The Davis Family

Laguna Beach and Disneyland 2010

2010-12-03T18:25:00.000-08:00

2010-11-03T22:07:00.001-07:00

We've been busy since my last post. Sean and I are both in the MBA program at SPU. Sean will finish in June and I am in my 3rd quarter. Sean is working full time at Microsoft now. The kids both had birthdays, Reagan started preschool, and Riley is in 1st grade. We moved to a new house and in our free time we managed to squeeze in a few family outings!

Reagan on a family hike
Mt Baker Wilderness
Reagan opening her gifts. If she had it her way, she'd have a birthday everyday. She loves gifts so much, she thanks me when I bring home groceries.

Riley at the pumpkin farm

Riley started 1st grade this fall

A family hike to twin falls in the Snoqualmie Valley

In September, our family went to Baker for the weekend and hiked in spectacular Begley Lakes Wilderness Area. One of the kids I used to sit for snapped this shot of Sean and I!

In August, Reagan turned 3 and we celebrated with a playdate to Build a Bear with her bff Emi.

We took Riley to his first Mariner's game in August.

This summer we made the most of the beautiful days and Riley spent hours reading in the sand.

One of my favorite pics from the Tulip Festival

April

2010-04-27T10:50:00.000-07:00

April was a busy month for us! Sean's cousin Matt came to visit from Santa Ana. It was really great to see him. Hopefully we'll get to see the rest of the family and their newest addition, Alexa, by the end of the year!

We went to the Tulip Festival and tried to get pictures of everyone smiling.

We celebrated Easter with friends, dyed Easter Eggs, and even made it to the bunny bounce at the zoo!

A friend of mine came to visit for a week from Germany and we went to Camano Island to fly kites on the beach and search for sand crabs. Her week long stay was extended by a few days when air travel was halted in Europe due to volcanic eruptions.

We tried to get pictures of the kids at the Bellevue Botanical Garden before it started raining. It's not so easy getting both kids to smile and look at the camera at the same time!

We hosted an au pair, Gabi, from Brazil for two weeks! The kids love having guests around and enjoy learning about the world!

We went to the Tulip Festival again. Actually we went two more times!

We hiked Twin Falls in Snoqualmie which turned out to be, well, steeper than we expected. Riley walked the entire way up and down which was a great hike for him!

We celebrated Riley's teacher's new baby with a party at school! Reagan was so excited to get to spend time in the classroom. I even made butterfly sugar cookies for all the kids in the class!

Sean is still in school. He's an inspiration balancing as much as he does with full time work and full time school. Sometimes I think completeing his MBA won't be worth anything, but it's been a growing experience for all of us to balance small children, both our jobs, and school.

Skagit Valley Tulip Festival

2010-03-28T11:36:00.000-07:00

New Year 2010

2010-01-02T21:10:00.000-08:00

Tsillan Cellars and Chelan

2009-10-21T01:24:00.000-07:00

Pumpkin Patch

2009-10-21T01:06:00.000-07:00

Thirty One

2009-09-25T23:59:00.001-07:00

Tomorrow, in ten minutes, or by the time I post this I'll be 31. I have no in depth reflections at this point on what that means to me. I haven't had time to think about it.
Reagan has become quite the conversationalist lately. Last night she decided to take a bath with her favorite lovie - Lambie. She got out of the bath and into her super froggie towel. She walked into the kitchen with her eyes brimming with tears and kept saying, "Wammie is bwoken?!" It was the sweetest and saddest thing. I love that she is so expressive. I've had a hard time finding the right time and the right way to set boundaries for her. Last week she took something away from Riley and immediately told him, "I don't want you to have that right now!" She also is addicted to chocolate milk (bunny milk) and eating potato chips on the couch, in her pajamas, after Riley leaves for school. I'm not sure how she got into that! She thinks she can always drink my morning coffee and the only time she likes to hear "no" is when she is saying it to us!
I gave Reagan a pumpkin chocolate chip muffin this afternoon and found her promptly pulling out every chocolate chip.
I love her to pieces and enjoy being home with her. I like spending most of my free time with her until she's clingy or screaming at me, but otherwise we've enjoyed most of our quiet days with Riley at school.
It was a busy month with Fiona arriving, getting the kids settled into school, and Sean getting settled into his job. Maybe this weekend I'll have a chance to post pictures. Well, maybe by Monday.

Riley's Baby...Sister

2009-08-03T23:56:00.000-07:00

Two years ago today we picked up this little bundle from a nearby hospital...
and we named her Reagan Abigail. Riley gladly settled for her over the frog or the baby alligator he originally asked for. As a compromise, he still called her Reagan Alligator for 6 months.

For two years, we have adequately convinced Riley that if he doesn't get along with Reagan we'll take her back to the hospital. If he does get along with her, she will make him cookies when he goes to college. I also told him I would do his laundry when he came home and he quickly told me, "No mom. I'll do my own laundry." We'll see if we all live up to our agreements in this bargain.

Reagan went through a phase where her "lovie" was her snowsuit.

That phase happened to last a solid year. She had two outfits: snowsuit and snowsuit. The hood with the faux fur had to be on and if we washed both at the same time Reagan would scream for the entire wash and dry cycle.

Thankfully, we moved on to dresses, fairy wings, tutus, dinosaurs, and shoes, shoes, shoes.

Her new "lovie" is lambie. I heard Riley yelling for me from their bedroom tonight. I went to see what was going on and I found Reagan gleefully glaring down at Lambie on the floor. Riley was standing on the bed and crying over a moth that was loose in the room. Sure enough, Reagan had taken her Lambie, tossed it across the room and hit the moth.

After Riley viewed the dead moth carcass as proof, he looked up at Reagan and said, "Good job baby."

I'm glad Riley has his baby sister and that they get along so well. She's the best gift he's ever gotten...

Happy Birthday Reagan!

2009-08-03T00:01:00.000-07:00

We got an early start on celebrating Reagan's 2nd birthday which is tomorrow.

She wants to let you know that she's "twooo!"

We didn't get her spoon to her fast enough.

Then we had a slow and delicate start.

Reagan tried the candle...

Then she started warming up...

and she thoroughly enjoyed the cake!

Reagan was even nice enough not leave behind any crumbs!

Hot!

