july 30

what a special day today was!  we had a girls' tea at the georgian room at the fairmont hotel in honor of hanna turning 5 years old.  it was such a nice way to spend an afternoon, and we all thoroughly enjoyed the atmosphere, the tea, the scones, tea sandwiches, sweets and most of all the company.  brooke was a very well behaved little lady today, and i was very proud of her.  after tea we did a little shopping and walked the streets of downtown seattle on a gorgeous summer afternoon.

the boys had a fun day, too.  kevin, ryan, hudson and gavin went to the seahawks training camp in renton, wa.  gavin LOVED it :)  tonight he's sleeping with his new seahawks football :)

july 29

friday. sunshine. park. sprinklers. smiles.

july 28

our power went out unexpectedly this morning for about 3 hours.  all of snoqualmie ridge was without power so we dropped brooke off at school and i asked gavin what he wanted to do.  i thought he might say "go to the park!" or "play baseball!" but he surprised me with "go shopping!"  he must be used to our routine of going grocery shopping on tuesdays after we drop brooke off.  when i told him we didn't need to go to pcc (our grocery store), he said "go target."  so we did.  what better way to pass the time during a power outage?  lately gavin has been picking up everything in sight and pretending it's a sword so i decided i'd buy him a play sword today.  two actually.  after all, what good is a sword if you can't have a sword fight?

july 27

today started out overcast and chilly but ended up sunny and warm.  we had a nice dinner outside followed by family play time at the park before bed.  brooke had it in her head that she wanted to "climb" a tree, so we put her and gavin in one of the trees at the park.  they didn't actually climb up the tree, but they sure were happy sitting on the branches.  brooke kept asking to do it again and again.  i bet it's not long until she's climbing them on her own.

july 26

today was the first day in quite a while that gavin and i have had to ourselves.  i think he's missed them.  so have i.  as we drove to do our grocery shopping this morning i decided on a whim to get gavin's hair cut.  it's only been 2.5 weeks since his last hair cut, but i kept looking at him in the rear view mirror thinking his hair was looking pretty shabby.  not anymore.  he's my clean cut little guy again.  so stinkin cute.

june 25

finally... today i can take a deep breath and relax.  no guests, no trips.  pictures are done.  we found a house.  we're selling our house (yipee!).  nothing to worry about but having a great time and enjoying every second of our last 5 weeks in snoqualmie.  it will go by in a flash.  today it rained so we stayed in and baked cookies, and i had 2 happy kids for at least 30 minutes :)

june 24

THE day finally arrived!  shannon sewell came to take our pictures.  i LOVE her work.  i have been so excited for this day, and i have been waiting patiently for months and months for it to arrive.  brooke and i had our nails and hair done.  i had our outfits all ready to go.  shannon got stuck in traffic coming up from portland, but we still got 2 hours of shooting in before sunset.  the kids were typical.  they are 4 and 2 after all.  i'm hoping she worked her magic and got a handful of great shots. shannon was as sweet as could be, and we all had such a great time.

july 23

what a gorgeous day!  we got little sleep (thanks to the jet lag) and had a stressful morning with decisions to be made on the house, but it was beautiful outside and that made everything ok.  i had a wonderful facial this afternoon that completely restored me.  i came home to happy kids and an invitation from neighbors to come on over for sprinklers, drinks and dinner.  it was the first dinner we've ever had with the bakers where we were all able to sit peacefully for quite some time and enjoy the food and the conversation.  all 4 kids were content the entire evening.  how far we've come!

july 22

we are happy to be home.  brooke and gavin are happy to be reunited with hanna.  so happy, in fact, that hanna and gavin decided to get married today :)  i looked out the kitchen window to see them standing on the rocks, holding hands while hanna leaned in for a kiss and fumbled with gavin's fingers (pretending to put the ring on).  brooke threw flower petals at them (note petals on the ground).  even without hearing a word, i knew exactly what was taking place.  hilarious.

july 21

when we come back to town in 5-6 weeks, the house will be finished and it will be ours! :)

july 20

i spent the entire day in anderson picking out paint colors and carpet for the new house.  i loved it, but i hated the pressure of having to make decisions without having time to think it over.  i'm keeping my fingers crossed that i made some good choices.  i was grateful to have the luxury of leaving the kids with my mom and sister for the day.  my poor mom got sick on monday night and didn't have a lot of energy today, but she hung in there with the kids all day.  when i got home brooke, gavin and stella were in good spirits.  they are soooo cute together.  we all went out to dinner together on our last night in town.  it was getting late, service was slow, the food wasn't perfect... and then gavin threw up all over the place.  the end.  we're going home.

july 19

we were well enough today to take the kids to see our soon-to-be new house.  unfortunately, they were spraying doors today so we had to get the kids out of the house pretty quickly.  they were able to see their new rooms and get a feel for the new house.  brooke kept saying it looked very pretty :)  i love this house.  i can't wait until it's finished, and we can move in!  a new chapter in our life awaits...

