Crouching Mommy. Hidden Laundry.

The UPS man commeth

noreply@blogger.com (Heather) — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 19:37:00 +0000

I always get a little excited when the UPS van circles my cul-de-sac. I know I haven't purchased anything, but maybe, just maybe he has a surprise for me. This week he brought gifts.

MIL shipped the kids' xmas gifts up here, she's on top of her holiday shopping. She also gets Natalie an Aflac duck every year (Natalie invests in Aflac) and her new duck arrived a few days ago. I asked her if I can take it to work tomorrow. She hesitated, but gave me permission.

And... what's this? A box addressed to me that isn't toy shaped? I emailed MIL and got permission to open it. She and Cameron got me a new snowglobe for my xmas globe collection. So thoughtful! It's so sweet, it plays one of my favorite Christmas songs (of course I'm a sucker for Christmas songs, so it's hard to pick a true fav) "Up on the Housetop".

I only collect two things: Snowglobes (christmassy ones) and Swarovski Snowflakes. I hate collecting otherwise. But these two collections come out for a month, then they go away again. I'm not a knick-knack kinda girl, and collecting seems to attract knick-knacks. So there's a little tid bit about me for ya. Now go enjoy your day!

The FIG adventure

noreply@blogger.com (Heather) — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 02:09:00 +0000

*I am going to preface this post with this info: I already bought a membership, so I will be dragging my children to the museum from time to time (or making the new babysitter do it). So the following rant is exempt from you giving me shit about future posts about my children's' adventures there.

This weekend the highly anticipated Lightcatcher Museum opened. Bellingham has been without a children's museum for nearly a year now awaiting the building of the new one. We've been visiting the museums in Skagit county and Everett and the excitement for what Bellingham was going to come up with was palpable.

Phhhsss (sound of air rushing out of our balloon). The FIG (Family Interactive Gallery) is just about that. A taupe-colored walled, dimly lit, area for quiet, uninteresting play. No photos are allowed inside of the FIG because it's an actual art gallery (my children's response to some of the art: "What's this?" "Why did they do that?" "How come that is there?") I also had to glug down my fresh mocha because I couldn't be allowed that while my children ran around exploring (which ended up not being a concern, because I had get down and really play with the kids to keep them entertained, rather than sitting back and visiting with another parent while our children explored freely). 2 or 3 of the interactive displays were woods/camping themed (hello, we live in the northwest. I take my kids camping all the time.) some foam blocks and noodles (again, we have that at home to play with) The light walls were cool. There was no art activities for the children to take part in, nor was I certain that there was even an art room.

I took the kids through the rest of the art gallery (you could not call this place a museum) and they seemed to enjoy that at least as much as the part that was actually meant for them to enjoy. But I'll admit that most art leaves me scratching my head (like the film that showed another film being played on someones front tooth as the screen). The photos that would let them call this building a "museum" were some old logging photos (about 6 in all) that were displayed in a narrow catwalk so you had to view them from an angle.

So I guess we will have to resign ourselves to continuing our journeys south for child-friendly entertainment (that isn't McDonald's or the Mall).

My kids awaiting arrest.
Jumping was their only physical outlet here.

Skipping down the sidewalk.

Yes, my children stopped (twice) to "pee" on stuff on the sidewalk. Classy.

The only place I was "allowed" to take a photo.

Jumping makes things better. Would you look at those long legs on my girl?!

A Week in Review

noreply@blogger.com (Heather) — Sun, 15 Nov 2009 05:15:00 +0000

The Friday the 13th hail storm. Notice our street!

The back deck (notice the eerie color of the sky in the corners of the photo?)

Re-reading Twilight (and soon New Moon) in prep of Movie Night with my Lady-Friends (followed by Italian food in honor of New Moon). I also had to pick up this month's Vanity Fair due to the delicious photo shoot (see cover). I also picked up Pioneer Woman's cookbook (a smokin' deal by the way!) and another book for future reading.
Larry took the kids up to Baker today to play in the snow. Natalie is really only interested in eating snow.

Did Indiana Jones ever have to travel to cold climates?

Dead snow-angel.

My angels.

Natalie drew a picture of Christian on this balloon and then instructed to "take a picture of me and my boyfriend."

Natalie charming the pants off Ashi and vice-versa.

