pretty tolerable of hot temperatures, my southern blood, probably, but even I was saying it's warm. Here is what our week looked like:

Saturday: On Saturday we headed out to The Mr.'s work and enjoyed their yearly Family Day. There was a tour of the facility where they make airplane parts for Boeing, the military, and other metal fabrications for companies like Pratt & Whitney. It's always a great time for us and we get to see where The Mr. spends 80% of his week. *GASP* In the late afternoon on Saturday we headed to the Benton County Fairgrounds to da Vinci Days. I have to say that da Vinci Days is definitely a science geeks playground. Kinetic energy and engineering at its best!

Sunday: We decided to finally look into purchasing a raft to float the river before the summer is over. We have talked about it for several summers now and this year is going to be the year. More on this later. We also changed out the jet ski tires and moved it from the backyard into the garage. Now that we sold the 8x4 train layout we have a lot more room to work with in the garage and the jetski fits perfectly in there. We are still needing to replace the seat on it and hopefully by next summer it will be fit to hit the water. The Bean also got a new lifejacket, and an ore to go with the river raft. He is pretty pumped to hit the water soon!

Monday: Was a slow day, but The Bean and I covered a lot in the classroom. Keep in mind with homeschooling we never really take a summer break. At the end of the day when The Mr. got home we all took off on our bicycles and rode 2.88 miles. It was a pretty warm ride with the temperature being 98 degrees. With it being that hot we sweat a lot, but it was a good workout. My favorite part of exercising in a hot day is as much as you sweat that shower afterward is heavenly!

Tuesday: We all got eye exams and all of us had to have glasses. Of course, The Bean and I have had eye glasses for many years now, but The Mr. had to get ones this go around. He will have to only use them during long drives in the car, working on long projects, and other tasks that could cause his eyes to fatigue. I feel like all three of us are going to look pretty cool in our new specs. I won't miss a beat with sharing once they are picked up in a few weeks.

Wednesday: We definitely had to water a lot on Wednesday. The temperature high for the day was 102 here and even our poor ducks were feeling the heat. The Bean and I worked on homeschool work, Hardy spent the day inside with us, because if it's too hot for us, it's most certainly too hot for a little doggy.

Thursday: Another slow day because of the heat. The Bean and I organized the backyard and watered everything again for the second day. I feel like we soak everything down and a few hours later it's all dry again. It's extremely dry here in the Valley, too. We have fires burning in random areas around the state and I am always fearful that the field behind our house might catch a spark from something random. One reason why I like to make sure our yard is nice and wet each summer.

Friday: The Bean and I headed out to run errands and while out I picked up a small shade umbrella to place inside the run area of the duck's house. Now they can enjoy their pool in the late afternoon without the hot sun beating down on them. The duckies really liked it and sat in their pool for most of the afternoon. We also had another afternoon of watering plants and making sure all the animals had cool water to drink. So hot here and our air conditioners are working overtime. As hot as it gets here it's nothing compared to Arkansas heat, so it's tolerable.

For the rest of the week, here are five simple things that made this week good.

1. This little leaf and the arm it clings to...


With the hot weather The Bean has been playing in the water as if he was a little kid again. Even though he is 14 he still is a little boy at heart and we love it!

2. This message about simple things...

I've seen this truck before, but each time I see it I am reminded that the simple things in life are all that matter.

3. This sweet duck...

Have to do a single duck spotlight on this sweet girl. Her name is Fern and she is the sweetest Mallard duck. We've been told that your own animals take after your own personality. If that's true then their temperment should speak volumes of their owners. 

4. This hot doggy...


With the heat being bad this week this little doggy has been spending a lot of time indoors with us where he belongs.

5. Mightynest for July...

Mightynest this month was laundry stain stick and laundry powder. The stain stick has already removed a lot of stains I couldn't previous get out and the laundry powder smells like lemonade. The best part with Mightynest for me is the fact that every time I order from the company 15% goes back to my home state of Arkansas to the school I graduated from. I worked with the PTO president for a couple of days setting it up and they are already gaining $118 straight from Mightynest purchases I've made. It's a great program and you get such great items each month. Hurry and signup to get on the list for August so you can change the way you live and help give back to your school little-by-little. Sign up here.