2009-07-30T23:55:00.000-07:00

I'm from North Carolina. I spent my summers at the pool every day. I'm used to humidity and hot weather.

At least I thought so. Then I moved to the Northwest where 75 is hot. In my tenth summer here, I must have acclimated. I've been worried about the kids sleeping in a 90 degree house. I was shocked to find the butter on the counter and the chocolate for smores in the pantry were completely melted.

Seattle hit it's highest ever recorded temperature yesterday at 102. I heard Bellevue was 105! Around noon we jumped onto Expedia and booked a hotel in Ocean Shores. I'm not terribly fond of Ocean Shores, but the weather map said it was only 88 there.

Off we went within 30 minutes for an overnight stay at a hotel on the beach with an indoor pool, breakfast, and a work out room.

Imagine my surprise when we got into the car in 100 degree weather and got out of the car three hours later in a misty fog and 55 degrees!

We roamed around in the fog until we found food and then took the kids to the pool. Riley was beside himself at the prospect of swimming since he recently discovered water wings. He think he's an olympic swimmer!

Sean ran to the car and left me with both the kids in the pool which I'm not comfortable with at all. In the same instant, I flipped Reagan off her floatee ring and Riley stepped off of the step into 4 ft deep water. When Sean came back with Riley's water wings I was in the process of trying to save both children at the same time. Thankfully everyone was ok. Reagan happily went to "Daddy" who is taller and handles the kids better in swimming pools.

Sean just kept laughing at me for thinking it was hot since he comes from Palm Springs, CA where hot is 128 degrees. Sigh. At least he was kind enough to agree to support the insanity of taking two kids to a hotel overnight. I wasn't the only one with that idea either since every hotel with AC in Seattle was booked to capacity.

We arrived back this afternoon to a 92 degree house in 101 degree weather, but I'm glad to be home.

2009-07-25T21:53:00.001-07:00

Each summer growing up, my family would load into the station wagon and head out for a visit to family somewhere across the US. Being the youngest of four, I didn’t get a choice location in the car - such as the window seat. For most of the journey I was usually cramped in the middle and stuck to the vinyl seats in the sweltering heat.

The memories that linger from those long past days are still nostalgic. Memories of summers spent at my Grandfather’s house in the Smokey Mountains of North Carolina or visiting my mom’s cousin outside of Nashville, Tennessee. Our annual church picnic and watermelon sprinkled with salt or splashing in the mountain cold water at McGalliard Falls are my fondest memories of summer.

I can remember driving as far as New Mexico to see my Great Aunt Catherine for whom I’m named. On cardboard we slid down the massive dunes at White Sands and counted armadillos on the road in Texas. One summer we went to see a Great Aunt and Uncle in Oklahoma and I discovered Sonic and their amazing milkshakes!

From Florida to Virginia and the East Coast to the West, I saw a lot from my middle seat in the Station Wagon when my siblings and I weren’t fighting.

Summer brings out the best of America. It brings America outside! Now that I live in a place that’s so beautiful in the summer, the last thing I’d want to do is leave. After all, the chance of rain in Seattle in July and August is less than 6%.

We’ve found lots of traditions to continue every summer. We spend long days on the waterfront beaches. We wander through Woodinville’s trendy waterfront downtown. We visit the weekly farmer’s market with its appealing spread of fresh produce. We bike the same trails over and over because they never dull of their alluring beauty as we gaze out over the majestic white capped Olympics.

This summer the AuPairCare au pairs are joining their host families to create life long memories as they participate with their host families in annual summertime traditions: road trips, vacations, 4th of July Picnics, neighborhood BBQs, and weekend camping trips!

As I think back to the sense of adventure I gained as I learned more about our country with each site we visited across the US, I hope the Au Pairs will make lifelong memories this summer as the experience the US through their host family traditions. The AuPairCare Au Pairs demonstrate fantastic energy and enthusiasm making each day a new adventure as they provide quality childcare to local families!

A WEEK IN REVIEW

2009-07-20T00:48:00.000-07:00

Last week I had a great host family interview with an Indian Family. They offered me a glass of water in a tin cup. That moment was filled with nostalgia as visions of St Joe's Abids and many dinners of chapatti and rice flooded back to me. I wish I could go again and take my family. I would visit the market place and take my kids to Yankee Doodle Ice Cream. I'd love to stand again at the top of Golconda Fort where the wind sails around the 400 year old ruins.

It's hard for me to imagine I've been to such places when the memories fade over the years. It's not likely I'll ever visit the same villages, the same schools, or see the same people again.

Nevertheless, India was my first love. For reasons even I can't explain. I'm quite fortunate to have been there for two summers.

The last week was busy for our family. I went shopping without my children and found fairy wings and a skirt for Reagan.
It came in handy that I had these with me when I met up with Sean and Riley at the local Splash Park. Turns out, Reagan didn't like the splash park. Riley, on the other hand, adored it. He's asked every day if we can go back. The highlight was climbing to the top of a huge killer whale and sliding down its nose.
Reagan was happy to frolic in the grass in her new skirt and wings.
Saturday was trailsfest at Rattlesnake Lake.

Sean and Riley took a row around the lake in a kayak. This was Riley's first time in a small boat.

Reagan will tell you that being a little sister sucks. She entertained herself with sticks and rocks while the hot sun beat down on her and her brother was rowing around the sweet lake.

When she got bored with the rocks she dug through her bag and helped herself to Riley's sippee. He wasn't in sight, he won't know! You should also take note of the very cute bow I found for her superfine hair! Thankfully, she loves it as much as I do. That outfit was a compromise since Reagan was determined to wear her new killer whale shirt.

When Riley finally returned, he was so happy that he gladly posed for me in front of the mountain behind the lake.

After definitely not going to sleep in any uncertain amount of time, we got the kids up and took them out for another busy day.

We started out at Golden Gardens Beach on the Puget Sound. Then our family biked around Shilshole Bay, under the draw bridge, past Google and over to Gasworks Park.

This is the one section of the Burke Gilman we've never biked or run on. It was an accomplishment to see the last 6 miles of the trail.

We hiked to the top of a huge mound at Gasworks where we could see the boats coming and going through Lake Union. Riley, being the friendly guy that he is, makes friends with everyone. He didn't waste any time selling himself off to a nice lady with a kite.

