October 2011

We took a great fall trip to the Pumpkin Patch for their opening harvest weekend!  

We took a hayride

We got to pick our own pumpkins

Is that not THE cutest face!?

Awww, BFFs :-)

Kaylen helped pick out the perfect pumpkins

There isn't much around Portland for apple picking, but we went to the next best thing here. The Portland Nursery offered a very fun fall event with fresh, locally grown apples, cider, live music, etc. Kaylen had a great time running around.

Portland really does have so much going on.  It's been fun getting out there and finding them when we get the chance.  Fall was beautiful here.

Random Fun Pics

A little random catch up!

Kaylen LOVES to "drive"!

Kaylen made her first trip to the dentist and did SO GREAT!

Gregg and I both took individual trips to Salt Lake City to visit friends in Aug and Sep. Gregg's phone managed to wipe all his pictures out, so we don't have anything from his trip in August.  He was able to go to a big concert tour with his friends and relax with friends.

I stayed with Carissa and Casey so got good girl time in! The picture below was Carissa and I (and Casey) having a  spa morning at the Grand America Hotel downtown!

I was able to spend time with lots of friends while I was there. I was able to get together with all my work friends, too. I had a GREAT three days there!  We'll have to work on getting Kaylen out there sometime, but we would definitely have fun either way! 

Kaylen got this fake mustache at Hayden's birthday party.  Ha ha ha... I'd say it went to good use! :-)

Kaylen and Mommy had some girl time and I painted her nails for the first time! She did pretty well!

Definitely hard to ask a 2 yr old to keep both her fingers and toes still!!

We also played a little dress up after we bought her Halloween costume just for fun!  Here is our little MN Gophers cheerleader!

Wearing a little "Apple Bottom" sweatsuit.  She is so stinking cute.

Thanks to Mommy forgetting her work badge and bus pass at work, we sprinted back to work from school and Kaylen got to play at Mommy's desk for a few minutes!

The many sweet faces of Kaylen :-)

Gregg's school sponsored an evening at the Science Museum to see The Bodies exhibit.  It was a great night and the exhibit was different from the time we saw one in Las Vegas.  A nice chance to have a date!

House Tour

So, in a previous post, I put up a picture of the outside of our house and our great yard space.  But thought I'd put up pictures of the inside of our cute little house!

Our living room

Dining room

Kitchen

3rd Bedroom/Office

Upstairs to the bedrooms

Kaylen's bedroom

Our room

Basement living area. There is also a large storage room and 2nd bathroom. This is also access to the backyard and seating area. 

That wraps up the tour!  It's a decent size house for us, especially considering we moved from student housing!  It's an older home, but the space and proximity to the school and the bus route is priceless!  We've enjoyed it so far!

It's only just begun!

And so it began, Friday, August 19th... Gregg's official white coat ceremony.  Gregg's family came from Wyoming to be here with us, but Jay couldn't as it was too close to the start of her teaching school year.  We were all so proud of him.  It was wild to really think about.  This was the start of it all, the culmination of his dreams, all his hard work, his dedication in doing the best he possibly could... this was the moment, other than actually getting into the medical school program, that it finally really truly felt official. He got to put on his white coat and he officially became a student doctor. 

OHSU did a feature article on some of the incoming students and Gregg was featured.  Here is a link to the article and here is what it said... OHSU Article....
"Gregg Jones, 28, of Star Valley, Wyo., was a special operations paratrooper in the U.S. Army and served two combat tours in Afghanistan before being accepted into medical school. His experience providing basic battlefield first aide and as a medic for his three-man tactical team, in addition to helping Afghan locals, sparked his interest in medicine. “I have a strong desire to work in developing countries as a physician; Afghanistan especially tugs at my heart.” Gregg has a degree in health promotion and education from the University of Utah and is no stranger to balancing personal life and career. While attending school full time, he also worked 40 hours a week in an emergency room. “Plus, my wife and I are the proud parents of an amazing little girl,” he said."

The ceremony stage

Gregg getting his white coat put on before crossing the stage

Gregg shaking Dean Richardson's hand

Proud family!!!

Kaylen always says she wants to be a Doctor just like Daddy. One day she actually said Daddy's going to be a Doctor just like Kaylen. Either way, I have two real smart cookies on my hand!!

It's been a journey, but I couldn't be more proud of the choices Gregg has made for himself and for our family. OHSU is an incredible school and made the right choice in knowing Gregg was a great fit for their program!

While the Joneses were in town, we took the OHSU tram down the hill to the Portland State Farmer's Market. It was a beautiful day and a great time to celebrate with family!

It was also beautiful weather for a little outdoor time in the yard!

Family friends, the Coopers, lived in California while Gregg's family did growing up.  Now, they all live in Salem and we've been lucky enough to see Dan and his family as well as his parents beautiful home in Salem a couple times.  While Gregg's family was here, we made a trip down there so they could see each other for the first time in years.  We had a wonderful time and it was a great way to complete the trip to Portland!