july 18

through the night, heather, danny and i all became ill.  by monday morning heather's house was a germ-infested infirmary.  i felt sorry for kevin and my mom who were the only ones left to care for the sick.  we spent our day lying in beds and on couches with buckets spread throughout the house.  what a scene!  by evening time we received a counter offer from the builder and by 9:00pm we had reached an agreement.  hooray!  at least we have a house because i don't know how we could possibly do more house hunting with this awful illness.

july 17

gavin was up throughout the night dry heaving :(  my poor little guy.  this is the first stomach bug he has ever had, and it is a terrible one.  thankfully i got him to eat a pedialyte popsicle this morning.  stella got to have a popsicle, too :)  we had a lazy day around the house caring for gavin and avoiding the heat and humidity.  we had to venture out briefly in order to meet our realtor and work up an offer on the house we found yesterday.  when we put brooke in the hot car, she immediately started crying "i want to go back to seattle!"  boy did i feel the same way!  by the end of the day, stella and brooke were both vomiting.  how much worse could this trip get?

july 16

i love the special little moments that happen when we stay with family.  cousins in pjs together, shared meals, story time, play time - it's all very special.  unfortunately, with all of those good things often come bad things like shared illnesses.  i can always count on gavin to be sick right before a trip to cincinnati, and he inevitably gets stella sick and sometimes other cousins as well.  today while kevin and i were out for day #2 of house hunting, heather texted me to let me know that gavin had diarrhea and was vomiting.  my immediate instinct is that it must have come from one of the public pools the kids visited yesterday.  then my dad told me that a bunch of pools have been shut down in northern kentucky due to illness caused by feces from toddlers' swim diapers.  yuk.  just our luck.  it was quite a while before we were able to get home to gavin, so i owe my sister big time!  she took care of all the kids and cleaned up after gavin all day.  this is definitely not what we needed this trip.  the only saving grace of the day is that we found a house that we really love in a neighborhood that seems perfect for us.

july 15

our first day in cincinnati.  kevin and i saw 14 houses today in terrace park, blue ash and montgomery.  overall, our first full day of house hunting was not very promising.  while we were looking at houses, brooke and gavin spent the day swimming with grandma, aunt heather, uncle danny and stella.  then kevin and i took them back out in the evening for round 2 of swimming with antje, randall, lexi and kenzie at the cincinnati sports mall.  lexi and kenzie are getting so big, and it was so much fun to see the kids playing together.

july 14

we had a nice, easy flight to cincinnati today.  brooke and gavin got their first set of wings.  i guess i thought they had stopped giving kids wings since we've been on tons of flights and no one has ever offered them any.  delta must be turning over a new leaf - wings for kids and blankets on board.  oh, the luxuries!

july 13

bob and kaye left tonight on the red-eye.  we leave in the morning.  there was lots to be done today, and i was so grateful to have lots of help.  i didn't pick up my camera today, but i took this picture on monday and i had to post it.  a tea party with grandma.  they talked her into 2 cookies :)  isn't that what grandmas are for?

july 12

i love this picture.  we dropped bob and kaye off at breakfast with one of kaye's cousins, and the kids and i headed to a nearby park.  after just a couple of hours, the kids were so excited to see bob bob and ba kaye again that they took off running across the field as bob and kaye walked toward us.  we all really cherish our time together.

july 11

phew!  today was busy.  this morning we received the relo company's inspection reports and buyout offer, which kicked off a day of household maintenance and minor repairs.  it was such a blessing having bob and kaye here to help around the house and with the kids.  this afternoon i looked out the kitchen window and saw this.  precious.

july 10

we thought we'd pack as much into one weekend as possible so today we left roche harbor and headed to seattle where we hit the farmer's market and serious pie.  two of our favorite places.  yum!

july 9

i can safely say that today was one of the best days i've ever had.  we chartered an old wooden sailboat built in 1920 and went on an orca whale quest.  i was told that they hadn't been very lucky seeing whales lately, so i tried not to get my hopes up.  but we got lucky.  really lucky.  we found the whales.  we chased the whales.  they were magnificent.  most likely a once in a lifetime experience.

july 8

roche harbor, san juan island.  after a 2 hour drive, a 45 min. wait for the ferry, an hour ferry ride and another 20 min. in the car, we arrived at roche harbor.  while there were many steps in getting to our destination, it really wasn't very difficult, and it was totally worth it!  roche harbor was a gem.  such a quaint setting right on the water with boats everywhere.  brooke and gavin went fishing for the first time thanks to grandma and grandpa.  they were so excited!  they had to wait patiently during bob bob and daddy's many attempts at getting the bobber and hook on the line :)  while they were both disappointed that they didn't "catch" a fish, they totally loved the experience.  gavin was very sad when we had to call it a day and head to dinner.  he was also very sad when we wouldn't allow him to sleep with his fishing pole :)

july 7

today turned into quite the outing!  kevin spontaneously took the day off work (i love that), and we all headed to bellevue.  we started with a stop at top pot for doughnuts.  they have quite the reputation here in seattle.  a seahawk football player actually broke into this very store to steal a doughnut after a night of drinking.  go figure!  it was our first time having a top pot doughnut.  we liked :)

we then headed to the mall for what was supposed to be some quick shopping and hair cuts for the kids. that is until i realized that the nordstrom anniversary pre-sale was going on for nordstrom card holders.  score!  our day soon turned into a full day at the mall complete with lots of shopping, many great purchases, lunch and hair cuts.  that's what i call a good day!

