Victoria and Vancouver, Canada Trip

A few weeks ago, Jeff and I took the kids on an exotic, international vacation. That's right, Canada. We had to practice our "eh?", "soory" and "round -a-boot" to fit in with the locals there.

The 2-hour ferry ride weaving through the San Juan Islands was, honestly, one of my favorite parts. The views of the islands and the Puget Sound are absolutely beautiful.

7/16/2008

Okay, so at this point I'm just showing off Jeff's great photography skills, but we saw some really beautiful views!

After arriving on Vancouver Island, we stopped off at Butchart Gardens.

While visiting the Italian Gardens, I had the best gelato I have ever had. Honestly, I would go back to Butchart Gardens, pay the over-priced admission just to eat that gelato again. It was incredible. We even got Ethan his own because we didn't want to share ours. I didn't really think he could eat the whole thing, but he amazed us and he did. His stomach can't be that big. When he asked him if we could switch with him, just to taste his, he was hesitant and determined he would still get his due portion of gelato.

That night we stayed in a 4-star Westin resort just north of Victoria. I love credit cards with hotel points! It had beautiful rooms, a salt water pool with a salt water hot tub. It was fabulous. Jeff and I were in heaven - we were pretty proud about staying there and not paying anything near the full rate until...Sienna decided she didn't want to sleep that night. Jeff and I took shifts and I think we each got about 2 hours of sleep. Ah, vacations with young kids. Always full of surprises.

7/17/2008 (exhausted)

Running around downtown Victoria. We found a cool mosiac dolphin. The buildings in the background are the parliament buildings.

When you first see this statue, one would initially think that it's the Canadian version of a cowgirl. But then, you walk by and something really creepy happens. The statue moves.

Turns out, it was actually a lady dressed in really heavy clothing and a lot of make-up to look exactly like a statue (she must get pretty hot in there).

We also went to the Undersea Gardens, which is a museum,underwater. Pretty dark down there, so we didn't take any pictures, but we did see some fascinating sea life, including a giant octopus.

We also visited the parliament buildings. I loved their historical significance and architecture.

We then ferried over to the mainland and stayed at another 4 star Westin in Vancouver. That night Sienna slept a little better, but not by much.

7/19/2008 (even more exhausted)

We began the day by visiting Grainville Island, a huge market with a fabulous international flare. It was like Pike's Place Market, but 10 times the size.

Sienna snuggling (good thing she's so cute).

Chasing pigeons could keep Ethan busy for hours. I love pigeons for that reason alone.

We took a mini cruise of False Creek which goes right up into the heart of Vancouver.

We happened to be the only people on the cruise, so we got a personal tour. The girl driving asked if Ethan wanted to drive the boat. She didn't have children and didn't know Ethan (otherwise I'm sure she would have never made such an offer) but we took her up on it (against our better judgement) and let Ethan (gulp) drive the boat. He thoroughly enjoyed himself and somehow his bath-time toys just don't measure up any more.

Our next stop was Stanley Park - breathtaking views, train-ride and a free (thank you, thank you) water park.

Jeff was playing with the shutter speed on this one and the water spray looked pretty cool.

Ethan is a really social little guy and makes friends wherever he goes. This little kid and Ethan were fast friends and ran around together (a.k.a wore each other out) while we parents happily rested on a near by bench.

Back home in the USA!

Ketchup!

So we've obviously gotten a little behind in our blogging. Jeff has had some time off in between jobs and I've been enjoying having him  around too much to sit down and blog - but here's what we've been up to:

4th of July Trip to Spokane:

We had a delicious family BBQ on the 4th, followed by a fireworks show in a park. The next day we spent at the Carlsen home just spending time with family.

Ethan and Grandma Carlsen working in the backyard. You can see that Ethan takes safety very seriously. He's wearing those safety goggles on his chin.    

One of the highlights of the day was cutting down a tree. Sienna and I carefully supervised the event. Sienna also loves  to crawl up me (mostly using my hair) and then hang on for dear life. I'm surprised I have any left.

Here's a photo of the little darling flashing that unforgettable toothy grin.

Later, we all jumped in the pool. Sienna wasn't to sure about how she felt in the pool, but she loved being in Daddy's arms. I think Jeff enjoyed the snuggle time with Sienna too.

 

Home Project!

