How does it Sound?

Last weekend was quite warm up here, so we headed out to the Sound to go play. Well, it was supposed to be a hike, but it turned into play time in the water with a short walk. The girls had a blast running into the really, really cold water. You can see the Olympics mountain range in the background of this shot. It was nice to get out and see the beauty of the area. Just when we were getting used to 80 weather, it turned back to normal. Low 60's and rain. At least I have the photo to remind us what it was like.

A letter to Cassidy

Dear Cassidy,
When you were born, I had so many ideas for what I wanted for you. Here it is 5 years later, and all I can think is, wow. I wanted you to be smart and sassy (as I thought I had been), and you already have that. You have an unquenched thirst for knowledge. Every week you want to learn about something else, and it involves you saying, "Tell me everything about ..." You read, and not just cat and hat, but words like 'mischievous'. I am in amazement with you. I wanted you to have a good sense of humor (daddy and I figured you would need it to survive living with us), and you are so funny. You love telling jokes, making things up and making funny faces just to get someone to laugh. I wanted you to be confident. Here's the thing, I wanted you to be a confident teen ager, a confident 5 year old is a tough thing. Yet, I would never take it back. Even though your determination causes battles now, I know that as a woman you will always get what you want when you set your mind to it. You are so beautiful. I'm sure at some point you will go through an awkward phase (I'm guessing it will be menopause), but I know that you will handle it with poise. It wasn't too long ago that you said you wanted to live with us forever, and I remember saying that I doubt that you will think that way in 15 years, but secretly, part of me hopes you never move out.
I love you as big as a dinosaur poop! Which is pretty big!
Mom

Scary Nuns and the uncommon cold

The girls have been watching the movie Mulan a lot lately. It takes place in China, and has the Huns breaking through the Great Wall. We had it on in the car last week, and we here Keira in the back seat, "Scary. Scary Nuns." And they've never gone to Catholic school!

I had the worst cold last week. It was a sore throat that didn't go away for 5 days. Ugh! Lost my voice for 3 days. Kaleb, Christy and Ariannah were supposed to come up last weekend, but we had to cancel due to us perhaps being contagious still. Which we were. Keira has come down with it now. She seems to know that she's got it bad and trying to take advantage. This morning, after she woke up and said her 'tote' hurt, she informed us "I no go to school today, I sick".

Moving?

Keira has really kicked up her language. She likes talking now, which is good because she needs to practice, but bad because she likes to talk... a lot. And she is a bit repetitive right now, "Mommy, mommy, mommy. Buddy ate my crayon." Although I may have missed a few reps of Mommy in there.

Cassidy and I were chatting on Sunday morning and she said, "Mom, when I grow and become an adult, if I move into my own house, will you promise to not forget me? Don't forget that I'm your daughter?" Does she know how to pull the heart strings or what??

Do you know the Muffin Man?

Cassidy has been coming up with some creative stuff lately. This morning, I asked if we should go get some muffins. "Yeah! Let's go see the muffin man" And me trying to be cheeky said, "Do you know the muffin man?" "Yes, he works at Costco." "Don't you mean he works on Drury Lane?" "No, that's the one in the song. The real muffin man works at Costco." Now, I'm confused, so I ask "What does he look like?" "He has things all in his hair that are blue, like blueberries. They are delicious." ....really? Then later, she starts talking on her phone, and asks me to be quiet because she's talking to magic people. "You mean pretend people" "No, real people who are magic. What? Oh, it's my Mom. I had to tell you are real and magic."

At music class last week, they read a book that we have at home about dinosaurs and manners. One of the important things was that you have to try at least one bite of new food. Cassidy pipes in, "And if you eat three bites (holding up her fingers to emphasize the three) you can have dessert." Hope those other kids don't remember that.

Tulip Festival 2007

We had planned on going on Easter Sunday, but the forecast said Saturday would be better. Boy, were they wrong. At least it didn't rain on us, and the girls had a great time. The girls were a bit tired, and Jeremy's allergies kicked in, so I drove home while all 3 of them took a nap. Sunday we did yard work while the girls played outside. We had planned an egg hunt, but when the grass was up to our knees plans were changed.

The secret is out

Cassidy had her annual check up recently. She recently got a doctor kit, so it was fairly easy going, until....the shots. I had mentioned them before we went. The doctor mentioned them. Cassidy seemed to not be happy about it, but knew that she had to do it, three times. So what do you do when your child starts crying and sobbing, "Mommy it hurts, don't do it again."? Normally, I'm a whimp and make Jeremy do the shots as he is better at making them feel better and get over it quickly. I thought Cassidy was old enough that I could rationalize it out with her, but after that first poke, there was no more rational thoughts for her. She got through the next 2 quickly and then it was time to leave. The receptionist told Cassidy that she got to pick 5 stickers, and that if she didn't see any she liked that she could look through her secret box of stickers. Well, Cassidy had to go check it out. After making her selections, the receptionist told her, "Now, don't tell anyone about my secret stash of stickers." Cassidy said she wouldn't. I said, "Not even Keira." "Oh, I won't tell Keira. But I will tell Julianne and Tea. Oh yeah, and Angelina!" So much for secrets. She even told Jessie, when we got home, but at least she whispered it.

Parent Teacher Conferences

Friday the girls school had parent teach conferences. Usually, they are student led, which means you go into the classroom for an hour while your child shows you their favorite works. This time around, it was a sit down one-on-one with the teacher. Since the alloted time was 30 minutes total for both girls, it was a nice change for me. Happy to report that both girls are doing great. Keira is adjusting to her new classroom, and is doing lots of practical life works. Cassidy is blossoming. She has moved up to a new reading level, and her teacher said she is starting to become a leader in the classroom. The girls are really growing, and are really great friends to each other. We are so proud!!

Leaving Las Vegas

The girls school closed down for a week for "Mid-winter break" At first I thought they must be kidding with how many days of school the kids have missed thanks to snow and power outages. Then we scrambled to make arrangements for a vacation. A real vacation. The kind where we don't have a wedding to attend, or papers to sign, or a house to sell. Wow! What a difference! We headed to my parents place and settled the girls in for a couple of days, then we packed up and headed to Las Vegas. No kids! We had a great time. We slept for 8 hours, uninterrupted! We went hiking, and on the car ride we didn't have to yell into the back seat. We went shopping, and didn't have to say, "No, we don't need a Princess *insert noun here*" We went out to dinners and didn't have to worry about what time to get back for the babysitter. Basically, it was a lot of fun. And it was nice to remember what life was like before kids. It's amazing, how much time they take up in our life and in our minds. Even without them, we thought of them often. One of the highlights from Vegas was meeting up with my college roomie's (Hi, Gayle) older sister (Hi, Aileen). She works for Wynn, and she hooked us up with dinner our first night in town. It started the whole Vegas 'experience' off with style. The next night Jeremy went to play in a poker tournament, and Aileen allowed me to tag along with her at work. She took me to the VIP room and then to dinner with some of her friends. I had a fantastic time laughing, talking and eating. It was a ton of fun to be myself and not be "Mom" "wife" or "Senior Chemist". Hmm....although none of those titles is too bad. I think the best part of the trip has been that I am energized and ready for life again. So this Senior-Mom-Chemist-Wife can get back to the real world!

You opened the door and ...

In flue Enza. So after having the girls home Thursday afternoon and Friday, and everyone was healthy on Saturday morning we thought we were in the clear. Cassidy went to a birthday party Saturday, and I feel horrible b/c she started coughing on the way back. Eek! At least it's not the dreaded "Norwwalk virus". No, that would be Keira who vomitted last night. Maybe it was just her coughing too hard, which we really believed until she vomitted again this morning. You are contagious for 3 days after onset of symptoms, so now we are in a waiting game to see if anyone else gets it here.

Worst Ever Winter

Just when I thought the Winter Worst-ever was over. This came from the school, along with a phone call to pick my kids up in an hour.
"Dear Parents,
After much deliberation about the health and welfare of our community, and consultation with the Public Health Department, the administration has made the decision to close school completely on Friday, February 9th, so that we can continue to disinfect the entire school and to prevent the spread of further illness. This decision is made out of concern for the health and well-being of our students, families and staff. We have had several illnesses in the community, however, the Norwalk Virus is of concern. If anyone in your family does have any of the symptoms below please let us know, as Public Health has asked for us to track it."

*sigh* fingers crossed that my kids are healthy.

More Winter Wonderland?

