Our two week long travel continued as our entire family headed to Lubbock on Saturday, December 28^th.  Our flight wasn’t until 11:30 am but out of Detroit so we all woke early to get everything ready, packed and in the car.  We made it to DTW with plenty of time as our first flight of the two was delayed.  The first flight was smooth but we made a grave error changing our connecting flight to Lubbock as we thought we would be missing it but it also was delayed so we had over two hours in the Dallas airport.  We got some Mexican food at a sports bar and stretched our legs a bit before finally boarding our second short flight to Lubbock.  Once in Lubbock it took no time to get our bags, our rental minivan, install the car seats, and hardly 10 minutes later were at our Airbnb only about a mile from my Grandad’s house.

The Airbnb was perfect for our family.  We had four bedrooms and the girl’s room was fun for them with a trundle bed and our bed was fun for them as it had a vibrating and other adjustment remote control.  The backyard was very large and we later learned very sunny during the day which was glorious to sit down at and the garage had two screens to watch games plus a pool table, air hockey table and darts.  Reese immediately hit the air hockey table and proceeded to challenge everyone in the family multiple times throughout the next two days.  Mom and I walked to get some basic groceries for our stay and Chad unfortunately didn’t get on his connecting flight until the next day and had to stay at the airport hotel in Dallas for Saturday night.

Sunday we woke up to 70 degree weather and sunshine and my body was initially not ready for it but very quickly soaked it all up.  After breakfast and some air hockey we set out for the nearby Higinbotham Park that I remember going to as a kid on our visits.  The girls played at the playground with Grandad while Mom picked up Chad from the airport and Bryan and I ran 3 miles around on the path.  We found giant acorns to through into the pond and soon after Chad and Mom joined us at the park.  We got a massive BBQ feast to have at the house for a late lunch and everything was so good!  After lunch we had a visit from my uncle and nephew for a few hours and Brooke and Bryan took a nap.  We then set out for a walk around Texas Tech’s campus, with Dad showing us various stomping grounds and checking out the new stadiums.  Reese got a piggy back ride from me and then Chad.  Right as we were leaving campus all of the Christmas lights came on and that was pretty special.  We had had such a large lunch most of us weren’t hungry and with Brooke’s good nap we decided to go to the nearby Alamo Drafthouse to watch the new Moana 2 movie.  This was Brooke’s first movie on the big screen ever and she did great and enjoyed it.  We got some snacks and drinks and it was a very fun experience.

Monday was the whole reason we were all in Lubbock in the first place; to say a bittersweet goodbye to my grandad.  We were up and getting ready to get to the funeral home in Lubbock by 10 am for the family’s visitation.  This was my first time seeing him and it was certainly bittersweet.  Grandad looked great and just as I remembered him.  This was also the girls first time seeing a body as my Grandpa had not had an open casket.  We stayed through visitation until noon, Bryan taking the girls out on walks as this was a long time for them to remain seated or talking to people they’ve never met.  At noon we left the funeral home and headed to Sunset Church for a luncheon.  The meal was great and it was nice to be able to talk a bit more with some of the friends and family that had come out for the day.  After lunch we set out for the gravesite service at the Wilson Cemetery where we had also attended for my Grandmom 12 years ago.  It was a windy but warm day but quite comfortable in the tent they had set up for us.  My dad’s 2^nd cousin, Clint, did the service and my dad did a great job following up with his own memories and summary of his dad and the life he lived.  It was a beautiful service.  

Following the service we drove back home so that we could all change and rest for a bit.  We knew we were short on daylight so we all went for walks, some back to Higinbotham and for a visit of my Grandad’s house and us to the closes Rush Elementary for some time playing on their playground.  Both of our girls by this point in the trip were tired, without their normal routine, and just generally difficult people.  We had thought to go out for dinner to watch the Lion’s MNF game but Brooke especially was very cranky so we opted to get take out once more and this was a good decision.  We had a delicious dinner from a restaurant called Walk In, owned by Drew Brees, and we were able to watch the Lions win a big game and get the girls in bed at an earlier hour ahead of our very early morning flight back to Seattle the next day. 

NYE started about as early as it could for us.  Our first flight to Dallas was scheduled for 6 am Central Time and was right on time.  This meant that we were leaving the Airbnb at 2:30 PST but the girls knew they had the donuts they had picked out the previous day and they were helpful in getting out the door.  We said our goodbyes and mom was gracious enough to drop us off at the airport.  We had about 90 minutes in between flights in Dallas which meant we had plenty of time to get all of the way across the airport, get some food, walk around the terminal a bit before getting on the 4.5 hour flight to Seattle.  All of us napped at some point on this flight and arrived in Seattle in mostly good condition.  We retrieved our bags, walked to the light rail and then got on the bus and were home just before 1 pm PST.  

The girls wanted to go to the kid friendly New Year’s Eve party at our friend’s Luis and Carina’s house and my one condition was that they would have to sleep on the plane which they did.  We were able to pick up groceries, make a side and get in a shower before we were heading north to the party just before 5.  We rallied with friends, fueled with food and drink, perked up with games for adults and kids and a glow stick dance party, before counting down for East Coast’s midnight.  There was again confetti canyons and a balloon drop at midnight, we sang the NYE song and then very quickly packed up and headed back home with both girls falling asleep in the car and Bryan and I falling asleep not much after.

Our 2024 holiday and end of year was all of the things.  It was a time with a lot of family and visits with old friends.  It was the end of a career and the start of a couple’s joint retirement.  It was a splash at an indoor water park.  It was filled with a lot of games, cards, and good eats.  It was the closing of a special person’s life and the remembrance of them as a person, dad, and grandad.  And it was a travel cross country to get back to our house and to kick off a new year with friends of all ages.  Hoping for good things to come in the year 2025.

— 
Chelsea

We have survived the Christmas season this year.  Never an easy task and never seems to get easier.  But like all Christmas’ there is a lot of beauty, fun, and company through all of the chaos.  Our plans for travel this Christmas evolved from one week in Michigan, coming back Christmas day, to a full two weeks away with a second stop in Texas, coming back on NYE.  Somehow I managed to reroute our flights and travel plans but logically in my brain I never pieced together that we would in fact be gone as long as we were.  Knowing that we were going to be through the end of the month/year, we tried to do as many of our typical Christmas traditions at home before leaving.  For instance, we:

• Made it to Bellevue for the Snowflake Lane parade.  Enjoyed a carhop dinner and mystery shop at Burgermaster beforehand.  Girls really enjoyed the music, waving to the participants in the parade, and being handed peppermint lollipops.  Brooke still does not like any person dressed in a full bodysuit so there was that.  We also did not even manage to leave the parade before our light up balloon completed disassembled.

• Ahead of the parade we had time to kill and managed to make it to the Bellevue Botanical Gardens Garden D’Lites display.  I wasn’t really sure what to expect but this ended up being wonderful and really peaceful.  The girls each walked themselves through the 15 minute display, enjoying and aweing at all of the lights and the weather was super mild and enjoyable.  

• We picked up our Christmas tree from the Steven’s tree sale again this year.  They always do such a nice job with this sale and event and makes it easy to get a tree and support a good cause.  Plus our tree is beautiful this year and is still thriving and looking great!

