This is a room with a bunch of racket balls (sp?) and 7 tracks - 3 along the wall, and 2 in each of the "boats". You can see Daniel by one of the "boats", and Caitlin at the top of the 3 tracks that go along the wall. There are also giant lincoln logs in this room to build with.

 

They have a train room with a model train for the kids to climb in and blow the horn, and then a big train area with Thomas-like train tracks.

 

Who says city kids never milk a cow? This is Daniel & Caitlin milking a cow.

 

This is Caitlin and Daniel showing off our creations in one of the rooms.

This morning

 

 

Isn't Caitlin's hair lovely? It starts out looking like this....then the day happens. Oh, well. Kenneth wanted his picture taken, too, even though he was going to be at school today and not with us at the Discovery Museum.

Baseball Fun

 

 

Woo hoo!

It's April 16th. That's a happy thing. I took Daniel & Caitlin to the children's discovery museum here this morning. They had a GREAT time, so I bought a pass so we can go back on a regular basis. They are at JUST the RIGHT ages for that. Daniel could build something in every room. It's not enormous and parking is less than ideal, but we'll just go first thing when they open, and I'm sure we'll get our money's worth. I didn't take my camera, but I promised them we'd go back tomorrow and pack a lunch so we could play all morning long. I'll take my camera tomorrow.

News from the weekend...2 things:

1) We had crab on Saturday night. We bought them LIVE. One of them was 3.04 lbs! The other 2 were about 2.35 lbs or so. That was a LOT of crab. We boiled them ourselves (thanks to my bday present from Ang), and everyone ate until we couldn't eat any more. Steve and I have never had to stop eating crab because we were FULL! It was amazing. I wish I'd taken some pictures. Next time...

2) When I went to buy the crab they were having a once a year halibut sale. You purchase a halibut (entire fish) for $6.99/lb. and tell them whether you want it in filets or steaks and they cut it for you and package it for you and you bring it home...bones/head and all. (Apparently people around here either compost the bones or use them for a broth to make chowder out of...ours are in the freezer until we figure out what to do with them). We bought one that was 15+ pounds and now we've got a freezer full of halibut. We're trying it out for the first time tonight...so we'll let you know how it is. Hopefully it was worth it! We figured...when in Seattle, do as the Seattlites - right?

The weather was beautiful on Saturday and we seized the day and worked in the yard all day. I got all my flowers (that I started inside as seeds) planted, and Steve built me a trellis for my peas and some climbing flowers. I'll have to post a picture once we get the string all strung on it. It got up to 82 degrees...downright hot! :) Sunday it was back to rain, but before it started...we went on an adventure. We went for the same walk I took with the kids during Spring Break to the hidden park. Daniel and Kenneth rode their bikes, and Steve brought Tasha - so we were all together. We had a great time. Steve played a little catch with Kenneth, and Caitlin and Daniel and I played on the playscape. We didn't bring a watch or a phone - we just enjoyed the time together. It was a wonderful way to enjoy not having church until 1pm.

Monday night we went to the Mariners vs. Kansas City baseball game. It was so FUN!!! Of course, we LOVE to cheer for John Buck! We were 25 rows back - right behind the catcher. Unfortunately, he said he couldn't hear me cheering - but I assure you - I cheered with the best of them. I'm sure the people around me knew who I was cheering for! :) We went in our KC garb and we got heckled on the elevator! We got to meet one of Brooke's cousins (on her mom's side) and we all went to Denny's after the game. It was wonderful as always.

So - despite my deadline, our life here has continued. I've got lots of unpacking to do now - and laundry and housework to catch up on (it would help if I could REMEMBER where I packed the Vacuum bags!). But - this weekend we're heading to the Spring Fair! (See www.thefair.com) We're going with some of Steve's family - it will be lots of fun! We're even going to the demolition derby on Saturday night. We're looking forward to a fun weekend. I promise I'll try to remember to bring the camera!