The boys zoning out while playing Mario Kart.

The banana bread that I baked, tasted, then wished it wasn't in my house. It disappeared late at night (Larry).

Radish

noreply@blogger.com (Heather) — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 22:58:00 +0000

Natalie and I got stood up today at lunch (didn't help that my phone's battery was dead) so after we had a delicious meal at Little Cheerful, Natalie asked if we could go to Hohl's and look at the critters (something we do regularly when downtown).

We walk in and there in a giant cage is a lonely Guinea Pig with a sign that says "$29.99 Guinea Pig and cage" His cage was a $90 cage plus all his little accessories (someone loved him once) and he put his little paw up on the cage and looked at me with his eyes and I was done. I took him out and he snuggled right into my arms. Natalie named him "Radish" and he was ours.

Brady is on cloud 9 to meet our new friend and has been bragging "he was only thirty dollars!" and even the phone call to Larry (which I made the kids make) was without event. I married a man who can't say no to a critter.

I've got to do some more snuggling...

I love Guinea Pig lips.

This was the look, plus his little paw reaching out to me.

Welcome home, little buddy.

A girl and her shoes

noreply@blogger.com (Heather) — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 04:26:00 +0000

I love shoes. But as I was wearing my Cowboy boots tonight, I decided that if I had to choose what shoes come with me on a desert island it would be: My black patent leather Mephisto sandals and my cowboy boots (and OK, my running shoes too, but that kinda puts a damper on my desert island plans).

I remember when Birkenstocks first became mainstream. I begged and pleaded for my mom to get me a pair. But she said they weren't sensible for posture and whatnot. I persisted. So she got me a knock-off pair to see if I'd actually wear them or if my obsession would pass before I wore the shoes out. I wore them out until they were nothing but a flap of leather and a couple of buckles. I love cork-sandals. I've grown up a bit and now wear Mephisto sandals (I think I have them in 5 colors). But now that the weather has turned a little too cold to have bare feet (and I've since stopped wearing my sandals with my woolen socks) I have turned to real shoes.

3 years ago while on Cowgirl Weekend in Los Olivos, I had a few hours to myself and wandered aimlessly through the shops, especially Jedlicka's. I found myself a really cool cowboy hat (that my mother-in-law tried to buy first but I scolded her away from it) and then I kept passing the wall of boots. Then I found them. MY boots. I officially fell in love with a real shoe (boot). I love them. I love they way they look and feel. And I love the way I look and feel. Love, love, love them. I can't wait until they are old and worn. Maybe they'll become real. I've actually ridden horses while wearing them, so they are on their way to being real, I think.

And then there is my running shoes. But they change and fall apart and I fall in and out of love with my running shoes so fast it's hard to have a real relationship with them. But it's a wild love affair while it lasts.

The Dangler

noreply@blogger.com (Heather) — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 03:28:00 +0000

For weeks now Brady's front tooth has been clinging to life, dangling and swaying in the breeze. Brady has lost 2 of his 3 teeth while on vacation so I was certain it was going to fall out while I was in Denver. Nope. When I got back it was just dangling a little lower.

Then tonight as he TOOK A DRINK OF MILK, the damn thing fell out! Finally. But now of course I'm home alone with the kids and no fairy supplies! A quick call to Larry at work and everything is in order.

A classmate of Brady's told me she got paid $9 for her tooth yesterday! It must have been lined with gold is what I told her! Sheesh! I know the price of things have gone up, but $9 for a tooth?! How 'bout a pack of gum and a Sacajawea dollar?

Semi-Ah-Moo and Massive Frustration

noreply@blogger.com (Heather) — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 22:58:00 +0000

Last night we headed up north to deliver a fountain my mother-in-law had shipped to our house (it's very nice!) and to do a quick inspection of the house while they're gone for the winter (goal of mine: to become a snowbird).

We got up there just at dusk and ran down to the spit to let the kids run off some energy and fool around with the camera. We saw the resident bald eagle (he is huge) hanging out on his favorite snag. We also saw a giant Loon chilling in the bay (he was camera shy). They have a new sewer treatment plant or something down there and it stinks to high-heaven. I did the classic "Brady, did you do that?!" to which Natalie eagerly replied "NO! It was me!!!" She takes great pride in claiming anything stinky. Strange girl, don't you know you're supposed to blame it on the dog?