We woke up Saturday morning to temperatures in the 20's. Checked the weather, and the weathman said, "There will be a few flurries today, but don't panic it won't amount to anything." So around noon, it started snowing. No flurry, but snowing. I wanted to snap a photo of the ice rink coming down our hill, and you can sort of see the snow falling by the dumpster. I thought it might blow over, hoped it would just stop. Then after the second hour of snow, I decided to give up hope. It was a four hour flurry. Yesterday the forecast was for 39 today, but this morning they have rolled it back to 35. *sigh* Jeremy managed to get my car back this morning. So now we just need the ice to melt.

After the storm

Happy Birthday, Mom. We have been stuck at the house all day. Jeremy tried to rescue the car this morning, but was unable to make it up the hill. His car is still at his work. Our sitter was rescued this afternoon in an all wheel drive vehicle. It's the end of the week, so we are almost out of milk and the freezer isn't fully stocked up since the massive power outage right before Christmas. It has been a winter to remember with 2 months left to go. Might as well enjoy the view.

Adventure's in Babysitting

I'm not exactly sure what is happening up here, but the weather this winter has just been HORRIBLE. Today my commute home was quite an adventure, even for the babysitter who would occasionally get a phone call from me giving her an update on my position. It all started with picking up my car at the dealership in an area of Seattle that I'm not too familiar with. It had already started snowing by the time I left work, start the clock. 3:15. When I head out on the road, I look down and realize the tank is on E, literally my range predictor said 0 miles. So in an unfamiliar area, I hunt for a gas station and fill up. 3:45 Hit the road again, trying to make my way to the freeway. 4:00 on the freeway, traffic is moving, and the snow is really coming down. I decided to go across the lake, which is not the way I normally go home, but thankfully I did so. 4:15 On bridge. Waiting. Listening to traffic reports telling me how there's a car slid off the road ahead. Call sitter and inform her that I'm probably going to be late. Call Jeremy, ask him to head out to relieve sitter. 4:25 Rolled forward, finally. Start rolling across bridge. 4:50 Made it to other side of bridge. Jeremy calls, from his office. He sat in parking garage at his work for 15 minutes before saying forget it. I say, if you can make it to the freeway, I can pick you up on my way home. Continue to roll. 5:15 Jeremy calls to say he made it to another building but the cell phone service is sketchy. I ask him to come down the on-ramp of his exit so I don't have to leave the freeway. Make it past the dozen or so cars that slid off the road on the exit before the one I told Jeremy to meet me. The road suddenly clears of cars and even though the road is now covered in ice, I'm rolling along at a good speed. 5:35 I pull over on the side of the freeway and wait for Jeremy, who is running down the ramp to meet me. I move over to let the New England driver take the wheel. 5:40 We roll, merge, and move in to the lane we need to be in. 6:30 Call the sitter, we are at end of freeway, just past Target and know we will at least make it home tonight. We tell her that she's probably staying the night since the roads are so bad and that we expect to be home in an hour. Less than 4 miles to go, and I expected it to take an hour. 6:50 Make a turn on the busier street with less of a hill in hopes to make it closer to our neighborhood. Pass 3 cars on side of road. 7:00 Pass 6 other cars, one car parked next to another, with a car abandoned on the other side of the road, which leaves a passage big enough for just one car at a time to get through. With cars on both sides of the road trying to get through, we have to wait our turn, and finally turn into a neighborhood that we occasionally walk thru. 7:15 Leave the car at the 'enabler house' since we couldn't make it up the hill. Walk home. 7:40 Walk in the door. So happy to be home and have power.

Snow bound

 
The snow stuck around, and lots of ice formed under it. Not good for driving, especially after my backwards slide down a hill. So we started sledding down our street at 8 in the morning. Girls had a blast. Then hot chocolate and some TV. Lunch. Out for a walk to check out the road conditions. The sun had melted through some spots on the road above our neighborhood, but the turns to get out were thick sheets of ice with cars left on the sides of the road. Made a gingerbread house that we had thankfully picked up before the storm hit. Today, stuck again, but ice isn't so good for sledding, and the gingerbread house is made. Please melt, please melt. 

It always snows in Seattle?

 
It snowed yesterday, and it was fun. Today, we all went to work and school. They were forecasting more snow in the evening, which seemed okay. Then it started snowing on my way home. Wouldn't have been too bad until I was facing the wrong way on a hill. Thankfully, a kind stranger came by and told me to just turn my wheel the other way and put in neutral and "you'll just slide down the rest of the hill and be fine". So I slid down the hill *backwards* and was just fine. So I had to snap a photo of the house all lit up and covered with snow to end my day in a more forward state. 

Christmas Lights and Wasps

Let me start with the statistics. November has been the wettest month EVER in Seattle recorder history. This November. Ever in Seattle. The weekend before Thanksgiving there was a pause in the rain, so we rushed out to put up Christmas lights. Like all good kids, our girls were wanting to help, by climbing the ladder and stepping on the lights. So we were pleased when they went around to the back of house to play. I thought I heard crying once, so I went to check on the girls. Cassidy informed me they were playing 'lost' and both were happy. So just as we are on the last part of the house lights, I hear crying again. Go around and Cassidy is fine, but Keira is holding her hand crying. I ask her what happened and she said, "Oww." So I am trying to see what she did to her hand when she says "Oww" again, and I look up and see the swarm of wasps around us. ACKK!!! Sweep her up in my arms and run around to front of house. Jeremy gets us in house, and then says, "There's a wasp in her hair." Then another one. Finally we get her clothes off and all the wasps out of the house. After about an hour of crying she finally settled. I think she got about a dozen stings on her legs and thankfully seemed to be over it the next morning. Maybe we'll just leave the lights up this year.

Happy Halloween!

 
The girls had a great time trick-or-treating. Even though it was quite cold, low 30's. Brrr. Talk about shiver me timbers!! LOL. Not even a mermaid could paddle to the warm weather. Ha. At least the cowboy rounded up the doggies and drove them around the neighborhood before anyone froze. Oh my, I know I'm the only one laughing, but still...hee hee 

Pumpkin Patch Part 2

Keira's classroom had their pumpkin patch picnic last weekend. It was quite chilly, but the sun broke out. The girls and I did a corn maze, which was starting to get a bit long towards the end. I was nervous I would be trapped in there forever. I find the toddler class activities a bit more difficult as the parents are all trying to wrangle the little ones. Still it was a lot of fun.
  

I must be getting old

How do you know when you are getting old? Did it start when I got married? Had kids? Maybe it was when I started needing glasses to read. Although I'm guessing it was when I was driving home this week. I turned on *gasp* NPR. There's nothing wrong with NPR, but you must admit there is something "old" about it. Especially when you find yourself humming along to the filler music. What??!! I so was not humming along!!

Pumpkin Picking - Day One

Today was Cassidy's classroom pumpkin patch potluck picnic. Say that three times fast. We had a great time picking out gourds, going on a hay ride and socializing with our classroom friends. Here's a shot of her and her friends as we we headed out to the pumpkin patch on the hay ride. Next week we will do another pumpkin patch for Keira's class. I'm sure we'll have more photos then.
  

Tree Huggers

We just had a whirlwind trip to CA and NV. It seemed like every day we were heading somewhere and doing something. I think the highlight for the family was going to Calaveras Big trees. It was always a favorite place for me, and now the girls have started their love of the giant trees too. We had Cassidy try wrapping her arms around a normal tree before we went to giver her perspectiv
 
  

Muscial Beds

It all started when the stomach flu hit our house. Keira got used to falling asleep in her bed, and then ending up in our bed. So now, she does this every night around 11. Yes, yes, we should have stopped this right away, but Jeremy and I REALLY like to sleep. The best way to keep sleeping is to just get the kid to be quiet. So we thought... It wouldn't have been so bad, but Cassidy has picked up the habit of making her way into our bed around 2am. So we all start out in our normal beds, but then Keira comes in to our bed, and Jeremy will go the guest bed. Then, Cassidy comes into our bed, and I will end up going to the guest bed or Cassidy's bed. To add some more to the mix, Buddy has decided to join in the game as well. Starting on our bed and ending up on guest bed, or Cassidy's bed.

