Punkin' Patch

Gymnastics

Soccer didn't work out so well with Lauren last year, so we thought we'd give gymnastics a try. She is having a great time!

Wow! I hadn't realized how long it had been since I've posted new pictures on our blog! Summer ended, school and sports started, and we've been very busy. All 4 of us are well into the routine of school...Owen and Lauren are loving it, and doing very well. Abe is busy teaching and coaching high school, and I'm getting used to having 12 4-year olds in a classroom 3 mornings a week. They're a lot of fun, but boy do they have lots of energy!

Sunriver

One last hurrah before everyone goes back to school...we spent a week in Sunriver with Abe's family. It was nice to relax, go to the pool every afternoon, and head to Goody's every evening for ice cream and candy (the kids' highlight of the trip!) We also had some serious Guitar Hero going on...it's funny watching adults get so into a video game!

Happy Birthday Lolo!

Lauren's birthday was in between two vacations, so it was sort of a whirlwind getting everything together. She had been saying for a long time she wanted a dollhouse and a desk. Mom and Dad still had my dollhouse from when I was little, so we bought new furniture for it and gave it to her this year. They also had my old desk, gave it a new coat of paint, and tied a ribbon around it. It was so fun to see her playing with the dollhouse, although I swear it was way bigger when I used to play with it! We had a party for her the night before we left for Sunriver, which happened to fall on our 10th anniversary. Most couples probably don't throw a party for their 4 year old on their 10th anniversary, but we were ok with it! :)

More Whidbey Island...

Whidbey Island

We spent 6 days on Whidbey Island in July...it was wonderful! My parents rented a big house, and my brothers and the girls came for the weekend, so it was fun to have the whole family there. The first few days were super hot, but luckily we had the water to keep cool. The kids spent most of the time playing in the water, and catching critters. The highlight of the trip was finding out that Lauren liked the taste of crab...a girl after my own heart!

We took a day trip with Mim and Pops to Silver Falls, near Mt. Rainier. The kids were troopers...they both walked the full 3 miles, with not much complaining at all! The falls were beautiful, and the hike wasn't hard at all. Definitely something we'll do again!

Owen's a 1st grader!

This school year flew by, and now Owen's officially a first grader! It will be strange having him at school all day, every day, but if he loves it as much as he loved kindergarten I'm happy! 1st day of kindergarten

last day of kindergarten

All I Want for Christmas...

...is my one bottom tooth! Owen finally lost his first tooth last week. It had been loose for what seems like forever, and Owen was talked into letting Daddy pull it out. After getting over the sight of a little blood, Owen's first words were, "hey, now it won't take me as long to brush my teeth since I have one less tooth in there!" He was so excited to leave it for the tooth fairy that night...but the tooth fairy almost blew it. Luckily she remembered to leave him a little something right before she went to bed! Crisis averted!

P.S.- Yes, he does have a green cheek...he had a shark painted on his face the day before at the school carnival :)

Lake Cle Elum

Lauren still corrects me..."Mom, it's not called the lake, it's called Lake Cle Elum!" Either way, we spent a weekend there with the family. Mom and dad, Aaron and Jill, and Andrew and Jeny all came. Because the lake gets all the snow melt, the water was freezing, but it didn't stop Owen from living in his swimsuit and life jacket all weekend. The kids went fishing with Grampa and Uncle Andrew, got skunked, but still had fun. It was a fun, relaxing few days spent in the sunshine!

A Day at the Beach

We took a day and went to Westport with some friends. The kids had a great time playing in the water and jumping off the sand dunes...the grown-ups even got in on the fun too! I'm still amazed how resilient kids are to how cold the water is! Everyone had a great time, and the kids were wiped out on the ride home!

Owen is 6!

Instead of having a party at the house, Owen wanted to go to Bill's Fishin' Hole in Orting this year. I wasn't too sure how his friends would feel about fishing, but we decided to give it a go. Although there were a few kids who weren't too fond of the slimy fish, for the most part, I think they all had a good time. Earlier in the week, during the numerous downpours we had, I was a little nervous about the weather, but Saturday turned out to be absolutely beautiful! Not a cloud in the sky...a perfect day for fishing!

Photo Shoot

A few weeks ago we were lucky enough to have some family photos taken by my friend Kailey. She and I went to high school together, and we got connected again through the magical world of Facebook. She is starting up her own photography business and wanted to have a few practice shoots to use for her blog. Although it was a little cold, it didn't rain, and the kids were on their best behavior. Thanks Kailey...the pictures turned out amazing!

Another fun goodie from my talented friend!

http://athousandwordsbyk.blogspot.com/2009/05/fun-friday-to-friday-freebie.html

Go M's!

We went to our first M's game of the season a few weeks ago...we all had high hopes that the sun would be shining, our seats would be good (we hadn't sat in the center field bleachers before), and that the Mariners would win. Two out of 3 isn't bad, I guess! The seats were good...but I really don't think there is a bad seat in the house at Safeco. It was sunny when we left our house for the game, but the sun decided to stay hidden, the wind decided to blow, and those of us wearing shorts weren't too warm. And, the M's had their only loss in about 1 1/2 weeks that day. Nonetheless, we all had a good time, and the kids came away with Ichiro jerseys from a Kid's day promotion (which Lauren said she's going to wear as a dress because it's too big right now)