School's Out for Summer!

We kicked off summer vacation by moving into our new house! We actually haven't closed yet (supposed to happen this week) but are doing a pre-rental. That really helps with this process as Eben is deploying for several months starting in mid-July. Reed loves roaming around the great room hardwoods in his walker and bathing in the kitchen sink - I think he is settling in just fine. The rest of us have a little more unpacking, organizing, and adjusting to do.

 We took a much needed break from the moving insanity to spend a weekend at the cabin with Kim, Dave and their kids: Lily and Tavis. Dave took me and some of his buddies rafting on the Wenatchee on Saturday morning while Eben watched the kids. That afternoon, Eben and Matt went down the river with Dave, but in kayaks. This was Eben's first whitewater kayaking trip since his near death experience on the Chiwawa River eight years ago. He said it felt great to get back out there and he only had to swim once... :-)

 Meanwhile, the kids had a blast playing in the water and hanging out. Lily and Charlotte got along magnificently and Dave kept the kids entertained by throwing large rocks in the river.

 

Mid-June: Father's Day and Graduation

We celebrated Father's Day at the vacation rental. The kids both made nice projects at school to bring to dad. After a pleasant breakfast we headed a mile down the road to Richmond Beach on the Sound. It was a nice day for a beach walk - or in Reed's case, a beach sit.

 The Shorecrest High School graduation ceremonies are always on the same day as Father's Day - totally a bummer as it means it is hard to spend quality time with both Eben and my own father. Despite that hassle, it really is a fabulous occasion. I started as Activity Coordinator when the class of 2014 entered as freshmen, so it really is a special group of students to me, especially my ASB officers and leadership students like Remy as well as Tyler, Willa, Ben, Madeline and Busayo. They are going on to really cool things and I will certainly miss seeing them at Shorecrest! They gave me a really great moment, too, when at the end of the year "moving up" assembly, called Caen Laida in Gaelic, my ASB officers thanked me and I got a standing ovation from the school. That was definitely a highlight of my career!

 

 As my school year was winding down, so was our time with our nanny, Janine. She brought out some extra cool things for the kids to do in her last week - like Slurpee mustaches, a trip to the zoo, swimming, a morning at Chuck E. Cheese and more. Charlotte really liked her special treat of getting a mani/pedi - note the neon pink color she picked out.
 

Other cute pictures from our time at the vacation rental include Reed really getting excited about carrots and a lovely one of all three kids in the yard together enjoying the afternoon. Edison and Charlotte were able to pick a bunch of raspberries while we were there and Reed kept them company - totally idyllic.

We Bought a House!

We found the perfect house in Lake Forest Park and made an offer last Sunday. We spent all week ironing out the details and will be moving in by July 2nd! You can soon reach us at 5103 NE 187th ST NE, Lake Forest Park, WA 98155. Here's what we love: 1) it was a studs-out remodel last fall (new roof, new siding, new electric, new windows, new plumbing, 2) a big, flat sunny yard with original flag pole and brick BBQ, 3) wide side yard - room enough for a boat, 4) beautiful kitchen, 5) huge great room perfect for entertaining, 6) giant master bedroom, 7) funky but functional porte cochere, 8) only 10 minutes to my work! Edison will start at Lake Forest Park Elementary in the fall! Can't wait to move in and host our first get together!

 

JUNE - End of the Year Concert!

 Charlotte and Edison's preschool had their big end of the year concert last week. In all of Charlotte's previous concerts, she'd been hit or miss in terms of singing. This time, she sang every single word of every single song. In fact she was creeping forward and getting pretty boisterous while singing, so the kindergartener next to her held out his hand to keep her in line. Too funny!

 

Edison had another rocking show. He concentrated really hard and knew all the words and movements.

Reed is a great little baby with super smooth baby skin and a big tummy that likes to be tickled. As you can see in the photos below, he now has top (4) and bottom teeth (2).

 

We have moved out of our Mill Creek house last Friday. It was bittersweet. We know we'll find a great spot for our family and get rid of the commute. But we spent 10 years in the house, raised our kids here and did a ton of work to it as a labor of love. We will certainly miss the house, the beautiful yard and our friendly neighbors.

We are now in a vacation rental near my school for two weeks until the school year is done. We lucked out - what an amazing yard and view of the Puget Sound, the Olympic Mountains, and every night we get a beautiful sunset.

 

Reed looks up to Eben so much!

Charlotte's Fourth Birthday!

What a beautiful day for a birthday! On May 30th, Charlotte turned four! Hard to believe it - sometimes I forget she isn't four already, sometimes I just expect her to act like her big brother Edison.

 She got to pick the activities for the day which included a "birthday circle" at school followed by a trip to Chuck E. Cheese and dinner at Azteca. Her favorite game at Chuck E. Cheese's on this visit was the "Feed the Dog" game where the player pumps a handle up and down to make the floor bounce the balls up and into the dog's mouth. She just loved to jump up and down with the handle.

 We had a small cake that night and opened a few presents, including Legos and a light saber.

 

This is what Reed would have looked like had he been born a girl... leave it to Charlotte to embellish his look with a headband.

 On Sunday we had a backyard birthday party for friends complete with classic party games like the Egg Race, Candy Hunt, Memory Game, and more. The occasion was bittersweet as it was also our goodbye party as we moved out of our Mil Creek house at the end of that week.

 Charlotte requested a Hello Kitty cake. Usually I try to make their cakes, but not this time - all our kitchen gear was packed up in the storage unit as we awaited the move.

 When you're four, all your friends help you open your presents.

 We got to see Pete, Jennie, Alton and baby Evie at the party. The last time we saw Evie was three months ago and WOW, she has gotten so much bigger and is obviously super cute!

 The babies got to have some good play time together. Evie is six months now.

Memorial Day Weekend!

 We drove over to the cabin for Memorial Day Weekend. It was great to spend the time with Chris, Meg, Dillon and Liam. The kids had a blast playing together. The trees and grass were super lush from the spring run-off and the beautiful weather.

 Playing in the creek behind the cabin. Very industrious children. By the end of the afternoon they were all soaking wet, pouring water out of their boots, etc. But the two-hours of peace this provided to me and Meg were worth it!

 Three muskateers!

 We went down to a park on the Columbia River in Wenatchee on Sunday to soak up the sun.

 Eben and Chris rode their bikes their all the way from the cabin - 50 miles!