February Fun at Great Wolf Lodge

Most of Washington school districts have this dumb tradition called "Mid-winter Break." We have school for 6 or 7 weeks after Christmas, er, I mean "Winter Break" and then it is time for another week off, starting with Presidents' Day. Then 6 weeks after that it's "Spring Break." This is all good when you have the money and/or time to skip off to Hawaii like we did 3 years ago, but otherwise, it's a week to sit and watch it rain (or snow, as the case was this year). So when my good friend Michelle mentioned she was going to take her kids to Great Wolf Lodge, I asked how she felt about us tagging along with them. It turned out to be a fabulous idea, and the kids had a blast together, as did the moms. For all of us, this was our first time splurging on a trip to GWL. With 84 degree temps inside, and snow flurries out, it felt like a pretty good getaway, yet was only about a 75 minute drive from home.

My Teenager

Is it possible Tristan is a teenager? Have I really been a parent that long?! Friends say I'm fortunate, because he doesn't really act like a teenager. He's got manners and all that uncool stuff. But he could sit on Facebook for hours, enjoys the company of girls, and wishes he had a cell phone so it must really be true.

Tristan celebrated his birthday with a smallish party at home with 5 boys and 2 girls (gasp!). They had shrimp cocktail and orange chicken and played Just Dance 2 for hours. (I should mention that a couple of the boys out-danced the girls according to the scores!)

We are also proud of Tristan for making the school basketball team, keeping his awesome grades up, and serving willingly at church.

He celebrated even more last week when he got his braces off! He could hardly wait to re-acquaint himself with popcorn and gum.

We love you, Tristan, and thank you for easing us into this whole parenting-a-teenager thing!

Double Digits!

Karina has entered the double digits! She turned 10 this month. She's been saying, "I'm almost 10" for the last few months. Usually this is in the context of, "Mom, I'm almost 10, I don't need/want you to.... (fill in the blank here)." It's been a little bittersweet to see her turn into a true 4th grader. Today she became Student of the Week in class. This is a little bit like being in the spotlight. She was asked what the best thing is about her, and she decided that it is her hair. She is pretty proud of her side-bangs, and knows how to use a flat iron to her advantage.

Anyway, we celebrated by having Mexican food on the day of her birthday, and she had a birthday party with friends on the weekend. We took them to our favorite corn maze, then had pizza and a Blizzard cake at home. She has some pretty fun and cute friends.

Happy Birthday, sweetie! We love you and hope the next 10 years go by a little slower!

Mi Casa es Su Casa

In late August and early September, we were fortunate to have several visits from friends and family.

First, my dad, a.k.a. Grandpa Roger came to watch lots of soccer (Tristan's Bigfoot tournament), and part of a golf tournament (Karina's Club Championship, in which she took 2nd place). The five of us also went golfing, explored Seattle and ate in the parking lot of Dick's Drive In.

Karina also made her grandpa's birthday cake. It was delicious, of course!

In between visits we took a last-minute overnight trip to Leavenworth. It is a beautiful little Bavarian town in the mountains 2 hours away. It was a treat to be there in the summertime - we usually visit in the winter and play in the snow.

Grandma & Grandpa B came to visit before a cruise to Alaska. We took them to Fort Casey on Whidbey Island. It was a gorgeous day, and we even saw a submarine heading out to sea.

Finally, on Labor Day weekend, our friends the Gales came from Boise to stay with us and visit with the Jensens, too. Unfortunately our short Seattle summer had ended the day before they arrived, and Brooke was under the weather. But we always have a fun time reminiscing and playing games. Obviously the friendships among our kids were renewed!

We hope more of our friends and family will come to visit us soon!

Hiking in the Northwest

Last Saturday was going to be a beautiful day in the Northwest. The stars aligned: not only was our schedule free of activities, but Jarrett was willing to go on a hike with me. Nevermind that the boat is in the shop, he was willing. So we drove all of 1/2 hour to hike the Twin Falls trail. It was beautiful and a great way to spend a Saturday morning. We may have to try that again!

Girls' Weekend at Whidbey

It seems like ages ago, but back at the beginning of July I was invited by a friend to get away for a weekend at a cabin on Whidbey Island. There were just three of us, and the "cabin" was far from rustic. It sat right on the beach, and we sat for hours watching out the big windows at cruise ships going by, dolphins swimming in the Sound, and a big blue sky. We watched movies, ate junk food, went on a short hike, and strolled an arts festival in Langley. And of course, we did a lot of talking and laughing. Thanks girls, I needed that!

Soccer Tournament Success!

We spend 3 weekends of our summer going to soccer tournaments with Tristan's select team, the Rapids. Last year the team had a discouraging season. But this year got off to a GREAT start. The Rapids participated in a tournament almost 2 hours north in Burlington, WA. The team looked so good! We ended up in the finals, and faced a tough team on their home field. The Rapids were on top 1-0 with about 7 minutes left in the game, at which point the opponent scored. Tied 1-1 at the end of regulation, they went into a penalty kick shoot out. The Rapids came up just short with 3 goals compared to their 4. While coming in first would have been amazing, the team felt really good about their 2nd place medals. It was the first time the Rapids, a team in their 3rd year, had placed in a tournament. Way to go Rapids!