Home Sweet Home

here we are, friday night - 6:30pm...

waiting for the hubs to get home so we can head out on date night.

we don't have a sitter, or a plan...but I finally got around to taking a shower and getting dressed - and even got the kids looking cute (still haven't thrown any makeup on, but au natural is kinda my style, anyway) but I decided we needed a date night, even if the kids tag along...so we are waiting and then heading OUT!

my mom and sister are coming into town later, so I spent a lot of today scrubbing the house from head to toe - and now that it's all sparkly, we are just sitting here enjoying it (well - the kids have now moved from coloring at the table to jumping on the sofa, but such is life!)

okay - so this is getting more random by the moment - anyone following my train of thought? that's okay - it's my journal/blog so it really just has to make sense to me in the end, right?

last week for date night, Jacob and I did a bit of designing together. Well, he designed, and I more like art directed - because I had this thing in mind that I wanted done for a long time, even had the frame already. And we finally got it done. I think we're a pretty good design duo - and we had fun in the process, which is what counts. Here's what we did...

A little print for our living area. If you look close, you can see a sea of legos on the floor reflected in the tv, oh, and my gaucho pants which I love to wear when I clean the house.

Since I had the camera out, I decided to take some pics of some other recent home projects, since we're on the subject.

If you were married to me, I bet I'd drive you nuts. Luckily, I get to drive Jacob nuts, but I think he likes me just as much for my crazy antics and projects as for my smile.

I decided a while back I wanted to do some kind of window treatment in our kitchen. We have stainless steel appliances, black tile. Paint is an antique blue and appliances and accents are red. I thought it would be fun to make it kind of bistro-ish, so I got some stripey fabric at Ikea that I thought would fit the bill. I found a great little tutorial and the other day while Sawyer was in school, and Aspen was taking a rare morning nap due to a bit of a cold, I jumped at the chance to sew it. Last night, Jacob made dinner so I could run to pick up the wood we needed to mount it. And then he ever so patiently worked with me so I could get it up (I am NOT patient and wanted to get it up before our company came to town). I think it cost me about $35 to make.

This winter when I'm making some nice soups or hot chocolate, I will pretend I live in France and it is my own little Bistro. Hey, you gotta find some way to brighten the many gray days we have here during Seattle winters!

Lastly, here we have the Stripey Bathroom. Okay, so stripes make me happy lately. I think it's okay. My friend did her entry way in stripes and I loved it! So, I tried it in our half bath in the main room (we live in a 3 story townhouse - so this is right off the kitchen/dining/living area.

if you ever want to paint stripes - this blog had some nice insights. it's trickier than it looks, but with lots of green tape and a nice dose of time and patience, the results are really FUN!

the downside of pretty pedestal sinks = no storage.

I tried to add a little storage with these baskets from the Land of Nod. They are from the Ropers collection, which they no longer carry (bummer! we have these all over our house and I LOVE them!) the positive part of them no longer carrying the collection is that I got these for $3 each when they were clearing them out! I put extra rolls of tp and sawyer's special toddler wipes, as well as my not-often-used makeup in them.

The finishing touch are a few words by the sink - on the door side. I love friendly little reminders.

I think I may also do a simple white linen or canvas window cover in this room, too - but right now I'm already knee deep in another project - our downstairs room/office.

Oh, yes, I do love how when you look in the mirror the stripes are all around you! (I only did them on the one big wall - are you kiddin' me, doing them around the sink and behind the toilet would have been sheer torture!)