• After we got a Din Tai Fung dumpling dinner in University Village one night we made the short drive to drive through the Candy Cane Lane neighborhood to take in their lights.  This was an easy check off the list for us.
• We always have Harvest Vine coupons that we need to use at the end of the year and the day before we flew out we picked up the girls and brought them along for dinner and had a delicious meal and the girls were very well behaved.  
• And Bryan and I had our last football game of the year to attend for the epic Sunday Night Football showdown against the Packers.  We did not go into the game confidentally but did not expect the whooping we received or the extreme amount of Packers fans present.  But the weather was again comfortable and they had a really cool light show throughout the game and drone show at halftime that was fun.  The best part of the night was heading to Bait Shop Bar in Capitol Hill afterwards for some delicious food and drinks and their very unique and fun light show that they do every hour on the hour.

Not Christmas but we also had Brooke’s birthday party with her three best friends.  We managed to have a very low key party with her closest buddies and it was the least stressed out I’ve been for a party ever.  Maya, Madison and Halle and their families joined us for a pizza lunch first at Pagliacci’s in Columbia City where Brooke also opened a few presents, we sang happy birthday and enjoyed some cookie cake, and we coincidentally ran into our good friends Georgie, Sam and Chris who joined us for lunch.  We then all walked/drove the short distance over the Seattle Gymnastics Academy preschool annex for an hour of free play in their Indoor Playground event.  The girls all had matching gymnastics leotards and were so cute jumping into the foam pit, doing the obstacle courses and dancing on the mats with one another.  There was one moment that Brooke got upset with a friend that she still hasn’t forgotten but otherwise it was an easy and successful birthday party.

So moving on to the trip.  Wow!  There was a lot to share and we were kept pretty busy from the get go.  Our flight to Detroit was super smooth sailing and although we had to wake the girls early they had no issue getting up to head to Michigan.  We bussed and light railed to the airport, checked our bags and felt a whole lot lighter.  We landed in Detroit to be welcomed by Grandad who drove us back to East Lansing before we got to see Grammy and Sophie and had middleeastern food in each other’s company.

We were up early the next day for Grammy’s retirement party.  None of knew what to expect and Chad met us there.  For both Chad and I we had only ever been at her office on one occasion.  To our surprise the entire family were seated facing the crowd in a room of about 60 people while they semi-roasted my mom and our entire family.  It was so nice to be apart of this big event and the girls did exceptionally while sitting through it.  They had a large assortment of delicious cookies to enjoy afterwards and after my mom said all of her goodbyes our family headed over to One North for a great lunch, the girls even got to pick a present out from the restaurant’s Christmas tree.  From there the girls headed over to More Grammy’s house to cut, bake and ice her legendary sugar cookies with her.  This was something I did yearly with Grandma so it was so special to see my girls get to do it with her.  By the time we left we all needed a little rest before we embarked on the next phase of the day…a congratulations cocktail party with our favorite family friends Tom, Pam and Madison, Cindy and Durv, and Jennette and Terry.  It was so nice to be able to see all of these people and happy to have them over to celebrate Mom’s retirement.

The very next day we all packed our bags to set north to Frankenmuth and the Zehnder’s Waterpark and Hotel which was Grammy and Grandad’s Christmas gift to all of us.  I had never been to Zehnder’s or Frankenmuth before so I was excited as well.  We had two nights in a very spacious room with a loft and plenty of beds for all of us.  We checked in at 4 pm and immediately set out to the water park for the next few hours.  This was great, with a variety of slides, pools, hot tubs and lazy rivers for everyone in the family.  We had to convince the girls to pull away from the waterpark around 7 pm so we could all shower and have time to get dinner before bed.  We set out for Zehnder’s Restaurant in town for their legendary chicken dinner and this was such a fun experience and literally stuffed us all to the point of busting.  

Saturday and Sunday each were room service breakfast ordered in from the hotel’s restaurant which was surprisingly cheap and delicious and then the water park from 10:30 am until 4 pm.  On Saturday Texas had a big game against Clemson so we had some snacks and ordered in a delicious pizza to enjoy in the room during the first half.  The girls took the hotel’s shuttle to downtown to do some shopping and walk around while the boys finished what ended up being a close game.  We had all planned to go to a charcuterie and wine bar called Prost.  Unfortunately we didn’t think to make a reservation and were quoted quite the wait for six people so Mom offered to take the girls back to the hotel (who were wanting to anyways) and Bryan and I got to enjoy a great few hours of peace and each other’s company before walking back in zero degree weather taking in the beauty of the snow and lights.  The girls were still up of course but we were fine with the night out.  And after another six hours of swimming and slides, a pina colada, and enough chlorine to last us all of 2025, we headed back to EL Sunday, getting Lou and Harry’s for dinner and all passing out to a movie.

Monday was a fairly relaxing day for most.  We got in a workout, we enjoyed a quiet morning, and I took the girls with me to reunite with five of my girlfriends from ELHS and two of their kids.  It was super fun to see them all, and especially so as a group.  We went bowling and the kids all had a great time doing it together.  We spent about four hours there, bowling, talking and playing at the arcade before coming home for a relaxing night before the holiday festivities.  

Bryan took Reese and Brooke to a new jumping place in Lansing on Christmas Eve that allowed them to burn so much energy.  They came back home to get ready for family coming over for Christmas Eve dinner.  Most of our family joined us this year for Mom’s clam chowder and crab cakes which were delicious and followed by Grandma’s cookie platter and a grasshopper pie, plus a lot of cream bourbon.  We opened our Christmas pjs from Grandma and Papa and all loved them, read some Christmas books and went to sleep.

On Christmas morning we kept it pretty relaxed.  We had opened all of our presents back home so had some stocking gifts and a few gifts for each other to open.  We readied ourselves and then headed over to my Grandma’s house for the day.  This was the second year that they did a gift exchange that was actually a lot of fun and Bryan collected his own gift of beer and a Yeti tumbler and I am the new gin and tonic maker of the cottage (not sure about that Grandma!).  The girls got a few gifts, including a kids sewing kit that Reese promptly did it all over the next 48 hours.  A big group of us went for a nice walk through Grand Ledge and along the river trail and we finally headed back home around 7 pm where we shared some snacks and Facetimed with Bryan’s family before bed.

The next two days had no plans other than to relax and enjoy our new presents.  Sarah and Chad were coming over on the 26^th and the girls were both so excited for their visit.  They played a bunch of games with them while Bryan and I snuck out for a nice long walk around campus.  That night we all went to El Azteco for some delicious Topopo Salad, margaritas and more card games before we had to say goodbye to Chad and Sarah.  And on our last full day in Michigan, Bryan and I took turns going for runs, we took the girls to Patriarch Park, I brought Brooke with me to Grandma’s again to pick up a few things from her and have one last chat, and we finished off our money at the arcade.  Bryan and I made dinner of filets with leftover king crab cakes that came out really well and then we all packed and readied ourselves to fly to Texas the next day.  

I’ll save the rest of the trip and break for another post…now that Christmas is complete.

— 
Chelsea

It’s been a hot minute, as is my life these days it seems, and we’ve celebrated a variety of things, and we’ve mourned the loss of another.  Life is so interesting with its ups and downs, oftentimes competing for one’s attention.  We’ve celebrated everything we have to be thankful for with the annual Thanksgiving dinner and having a nice long weekend to spend as a family without work or school.  We celebrated Brooke’s actual birthday day and have her party approaching this weekend.  

And I’ve lost my second grandfather, my Grandad Gene, on December 7^th, as everyone is embarking on the joyous Christmas season and with a parent approaching a milestone lifetime achievement of retirement.  It’s very difficult balancing ones emotions, being present and feeling both of them, and understanding how and what to feel.  Bryan said he wouldn’t be surprised if I have some sort of PTSD from this time of year in years ahead and I wouldn’t either.  Fortunately, this is a time that we typically come together so we will shortly be together to embrace and enjoy the company that we do still have.  It will certainly be bittersweet but it is also wonderful knowing that we will be in it together.

