15th Anniversary!!

Today we celebrate our 15th Anniversary, even though he's had my heart for over 20 years.  Here's a little blast from the past, going back 20+ years...

Preschool Christmas Program

Natalie had her preschool Christmas program last week, it was so sweet.  Her favorite song was "Go Tell it on the Mountain", and "Away in a Manger".  She did a great job, and we are so proud of her!!

Here she is with of some of the children in her class/ Natalie and her good friend Frances / Singing "Go Tell it on the Mountain" / Posing for Mommy / Smiling with mommy, with a mouth full of chocolate :)

Gingerbread Men

We've been busy baking cookies, and doing crafts almost every afternoon. I grabbed the little ones (the big one was busy) and we sat down to decorate our gingerbread men. The great part is that they each get their own (and I don't have to worry about the house falling apart).

Here are their lovely creations..

The big maple in the backyard

We have this gorgeous big maple in our backyard, that I'm kind of in love with.  I didn't realize how much I love trees until I moved to this beautiful state full of trees.  Having not really grown up with a fall in sunny Cali. I'm kind of obsessed with it here.  When the leaves start to change color it is truly amazing, and I see God's handiwork all around me. 

In early November I went outside to capture the bright golden yellow hues of the maple leaves.  I love the contrast of the dark wet trunk and branches against the light leaves.  As you can tell it is a pretty tall tree, but not nearly as tall as our 100 year old pines, that tower above it at over 100 feet. 



Later that month the leaves fell from the trees, and were raked into 5 big piles.  The kiddos had fun jumping in them, and our neighbors (the cows) came over to the fence to investigate.  We rewarded them with apples.

Blizzards 2012 Soccer

Josh just wrapped up a another great soccer season.  This is his second year as Blizzard, and playing with same great group of boys and coaches as last year.  We had amazing weather all of September, and into October so Josh was able to ride his bike (with friends or big brother) to practice twice a week.  It is so nice having the practice field just two blocks away!!



Josh really improved from last year, and was much more aggressive in play (I'm thinking lacrosse may have had something to do with that!!), he also was able to try a few different positions including goalie, but I think defender is still his favorite.


As the weather started to change in October our games were more chilly, and we went from wearing flip flops to scarves.  Our final game was met with rain, and a lot of it!! But the boys played hard, and enjoyed running through the mud puddles, and getting soaked.  Gotta love Washington!! Rain or shine we play!!

Congratulations Blizzards on another great season!!

Pumpkin Patch & Halloween

We were so lucky to have a visit from Gordon & Marcia during the middle of October.  The kiddos got to spend some great time with them playing board games, and dominos, I got to take them to a few fun Seattle spots, and as a family we enjoyed the pumpkin patch, and our Halloween carnival with them. 



The kiddos had a great time picking out the perfect pumpkin (or two!!) and the adults enjoyed the beautiful scenery, and brisk weather. 



A few days later we enjoyed our church carnival where the kiddos played games, and we got to visit with friends. 



Dave and I were garden gnomes (I had cute ric rac, and mushrooms on my skirt, but alas no pics) Josh was a minecraft creeper (not pictured), Caleb a skeleton, and Natalie was a butterfly.  These are the same wings I wore when I was her age (they're vintage).  I was so happy my Mom kept them all these years, and when I asked if she could send them to me, she quickly made this cute pink tulle skirt to include in the shipment. Thanks grandma!!



For Halloween, we visited Daddy's work first, and filled up on candy, and snacks.  We had to call it quits after an hour because Natalie's pumpkin was spilling over, and it was time to go home and trick or treat with neighbors and friends.  The kiddos had a great time walking the nearby neighborhoods with friends, and it was a fun night had by all.

Happy Birthday Little Miss - 5!!

I can't believe my baby girl is 5 years old. She is such a delight, and I love her big personality so much!! She is my little sidekick, and thankfully still loves to cuddle all the time. We are so blessed to have this little sunshine in our family, and wish her an amazing and great 5th year!! Happy Birthday Natalie!!

First Day 2012 - Daniel & Natalie

Daniel is now a 7th grader, yikes, where does the time go.  He is only 3 inches shorter than me, and 20 more lbs, and we'll weigh the same..eek.  He was excited to get back to school, and see all his friends, and get back into the routine.  I know this will be a great year for him.