Yep, these pics were taken while the kids were napping and it was 3pm and I hadn't showered yet - still wearing the cleaning gauchos. Hair not combed, face not washed - I'm like this more often than I'd like to admit, but I am fine admitting it :)

Oh! Garage door is opening! Jacob just pulled up on his bike - perfect timing -

Time to sign off -

Happy Friday, all!

she's half his age...

but he doesn't seem to mind.

can you even get over her shoes? i can't!

i meant to do this a couple of months back - right when he turned 3 and she was 18 months. but i didn't get around to it until friday, when our plans with friends fell through and the sun beckoned us to come play at one of our fave parks (gas works on lake union). i decided to dress them up a bit and follow them along with my camera to capture a bit of who they are at this age - the only time in their lives that she'll be half his age.

at 18 months she was already going on two. not in a bad way, just in a way in which she wants to do everything she can by herself and keep up with her big bro (often appreciated) and gets frustrated when she can't (ie she tries SO hard to dress herself like her brother does, but continues to put her long sleeves on her legs and that can be maddening). she gets many a compliment on her curls, and even though on the outside she's very girly - she's quite the tomboy at heart. she talks up a storm and our favorite thing she says, at random moments, is "I so Haaaapy!"

Sawyer & Aspen - at these ages, you two have developed a very lovely relationship. i always thought that having kids close together would guarantee a close relationship - but as i've observed and talk to friends with kids both super close in age or spread out more, i've learned that there is no guarantee. it depends a lot more simply on the personality and temperament of each child, or so it seems. so i will count myself lucky that you love each other so much and laugh at you when you have normal sibling rivalries. i will also give aspen a lot of credit for being so interested to play with cars and trains with her brother, and sawyer credit for being so interested in dressing and undressing her baby dolls, and having stroller races with them down the hallway. She idolizes her big brother and it's the cutest thing to see. Melts my heart!

i am absolutely LOVING the threes with this boy! not that the twos were super terrible, but the threes are such a delight!

here's to years and years of more adventures together!

we are so glad you have each other.

truly, what a gift!

let the goooood times roll!

i'm ignited!

yeah, you read that right -

i'm ignited!

not to be confused with excited,

though i may very well be that as well...

last week sucked. in a big way. for reasons i don't really want to explain here on the ole' blog - some things are meant to be private. let's just say it really sucked and it hurt and i hated it.

but.

this week has been beautiful, really beautiful, and every day i have been reminded that...

Yes, it is.

Life is good - even though sometimes things happen that we don't like, maybe things happen that we even hate (even though I try not to say that word very often and it's not allowed in our house - there are times we all feel that strong way, right?) There are times we are sad or sick or heartbroken. Times we wonder what we're doing, or what in the world we can do.

So, if you're feeling that way: Don't.Give.Up!

Remember that there is a God, yes, a Heavenly Father - and he LOVES you! And if you're really lucky, you even have friends and family who love you, too!

Last year was a tough one for me. Last week was a sad one.

But through the ups and downs, life is good.

I'm very blessed to have the family and friends that I do. And to have these two little cherubs running around me every single day.

I'm so lucky to be their mother.

I'm so lucky that I'm healthy and feelin GOOOOD - no GREAAAT! again!

My "spark" is back.

And I'm IGNITED!

Good thing we're having s'mores on the beach tonight!

Happy Friday and Happy Weekend All! If your light is a little "less shiny" than usual - just wait - the day will come soon when you will once again feel ignited as well - then, shine on!

Big Girl Chair

No more high chairs or booster seats in our house anymore.

(we never really did use high chairs anyways...)

This morning, Sawyer helped me put together Aspen's new chair (just like his - it's like a real big person chair, just a little bit higher - perfect size for them to sit up at the table). They were both SO proud.

She still does little dances on her seat that make me a little nervous she might fall off one of these days (she has no respect for gravity, I tell ya).

But what are the options, really? Strap her in a chair and have her wriggle and squirm because she wants to be with us? Or let her continuously take over her brother's chair? Yeah, that's why we decided to just let her go for it and be the big girl that she tries so hard and likes to be.

Now we have two big kids at the breakfast/brunch/lunch/linner/dinner table!

This one still wears her ketchup like it's really messy lipstick, though :)

And we don't mind, one bit!