Our Thanksgiving was pretty quiet this year.  Reese didn’t have school the whole week through as they are now holding parent teacher conferences during this time.  She spent the day at home on Monday and I took her and Lottie to the Children’s Museum at the Seattle Center where her and Lottie had a really great time and played until nearly closing.  We bussed back home and Sarah grabbed Lottie from the bus. 

She spent a day at Kids Club with Lottie and the last day at Lottie’s house to play so she got a lot of Lottie time this week.  We celebrated the beginning of a long weekend at the playground and then getting a delicious Szechuan dinner at Biang Biang for some spicy beef noodles, potstickers, cucumber salad and chicken karaage.  The girls did good and even seemed to enjoy the food…and watching the giant fish tank behind us.

For Thanksgiving, we were hosting Sarah and Lottie (more Lottie!) but first got a little energy out at Peppi’s Playground for an outdoor group fitness class which was a lot of fun for about 10 moms and 15 kids joining us.  After an hour of sweating we headed home, with two more girls in tow, had a little playdate while I worked on some of the dinner.  The two girls left and then Lottie came over.  I’d say our very traditional and very simple dinner of turkey, mashed potatoes and gravy, stuffing, green beans and salad came out as good as I would have hoped.  Sarah and Lottie brought over an apple crisp which was also delicious and we shared two very good bottles of wine.  All in all a good day.

We spent the next and night heading over to our friend’s Lisa and Chris’ new cabin in the Hood Canal, about a 90 minute drive.  Reese and Georgie and Sam and Brooke were all very cute and played well, although Reese wasn’t feeling her best.  We enjoyed the hot tub a couple of times, their wood stove, their fire pit and of course leftovers!  Their cabin is peaceful and serene and reminds me a lot of the cottage.  We had a good night’s sleep and woke up the next morning to enjoy much of the same, plus watch the surprising victory of Michigan over Ohio State.  We packed up to head back to Seattle around 1:30 and wanted to get home to watch the Texas vs A&M game.  Great outcome and delicious nachos for that one.

And we concluded our long weekend with a very ugly Seahawks win and then a nice sunny walk to Madison Park to play at the playground with Brooke’s buddy Madison before they left for Hawaii.  It was chilly and the sun was setting on our way home so we warmed up for a bit with some hot cocoa at Starbucks first.  And Bryan and I got a babysitter to come so that we can have some adult time out for dinner to try a new Peruvian restaurant in Bellevue (thanks to a mystery shop).  Definitely eastside vibes, décor and service, which always makes us feel a bit out of place, but we enjoyed the food and drinks and each other’s company of course.  It was a nice way to end the weekend.

Last week was mostly about Brooke.  I made 25 cake pops for her to take to school with her on Wednesday and wrapped her presents.  Reese unfortunately started feeling sick (probably lingering still from the weekend) the night before and ended up spending her first day home from school on Wednesday.  Bryan worked from home too so I took just Brooke to her gymnastics class where she finally had a buddy in her class.  She had a great time and then we headed back home to pick up the other two to go get dinner at Kamp down the street, and mostly to enjoy their Christmas decorations and fake snow machine.  We enjoyed our dinner but Brooke was ready to get home to blow out candles and open her presents.  Which we did next.  I had gotten three luxe donuts for each year of Brooke’s life and these were amazing and Brooke enjoyed it all.  

This past weekend was the difficult one.  I learned my grandad wasn’t doing well right after Brooke’s birthday and was waiting to hear what was going to happen.  Fortunately my dad got down there in time to be with my grandad and it wasn’t long before we knew definitively that he was gone.  He passed away early morning on Saturday. 

I did my best to swallow my emotions for the afternoon as I was attending the Nutcracker with Reese and five of her friends but there was definitely a lot of still raw emotion that I felt especially during the quieter moments of the ballet.  In all honesty it was a good and beautiful way to sit with my feelings but also just hard when surrounded by others.  I spent Sunday morning with the girls and then got one more soccer game in with my team before the year is over and I needed this!  

We have just this one last week of work and school and a few days next week before we go.  Of course there are so many December events in the days remaining, plus the remaining presents to buy, wrap, packing, etc but I think I’ve spent four hours already today just trying to sort out flights for our trip to Texas and I still don’t have any.  Ay my head is spinning, I can only imagine how much my parents heads are too.  We are almost there.

— 
Chelsea

Last week was my annual work powwow for my engineering group with United Rentals and I spent three (Bryan would say four) nights in NYC without the family and it wasn’t too shabby.  Of course I missed the girls and Bryan dearly but it is always nice to get away for a bit, only be responsible for myself for a change, and of course being able to sight see and socialize in the Big Apple was equally cool.

I left very early in the morning on Wednesday as I had to get to New York in time to get to downtown Manhattan for a networking dinner with a geotech firm we have worked on some projects with in Manhattan.  My flight was smooth (although bumpy with a lot of turbulence) and after over 5 hours I hit the JFK runway, used the AirTrain and subway to get to my hotel in Long Island City in Queens.  I was starving and picked up a quick bite, even though I had dinner in only two hours, and checked into my hotel room to change before dinner.  I set out solo with the Subway to Penn Station as our networking dinner was at Bourbon and Branch.  When I first arrived I was a bit stunned because it was loud, hip and packed to the brim because a Knicks game was about to start and being right across the street a bunch of fans were pregaming there before heading to the actual game.  It didn’t get much quieter though and it was difficult to have conversations with my coworkers or those from the other company.  Our room wasn’t private but the drinks and the food was flowing.  I was pretty eager to get out of there after dinner because it was so loud and I was tired.  I headed back to the hotel for my first night’s sleep solo.

Thursday was our coworking day just in the hotel meeting space while our team members from the Greensboro office arrived.  The day moved slowly without windows or fresh air but we all headed out for lunch at the market across the street for lunch and I got to stretch my legs again a bit for a post lunch coffee walk.  We broke from work at 4 pm to have some time to change and recharge before heading to dinner at the nearby American Brass with its location along the river with views of Manhattan.  I took this opportunity to walk through cute Long Island City, passing mostly those headed home from work and a surprising amount of parents pushing strollers.  I enjoyed the walk and views along the river and made it to the restaurant with plenty of time.  Fortunately on this night it was just our internal company and we had a semi-private room.  The pre-ordered dinner was served family style which I greatly enjoyed but I think most of my male coworkers found strange.  There was good conversation and great food.  I would definitely come back to this restaurant in the future.  We all headed back to the hotel via the subway to get ready for our site visit and tour the next day.

Friday was essentially our day off of work.  We all boarded our private bus to head to our site visit at JFK.  Unfortunately, the bus driver had no idea where we were going and we ended up headed to Wall Street before someone redirected him.  This added about an hour to our ride on the bus and we were all ready to disembark when we finally did get there.  The site visit was interesting, again seeing one of our larger projects using our Megabrace system.  Back on the bus we were not much later and back to the hotel for a short one hour break to get lunch and change out of our steel-toed work boots.  We were supposed to have a bus tour of Manhattan on our way to Rockefeller Center but our bus driver (don’t know what was up with this guy?) showed up way late so I opted to take the subway while I could to spend the sunny afternoon walking through Central Park first and still made it to my 2:30 pm time slot to ice skate at the Rink at Rockefeller.  Skating was fun and I’m always surprised by how quickly comfortable I get on the ice after not having done it in forever.  Only two other coworkers opted to ice skate instead of doing the Top of the Rock (which I’ve done twice before) and we had a good time.  

