2019 Thanksgiving Week Recap

Last week, we celebrated Thanksgiving here in the US and I have to say, ours was truly lovely!

The kids don't have school that week due to parent/teacher conferences. On Monday, we attended the kids' conferences (rave reviews!). Both of the kids are doing well in school, per their teachers. Starting in 3rd grade, the kids help lead their conferences, so they are active participants in the process. It was neat to hear their takes on school and to hear what they enjoy working on/learning.

Later in the afternoon, we went to 5 Guys for lunch and then to the movies to celebrate all four of us being on vacation for the week. We saw "Frozen 2"; it was OK, but nothing anywhere near as good as the original. One of my favorite parts of the movie was when Olaf (the snowman) recapped what had happened during the first movie. So funny!

On Tuesday, we loaded up and headed north to Whidbey to spend a few days with Eric's parents. As always, I was champing at the bit to get up there and felt myself ease into island mode as soon as we got on the ferry.

Honestly, who wouldn't feel their blood pressure and breathing rate go waaay down when views like these are the norm?

Driftwood galore

The Puget Sound lapping at Whidbey Island

Eric's mom had the idea of painting rocks together and then leaving them around the island for people to find while on walks. Tuesday afternoon, I drove into town to collect a few donations for the kids' school auction and while I did that, Eric, the kids, and his mom got to work painting the rocks. It was such a wonderful project and everyone had a great time! (I painted 2 rocks once I got back from Langley.) We sealed the designs with clear coat Wed morning and once they were dry, Eric's mom, the kids, and I drove to a variety of parks/walking trails, the post office, and a beach to distribute the rocks. The kids had so much fun finding the perfect place for each of their rocks. (Annika even found a rock someone else had left while placing one of hers!)

Whidbey Rocks!

Conor, Bestemor, and Annika - all ready to hide rocks

Beautiful rocks

Hiding rocks

Try to find it!

Annika and the "Joyful" rock she found on a walking trail

The beach rock I painted ... placed at the beach (how appropriate!)

On Wednesday, in addition to leaving rocks around the island, we played lots and lots of games at the house and prepped for Thanksgiving (aka I made pies, Bestemor and Annika made the cranberry sauce, and Bestefar made his smoked turkey). 

In addition, Conor and Bestefar went to the club and played four holes of golf. (Per Bestefar, Conor hit the ball and couldn't find it ... because it went WAY down the fairway...) 

That afternoon, after I took the kids' photos for our Christmas cards, Eric's best friend and his daughter arrived from Seattle to join us for the holiday. As soon as Dave and Anne arrived, the kids started to play and giggle themselves silly. Talk about a fun day!!

Huck REALLY hoping Bestefar will drop a piece of smoked turkey

It's always so fun when the cranberries pop!

Thanksgiving started out nice and slow. We played card games and the kids stayed in the PJs well into the day. By late morning, however, we went into full-blown holiday mode and started our dinner prep with gusto. All went swimmingly, aside from my attempt to make my rolls with gluten-free flour. The dough was sandy and didn't rise. In a last-ditch effort to make sure we had rolls, I tossed that stuff in the garbage and made them with regular flour (success!!) (Apologies to Bestefar for him not being able to have the rolls!)

With full tummies, the kids watched a movie while the grownups played cards. Dave re-taught us how to play Eucher ... the card game he taught us two Thanksgivings ago! We caught on fairly quickly, but will definitely need to practice more before next Thanksgiving to make sure we are somewhat competent at the game.

On Friday morning, we woke up, enjoyed our morning coffee, packed up our stuff, and headed back home.  One of our annual traditions is to tune the radio to 106.9 on our way to the ferry, so we can start listening to Christmas music and officially kick off the Christmas season. This year was no different! It's a neat way to transition from Thanksgiving to Christmas and one we always look forward to.

We usually stay in the car on the ferry, but because Dave and Anne were on the ferry with us, we opted to journey up to the passenger deck for a little more time together.

Conor, Annika, and Anne

It was a wonderful trip, a lovely holiday, and a true treat to spend time with Eric's parents on the island. A special thanks to Bestemor and Bestefar for hosting our chaotic crew!! We can't wait to see you on Christmas. :)

Wild Lights 2016

For the past few years, we've visited the Woodland Park Zoo's Wild Lights exhibit with our friends Dave and Anne. We attempted to go a few days before Christmas, but a fire at the zoo made us come up with a Plan B for visiting the zoo. We were able to reschedule for a couple of days after Christmas and, lucky us, the weather was incredibly cooperative!

We started our evening at Zeek's Pizza for some tasty pizza (duh!). The kids were thrilled with the menu and we adults appreciate that it is good pizza! The other plus of Zeeks is it is down the block from the zoo, so we could park once for both dinner and the lights display. Win!!

After filling up on pizza, we trekked across the north lawn of the zoo and entered a wonderland of lights and fun. Each year, the zoo expands the display and this year was no different. We had such fun finding our favorite lights from years past and discovering the new things this year.

We are grateful for the time together and the beautiful lights ... and the fact we didn't get rained on! :D

The dads and the kiddos

Gorilla family

Daisy

Friends since birth

Go Hawks!