As we left the spit, Brady asked "What is that big orange thing behind us?"
The old boat.

A boy and his dog, it's a wonderful thing.

Katie's shoot. You can find her entire portfolio at www.fordlabmodeling.wuf

Gross, Larry was climbing around in it!

An old boat, duh.

The water tower that Brady says that Grandma told them the fish used to shoot up into. His facts may be a little off.

The Cannery building. It smells like an old potato shed I used to play in when we lived in Shafter, CA.

***And in new (OK, old) frustrating news: I apparently have babysitter repellent children. I cannot find a babysitter to save my damn life. And then when I found one for Fridays, Larry's days off change from week to week and his start times change from 12:30 one day to 3:00 the next. How the EFF am I supposed to work with this?! So who wants to work for someone who basically wants to pay them min. wage but also needs them at their beck and call? Nobody, that's who. And then who wants to watch children all day on Saturday? Nobody, that's who. I am thankful that Larry (and I) have stable jobs, but I am so sick of the retail life right now I could just barf. And that concludes my rant, unless you call me, then you might get a whole 'nother ear full. You have been warned.

Little Monsters

noreply@blogger.com (Heather) — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 18:42:00 +0000

Brady and his buds.

Brady, Riley, and Natalie.

Brady initially wanted to be a mummy. That's the easiest costume next to "ghost", right? Apparently not for me. I couldn't find a white sheet to save my life (that didn't cost $34) and then after a frantic night of sewing gauze onto long-johns (and a 11pm trip to Wal-Mart to buy out the last of their gauze) it was a huge flop. It looked terrible. So when Brady woke up in the morning we convinced him to be a Vampire. 3rd easiest costume: black clothes, fangs, and a cape. And if you want to be really fancy, white face, black hair and blood. So we did the really fancy.

Natalie had picked out her Tinkerbell Adventure costume the second they hit the shelves back in August. But upon looking at the packaging, it shows only the bust of Tink, and she's wearing a blade of grass for a hat! There is no hat in the costume package! Natalie really felt the need for the hat, so my mom the crafting-guru created her a custom grass hat.

I had to work all day on Halloween (NOT cool) and it was of course crazy-busy (did you know Halloween was a huge shopping day?) I got home in plenty of time to help the kids get dressed and I actually got to take them trick-or-treating this year (usually an honor left to dad).

This year Brady (with tag-a-long Natalie) had made plans to trick-or-treat with some buddies, and it was so fun to watch them run from house to house frantically and then talking excitedly between homes. And they remembered their manners! Natalie kept up for about 2 streets before she started pre-qualifying the houses: 'That driveway was to steep, that house was too spooky, that house handed out Otter Pops... wait! That house handed out Otter Pops?! Go back! I want an Otter Pop! '

She pooped out so Brady continued on with his buddies while Nat and I headed for home (don't get all judgemental on me, there was another mom with the boys! I'm not that free range!) Larry headed down shortly after to pick up Brady and said when he walked in, all the boys had their piles out on the carpet taking inventory. I never did that as a kid, mostly because I lived in the woods and didn't have anyone to swap with. A perk of being a city-kid, I guess.

And we couldn't have bought our candy more perfectly, we ended up with about 15 pieces left over, the perfect amount to munch without feeling guilty. Of course I hadn't planned on Larry's poker buddies coming over the next night. All my candy was snatched by bachelors. Dangit.

Rocky Mountain High

noreply@blogger.com (Heather) — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 17:07:00 +0000

Did you know that Larry and I danced our first dance as a married couple to a John Denver song? Yup. Larry picked it, it's a very sweet song called Dreamland Express... ah, I digress.

I got home Tuesday from a wonderful weekend with Jackie in Colorado. We kind of "met in the middle" since she now calls Minnesota home. Her very spry 84 year old Grandpa lives in a little town called Franktown (and his name is Frank!) and we stayed with him and his wife Katie. It was fun to be a part of her family for the weekend, different family dynamics are always entertaining (she has a particularly "colorful" uncle named Fred).

Snow dampened some of our plans so we didn't get to go Estes Park and tour the Stanley hotel, but we did get to see a lot of Colorado regardless.