 After an hour of ice skating my feet were cramping and I was ready for a pick me up, which I got at the Epicerie Boulud café next to Union Station.  A coworker and I rested and recharged here before heading into a few stores and then browsing all of the vendors at Bryant Park.  I was in search of little gifts for the girls but nothing caught my eye so I left empty handed.  We met up with the rest of our group at the Bryan Park Grill for our last group dinner at 6 pm.  We again had a semi-private room and a pre-selected three course meal to choose from.  Good conversation again and a really good but super filling meal.  We all headed back to the hotel on the subway through Union Station and then said our goodbyes as everyone was leaving at different times on Saturday.

Saturday was my one day without any planned activities but logically I filled it up with my own personal interests and wants.  My old friend Maria Strangas saw my post and where I was staying and she ironically only lives a quick 20 minute walk from my hotel so we opted to get coffee together and catch up at a neighborhood café at 9:30 am.  This was super fun to catch up and great to hear how she’s been and how she likes New York.  From there I got on the subway to Hudson Yards and hit the High Line.  It was another sunny and warm day and walking amongst the crowds was actually super enjoyable.  After about a mile I came to Chelsea Market and ventured in where I got two snacks including some delicious Turkish street eats from Miznon and a delicious fish taco from Los Mariscos.  

I continued on Bleecher Street and browsed a few shops before arriving at the Tenement Museum on the Lower East Side.  Sarah had suggested this and their reviews were high plus there are one hour tours scheduled all of the time so I arrived and asked what available tour they had coming up and I got in on the 1:45 pm tour of After the Famine:  1869.  The tour was interesting to hear about the Irish Moore family who resided in this tenement back during the 1870s and what their lifestyle and New York was like during that time.  It was indeed a quick tour but I liked the history and glimpse into the city over 100 years ago.  I stopped and got a coffee in the neighborhood to fuel me through a wait at Katz Deli.  I ended up waiting about an hour, the entire time debating if I actually had the time to wait in this line to get a sandwich.  Figured I did so I stuck it out.  I finally got my hands on a pastrami sandwich and hurried to the subway to pick up my bags at the hotel and head to JFK for my 7 pm flight back to Seattle.  Have no fear…I made my flight with time to spare.  My 6+ hour flight back to Seattle was easy and I was home around 11 pm to catch up with Bryan and get ready to parent again.

Bryan and the girls held up exceptionally so.  Bryan had the hard work of getting both girls to gymnastics on day one.  They now each have gymnastics on Wednesdays starting at 3:45 so it meant leaving work early for Bryan.  They had a normal day on Thursday and then were back at Reese’s gymnastics class on Friday before heading to the TOPS movie night at the TOPS gym.  They did this last year and I took them and it was a lot of fun.  Lots of kids, lots of chaos, lots of pizza and sweets and a little movie watching.  On Saturday they all headed over to Phillip and Anne’s to watch the Texas game in the morning where the girls played with Reid and Rosalie before they headed back home to clean themselves and the house in anticipation for my arrival.

It’s been good to be back and back in my rhythm with the family and work.  The girls and I went to the library and the park and Trader Joes on Sunday to get Bryan a small break.  We finally got to watch the Seahawks win a game, and a close one to the 49ers at that.  We’ve spent nearly every night playing the card game Sleeping Queens that my soccer friend gave us and Reese is obsessed with.  We were back at gymnastics yesterday and have it again tomorrow.  Bryan got dinner and drinks with Philipp on Wednesday night and is volunteering at the last Guest Chef Night (for us) for FareStart tonight.  Brooke’s best buddy Madison is having her birthday party tomorrow and then we don’t have much going on for the weekend which should be nice.

— 
Chelsea

As it always is this time of year, with all of the holidays, sporting games, and fall festivities, the time just flies at rapid speed.  It seems like yesterday my parents left from their visit yet that was already almost a month ago and so much has happened since.  It seems a bit ridiculous that Thanksgiving is already almost here, but as I’m sitting on the airport without work to do or kids to take care of, I was reflecting on the past month of our lives.

• Fall was in full swing.  Leaves changing, football on, dark mornings and early evenings.  We took our annual fall trip to Remlinger Farms.  Lottie wasn’t available to go this year with their schedule so it was just the four of us and we had a great time.  We got in all of the rides, Brooke rode her first pony “Raspberry”, and we filled up on a ton of those little pumpkin donuts we love so, so much.  Bryan was starting to feel under the weather and rain started to fall at the end of our day which made our exit from the park easier.  We had a family dinner at Red Robin on our way back to Seattle and were all tuckered by the time we got home.

• Bryan spent nearly a full week at home fighting off a bug, I think the same bug that I had had since Labor Day that was lingering far too long.  Fortunately, both Bryan and I got antibiotics that ended up clearing it up for us and neither girl appeared to come down with it.
• We finally got Reese’s new glasses after quite the ordeal.  Same Ray Ban pink frames she had before but a different, lessened, prescription.  They still look great on her and I think it is hilarious that her two besties at school are now wearing fake glasses every day because they want to.  I guess Reese is a trend setter.
• We had our last soccer practice, party and soccer game to complete our third season.  The girls won their last game handedly which brings their record to 6-1-1.  They were a very fun teach to coach and watch.  Our party after the last practice was a good time with all of the kids having great fun with each other barefoot on the playground and pizzas and brownies to fill us up.

• We drove up to our friend’s Luis and Carina’s for their annual pumpkin carving party.  There was a lot of food and friends and Reese immediately set out to carve our pumpkin but it was Brooke who saw it through and got really into scooping out seeds and even helping out other adults with their pumpkins.  

• Bryan and I took advantage of the combined Halloween party and parents night out at the nearby Epiphany Church for a second time.  The girls had no complaints getting their costumes on and heading out in the rain to the party.  They had a piñata and I wrapped Brooke up like a mummy.  The girls painted pumpkins and then we said our goodbyes to them to get out for the two hours where friends Georgie and Sam joined them for the Parents Night Out part.  They were fed pizza, played games and read stories while we enjoyed the counter seats at Harvest Vine for the first time in a while.  It was a great, needed, night out for the two of us and the girls had a great time too.

• I was the group leader for Girl Scouts for the month of October so I had to get myself prepared and ready to lead the group in a lesson on Being Responsible for What You Say, How You Act, and Your Community.  The girls remained mostly engaged throughout the meeting and I was glad to be able to put in my dues for the year.
• Halloween was a highly anticipated event in our household this year as both Reese and Brooke were very excited about it.  The rain held off all day long until right at 5 pm, shortly before our group was planning to head out for trick or treating.  I picked up the girls at school and met Bryan and a bunch of our friends at Mira’s grandparents’ house, adjacent to the lively trick or treating neighborhood, for some pizza and drinks before setting out as a large group in the rain.  Brooke did a lot better this year but it’s safe to say that she is still not a thrill seeker like her sister.  She required a lot of carrying so I couldn’t juggle her and an umbrella and her bag of candy so we both got soaked.  We ended up losing a lot of Reese’s group throughout the night, Brooke and I couldn’t keep up with Reese ourselves so we united with Brooke’s buddies Madison and Halle for some slower paced trick or treating to finish out the night.  There was some candy sorting and inventory at home while warming up in front of the fire before bed.

• The day after Halloween we took advantage of a hotel mystery shop at the Level Hotel in South Lake Union.  Our hotel room had a separate bedroom, full kitchen, and the hotel had an indoor pool, hot tub, sauna, steam room, cold plunge, basketball court, climbing wall, game room with ping pong, pool and karaoke machines, and a kid’s room.  We took advantage of everything, made dinner of steak with a bottle of wine in our room and really enjoyed 24 hours stay here.