Being new homeowners, home projects are still really exciting to us. Since we love watching HGTV and home flipping shows, we never run out of ideas (and trouble) we can get ourselves into. The latest...painting our deck. It was originally a yucky peach-salmon color with mildew spots

and my capable, strong, handsome, creative (sorry, I'm getting side-tracked here) husband painted it a nice deep taupe color. It has a softer texture as well.

I've been tagged!

My lovely sister-in-law tagged me, so here goes...

3 joys -
1. Hearing Ethan and Sienna's laughter. I know this is a given for any parent, but I tickle them just so I can hear it. I also catch it on our video camera whenever I can. When my kids get older, I still want to be able to remember their laughter.

2. I recently got a sewing machine - it's so much fun. I sewed a quilt for Ethan, modified a shirt for me (to make it modest - Mom, aren't you proud?), and am in the process of sewing some drapes.

3. My husband - He's perfect. I'm grateful for his affection, thoughtfulness, sense of humor, and moral courage and...kisses.

3 Fears -
1. Failure as a parent

2. Having a messy, disorganized house. I stay up late every night cleaning and organizing. It's one way I regain my sanity.

3. Spiders. Ethan put one in his mouth a few weeks ago and I flipped out. Ahh, little boys exploring the world.

3 goals -
1. I would love to go back to school and get a master's degree.

2. Go on a mission with Jeff.

3. Eat my weight in double-stuffed oreos, okay, just kidding, but I do want to have a garden.

3 obsessions -
1. Listening to Dr. Laura in the car. I always learn something from her.

2. Recipes - I could read recipes for hours.

3. Figuring out how things work. If I don't understand how something works (especially in regards to science) it bothers me until I am able to sit down, read about it and figure it out.

3 surprising facts-
1. I beg Jeff to scratch my head and brush my hair.

2. I love to vacuum and do laundry. I know it sounds weird, but after years of stinky college apartment complex laundromats and vacuums that didn't work, I love doing laundry and vacuuming!

3. I ate 8 Krispy Kreme donuts in less than 24 hours and I don't feel bad about it.

Good-bye E&Y!!!

Woohoo! Although we're grateful for the experience and all that Jeff has learned at E&Y, we are ready to jump ship! Working 70+ hour weeks, working until 2am to 3am repeatedly, working through weekend after weekend, unbelievable pressure and stress on Jeff has taken its toll. Jeff has taken a job offer with Nordstrom doing SEC reporting. Get this - it will be (for the most part) an 8am-5pm job!!!!!! I'm in heaven! He can take the bus, so no more $250+/month in parking fees! Although this job will have it's own challenges, we are so grateful for this blessing.

Now the question is, how should Jeff leave his job? Please take our poll and leave any other suggestions.

1. Hire a group of actors to come to the EY office dressed as swashbuckling pirates and raid the office, shouting "Arrrrrr!" to everyone.

2. Send out fliers to all the mothers in Ethan's nursery class announcing that EY is hosting a "Bring Your Toddler to Work Day". The children will come armed with crayons, glue sticks, and sticky peanut butter sandwiches. They'd color on walls, mess up stacks of paper and leave everything... well, sticky.

3. Jeff announces that he's taken a job as a cookie accountant for the local girl scout troop. He comes to the office with his new girl scout uniform, complete with an accounting merit badge on his sash. He'll also spend the rest of the day assuring the staff that they too can have a "sweet" job someday.

Mom Haircut

Tired of ponytails, headbands, children pulling on my hair, finding baby food in my hair, I lopped off my locks and got a mom haircut - just below my chin. Now let's just hope I don't wind up in "mom jeans."

Happy Father's Day

Father's Day nap. My two favorite guys snoozing in their white shirts after church.

