The flights home were smooth and I even flew over Whidbey, which I got to see due to the clear skies (I don't think I've ever flown home to Bellingham in clear skies!) I saw all these bits of "home" from the plane, and I teared up and got some strange looks from the passenger next to me.

And no matter how much fun (and relaxing!) my vacation was, nothing beats your kids running into your arms after time away. Natalie hugged and kissed me until my luggage arrived, then made sure she held my hand all the way to the car. Brady kept leaning into me like a cat, just kind of making sure I was there and to get a few hugs and kisses. Larry was much more civilized ;)

So without further ado, some snapshots of my trip!

I stayed downtown on Saturday and when I went out for dinner, I ran into chaos! Zombies everywhere! Even the Ghostbusters showed up!
Who ya gonna call?

View from the dining room, a deer was having breakfast. The deer and a skunk were the only wildlife I saw.

Jackie and I ordered Mai Tai's at the Mongolian BBQ restaurant while we waited for her co-workers. After 2 sips, "everyone was our friend". It also prompted quite a funny collections of self-portraits!

In Manitoo Springs, Jackie revealed what kind of "lover" she is.

This is the change in the layers of rock at Garden of the Gods. Jackie said it looks like I peed on the rocks.

Steamboat rock.

Jackie and Balanced Rock.

Me and Balanced Rock.

Pikes Peak and Garden of the Gods.

"Kissing Camels".

Pike's Peak is only a few hundred feet shorter than Mt. Rainier, but at elevation it doesn't look like it!

Pike's Peak from Grandpa's back deck.

Boxx Berry Farm 10-22-09

noreply@blogger.com (Heather) — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 15:02:00 +0000

My little pumpkin with a little pumpkin.
I am willing to put this awful picture of me on the Internet just for a laugh: this is the perfect picture of my children's attitudes this day!

I look better in this picture, but...

Natalie looks better in this picture.

This seems to bring a smile to Brady's face.

You may wonder why there aren't many pictures of Brady lately? It's because most of them look like this:

My sweet girl.

Brady could tolerate a photograph if he was being tickled.

We call this picture "Stand there next to your sister in the damn patch and smile or there is no pumpkin for you!"

No sooner than we got out of the car, the farmer ran over excitedly to show us the trebuchet he bought off of a high school student for $100. He loved to have an excuse to use it!

He's been trying to hit this outhouse, looks like he overshot this one!

Live from Colorado!

noreply@blogger.com (Heather) — Sun, 25 Oct 2009 02:42:00 +0000

I arrived yesterday afternoon in Denver after a very long and stressful travelling day, ugh. I was 2 minutes late to check into my flight and so they gave my seat away, which meant I wouldn't make my connecting flight... long story short I arrived in Denver 5 hours late.
Jackie's family is so nice and gracious, and it's so good to see her face again. She and I have known each other since elementary school, but have been best friends since the 7th grade.
Today I wandered the streets of downtown Denver, stopping for an occasional coffee and a mani/pedi. Then I wandered down to find some dinner and found myself in the middle of Zombie Fest, complete with a Ghostbusters car and 3 Ghostbusters! Pictures of that to come!
I had P.F. Changs for dinner (yum-0-licious) and plan a long soak in the tub before bed. It's been so nice to have a day where I just did as I pleased. So very nice.
Tomorrow we're off to Estes Park and The Stanley Hotel (the hotel from The Shining). I am super excited for that!

The life I lead...

noreply@blogger.com (Heather) — Sun, 18 Oct 2009 22:39:00 +0000

can be so mundane, I can't bear to blog about it for over a week. I feel like I'm on a treadmill... work, parent, clean, sleep, repeat. I mean, I was excited to go to Ashi's birthday today just so I had a reason to get my camera out! Of course I was excited to celebrate Ashi regardless, but his birthday was my big event of the week. Yawn. (don't send me hate mail Erin, you know what I mean!)

Happy Birthday to you...

Ashi was much more content to eat the same cupcakes all the other kids got. He only realized after he ate the entire little cupcake that the entire lions head was cake as well!

Poor Little Miss was the only little miss at the party. She got chased, lassoed, "gotten", and lots of other horrible boy things done to her. Nothing a little cake and ice cream can't fix though.

Why do the big boys find the little boys toys so much more entertaining? Is it because the little boys desperately want to play with it that makes it so enticing?