• We took our friend’s, Aaron and Becky (Mira’s parents), with us to the Seahawks home game against the Rams.  The weather was great, the company was great, the game was down to the bitter end but the Seahawks managed to lose the game in overtime.  What a bummer this season has been with so many winnable games that have resulted in losses.
• While we were at the Seahawks games with our friends, Reese was at Lottie’s very belated birthday party and Brooke had her favorite teacher over to baby sit and her friend Madison came over for a little playdate.  Both girls had great afternoons so at least I didn’t have any mom guilt for leaving them for a very long football game.
• Brooke has started her very first gymnastics class with her first class being a one on one session with no other kids in class with her.  Reese has started Pre Team which is a twice a week program that is all business and none of the fun but she still appears to really like it.

• This past weekend we all got our vaccines and to make it acceptable to the girls we promised them that we would go to the trampoline park afterwards.  They were both literally jumping for joy upon checking in at the doctor’s office which made the office assistant totally in awe.  The vaccines were easy peasy and we set out for the Flying Squirrel Trampoline Park in Everett where the girls enjoyed two hours of jumping, climbing walls, bounce house structures and some snacks before Bryan and I picked up poke bowls on our way back to Seattle.  By Saturday night Brooke and I were toast from the vaccine.

• Both girls had Monday off so they hung with me at home.  We had Lottie and Georgie over for the morning to keep the girls entertained and then Sarah picked up Reese to take her over to continue playing with Lottie at their place.  Brooke ended up passing out in the stroller on a walk with me so all in all it ended up being a pretty okay day with the girls at home and me still working.

I’m gone until Saturday night for my once a year Engineering Team social trip.  This year we are in NYC to pow wow, see some sights, and take a site visit of a project that we are doing at JFK airport.  I’m looking forward to the reprieve in parenting for a bit, new office for a few days, and getting together with my coworkers.  I’ll come back hopefully fresh and ready to tackle the last month plus of the year.

Chelsea

So it’s already October 23^rd, which means that I have already taken my two exams, are nearly done with soccer, are almost to Halloween, and Mom and Dad have already come and gone and time is moving so quick.  It’s been a whirlwind, I guess it always is, but geez.  The fact that the holiday season is quickly approaching is baffling to me but trying to soak up all of the moments, despite being tired from sickness.

Rewind a bit.  I had two exams in just over a weeks’ time from one another.  9 hours of total testing and I came out the other side okay.  I guess my body is getting conditioned to it.  I feel like the first one, the California Seismic Exam went well, as it should have, but I’m still waiting for my results to come in so that I can get my California PE license.  The SE, well the SE is the SE.  It’s a toss-up truly.  I wish I felt more confident that I did indeed pass this time around but there is just so much unknown to it.  It was still a very difficult exam with not enough time.  I did finish the exam this time around though and left no question blank.  I felt better in general after taking it this time but definitely spent a good week after the exam circling back around to several of the questions that I didn’t feel too hot on.  And ultimately, 20 questions are not even counted towards my score, out of 60 total, so if I did well on that portion and not the rest that would skew my feelings on the exam and my likelihood to pass.  So while I wait until January to get my results, I will be trying not to think about it and relishing not having to study during all of my available free time.

My parents came in the night of my exam and were here for a nice and long stay of 10 days which was so nice to have their help and company.  The girls couldn’t wait for their arrival and got to greet them by themselves while Bryan and I watched the Seahawks lose to the 49ers at home for Thursday Night Football.  Despite the bad outcome of the game, the third loss in a row in a very short time, we both enjoyed letting loose a bit with a few drinks and the knowledge that we would have extra adults in the house for some time.  We came home to an excited house and got ready for a full week ahead.

Reese didn’t have school the first Friday my parents were here and Brooke didn’t have school that Monday so they each got a little one on one time with the grandparents.  Bryan spent the entire week on furlough but also sick as a dog unfortunately.  And I continued to work all but the last full day my parents were here.  We fit quite a bit into the week and I think had a really good time, with the girls being on and off sweet, I think their feelings just get a bit ramped up with visitors and come out in different ways.  Here is a look at what all we did:

• Reese had two soccer practices while my parents were here which also means two sessions at the “big blue slide playground”.  
• Reese’s soccer team played the most difficult team to date and unfortunately lost their first game while my parents were here.  Reese still gave it her all but was getting increasingly more frustrated at not having scored a goal yet.  It was a beautiful Saturday though so the time spent at Jefferson Park after the game was nice to enjoy.
• We watched Texas beat up on Oklahoma on the big screen outside in the backyard.  We cooked out some delicious fajitas and used our Solo stove and new popcorn maker for the first time.
• Mom and I played soccer together for the first time in forever.  She played on my team, again in beautiful soccer weather, and Mom tied the game 3-3 with a truly beautiful goal.  It was so fun to play with her like old days and I’m just still so impressed with what she can do.
• Bryan and I attended the FareStart gala as a guest again and despite both of us still under the weather we managed to look nice and put down some drinks, which maybe set us back a few days afterwards.  It was nice to see some friends in this setting and always nice supporting the organization we love so much.
• We all got to go watch Reese in her gymnastics class Monday night where the class was probably the most difficult yet.  After the class we walked over to Jackalope for some Tex Mex food for my birthday and then headed home to have Bryan’s legendary chocolate peanut butter cake for dessert.  It was so nice having extra singers for my birthday this year.
• We didn’t have much planned for Tuesday night but we wanted to head up to “little park” with Brooke’s friends so Grammy and Grandad could see Brooke and her friends, Halle and Madison, and their cute dynamics.  My parents had enjoyed a nice walk/hike in Discovery Park with a picnic during the day.
• On Wednesday my parents took a walk through the Japanese Gardens in the Arboretum and then we got the girls after school and took the new Rapid Ride bus downtown to meet Marika at the exclusive Columbia Tower Club to enjoy its breathtaking views and happy hour drinks and food.  The views up there are truly spectacular and none in my family, including Bryan, had ever been up there before.  It was also a treat to be able to catch up with Marika whom my parents know fairly well.
• After leaving the Columbia Tower we headed over to the downtown library to marvel at its architecture and get some new library books for the girls.  We rode the bus back to our neighborhood, Bryan headed north to have dinner with Philipp, and we got some dinner at our neighborhood favorite Kamp before walking back home with an epic round of Red Light, Green Light for the girls.
• Thursday I was really looking forward to because our plan was to get the girls early and head to the eastside for some wine tasting and barbecue.  We picked up Reese and Brooke from school and then went to Novelty Hill first where we enjoyed some tastings and a charcuterie platter.  We had the “secret garden” to ourselves and found the all of the wine to be really good.  The girls even got to see them crushing and mixing the grapes.  From there we headed down the street to J Bookwalter where I had a Yelp Elite tasting for two complimentary and discount for more and we really enjoyed the tasting here complete with some rounds of Uno, candy bags for the girls, live music that was exceptional, and the BBQ food truck Outsider BBQ that I’ve been wanting to try for ages.  I can pretty much agree we all left for home in a good mood.
• Mom and I got out on Friday for a day at a spa. We were supposed to have facials but the place called us morning of having to cancel but treated us to a complimentary spa day instead.  We took the bus to South Lake Union to Banya 5 not really knowing what to expect but had a wonderful time bouncing from sauna to cold plunge to saltwater pool, to eucalyptus steam room to hot tub and back a few times, getting some tea and stretching in their relaxing room, and really retreating on a chilly wet morning.  We walked to get Vietnamese bowls from Sizzle and Crunch before heading home to meet up with the guys.  
• Our last night was a nice meal at home that we cooked together after soccer practice.  We enjoyed watching one of Reese’s favorites, Hocus Pocus, afterwards with a last slice of birthday cake.