Bye-bye Kitty

This is a hard entry to write, although I have been thinking about it almost every day for a week. Mischief had to be put down last week. She's been with me for over 10 years, and that's almost as long as I've had Jeremy. She had lost weight, but otherwise seemed fine, but she was hiding cancer. We had just went through an ordeal with the other cat losing weight, but she ended up being just fine. So perhaps it was the timing that led us into a false sense of security. It was tough for me, but I knew it was the right thing to do. That doesn't stop the tears, and then I had to face the girls. Cassidy knew Mischief was going to the vet and that she was sick. Now I had some explaining to do. "Mischief had lots of owies and we couldn't fix them so we gave her some medicine so she would sleep and she could die." "But they have medicine for owies, and they could give her that." "No. They don't have medicine for this kind of owie. If they did, the vet would have given it to her." "She's dead?" "Yes." "I miss Mischief." "Me too, honey. Me too."

Keira's 1st Pony Ride

 
Keira had her first pony ride this weekend. She LOVED it, and is a natural. Cassidy already said, "She should take a pony class." 

Nana and Grampa visit

  
Nana and Grampa were in town for the holiday weekend. The girls had lots of fun coloring, drawing with sidewalk chalk and playing with Nana and Grampa. We headed out to Remlinger Farms on the last day of the visit. It tired ALL of us out, but was loads and loads of fun.

Triple Whammy!

What day is it? ... Cassidy's surgery to remove her tonsils went well. As well as can be expected for surgery on a little one. I was a basket case and cried as soon as she left us until about half an hour after she was done. Recovery was not too slow, but it was torture as Cassidy decided that ALL her medicines were yucky and she didn't want to take them. *sigh* Just about the time we are thinking we will get a full nights sleep, Keira pulls an all nighter with stomach flu. That lasts 2 days. *sigh* Finally, all seems well. We have the weekend in front of us with plenty of chances for naps and full nights sleep when Cassidy wakes up in the middle of the night. Stomach flu for her now! *sigh* Maybe next weekend.

Secret Favorite Color and Favorite Parent

Do you have a favorite color? Cassidy's favorite color is pink, purple and white. But what's your secret favorite color? She been telling everyone lately her favorite colors. Then she whispers, "Do you know what my secret favorite color is?" A dramatic pause, then "Sparkles".
Keira has always been a Daddy's girl, but she really is going a bit far with it lately. Keira's car seat is on my side of the car, so when we arrive at a destination, I open the door. Keira immediately grabs her buckle and shouts, "No, Daddy!" It might bother me more, but when she is fussy or, my personal favorite, poopy she still prefers Daddy. I can deal with that.

Teeney Tennis

 
Cassidy had 2 sets of tennis camps this summer. She loved both of them, although I think she preferred the blonde surfer teacher pictured in this lesson. She has quite the volley and a beautiful ground stroke . . . with a beach ball. 

Happy 4th of July...late

  

When I grow up...

Four and a half must be the age that kids start thinking about what they want to do when they grow up. Cassidy has been talking a lot about what she would like to do when she's an adult. Things like, Marry Daddy. She also said she wants to be a teacher and live with us, FOREVER. I explained that it might be different when she's older and has her own kids, and she said, "But if I live with you, you can see them every day!" Man, she's good. Her latest idea is that she wants to be a Mommy when she grows up. *sigh*, must be doing something right.

Pink hair and Pirates

Why do all my funny stories start with a trip to McDonald's?? The latest Happy Meal toy is for Pirates of the Caribean (which is rated PG-13). Cassidy got a magic 8 ball in a skull. You lift the eye patch to find things like, Yo-ho-ho Maybe so. Keira got a blow up sword. Yes, you read that correctly. Funny how kids know what to do, she immediately tried to stab us with it. We told her you couldn't poke people and so she started attacking Buddy. Poor dog. Cassidy has been on a pink kick lately. Her latest request was to have pink hair. She told me that and then asked how she could do it. I told her about putting in hair dye and thankfully she said, "So when I'm an adult I can make my hair pink?" "Yes. When you're an adult you can make your hair pink." Phew!

Life In-germs

We had pancakes for breakfast today, and all the girls helped out. Cassidy wanted to help, and so Keira wanted to help too. Since they both can't stir the mix, I put some flour in a bowl for Keira. She had a great time stirring, and then took a big bite! She then figured out that dipping her hands in the flour and lifting them out again made it look like snow. She 'snowed' all over the floor and counters. At least no one was fussing and the clean up wasn't too bad. Daddy normally does pancakes, but he was watching England in the World Cup (sadly lose). During halftime they had a commercial about life insurance on, with a Dad and his son, and the son asks if they have life insurance. Cassidy turns to me and asks, "Life in germs. Why would you have life in germs?"

End of Year

 
Last weekend was the End of Year Party for Cassidy's school. My brother, Kaleb, was in town for the weekend, so he joined us for the event. Of course, it's my brother, so he couldn't resist stirring things up. He got Cassidy to return his "moose ears" along with her best friend Angelina. I didn't realize I was going to catch them in the act with the photo, but it is fun. She did a great preformance for Nana and Grampa before we went, and even sang the songs again the next day for Grandpa Oma for Father's Day. Much to my Dad's dismay, I think, Cassidy remembered all the versus of It's a Small World, and since I interrupted her she started over. Kaleb, Christy and Ariannah were in town for a baseball game. Although Ariannah was in town to stay with her cousins while her parents went to the game. The girls had a great time together. Cassidy was busy trying to give hugs to her little cousin, Keira was busy trying to protect her toys, "No, mine" and Ariannah was just doing her own thing, "Bahwwl" as she pointed out every ball in the house. We had them over for brunch on Father's Day and Cassidy almost started crying when it was time for her little cousin to go. It's a world of laughter, it's a world of tears. It's a world of hopes and a world of fears. There's so much that we share that it's time we're aware that it's a small world after all. 

Birthday Party Bonanza

Phew! What a weekend! Cassidy had a birthday party to attend on Saturday. It was an all girl affair, and quite fun. Then today Keira had a b-day party to attend. This was not gender selective and at a fire house, so it was CRAZY. Siblings had not been mentioned on the invite, but we didn't have time to pick up the gift before the party, so Cassidy and I crashed with the present an hour in. When I came in Keira was having a blast, and looked too cute in her fire hat. It turns out one of Cassidy's school mates was also at the party with his little sister. Cassidy sat next to me while Jeremy told us all about the tour and other events. I noticed the class mate working on a drawing. He saw me, and then sort of hid the paper. A few minutes later on top of the pizza plate Cassidy had been using was a folded up drawing, with her name written on it. I had to preserve her first piece of fan mail. It's really a very good drawing, and he did great trying to spell her name. I'm sure it was just a friendly gesture, but it's too cute to think that she's getting tokens of affection.
  

Yummy yummy marshmallow eater Puffin Noonan

Phew, what a weekend! We went to see Cirque De Soleil's Varekai yesterday. The girls LOVED it. Cassidy asked to see it again today, until she remembered she was having a play date with her best friend. We dropped her off for a couple of hours and then came back to chat with the parents for a few before the tearful goodbye. The play date ended with Cassidy buckled in the car, asking to roll down the window so she could scream out, "I LOVE YOU, ANGELINA" with tears streaming down her face. The loooong weekend came to a close by Cassidy asking to read Jeremy and I a story tonight. It was a book titled, 'Welcome back, Puffin'. A brief synopsis follows. Puffin was flying back to her home, carrying her imaginary friends, who called Puffin "Plane". A lengthy description of the colors of the imaginary friends followed. Finally the baby puffin arrived, who ate 20 fish and 20 salami. Then when baby puffin was left all alone, he had to name himself. He thought, "I like marshmallows, so I will call myself, 'Yummy yummy marshmallow eater' for my first name. 'Puffin' for my middle name and 'Noonan' for my last name." At which point Jeremy and I started laughing and our interest in the story increased. Turns out Y.Y.M.E.P.N. went back to the ocean and ate 20 fish, he was also hunting salami when a shark came and ate the salami. It ended well when more salami showed up and the puffin ate that. The End.

Never leaving the nest...maybe

It is HOT. Okay, by our standards, 85 is HOT. The girls were very fussy today because of the heat, and it was a bit tough to get them down. I laid down with Cassidy for a few minutes, at which point she told me, "Mommy, I want to stay here forever. I don't want to leave our house. I want to live with our family for ever and ever." I told her she could stay as long as she wanted. We'll have to wait and see how this one turns out.

Mothers Day

 
The girls were kind enough to pose with me this morning. We had a BEAUTIFUL day today, and decided to head to the zoo. The girls had a ton of fun, as did I. Jeremy did great by doing most of the kid wrangling. Then we did some yard work in the early afternoon, followed up by a trip to Trader Joe's. It was quite the busy day. Keira fell asleep on the ride home with a book over her, and that pic is posted below this one. Happy Mother's Day!! 