Here's to Aspen and her new big girl chair! May she enjoy each meal without falling off!

Snow Lake

On Labor Day, we decided to go for a hike.

We almost went up north to Fragrance Lake near Bellingham, but decided to do something a bit more challenging (pay off for more challenge = more pictueresque).

So off we went to the Alpine Lakes Wilderness near Snoqualmie Pass and got set to hike to Snow Lake.

It was 8 miles round trip. Sawyer hiked a good mile and a half himself. But it was also not an "easy" hike so we packed the kids on our backs (soooo glad we have two kid-packs!) and really got a work out. I mean, my legs that night almost felt equivalent to when I ran 28.2 miles a few years back in San Diego.

(I guess that tells you what kind of shape I'm in!)

Because of our kind of late-bloomer of a summer, there were still tons of wild flowers a-flowering. Soooo gorgeous!

Our little munchkin who is in LOVE with rocks. I think she'd pick a rock over a flower most days. Getting to our destination took a good 3 hours or so. We didn't think much of it at the time, but WOW the kids did AMAZING! Considering most of the way they were just riding on our backs - they didn't complain at all. We stopped to look at grasshoppers, birds, beetles, butterflies, flowers, little cascading waterfalls, etc. oh, and BIG rocks. They were such great sports!

Finally, we made it to Snow Lake! It was beautiful! The water was cold and fresh and you could see right through it to the rocks on the bottom. I guess that is what you call a true Alpine Lake :) We had both done this hike before - I have done it several times, but it sure feels different hiking without an extra 25-35lbs on your back :)

Time to eat some lunch and cool our tired feet off in that icy water.

A nice fellow hiker volunteered to take a pic of all of us together.

I just love the above image of Sawyer. It's so him, so boy. He kept climbing up rocks and I told him to shout "I'm the KING OF THE ROCK!" and Aspen chimed in, in her sort of jibberish way of copying everything he says - I guess you kind of had to be there, but it was cute nonetheless.

Sure got a smile out of big bro.

And Jacob got one of me and the kidlets.

Oh how I love them so!

We made up for all of the calories we burned hiking by downing some burgers, fries, and dessert at Red Robin that evening. We went straight there in all our sweaty-hiked-out glory. Luckily, no one seemed to care.

It was an awesome day. I just love the days we get to hang together as a family, doing a little bit of nothing - yet a lot of everything, all at the same time.

Goodbye, Summer - we will miss you and be counting down the days to when we see you again!

In the meantime, we're getting excited about Halloween, Jack O'Lanterns, Spiced Cider, and Pumpkin Pie! Bring on Autumn!

Us Girls

I was going through some photos from our labor day hiking extravaganza when I found a few frames that Jacob took of "us girls".

I figure I'll post the rest about our hike later, and instead play along and Embrace the Camera with cool bloggy-friends today.

It was a looooong hike (8 miles round trip - and it was pretty much switch backs up up up the entire way!) Eight miles feels like forever when you're carrying a munchkin and gear on your back. Actually, it feels a lot like backpacking.

We finally reached our destination and I could hardly wait to sink my tired-and-on-the-verge-of-blisters feet in the icy alpine lake water.

Aspen and I sat on a rock after dipping our feet in the water and all of a sudden things were quiet. A good kind of quiet. The quiet where you truly get to "hear" nature talking to you. My girl got all cuddly, too.

So, there I was, holding my girl, heart bursting with beauty, and Jacob quietly grabbed the camera and found the most yummy light and took a few frames of us.

And I'm sure glad he did.

It made up the difference for hauling not only my 20lb girl up the mountain - but the 5lbs of camera I also carried around my neck.

Even though sometimes my huge camera is a pain to haul around - I am never sorry I do when I get to capture sweet moments to remember and look back on. Some of the best moments of my life.

Thanks, Babe, for taking a few of us girls that day. It was surely a day to remember!

Our Preschooler!