We said goodbye to my parents Saturday morning and the house instantly felt quieter and the girls missed them.  And like usual, I have so few photos to show of our visit. Of course life has continued to chug along and I will update the events since their visit on a later date.

Chelsea

It’s been an interesting past month with a few things that have sent our immediate network into a tizzy. Fortunately, the two things that have been pretty smooth sailing are:

1.       Reese’s start to first grade

2.       Brooke’s potty training

However, one week into school having started and the Seattle Public School Board announced the highly anticipated proposals for school closures and it shocked all of Seattle.  The two proposals were targeting to close 21 schools in Proposal A (TOPS, Reese’s school, included) and 17 schools in Proposal B (TOPS excluded).  Instant panic set in for most parents throughout Seattle and meetings were set up to come up with plans to protest and advocate for schools.  The panic lasted a full week until the School Board meeting, which I watched for the very first time, which made clear to me that the Board was not likely going to vote yes on either proposal and agreed that the plan had shortfalls and was not well thought out.  The Superintendent this Monday announced that they needed to do more work and research to come up with another plan so I think everyone has settled back down from the shock of the news.

Then last week another announcement came out, that all Boeing non-union employees would be furloughed for 25% of their time.  This includes Bryan as managers are non-union employees.  Bryan will be required to take a full week off every month until the strike with the machinists is over, most likely until December.  Bryan is feeling alright with the news and I think in some ways is looking forward to having some time away from work and a few difficult employees but it is also a stressful time for Boeing and their financials in general so I know that it has caused some additional stress for him.  

Aside from this news though we all keep chugging along.

Reese:

• School has started out well and I got to meet her teacher, Ms Sorrentino, last week at their Back to School night.  Reese has not complained about going to school any day since the year started and seems to be really enjoying it all.
• Her soccer team is doing well and played the other TOPS team, who we practice with weekly, this past weekend.  It was a high stakes game but both teams looked really good and the game ended in a tie after our team had been up 5-1.
• Reese has significantly improved in soccer and really goes after the ball now.  Several parents have remarked on her defending skills, which is really what has seemed to click for her, which is quite the contrast to the rest of the team whose main focus is on goal scoring.
• Reese continues to love her gymnastics class and particularly the bars.  She’s been asked to join the pre-team, which we will try to make work once soccer is over in October.
• The takeaways from school Reese brings home the most is her knowledge of sign language.  I am actually surprised by how much she has learned.  
• We had her eye doctor appointment last week and her eyesight with the glasses continues to improve.  They adjusted her prescription slightly so we will be getting her new glasses, but getting the same frames after trying on others that were not nearly as good.
• Reese had her dental procedure about two weeks ago and her teeth look great and she hasn’t complained about any tooth pain at all.  I’m feeling very relieved with how everything went and so happy with the outcome on the appearance of them.

Brooke:

• Brooke has worn undies to school for the past two weeks and there was only one day that she came home with a change of clothes as a result of an accident.  It was not all surprising to me that the one day she had an accident was when her bestie, Madison, was absent from school as Madison usually takes Brooke with her to the bathroom.
• Brooke had a fear of pooping in the potty but as of the last two nights she is now at least attempting it so the idea of it no longer seems horrific to her.
• Brooke has really enjoyed laughing and doing silly things with Mira’s brother Max at Reese’s bus stop in the morning.  The two are pretty funny with each other and Brooke sincerely hates it if she ever misses bus pickup.  Occasionally Brooke is so difficult in the morning to get dressed that she needs to be left behind if Bryan is still home and this will send her into hysterics.  It doesn’t happen too often though.
• Brooke has started walking or riding her bike to school now more often than riding in the stroller.  It’s pretty nice at times, until she decides that she wants to be carried instead.
• Brooke is so into her magnetic tiles these days and puzzles and sometimes coloring.  She will spend a lot of time stacking and building towers with the tiles by herself.  Puzzles she can do by herself but requires someone to sit with her and assist her.
• She has picked the same two books to read at bedtime for the last three weeks and Reese and I are over them.  We’ve read “Elmo’s P is For Potty” and “Fill a Bucket” more than we care to.
• Brooke had her doctor’s appointment this past weekend and there were no shots to be had and just a finger poke.  Also, Brooke’s face from a fall off of the stroller a few weeks back has healed quicker than I would have ever imagined.

Chelsea:

• Nearly at the cusp of the end of my studying.  I have my California Seismic exam on Wednesday and the SE retake on the following Thursday.  The end is near and I’m hoping for the best outcome and just really want to close this chapter.  I’ve still been pretty disciplined with studying and feel good about the exams but also anxious about the unresolved computer issues with the SE computer based format.
• I’m not happy with the end of summer, cooler temperatures and it getting darker earlier, but I do like fall.  I like fall flavors, fall baking, football games, sweaters, movie nights, Halloween, etc.  I can’t wait for more time on my hands to bake, cook, read, and not study!
• I’ve sincerely enjoyed coaching soccer this fall.  I think I have a better handle of rallying the team and getting them focused when I can and less taxed when the group or individuals are not focused or giving a hard time.  We are three games in and our team is 2 wins and 1 tie.  
• I’ve also really enjoyed playing soccer on my team which has morphed quite a bit in the past year.  Most of the legacy players are retiring from the sport so they have added quite a few new, younger, random players.  It’s an adjustment as I’m not familiar with each of their ability and way of playing but it is nice to have a bit more speed and endurance back on the team.  I do miss some of the older players though.

Bryan:

• Bryan has had a lot of stress related to work lately and I feel for him on that.  Some of it is personal and some is just the business of things but I think between the furlough and potential changing of the guard in the winter months, things will start to get a bit rosier soon.
• Bryan did get away this past weekend for a pretty stellar backpacking trip with friends Philipp and Luis.  They went to the North Cascades and did a 30 mile backpacking trip over two nights that sounded wonderful (but hard) and looked sunny and beautiful in their pictures.  Bryan finally got to break out his new pack and got some guy time which he definitely needed.
• Bryan’s pretty thrilled that Texas is leading the pack this year in College Football.  His team is pretty darn good and he has every right to feel good about that, even if it is a result of whooping on Michigan at the beginning of the season.
• Bryan’s become a pit master at our house.  We’ve used his new Solo Stove a handful of times and we love it.  It’s good looking and well-functioning and we have a bunch of cherry wood now for burning as we had to take down a tree in our yard, although we need a way to cut it smaller and dry it out.

So yes school is chugging along, soccer is midway through the season, I have two exams in the next two weeks and then we have a week of fun and the parents are here!

— 
Chelsea

The past week and a half has been the bittersweet farewell to summer, celebration of Reese’s birthday and annual trip to Chelan.  Today, Reese started 1^st grade and I felt like I caught my breath.  A lot has been going on and a lot of fun (and stress) has been had and even though there are so many more upcoming events I feel like a lot of the weight of things are off my shoulders.

Reese had her last week of summer camp at the Seattle Bouldering Project with her friends Georgie and spent a few hours each afternoon with Georgie and the babysitter Tyler.  You could tell that Reese enjoyed climbing camp and hanging with her friend but that the summer camp season was starting to tucker the girl out.  The camp was only 4 days long and we opted to keep her home on Friday to just have a low key day with me and Georgie ended up spending the afternoon with us too.  Reese and I baked her oreo birthday cake and assembled her party favors for her party the very next day.  