One tired kid

  

What will your Honey-dew....

if you Cantaloup? Now that warmer weather is upon us, we are enjoying some warm weather fruits. Like melon. Cassidy LOVES melon. Now when I say she LOVES it, I am not understating it by any means. I bought two melons last week and she single handedly ate 1/4 of a GIANT honeydew, that after she ate about 1/4 of a cantaloup. You think she would be done with melon for a bit, but she still wanted it in her lunch the next day, and for dessert that night.

I had a conference with Keira's teacher this week. She informed me that Keira doesn't talk at school. She doesn't say "No" or "Mine", which made me laugh out loud. Anyone who has ever talked to me on the phone with Keira in the same room knows that Keira knows how to say those, quite loudly too.

Membership has it's privileges

For Christmas we asked for a membership to the Aquarium. For months I've been asking Cassidy if she wants to go and she has been saying no. *grumble* All that changed a few weeks ago when we found a video of an octopus attacking a shark at OUR aquarium. The girls fell in love with it. Every night before bed they want to watch it. Keira calls it "shark" when she wants to watch, but then when she sees the octopus, she says, "Modster....Rah!" Which translates to "Monster, roar". So we FINALLY made it to the aquarium this weekend. We made it right at opening, and everyone was sort of milling around waiting for the ticket booths to open. Then I saw it, the membership stand, with a teen already manning the post. I pulled out my card, and the next thing I hear is, "Let me just unlock the door for you." We had the whole place to ourselves. Okay it was only for 5 minutes, but it was great. Yes, membership has it's privileges!

Date Day

Jeremy and I used to have a weekly date night. Now it's more like a monthly date night , but we still make it out for some time without the kids. Cassidy has been acting a bit, hmmm...the word I want isn't really invented yet so I'll skip it, lately. We had a pony pals class scheduled this weekend, and I thought maybe Cassidy could use some time without Jeremy and little sis. I told her we were going to have a date, and we headed off to lunch together. After lunch, we headed off to class, and I dutifully walked by her and the pony in the POURING rain. After class we headed off to look at some other animals. To finish off our date day we headed to Starbucks to warm up with some hot chocolate and a Grande nonfat latte. (Yes I've graduated from a tall.) It was a fun time even though the weather was sort of cold and bleak. I think I have found a new date partner.

Tulip Festival

 
Oma was out last week to watch the girls while school was out. We headed to the Tulip Festival for some R&R. The girls had a blast. Even though Cassidy calls Tulip Town "Ice Cream Town" now. 

I love you a lot

Tonight after baths, Cassidy was jumping on our bed and being a little wild. She kicked me, and I asked her to apologize for hurting me. She did and then gave me a big hug. Then as she continued to jump, she told me, "Mom, I love you a lot." "I love you too." "I love you more than you me." "Oh, really. You love me more than I love you?" "Yeah. A million million more. I love you as big as Triceratops Poop, which is as big as the bath tub!" I feel so loved.

Twins

The girls made it to school today, and Jeremy and I made it back to work, for most of the day at least. The sitter called in sick, no surprise as she has what we have. Oops! So we picked up the girls and headed to the grocery store to pick up some dinner. The girls love the big grocery carts that are a truck or a race car, and they clammored in. We passed a woman, who said under her breath, "Must be twins." Then 10 feet past her, a woman asks Jeremy, "Are they twins?" Keira must be catching up quick. I would have never thought them twins as they look so different, but then again, they didn't say, "Identical Twins". It is obvious they are sisters though.

Recovering...at least the kids are

It has been a rough week for all of us. Keira had the worst of it with all the coughing and nose wiping. Cassidy had a hard time as she was feeling ill, but had to deal with Mom and Dad being occupied with Keira. Then there was Mom and Dad. Juggling work schedules, telecommutting and never letting Keira's feet hit the ground have been the norm. Now that the weekend is upon us, and the weather is great, Mom and Dad have sore throats and want to sleep all day. Keira, can you get Mommy some juice??

Croup, anyone?

This weekend I kept thinking I needed to blog. The girls were doing all sorts of stuff, that I have already forgotten. Darn! I feel like Dory from Finding Nemo, short-term memory loss. What was that? Oh yeah, Keira was up most of the night coughing. I suspected the *croup*, so I set Jeremy up by the cracked window for her to settle down. We took her in to the pediatrician and yup, it's the *croup*. So now Jeremy and I have to juggle schedules to accomodate the girls staying home for the rest of the week as they are "highly contagious". It won't matter soon, as the doctor asked which one of us had had laryngitis. Neither. "Well, when you do get it, now you'll know who to blame." Neh-ber!!

NEVER!

Cassidy has been playing Dr. Jeckyll and Ms. Hyde lately. One minute she's being a little angel, and even asks, "Mommy, am I being nice?" The next minute, she's fussy, bossy and mean at the same time. I'm not sure where she picked it up, but when she's a real funk and you ask her to do something she yells, "NEVER!" at the top of her lungs. Which is quite funny, in 20 years... We told her that Keira would copy her if she kept doing it, so we started giving her punishments for yelling this. It stopped, for a few weeks. It surfaced again this weekend. *sigh* Jeremy just picked up Keira to take her to bed, and she started fussing. Jeremy said to her, "It's time for bed." and Keira yelled out, "NAHBER!" Why did we have to be right?

Who's prettier?

 
I just found this picture on my camera. Seems Dad took it the other morning when Cassidy was helping Mischief get glamoured up for the day. Cassidy had asked me to put braids in her hair, and I swear she just looks angelic when she has them in. Which only lasts about 5 minutes since her curls just want to jump out. 

Birthday Circle

Montessori does a nice thing for birthdays called Birthday Circle. The have a mat with the solar system on it, and light a candle for the sun. Then the child holds a globe of the Earth and walks around the sun for each year. Very cute. They also ask you to write down memories so the teacher can share them with the class. For when she was born the teacher read off that "Oma" was waiting at home. The teacher asked who Oma was. "Oma is my grandma and so is Oma Grandpa. And I have another grandma too. Nana and Nana Grandpa. Oma is my Mom's Mommy and Nana is Daddy's Mommy. But they are my grandmas. Oma and Nana." Jeremy and I had a hard time not laughing out loud. I fully expected a report on what kind of hair they each had and what type of glasses to come out of her mouth next.

Breakfast and Lower Case Teacup

This morning, I woke up to the sounds of Keira fussing...from downstairs. She woke up early and headed downstairs to see what was going on. When no one was there and it was dark, she got a little worried. I actually found her trying to open the door to the garage. Poor thing thought maybe we had left her. Well, once I called to her, she was quite happy to tell me it was time to eat. So into the pantry we went, but I had to leave to let the dog out. When I came back, Keira had decided on her breakfast, oatmeal, and pulled out all the ingredients. Oatmeal, raisins, and brown sugar.

Jeremy took Cassidy to the doctor for her checkup. They did an eye test. Before doing the test, the nurse showed Cassidy the different symbols. Star, teacup, circle. Cassidy read the first line no problem. Then when she started on the next smaller line Cassidy read off, "Lowercase O, lowercase star, lowercase teacup." The nurse said, "I bet she knows her alphabet too". Jeremy was beaming.

Sledding Photo

 
We went sledding last weekend and the girls LOVE the snow. Here's a great shot before we went down the hill of flying death. 

The Hunt for a Family Car

Despite Jeremy's Mini being able to hold 2 car seats, it doesn't deliver 2 kids every day so well. So we have started the discussion about what we should do. Mini van? Hybrid SUV? Wagon? Well, Jeremy decided to ask the girls what they thought we should get. Cassidy was quick to answer, "a truck". Seems logical. "With mail in it. So we could be the mail man, and deliver all the mail with all the other mailmen." Hmm...sliding doors are standard.

Sledding

Something unusual has been occuring in Seattle lately. It's been SUNNY! So we decided to try and enjoy it this weekend. We headed up to the Cascades and went sledding. The girls were really excited. We climbed to the top of the hill, jumped on the sleds and pushed off. Well, we must have purchased the Olympic sleds, becuase we FLEW down the hill. Lots of fun as you're going down, but then you get towards the bottom and you aren't slowing down. There's orange fencing set up, before the 5 ft snow bank overlooking a road. *gulp* I had Cassidy with me, and I had no idea how to stop. We cracked into the netting, broke a pole, but thankfully didn't go farther. I thought, "Well, that's the end of sledding for the day". I asked Cassidy if she was all right. "Yeah. That was scary." Just as I figured. "Let's do it again!" SWEET. Amazingly though, the girls weren't into it as much as Jeremy and I. Keira managed 2 runs, and Cassidy 4. Still it was a great time heading up to play in the snow.