She was kind enough to let Riley try to fly it!

Reagan stood by again in complete boredom, but perhaps with better scenery.

We rode back in time to see the sun setting at Golden Gardens, grabbed take out Chinese on the way home, and put our kids to bed so late that they will most certainly sleep in tomorrow morning. I guess not, but here's hoping.

Date Night

2009-07-16T23:12:00.000-07:00

We had the opportunity to head to downtown Bellevue to support the Overlake Service League and see a free movie a few days ago. We stopped by Starbucks and ran into a group of au pairs. Of course. It’s become pretty common to run into Host Families and Au Pairs every where I go. I can most assuredly find au pairs at Target, the mall, and any area Starbucks.

We dropped off our peanut butter donations, found a nice spot, put up our camping chairs, and watched the sunset. Somewhere in there, I grabbed a camera and took this guy’s picture with his wife and the President of the Overlake Service League.

Right about the time the movie was about to start, I leaned over to Sean and said, “Let’s ditch this and go see The Proposal instead.”

Off we went to the next showing movie which happened to be at Park Place. We frequent our favorite sushi bar there, but I haven’t been to the movies there in ages. Actually, I haven’t seen a non-kid friendly movie in years.

We were in line for awhile waiting for some lady to write a check. They still take those? As we were standing there, I was joking about our dating days – which were almost non-existent.

Thinking about how we hardly knew each other when we got engaged made me want to recap the story.

Sean moved to Seattle on September 10th 2002. For months I had been hearing about this guy I would get along great with. Various, non-connected friends kept telling me I had to meet him! I laughed it off – after all he was from California. He was a drummer! He went to a completely PC University and majored in politics. No way were we going to get along.

And then we met on Thanksgiving Day. There was a couple that asked us if we were dating. Sean was completely unaware that anyone was interested in setting us up and I responded by saying I’ve never met this guy before in my life! Then this ex-homeless, rough, tough guy who now works in ministries to the homeless pipes up with “Well, we’ll just have to pray for you two!” I said something about going to check on the turkey and walked away. As I walked into the kitchen I realized that it was somehow inevitable that we’d be married in 6 months. Sean thought I hated him at first until we were playing a card game that was complicated and I was the only one who could keep up.

By Christmas we were inseparable and the week after I left on a 4 week trip to Germany, Austria, Belgium, and Holland. I was home for one night before Sean left for 6 weeks on tour with his former employer. In those days, it wasn’t uncommon for Sean to be on the road 47 weeks out of the year.

In January, by day I skied, and hiked, and traveled all over Europe. By night, I talked to Sean on the phone or we instant messaged for hours. The one exception was while I was in Holland with one of my dear friends who lived there for 6 months. I didn’t have access to the internet and I wrote postcards instead.

I came home at the end of January and said goodbye to Sean who was headed to Southern California. By day we worked and at night we took advantage of our free after 9pm cell phone minutes.

I flew down in early February to meet his family and three weeks later on the 24th of February, they came back to Washington.

On March 15th he proposed. I was surprised to say the least. He had put together a scavenger hunt for me and each of the clues led to places in our neighborhood, our favorite park, and out to Snoqualmie Falls. I took the trail down to the falls gathering my notes on the way and there at the base of the falls was Sean with red roses, kneeling in front of me.

We were married on June 21st – just 7 months after we met. We’ve spent our last 6 anniversaries watching the sunset together on the longest day of the year.

We’ve been through a lot, but there’s no one else I’d rather go through life with than Sean. I’m glad he was crazy enough to propose after 3 months of knowing each other and most of it long distance.

We had a great evening out together, but I’m really thankful that we enjoy simple evenings together. We’re pretty happy to sit outside on the deck and chat over dinner while our kids play or spend the afternoon hiking or biking together. It's amazing how even after years you can love someone more and more.

Another Day in Paradise

2009-07-14T17:44:00.000-07:00

Seattle is known for its moderate climate. It's easy to fall in love with the Northwest on days like today. Our high was 75. This morning started cool and cloudy and we headed off for our weekly park date at Crestwoods Park in Kirkland. I heard someone mention a turtle park. I'm determined to find out what and where that is.

Last night I tried to capture Reagan singing all the way through Twinkle Twinkle Little Star. If I whispered, she whispered and if I held up the camera she'd stop singing and say "Cheeese!" The effort was futile. She can hardly talk and she sings entire songs. I heard Riley refer to her today as "Baby." He still calls her that instead of Reagan. "Our baby is running away!" "Here Baby, I'll push you down the slide." He's a good big brother!

Our kids are bathed and my four year old is reading a bedtime story to my one year old. Sean and I are headed out for a date night at the Overlake Service League's Summer Movies at the Park! They are showing Bride Wars at Bellevue City Park tonight. We just got back from a four mile run with the kids and we're looking forward to evening out!

2009-07-13T12:10:00.000-07:00

Summer brings a lot of playdates to our favorite places! We've hit Idylwood, Houghton, Newcastle, and Meydenbauer in the last few weeks. The water is usually cold enough to keep Reagan away and the sand toys are entertaining for both the kids. This has been so much easier than last year when Reagan was still adicted to her snowsuit in 85 degree weather and preferred eating sand.

This was my second Ride the Ducks activity with the au pairs.

Seattle is the home of the first automatic car wash in the US!

I've lived in Seattle 9 years and I still find new things everytime I'm downtown!

Our transit system is not the most comprehensive for beginners, but after missing our connection and getting off at the wrong stop, we made it there and back! I didn't have to pay for parking!

Reagan was more than glad to model her new pigtails and 4th of July outfit!

The park that hosted the Bellevue Strawberry Festival has an inviting splash pad for kids. I had no idea!

Derby Days was a success. I stood in the sun for 13 hours and acquired a fabulous tan. (Read: sunburn)

Riley took the opportunity to get his face painted! Maybe he was celebrating his first baseball game last week on the Tigers' Team!

We were next to a booth with a great fishing game and across from us, the Rotary Club was teaching kids how to drive!

I hear as soon as she can speak English, they'll take her to another country for a year.

We passed out over 500 brochures while some fantastic au pairs entertained kids with face painting and helped the kids with a Ring Toss!

