On Tuesday......What a day.

Tuesday was one of those days for the books. The good thing about it was that I got to spend all day with just Levi. It was really fun. There were three things going on that day, for Levi, so Joe worked from home so I could be with Levi. The first of the activities, was the best! I got to go on a field trip with Levi, as a chaperone. It was an all day trip, we left at 8am and got back at 2pm. I got to be Levi and his two best buddy's (River and Zach) chaperone. It was a tour of the Bridges of Portland and ODOT, VERY cool.

What a blast I had. I really got to know his teacher better. She is so awesome. She looks just like my sister Brindi, and is probably her same age. She is really outdoorsy and really has a calm/cool demeanor. I am really going to miss Levi having her. He has had her for two years now, and she has only taught at the school two years. (he is in a blend class) A funny thing, his teacher told me, about Levi and his friends. She said that is was really interesting that she only has three "gifted" kids in her class and they all three became best friends (Levi, River and Zack). It just must be they understand each other better than the rest, because they don't know that they are identified as gifted, the school keeps it pretty hush hush (thankfully) so they don't have any other activities that would bond them to one another. They just really get along in class. They do everything together. Here they are:

Left to right: River, Zack and Levi (the book he is reading, he finished before we even reached our Destination)

Levi messing around on the bus.

Portland's Chinatown - See the beautiful gate?



A sign showing Portland's new Green Bike boxes.

The first thing we got to do was go to ODOT's headquarters and mess around with their traffic cameras. The head guy showed us how they can even zoom in on a car's license plate and turn the camera 360 degrees. Now everywhere we go Levi points out the traffic cameras along the roads.

Next we got to go to the VA hospital and walk across the longest sky bridge in America (she might have said world actually) and then ride the tram down to the bottom of the hill.


The busy sky bridge connects the VA hospital to OHSU (this is where you'll be Aaron! can't wait)


Levi by the entrance to the VA




The tram we rode down the hill, it felt like a roller coaster. Very cool.

VA Hospital, pretty huh?!

This is where my camera gave out :( I was so sad that I couldn't take any more pictures, but we saw a ton of fun things. At the bottom of the hill was the world's first fully "green" neighborhood. They are 4 high rise building complex's (people live there) 25 stories high that is supposed to do some amazing things. One of the things they have, that I thought was unique, was they filter the runoff water through "gutters" that look like natural streams, before it reaches the Willamette. This complex sits RIGHT on the bank of the Willamette. We got to walk around in it, it felt so futuristic. A very COOL idea.

Then we rode a street car (which was quite exciting for the kids) where all the kids were hanging from the straps because they thought it was so much fun. It was so funny to see all these empty seats and the aisles filled with hanging children, banging into each other as we went around corners, and laughing gleefully.

We ate lunch in the Union Train Station, a beautiful building, surrounded by more "green" housing. I was lucky enough to have the teacher (Ms. Gates) come sit my me and talk with me for all of lunch. She is so fun.

When we finally got to the bridge part it started to rain, so it wasn't as much fun. But we did get to walk across the Steel Bridge that goes up to let boats go under. It is almost 100 yrs old. The tour guide was amazing. I can't believe that just one person could know SO much about bridges. She was very funny.

The bus ride back was long. The kids were tired and cranky. Two of the girls in Levi's class had latched on to me, early on, and always wanted to sit by me instead of with their chaperone. JQ and Halle were supposedly best friends. But, I have never seen two people bicker more than they did. It was like watching a little old couple nit pick at each other. They were quite the dynamic duo. I would have been rolling in the aisles if it hadn't also been so annoying, they would constantly try to pull me in to their fights. "Cami, these aren't my snacks...she got me the wrong snacks" "No I didn't!!" "Yes you did" " I don't like these snacks! I won't eat them!" "You're not nice to me" "Well, I am going to tell my mom that you're mean" "No-ho-ho-ho!!" *sob* "I don't like you anymore" (But they still did everything together, still sat by one another constantly) It was like they liked torturing themselves. Quite a marvel.

There was also another soap opera going on as well. Apparently these two girls were notorious for picking on other girls in class. One of the other mothers (when there was a quiet moment on the way back home) came back and sat near us to "talk" to these girls. From what I gathered this mom was not happy at all with how these two were treating her daughter in class. It looked like they were picking on her constantly and making fun of her. (probably because they were jealous. The other little girl was really cute and fun) The mom layed into them really good and then told them that they better not take it out on her daughter. Wow. At times like these I am so glad I only have sons. I don't think I could take the drama.

When we got home it was off to Piano and then straight to a baseball game from Hell. Levi's game that night was just right after piano so we were coming straight from Piano to his game, arriving after the "before" game practice, but just as the game started. I found out after the game that the coaches yelled at Levi for missing the before game practice. ( he was in piano lessons at the time) It really ticked me off. But that was probably because I was already fed up with his coaches. Levi has the most wound up coaches you could possibly have. The kids are always stressed, and not enjoying the game. I almost wish we skipped baseball this year, because of his coaches. This game was proof of their uptightness. About 1 inning into the game it started to pour and it was windy and very cold. They played for another 10 minutes before deciding to wait for a while to see if it would pass. The kids were soaking and freezing. It rained for 1/2 hour and they still didn't call it off. Us parents were miserable out in the weather, the kids at least were in the dugout. The car parking lot is a real hike to get to, so most people just stayed, waiting (hoping) that they would call the game. But no such luck. When it slowed to a misting they started it back up again. The kids were out there, blue in the lips. They were missing balls and dropping bats because their hands were so cold, and their coaches were yelling at them, and punching the fences in anger. I got so mad I went over and stood right next to the opening of the dug out, watching the game from there, to maybe deter the coaches from riding into the kids so hard. They kept giving me looks, but it did stop them from yelling at Levi, but not the other kids. It was funny to see them get all tensed, ready to yell, and the look at me, and say sweetly "Levi, it is time for you to bat come on up" instead of the usual "Levi, get up here right now! It's your turn. MOVE" At one point one of the coaches said to me "Why don't you come in the dug out" I declined and he said "What,... are you afraid that we might yell at you (too)?" I looked at him and said "Oh, I can hold my own, don't you worry about me" He kind of laughed nervously, and backed off. I don't know if he thought he could intimidate me or what, but he obviously has never seen me angry. Anyway the game lasted forever, and it never stopped raining, with one inning left to go Levi started complaining of a stomach ache, and getting a little teary (Levi is not a complainer, so you know it must of hurt) and the coaches were unsympathetic. He stuck it out, but was miserable. When we got him warm at home, after the game, it stopped hurting. We realized that the reason it was hurting so bad was because he was all tensed up and shivering so hard that his stomach muscles were sore! Kind of funny, but not. All he wanted to do when we got home was soak in a hot bath, he stayed there for an hour, not even wanting food. Poor guy. Later I asked him if he liked baseball, and he paused, but then said yes. So I guess he isn't ruined for life.

The next day was Calder's game. What a difference. I actually enjoyed it, the kids were happy, and the coaches were patient. What a difference a good coach makes.