Less blogging

I'm sure that many of you have discovered that the biggest problem with me going back to work is the decrease in the amount of blogging going on. I think of things at work, but don't want to blog them at work. I just don't want to say something, like work was yucky one day, and come in the next day to find I'm no longer needed. ;) So here are some quick catch-up's on the girls. Cassidy came home last week and told us she was learning about "Alien-fabians", which turned out to be amphibians. Keira LOVES to sing along and dance. She also starts singing "Twinkle twinkle little star" when she sees a picture of a star. Awww.... Cassidy informed me yesterday that there is something that is always behind you, beside you and in front of you. Do you know what it is? Well, I'll give you a hint, it was a sunny day and we were outside. Your shadow! She then decided to try and get her shadow and chased it on to the garage where she finally 'caught' it. Keira is starting to get the idea of playing games as a group. Yesterday, she participated in Red Light, Green Light. It was hard to make out which color she was saying, but she loved it when we got to her. She also, mostly, followed the rules when someone else was the stop light.

An Official Seattlite

I never thought this day would come. I mean, who NEEDS a coffee every day. And when I say coffee, I mean Seattle's version of coffee, which is a latte. My new job has turned me into a Starbucks junkie. Seems all I can think about is when I'll get my "tall, non-fat, half de-caf, sugar free vanilla latte". Yes, I have an order. Even more amazing, the worker at Starbucks recognized me on Friday. My job is located a nice little walk away from a Starbucks, which is why I thought I was taking a break in the afternoons. Take a walk, and might as well get something while I'm out. Haha! I'm so hooked now, this weekend I actually went to one of the coffee huts while we stopped at a gas station. Even crazier, I can tell you that those huts are better than the big chains. Cheaper and tastier. And what ever it is they put in the lattes up here, it's got me hooked.

Birthday Party Planning

The girls have been VERY cute this week. I just haven't had a lot of time to blog it all. It all started a few nights ago, when Jeremy set them up watching one of their DVD's on his computer. Seems that Keira decided to lay on Cassidy's leg while they watched. Cassidy thought it was the best thing ever and keeps asking to watch movies on the computer so Keira will lay on her leg. *ahh* I have been busy trying to plan Cassidy's 4th birthday part. "It's over a month away" you say. Shows what you know. The whole week of her birthday is booked at Pump It Up (the inflatable party place) that is the ONLY place Cassidy wants to go. I told Cassidy that we wouldn't go to Pump It Up on her birthday (as it's during the schools mid-winter break and I didn't think a lot of her friends could make it then), but that we would have cake and presents on her birthday though. She said this, and I'm not joking or stretching the truth, "I don't care about the cake and presents. I only want to go to Pump It Up" I got the Monday after her birthday booked, phew!

The Usual

Well, at least we are trying to figure out what the "usual" is. The girls are doing great with the transition of me going back to work. Jeremy and I are trying to figure out the balance of house chores and it's been tough as he has the girls for the morning and has to get them dressed, fed and to school. My tolerance for the girls when they act up is higher. It could not have gotten much lower before. LOL So I think it was the right decision for me to go back to work.

No more babies in this house!

Otherwise known as, Keira is 2 years old!! She's been acting 2 for the last few weeks. Very stubborn and fusses when she doesn't get what she wants. She is a red head too. Whoo! Where did she get that temper?? Honestly, I was an angel. (If I'm struck by lightning tonight at least you know why, lol) Jeremy stayed at home with the birthday girl, as she was still coughing and snotty today. But after I got home from work and Jeremy got back from his doctor appointment, we celebrated. Nana and Grampa called and sang to start things off. Then the rest of Team Noonan sang, and Keira opened her presents. She really had fun opening, and was really happy when there was a toy inside. She got a Cinderella Barbie, which stopped the show for a bit. Then she got a transportation puzzle that makes the sound of the car, boat, plane, etc when you put it together from Oma. Cassidy liked that one a lot too. She also got some DVD's of her favorite shows. Then we had some cake, and it was off to bath time. She still needed to take her antibiotic though, and she hates it. So she screamed and we had to force her to drink it. Which is not easy. Then she started coughing. Real hard. And threw up the antiobiotic with just a bit of her confetti cake on our bedroom carpet. Like I said, she's acting 2, and you can't make her do anything anymore.

Happy New Year!

We survived the slightly over a week visit to Nana and Grampa. We had a good time too. Even though we brought illness with us, and had one trip to a pediatrician, and a raging fever for our trip home. Cassidy had a fever on Christmas night, not too bad, but she was warm. She also had a cough that was hanging around since before our trip, so we finally took her in, and she got some anti-biotic for a little ear infection and that was that. Seems all is going well, until Keira starts coughing on New Year's Eve day. Then her fever starts. Of course is menacing and requires lots of Tylenol, plus she coughs and says, "Owiee". We hoped she would sleep it off, but turns out she wasn't going to sleep much that night. New Year's Day and we pack up and manage to get Keira down for an early nap. Then I pass out for a little nap, which means Jeremy woke me up with about 30 minutes to go to the airport. All was well until we landed. Thankfully I gave Keira Tylenol when we landed, so while waiting for bags I was hopeful that the little furnace I was holding would shut down. By the time we loaded up the car, her fever was less, and she was singing in the car. She started a fever again in the middle of the night, and is now feeling cool, and sleeping blissfully. Fingers crossed.

What happened to Christmas?!

There are 2.25 days until Christmas. So far, I have presents for the girls, Jeremy, his Dad, and my Dad at the right place. Everyone else... well I have some of them done. And Ashley's birthday present from November is waiting with them. My Christmas cards are mostly addressed and stamped, and even have a letter on the year's happenings in them, and still sitting on the desk. What happened to Christmas? When I was a kid (or dare I say, before I had kids), I had to shop for gifts, but it was a fun outing. One whirlwind trip to the mall, and then the joy of wrapping. Then all I had to do was kick back and wait for the big day. Team Noonan has been ill since Thanksgiving. Umpteen colds and coughs, one nasty bout of intenstinal bother that would take out one member at a time, and an "it couldn't be pink eye". Which it thankfully wasn't. Then fitting in taking a new job, finding child care, and getting through daily life, and here it is with maybe 36 shopping hours left. If I had it my way, I think I would postpone for an extra week, or at least another 48 hours. Although I would settle for free Fed-Ex on an internet purchase.

Working 9 to 5

Well, I started the new job yesterday. It is WONDERFUL. It was great getting into the lab again, and seeing familiar things. After seeing what the job is about, I feel like I'll be quite comfortable in just a few weeks. I already started processing data today. :) That was fun. The commute is sort of long, but I enjoy listening to the radio, or my CD's on the way in. On the way home, I call one of my SAHM friends and we chat for a few. The amazing thing is I did some dishes and a load of laundry before I left for my first day or work, and I did some more laundry and work this morning. I love coming home to the girls who run into my arms and give me big hugs that were reserved for just Daddy before. The girls seem happy enough with our regular sitter watching them everyday now. It really is turning out to be all that I hoped. Let's hope it stays that way!

Presenting, the Great Keira

I have always called Keira 'Houdini'. Strap her into a grocery cart, turn to look at apples, turn back and find her standing in the cart just about to face dive on to the floor. Once she even wiggled her way out of the top part of her carseat. (Obviously forgot to check the position on it before we headed out, but still!) She's a girl who can't be held down, or in. Yet, she still surprised me the other morning, when about 20 minutes after putting her down for her nap, I heard her little feet padding into the family room. She has bcome quite adept at climbing out of her crib, and so no longer calls for me when she's done from her nap. "Ah, I feel refreshed. Wonder what Mom is up to. Let's go see!"

We have a french door (panes of glass if you are not designer aware) between our bedroom and bathroom. We keep it closed most of the time because Keira is fond of climbing on the counter and going through the drawers in the bathroom. This morning, as Jeremy was in the bathroom, the girls were on the other side watching. As usual, Keira was crying because she wasn't allowed to find some chapstick or play with Mom's jewelry. Jeremy thought to break the tension by pretending to walk into the glass door, stumbling and falling to the ground. Oh how the girls laughed. So he did it again. So hilarious. Then, Keira walked up the glass, pretended to run into it and fell right over. She's a quick study, and I think Jeremy was a little put off that a not quite 2 year old could do his trick.