We got Ashenafi a Sit and Spin. I hope you enjoy it little buddy! We love you so much and are so glad you are in our lives! Happy 1st(2nd) Birthday!

Stoney Ridge

noreply@blogger.com (Heather) — Sun, 11 Oct 2009 02:55:00 +0000

Something I've never seen before: a skittish goat.

Big love from Little Miss.

Natalie, me, and Brady's arm (the blue thing in the left corner).

Brady loved hand feeding the ducks. It freaked me out a bit.

My children have such natural smiles!

I think this is our Christmas Card photo.

Every year I forget that Stoney Ridge Farm doesn't take plastic. I didn't even have enough cash for entrance (and bought a new wallet that doesn't hold my checkbook) but the man waved us in anyhow. But this also meant that there would be no lunch, no tractor ride, no pumpkin or apple purchasing...but there was lots of other things we could enjoy without spending. We wandered around and looked at all the animals. I even dug out 2 quarters so that the kids could purchase a handful of feed to give to the goats and ducks.

After the farm we met Tracy at the market (ho-hum) and then she took me to "1993's" house. 1993 is a jewelry artist, and I have received many wonderful gifts from Tracy that were created by her. Today I got to pick out my belated birthday gift, these really nice dangly earrings (it was a tough choice between my 3 fav's). I'm wearing them now and even showed them off tonight when the kids and I met up with Shu and her family for a quick visit. They are in town for just a moment so I was glad to get to see her face. And she loaded the kids down with candy and glow sticks (she justified this action under the "Auntie" clause.)

Tomorrow I'll be baking up a storm in preparation for the Food Drive kickoff Monday! If you're close, please consider making a donation either drop it off here (or I could come pick it up) or take it to the FRED MEYER ICU or the STATE ST ICU (there is a hot competition between branches. The prize? A paid day off!!! FM and State are teamed up together against the bigger branches.) I hope my baked goodies help us pull ahead in the competition.

The car wash last weekend raised $255 in 3 hours! That's Brady there about to scrub down a real-life bucket truck. He was in heaven.
We both aren't looking as pretty as possible, but regardless it was nice to see her.

Batfire

noreply@blogger.com (Heather) — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 16:30:00 +0000

My daughter has several speech idiosyncrasies. She even creates new ones while you're trying to correct the old one. I'll give you an example: My mother-in-law took the kids to Hovander Homestead where they have Peacocks that roam the grounds. Natalie CANNOT pronounce Mohawk or Peacock for some reason, she says "Heehawk". So MIL was trying to break down Peacock for Natalie. "Say Pea" "Pea". "Say Cock" "COCK!" she would shout which does nothing for keeping your composure while trying to teach a child. Inevitably, Natalie would come to the part where she put the two words together and shout "HEECOCK!" MIL threw her hands up in amused frustration and told Natalie that she's hopeless. Now Natalie walks around proudly stating that she is "Hope-uh-less". It's hope-uh-less to change you Natalie!

On to Batfire... Brady desperately wanted vampire fangs to put in his goody bags at his birthday. We had a couple of pairs left over so my kids have been playing with them. Last night Natalie came out to scare me with her teeth.

Natalie: "Mom, I'm going to put in my batfire teeth and you say 'how come you wearing those silly teeth?' Then I'm going to say 'they aren't silly teeth, they my real teeth cuz I a BATFIRE!' and then you gonna say 'oooohhhh' and I'ma gonna bite you! OK mama?" We rehearsed her script several times last night and this morning. It was even funnier this morning with Natalie's bedhead.

(please excuse the poor focus on these photos, Larry had it on the Portrait setting for some reason and she kept jumping at me just as I'd snap the photo! But I think her spirit is still captured!)