We headed out to the Bothell Parade for our second year! Reagan seemed to like her outfit, but threw a crazy tantrum over wearing tights with it. I finally gave in and let her wear them even though it was 95 degrees out!

The best news this past week was that Riley passed the Kindergarten Early Entrance Test! He was so excited when he read the letter to us saying he could go to Kindergarten this fall!

4th of July

2009-07-04T23:58:00.001-07:00

Independence Day is my favorite holiday. As a teen, I had the opportunity to spend the 4th of July in various other countries. One of my fondest memories is holding sparkers in front of the Abids in Hyderabad, India. I'd never been so close to sparklers since they were illegal in my home state.

A few years later, I recall eating military ration pound cake from a metal packet in Albania. One of our group leaders had found tiny flags to stick in the top. As we rode around from location to location, listening to Brian Adams croon "Everything I do" from every beer garten in the country, we sang all the patriotic songs we could think of with our new Albanian friends.

It's the only holiday that I can recount spending with extended family over the years. I have no aunts, uncles, or cousins, but my parents had scores of great aunts and uncles and 2nd, 3rd, and 4th cousins. We visited places like Oklahoma, Texas, Tennesee, and New Mexico each summer and our journeys would usually fall over the 4th of July Holiday.

Being in other places has given me a thankfulness for the freedom and choices I have here in America. It's with much appreciation that I want to carry on strong traditions of making the most of this holiday with our children.After the 4th of July parade and a 3 mile run, we hosted a BBQ and fireworks at our home and invited our friends.

Thankfully, the Northwest weather was cooperative. We had a beautiful, hot, and sunny day.

I always learn something new. This year I learned that you shouldn't let your children bond with the turtle bombs before you light them on fire and blow them up. Reagan was especially wide eyed and in shock when the back end exploded off and the turtle started shooting flames from its mouth.

Overall, an exceptionally good day.

2009-06-25T01:18:00.000-07:00

I like taking pictures. Apparently we've trained our son to make the post of picture opportunities as well. This evening at one of his first ball games, he was clearly instructed to run to first base.
I whipped out my camera and once he saw me, he slid to a stop a foot before the base and gave this really funny pose like he was playing an air guitar.

I put my camera down for a second in shock. I was wondering what on earth he was doing. In that second, I missed the shot.

I was lucky enough to get the shot above. While he was practing his moves on the diamond, his sister was kicking a ball around with us. She's far more focused.

2009-06-18T12:56:00.001-07:00

This week we took the kids to Great Wolf Lodge. There is nothing like running head long for the first wave with your toddler only to realize that she is freaked out by water. Oops. Eventually she warmed up only to the big kid stuff. She wanted the Tornado Slide (S'ide PEEZE!") and the Sports pool with the basketball hoops. We forced her screaming to go down the kiddie slide a few times before she thought that was fun.

She also was sucked in like a bug to a light by the arcade. Riley's highlight was the CHEEZE-EE story time and Wiley the Wolf. He loves animals and adores the Easter bunny over Santa Clause. I saw him posing with Wiley several times even though we were no where nearby to take a picture.

Reagan, of course, loved the food opportunities since her love language is "Share your food" and I think she's part Italian. Initially when she HATED the entire idea of water all together...I took her to Cub Pub and we bought a corn dog and shared it together. That seemed to warm her up to the whole place.

We made it home in time for Riley's very first baseball practice even AFTER being pulled over for my first speeding ticket since 2002. Ugh. I pulled out to pass a slow car and sped up to 75 in a 60. I actually did think it was 70 since the speed limit had been 70 a few miles before that. The officer wrote the ticket down to 65 in a 60 for $93, but still. I am SO, SO, SO careful about the speed limit that I was mad at myself. Then we drove home at 68 (because 60 in traffic going 75 is dangerous!) while everyone else flew past me. I think the officer pulled me over for looking guilty since I really did at that moment speed up to pass and then slow down and I saw him right as I did it.

I'm the kind of person who goes 35 in a 35 because I've really gotten pulled over for going 37 in a 35. Sean laughed as we pulled away because he knows how serious I am about not speeding.

Oh well, we had a great time with the kids. Now for Sean to find a job.

2009-06-15T19:45:00.001-07:00

I don't think I caught any good pictures from yesterday's party, but it was one of those parties where I was so amused by my kids that I didn't exactly stop them from doing anything they were doing.I should be running right now, not sitting here typing on my blog. At least I've been working this afternoon, responding to request. I actually admitted to a host family that I asked my husband for information about La JOL-la and he laughed at me and said, "you mean 'La HOY-ya?' I thought that was really funny. My host family did not, I guess. Oh well. I've been known to do that to a lot of names in Southern California and since I'm from North Carolina and Sean is from Palm Springs, he gets quite a kick out of it.I digress. Quickly.So I have not been blogging at all. I check everyone in awhile to see if anyone comments and I think about blogging, I just don't have time. I don't know why. I've been busy doing nothing or reading or researching or whatever. I've been contemplating law school and feeling overwhelmed and talking to a lot of people. I've also been busy throwing parties for people. I set up a friend of mine who's been single for a long time who is a fantastic guy. I threw a birthday party for one of my bestest ever friends as a cover party to introduce two people and it turned out that the birthday girl had the perfect platform to introduce the new love of her life to her entire family. It was a huge event and it turned out gloriously for everyone.I have to admit I continue to struggle with the reality of whether or not prayer is powerful and not just a manipulation, advertisement, opportunity to gossip, or self promotion. I've struggled with this for a long time - maybe since the 90's. The internet is a new venue, but it's not a new issue for me.This weekend as my husband and I stood in the driveway and watched our last guests pull away, I had this rare sense of purpose in those thousands of minute by minute choices you make to do the right thing, to be faithful or obedient in the little things, to be out of your mind for the sake of Christ. I could see all of those decisions colliding into a perfectly weaved tapestry of a bigger perfect story that was so beautifully put together that I could have never done it myself. At the time, those decisions seem so insignificant or small, but they are so powerful and purposeful. It was one of those moments that made all the hardships of life seem worth it to be who are, where we are - to be available to the people in our lives. It made me incredibly grateful.Over the past few months, I've become more actively involved in obedience to what God is calling me to beyond my office space. I recently had a yard sale to intentionally draw out other moms in the area, collected phone numbers, and set up play dates. I started and Tuesday Morning Activity Group in our area with 15 other moms that starts tomorrow. I hosted this party this weekend to set up my friend that went off amazingly well. It's hard to find time to blog in the midst of all of this, but I see God at work and that has been motivating to me and moving. We've given away very good stuff we're not currently using, cleaned out our garage and our closets, made time to attend more parties we wouldn't usually have gone to, spent more time outside, and made new friends.We've also had 26 straight days with no rain. Maybe when it starts raining I'll be back to blogging more.

