| The grandkids were terrific on this trip - Xander discovered that Teiya was a real person, and cool, and played with her a lot of the time. Casey and Venice carried on with such intensity, that at the end of this trip they didn't want to part, especially Casey, who went into major meltdown. One day while the parents were out scouting the Portland landscape with a realtor, Jiichan took Casey and Venice out to check out the area, hopefully to find a nearby playground. Ok, no playground was to be found, but within a half block of the hotel was a construction sight, and the dirt and gravel driveway ended up serving that purpose. Venice and Casey spent the better part of 30-40 minutes playing in the dirt, gathering stones and pebbles for Venice's rock collection, and they were oblivious to the cold and damp air. Jiichan moved about contiunally to insure that hypothermia didn't settle in... |
Each morning Jiichan and Granny held host to any and all early rising grandchildren, those who awoke before their parents - sleepy parents dropped one or two mop-headed cherubs off at the Granny and Jiichan child care room, and then returned to their rooms to catch some added sleep time. We visited a downtown water fountain that was a delight for the grandchildren - in spite of nippy weather, they went barefoot and scrambled in, on, and around the various slab rocks where water delightfully came from between the crevices of the rock fountain. Brrr - cold, just watching them. There was an experience with mirrors that Venice taught to everyone - Casey struggled, but soon mastered the illusion of the mirrors, and was captured on camera. Our trek in Portland ended with a visit to the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry, where the grandkids played with a host of interactive toys, and had a ball... |