Generally, there is not a drop of rain in Seattle until September.  For some reason, this year, we got a downpour the 23^rd and it trickled into the 24^th, the day of her party as well.  We could see it was going to be a cooler day so we had already modified party plans from a pool party to a day outing to Remlinger Farms but as the day drew nearer we also realized we would be battling rain.  And we did.  However, the party was a ton of fun.  We ended up renting a 3-row Jeep Grand Cherokee (thanks to a mystery shopping experience) for the day and were able to take Reese and Brooke and two friends with us in one ride.  We had 5 other girls, 5 parents, and 3 siblings meet us there.  We were lucky with a half off discount for the day, otherwise it would have really been a spendy birthday but we were able to accommodate everyone and with the rain it was basically like we had the park to ourselves.  We got to ride all of the rides with no wait and spent the end of the morning drying out under the cover of the giant bouncy mat and slide before ordering lunch and having cake in their awesome restaurant with more play areas.  Most friends left at 2 but our carful (mainly Reese) wanted to continue until the park closed at 3:30 and the crowds were still absent and the skies had cleared.  We drove back to Seattle (exhausted) I returned the rental car, and we vegged out for the night.

The last week of summer for Reese she had off and we tried to make the best of it.  We did a fun staycation as a family in Redmond (thanks to another mystery shop) and swam in their pool Sunday afternoon, explored Redmond Town Center with the girls scooters, and ordered in room service for the night.  The girls and I enjoyed the breakfast after Bryan had already head off for work and then we rode the bus back to Seattle, dropping Brooke off at school and then Reese had a half day playdate with a gymnastics buddy in the neighborhood. 

Wednesday Bryan and Reese had a daddy daughter day out at the Seattle Center and they played at the playground there that Reese loves twice, they rode the elevators up to the top of the Space Needle, they had lunch in the Armory, they enjoyed the fountain and then they spent a few hours at the Children’s Museum before riding the bus back and meeting Brooke and I at the park.

Reese’s birthday on Thursday was also the start to our Chelan trip with two other families this year.  Brooke’s school was also closed so we spent the morning finishing up our packing and then hit the road around 1 pm.  The drive to Chelan was easy and we pulled up to our vacation unit at the Lookout in Chelan right at check-in time of 4 pm.  Our friends arrived shortly after and we set out on foot to explore a little bit before it was our turn to make the group dinner; burgers, hot dogs, corn on the cob, asparagus and watermelon.  We all played in the yard for awhile before putting the kids to bed and Bryan and I enjoyed the hot tub before turning in ourselves.

Friday was Slidewaters day, meaning from 10 am until 5 pm we were at the water park alternating between slides and the hot tub all day long.  Reese of course loves the rides and both Bryan and I had turns with her going down them.  Brooke really enjoyed the little kids area and small little frog slide as well as some time in the hot tub and a few laps around the lazy river.  She definitely is starting to turn into a water baby as the time goes on.  Our family stayed the longest, leaving after Brooke woke up from her nap on our beach blanket!  We returned back to the house for a taco bar dinner, baths, and bedtime.

Saturday and Sunday were exclusively days at the resort, enjoying the house and the resort’s amenities.  We spent Saturday at the larger pool and Reese and Bryan enjoyed the slip n slide that was set up from 11-2 just up from the pool.  Brooke really got into swimming and started to jump into me.  After lunch, Bryan and the guys set out for the waterfront to go for a long paddleboard.  After Brooke’s nap I brought my two girls down to the beach until dinnertime.  Getting to the beach was half the fun as you rode the trolley to a stop where you then caught an ATV down the steep road to the waterfront which had a nice protective shallow area with sand, a water trampoline with slide, and a lot of chairs and umbrellas to relax and get shade.  Another family made dinner this night of roasted tomato and mozzarella pasta and salad and then the ladies got dressed up for a moms night out.  We set out for a cocktail bar downtown and enjoyed great conversation along with a few rounds of drinks before the bar closed at 11 pm and they kicked us out.

And Sunday our group spent the majority of the day down at the beach.  I got a paddleboard ride in and got to test out the trampoline and slide with Reese.  Brooke didn’t want to leave the beach for nap but was way tired by the time we left and that afternoon the boys had the turn out on the town and went to the Chelan Ridge winery before heading downtown for dinner and another bar.  I picked up pizzas for the women and kids from Local Myth Pizza which we had last year too and was really phenomenal pizza.

By the time Monday came around we were all pretty tired and had gotten our fill of water and sun.  We checked out at 11 am and our car made a stop in Roslyn for some candy at a candy store, lunch and a walk around before getting back in the car to sit in horrible traffic thanks to a car fire just before the pass.  Fortunately the girls did great on the drive.  

The last day of summer was yesterday and I had Reese and Brooke home with me and Lottie came over too.  The girls really played great together throughout the day and were excited to be reunited with one another.  Reese was off to school this morning and I can’t wait to hear how it went for her.  I’m hoping this year will be a great year for her!

— 
Chelsea

We are quickly approaching the end of summer as we know it.  Summer 2024…you’ve been far too short.  But also, some more routine and normalcy might be good.  Who knows?  August is flying and it’s got to be our busiest month of the year.

• SeaFair:  We spent the full weekend in Seattle and a solid four days catching the Blue Angels and the Boeing Airshow from various places around town.  Bryan got home early on Thursday and we spent Thursday and Friday watching from our back deck, which is loud.  We spent Saturday watching it from a little pocket beach and on the water with friends before dropping Reese off for the night with her friend Clara.  This was her first sleepover in quite some time.  And we spent Sunday with three families at Seward Park which was certainly the best viewing and most enjoyable for me.  Girls hated the long planes through all four days.  We got a lot of time in the water and on our paddle boards and we again biked ourselves and all of our water gear, snacks and drinks to Seward Park and back in the 85 degree heat.  We were beat by the end of the weekend.
• 8^th Anniversary:  We spent all of Tuesday celebrating our anniversary.  Bryan and I both took time off of work and we spent the morning watching the US womens soccer game and then got lunch at the Madison Park Café before putting in both of our paddleboards from Madison Park Beach and paddling around the Arboretum, Husky Stadium and Laurelhurst.  We enjoyed a bottle of wine that we packed with us and drank that out on the water before we had to head in to pick up the girls.  We spent some time with them and then set out on foot to Kamp just the two of us thanks to our date night swap and had some delicious food and drinks at Kamp to end a wonderful day.
• Lottie’s Birthday Dinner:  We spent a night with Sarah, Lottie and Lottie’s grandma at Rocket Taco and then Miller Park on Lottie’s actual birthday.  It was good seeing them one more time before they headed off to New York for several weeks.
• Camping at Baker Lake:  We spent two nights camping with friends at Baker Lake at the Swift Creek Campground.  This campground was wonderful, spacious sites, tall trees, and beautiful lake with great beach access for swimming.  Per usual, Washington is in a burn ban so no campfires but we had our camp stove and cast iron pan for cooking.  Girls really enjoyed all of the swimming and hanging out with the other four kids and did really well sleeping in the tent, going to the bathroom on a vault toilet, and essentially keeping themselves entertained.
• Reese’s Overnight Camp:  We are in the homestretch and last week of camps for Reese this summer and I think she’s finally ready to be done.  She had her first overnight camp last week with the Kids Club crew as they took the ferry over to Vashon Island to a place called Camp Burton for two nights.  She had her buddy Georgie with her and her cabin counselor was Kiki who she knows well.  I wasn’t anticipating it but she did struggle with being homesick throughout her time there but mostly during quiet moments and it seems like she still really enjoyed the slip n slide, campfires and s’mores and ice cream they had, the meals in the “restaurant”, archery, the playground and more I don’t even know about it.
• Block Party:  While Reese was at camp we hosted a neighborhood block party up at Plum Tree Park.  I probably handed out 100 fliers but we had at least 30 people show up for it on a Wednesday night in the summer so I count that as a success.  There were lots of kids and a lot of potluck dishes.  Everyone seemed to have good conversation with one another, I learned some new names, and I have people offering to help in future years.
• Horse Racing at Emerald Downs:  Bryan’s co-worker has a race horse and has let us use his box seats the past two years to attend one of the races.  We went this last Saturday and spent the majority of the day there at the racetrack.  This year I was determined to learn how to bet on the horse races and bet on two separate races.  Came close on the first but then won the second.  We didn’t know what to expect from it but my $15 bet yielded a return of $55 so I was happy and it made it more fun for me.  They also held the National T-Rex Races which freaked Brooke out as expected but also was entertaining and meant that there were dinosaur themed bounce houses and slides for the kids to play on.
• Miscellaneous:  Of course there are all of the other things that aren’t as monumental.  I’ve continued to play soccer on Sundays when I can.  Brooke had her first classmate’s birthday party this past weekend at Volunteer Park.  Reese’s Girl Scout troop held a lemonade stand the other night at the Madrona Park concert series and we spent several hours there listening to music, getting face decorations and having a picnic.  Reese continues to have gymnastics on Monday nights.  We finally broke out the Solo Stove now that the weather is cooler and used it two nights in a row and love it!  We’ve made a few happy hours recently, as a family and I attended Marika’s monthly one.  Farestart is back in action twice a month so we take turns going to that.  Dentist appointments.  We went to a Seahawk’s Training Practice at Lumen Field which was fun to take the kids to.  

