feb. 28

um, where did february go?  it was a busy month, and it went by super fast.  today the kids and i played all day long.  we had a marathon session of hide-and-seek with gavin and brooke hiding together and trying to find mommy together.  it was very cute.  brooke is much more sophisticated at this game now, although she can become quite lazy at the "seek" part of the game.  if she can't find me after 2 seconds she just starts yelling for me.  i talk back to her to give her a clue as to where i'm hiding, and then she usually finds me.

feb. 27

after skiing, two meals out and a play date yesterday, we decided to take it a bit slower today :)  i'm really enjoying seeing how brooke and gavin's relationship is growing.  they really love doing things together and  have been playing so well together.

feb. 26

since brooke had a break from ski lessons this past week, we wanted to get her out to the mountain this weekend.  we all went up to the summit on saturday morning.  they had lots of great snow, but it was freezing!  i dressed us all in many layers so no one was cold.  brooke did great skiing, and kevin really enjoyed being out there with her.  i under estimated how mad gavin was going to be that he couldn't ski.  before we left the house i explained to him where we were going.  all he would say is "me!!!" and "please!!!!"  poor thing.  he did his best to climb over the mound of snow to get onto the magic carpet.  too bad for gavin that daddy was there to stop him :)

feb. 25

we ventured out to starbucks and the library this morning with anastasia, hanna and hudson.  when we got home it took gavin about 2 seconds to find the shovel in the garage, and before i knew it he was standing knee-deep in snow shoveling away!  he had on snow boots but no snow pants or gloves, so it didn't take him long to realize that snow is COLD :)

feb. 24

it is so beautiful here in snoqualmie, especially when it snows.  sunrise after a big snowfall is breathtaking.  i took this from our dining room window this morning as the light rose about mt. si.  we have so much snow on the ground that brooke's school was cancelled today.  i've always loved snow days.

feb. 23

we got several inches of snow so the kids and i headed out to play today.  hanna joined us, and we all built a snowman :)  the snow was perfect!  brooke and gavin also went sledding down the little hill at the park all by themselves.  gavin kept falling off face-first, but brooke did really great.  we had lots of fun in the snow!

feb. 22

we awakened to about an inch of snow today.  gavin was so excited when we went outside to take brooke to school.  he found the snow shovel in the garage and ran out to shovel the snow.  he knew exactly what he was doing!  after dropping brooke off at school and doing all of our grocery shopping, we came home to play in the snow a bit more.  the only way i could get gavin inside was to bribe him with hot cocoa :)  it worked!

feb. 21

family vacations are so great, even if it's a short weekend getaway.  there's something about breaking out of our normal routine, experiencing new things together as a family and sharing tight quarters that brings us all closer together.  this trip we had 2 queen beds.  kevin slept with brooke, and i slept with gavin - mostly because gavin would not have it any other way.  we know because we tried :)  in the morning gavin was the first to awaken, and within minutes he would wake brooke.  he would get so excited when brooke sat up in bed and would yell "brookie!"  this morning they watched a movie together in bed while kevin and i got ready.  the lights were off, so the picture is terrible, but i couldn't resist capturing this sweet moment.

feb. 20

we had a great morning exploring the city of portland by foot, and then we took a short 45 min. drive to the willamette valley.  we tasted wines at 3 wineries and enjoyed seeing oregon's wine country.  the kids were pretty tired and did not behave so well, but we managed for everyone to have a little fun in the process.

feb. 19

we headed to portland today for a little weekend getaway.  it was a very easy 3 hour drive from seattle, and it was a beautiful day.  i did some research online before we left, and i read about a boulder climbing gym that i knew kevin and gavin would love.  we thought we'd give the kids lots of new experiences so we took a bus to the boulder gym.  that part was easy, and the boys had a blast.  gavin is a natural climber and knew exactly what to do.  he climbed up the wall over and over again with some help from dad.  kevin was thrilled.  brooke, on the other hand, was not such a big fan of climbing, but she was still a good sport.  afterwards we headed back to the bus stop but after waiting quite a while in the cold, we decided to hail a cab back to the hotel.  then we caught a pedicab (a cyclist pulling a trailer) to dinner and the light rail home.  i'm not sure if gavin was more thrilled with our modes of transportation or the climbing gym :)  it was a fun night.

feb. 18

brooke has been too busy in her pretend world of princesses and mermaids to be into art lately, but today we got out the paints.  gavin and brooke both painted some masterpieces :)

feb. 17

these days, gavin's middle name is "trouble."  he looks for it everywhere he goes :).  thankfully, it's usually harmless.  there is a lot of climbing, jumping, throwing, running and rough-housing going on around here.  gone are the days when i can trust him to be alone in a room for more than a few minutes.  keeps me on my toes!

feb. 16

saying goodbye is always so hard.  we had a great 10 days with heather, danny and stella, and we were all sad to see them go.  gavin asked for "he he" (aunt heather) all day, and the look on his face when i told him that aunt heather went bye-bye completely broke my heart.  he was truly so sad.  we're going to miss little stella walking around the house looking for her cousins.

feb. 15

we attempted to get some pictures of the kids in their new easter outfits before heather, danny & stella left seattle.  trying to get a good picture indoors with a 1 yr. old, almost 2 yr. old and 4 yr. old proved to be pretty much impossible.  this was the best of the bunch.  they sure did look adorable in their outfits.  brooke was so happy that she and stella had matching dresses :)

feb. 14

brooke's valentine for her classmates :)  happy valentine's day!