The watering hole

Annika, Eric, and Conor in the butterfly house

Dave and Anne

Hummingbird getting dinner 

Colorful peacock

The three amigos

Friday Fun in Tacoma

Last Friday, the kids didn't have school due to an archdiocese in-service day, so we decided to make a day of it. Originally, I thought we might head north to Mt. Vernon to see the tulips in bloom; unfortunately, the tulips wouldn't be in bloom yet. Instead, we opted to pile into my van and make the trek down to Tacoma for a day of fun and ... uhh.... more fun!

We went straight to my mom's house to hang out for a bit prior to meeting my best friend and her little boy for lunch and frolicking at the Tacoma Children's Museum. In the hour of frolicking, the kids mostly stayed in the back yard inspecting my mom's newly planted flowers and playing the recorder that she keeps on hand for the kids to play with when they visit. Conor got up close and very personal with just about every bloom in the yard and let us know which ones smelled the best. Impressively, only one plant wound up under his shoes.

Conor sniffing the tulips

Taking time to stop and smell the daffodils

Getting a good whiff of the purple ones

Annika modeling the yellow tulips

 During this visit, I channeled my elementary school music teacher and taught Annika how to play "Mary had a little lamb" on the recorder. It was really impressive how she committed herself to learning the song and played it over and over until she had it down pat.

Naturally, Conor wanted his time with the recorder, too. He wasn't quite as concerned about learning a song as making the recorder make the loudest sounds it could possible make. (My apologies to all of my mom's neighbors who happened to be home during the kids' concerts!) Not to be left out, Annika opted to put on her conductor hat while Conor worked on his musical medley.

The kids did a good job of sharing the recorder and conducting duties. After a bit, Conor put down his conductor's baton pencil and did a little freestyle dancing to enhance Annika's rendition of "Mary had a little lamb".

The final portion of our backyard entertainment was comprised of Annika on the recorder and Conor on the spoons. The spoons were played on each other, some posts, a couple of planters, and the brick patio. Nothing limits our family's musical expression!

Once the music was all played out (moreover, I said we needed to leave in order to get to the restaurant on time), we piled into the van and meet Kate and Daniel at The Old Spaghetti Factory. YUM! I loved that place as a kid and my feeling haven't changed a bit as an adult. Kate and I don't get to spend nearly enough time together, which makes the time we do spend with each other that much more special and cherished. We caught up, exchanged Christmas gifts (yes, we're always this slow!), and laughed our heads off.

At one point during lunch, Annika serenaded us with the "Make new friends" song (a Girl Scout classic); she was just wanting to share a song, but in actuality, she summed up the friendship that Kate and I share.

Make new friends,

but keep the old.

One is silver,

the other is gold.

A circle is round,

it has no end.

That's how long,

I will be your friend.

At the Tacoma Children's Museum, our kids went in every direction possible, making it tricky to keep chatting, but we did get a a few minutes here and there when the kids were occupied by the same activity. Just to be funny, I even texted Kate a few times while we were there, but not within sight of each other. The kids had a marvelous time exploring the new things to do at the museum and spending time at their go-to favorite activities, too. I was highly impressed with the new magnetic PVC segments activity that was added since our last visit and can see a scaled-down version being really neat in a classroom or Conor's room.

It was finally time to pack up and head back north. We said our goodbyes to Kate and Daniel, made a quick stop at Johnson's Candies (yum!), dropped off my mom at her house, and then spent the next 2 hours getting back home. Fortunately, the kids were pretty tired (aka mellow) and had tablets to keep them distracted as we sat in the rush hour traffic. It was a test in patience, but we were lucky enough to make it home without incident or any meltdowns.

Hurray for a fun day!!

Valeria's 4th Birthday Party

This weekend, Annika attended a birthday party for one of her best friends, Valeria. All week long, Annika could hardly wait for Valeria's party and was practically twitching with anticipation once Saturday rolled around. The girls are in the same pre-school class and adore each other to no end. Having such a great friendship is a blessing ... as is the fact Valeria's house is about 3 doors away from our house; it really couldn't get much better! Oh, and Valeria's parents (Daniella and Carlos) and fabulous people, too. Win, win, win.

The party was a lot of fun ... both for the kids and the adults. The house looked festive and the atmosphere was high energy. At one point during the party, Carlos pulled out a huge bag of hats/wigs and let the kids go to town. That was a brilliant move; the kids had a blast trying on the fun hats and dancing to the club music that was rocking through the speakers. In addition, they had balloons galore for the kids to play with and make into a variety of creations (from dogs to aliens to flowers), and a cat pinata for the kids to whack at. It was a treat to be included in Valeria's special day and we are so grateful to have been invited.

The birthday girl

 

Pretty decorations

Me trying to be artistic

Annika-Diddy

 

Carlos got in on the accessory fun

Valeria rockin' the blue wig while singing and dancing her heart out.

This baby was 1 day shy of being two weeks old ... she was beyond adorable!

Me still trying to be artistic

Valeria taking her turn at the pinata

Annika showing her brute force

I love this picture through and through

What a great family!

Valeria even got to blow out the candles twice ... once after we sang "Happy Birthday
in English and again after we (aka everyone but me) sang "Happy Birthday" in Spanish

Daniella made these traditional Venezuelan desserts that were sooo yummy!
They're basically layered jello, but not overly sweet, which I really liked. Annika was
thrilled at the idea of having a pink dessert!