This morning was Sawyer's first day of Preschool!

Here's a few obligatory "first day of school" photos on our way out the door...

in this last one, he's saying "LET'S GO!"

When he turned one, all of a sudden people were asking me if I had put him on any wait lists for certain preschools. Really? I had no idea. No idea, that is, that certain schools were in high demand, that you actually had to visit and apply (sometimes years in advance) that it was so costly, or that other parents would be so concerned about where my child would attend. I wasn't even sure if I would send him to preschool, to be quite honest.

But, last Spring I thought I should do my research, nonetheless - and by March we had done a few visits and he was on a couple of wait lists. The school we liked the best (that also happened to fit our budget - hallelujah!) he was number one on the wait list. I really didn't want to go through the summer on pins and needles waiting to hear, and then at the last minute find out he was "in". So I sort of planned that I would just keep him home and continue with Nature School and maybe sign him up for indoor soccer or something. But in May, we found out there was a spot for him - and after thinking about it - and especially praying, about it - we felt like we should send him.

And so, today he went.

And he LOVED it!

Part of the reason I thought of keeping him home was utterly selfish - I wasn't sure I was ready to let him "go" yet. Even if it's only 2 mornings a week for 2.5 hours. But then after talking to a few friends, I realized I was thinking more of myself and less of my boy. Because HE wanted to go. He was STOKED when we visited. He is excited to make new friends, sit in circle time, explore the classroom, participate in show n tell. So I let go of me not wanting him to grow up and I'm letting him. ;)

He's getting so big and is at such a great age. Seriously - I love the threes! I love the "why this and why that stage (x100), and I love the mastery of certain tasks that has come after trial and error. I love that there is a sense of confidence yet still time to be cautious - and utter trust in us, his parents. I remember about this time last year thinking "wow, he sure is two!" not that two is totally terrible - but it had it's challenges. A few weeks ago I found myself saying, "wow, he's three now - this is awesome!" Some of the frustrations of being two are long gone and he is even more of a joy to be around - totally wonderful buddy and big bro. He can do so many things and is such a "smart cookie". I love this little guy!

Last night, I let him pick out the clothes he wanted to wear (he did a pretty good job, if I say so myself - I was crossing my fingers he'd go for something besides shorts and a t-shirt, and he did! Flip flops are inevitable - he is after all, my boy!) He was SO excited! Jacob stayed home this morning and made us all scones for breakfast (Sawyer was too excited to eat more than a bite!) and then we all took him to drop him off. I helped him find his cubby and then almost didn't get a chance to say good-bye since he was so eager to run and explore in the classroom (cars were certainly on the radar). One of his teachers smiled at me and said "he's ready!"

And I didn't cry.

I smiled.

Yes, he is - he's ready and he's going to love it!

Aspen and I dropped Jacob off at work and then ran to the paint store. Halfway there, she started asking "Where's Sawyer?" and she repeated it most of the time he was at school. (did I mention she was utterly disappointed she didn't get to stay at school, too?) When we picked him up, he got a happy grin and an enthusiastic "hi Sawyer!" (she has recently mastered his name and is quite proud of it - it's so cute, too - I really should put some video up sometime!)

I must admit the one positive thing about having big brother gone for two mornings a week is that - for the first time in her life - Aspen and I get to have one-on-one time. We plan one morning to be for errands and grocery shopping and the other one is "just Mommy and Aspen day" where we'll just be -together. Two silly girls. Parks or Zoo or Library or Play Cafes. Just us and that will also be a treat :)

Okay - I know this is getting long. Almost done.

We went to the the park after school and ate some cookies (very special cookies my friend made for me - thanks Allegra!) Then, home for some lunch and now down for naps.

So now, maybe I can cry, just a little. Or maybe I'll go paint our office, instead - distraction is a good thing and our house reaps the benefits.

Overall - a fantastic first day of preschool!

Here's to a wonderful school year for all!