Back to the grind

I went to Vegas last weekend for the services for my friend. They were lovely. I'm so glad I went. I'm glad I was able to help. The weather was so beautiful in Vegas, it reminded me why I loved living there in the winter. When I landed in Seattle it was 41 degrees. Brrrrrrrrr. I spent Monday grocery shopping and catching up with my kids...and I went to bed early. Tuesday I hit the ground running with work and laundry. I had a small set back with my heart, and ended up going to the doctor that afternoon. Everything seems to be OK now, and I'm plugging away. I'm looking forward to life after the 15th. :)

Sadness

I don't even know how to say this except to say that the cycle of life is weighing heavily upon me these days. Monday a friend from high school passed away. Yesterday, a dear friend in Las Vegas passed away. I am shocked and saddened by the news. It makes me contemplate just how fragile mortality is. It makes me reflect on my beliefs and my faith. It causes me to analyze my own life - were it to end tomorrow, have I been the person I wanted to be? Have I done what I was sent to do? I'd have to answer this question with a no. I'm comforted that my dear friend could answer this question with a yes. He was kind, compassionate, energetic, unselfish, and giving. He was a fantastic father and husband. A huge hole is left where he was. My heart aches for his sweet family. I wish I were still close and could drop in on those empty days to come. I will be making a trip back to Las Vegas this weekend, and another one in a month or 2. I yearn to know what to say, but there isn't anything to say, but hearts can communicate volumes. This life is about learning, growing, and improving day by day. I have a long way to go. Many thanks to those who have entertwined their lives with mine to teach me and help me improve. I'll miss you dearly, my friend.

Adventure

It's spring break for Kenneth this week, and it's sunny today, so we went on an adventure....with our legs, a stroller, and 2 bikes. 3 hours later we got home. We found a park, and a playfield, and a beautiful path by a stream. I think we walked about 2.5 miles or so. Kenneth's bike mal-functioned for a while (he says it's because I rode it, maybe it was), but it seems to be better now. We enjoyed our beautiful area and heard lots of birds (including a wood-pecker). We saw lots of "popcorn" trees...they're very fragrant. We didn't get stuck in a storm, and it didn't get too cold on us. YEA! It's about 55 degrees outside today.

Winter Wonderland

 

I guess you can tell I've been sitting at my computer all day. So many posts....

Anyway, this is the view out my front door right now. Angela...I can't believe I left the sunshine for this! :)

The TV

 

 

This is for Les.

Pinewood Derby - Part II

I know you've all checked my blog many times last night and this morning because you're dying to know how Kenneth's car did in the Pinewood Derby last night. I'm so sorry to have kept you waiting. While he did not place in the top 3, we are fairly confident he was #4 or #5 out of 12 cars. His car raced well, and in our humble opinion, it was the best lookin' one there. Of course, it would be good if I had TAKEN my camera with me so you could see some of the other fine cars, but alas, I forgot. :( So, the only car that goes down in history for us is Kenneth's.

Note: This morning there was a pinewood derby track constructed in our hallway upstairs. It's made out of a wood board and multiple books so that the car can race down the hallway. We had a great time last night and the whole family cheered for Kenneth's car. We celebrated with chocolate cake when we got home (I told him win or lose we were going to celebrate!). So, all in all, it was a successful evening.

Also: Between the Pinewood Derby and chocolcate cake we bought a new TV. 40" LCD, baby. It's SWEEEEEEEEEEEEET. We are no longer TV-less, and, the kids are VERY happy about having Dora and Diego re-enter their lives after their 3 week hiatus. (Erin, you have NO IDEA how many times they've watched those cartoon DVD's you gave them...they're the only reason I'm still sane...thanks again!)

Landlady trouble, yummy bread

Well, I'll spare you the details, but today marked "Round 3" with our landlady. I'm hoping I came out the winner. Time will tell. Steve is feeling bad, but despite the landlady trouble, I still love the house and the neighborhood and we're settling in OK overall. We're looking forward to a fun weekend of ferry boat rides and a wonderful crab dinner and some beautiful scenery. Just think....people come here to vacation, right? Today I made my first Washington batch of wheat bread (I have to start making a dent in that 400 pounds I bought, right?) and I also made a batch of french bread to go with the homemade soup I made for dinner. So, I guess the house is "homey" tonight even if it is full of boxes, eh?

Pinewood Derby

 

 

Tomorrow night is Kenneth's first Pinewood derby race. He weighed his car tonight...5 oz exactly. I think it looks pretty cool...we'll let you know tomorrow how it races.

Easter Sunday

 

 

 

 

We don't do "matching", but I think they were a pretty good lookin' bunch...and there was HUNTING required for our indoor Easter Egg hunt due to the numerous boxes still around our house! :) Those are pieces of the trampoline that they're holding up.