Birthday Parties and more

Today was a crazy day, and it all started yesterday. I got a call from the company with ONE week of vacation, who said they would like to negotiate and said how about 2 weeks. Ack. Did some calendar looking, and 2 won't cut it. So I had to call them back and say 3 or no go and best of luck in finding someone. They called back, but while I was on way to a birthday party for one of Cassidy's friends. So I will find out Monday what they want. The party was fun for the kids and the parents. Talked with another Mom about doing a big party since the birthday's of our girls are one week apart. I mentioned it to Cassidy tonight (just 10 minutes ago, and I had to blog right away so I wouldn't forget). She said, "Yeah, we could invite all my friends." "Yes, that would be fun" "And Oscar too. He's not my friend, he's just someone I like to spend time with." :-O I had a feeling she had a crush on the Don Juan of El Salon Rojo. (See his description in September post Birthday Ins and Outs).
PS- We got the class photo in Cassidy's folder today, and I asked who everyone was since I didn't recognize all the kids. "Kate, Keeshav, Callie, Julianne, Austin, Oscar. He's my 'spend-timer'". No joke folks.

Snow Day!

 

It happens about twice a year. Snow in Seattle. It started during the day, which is unusual too. I headed out to the store to pick up a few things and maybe do some Christmas shopping with Keira. Well, the roads were iffy and I decided it would be best to pick up Cassidy sooner rather than later. We got home, put on coats hats and mittens and headed out. I wanted to make a snowman and Cassidy seemed interested, but it turns out she just wanted to sled. We didn't get enough for sledding. Although Keira and Cassidy did have fun throwing snow on each other and me. Especially while I worked on my snowman. At least they were kind and posed for me. 

Thanksgiving Labor

Thanksgiving is over. It wasw at my house, and we had a lot of out of town relatives come in to celebrate. It was a lot of work, getting the house ready, planning the meal, dealing with my family (my parents and my kids.) Yikes, it was a LOT of work! There was a lot of chaos. Not just today. Buddy knocked over his dog food and ate about 10 lbs of kibble Tue night. So he was up most of the night, trying not to throw up on my newly cleaned carpets. Then Wed night I had to kick all the family out b/c my girls and Jeremy were all sick with colds and just needed some peace and quiet. That helped a lot. We got everything going well this morning and it seemed like all was good. Except, the turkey wasn't done at the thigh meat level. A whole lot of other little things that felt like big things went wrong too. Amazingly, everything came out tasting good and the kids were well behaved. It sort of reminded me of giving birth though. It wasn't as bad as I thought it could have been, but I am not running out to do it again. Same with Thanksgiving. Although I think I might ask about an epidural for the next time I host a holiday.

Blues

So I got the offer from my interview, which included one whole week of vacation. And only ONE week. I had to turn it down since there is now way I can make that work with 2 kids. I am very bummed because I don't know if I could have negotiated better to get the time. I really would like to go back to work. The more time I spend with the girls, the more I want to go. I love them, but I find that I interact with them more when I haven't been around them ALL day. At least we learned about our childcare needs with this process, and are preparing for me to return to work in January. Now I just need to find another job.

Christmas is coming

Last week the toy catalog for Toys'r'Us arrived. Cassidy finally saw it this morning sitting on the breakfast table. She started flipping through and asking what different things were. She was impressed by the Barbie doll house (you know the one, with the working elevator and hot tub). I thought about it, and grabbed a crayon. I explained how when you see something that you would like for Christmas you circle it with your crayon. I have to say, Cassidy is not greedy. She really wants a stroller for dolls. So she focused on finding that. I still clearly remember sitting in my grandparents house, waiting my turn with the catalog to circle all the toys that I might like. Sure feels funny being on the other side.

Knock knock and more

It's one of those times in life when so many things are happening at once I don't know which way to turn. I was inspired during my weekend away and sent off a few resumes when I got home. Well, actually, yesterday morning. Not that it mattered much as I got a call back last night! Woohoo! I played phone tag all day today, but have an interview scheduled for this Friday. Eeek! It would be a big step and I need to make sure it's going to work. Then last night, Cassidy got the idea of 'knock knock' jokes. Sort of. After watching an episode of Little Bear, she tried this one out, "Knock knock. Who's there? Cow. Cow who? No, Cow's moo and Owl's who!" I said that Grandpa Oma would like these jokes, and she wanted to call him right away and give them a try. 3 year olds have an odd sense of humor though, so anything can be there. "Who's there? Jacket. Jacket who? Jacket's don't who." Or when you try to tell her a joke. "Knock knock. Who's there? Boo. Who Boo?" Well, that sort of defeats the joke.

Women's Wellness Weekend

This weekend I took off for 3 days without the hubbie and without the girls. *happy sigh* We took a ferry ride out to Orcas Island and signed up for classes like Yoga, kickboxing, beadworking and belly dancing. All meals were provided, the dishes were done by someone else, and only my teeth to remember to brush. It was heavenly to go back to a mindset of only worrying about my wants and needs. I had a massage, got my nails done, and an ice cream sundae for dessert. But this morning, as the time to departure was coming closer, I had a new feeling. It was a little odd, since I've never had it before. I missed my girls. I've missed Jeremy many times before, but I've never been apart from my girls for so long. I was so happy when I got home and saw a huge sign that Jeremy helped them make "Welcome Home Mommy", and a naked Cassidy still dripping from the tub because she couldn't wait to see me.

Halloween

We had quite a busy Halloween. The morning was peaceful, but then things picked up. Keira and I picked up Cassidy then headed home for lunch. After that it was time to take baths and get costumes on. Cassidy was Strawberry Shortcake (we even washed her hair with Strawberry shampoo in case anyone checked) and Keira was Strawberry's li'l sis Apple Dumpling. Well, it turns out only the hard core Strawberry fans know that, but they were still darn cute. We headed in to Jeremy's work for a quick round of trick-or-treating. Which was quite fun for Cassidy, but frustrating for Keira. She got the idea of taking candy, but didn't want to stop at 1. So every time we made her move on she would throw a fit until we got to the next bowl. We had some punch and then headed home. We only visited a few houses as it was raining. Keira did much better about going to doors, and Cassidy did great saying, "Trick-or-Treat". They managed a few Thank-you's too.

Oma the Artist

I took the girls to the book store after Cassidy's haircut. I was hoping to find some books on Thanksgiving, but the girls were more interested in running around. Until Cassidy found the thumb print book for Christmas designs. So you get a stamp pad and it teaches you how to use your thumb prints to make things like a stocking, santa, and his sleigh. Yesterday Jeremy and I were trying to watch the Penn State game, and to keep Cassidy busy. Jeremy busted out the book with Cassidy, and the proceeded to stamp away. Jeremy made a nice sleigh, and asked, "How's that?" Cassidy said, "Oma could do it better." Us, laughing! "C'mon, that looks pretty good." Cassidy tapped the sleigh and gave Daddy an "I have eyes, Dad, let's not fool ourselves."

The latest preschool fad

Cassidy's preschool schedule has been reduced. She was staying 4 days 9-3 and Fridays 9-12, but she couldn't cut it. Seems she was getting too tired in the afternoons. Was taking a rest in the book corner and was fussy and was not doing any work. So we reduced her to two full days instead of four. Today I picked her up early, so it was a LONG afternoon. While waiting for Jeremy to get home, I decided to have a glass of wine while the girls ate dinner. Well deserved. Cassidy wanted a juice box. I asked her if the other kids at school got juice boxes. "Yeah, but not all of them." "What do the other kids have?" "Angelina has milk!" "Oh." "And some kids have wine." "Oh really?" The same kids who have boob jobs for graduation presents is my guess.

Argh! Pirates in the kitchen!

Keira loves her Daddy. A lot. So she has a very difficult time letting him out the door in the morning. The only thing that seems to work is a show called The Backyardigans. Where they do lots of singing and dancing numbers. One with pirates, who say, "Argh!" And Keira and Cassidy now gladly say, "Argh!" when you ask what a pirate says.
While driving in the car yesterday Cassidy asked where her Halloween pencil was. I said, at home, on the island. She was quiet for a few. Then said, "Mom, what if the pirates get it?" "Why would the pirates get your pencil?" Another pause, "Pirates like islands, right?" "Yes. Yes, they do."