feb. 13

it's not even the end of the day yet, but i already know the picture i'm choosing for today.  stella loves her uncle kevin.  it's been a bit surprising and oh so sweet to see stella's affection for kevin.  she's always trying to get uncle kevin's attention and loves it when he scoops her up into his arms.  today i came downstairs and found them reading the paper together.  such a sweet moment.  just look at the way she's looking at him :)

feb. 12

well, heather, danny and stella's visit has not involved a lot of sightseeing and outdoor adventures because there has been a lot of illness floating around the house.  it started with danny, then gavin, then stella, then heather, now me.  everyone has had a slightly different illness and been just a little under the weather.  there have been sleepless nights and restful days.  there have been food strikes and family meals.  there have been quiet moments and crazy times.  it's been real.  and it's been good to share it with them.

feb. 11

pizza night at pagliacci.  mmmmmm.... we were happy to share it with heather, danny and stella.  it's hard to believe the weekend is already here.  as always, their trip is going by too fast!

feb. 10

it was a gorgeous day in seattle.  given we had clear blue skies, we decided to head to the space needle since heather and danny had never been.  we had a great day in the city at the seattle center and pioneer square.  unfortunately, danny has a stomach bug and gavin is coming down with a cold, but we're still managing to have fun :)

feb. 9

today was week #4 of brooke's ski lessons, and she sure did show off for her aunt heather, uncle danny and cousin stella!  brooke skied down the bunny hill all by herself and got on and off the magic carpet all by herself, over and over again.  my heart was full.  i am so proud of brooke.

feb. 8

heather, danny & stella arrived yesterday, and we're all so happy to have them here in seattle with us.  we had one very sleepy household today though!  stella was up crying most of the night so she and heather did not get much sleep, and i was up entirely too late making brooke's star student poster board.  so, everyone took a nap today except for danny.  speaking of danny, he is a favorite of gavin's.  all day long gavin yells for "D!"  poor uncle danny is not about to get a break as long as gavin is around.  this is a picture of the two of them watching music videos together - one of gavin's favorite pastimes.  brooke, gavin and stella are having so much fun together, and it was hard to choose just one picture for my post today.

feb. 7

brooke's the "star student" of her class for the next 2 weeks.  each student gets a turn at being the "star student," and brooke has been anxiously awaiting her special time.  being star student involves a poster board (as shown above) describing the child (likes, activities, family, etc.) that is shared with the class and displayed for everyone to see, as well as special toys, books and treats that the star student is allowed to bring in to share with the class.  there's nothing brooke loves more than bringing in her own things to share with the class.

feb. 6

do you see what i see?  this is gavin in brooke's hot pink crocs making a run for it!  so funny.  today was a busy day, preparing for heather, danny & stella to arrive, running errands and trying to catch some of the super bowl.  i think the highlight of the day was when gavin put brooke's crocs on all by himself, unlocked the back door and ran out the gate.  i had to throw some shoes on and run after him.  he was trying to make it to one of the big boulders we have in our side yard that he loves to play on, but in the process he lost a shoe, and one foot of his pjs got all wet.  by that time i was hot on his trail, and he came hobbling back to me, a bit defeated.  maybe next time, buddy :)

feb. 5

one of the first pictures i've taken with my new camera.  it's been so busy around here that i haven't had much time to practice, but so far i'm loving it.  brooke has a princess dress on every single day :)  today was no exception.  we managed to get brooke out of a princess dress and into a real dress so we could take her and gavin to the seattle children's theatre.  we saw "go dog go!"  it was gavin's first time at any sort of theatre, and he handled it so well.  the play was perfect for him, but maybe a big young (and wacky :) for brooke's tastes.  after all, it was no cinderella.  gavin laughed out loud and clapped along with the audience.  he sat still for the entire 1.5 hour performance.  quite impressive!  we had dinner afterwards right across from the space needle, and it was quite late by the time we got the kids home and to bed.  it was well worth it for a great night out for our family.

feb. 4

it's here.....  i'm so excited.  although, i'm realizing that cameras are like cars.  you get used to the way they feel, the way they handle, you don't have to think about where the controls are, etc.  so, it's going to take me a couple of weeks to learn how to use this gem.

feb. 3

today was such a good day.  after dropping brooke off at school and coming home to anastasia and hudson who were crashing at our house while having their carpets cleaned, we decided to take an impromptu trip to the mall together.  it was totally spontaneous, and i loved it.  i love spontaneity, especially when i have a house to clean :)  i can't believe we've never done this before.  it was so much fun to be out with the boys.  i can see more of this in our future...

feb. 2

i really treasure the one-on-one time i've been spending with brooke every wednesday since ski lessons started.  brooke and i take a bus up to the mountain with other kids from her school.  i love sitting next to her on the bus, holding her hand during the walk from the bus to the slopes, itching her head when her helmet is bothering her and cheering wildly for her so she knows how proud i am.  i'm so grateful that i have the opportunity to share this with brooke.  it's something i'll never forget and something i hope she's old enough to remember.

feb. 1

ahhh, the first day of a new month.  it called for a hair cut for gavin.  i keep telling myself that i'm going to let it get "a little" longer, and then i go and have them buzz it.  i have always loved a clean cut guy :)