Week Wizzed By

noreply@blogger.com (Heather) — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 03:31:00 +0000

I know I don't have a lot of room to complain when I only work twenty-some hours a week, but it seems like this past week was the one that wouldn't stop!
MON: Work
TUE: I don't even remember Tuesday oh wait, it was Open House that night at B's school.
WED: Brady's 7th birthday party ('nuf said)
THUR: Work. Come home with mild headache.
THUR night until FRI at 9:15am: No sleep and constant vomiting from now raging migraine (nothing is like barfing as you walk out the door to take your daughter to school).
FRI: Forgot that I had volunteered at Natalie's class this day and dropped her off with the intent of bagging out until I looked into the desperate teachers eyes. So I made bubble art with 12 4 year olds on zero sleep, zero food, zero coffee, zero pain meds...
SAT: Work. Power went out and crashed all the computers (when our line was already spilling out of the lobby. Came home and canned Apple pie filling and decompressed with Erin and Jen while we let our children play mostly unsupervised.
SUN: Natalie off to a birthday party while Brady and I went to Fairhaven to wash cars to raise money for the Food Bank. I figured he'd enjoy the mess as well as get a lesson in volunteerism. He gave me a proud "harumph" when I told him that he helped raise over $200 for the food bank today. (I will post pic later)
Went to Target, came home and made Apple Butter (it was supposed to be more applesauce but my apples cooked too long.) Made dinner (Chicken stir-fry), and watched AFV with the kids before story and bedtime.
And what's in store for tomorrow? WORK!

Brady's Birthday

noreply@blogger.com (Heather) — Fri, 02 Oct 2009 23:08:00 +0000

Please excuse the randomness of the order the photos are in, sometimes Blogger and I don't see eye to eye.
Brady turned 7 on Wednesday. I am amazed at how fast time goes when you have children. I was teasing him the night before while we were at the grocery store that it was just yesterday that I put him in those baby seats on the grocery cart. I asked him if we would humor me and climb in one for old times sake, but for some reason he declined.
At first he wanted to have a "Tony Hawk Boom-Boom Huck Jam" themed party. I tried to steer him away from this idea because a. most of his friends had this theme and b. I don't think he really knows who Tony Hawk is. Then he decided on a "Camo" party. Now that I can do! And I thought the whole camo idea tied in well with his rock wall climbing party (very Army Ranger, don't you think?)

Natalie was only happy on the rock wall when she was in daddy's arms and close to the ground.
Brady on his descent (while Riley in the background continued her ascent).

The gang listening to the guides instructions: "On Belay?" "Belay on", etc.

Brady received so many awesome gifts!

The story behind this bike: Grandpa Cameron acquired it from the original owner (a man in his 40's) who handed it down to his nephew who was now to old for it. He knew Cameron had a grandson that might enjoy it. Brady instantly fell in love with this 30 year old BMX Mongoose. It was blue with spots of rust, and it weighs a ton! But Brady loves it more than he loves his brand new Trek bike we bought him last spring. Go figure!

We knew we had to do something about the rust on the bike, so Larry decided for Brady's birthday, he'd overhaul the bike for him. Many hours of sanding and painting later, Brady's 30 year old bike is in it's prime! We also added foot pegs and skull&crossbone innertube caps (per Natalie's suggestion).

Open House

noreply@blogger.com (Heather) — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 03:22:00 +0000

My kids decided to wear their "fancy hats" to the open house.

I have a pic of B on here last year on Open House.

The leap of faith.
Brady and his self-portrait.
Brady reading to us from his "This is Brady" book.

Brady and his classmate (they were also in K together) assembled and read this poem together. It was a proud moment!

My weekend

noreply@blogger.com (Heather) — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 01:00:00 +0000

After work on Saturday I made 11 jars of applesauce with Erin while our kids played...
Brady brought home a "Zoomchini" from a fun fall festival in Burlington...

Natalie sat on her grass-clippings nest.

I saw this smiling face...

as I ran by during the Bellingham Bay Half Marathon!

And that's my good friend Kate right behind me, we both smoked our previous times.

And I limped home with one of these (but mine says "half")!

Sailing, Sailing, over the bounding main...

noreply@blogger.com (Heather) — Fri, 25 Sep 2009 02:30:00 +0000

Well, Bellingham Bay. Larry picked up Brady today after school and took him sailing on a friends "new" sailboat. I was very nervous about the whole idea but knew Brady would have a blast as long as he stayed warm and afloat! Right about here is where I would post a picture of their adventure, but Larry forgot the camera in the truck so we will have just have to visualize their fun. Apparently Brady was a bit nervous, but quickly overcame his nerves and enjoyed himself quite a bit. So for bringing my son and husband home safe and dry, I made and super yummy Chicken stirfry for dinner for Ken who is inhaling it as I type!