The Grandpa-Only Store

Jeremy is off to a screenwriting class this weekend, so I would be flying solo with hte girls for about 4 days, except I called my parents and begged them to stay with me. Instead of being a weekend where the girls torture me and I wonder how I will keep them entertained it has been a whirlwind of adventure for all of us. I specificaly wanted help to remove the hideous wallpaper from Cassidy's walls, and Fiday night we went to Home Depot to gather up some supplies. Saturday, the fury started, we went out to check on the salmon run in some small creeks. We didn't see any salmon, but at least made a trip to the animal farm. Then it was back home for Keira's nap and the removal of everything from Cassidy's room. The removal took quite some time (about 4 hours off-and-on for 3 adults) Yikes! It was a lot of work. We were ready to go eat after that and headed to the Downtown Center. They have a candy store there that Cassidy figured out what it was a few visits ago. When she asked to go in, I thought I was being pretty creative when I said, "I can't go in there. Only Grandpa's can go in that store." So as we are telling Cassidy what restaurant we are going to, she asks, "Is that where the chinese food restaurant is?" "Yes" "Oh. Is that where the bears you can play on are?" "Yes" "You know what that means? This is where the candy store that only Grandpas can go in is. And I have Grandpa!" Steel trap for a brain! Thankfully Grandpa was obliging and took her in and let her pick out ONE thing. One huge lollipop about as big as her!!

Dancing and Heart Beeps

Keira is a dancing, singing, music machine. She loves music, and kids shows that feature music. Backyardigans in particular. She tries to sing a long with the opening number, and will let Jeremy and Cassidy leave the house in the morning in and only if Backyardigans is on. She also loves, to turn on the boom box to find out what is playing so she can 'dace, dace'. Usually she gets static and she still manages to get down and shake her tail feathers. And the ABC song is like an old classic to her. She loves to sing that one, and I am guessing she will know her alphabet soon.

Cassidy had an interesting experience when we went fishing this summer. They cleaned the fish in front of the kids and explained the intrenal organs and such. Tonight while reading a book on bears, there was a picture of a bear catching a salmon as it jumped from the water. Cassidy asked about it, and I told her what it was. She said, Eww. I told her that it wasn't bad, after all, she eats salmon. She said, "But I don't eat them when they have their heart beeps. He's naughty to eat them when they have their heart beeps." No swallowing gold fish for her in college. Woohoo!

Pumpkin Patch Blahs

Saturday we had some friends over for dinner and cards. Keira went down at a good time, but Cassidy was up late. Wouldn't have been so bad, but the next morning we had to head out to the pumpkin patch with Cassidy's preschool class. It was a potluck lunch at a farm. For some reason, Jeremy and I were exhausted too, so it was all we could do to get there. We showed up and headed on to a tractor pulling hay to take us to the field. We picked up some big pumpkins and the girls had fun walking through all the mud. Yeah, it was fun for the exhausted parents *sarcasm*. In my state of exhaustion I made some comment to an Indian or Sri Lankan to the effect of, "all our names must sound the same to you" since I had confused her name with someone from Mothers&More. Ugh! I forgot the camera, so I don't have pictures either. At least we have 55lbs of pumpkin to remember the day.

I can't wait to be a grown-up

Tonight Cassidy said to me, "I can't wait to be a grown-up". "Why is that?" "Because I'm a little girl." "Okay. But why can't you wait to be a grown-up?" "Because I'm a little girl." These arguments are so circular. "Okay, what do you think you will do that will be so fun when you grow-up?" "Umm..Teach kids how to play piano." What's not to love about that answer??

Sibling Rivalry

We had a late night on Saturday as we went to a friends for dinner. Cassidy didn't go to bed until 9:30. Yikes. And she started her full days of preschool this week. She has been running pretty tired. Yet I wasn't expecting what happened yesterday. On our ride home from the school, Keira started shouting, "Aahh" for no apparent reason. I thought she was playing with Cassidy, but then I realized that Cassidy wasn't saying "Aahh" back in a playful way, despite Keira's giggling every time she did it. Cassidy was upset. Then it happened, "Mommy, Keira keeps saying 'Aahh' and I don't want her to." I almost started to laugh if it wasn't for the crying and Keira's random "Aahh"s. When did I become the one listening to complaints instead of making them??

Salmon Days 2005

We have been going to the Salmon Days Festival in Issaquah since our first October out here. It's become our tradition, and we LOVE it. Besides the kettle corn, ribbon fries and other food items they have lots of local crafts and artists and a parade. It's a fun day. The forecast for this weekend was RAIN, but we headed out anyway (put the umbrella in the trunk, but left it there instead of taking it onto the bus with us). We set ourselves up on the parade route, and had a great time watching the marching bands, waving to princesses on floats and seeing the horses go by. The girls must have looked extra cute, because one of the princesses looked at me and said, "They are soo cute" and Jeremy caught one of the horse riders getting another rider to "Look over at the little red heads". It rained during the parade, but we were under a tree, so it wasn't bad. We headed into the festival and got some kettle corn, and got stopped AGAIN. "Can I just stop you and stare at them for awhile?" from a nice woman, who was just in awe. It started to pour and we found an overhang to hide out under. Well, we headed out when it looked like it was slowing down, got pretty wet, and decided to leave. At least we did the parade. I took one picture, but not of us, of the rain. I'll try to post it later.

Power to the People

Today was a long day. I had Shawna and the boys over to play in the yard as it is about to start raining for 6 days or so. The combo of all 5 kids was enough to exhaust me. The girls were fed and the kitchen was clean by the time Jeremy got home (which is quiet an achievement I must say), and when he called to say he was on his way I informed him that I would be 'tagging out'. Jeremy got the girls down and we had just settled down to watch World Series of Poker when the power went out. Well, we wouldn't let a little power outage stop us. Jeremy pulled out his portable DVD player and we put on Jerry Maguire. So as Tom Cruise and Cuba Gooding are hoping into a taxi, the battery runs out. Noooo!!! I am incomplete now. So I let the dog out, but Mischief runs out too, and they both ran off into the dark. *grumble* We got the candles going upstairs and then I go out for my last check to bring them in for the night. Buddy came running, but no Mischief. Jeremy went for a drink of water and did one last check for Mischief. She cmae in, with a mouse in her mouth!! Imagine a flashlight as your only light source to try and capture a little tiny scurrying mouse. Ack! The flashing light and quick change in camera angle would make you motion sick faster than Blair Witch. Jeremy finally caught the mouse (my hero) and took it way far away from the house. We finally get upstairs and settled when the lights flash on and the TV flicks on.

Farming Twins

Friday we headed out to a small farm with some other moms from my Mothers & More group. It was a blast. The girls went on a hay ride, and played with seeds, and picked out some gourds. We will probably go back to pick out pumpkins soon as they had the best looking stuff. I thought I would tell everyone that the red heads were mine, but there were a ton there. 2 red head boys in our group and then another red head mom with her 2 red headed children. Not that was crazy, but when I looked at her oldest, my jaw almost hit the floor. It was like looking back in time. Cassidy's doppelganger. Her name is Hayden, and she lives here, and at least we've met her once. Here's a pic. Which is Cassidy?? LOL

Selfish Stores

I went out with my friend Shawna and her 3 boys on Thursday. Cassidy was in preschool for the DAY, so we threw an extra car seat in Shawna's minivan, and headed out. We went to a couple of outlet furniture stores after we had some lunch. And at the last store, the kids and us were getting tired. As we were walking around, her 4 yr old announced he had to go pee. So Shawna went to go find the bathroom. When she returned she was not too happy, as they would not allow him to use their bathroom, but sent them over to the Starbucks across the parking lot. Bradley I'm sure asked why they had to go and Shawna explained that the store was being selfish and not sharing their bathroom. We headed over to look at some of the furniture and there were signs posted saying, 'Adults only'. Shawna had had it (and so had I). She announced, "C'mon kids. Let's leave this child unfriendly store.) As we roll out the front door, Bradley leans back in and asks the lady working there, "Are you selfish for not sharing your bathroom?" Don't let a 4 yr old hear it if you don't want it repeated.