Little miss is back at her beloved preschool for another year.  We tried pushing her forward into kindergarten even though her birthday is a week past the deadline.  The district said no, and I believe in my heart that really was the best decision.  She is super sassy with her hand on her hip all the time, and all pictures now include her favorite number 5.."cause that's my number now mom".

Summer in Instagram

So thought I would post some of my Instagram pics for family & friends that aren't using it (but really should!!) I've excluded pics from our 2 week vacay beach camping & bear lake, because those are coming soon in another post!!  So here ya go!!

4th of july fun!!

 

splash park

 

farmers market goodies



blue angels at seafair & hanging around




juanita beach



long beach for labor day weekend




jetty island for labor day

First Day 2012 - Josh & Caleb

Today school officially started in our district.  Because they like to do a staggered start, Daniel won't start till tomorrow, and Natalie will start preschool next week.

All four kids will be at four different schools this year..yikes!! Thank goodness for busses!!

Josh was accepted into an accelaerated program which is at another school in our district.  He will ride the bus each morning with Caleb, and then will take a shuttle to his new school.  We are excited that he will be challenged even more this year, and look forward to his progress in 4th grade.

Caleb will be starting 2nd grade, and is in a pioneer Montesorri program at his school.  We think this will be a perfect fit for him. 

Both are excited for this year, and what it holds, good luck boys!!

Antiqued Hutch & Buffet

As I mentioned in earlier post, I'm slowly filling our new home with treasures.  I really wanted a buffet and hutch, but when I surveyed the house I realized that we have gigantic windows covering every wall in the house.  The largest wall space I could find downstairs (unused by couches, tv's or the big farmhouse table) was only 48".  This really didn't give me much to work with, so I quickly surveyed building plans, and began tweaking them to fit my needed area. On a whim I pulled up my local craigslist, and started perusing through the offerings.  Most were way too big for my area, and then I found a little gem on Whidbey Island for a song.  As a family we had been dying to make a trip there and this was the perfect excuse (I'll post about our fun adventures soon!!)

After bringing home my new treasure, I removed all the hardware, and lightly sanded the entire piece. I then applied 3-4 coats of Behr Powdered Snow to the entire piece, sanding between each coat.  I then applied Ralph Lauren Tea-Stained Glaze to the entire piece to give it that antiqued look. I sealed it with Minwax Paste Wax.   I found the drawer pulls at Hobby Lobby, but no matching knobs. After trips to three different hardware stores, I finally found some rustic iron knobs that worked well with the pulls.

I just love how bright it is now, yet so vintage (which I adore)

Scout Day Camp 2012

Josh atteded Cub Scout Day Camp this past week at Silver Lake.  I was a den leader two of the four days, and my whole crew of kiddos joined in on the fun.  Natalie and Caleb attended Tag-Along camp, and Daniel was a Youth Helper for our den.  We needed the help as we had fifteen boys in our den!! 

Each day our schedule was filled with fun activities.  In Cooking they made dessert bananas, apple crisp, baked cones, and eggs and toast.  Can you guess which one wasn't a huge hit? They did archery each day which the boys seemed to really enjoy.  In Wood, they made periscopes, and piggy banks.  In Leather, they made nametags.  They also did fishing, knot tying, first aid, citizenship, crafts, and sports. 

I think Josh's favorite part was having his friend/neighbor Luke in his den.  They were great buddies, and had a great time together.  They were also the best behaved in the den!!  (Boy was I wiped out after two long days) I think he also really liked having Daniel help, and hang out with them.  Scout camp was a lot of fun, and I'm so glad Josh was able to go this year!!

Entryway Bench & Shelf

Slowly but surely I'm trying to fill empty walls, and spaces in our new home.  Our front entry way was lacking a place to hang visitors jackets, and a place to sit down take off those pesky muddy shoes.  I think this fit the bill quite nicely.

I found the bench plans here on Ana's site, and I had it built in under an hour.  I did make one change though to the plans.  I used (2) 2x6's instead of the 1x12 for the bench seat.  I think it gives it a sturdier feel, and I like the look with two pieces of wood.

The shelf was put together using some scraps from the garage, a 2x8 attached to a 2x10 cut 4 inches shorter.  I then used some moulding to add a decorative detail.  The hooks I found online at Amazon, and were delivered straight to my door.  I painted them all white, and then used glaze to give them an antique look. 

Now I just need some cute frames on the shelf, and a pop of color in some accents.