Larry and I had a day of together and so we got to spend the day with just Natalie. It's nice to have an afternoon with just one child and I think they feel the same way about getting mom and dad to themselves. We ran all over town going to Yeagers for a life jacket, REI for random stuff, lunch at Diego's (it was our first time there and I have to scold myself for missing 13 years of deliciousness!), down to Boulevard park to have a coffee and maintain our Geocache, then home where Natalie and I snuggled and watched Madagascar 2. It was a very nice day.

Larry holding "It's Tin, Man!" The name of our cache is in reference to the large tin-sledge deposit (hidden by Larry) that looks like a giant rock sticking out of the bay.
Natalie wearing the vest my mom made for me when I was a little girl. I love the rickrack sun rays!
The wind soured Natalie's mood, so we revived her inside Woods coffee.

A before-school snuggle and wrestle match.

Sm'Apples

noreply@blogger.com (Heather) — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 03:15:00 +0000

Since today was probably our last sunny Sunday as a family (Larry's days off are changing) we decided to head out and enjoy a fall favorite: apple picking!

Last year we picked a ton of apples and had a little incident involving an employee of the company who built our deck and his sticky fingers in our apple bin (long story, but lets just say I think he learned his lesson when the police came knocking on his door. And no, I didn't call the cops on him for stealing an apple... something else he was doing on our property prompted the call by our neighbor).

This year our first stop was Bellewood Acres where you can take golf carts out into the orchards and enjoy the farm. Larry let Brady drive once we got out of sight and in true Allred fashion he promptly drove the golf cart into the drainage ditch with the entire family in tow! If you haven't heard of the tales of Larry (and me, on occasion) and his history of golf carts... you're probably better off not knowing!

A cool shed at Bellewood. It had several coils of barbed wire, and I felt inspired. And could it get more poetic with the little bird nest perched on one of the coils?

The end of the ride. Look at what a beautiful day we had!

This goofy horse was hoping for an apple I think. I think she needs to wax her chin though.

Brady behind the wheel. Natalie says he's ready for his license. Uh, no.

After Bellewoods it was off to Sm'Apples, where the apples are 30 cents a pound compared to minimum 80 cents a pound at Bellewood.

There was a sweet antique of a man working the apple stand today, who proceeded to pass gas through our entire conversation. Maybe he figures if he can't hear it (he had aids), then neither can I. Or he figures that he's an old coot and can do whatever he damn well pleases at this age. Either way, it was amusing to try keep a conversation with a straight face.

I picked this Jonagold shortly after taking it's picture.

Brady hitching a ride with the Gala's.

We topped off the evening watching Star Wars (the one with Jabba the Hut) and enjoyed a dessert of homemade apple crisp with hand-cranked vanilla ice cream. Our bellies are happy!

I had to run down to the store for more ice (to make the ice cream) and found these. I couldn't leave without them (the wax lips and 'stache, not the kids)!

Finding a balance

noreply@blogger.com (Heather) — Sat, 19 Sep 2009 15:23:00 +0000

With all the new things happening at the Allred house, I've found it hard to find time to blog, and then when I do find time I realize that we've been living the same routine for the past week and that's not much fun to blog about!
I was down most of this week due to a pesky cough that kept me up nights, but I finally found the time and energy yesterday to get out and get some real miles under my belt in preparation for the Bellingham Bay Half-Marathon next Sunday.
Here is a quick update for all of us:
*Larry got a "fixed gear" bike for his birthday and his having a blast riding it.
*I'm doing very well and enjoying my new job.
*Natalie loves going to school and has already gotten herself invited to a birthday party.
*Brady says he has a good day everyday after school. His teacher and I have made tentative plans to have a conference in the next couple of weeks to discuss ways to boost his self-confidence. I'm so thankful she is being so proactive right off the bat, I think it will be a good year for Brady with a teacher like her.

Here we go again

noreply@blogger.com (Heather) — Tue, 15 Sep 2009 16:14:00 +0000

First of all, the fun stuff: Natalie had her first day of school yesterday and had a great time! She has a few familiar faces in her classroom and her teacher seems to be very nice.