Memorable Experiences...

2009-06-01T22:32:00.000-07:00

I arrived in Germany on the first few days of fall in the late 90’s to be an au pair for a family with three small children. I had flown overseas many times before, but never alone. As I left Munich, I had very clear instructions to take the S Bahn to the Munchen Ost Station and where to change platforms in Freilassing. With all of my luggage for the months ahead, I trudged through the train stations trying to make a two minute connection and anxious to meet my awaiting host family.As I stepped out of the Bad Reichenhall Train Station and tried to figure out how to make a phone call using a Deutsch Telecom Phone Card listening to German Prompts, I knew I was already in over my head.Let’s skip the fact that I did not know how to cut vegetables correctly. I’m from the Southern US afterall and aren’t vegetables meant to be fried? I arrived confident in my childcare and housekeeping skills only to find I was aided by the processed market of America. (God Bless the USA!)I didn’t think twice one morning when my host dad said he wanted to me make a pumpkin pie. I’ve done that a hundred times! As I searched for the Libby’s Canned Pumpkin, I wasn’t prepared to be handed the pumpkin gourd that had been growing off a vine on the roof.I was left behind for the day with my schedule and the pumpkin. As I finally tackled the task ahead, I was mostly proud of the results. My family had (thankfully) saved a recipe from an old Libby’s can from their last visit to the states. Whew!As I happily produced the finish product that afternoon, never mind it looked a little light for pumpkin pie. I had accomplished something successfully. We served our freshly baked pie with the afternoon coffee on a cool crisp autumn day. Everything was picture perfect. Well mostly. Then my host dad said, “did you cook the pumpkin first?”“Why would I cook it?!” I responded surprised. “We’ve never cooked the pumpkin first when making a pie.” I wasn’t even flustered. It sounded like a such a ridiculous suggestion. Then my host dad pointed out that canned pumkin comes cooked already. Sure enough, my too light pumpkin pie was stringy and light because it was still raw pumpkin.I could only laugh at my rookie mistake! I can also say that while I’ve become an expert at making soups and cutting vegetables, I’ve never cooked a pumpkin for a pie since.Being an au pair in Germany was one of the most difficult and yet rewarding experiences. It was at first lonely and I had culture shock trying to adjust to a very different way of life. Did I mention it was a very different way of life?As my husband and I have been preparing for a move in the near future, we’ve been sorting through old keepsakes. One of the things I came across was a picture of my host family taken from my place at the breakfast table. All of their smiling faces are looking towards me. It’s the way I remember my host family. While I couldn’t have realized then, their family has become an integrated part of my life. My time in Germany changed my perspective of the world. It changed how I approach every day tasks and my family taught me to live life to the fullest.It’s hard to look forward and anticipate the future in that situation. I never thought I’d see my host family again. As I look back I see how our lives came together during that time to provide a memorable lasting experience. An experience which I’ve continued to learn from in the years that have passed since then. I couldn’t have realized then that I would be there after one of the host children had a life threatening illness or that my host parents would be at my wedding or that I would return with my children years later o explore the alps together with my former host parents and their children who are nearly all grown up and certainly now taller than me.The Bothell/Woodinville AuPairCare au pairs make lasting life experiences. Coming from foreign lands, they are welcomed by host families and host children to a long lasting life time of experiences. While providing excellent childcare, they have the opportunity to experience the American culture in an American home. While there might be difficult moments settling in and adjusting - I’m sure it’s an experience that continues to give back for many years to come.

2009-05-30T10:32:00.001-07:00

I've not given a second thought to blogging lately. I think of things to write while I'm driving back and forth to school with Riley, but I never remember them when I'm at home. I think I'm inspired by background music.

We had a wonderful au pair from South Africa staying with us for two weeks. She was a great guest, entertaining, and loved the kids! With Sean being off work right now, we took advantage of the opportunity and went to places like the waterfront, the zoo, for long walks, and even to Cannon Beach. We had a busy two weeks. The weather has been sunny and near 80 which is a miracle! Last summer was 55 and raining the majority of the summer.

Leane also taught me Afrikaans which was cool enough to make me think I might be interested in learning more. I had no idea it was close to German. Once I realized the combination of languages that are its beginnings, it was easier to decipher.

Leane moved to a family in Bellevue this week. She is close by and her host family kids are the same age as mine. Hopefully we'll still see her quite often.

This week we've been at parks and even the lake beach parks which has been fabulous. After Reagan took a quick swim in the lake and Sean rescued her, she didn't go any farther than knee deep in the water. It was much easier watching the kids than I thought. Riley ran away a lot last summer and now that he's older he stays pretty close to me where I can see him. Reagan is too young to wander far.

While we were there, we ran into Sean's friends from Palm Springs via Canada. Their kids were more than happy to jump into cold water. We also ran into one of Riley's old friends from before Reagan was born and then we ran into 4 of the au pairs from the area and all of their kids. I counted 18 people we ran into yesterday at various places. I guess Seattle is becoming a small town...or maybe people have listened to my suggestions that Idylwood is a great park for days like this!

Last night I went shopping with a friend and found new flipflops for Reagan. I left them at her place at the table for her to find this morning at breakfast and Sean said she was so excited. I came in and she was wearing her purple bunny jammies and her pink superstar flipflops and was swinging them in front of me to see. Very happy indeed.

2009-05-05T10:54:00.000-07:00

Sean is still looking for a job and as it is right now, it seems like he will take his mandatory 100 day break and go back to Microsoft at the end of June. In some ways, this is good for us because it's more likely that whatever company hires him will keep him, hopefully, for the next few years or longer at least.

