Spring Break

Spring break was awesome this year!  My boys would probably disagree depending on who you ask. Landon left as soon as school got out on Friday to fly down to AZ for a lacrosse spring break trip.  He had a great time with the team and they played a few games while living it up in a huge house with a pool and pickle ball courts. 

Meanwhile, I was home with Parker and Henry and after playing lots of waffle ball in the driveway, I was already running out of fun ideas by Saturday night.  Yes, one day into spring break and I was ready to hop in the car and drive to anywhere.  So we ended up going to Great Wolf Lodge with the Stacey's.  Randy had work and wasn't exactly disappointed to miss out.  Great Wolf Lodge is for kids and definitely attracts an interesting crowd.  But even with my low expectations, we all ended up having so much fun!  The last time I took the boys, I was trying to avoid getting my leg wet post cancer surgery and Henry was too little to do half the stuff.  This time Henry was there for it all!  He must've run up all those stairs to get to the water slides about a hundred times.  Parker had a great time too and because they could do all the things by themselves, I sat at a table and read and talked to Lauren while the kids played.  Yes, I went down the slides too but mostly I didn't have to so I had a great time at Great Wolf Lodge.  Also, going on a Monday is a game changer.  The lines were super short.  I told Henry this would probably be the last time he goes but who knows, maybe I'll fail at another spring break staycation.  

We played countless games of wiffle ball for the first couple days.  I still get the giggles thinking about how many times I hit Henry with the ball when I was pitching.  He's a patient kid with his old mom.  

We also spent a lot of time searching for wiffle balls :(

Parker finally discovered the awesomeness of the eBike.  It has a throttle and doesn't even require pedaling and he was hooked!  We rode all over Sammamish together and I even got stuck in the mud which was both hilarious and messy.  

Now that Parker rides the eBike everywhere, he is taking advantage of his freedom and I'm loving saving gas by not driving.  We've been paying over $6 a gallon for a few months now :(

Great Wolf Lodge!

The short Ball boys with the tall Stacey's

Look at those smiles

Creepy Henry at the arcade and no, I didn't give him money to play any of the games because that's not the kind of parent I am.  I also didn't let him get another stuffed animal at Build-A-Bear.  Such a money grab!

Henry and I howled like wolves to get our free wolf ears and I wore them around just to embarrass Parker.  It worked.  We also had fun playing games with the Stacey's before going to bed.

Snow Day and a Wedding

This was the perfect snow day because school was already canceled because it was a snow make-up day that we never used.  So we didn't have school but we didn't have to make up the day.  Such amazing luck!  It took a little work to get Henry to go outside and play in the snow but once he got outside he never came back in.  I went for a walk and did my best to shake branches and trees that were snapping under the weight of the wet, heavy snow.  We lost a few more trees in our forest too.

Randy's assistant got married and basically everyone at the wedding was one of our employees or part of the family.  Luckily there was only rain and luckily the rain stopped as we stood on the beach watching this cute little family say I do.  We love our office staff! Kristina is our amazing office manager and she was the officiator for the wedding.  When she realized she forgot her shoes for the wedding she just laughed and made sure everyone took pictures.  She's so great!

Boise

I flew to Boise for a quick 24 hours and was able to catch two of Marcus's games.  Some of my aunts, uncles, and cousins showed up to cheer him on.  I also texted a couple friends in the area at the last possible second and they came too.  Marcus and I went to dinner with my Dad and Kathy, then hot tubbed with my fun cousin and her kids.  After the second game, I had a nice nap in the backseat of my car (sleeping in the backseat is a talent I have), ate Chik-Fil-A, and flew back to WA.  It was quick and productive!

The best part was coming home and pulling into the driveway to see Henry waiting at the door to see me.  He ran into the garage and climbed into the front seat and hugged me before I even got out of the car.  I don't want to ever forget that. 

Marcus Lacrosse

 

Marcus is having a great lacrosse season this year!  Last year was rough.   He had a few injuries and being a freshman is always lame but he overcame.  This year he is faster and playing better than ever and he gets a lot more playing time.  They have only lost one game so they're looking good.  Go Cougs!

February Break

We went to Whistler again.  We might be a little tired of Whistler but we had passes that needed to be used, plus it was just about the only ski resort in the country that had snow.  Until the day after we got back and snow dumped down in Utah, just in time for Randy to arrive.

Mel, the reluctant skier

Henry loving the complimentary hot cocoa after skiing down the entire mountain to get back to our hotel

the pool and hot tub are the best way to end a ski day

the castle was finally open and Henry went down the slides so many times.  I was happy to watch and rest from skiing.

Poutine for lunch...with pulled pork.  Delicious!

And this was the beautiful backdrop to Marcus's lacrosse game.  Brrr!!

Parker went shopping and bought jeans. It's been years since my boys have worn jeans and I am thrilled to buy something that's not basketball shorts or joggers.  

Super Bowl

The Seahawks won the Super Bowl!  The last time they went to the Super Bowl we were living in RI and cheering for them as they almost defeated the Patriots in an unforgettable game.  This time we won but I can barely remember it because the game was so boring as we kept inching our way down the field, nearly setting a record for a game won by almost all field goals and no touchdowns.  

This was Marcus and Ethan when we went to the Super Bowl so many years ago.  We couldn't buy Seahawks gear in RI so we got creative with green tape.

We have Oreo balls every year

The food was delicious and plentiful.  Nothing better than good ol' 7 Layer Dip!

We invite the Stacey's over every year too.

Go Hawks!

Adventures in Seattle

It's pouring rain and I have a ton of yard work to do.  Looks like I'll update the blog instead.  We are in the throes of lacrosse season which means we are busy flying to Utah to watch Marcus play and watching several games a week as Landon, Parker, and Henry play.  Do I get tired of watching lacrosse games?  Yes I do!  But it's fun and when it's all over I scratch my head and wonder what to do with all the time on my hands and that's about the time we can get the boat back out on the lake. 

But let's back up to a sunny day in February when I went on a fun adventure in Seattle with friends.  A good friend of mine plans weekly adventures and this one was called City Scramble.  You pay a small fee for a scavenger map that sends you all around Seattle taking pictures of things to prove you arrived at a certain destination.  You get points for each destination you go to and whichever group gets the most points wins.  Don't worry, my team lost.  By a lot!  But I think we had the most fun because we rented eBikes at the end.  I guess that was against the rules and should've given us a huge advantage but cheaters never win and we most definitely agree!

The Amazon Spheres are cool even though I've never been inside.  Visiting hours are limited.  But this banana cart has been around for a couple years.  They give out free bananas every day.  I want that job.

I look like my mom trying to run to the playground to search for a clue, which I found!

Rachelle had the genius idea to get eBikes and we had so much fun on them!  Seattle really is a cool city with so many statues and and cool art that you don't notice unless you're searching for it.