Natalie in front of her very own cubby. She marched up to her teacher and said "good morning" and then promptly posed for Mrs. MacIssac to admire her back to school attire.
Apparently asking her to show off her lunch pail sparked the attitude.
Then today I took Brady to school and at the last minute he asked me to walk him to his classroom. "Of course" I said, even though I've been up all night coughing and am wearing one-step-up-from-pajamas and have no makeup on. But I did brush my hair. And my teeth. So I quickly escort him in and he gives me the double wave: the first one "thanks for dropping me off, I'll see you later" and then the second "Leave, mom. Now!". So I walked off and halfway down the hall his teacher runs after me asking if we can talk real quick. Oh.
It appears that the struggles of having a child on the fringe are back. I am actually prepared for this, as I was told that 1st grade is infinitely harder than Kindergarten and that Brady's struggles might be magnified this year. We're a week into school and he's struggling. But maybe this means he'll get some extra help sooner. I just wish there was more I could do for him. I hate to hear that he's putting his head down when confronted with a challenge, or that he has no confidence in the skills he already possesses. It's like the teacher and I have to prove to Brady that he is capable, he doesn't believe it himself.
Somedays I wish I had a magic wand.

Peaceful morning

noreply@blogger.com (Heather) — Sat, 12 Sep 2009 15:17:00 +0000

At 8:30 I was supposed to be running in the Bellingham Bay 15k. But then I got this job thing, and I didn't think it would be too wise to request my 2nd day of work off.

Larry's mom took the kids last night and there wasn't much time last night to savor the peace (I got home an hour before the kids normally go to bed) but this morning was so... quiet. It made it very hard to leave the silence and go to work, knowing that it would all be over by the time I arrived home this evening. Ah, well.
We finally took part in the Greek Festival in town, basically food, food, and nothing but food. And some piped in music. But we certainly enjoyed the food! And my paparazzi hand wasn't quick enough to snap a photo of this man sitting in front of us; he had the biggest noggin I've ever seen! He was wearing a baseball cap and the back seam was split from trying to stretch over this guys head! Reminds me of one of my favorite movies So I Married An Axe Murderer.

Natalie had insisted that she didn't like her kabob. But changed her mind once her dad tried to help her eat it!

My schweet photography skillz: that's Brady leaping of the stairs.
And I have to say, working at a bank that is inside of a grocery store doesn't disappoint in the people-watching department. Someone makes me silently snicker everyday. God I love the general public.

This handsome fella kept "trolling" in front of my car.

These cool old planes were buzzing around today.

P.S. I just looked up "my" finish time for the 15K today (my good friend Roxie, who just happened to have also finished her first half-ironman triathlon used my bib #) was a very impressive 1:28:40. I think that's a personal best for me! (in my dreams!)

1st grade? meh.

noreply@blogger.com (Heather) — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 02:19:00 +0000

Brady has gotten to the age (who am I kidding, he's always been at this age) where he isn't too interested in having his picture taken, especially if it might even come close to being embarrassing. But I refuse to relent, and snapped away.

Dropping him off was kind of chaotic. Jen and I wished aloud that we would have liked to have known that our children's supply list was indeed for them (unlike Kindergarten where everything went into a community pot).

Brady sat right down and began working immediately... when we said goodbye, Larry and I both got a quick peck and a very quiet "love you".
I was greeted with "Can I go play at Will's house today?" when I picked him up. I think this year will be OK :)

First Grade

noreply@blogger.com (Heather) — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 07:04:00 +0000

It's midnight and I can't sleep over Brady's big day in the morning. His backpack is prepared, he has a special treat in his lunch sack, his awesome hot pink-skateboarding-flaming-t-rex shirt is laid out and he got to bed early.
Now if I could get some sleep!
We took the kids out to Lake Padden today. B and I rode around the lake on our bikes (he didn't have to walk up one hill this time! Neither did I!!) while Natalie and Lar practiced riding her bike without training wheels (not successful). Then I took off before anyone could stop me and half-ran around the lake again. I haven't been feeling top-notch, so the second time around was not so successful. And I wasn't wearing the proper ummm....supportive garment. Gravity is cruel enough on it's own, I don't need to exasperate the problem!
We had some dinner and took the kids to see "SHORTS", the movie about the rainbow wishing rock. Perfect for a almost 7 year old boy. Very cute. Then home to roast marshmallows on the BBQ, baths, and bed!
Stay tuned for photos of Brady's first day!