In the mean time, he's met with a number of people who have made good connections for him. That's been encouraging. What's bad is that positions are frozen, disappear, and companies are on hold while they lay off people. Seattle was hit last by some of the economic issues and so we're not quite out of the woods in terms of how far down things will go.

I'm having a difficult time with Riley lately who seems to be bored with preschool and not making friends. He's getting into trouble a lot and the teacher has been exceptionally hard on him for small things. Her solution is holding him back while mine is pushing him ahead. Riley taught himself to read and loves learning to a point that it's a) draining to me and b) makes him seem like a nerd. She told me that Kindergarten teachers really don't like it when the kids learn how to read before kindergarten because they just memorize words. She stressed that they don't like it at all. Oh, so shall I unteach him to read? Or take away his books? Or stop him from sounding our words like million, billion, thousand, captain, public, and every street sign and list of rules we pass? If I want him to obey, all I need to do now is stand him in front of the rules and he'll read them himself. At the park recently he talks to adults and sometimes kids, but kids don't seem to be on his wavelength. So, holding him back to go to school with the currently 3 yr olds seems like a great way to encourage him in his interest for learning.

The teacher's response was "pray, pray pray!" That's fantastic! I also think that it's important to associate the God given ability to think through our decisions. For example, the first step is to have him tested by the Lake Washington School District for early entrance which he has a 10% chance of passing. I"ll go with what they say. If he fails, I'm not putting him through another year of preschool when he already is advanced passed the class he is apparently a year younger than. Instead, it would seem we're headed for home schooling which I do not want to do. On the other hand, I'm learning that Christian Schools are one fund raiser after another with little interest in advanced children and public school is...well...public school. Thankfully, we DO live in a very, very good district and good neighborhood. His class would be a good opportunity to make friends in this area which we have not.

By the middle of the year, we're planning to move to Northshore School District which is the best school district in the area. I don't anticipate moving to Issaquah or Redmond Ridge, but I suppose it's possible.

I'm just frustrated with and for Riley. I'm frustrated about the job situation, but it will work itself out.

I've been studying for the LSAT. I was doing great until I found out is also considered an IQ test and there's no way of really studying for it. WIth the pressure on, I started missing more questions. It seems that my IQ is high and I've always thought the LSAT would be a breeze if I don't clam up. You really only have one shot at it and I have to decide today if I'm taking it in June or on my birthday in September. That's it though. May seems so quick, but it would be good to have it over with and September seems too far away. If I do mediocre on it, I'll end up at Seattle U if I get accepted and if I do well on it I might have a shot at the UW which seems a lofty goal. Sean encouraged me to try even if I fail because he'd rather I try than not try at all. I suppose he's right, but I don't want to have "failed at getting into law school" on my list of accomplishments. I feel like backing down all together.

The other option we would have is to wait another year until Sean finishes school and move to a place where getting into law school with a lower LSAT is a possibility, but I would be disappointed in my IQ if I make a lower score. Even on the practice test, it shows I'm close to a 132 and I always tested closer to a 139. That's first shot on the practice test just opening the book. Maybe that's not bad. It means I would make close to a 159-165 on the LSAT if I don't panic. I need a 159 to even consider the U.

Obama made a 171 on the LSAT which is equivalent to a 148 IQ.

While I'm worried about hypothetical scores, I have not completed my expense report or sent out my newsletter for May. I guess I should go and get something accomplished.

Greek Honey Yogurt

2009-05-02T22:43:00.001-07:00

I don't like not knowing things. From an intellectual standpoint I have insatiable curiosity. There's a part of me that would rather learn new things than capitalize on the things I already know and refine them. Unfortunately, this leads to being a jack of all trades and master of none. The list of things I'd like to learn more about are endless - German, Spanish, French, Portuguese, Latin, Classical Piano, Photography, Chemistry, Diffy Q, Biology, and O Chem. Then I will be happy.

This evening I was at the library checking out books for all of us while Sean rallied the kids to the car. There was some young teenage girl that kept commenting on how many books I had...and she wouldn't stop. I had 32 books, thank you. From parenting to cooking and chemistry to Latin American history, I'm covered for three weeks. For Riley, we picked up new chapter books because my 4 year old is just like me. It's hard to remember he's 4.

Oh, and speaking of - those parenting books were for him because he's digressed emotionally which his preschool teacher thinks is an indication of his immaturity. I, having lived with him, see at as a manipulative strike against us for putting too much pressure on him at home. The gifted books say it's like having a little lawyer. Oh, is that so? I thought it was payback for my own obnoxious childhood.

Thank God for Reagan our animated nearly two year old who prefers to scream and hit and picks out dresses and matching shoes and won't go outside without head adornment of some type whether it be hats or bows. Tonight we fed her Tamarindo Candies from Mexico and she tried it, made the strangest face and chomped down on the chili powder filled candy. Then she gave it back and asked for more by signing and also shouting, "Moh Pease!" I swear southern accents are inherited. She also has a two fists in the air cheer and then holds her hand out and motions "give me more!"It's no wonder Riley's on strike. He feels out done by her now that she's talking and he has to share air space. And she's a cute girl.

I love Greek Yogurt. If you've ever tried it, you'd know the difference. I don't like yogurt unless the fruit is at the bottom and I can leave the fruit. I don't like plain yogurt because it's - well - plain. I hate mixed yogurts, they're too sweet. I recently discovered Trader Joe's has Greek Yogurt and it's the best. It's like Germany's yogurt. Trader Joe's makes me happy and while I was there I picked up a Cab Merlot blend to cap off the evening of listening to Reagan and Riley cheer for chili powder candy and argue philisophically with each other since Riley will argue with anyone strapped in next to him in the jogger stroller regardless of whether or not they can argue back. All this means is that he's training the little one to be just like him.

2009-04-24T10:08:00.000-07:00

Every time I've taken the Myers Briggs, I've come out an INFJ. It always takes me by surprise. Oh, it takes every one by surprise. No one would have thought being as verbose as I always have been that I might be an introvert. Being the deep thinker that I am, how could I possibly test a feeler? I'm an adventurous free spirit, but an on time, over organized, scheduled J and apparently so intuitive that even though I'm extremely grounded and serious, I'm more head in the clouds. From the time I was in my early twenties, I've tested very close to straight down the middle with one question throwing me a point in one direction or the other.