This was the treat Jeff requested for Fathers Day. It's a really great, light dessert - perfect for summer entertaining. It's a souped up cake mix and a yummy fresh raspberry topping. Here's the recipe:

Raspberry Cream Cupcakes

Prep Time: 30 minutes Inactive Prep Time: 30 minutes Cook Time: 15 minutes Yield: 18 cupcakes

1 (18.25-ounce) box white cake mix (recommended: Duncan Hines Moist Deluxe) 1 1/3 cups water 3 large eggs whites 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted 2 teaspoons almond extract 2 teaspoons vanilla extract 2 (6-ounce) containers fresh raspberries, cut in half or 1 (16-ounce) container fresh strawberries, coarsely chopped 1 cup heavy whipping cream 1/3 cup powdered sugar, plus additional for dusting Line 18 muffin cups with muffin papers. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Using an electric mixer, beat the cake mix, water, egg whites, melted butter, almond extract, and vanilla extract in a large bowl for 2 minutes, or until the batter is well blended. Using about 1/3 cup of batter for each cupcake, spoon the batter into the prepared muffin cups. Bake the cupcakes until they are very pale golden on top, about 15 minutes. Cool the cupcakes completely on a cooling rack. Using a fork, coarsely mash 1 1/2 containers of raspberries in a medium bowl. Beat the cream and 1/3 cup of powdered sugar in a large bowl until firm peaks form. Fold the mashed raspberries into the whipped cream. Top the scrumptious cupcakes with the delicious topping and serve to hungry hubby!

Alki Beach

We visited Alki Beach and it was beautiful! Here we are with the mini Statue of Liberty. I would also like to note that Ethan was actually standing still in this picture - that doesn't happen very often.
















Before going, I checked the tide charts to make sure we would be there at low tide. Low tide is so much more fascinating because more sea life is exposed. I have no idea what these things are, but they looked pretty interesting.
















See the Space Needle and downtown Seattle in the background!
















Here is another proud parenting moment. Usually, when we go to the beach, Ethan eats sand with his hands. This time, Ethan found a plastic spoon in the sand and began eating sand with a spoon. All of my nagging about good manners at dinner time has certainly paid off.
















Ethan was delighted with all of his little feathered friends.
















I just thought this was a cool picture that Jeff took of a seagull swooping in for a piece of bread. We finished off the afternoon with some fish and chips at a local restaurant and headed home for nap-time (for all of us!).

Ethan's Third Birthday

For Ethan's 3rd Birthday we went to the (drumroll, please...) the Rainforest Cafe. It was amazing. The restaurant was decorated like a (well, you probably guessed by now) a rain forest with apes that beat their chests, trumpeting elephants, giant bugs and a fountain, to name a few.















The servers sang a birthday song for our little dude and brought him a free ice cream sundae. Ethan was delighted to have people singing and clapping for him. Obviously, the expression on my face was my joy over seeing a free dessert on our table.















This was my first (and perhaps only) attempt at cake decorating. The nice thing about cake decorating is that you can really enjoy your successes as well as failures, because, well.... it's cake, no matter what it looks like. I don't think I'm ready to do a wedding cake quite yet (unless someone wants to get married at a Mariners game and then throw the cakes at each other - hey, there's an idea).














Ethan blowing out the candle! I'll spare you the rest of the pictures. Things got pretty messy after this.

Edmonds Waterfront Festival

Jeff finally sneaked past a weekend without having to work (I hope none of his managers read this and find out)! I began Saturday early by running the Edmonds 5k race (and quickly remembered why I'm not an avid runner). We then spent the day at the Edmonds Waterfront Festival. Ethan had never been to a festival like this before and we knew he would love it.

One of the best parts of parenting is rediscovering the world with your kids. We got to enjoy yummy festival treats as well as a giant super-slide. The first picture shows the size of the slide. In the second picture, I zoomed in on their faces showing Ethan's expression of anticipation and apprehension (notice Ethan clutching onto Dad's hand).




























What would a festival like this be without a pony ride? Ethan got to ride on the smallest pony and clearly loved it.

Northwest Trek

Northwest Trek is a really interesting nature preserve. We went on a hour long tram ride through beautiful scenery and saw all sorts of wildlife: elks, buffalo, big horned sheep and deer - some of which were pretty close. Ethan loved seeing all the animals. Sienna wasn't too terribly interested, but she did charm several people sitting next to us on the tram.

Mother's Day

My Mom was here for Mother's Day! It was the first time we've been together for Mother's Day in 12 years! I have to say, my mom is absolutely wonderful. When she comes to visit, my kitchen is always clean, I don't think I do any laundry, and while I peacefully nap, my mom scours the bathroom while keeping both kids happy. She is amazing.












By the way, Jeff is still the most wonderful husband after 5 1/2 wonderful years of blissful marriage. Marrying Jeff has honestly been the best (and easiest) decision I have ever made. He is ambitious, hard-working, considerate, thoughtful, loving and oh-so handsome - let's not forget that one.