5th Annual Tash & Trish Excellent Adventure

Trish arrived, and we got busy to planning our fun trip in Seattle.  This is our 3rd year doing Seattle, and having spent one year doing all the downtown touristy stuff, and one year doing a fun Twilight themed trip, we decided to find the hidden treasures of Seattle for this trip.

Our first full day we headed to Ballard, and the Chittenden Locks.  It was so fascinating and fun!! The locks move boats from the lakes to the Puget Sound.  They maintain the level of the fresh water from Lake Union and Lake Washington, and prevent mixing sea water from the Sound with fresh water from the lakes.  They also have a salmon ladder which ushers salmon from the sound up to the lakes.  We had a great time watching boats pass in and out, watching the big train bridge overhead raise to let the large sailboats through, and enjoyed a gorgeous sunny day. The locks are also surrounded by a beautiful botanical garden with lush greenery and flowers.  Such a fun adventure.



Afterwards we grabbed lunch at the famous Lockspot Cafe.  This is where all the fisherman from the Deadliest Catch boats grab their food, and it ranked #1 in Top 5 Fish 'n' Chip joints in Seattle..Oh yeah we don't play around, we go for the best :) The Fish 'n' Chips were delish, and with full tummies we were off on our next adventure.  We hit the nearby Nordic Heritage Museum, and walked through a journey of the their immigration, their beautiful woodworking, and handiwork, and the impact they have on us today.  From there we headed towards the waterfront in downtown Seattle.  We found an amazing parking space like a block from Pike's Market, and just walked around the market, and then down to the waterfront.  It was so fun to take in the sights, and just talk.



The next day we were ready to get our geek on!! Trish and I dressed in our shirts from last year, and tackled the new venue at the Conference Center in the heart of downtown.  We enjoyed some great panels, and some so so panels, and we're ready to call it quits by late afternoon.  Needing some more adventure to the day, we set off to find the Deadliest Catch boat..which we found the dock for, but it was out at sea...bummer!  So our next adventure was to find the elusive Fremont Troll.  Legend is he was hiding under the bridge, and the sun hit him and turned him to stone. We had fun taking pics with this big guy, and yes that is a real VW bug in his hand.  For dinner we drove into downtown Fremont, and Trish spotted this gem.  We had the most amazing dinner.  Trish got the brisket sandwich, and I opted for the plate with crispy sweet potato fries, baby green salad, and the most amazing brisket.  Our waiter was happy to oblige when we asked for more pickles, and his service totally made our night.



Leavenworth was next on our agenda, and were blessed with a sunny bright (hot) day.  We had fun strolling the cute decorated streets, and visiting the little shops.  We loved the Kris Kringl Christmas shop, the hat shop, and were super excited to see the Nutcracker Museum, which did not disappoint.  Over 5,000 Nutcrackers in the shop, most of them from Germany.  There were so many!!  The traditional ones were my favorite.



After a hot day in Leavenworth we travelled north about 10 miles to Cashmere.  Our first stop was the Aplets & Cotlets Factory Tour & Shop.  After sampling both, we both decided we weren't big fans, and moved on to our next destination, cider tasting.  The girl was so cute, and brought out little sampling cups for us to try the different flavors of bottled cider.  The Lavender (an acquired taste were told) was our least fave.  The Huckleberry, and Plain Cider were my faves. (which I brought home to the fam to share) We then enjoyed the beautiful outdoor scenery, and had fun taking pictures.



After getting our fill of the Wenatchee Valley we decided to head home, and I saw a sign with the word "Waterfall".  Trish loves waterfalls, and this one did not disappoint.  Deception Falls was beautiful, and so serene.  I can't wait to bring the whole family back for a hiking adventure, and picnic.



Our last day together needed one last fun adventure, and "Ride the Ducks" in Seattle seemed like the perfect silliness to end our fun.  I learned more about Seattle, and realized I know more than I thought I did about our beautiful new home.  I also really love this place, and had so much fun exploring it with my bestie.

 

I want to make sure I thank my amazing husband who made this all possible.  From working at home two days, entertaining the kiddos, keeping the house super clean, make us delicious breakfast each morning, and so much more..Thank You!!

And so another amazing adventure comes to an end.  We fall back into our busy lives, each with our four kiddos, and my heart is so happy to know I have such an amazing friend.  I love you Trish!! (Let's get busy planning next year..Canada this time?)