Birthday Party Ins and Outs

So, you think you can handle a 2 hour birthday party for a preschooler? The highlights follow. We arrive a little late, so already you are down to 1 hour and 45 minutes. It's at a place that features blow-up bouncy houses, obstacle courses and slides. Sound easy, until your 20 month old goes into the obstacle course and you have to follow her through to make sure she doesn't fall off the climbing wall and break her neck. Repeat 3 times. At some point enters the Don Juan of the class. He is wearing stylish jeans and a button up shirt, that has a few buttons undone to reveal his gold chain. The family is Latino, so that's not crazy, but when I caught the whiff of his cologne (which was good, btw) as he passed by me (on lap 2 of obstacle course) I couldn't help but wonder who it was for. (Thankfully Cassidy has told me on several occasions that she doesn't like him.) ;) When you finally get your little one out of the obstacle course, it is to the slide. Which is about 25 feet high. Your 3.5 year old comes up and says she's thirsty with only an hour left to go. You head out and get a drink and pray that the end is apporaching. Shouldn't there be pizza soon?? You walk back in to find that they are posing for a photo, you get your 3.5 year old set up and look around for the baby. Oh, there she is climbing the slide that all the kids are sitting at the base of. The laugh that went up when she skids and does a roll before landing in the pile of kids! Finally, pizza time. Then it's cake time. Woohoo! The end is in sight. Wait a minute, did someone say pinata? Finally, time to grab your favor bag and a balloon and head out the door. Sounds like the ordeal is over, but you have to take back your sugared up kids home!!

Madame President Cassidy

Yesterday our family participated in something frivilous, we went for a drive. With gas prices at and over $3/gal our 45 minute jaunt was needed though. When the kids are buckled up they can't get into trouble and for some reason they stay pretty quiet in the car, so Jeremy and I can actually have a conversation. As our drive started, Cassidy wanted a visor in her window to block the sun, and later, she took it out. Then immediately complained about the sun, and how Mommy took it out. I think there was even a 'Mommy ruined it' as I tried to put the visor back in place. Jeremy and I laughed as she denied the truth in front of her, and I turned to him and said, "Do you think we have the 1st woman president of the United States in the car?" We went on to discover, that she could do the job now. .... Iraq, you invaded Kuwait, go sit on the naughty stool for 3 minutes. No, no crying, and before you get off say sorry and give Kuwait a hug. .... Middle East peace would be no problem if they had Cassidy around. "Palestine, why don't you like Israel?" 'You see, it goes back thousands of years.' "Why?" 'That is a good question. My father is a Muslim and their mother is a Jew and that is why we don't like them.' "Why?" 'We have different beliefs.' "Why?" 'You are starting to make sense. I ask myself that sometimes.' Eventually, they would have to give in to stop her from asking. ..... You have some new policy change. 'Ms. President Cassidy, listen to this great idea that a lobbyist has.' "No! You listen to MY words!" .... As long as China doesn't figure out to ship her all the latest toys and Belgium doesn't send her choclates to distract her it might work out. I'm voting Cassidy in 2008!

Another McDonald's story!!

Keira has been talking up a storm. And at least we know what she doesn't like. We can ask her if she wants juice, and she will say, "No no no." She also says "Ank you" when you give her something, my personal favorite. And she even offers to share her food, but more often asks to share yours with the ever popular, "Bite". Of course, what good blog entry of mine wouldn't include something on McDonald's. I swear I should contact them and see about getting paid for my cute stories. Today Cassidy has a terrible cold, and so Jeremy picked up dinner on the way home. While Cassidy was picking at her fries, she asked Jeremy if he liked the brown ones, and held up an overcooked nub of a fry. Jeremy said no, and Cassidy took a bite, and announced, "Yummy, de-lic-ious!" Then she handed the rest to Jeremy and said, "It's a little bit yucky, but it's very not bad." Let me know if you figure out what that means. LOL

Rat Pack's Revenge

My trip to Las Vegas was FANTASTIC!! It was HOT though. I arrived and it was 113. So the first thing I did was get the a/c going in my parents place. Then Gayle and her sis Aileen came and picked me up. Gayle looks the same as when were roomies in college (thus affirming that 10 years could not really have passed). We headed to the Luxor for some dinner, and then they took me to see Blue Man Group. The highlight of the show was when a Blue Man spotted us, and I leaned to Gayle, and said, "He's coming for you." Thankfully for Gayle, he only chose to stand on her chair and dance. I had such a good time heading out with some 'women' instead of some 'girls'. LOL. I was in bed at 10, but I still felt like I was living it up. The next morning we started at one end of 'the strip' (Mandalay Bay) and made our way all the way down to Wynn. We went into Mandalay Bay, then Luxor, then skirted through Excalibur before going into NY NY. Then we hit M&M world to get some presents for my girls. It was about lunch time then, so made our way through Aladdin, then crossed over to Caesars. Had a nice lunch before hitting the Forum shops. I did a LOT of shopping, but the most expensive thing was a gift for the stay-at-home-Daddy, Jeremy, so it's all good. ;) Then we crossed back over to the Venetian for a gelato and finally made our way to Wynn. It's a beautiful place, and I would have loved to have had more time to walk around it. They had a beautiful waterfall, that goes into a pool type thing. I would have loved to have gone into the restaurant there to listen to the water and watch. But we needed to meet up with Aileen so I could head to airport. We met Wynn's right hand man (which is Aileen's boss), and then I headed to the taxi line to go home. It felt good to get back to the NW and 60 felt fantastic after the 110 we were walking around in. Jeremy loves his wallet, and the girls loved their M&M toys. I felt great yesterday morning, until the Rat Pack's Revenge struck. Too short a trip I guess.

Leaving FOR Las Vegas

Keira just threw a harmonica in my face, Cassidy tried jumping over her sister, laundry needs to get done, and dishes too. I can not wait to get out of town for 2 whole days!! I'm going to get a book and read it uninterrupted. Or maybe take a nap on the plane. Will I miss my girls? What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas!

A steel trap I tell you

I took Cassidy to piano class the other morning. Afterwards we walked past the candy machine and she told me she wanted the red candy. I told her no because she wouldn't like it. It was spicy red candy. And she started fussing at me, "No, it's not. It's good." "How do you know?" "On the second day Aunt Kathy was here, she gave me that candy." So I actually looked in the machine and there were the pack of Red Vines!! I can't believe she remembered that!! So I put in the change and bought the pack!

5 more minutes, Mom

Cassidy has decided to start staying up late. The last 3 nights hse has moved her bed time back to 9 pm. UGH! I think it's a pain mostly because she IS tired, and so we deal with fussy 3 year old for an hour before she finally falls asleep. This weekend it wasn't so bad, as she slept in a bit, which allowed Jeremy and I to sleep in. Well, I decided to wake her up early today to try and reset her clock. I opened the blinds, rubbed her back and said, "Time to wake up". Cassidy mumbled a bit, rolled over and said, "No wake up. I wanna sleep in like Daddy." I had to laugh.

Spontaneous Applause

I am NOT a business woman. I have no desire to sell anything. I don't like to be sold to, so I can't stand trying to push something on someone else. Hence, why it is difficult for me to talk about BabySock. I love it, and think everyone will like it, but I would just buy or give one to everyone I know instead of sell it. Not good business sense, I know. Last night I headed off to my Mothers & More meeting. The topic was a take on Oprah's "useful" things. But it was like the white elephant game and had a $5 limit. So I packed up a BabySock (order yours now for $29.99 at BabySock.com, use link to right and enter coupon code 'ecard' to save $5) and headed to the meeting. I was sooo nervous. I was going to have to explain what it is and hope that whoever picked it didn't have 9 year olds or something. I had one of the biggest packages and as Magic Erasers and stain stick were getting passed around, it sat. Oh, I started to get even more nervous. The woman next to me (whom I took a meal to when her daughter was born last December) said she was going to take it. Phew! Only one more person before her, and someone else picked it up. She seemed to be pleased just by the look of the fleece and then I had to go into the story of blankets getting kicked off, no one else had a product that would work, 2nd baby, used my hand stitched one again, decided we needed to make them and sell them and we launch on Sept. 1. I finished and amazingly, they applauded!! I mean, applause. Spontaneous Applause. I couldn't believe it. And as with white elephant gifts, you are supposed to steal, and it got stolen by the woman next to me, and then it was stolen from her. Other people want it too! Last night was good for my business soul. Made me feel more confident about success. In the parking lot after the meeting I spotted the woman who had the BabySock swiped from her, checked my trunk and had a pink one. Gave it to her, and she gave me a hug and told me she would tell everyone about it. Maybe I'm not so bad as a business woman.