Bahrman Bulletin

Summer goes by so quickly–every weekend seems to fill up–and we love it! We’ve been especially lucky this summer to see so many people on this side of the Cascades.

It all began with Becca’s graduation party, and then continued with Fourth of July. Not only were my parents, Megan, Curtis and the girls in town, but our friend Christy stopped by Saturday morning with scones from Nancy P’s in hand. It was wonderful to catch up with Christy (and the scones were darn good, too!).

On Tuesday, Emi came over with Marina and Tom while on their whirl-wind tour of the Northwest. I was very impressed that Emi had the courage to travel from Tokyo to Portland with her two children–sans husband Colin. But when you meet Marina and Tom, you can understand why–they are such fun, wonderful children! It was great to see Emi and the kids. Chiara loved watching Marina color and wanting to be a big girl just like her!

A few days after my family left, Grandma and Grandpa Bahrman came over. Carolyn planned the trip so she could attend the Sister’s Quilt Festival, but Tom had another excuse. As long as you’re going to be here…do you mind if we leave? Of course, ever patient and wonderful with the girls, Grandma Carolyn did not mind. So as Grandma and Grandpa came to Bend, Tom and I escaped to Walla Walla for the weekend. We sipped wine, ate 6-course meals (okay, just once, but it was enough food for a week!), and relaxed. It was a little bit of heaven, only without the girls. And Grandma, Grandpa, Becca and Chiara enjoyed the Sister’s Quilt Show, hit one or two quilt stores in Bend, and enjoyed the weekend together, including bubble baths!

Last weekend we enjoyed the company of the athletes in the family. Nikki traveled from Bozeman (via Portland) with her friends Sarah and Marisa to compete in the Deschutes Dash, an Olympic-length triathlon. Despite the chilly river, the hilly ride, and the hot run, the team did great, finishing in under 3 hours!

Becky and Travis made the drive down from Seattle to compete in the Tour Des Chutes, choosing the longest ride option: 90 miles. And if that were not enough for Becky’s first post-hip-fracture ride, the two rode from our house to the start line and then back home, racking up 97 miles for the day. A very impressive re-entry into biking!

Then, there were the OTHER guests who dropped by, uninvited. You know how they are: they show up unannounced, eat you out of house and home, and leave their mess behind without even saying thank you. Well, these guests didn’t really eat us out of house and home, just out of any hope for fresh tomatoes (or colorful flowers). Our yard project for next summer: fence!

Thank you for all our wonderful (invited) guests! We loved seeing you!

When we bought our house, most everything was done. The builders, Brandon and Nicole of Branic Homes, did a great job picking the fixtures, paint colors and other elements, including landscaping. Most of what they picked we agreed with, but not the landscaping, complete with boxwood hedges and green grass. It looked beautiful in the artist’s rendering of the house, but this was the desert. It just didn’t seem right, or responsible. When we nixed the plans for grass, Nicole said that maybe in the Valley grass was overrated, but in the desert, we would really like the oasis of green. Maybe, but no thank you. Then she added, “And if you have any more children, they’ll need a place to play.” My response, “Well, they can head down to the park to play.”

Four years later and a little smarter, I realize Nicole was right. I do miss the green of the Valley and find myself drawn to the serenity that neighbor’s lawns offer. Last year, when Chiara was just learning to walk, we had dinner at our neighbor’s and she loved feeling the grass beneath her feet–and what a forgiving place to fall. And this year, when she is not only walking but running and kicking balls and wanting to jump through a sprinkler, well, the park is great, but not convenient for just a quick outing, and certainly no place we can connect a sprinkler. Finally, we’ve learned that in the desert, you water your yard not to keep it green, but as a fire-prevention mechanism. So trying to be more environmentally responsible had also gone out the window in exchange for keeping our house standing.

We now have an oasis of green in our backyard. Chiara has dubbed it “Ra-ra’s (Chiara’s) grass.” At least once a day, she treks back to it, wonders around, runs, falls. We’ve had several picnic lunches on the lawn, Chiara and her cousins played in the pool, and it is just a matter of time before we’re running through the sprinkler. And, I must admit, I love looking out the window and seeing the expanse of green.

Three years ago, our Fourth of July tradition began with Megan, Curtis, Mary and Lucy, Mom and Dad, and Aunt Suzanne traveling to Bend for the holiday weekend. At that time, Lucy had just turned two and Chiara was a newborn. Hard to believe that in such a short amount of time, Mary is old enough to read books to Chiara!

The tradition continued this year, although we missed Aunt Suzanne. In the hot weather, we cracked open a bottle of Pinot Gris to toast our dear aunt who opted to visit in the cooler weather of October this year.

We spent the weekend barbequeing on the back patio, attending the pet parade (where dog-cousin Greta huddled in the corner), taking the girls to the swimming pool, and relaxing. All children stayed up for the big fireworks display over Pilot Butte, huddled in the wagon as we watched in awe at the dazzling display. Such a fun, festive way to celebrate the summer holiday!