Hello All,

After much ado, I have finally decided to add to the eternally dead blog.

Ty and I moved from Klamath Falls on June 14 to Beaverton Oregon. Jessie drove the Nitro, Ty with the dogs in the Element and myself in the big U-haul. (Isn't is interesting how evey time you move, the U-Haul unexplicibly gets bigger somehow?) I had worked all day friday, picked up the U-Haul, loaded it that night and we all left 6 a.m. the next morning. Thanks for the Mortenson clan for helping to load us all, it wouldn't have happened otherwise, without any fatalities anyways. We finally had found a place that would allow us to have our dogs and that was convenient to the MAX line. Luckily it was only 2 blocks from Jena and Josh. We had become very used to having family close and decided that we couldn't live without. It is a nice 2 bedroom 2 bath apartment, that has a large lawn on the front ( which India and Riika really enjoy) and only a couple of crazy neighbors. I started work the next day. And I still haven't had a chance to rest... ( I know this is the time where those older and wiser would tell me 'get used to it'... but...but...)

At the beginning of July, Ty received a phone call from a close friend in Utah, who runs an exotic bird store. She had some health problems and didn't have to man power to run the store. So Ty loaded up Riika and the Element and headed east. He has been gone almost exactly a month and suprisingly nothing has completely fallen apart at home, but it will be nice to have him home. I know India would love to have her sister back.

While he has been gone, I have been running back and forth like a hill-kicked ant, trying to get things done. None of which is easy with 2 hours of commute time each day, and an hour commute to the barn where Zar, the perennial horse resides. This whole commute thing doesn't work for me, I think.

One of my pleasures is that on our suprisingly large patio, Ty has been good enough to allow me to take over his decorative planters and go hog-wild with my 'Patio Pantry'. I have planted 4 types of Tomatoes, Sweet Snap Peas, Sphagetti Squash, Summer Squash and Strawberries for sweetness... It is silly, but I really take pride and alot of joy from my little garden and will be posting pictures of my produces shortly, as it has already begun to ripen, nothing like fresh from the vine.

Ty is interviewing for several different teaching positions in the Hillsboro, Beaverton, Aloha area, and after last year in Hell, Ty has decided, and I concur that he would prefer to teach a lower grade, maybe Kindergarten or 1st. Its best when they still fear you... :)

And since I have not seen it posted on any of my other siblings' blogs, I wanted to let everyone know that my sister Airica gave birth to her daughter Tivianne Colleen. I have only heard this through the grapevine and stolen e-mail pictures, so if this is incorrect and these pictures are a hoax or there is a spelling error on my part, I plead the 5th. :)

I start school at Portland State University on the 29th of September and am becoming quite anxious about it. I have been out of school for so long and I am afraid that I am rusty and am going to be "that old loser" guy that I always thought looked out of place and sounded old and codgery when I was in Uni at the ripe age of 19. Anyways, and more importantly, as the ever-opportunist that I am, the closer I get to starting school the more I re-run the list of potential educational paths, and get myself way out of whack. So for any of you out there that might be reading, whether you know me or only think you do, please leave any suggestions, censored or otherwise that might be helpful as to what you think that my contribution should be to the workplace (this goes for Ty as well, that is another long story...)

Anyways, I will be better, (isn't that what all lapsed bloggers swear?) and will try to update things, especially as the babies start to hit the ground in numbers over the next few months

We love you all...

Alan and Ty