Just the two of us

WOW! We got to leave our kiddos with Grandma and Grandpa last weekend

and go to Leavenworth, WA together - by OURSELVES.
No diapers, no whining, no buckling, no kids meals, no Dora CD.
It was bliss!!

We wandered in lots of little shops, we had bratwurst...

We played a round of mini-golf on a beautiful putting course...

We toured the Aplets and Cotlets factory in Cashmere, just 10 miles from Leavenworth.
I LOVE factory tours. This one was really great, but the candy is nasty.

We hiked around Blackbird Island in Leavenworth and at Lake Wenatchee on the way home...

A very big thanks to my mom, dad and sister for staying with the kiddos for 2 whole days.
And a huge thanks to Derek for being such a great date!
It was wonderful to remember why we got married and had all these kids in the first place.
I love you, Derek.

Random bits of happiness

These are the days I don't want to forget. It was the father/son campout and girlie party Friday night. While the boys in our house were out riding ponies and taking bike rides, the girls were playing Whoonu, eating cookies, playing at the mall, eating pizza at the Rock (hadn't been there before, won't be going back) and having a grand time on our own.

Saturday was BEAUTIFUL. Carver and Grace played with water in a bucket in the front yard while Derek did the infamous camping clean-up.

After a very long sales pitch by the Kirby vacuum people (and a "free" cleaning!),
we went on a family bike ride Saturday night and Ellie rode on her own!
HURRAY for her! It was the perfect evening.

Sunday, we went on a walk on the trail. The yellow wildflowers (who shall not be named because I know not their names) are in bloom and so lovely.

Then we ate outside on our brand-new, handed-down-to-us-from-our-great-neighbor patio set and played around in the backyard in the warm shaded grass. I loved the sound of the wiffle ball cracking against the plastic bat. I loved when Derek said he'd buy me a swing set if I could hit it over the house. And I LOVED when I actually did it. :) Bet YOU didn't think I could!

Monday Ellie had a play date with a friend from school who showed up in the SAME dress Ellie was wearing. When you're 5, that's about the happiest thing ever -the icing on the playdate cake.

Today was also our house anniversary. 2 years ago today we closed on our very first house. We had to have a party. And no party is a party without cupcakes. And all good cupcakes need candles. We played badminton with jackets on (so much for spring) and came in when our pretty weekend came to an end and it decided to rain.

Seeing Green in the Emerald City

I always feel a little "oz" calling Seattle the Emerald City, but it's aptly named. Last week all our lousy spring rain paid off in amazing colors. It's always evergreen here, but now there is a delicious mix of spring green, chartreuse, kelly, granny smith apple and lime. If only there was a way to take pictures and drive freeway speeds at the same time, I'd show you how magnificent I-90 looks between North Bend and Issaquah. I haven't totally given up yet. I definitely need this spring beauty to remind me why putting up with 6 months of cloudy, rainy Seattle weather is COMPLETELY worth it. Because it really is.

We're also putting in our garden, bit by bit, into the fabulous compost-y soil in our back bed. In fact, we also got our first home composter. We'll see how that goes - tomorrow we're working in the yard, rain or shine, and staking it into the ground so we can fill it with all our yucky old lettuce and paper scraps. Our garden is not big and we're definitely NOT green-thumbed, but it's fun for the kids and we feel obedient! So here's a pumpkin, a zucchini and some baby corn plants. Corn in Washington? Yeah, I'm not so sure about those, but I was clearly outvoted and figured it can't hurt to try. Maybe I'll get some good corn stalks out of it for the fall!



And then there's Lydia. She's very recently turned green on us - she's been asking for reusable lunch containers rather than plastic wrap and baggies, she loves to rinse her own yogurt container before putting it in the recycling container. She's all about turning lights off and saving energy and trees. They studied the rain forest this year at school and learned a fabulously environmental song that recited over and over again, "save the trees, save the rainforest." I had a nice chuckle over the not-so-hidden messages in that one. Don't get me wrong, I'm all about recycling and being responsible. Don't forget - it's "free" arond here. :) I just have to smile at how times have changed since I was a kid and how very cool it is to be GREEN here in Washington. Looks like we fit in just fine.