Annika's 6th Birthday (pt 2)

It's a fact, but that doesn't stop Eric and me from scratching our heads in disbelief... Annika turned 6 years old yesterday! It seems impossible that it has been six years since she made her debut and changed our lives forever. She has grown and changed so much in these 6 years; it boggles our minds to ponder what she'll do in the next 6. (please excuse me while I wipe away a few tears...)

Sniff, sniff, sniff... OK, I think I've regained my composure enough to continue.

To celebrate her special day, Annika took a book for her class' birthday book collection. (This is the new thing instead of bringing cupcakes, etc.) Last year, we took "Where the Wild Things Are"; this year, we brought a copy of "Harry the Dirty Dog" (or as Annika commonly refers to it, "Dirty Harry") and her teacher read it to the kids before their nap/quiet time. Her teachers also made a birthday crown for Annika (see below) that she proudly wore the rest of the day.

Annika's dinner request was to go to "the parrot restaurant", which everyone else calls Luisa's... a Mexican restaurant that's close to our house. The kids love it because there's a fountain in the foyer (often with a plastic lobster somewhere inside) and wooden parrots on perches that hang from the ceiling. As we drove to the restaurant, Annika gasped when she realized we didn't have her presents with us. We reassured her that presents would be at home after we ate; she skeptically trusted us to follow through on that promise. After a dinner of fish tacos (me) and tacos (Eric, Annika, and Conor), we announced it was time to head back to the house, much to Annika's relief, because that's where her illusive presents were waiting!

After we got home (mind you, the entire drive home was a chorus of lyrics about birthday presents), Annika FINALLY got to open her presents. First, she opened the pink baseball glove and the t-ball set from Conor. She was really excited about the present, but even more excited to open another one. I don't think a little girl has ever been more excite than when she realized the present from Eric and me was a scooter. She has been wanting one with all of her heart for MONTHS and we, being the rock star parents that we are, came through for her. She gushed thanks to us all night long and repeatedly said this was the best birthday EVER because she got the scooter. Enthusiasm galore!

Needless to say, Eric had to become the world's fastest scooter-puter-togetherer so she could give the scooter a try before bedtime. The timing for her maiden scooter voyage was perfect because last night was the annual block party, so the street was closed to vehicles. There was no learning curve; Annika had it figured out immediately and as soon as she got the green light, she was OFF!

While Annika zipped up and down the sidewalk, Eric and Conor set up the t-ball set and had a little practice time. Conor is a natural and might even be a switch hitter if we play our cards right (come on, college scholarship!) Then again, he also adopted a one-handed batting style for awhile, so my hopes for that scholarship might be a bit much. :)

All-in-all, it was a perfect day for an amazing little girl.

Happy birthday, Annika!! We love you!

One excited birthday girl

Annika showing us her fielding abilities

Opening the t-ball set

Wha??? A SCOOTER!!!

There's a little disbelief going on here...

So happy that she fell to the floor not knowing what else to do

Conor's expression here cracks me up!!

Ahhh... sibling love

Our big 6-year-old girl

Annika and her scooter

Off she goes!

A little coaching from Daddy

Home run!!

"Hey Conor, whatcha doin?"

Annika checking out Conor's batting techniques

Annika's turn for batting help from Daddy

Another home run!

Conor decided to check out the scooter while Annika batted

And back to scootering!

Conor happily returned to playing ball and knocking the balls out
f the park (aka into the neighbor's vegetable garden)

Here she comes!
(Wasn't it nice of our neighbors to grow such pretty flowers so we have nice photo opps?)

Conor's one-handed batting technique

Switch hitter!

One happy birthday girl!

Annika's Birthday Party (part 1)

Last year, we wised up and realized separating the friend birthday party from the family birthday party was one smart plan. It keeps the chaos a bit more manageable and that is always a good thing.

This year, we chose to do an off-site party for the friend portion of her birthday celebration. I read about an art studio for kids called Roaring Mouse and figured it would be a great option for us ... and it was! The owner asked about Annika's interests, favorite books, etc. so she could come up with a good project for the kids. We wound up with the idea of the kids making treasure boxes with a "Where the Wild Things Are" theme. Perfect!!

We started off with a little free-play time while we waited for Annika's friends to arrive. The studio is split into two sections: one for art and one for play. The kids had a great time exploring all of the new toys and dove right in to playing together... even though many didn't know each other before the party.

Once everyone was on hand, Cheryl (the studio owner) explained the project to the kids. Each child was given a wooden box and was instructed to paint it. Next, the kids sculpted "wild thing" faces out of sculpting clay. Cheryl baked the clay when the kids were done and hot glued the faces to each child's lid. Really cute idea and the kids had a lot of fun.

After play and art, it was time for CUPCAKES! Annika requested strawberry cupcakes, which I happily provided. I wound up making strawberry cupcakes filled with strawberry compote and topped with strawberry Italian buttercream frosting... mighty tasty, if I do say so myself!

As we drove home, Eric and I patted ourselves on the back for deciding to have a party that didn't require us to prep all morning, scurry around during the party, and then clean up after everyone left. This really was a great approach to Annika's birthday party... and the kids had fun. Win and Win!

Thank you to everyone who helped make today such a special day by attending Annika's party!