Easter Egg dying

 

 

If you look closely at the yellow egg in front of Kenneth, you can see that it's his "Harry Potter" egg.

 

 

We had lots of fun coloring eggs. :)

Amidst the chaos called our house, we managed to dye a few Easter Eggs.

I guess there was a little "hunting" going on

 

 

 

 

This was at our neighborhood easter egg hunt.

Easter Egg Scramble

 

 

 

 

Isn't that a great "Do you HAVE to take my picture?" look on Kenneth's face???

It's raining, it's pouring....

Caitlin's been singing this song all day. :) I think mother nature had to make up for the sunny day yesterday. It rained fairly heavily all morning. We moved our Easter Egg hunt indoors. Our church is at 1pm and by the time we got out at 4pm the rain had stopped and it was lovely. We went for a family drive, then came home for our Easter feast. We rounded out the evening by finishing the trampoline, and the kids got to jump briefly (after Steve dried it off) before bed.

Well, I've got a long night ahead of me...

PS - A big shout out CONGRATULATIONS to Julie's sister, Jennie, who had her third baby boy TODAY! Welcome baby Andrew!!!

Dad's home, Caitlin's got a cold, but it's NOT RAINING!!

Steve came home last night...much to everyone's enjoyment! We are all so happy to have DAD back again!! We worked hard before we got him last night to clean the kitchen. We got all the boxes out (that doesn't mean they're all empty - a couple I just moved into another room), and swept and cleaned the floor, and wiped off all the counters, etc. etc. I was especially impressed with Daniel. I told the boys to get paper towels and clean all the spots off of the floor. Kenneth cleaned off a few then got distracted. Daniel stayed with it for a LONG time. He cleaned and cleaned and cleaned and got EVERY spot off. What a trooper.

Caitlin's got a little bit of a cold. :( I have kept her bundled every time we've gone outside (hat included), but the change of weather was bound to get to someone. She's still cheerful for the most part, though, so hopefully it will pass quickly.

Well, I arrived here 9 days ago and today was the first day that it didn't rain...not even once. Most days it has rained multiple times - mostly lightly - but raining nonetheless. Today, none. It was sunny and beautiful. We ran lots of errands and Steve got the trampoline mostly put together (with the boys' help). We went to a community Easter Egg hunt this morning, and after dinner we dyed Easter Eggs. We're going to have another Easter Egg hunt in the morning in the back yard and have Egg/Ham/Muffins (otherwise known as Egg McMuffins) for breakfast. I've got all the stuff for our traditional Salmon Easter dinner tomorrow.

HAPPY EASTER EVERYONE!!!!

Every Day an Adventure

Kenneth has decided he likes taking the bus. The bus stop is at the entrance to our little section of the neighborhood. Luckily for all of us, the bus doesn't come until 8:45am. So....I loaded up Daniel & Caitlin in the stroller (complete with hats...it's COLD), and we all walked to the bus stop. We returned home and ran to the bank and the post office. We had to get money for the craigslist guy and wheat, and talk to the PO about why we haven't been getting our mail. We also took a little drive so I can continue exploring the surrounding area...I found Costco this morning, and another lake (there are lots of those around here). That out of the way, I bathed the 2 little ones and worked on unpacking. I didn't get too awfully far before it was lunch time. I told Caitlin and Daniel if they ate all their apples for lunch we'd leave early to pick up Kenneth from the bus and go looking for caterpillars. (They found a caterpillar the other day while we were planting rose bushes and it provided hours of enjoyment). So, eventually, when she figured out I was serious, Caitlin ate her apples and we headed out. We got about 4 houses away and it started to rain, then hail. I took the opportunity to teach the kids about hail and we continued on our walk. On the way to the bus stop, we found a park! It's really close and it has a pond with ducks. We picked up Kenneth and showed him the new park on our way home. I told the kids that we had to wait for the guy to bring me my washer & dryer and then we could go back to the park. So....last night on Craigslist I found a washer & dryer that are Kenmore and only 3 years old for $275 and the guy selling them said he would DELIVER them! Isn't that great? I was EXTATIC!!! No more laundromat for me. At long last (he got stuck in traffic), he showed up, installed the washer and dryer and left. I took the kids to the park for an hour (it rained on and off....I guess I have to get used to that), then we came home and ate a big snack. I sang to Caitlin for a while on the couch and she fell asleep. Then we loaded back into the car (it's 5pm) to head to the Canery for our church. Missy called me and told me to stock up on wheat...so stock up I did. I got 400 pounds of hard white wheat. On the way home we stopped at Safeway. I told each of the kids they could choose one thing for dinner (dad's out of town....mom didn't have a fancy dinner planned). Kenneth chose Green Bean Casserole. Daniel and Caitlin chose peaches and bananas. They each chose a 1/2 gallon of ice cream, too. So, after stopping at the grocery store, everyone was very hungry, so we came home and ate. After a LONG, ROUGH bedtime process, I sat down to work. Now it's 2:20am and I think it's time to hit the hay. 'Night.