Salsbury Beach

So, I recently discovered a new park which I think is a must see if you have kids and want a quick day trip. My Mom was visiting and I wanted to show her some of beautiful western Washington. Salsbury Beach. Take the Edmonds-Kingston Ferry, then drive to the west side of the Kitsap Peninsula, and just before Hood Canal Bridge, there is the love Salsbury Beach. Of course getting there with the ferry and driving through historic Port Gamble is all part of the fun. Ethan loves ferry rides (what kid doesn't?). He loves flexing his arms and making manly shouting noises into the wind and running all over the boat. Ahh, little boys.

There was a great play structure with a beach close by filled with sea shells. I don't think I've ever seen so many sea shells in my life! Ethan had fun watching all the big truck going across the Hood Canal Bridge. Sienna had her first experience in a swing, which she seemed to be okay with (she might have enjoyed it more if I not had the camera in her face the whole time. She also enjoyed doing pull-ups on a bar (with a little help) and of course, tasting the metal bar (shhh... don't tell Grandma).































This picture, was toward the end of our little outing, Sienna had her mind on one thing and one thing only (in case you can't tell from the picture) ... MILK!!!!!! Ethan, in his usual form of running all over the place, fell and skinned his little knee and was a bit upset about it.

Later at home, he zonked out on the couch. Perhaps other mothers can relate, I fall in love with my children all over again when I see them sleeping. Anyway, it was so much fun having my mom around and getting away for a day!

Sienna vs. Baby Photographer, Round 1

As if I couldn't take enough pictures of Sienna myself, I thought I'd take her to a professional photographer to get some more cute baby photos. We went to Sears Portrait, and what do you know, her pictures came out absolutely darling. The biggest challenge was getting her to stay within the camera frame. As soon as we set her down, she was moving, crawling, bouncing, removing hats... you get the picture. Hey Tasha and Talia, recognize the dress and hat? It was a baby shower gift from you! Thank you!

Anyway, I've been blessed with two very active children, which was why Jeff and I bought a dSLR camera. We have to be that quick before they are out of the field of view! Here are a few of the darling pictures of our budding track star.

By the way, Sienna began babbling today! It's music to my ears.

Something that is not quite music to my ears, but still very cute none the less, Ethan has entered the age of saying things that really (and I mean really) embarrass us. The other day he proudly proclaimed to the nursery workers at church, "I fart just like my Dad!" I guess Jeff and I have no more secrets.

I'm So Glad When Daddy Comes Home...

Here are a few pictures of our little squeaker during her favorite part of the day - when Daddy comes home! As you can see, she has two little bottom teeth and a happy, happy disposition. She is all smiles, all the time!

The story on Ethan - on Sunday morning, Ethan was running around, avoiding getting dressed (and anything else we wanted him to do) and briefly visited me in the bathroom while I was getting ready. As I left to go get dressed, he locked the door behind me. By the time I was able to unlock the door, he had discovered my water resistant eyeliner and done some creative body art on himself (mostly his chest and legs). Since we needed to leave for church, I just got him dressed and off we went, but not before I took a picture of Ethan proudly showing off his artwork. In case you are wondering, it did take a couple of baths to completely wash it off.

Woah...April's gone.

Hey (this is Jeff)! What happened to April? It's been a month since our last post. I'll take the blame though -- I've been working some crazy hours (I know what you're thinking, and no, it had nothing to do with taxes -- I'm not that kind of accountant -- I audit financial statements), which means Julie had mommy duty day in day out with hardly a break. There were a few days in there where I left for work in the morning before anyone woke up, and didn't get back home until the kids were asleep. Not fun. Tonight I got home at around 8:30, which was in time to help Ethan get the wiggles out before going to bed.

He's growing up quickly! Since I missed the month of April, he sat down with me tonight before bed and basically read me a book from start to finish without actually knowing how to read. It's fun to hear him talk. And, Sienna! What a little doll -- she's crawling around so quickly now.

Julie is awesome too! I couldn't have married a better woman. I was getting busy-season hair -- that's what happens to my head when I don't have time to get it cut for 3 months (I also get busy season toenails). Ethan was getting busy-season hair too, so Julie gave us both a nice trimming recently, and we're a handsome daddy and son again.