These goggles were a hit for just about all of the kids

Annika and her BFF Valeria

Cheryl explaining the art project

Conor, Anne, Valeria, and Annika

Paint jars (I was being artisty with this one)

Annika painting her treasure box

Conor, Anne, and Valeria painting their boxes

Easton, Ethan. and Grace working on their projects

Daniel giving his treasure box a coat of green paint

Conor deep in thought

Did I mention the goggles??

Anne and Nicola

Grace, Ethan, and Annika sculpting their wild thing faces

Eric lending Conor a hand

Grrr!!!

Creative kids at play

Daniel and Kate

The kids also made wishes to put inside their treasure boxes; Annika's wishes
were to go to outer space and be the princess of the entire world. Aim high, little one!!

Annika blowing out her candles

Anne really got into her cupcake

Annika's wild thing treasure box

A few random photos

As I mentioned earlier, I've started doing a daily photo project. I thought I'd share a few of my recent photos as today's blog post. I hope you enjoy them.

Our neighbors planted an artichoke plant for me a couple of years ago; this year's chokes are beyond the eating point and have reached the blooming point. If you look closely, you can see the pollen on the purple parts.

A daisy just after our neighbor watered it.

This is part of a quote etched into the stairs that I take each day as I exit the bus tunnel.

Our master gardening neighbors also plant sunflowers simply for our kids' viewing pleasure.

I set out to take a reflection photo, but wound up with a rainbow photo... bonus!
This fountain is just outside my office building.

Glasshouse Studio Photo Op

Yes, I've taken on a new project... I know, BIG shocker! 

To further my photography skills, I joined a daily photo community called 365 Project. Basically, every person posts 1 photo per day and everyone else gets to see them. It isn't a contest or competition; it is just an opportunity to grow as photographers.

Yesterday, I decided to explore a new venue to see if I could capture a neat photo; I took a little walk from my office to a glass art studio in Pioneer Square called Glasshouse Studio. The artists were incredibly hospitable and I couldn't be more grateful to them for making me feel so welcome. 

One of the artists made a glass horse while I peeked in; it didn't release from the pole, so he had to break it. I missed the breaking moment, so he offered to make another horse strictly for the purpose of being broken for me. Wow!!

As I sat on the floor just outside of the work area, I felt myself getting warmer and warmer. I asked one of the artists how hot it was inside the studio and he said 109 degrees. Ugh! No wonder I felt the need to peel off my cardigan!

If you are ever in need of amazing glass art, stop by. They have everything from doo-dads to bowls to light fixtures... oh, and glass horses!

This is the photo I submitted for my daily photo entry;
I like how it freezes the process of working with the hot glass

Heating the glass

Peering into the kiln; I was surprised to see
how many round trips between the work area and the kiln
that the artists make for a single piece of glass art

Shaping a light fixture

Some of the finished pieces in the storefront

Hind legs of a horse

Finished horse

Flash cooling the hot glass with cold water to fracture the horse

Talk about having a lot of irons in the fire!

Fun at Bitterlake

As I've said before, we have had a marvelously beautiful summer this year. Recently, I took the kids to Bitterlake Park to burn off some energy and enjoy the morning sunshine.

We had the playground to ourselves, which is always a perk; it makes it much easier to keep track of the kids and know their whereabouts at any given moment. And, of course, as soon as we get to the play area, one kiddo heads 180 degrees from where the other one goes. These are the times I really do need eyes in the back of my head!

Both kids had a fantastic time playing and exploring the play equipment. They went up and down (and up and down) the slides, across the monkey bars, across the wobbly bridge, on the merry-go-round, and much more. I loved watching our kids play because this was one of the days they found a perfect balance between independent play and playing as a two-some.

Love how he wears his hat at a rakish angle ... he's so stylish!

Annika mastering the monkey bars

Conor after his journey down the twisty slide

Annika flying around the merry-go-round

Conor in jail ... OK, not really .... just at the top of the climbing structure

Annika swinging on the rings

I've realized that her feet weren't on the ground in any of these
pictures .... that's a pretty accurate representation of the day!

Someone had looped the swings around the upper bars, making the swings too
high for the kids to sit on; that didn't stop Conor from having his fun, though!

July Baking Challenge: Eenie Meenie Miney Moe

This month's baking challenge was super easy and super hard all in one. We had the opportunity to go back through past challenges and pick one that appealed to us. Naturally, just about ALL of the past challenges sounded great and like possibilities, but after much contemplating, I chose to make challah (again). The main reason behind this decision was I've been hankering for really good French toast and nothing makes better French toast than challah. 

Our dear family friend, Barb Simon, has supplied me with a few wonderful challah recipes over the years and I chose to make one of the recipes she sent to me along the say. (Thanks, Mrs. Simon!!!)

With this bread (makes 2 loaves, even though only one is shown below), I decided to return to the dreaded 6-strand braid. I found a resource online that explained it VERY clearly and now, I find the 6-strand braid a snap. Yippee!!!

In a "celebration" of past Daring Baker and Daring Cook challenges, Lisa challenged all of us to search through the Daring Kitchen archives and pick any one we'd like! The REAL challenge was picking which delicious recipe(s) to try!

Annika's Before/After Tooth Pictures

I just realized I never posted Annika's before/after pictures from losing her first tooth. (Not earning many points for the Mom of the Year award at this pace!)

It tickles me how her speech changed after the tooth came out... she spoke with a bit of a slurr for a couple of days.

Before

The tooth!

Gnawing on ice in a paper towel to help stop the bleeding

After