Of all of the combinations Myer Briggs offers, INFJ is truly the best description of me: complex, (really?) having a great importance in having things orderly and systematic, highly intuitive with uncanny insight into people, making INFJ's protective parents with high expectations of their children (you should ask Riley what he thinks about this! He'll tell you.)

INFJ's are creative and independent with a natural infinity for art and excel in sciences. They are usually found in service oriented professions. NOT DETAILED.

Only 1% of the population has an INFJ personality making it the most rare of all types. If you can imagine that being saddled with such intricate interests is both a blessing and a curse, it is. Sometimes I see directly through people and their motives and I'm rarely wrong. I am sometimes wrong, but rarely. This to a fault leads to being extremely cynical. I don't strive for perfectionism, but have a very strong sense or foundation for understanding situational ethics.

Sometimes I feel overwhelmed by my lack of accomplishments with such great interests I could be excelling at and at the same time wondering what will the future bring? I've hoped that having a public blog would be successful for me in terms of feeling I could write about anything, but in truth there are some things I prefer not to so transparent about. To be quite straightforward, I would call myself a NON-evangelical Christian in terms of the fact that I care so deeply about other people and what they believe that I can not be directly evangelical as I find this to be UN-evangelical if not done with much care. That's a very difficult thing to explain when Christianity is somehow based on our ability to spread what we believe through word of mouth, rather than quietly living out our day to day faith in a way that people might consider us different to the point of taking notice.

I've been searching for my masterpiece in hopes of becoming world renowned, I mean - don't we all want to be famous? I'm perhaps realizing, I might be a Van Gough, who never sold a painting in his life time. His art was about impressionism with an emphasis on light, not detail and it took time for people to see what he was about. In fact, it took time for everyone to understand the message conveyed by impressionism. The original introduction of impressionism was a counter to photography which was a precise mirror image of the world in that day with complete detail. Impressionist artists were inspired to find something different, to look at the world from a different perspective. "The impressionist were the first to offer a subjective alternative to photography."

True to an INFJ which is described as so intricate in interests and personalities that it can take 3-5 years to get past the surface and begin to see all of the intricate values held by these rare people. I think it would be impossible for me to ever be simple rather than complex.

I've always been inclined to love Oswald Chambers' beloved and timeless devotional My Utmost for His Highest with the entry for April 24th being The Warning Against Desiring Spiritual Success.

"Our work is not to save souls, but to disciple them. Salvation and sanctification are the work of God’s sovereign grace, and our work as His disciples is to disciple others’ lives until they are totally yielded to God. One life totally devoted to God is of more value to Him than one hundred lives which have been simply awakened by His Spirit."

Oh Oswald. You say it so well! Would you believe this has been in print since 1935 - printed 18 years after Chambers' death.

The entry I was looking for is the one I've referred back to most repetitively in my life which is July 28th God's Purpose or Mine?

I've had this copy of My Utmost since my 16th birthday when my dearest friend Ellen gave this to me as a gift and it's falling apart in the binding. The words that are on the pages have long been etched on my heart giving me the strength to move forward one step at a time in even the most uncertain of times, ensuring me that Christianity is not a fad, but a faith. It's not a club, it's way of life.

Living by God's purpose may not mean marble hallways or crowd filled stadiums, in fact it may not mean moving towards a foreseeable goal at all. This is why I so deeply love Chambers' July 28th entry above any other. It's about the process. As we condition ourselves by running one race and reaching the end, we start over and the race gets longer. The valley gets wider, the mountain higher, the nights get longer. That's a bitter cup to drink, but the disciples considered it a joy to be crucified with Christ.

"What is my vision of God’s purpose for me? Whatever it may be, His purpose is for me to depend on Him and on His power now. If I can stay calm, faithful, and unconfused while in the middle of the turmoil of life, the goal of the purpose of God is being accomplished in me. God is not working toward a particular finish— His purpose is the process itself. What He desires for me is that I see "Him walking on the sea" with no shore, no success, nor goal in sight, but simply having the absolute certainty that everything is all right because I see "Him walking on the sea" ( Mark 6:49 ). It is the process, not the outcome, that is glorifying to God."

I continue to live by this. Not knowing what I'm supposed to do with my life except be me. Perhaps that's enough since it statistically seems to be rare enough that it takes a lot of energy for me to be me and for others to even know me. I continue to live out the faith I believe in with uncertainty in this world, but believing in the certainty of God and his faithfulness. Maybe I'm accepting that I might never be a mirror image of the world, but an impression of my own perspective of what I believe living that out in how I relate to others and how I spend my time, thus always being in a service oriented industry which I currently am.

In the words of Chambers', embracing the process, not the goal or even the success or the outcome, is what makes living life moment by moment precious.

I joined the gym and lost five pounds this morning!

2009-04-23T22:15:00.000-07:00

Yes! I joined the gym. This has been a huge decision for us. This one was too little. That's one doesn't have a pool. This one is too dirty. That one is hard to cancel. Blah. Blah. Blah. So we've lived in this neighborhood for over a year and done nothing except gain weight. Ugh. In our old neighborhood, we lived so close to a luxury spa gym that we could justify the price by what we saved on gas. It had vallet parking, a kid's club to die for, it was across the street from our grocery store, ahhh.

Alas, we're not driving to downtown Redmond to work out anymore. In joining a gym we wanted something that is family friendly. So we joined the Y. Their pool is warm. They aren't too far away. They have a great kid's club. It wasn't too expensive and if we hate it or end up moving it will be easy to cancel. It being easy to cancel was a winning point since we couldn't make a decision and it was better to do something than nothing at all. If only I had decided to do this 6 months ago and not in the spring. (?)

As soon as I got all of my paperwork out of the way, I went to swim laps. I went through the locker room looking for the covered changing rooms and the little old ladies seemed amused by my modesty. Ahem. And my black skirted swimsuit with pink polka dots that almost covers my knees. I decided to commerate my joining by weighing myself. I was pleasantly suprised that the official scale was five points off from my home scale in my favor! YAY! I already lost five pounds!!

Then I was a little stressed about swimming laps and getting my swim cap on straight.

Does anyone know whether the creases go to the side or to the front on your swim cap? Why doesn't it come with directions? I'm probably wearing it sideways and look pretty silly.