Domino Creations and Braids!

 

 

Kenneth and Daniel have spent lots of time building domino creations - here's one of their finished products.

 

 

I know this will make Elise sick, but I braided Caitlin's hair this morning, and I just had to share.

Caitlin the mover

 

 

 

It's lucky we had such a good helper helping us unload the truck, don't you think?

We're live!

Our internet is hooked up - yeah!!

I feel like I've been so out of touch, lately!

Well, last time I wrote we were in Sacramento. It's hard to believe that was exactly a week ago. Last Thursday we left Elk Grove at 10:30am. After a long, hard day of driving (pulling a boat up and down through mountains is not my idea of stress-free driving), we arrived in Lakewood at 12:30am. We were all exhausted, but VERY HAPPY to see Steve! He helped me carry in children and luggage, then caught a few hours of sleep before he snuck out early to go back to work. When the kids woke up they wondered where Dad was? :)

Can I just interject here that the 2 "care packages" we received for the drive were SO MAJORLY HELPFUL I CAN'T THANK ERIN and GRANDMA & SARA ENOUGH!!!!!!! They SAVED MY SANITY!!!!!

We got to our new house at about 11am on Friday and we met our landlord. Steve came "home" for lunch and signed the lease. Our truck arrived at about 2:30pm. By then I was completely exhausted and I didn't know how I was going to handle everything I still had to do. Steve arrived - much to my surprise - at about 3pm and that made a HUGE difference. We were able to get the back of the truck unloaded before the movers arrived. The movers arrived and were MAJOR DUDS!! They were all tired (apparently they'd already had a long day of lifting things) and moved very slowly. We finally sent them away and unloaded the rest of the truck ourselves. We took our boat back to Lakewood Friday night and didn't get back until 12:30am - AGAIN! Too many late nights.........

So, Saturday we continued unloading the truck and getting beds put together. By Saturday at about 1pm we took off to get a bite to eat and hit Sears looking for a washer/dryer, trampoline, and TV. We ended up buying an air hockey table. Well, the washers/dryers were too expensive, the TV was too complicated, and the trampoline was round. The kids were excited about the air hockey table and we had just enough time to drop off the table and head back to Bellevue for dinner with the family that Steve stayed with. They were so incredibly nice and we really enjoyed visiting with them. After we left, we found the house my family lived in 18 years ago...still looks the same...amazing. We also found my middle school.

Sunday we continued unpacking and the landlord had people come work on the house because some of our lights were blowing circuits. Steve ended up staying home with the contractors and the kids and I went to church. I hate being the new kid on the block...need I say more? The scouts are really excited to have another scout and the pinewood derby is next Thursday. We DID find our crock pot and grab a few things Saturday night so we could have our traditional Sunday dinner together. It was nice to have something familiar...nothing like a good pot roast to make a house into a home, eh?

Monday I tried to get Kenneth enrolled in school, but I didn't have a copy of our lease agreement, so we came back home. There were more electricians coming, so I was unable to return to the school. Monday afternoon the kids and I went to a grocery store called CENTRAL MARKET. We bought some crab and some flower seeds and a variety of other things and headed home. We had a lovely dinner of crab, salad, olive bread, and maccaroni and cheese...with cake for dessert. :) Kenneth and Daniel both enjoyed the crab with me. Just as we cleaned up, Dad came home and we piled into the car to find the nearest Sam's Club. I bribed my kids and told them that when we moved to Seattle, we'd have a trampoline like Angela's. So....off we went. We found the Sam's, and bought the trampoline, but getting it into the car was an entirely different story. After much finegalling, we got it into the Tahoe (with both boys on the floor and Caitlin crying because she was the only one buckled up). We came home and unloaded it into the garage...to be put together this weekend, because yesterday, Dad left for California on a business trip. Oh the joys.

