Oregon Vacation

We had a wonderful vacation with the Piefer family in Sisters, OR last week. Thanks to friends of the Piefers we were able to stay at a charming "cabin" with a beautiful view of the mountains. The kids loved strolling up and down the pathways on their scooters & trikes and throwing rocks in the "creek", not much water. They all got along better than expected for a 5 day vacation!



We took the kids skiing at Mt. Bachelor and it was Brody & Cooper's first time. Brody loved it but he was a little scared of the chair lift. Cooper was quite the opposite. He loved the chair lift but hated skiing down. Why do they always have to be opposite?! Hopefully next year will be better for him. Brody is already begging to go again so maybe we will make another trip before the season is over. Johnny & Craig went skiing another day by themselves and had a great powder day but unfortunately they forgot the camera so no pics to show for it. That same day Diana and I took the kids to this awesome park and trail in Bend, OR and the kids had loads of fun running off their energy. Of course Brody still had some left over. :-)



From fun in the cabin to relishing the outdoors, God's beautiful creation, we absolutely enjoyed this unforgettable vacation!

Exploring Mukilteo

Johnny has been working in Everett, just north of Seattle, for Feb. & Mar. and this is finally his last week. The boys and I have been able to visit off and on so we've been exploring this area a bit. Our hotel is actually in Mukilteo so that is where we have spent most of our time. We have enjoyed all the parks around here but our favorite has been Mukilteo Lighthouse Park, where we found many of the creatures pictured above. Brody & Cooper helped another boy at the park load as many crabs as they could into a water bottle and this kept them entertained for a very long time. Unfortunately the lighthouse is not open until April so I didn't get any good pics of it but here are some if you would like to see.




The Island across the water from the park is Whidbey.



I loved being able to watch the boys play at the park and enjoy the scenery of the water and beautiful mountains all at the same time!



These pics were taken at a different park closer to our hotel. Brody always likes to pretend that he's a "ticket-taker" at parks so he always stands at the top of the slide and demands each kid to give him a pretend ticket before they slide down. He likes to be in control of everthing around him...I don't know where he got that from. :-)

Well, it's been nice here but we are so ready to quit living out of our suitcases for a while and get back home!

North and South

So I finished reading North and South this week and I give it two thumbs up. It was beautifully written and a real pleasure to read. There were a few aspects emphasized in this novel but the main ones are about the social and economical differences between Northern and Southern England in the 19th century. Of course, there is also a love story connected with the various events developing throughout the book that supplement this good read. I definitely recommend this book. Now on to Pilgrim's Progress!

North and South

North and South by Elizabeth Gaskell

My review

I'm only a quarter of a way through this book but I am really enjoying it b/c I feel like I can relate somewhat to Margaret. Her Milton is my Bremerton. Bremerton is a very dirty, industrial city. Milton begins to appear more appealing to Margaret when she finds human interest. I think that's the only way Bremerton is going to become more appealing to me. :-) You have to make the best of what you have and where you're at, right? My initial impressions of this book are pretty obtrusive but I'm sure there are more covert messages to come from this classic. Looking forward to reading on.


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Catching Up and Moving On

Well, much has gone on since my last post and yet I have no pictures to show for it...sorry Mom. I promise to dust my camera off and start snapping away again soon.

We drove home from San Diego around Christmas time, just in time for the big blizzard! Chains were required all the way from Salem, OR to Seattle, WA so we made it all the way to Tumwater, WA until the 1st chain fell off, then just North of Olympia when the 2nd fell off. We were so close to home and didn't want to stop so we just kept going, only 30 mph, but we were determined to make it and we did. The boys did great thanks to a quick stop at a Costco in CA to buy a portable DVD player. That was one of the best items we have ever purchased, worth every penny.

We had a very nice Christmas with Johnny's family. We spent Christmas Day at his sister Julie's house and had fun kicking back, playing Rock Band, eating Julie's awesome stuffed mushrooms, drinking coffee and just talking while the kids played.

Our Happy New Year was spent in the Tri-Cities with more of Johnny's family. We spent New Year's Eve with Johnny's grandpa at his nursing home. All the residents were wearing party hats as they sat around talking and listening to old records. Brody asked when the party was going to start and Daddy said, "It's in full-swing, boy." Everyone seemed to enjoy themselves and it was nice to visit with Grandpa and meet all his new friends.

From the time we returned home from the Tri-Cities we immediately began looking for a place to move out closer to Johnny's work. We found a place in Bremerton, just 2.5 mi. from work and are very happy with it. It's small and pretty old but clean and simple and that's just right for us. Most importantly it's within our budget and that is a huge blessing as we work to pay off student loans!

We are all moved in now, although not all unpacked and are happy that the chaos of moving is over...for now, anyway.

A Magical Thanksgiving

We were blessed to have family visit us in San Diego during the Thanksgiving holiday. We enjoyed visiting attractions and sightseeing but the most memorable of all was our trip to Disneyland. We decided to go on Thanksgiving day and it turned out to be a perfect time to go. The castle was decorated so beautifully. It looked even better at night with all the lights but unfortunately it was very hard to get a picture that did it justice. The day we were there was the first day they opened a new attraction called the "Sleeping Beauty Castle Walkthrough", a walking tour of the inside of the castle. We ran out of time to see it but maybe next time.



While Cooper was meeting Winnie the Pooh and Eeyore, Brody was trying to meet the Big Bad Wolfe but he got too scared and decided not to so I don't have any pictures of that. Cooper also met Clarabell from Mickey Mouse Clubhouse. Cooper's favorite ride was the Casey Jr. train and Brody's favorite was It's a Small World. I'm not sure what Luke's favorite ride was but it might have been the Winnie the Pooh ride.



I think us Moms and Dads had more fun watching the boys try to pull the sword out of the stone. The boys didn't really seem to understand why it wouldn't come out...of course, they have never seen the movie.



Michele and Luke with pretzel Mickey...cute!

More of the Magic...

Here are Daniel, Michele and Luke on the Storybook Canal Boat ride, getting ready to be swallowed up by the whale from Pinnochio. Daniel is Johnny's cousin and he and Michele will be having their 2nd child in March, a baby boy. Luke will be 2 in January.



This picture was taken from the Fantasmic show at the end of the day. You can see Pluto, Clarabell, Goofy, Woody & Buzz Lightyear at the top of the ferry boat. We had a really good view close to the water. It wasn't hard to conclude that this show and the fireworks were our favorite part of the day...we all agreed! I didn't get any good pics of the show b/c it was so dark but a few turned out of the fireworks.



We were also sitting in a section where fake snow started falling after the fireworks...top left-hand side of collage. It was all very magical!



I always love taking a picture of the boys when they are wiped out from a long day of activities, like today. We all got a kick out of Johnny pinning these huge buttons above their heads that said, "1st Visit to Disneyland". It was actually their 2nd visit but we didn't get the buttons on their 1st visit. What a momentous day!