3.25.13

Oh yes, it feels good to be back here, writing.  I've missed it.  Here's a quick catch up:  there were a few days where we were in a mad rush to prepare our home so that we could welcome someone else to our family- a sixteen year old girl from Wenatchee, who's attending high school and studying ballet here in the Seattle area.  We loved the idea of having another "daughter" for awhile, and though we knew that this girl had several options to choose from, we went ahead and started preparing for her, just in case.  We carved out a cute little nook in my daughter's room, cleaned out a closet, a dresser, and a few shelves.  This snowballed into a giant re-organization of every storage space in our entire home.  There were several loads of stuff taken to the Goodwill and a fun trip to Ikea to get a new bed and some other goodies to help us organize our space better and make it more welcoming.  In the end, she chose a home where she would have her own room, something I completely understand.  But...during this same time, there were some days that I had hoped/thought that maybe I was expecting, even though that would be nothing short of a miracle.  The thought of going from a family of four to possibly six made me feel like I was walking on air for a few days.  Emotionally, I went from an extreme high to a very deep low in a short time....and then I got over it. 

A couple of days later, another parent from my daughter's ballet school asked if we would take his daughter for a week, over spring break.  I'm sure he thought he was asking me for a favor, but little did he know how much that request of his cheered me up.

After that, I thought I might get back to writing, but then my computer died.  Computers and water don't get along very well.  Did you know?  So now I have a new one, with a lot of new stuff to learn on it, but I'm back!  

 I haven't been taking any pictures either.  I really must get back into the habit.  I have two pictures from the last two weeks, both from a phone.

  This is Grace, speaking at the Kirkland Women's Club.  She won an essay contest and was invited to read it at their luncheon.  She got to meet Camille Lagron, local teen author of Tatiana. It was a proud and inspiring day for both of us.

And this is me, planning the school week for my kids.  My husband took this picture last night.  It's all I've got.

Seattle's Great Wheel

Together, Trent and I recently read The Great Wheel, by Robert Lawson.  It's a cute story about the world's first Ferris wheel, built by George Washington Ferris, for the Chicago World's Columbian Exposition in 1893.  The book is a fictional account of a young Irish immigrant named Conn Kilroy, who helps build the first Ferris wheel.  The book is full of detailed descriptions of tools and building techniques, which Trent really loved.  He had so many questions, and I didn't have many answers, so we spent a lot of time looking things up on Google as we read. 

Seattle recently got its own Great Wheel, so we decided to celebrate Trent's reading with a ride on it.  Though not as big as the original, which was twenty stories high and had cars the size of train cars, Seattle's wheel is still impressive.  The picture above was taken on a sunny day last summer.  The day we went was rainy and gray, and I forgot to put the memory card in my camera, so I have nothing more than phone pictures.  Still, we had fun, and since the capsules are enclosed, we didn't even get wet.

    

This video, about Seattle's Great Wheel, is silly, but Trent loved it.

After much anticipation and excitement, when it finally came time for us to get into the capsule, Trent didn't want to go.  It really is big, and he was scared.  He kept his eyes closed for the first five minutes and implored us not to move, so as not to tip the capsule.  But then he finally relaxed, opened his eyes, and enjoyed himself, asking if he could go again when it was over.   

I really love integrating real life experiences with the books we read, and I try to do it often.  Our current read aloud is Detectives in Togas, which takes place in ancient Rome.  I haven't thought of anything for this book yet.  Ideas? 

Happy 14th Birthday Grace

 To my beautiful Grace on your 14th Birthday.  I love you so much and couldn't be more proud of who you are.  I'm blessed to be your mom and I thank God for you every day.  Child of God, daughter, sister, friend, artist, athlete, scholar, comedian....these attributes that make you who you are, they're a gift to those who know you.  You make me laugh every day.  When you dance, you're so beautiful that you make me cry.  You are so smart, and you make me think.  I love being with you. You're a one of a kind girl and I'm happy that you have the confidence to be yourself-  because you're wonderful.  May God bless you in this next year of your life.    

by Grace

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MOHAI

The first Thursday of every month is free museum day for many places in and around Seattle, so my kids and I took the morning to check out Seattle's Museum of History and Industry (MOHAI) today.  It's a large place, full of interesting displays that teach about the history of this area.  We were there for two hours, but easily could have spent more time enjoying the exhibits.   I would love to go back again. 

It's not often that I find a museum that my nine year old and my thirteen year old will both enjoy.  This one made everyone happy. Grace was mostly interested in the film industry exhibit and Trent liked the maritime exhibit best.

 Neither one of them knew anything about the t.v. show, Frasier, but they obliged to pose for me on the re-created set.  I remember the show well, and I still detest that ugly green chair.

It was a fun morning.  I think we were all happy to break out of the normal routine of school and do something different.

3.4.13

 Have you ever read A Homemade Life, by Molly Wizenburg?  She's the blogger behind Orangette.  It's a cookbook, sort of.  With each recipe she tells a story, sometimes funny, sometimes touching, always wonderful. This was a cookbook that I read in one sitting, more like a novel. I often make the recipes, my favorite one being Burg's French Toast- which can be found here. She lives in Seattle and has a pizza restaurant called Delancey. I've wanted to eat there ever since it opened, and finally had the opportunity to venture all the way out to the Ballard neighborhood with some friends for dinner this weekend. Delancey doesn't take reservations, the wait for a table was over an hour, and it was so noisy that I could barely hear a conversation. But the food was amazing and the atmosphere was fun and lively, making it all worth it. We had one pizza with kale and coppa toppings, another with spicy sausage.

 Derek, my husband, makes some of the homemade best pizza crust I've ever had. We're always looking for new and interesting ways to top our pizzas. Kale, as a pizza topping, was something I never would have thought of. But it was good! Please, tell me if you have some nontraditional pizza topping suggestions that you recommend. I want to know.

 The rest of the weekend was a pleasant blur of furniture rearranging, shopping with my daughter, reading, church, BBQ with the neighbors, school planning, and watching a mini marathon of Once Upon a Time- also with my daughter. My poor husband was outside working on the car for much of the time. He changed the brake pads on my car, saving us bundles of cash by doing it himself. He's a good guy who works hard. I'm blessed to be married to that one.

 Signs of spring are everywhere. The rest of these pictures were from a walk I took with my dog today.  The sun was shining, and everyone I passed commented on how beautiful it was outside. When the sun shines around Seattle, we do not take it for granted. We enjoy it.