july 6

if you look closely you will see two kids hiding under the picnic table :)  ba kaye and bob bob came to town today.  the kids had fun playing hide-and-seek with grandma and grandpa at the park.  i love to see the hiding spots they come up with.  it was a gorgeous day, and we're looking forward to a fun week!

july 5

the kids like to have multiple breakfasts each morning.  we start with cereal when they first wake up, followed by fruit and juice.  after an hour or two, they're usually ready to eat again.  most mornings we pop some van's waffles into the toaster.  gavin loves to get the waffles out of the freezer and put them in the toaster all by himself.  they both get excited when the waffles pop up!

july 4

we celebrated our 3rd Fourth of July here in snoqualmie.  i remember our first parade when both the kids rode in the stroller.  gavin was just a baby.  today they both rode their bikes in the parade, and they just seemed so big, so grown up.  the days pass quickly, but boy do the years fly by!

brooke isn't very confident on her bike outside of our driveway so there was a lot of whining going on during the parade.  gavin was just as confident as could be on his balance bike, but he was easily distracted by everything going on around him.  we had to keep reminding him to watch where he was going :)

we had a great time at the community celebration and stayed for the entire 3 hours.  the kids enjoyed bounce houses, horse rides, sno cones, cotton candy, popcorn and more!  what a great day to be a kid :)  we also tried out our first sparklers.  brooke loved them, gavin not so much.  sometimes they surprise me.

july 3

we're embracing change around here, and this morning was the last morning that gavin will wake up in a crib.  today we deconstructed his crib and turned it into a twin bed.  gavin is very excited about his "big boy bed!"  one nap down... we'll see how tonight goes!

july 2

we have been blessed with amazing weather this 4th of july weekend!  i think summer has officially begun in seattle!  we spent the evening at two of our favorite spots - cactus restaurant in kirkland followed by a stroll down to the waterfront where brooke and gavin had a great time playing in the water.  they ended up soaking wet and rode home in only their underwear/diaper.  they didn't mind a bit.

july 1

the sign is in the yard, and we've had one showing.  it's starting to feel very real.

june 30

our neighborhood on a beautiful evening.  today our house went up for sale.  it's hard to even write those words.  it's been a tough, busy, draining and emotional week for me.  hopefully the hardest part is behind us.  i pray that we sell our house, enjoy our last summer in seattle and find a great new home in cincinnati.

june 29

it's so nice when someone can be exactly what you need, exactly when you need it.  anastasia has been that for me this week.  today we had lunch together with the kids.  tonight we went to salish for happy hour.  it was a special evening and a much needed break, and i have no idea why we haven't done it before now.

june 28

tonight was brooke's school's family night out at the movies.  the kids were so excited to see cars 2!  they got to go to the movies in their pjs and eat pizza and popcorn for dinner :)  i give the family night out at the movies two thumbs up.  cars 2 gets two big thumbs down.  we left an hour into it once brooke started asking if she could play games on my phone :(  it was as bad as the original cars is good.  when i put brooke to bed she said, "mommy, i didn't like the cars 2 movie.  it wasn't what i imagined."  well put, my dear.

june 27

some days feel like a test.  a test to see how much i can handle.  today was one of those days. amidst cleaning and de-cluttering the entire house, gavin had his worst accident to date.  we were all in the toy room (me cleaning/kids playing) when gavin catapulted himself off the big bouncy ball head-first into the corner of the wooden train table.  all i heard was crunch.  when i turned, i was sure he broke his nose.  my heart sank.  he broke the skin under his eyebrow, and the side of his nose swelled up pretty quickly.  he was screaming, and i felt like crying.  it almost pushed me over the edge.  but it didn't.  i handled it.  put an ice pack on his face for as long as he would let me, called kevin, called the doctor and settled in on the couch to comfort my little guy.  he bounced back pretty fast, and we went back to our busy day.  no broken nose just a bit of a black eye.

june 26

my, oh my, did we work hard today!  we had gorgeous weather so we were outside all day weeding, trimming, mulching, planting flowers and more.  the kids were great and allowed me and kevin to cross a lot of things off our "to do" list.  gavin loved daddy's new "special tool," which he quickly adopted and called his "cutter."  i think he was trying to "cut" the trees.  what a big helper :)

june 25

today the kids and i went shopping while daddy was out golfing.  we went to u village to pick up a few things.  i found myself giving into the kids' requests to "buy something" and before i knew it we had a new puzzle (brooke) and a plastic bear that pops balls out of his mouth (gavin).  i was kicking myself the whole way home.  i like to treat the kids to little things when we're out because we don't go shopping that often, but now i find myself feeling like they expect to buy something every time we go shopping.  not good.

june 24

the counter balance to last night's indulgence :)  green power juice.  it's beautiful, and it's delicious.