I did manage to get Kenneth enrolled in school yesterday and he has a boy, David, in his class, who is also in his class at church and happens to live right down the street. He is very happy about that. This week is early-out all week for parent/teacher conferences, and so yesterday afternoon we planted roses. 4 rose bushes. It took us 2 hours. Here's hoping they grow! Kenneth had scouts last night and he had a great time.

This morning the cable guy came...hence the post....but as soon as he left we bailed and went to the laundromat. We did 6 loads of laundry and made it back just in time to meet the bus.

Well, that's my week in a nutshell...if you made it to the end, you are a true friend. :)

In Sacramento

We had a long day on Monday, but we made it safely to Fremont via Fresno. Grandma Ackerman & Sara had a wonderful dinner of chicken nuggets, mac & cheese, and corn on the cob waiting for us, and it was a wonderful break from snack food. We also shared a cake. We got to Fremont at about 12:30am and snuck in while everyone was sleeping. We had a great day yesterday playing with cousins and napping and eating Ming's for dinner (YUMMY CHINESE!). This morning we got up and hit the road about 10am for Elk Grove (outside Sacramento). We're enjoying more cousin time and looking forward to a big family dinner of Round Table pizza tonight. Tomorrow is another long day of driving and we're hoping to make it all the way to Lakewood, WA. Wish us luck!

Cutie Pie

Happy Easter...a little early!

New Address

 

 

We've been approved to rent this home in Washington. We're excited that we'll soon be together as a family, and when we arrive, we'll have a place to go. :) YEAH!

Girls

Well, I am sitting here, playing through in my mind all the things I need to get done in the next 48 hours and it's overwhelming to say the least. My truck IS, however, GONE GONE GONE. They came and got it today. The truck with everything we own is on its way to Seattle. Soon, I will be, too. But last night, I got to hang with the girls. We had such a great time, and I appreciate them being willing to get together one more time before I hit the road. I love to sit and chat, it's one of my true joys in life, and that's exactly what we did. I loved every minute of it. Thank you thank you thank you. I'm going to miss you dearly, my friends.

This afternoon I spent some precious time with another dear friend. She's so wise and we always have such great talks. I appreciate her kindness and friendship. I'm sad to leave my Las Vegas friends. I didn't want to move. I still don't want to move. What's happening? Who decided we should move? AHHHH!

Hopefully this move is a good thing. :) I'm surely leaving behind a lot of people I care about. Thanks, GIRLS!!!

Update

We are nearly packed up. Tomorrow I am working (still have lots of that to do before I can go), Tuesday I'll finish packing (I think I'm about 10-20 boxes out), Wednesday the container comes and the Happy Movers are loading it for me. I also have a 6:30pm app't with the Bishop on Wednesday. As of today, he is sweating bullets - still doesn't know who to replace me with. :) Steve was here for a family wedding on Friday and he helped us yesterday - all the beds are dismantled, and Kenneth's desk is dismantled, and the shelves in the garage are all ready to go. I've still got to pack/organize the rest of my office. I have 2 computers left to pack up, too. I will keep one computer and my laser printer with me for tax prep. The other computer will ship with the rest of our stuff. Steve has an app't to go through another house tomorrow up there. We signed a 2 year lease today for this home. They move in on Saturday. Things are moving very quickly at this point. A BIG HUGE thank you to Elise for coming - she did more than she'll ever understand....and to the Jones family...so amazingly wonderfully helpful. We had a great week. Steve is safely back in Seattle, and we're officially alone in our home. The kids have had a rough couple of weeks (acting out, very teary, etc.). They were much better while Steve was here...just more evidence that we need to be together as a family. We'll pull out next Monday (the 10th) - drive to Fresno to see Jan & Sara, then head on up to Sacramento. We'll stay with the Davis family for a couple of days, then continue up to Seattle. It'll be me, the kids, our gecko, dog, the redwood tree, and my computer...oh, yeah, we'll be towing the boat, too. :) What an adventure.