— 
Chelsea

I tell you what…summer goes way too fast.  It seems like just yesterday that we were gearing up for going to Michigan and now we have already been back for a few weeks. It’s a whirlwind and I love summer and a part of me never wants it to end.  I feel like I’ve already grieved that we are nearly into August which sounds like the end of the summer.  But, boy oh boy, August is a month filled to the brim.  But before I get ahead of ourselves there was a LOT to July…starting with Michigan, so let me recap.

I was beyond ready to get to Michigan.  It seemed like I had a month straight of one thing after another with regard to disruption of my day-to-day routine.  Reese’s end of school, her first week off was only a half day camp, then Brooke’s school was closed the two days leading up to our trip, I was about ready to jump overboard.  But we got our bags packed, set off on an airplane, landed in Detroit, spent one restful night in East Lansing, and then headed up to the cottage for four nights where I felt like I finally caught my breath from everything.  The cottage has the way of doing that to a person. 

I don’t need to go blow by blow of the events of the week but I can summarize a good majority of it.  First up, the cottage.  It’s as if it doesn’t age.  Not in physicality, not in my mind, not in the traditions.  And if you can find something so grand that doesn’t get old ever, you hold on tight.

We did all of the usuals.  Of course we got the boat out almost as soon as we got there.  People took turns going skiing and tubing.  My mom, Allie, Chad, Sarah, Bryan and myself all skied.  Reese got back on the tube for a few times around the lake and conquered her fear from getting thrown off last year.  We spent a lot of time in and by the water swimming, sunbathing, kayaking and paddle boarding.  We went on a few leisure cruises around the lake.  We spent one night floating in the middle of the lake and jumping off and swimming. 

There were many campfires and of course the annual cottage collaborative musical playlist which has become an instant hit with the family.  We went for walks and runs around the lake.  We played some cards and ate some delicious meals:  Sue’s boil, homemade pizzas, burgers and onion rings, Belgian waffles.  We roasted s’mores and watched the fireworks.  The boys all went into town to play pickle ball.  Our family and Grammy and Grandad went into Leroy to Mr. Pibb’s for our last meal at the cottage and had a feast plus massive ice cream cones of Hudsonville on the way out.  And we just enjoyed having one another’s company, although never enough time.

We headed back to East Lansing on the 8^th and returned home to some steamy weather but the promise of the girl’s pink tent in Reese’s room and the toys left at Grammy and Grandad’s house.  I had to work for much of the rest of the week but it wasn’t too bad. 

The girls got to go to a few playgrounds around town, were taken to Mooville to see the animals and get more ice cream, went shopping in a downpour to get new shoes, went swimming at our friend Tom and Pam’s pool, and Reese got to go with Grandad out for lunch and to the new Minion’s movie.  They got used to Sophie and enjoyed walking her around the block.  We broke out the splash pad and the water balloons.  We cooked up steaks one night and got takeout of Zeytoon’s, Lou and Harry’s, Jersey Giant, Charlie Kang’s, and El Azteco for all of the favorite take outs. 

Bryan and I even got one date night out in before he headed back to Seattle two days earlier than the rest of us.  We spent our final day in Royal Oak at Uncle Chad’s house for his neighborhood block party which was really something else with bounce houses, kiddie pools and splash pads, food, a keg of Oberon, a spray tattooist, a Royal Oak fire truck, and more.  The girls had a good time, I died of heat, and then we walked to downtown to get some really delicious BBQ before we left for the airport to head back to Seattle.  Bryan picked us up at the airport and we were all tuckered out from the events and time difference.

Since being back we are in the full swing of summer.  Reese had a week of gymnastics camp in the morning and hanging out with her friend Georgie and a sitter at various pools, parks and beaches around town.  Now Reese is on her second of three full weeks at Galileo, a STEAM based camp in walking distance of us with a bunch of her friends from school and Lottie.  Brooke is back at her school full time and that is a blessing too!  I volunteered at FareStart for a night and Bryan is next up with a shift this week.  I went out for a friend’s birthday and we all went to a friend’s going away party at the lake last week.  Reese is full time in a Level II gymnastics class on Monday nights and loving it.  And I am loving that being the only activity we are signed up for at the time.  I’ve been back at soccer several weeks now and just absolutely loving playing.  Probably more so than any other time in my life.  

We celebrated Bryan’s birthday shortly after coming back to Seattle and it was such a nice night. After taking Reese to gymnastics we walked to the neighboring Tex Mex place called Jackalope for some delicious margaritas and food. The girls were on great behavior and we enjoyed our time at the restaurant. We headed home for angel food cake and his present; a Solo Stove and accessories that I’m excited to start using.

Last weekend we went on a long bike ride to Discovery Park to play at the playground and then hit the UM Alumni Ice Cream Social. 

This past weekend Bryan was on his annual guy’s weekend to Leavenworth so it was just me and the girls Friday morning through Sunday evening.  We went to the spray park and playground on Friday night and then got burgers and fries downtown.  On Saturday we went to the Volunteer Park wading pool with some friends and ended up spending several hours there soaking up some sunshine and then rode the bus to get pizza from Amazon Fresh before returning home.  And somehow I got the girls to go to my soccer game on Sunday morning and they did great and seemed to enjoy themselves enough.  We picked blackberries after, got Wendy’s drive thru on our way home, and then hung out in the backyard until Bryan returned.

These next few weeks have a lot going on, all fun, but a lot to do as well.  I did find out last week that I will have to take the SE Lateral Depth portion of the test one more time as it had a pass rate of 16%.  I wasn’t surprised but it still was awful news to get, especially after waiting over 14 weeks to get it.  I’m feeling better about it all now but not sure yet how or when I am going to start studying again.  Retake of test will be October 10^th.  Yay….let’s not think about that yet.

— 
Chelsea