I reorganized the garage this afternoon. Sean has class on Tuesday * Thursday evenings this quarter. The kids and I made butterfly shaped shortcake for breakfast tomorrow morning with strawberries. I meant to make it alone while they played. First Reagan caught on and grabbed the apron hanging from a magnet on the side of the fridge. She has got her acessories DOWN. She came flailing at me with her "uh-uh-uh!!" and insisted on sitting next to the mixer on the counter. Riley didn't want to be left out, so he ended up cutting the butterflies.

Well, all in all a good evening. If I can figure out the direction of my swim cap I'll be set.

2009-04-23T00:19:00.000-07:00

So as you can see, this is not the gym. I'm very good at procrastination. From what I've figured in life so far, life is as much knowing what you aren't as knowing what you are. Ah...oh well.

2009-04-21T22:45:00.000-07:00

First Pigtails!
Decorating Cupcakes for Angie's Birthday! By the time the evening was over, she had happily swiped every gummi worm.

Not to small for Great Play, the indoor gym! She jumped right into the action to celebrate our friend's birthday!
The kids are ready to go in their bike trailer. They were ready to get out by the time we got done!
At the farm...

At Robinswood Park this morning

I was putting together a picture today. Not to be outdone, my daughter came flying at me from across the room with my son's green Crayola Art Smock screaming. Screaming is her favorite form of communicating. I used to think she was special needs, but I think she actually is just a mini me. She throws herself at life with her own sense of eagerness and determination and the words will catch up later. My current favorite is that "uh-uh-uh" can mean 15 things by how she says it.

I digress.

She flies at me as if to say, "Really, you weren't planning to do that with out me? Right?" So apparently we have a craft lover on our hands.

I also went to three parks today. That's got to be a record for me. We hit Robinswood, Kelsey Creek, and Big Fin Hill between 9am this morning and 6pm tonight. The sun has made it's appearance and will not be out tomorrow. From what I understand, it's not forecast to come back again for awhile. After the summer of 08 when we were wearing our winter woolies in late June, I suppose I have deep seated fear of missing any opportunities.

Speaking of winter woolies, we visited Kelsey Creek this morning to see the sheep that would be shorn of their abundant wool on Saturday. We saw a few friends too. My son had a field trip there with 14 other preschoolers.

In every picture, my son is with other children and I haven't taken the time to crop him out and I won't post pictures of other kids. Suffice it to say, he had a great day. Anything that involves running around, other children, and learning is right up his alley.

Tomorrow I think I might maybe join the gym. We've made a decision about one we think we like. Why does that decision have to be so tough? Leaving our first child was so easy, leaving our second in childcare has been so, so hard. I'm not exactly sure I understand the evolution of our reasoning there. I thought it was supposed to get easier with the second? Alas, I also hate running with the kids. And let me tell you swimming laps with them is even harder. It's been a long winter.

Tomorrow it's back to 55, so I guess I should probably get back to work. We don't have snow days in Seattle, we have sun days. On days like this, it seems everyone vacates the office and everyone understands why.

Mile Post 14

2009-04-20T22:04:00.000-07:00

It was 72 degrees here today and the first time we've seen the sun in a few years I think. We decided to take the kids to a new trail. First we took the wrong highway. Well, er. I suggested it and then apparently muttered that we shouldn't go that way and Sean didn't hear me. We ended up going my least favorite way through Lake City. We spent most of the drive with some circular arguement that was something about why don't you trust me over why he didn't take I-5. Hmm. I always wonder how we get from one place to another.

Then we got to the trail which looked intriguing and was capitulated by the fact that I could only see about two yards down the trail before it curved. No sooner had I grabbed my bike and aimed in the right direction than Sean mentioned we didn't have the bike trailer arm. Oh. So we loaded back up and headed home where I insisted that I had to check email, took a phone call from someone I've been playing tag with for two weeks, and the kids were still patiently waiting in the car.

Two hours from when we started, we were finally on our way. Our kiddos are happily at the height of teasing each other. They both sat in the trailer and wore their helmets, but apparently one wanted to touch the other's head and the other wanted to reciprocate, but she didn't like it. Ah. Nice. So eventually we had to pull over and split the kids up. That's not terribly easy on bikes. We made it work.

We north on one of our well trodden trails to Seattle and back which goes around the lake. It simply sparkles on days like today which reminds me why I live here...for the three days the sun shines!

By the time we turned around, I was thankful I had tossed frosted miniwheats into the bag for the kiddos since all in all we rode for more than 20 miles! Tomorrow's weather - 71! Wednesday - 55 and rainy!

Find Buddy...

2009-04-19T23:53:00.000-07:00

We had a fantastic day today. This morning we went to Eastlake which was the first time in months. We had gone through the new membership class in the fall, but weren't ready to sign our name in blood. We continued looking which turned into a huge disappointment and culminated in a lot of searching. Overall, we feel really great about what's going on at Eastlake and how it impacts and serves the community.

We celebrated a friend's 3rd birthday at Great Play which I had never been to before. It's a new indoor tumbling gym in Redmond. My son is a little old for the class, but my daughter was a kick. At first we thought she was too young. Then she got in line and followed all the preschoolers through the obstacle course. She went through the tunnel, over the logs, up the stairs, down the slide. She was in "busy bee" heaven.

Great Play used interactive media, placing frames all around the gym and the character "buddy" pops up. All the kids should run to Buddy. The first time he popped up, my 20 month old was the first one to point and run which was hilarious. She danced to music, shaking her shoulders. (I don't know where she gets her moves!) And she spun in a circle for so long she couldn't walk straight. The only surprising thing was that she didn't eat her cupcake. She was very proud of the crown she got to wear though. She was so precious, I couldn't get over her. She even went around to other parents and "talked" to them which is kinda funny for her since she's hot and cold with people and will usually let them know it.

Afterwards a groupd of us met at Zeke's Pizza for dinner and the kids ran around like wild. At first I was sitting mostly with the kids, but then I moved to the guys table and then settled for the end of the two tables and Mac and Jack. Then things were much better. I pulled my girlie's highchair over next to me and she sat through all of dinner with me and was as good as gold. I was so impressed with her. I love, love, love my daughter. I mean, I love my son too - but I'm so glad I have a girl. She's such a good girl.