A few more things:

Building something that will last.

Think of toys in a different way.

These nightstands ♥.

UV Sungear. Simple, smart, sun protection.

• 25 Magnificent Facts About Oregon.

• 'Why I'm No Longer Talking to White People About Race' 

Hookah from Alice in Wonderland, or something more?

What's your neighborhood's walking score?

Looking for a more modest swimsuit?

Yoga for kids. Give it a try!

Have a good weekend!

Road trip: Oregon Zoo in Portland, Oregon

On a weekend of not doing anything, or having anything planned when you live in Oregon means, you either head to the coast, or head out on a daytrip somewhere. Most days in the summer months are taken up by time spent in our own backyard, but the zoo was calling us. The last time we went to the Oregon Zoo was when The Bean was about four-years-old. We were definitely due for a trip. Of course, it was a sweltering 98 degrees when we went, but thanks to the zoo putting up many water misters it helped take away the heat of the day a bit.


Being such a hot and humid day we headed straight to the otter, sea lion, and seal cave. It is mostly underground and the temperature of the area is a tolerable 70-75 degrees even in the dry summer heat of Oregon. The sea lions diving in and out of the water was such a treat to watch, as well as the otters crunching on ice cubes on the other side of the tank.


Such a pretty area with the blue from the lights and water. It's one of our favorite spots at the Oregon Zoo.


The Oregon Zoo's newest elephant Sampson. He sure put on a show for us and we got a lot of great shots. Elephants are such incredible beings. We loved how calm, collected, and extremely patient the trainer was. We didn't catch her name, but she is definitely living her best life right now being an elephant trainer.






Crossing over this wooden footbridge took us right to the bear's den. These are black bears that are prevalent here in Oregon. They are good swimmers, climbers, and can run upwards of 30 miles an hour.

Mountain goats where along the other side of the wooden footbridge and the babies were definitely bringing a crowd of kids. Even though it was so hot that day, close to 98 degrees, these little goats were having a ball jumping back and forth over logs, rocks, and even the older goats.



The Bean, always looking like the tourist with his camera and hat. ♥ (Go Hogs!)

Inside the Family Farm barn they had domesticated animals such as common goats, cats, pigs, and a few chickens running around. 
...And a few ride ons for the kids.


The next section was the leopards, tigers, and birds of prey area. As hot as it was most of the large cats were laying down in shaded areas in their enclosures. 

It's interesting to know that Condors wouldn't exist today had it not been for zoos and their conservation and recovery efforts of the birds. The Oregon Zoo has taken great strides in helping keep the Condor numbers up. These are California Condors and the Oregon Zoo has done its part in bringing the numbers up since they were the first species to be listed under the Endangered Species Act in 1973.



The enclosure to these eagles gave you a front row seat with no net, or barrier, keeping them from swooping in toward you and landing on the same walkway we were standing on. It was a great up close encounter to these birds of prey. Unfortunately, these eagles were picked up as wounded birds and can't be released back into the wild. They seemed pretty content with their living quarters and seemed to enjoy having their pictures taken. 


Next up was the penguin exhibit. We just happened to have visited their enclosure during feeding time and it smelled fishy, but we had a lot of fun in this enclosure and the seagulls and penguins definitely put on a show. 



By the time we were heading out a lot of the animals were going to sleep. We happened to glance into the river otter and the meerkat on the way out and they were both already snoozing.

 


A lot of the park benches throughout the Zoo had cute bronze sculptors on them that drew your attention in. These one of the "Lunch thief" was one of our favorites.

You can find out more about the Oregon Zoo here and also more about their animal rehabilitation programs here, as well as their conservation efforts here. One last thing, if you'd like to support the Oregon Zoo you can find out how and where your money actually goes right this way here.
Find ways to support other zoos, too. Even ones in your own area!


Au Naturale