Ferry Ride on a Sunny Day

One of the things that makes Seattle special is Ferries. I have wanted to take my kids on once ever since we moved here four years ago. This weekend while Scott's parents were visiting we did just that. We drove two cars to Seattle and parked them and then got tickets to walk on to the ferry.
Here Grandma and Grandpa are with the kids waiting for our turn to board.

Upon boarding the ferry we had Scott's parents stand on the upper deck and we went below so they could take a picture of our family.

After exploring the ferry we all settled down in a big booth where we could see the beautiful houses, moutains and city scape.

Nathan enjoyed looking out the window and making his signature "smile" face.

Grandpa made sure no one took any alcohol past this point. Not really, but I'd like to see someone take alcohol past him.
Holly got this nice picture taken with the space needle coming out of her head. Classic!

Scott got a picture of me and the kids with our hair blowing wildly. And yes our ferry was named Tacoma. It held 210 cars and over 500 passengers.

Here is a nice shot of Mt Rainier that we got from the ferry.

And of course, beautiful Seattle. We rode to Bainbridge Island and back, what a wonderful day.

Today I am thankful that

*I got to attend the RS broadcast with my mom and Scott's mom

*Nathan loves watching the garbage, yard waste, and recycling tuck that all came by today

*Holly had a great time at camp and even got to attend a dance where she danced with light up neon bracelets.

Nathan's cake

Our little boy turned 2 last week. Scott being the great dad that he is volunteered to make Nathan a truck cake. He mixed up two cake mixes and then poured them into various sized pans. It was a mystery for me as to how all those cakes would make a truck but I let him do his thing.
After the cakes cooled he started sculpting the cake. Nathan was very interested in the whole thing.

All his sculpting produced this awesome semitruck modeled after the small red semi from the movie Cars. The wheels were ding dongs.

I frosted the cake with green frosting and Scott made windows, grills, and exhaust pipes with tin foil. Nathan was convinced it was a real truck and that it needed a trailer.

It was his birthday after all so we attached the trailer. Nathan was SO happy. Happy Birthday Nathan! Check out Megan's shocked face.

After taking these pictures we promptly started eating the cake. Nathan thought it was great fun to push a stool over to the counter and grab pieces of cake to eat throughout the day. Now when we ask him about the cake all he can say is "break". I guess he is sad the cake got broken and now is gone. Luckily he has plenty of other trucks to play with.

Today I am thankful that:

*Scott's parents are here for a visit

*Holly is headed to camp for a few days and really excited about it. She told me before she headed out what dinners we should have while she is gone (hamburgers and tomato/hamburger macaroni). Those are her least favorite dinners and we have them once a month so she wants to miss their rotation. Also she told me to not go anywhere too fun with the kids and grandparents while she is gone. She's at a fun camp and we can't do anything fun. Is that fair?

*My Chocolate Chip pumpkin muffin recipe is as yummy as I remembered it to be, we made them yesterday. I just bought 6 cans of pumpkin in preparation for a winter full of pumpkin muffins.

Backyard Project

This summer Scott decided to put a little brick edge around our back lawn. He measured one edge of our lawn and bought enough bricks to go beside it. Then he strung a line from one end to the other so he could lay the bricks in a straight line. Nathan was very interested in the whole project. Dirt, bricks, and shovels are just up his alley. I kept him inside for most of the time so Scott could work in peace. I can tell he is going to grow up to be Daddy's little helper.

Scott had to dig out the grass that didn't lay in a straight line and then dig a trench for the bricks to go in. He made sure all the bricks were level using a combination of dirt and sand and a rubber malet. Here is the completed edge. It looks great--now just 3 more edges to go. I guess he'll do those next summer.

I recently started a new chore chart with my kids. Like any chore chart, it isn't perfect but it has been working pretty well. Thanks to my friend Jenn for the idea. Basically it is a white board and every morning before the kids get up I write down their chores for the day. I put it right in the middle of the kitchen so they can't miss it. Once they complete a chore they can cross it off with a white board marker.
Also I wanted to share with you one of our favorite books Mr. Tanen's Ties. We discovered this book 9 years ago when we lived in Texas and have continued to check it out over the years. Order it from your library--you won't be disappointed.

Today I am thankful for:

*all the comments I receive on my blog, I get so excited knowing people want to read about my life, so keep commenting :)

*fun times at the Moulton family dinners with cute babies to hold

*my little kids who love to cuddle with me and tell me that they love me

First Day

Last week my three oldest kids started school. Holly is in 7th grade and in Junior high this year. Her school is part of our local high school and has just 90 students total, 30 for year grade. She is enjoying it so far. The school focuses on art and she is an artist so it is a good fit for her. She leaves at 7:00.
Nathan isn't in school yet but sported these new big boy clothes on the first day of school, it was a cold day.

Megan is in school all day now as a 1st grader. We miss her while she's gone, especially Melissa her little sister.

Emily is a 5th grader, boy does time fly. She was in 1st grade when we moved here. She is enjoying the backseat bus priviledges that 5th graders get.

On the first day of school I walked with Emily and Megan to the bus stop, just down the street. It was very crowded with parents and pets. We got there early and the bus came late so we got to stand there for 30 minutes. Nice!

Now a week has gone by and everyone is still enjoying school, so far so good.

Today I'm thankful that

*I have an oven, I've been using it everyday and have made cookies twice!

*I have a warm house on these cool days. I guess summer is over.

*I get to work with the young women at church, I just love those girls.
*Nathan has learned to sing his first song, Rubber Bands from Phineas and Ferb

Happy to have a new replacement oven

Our old oven died and it took a week to decide on a replacement, and then three more weeks for it to arrive. Finally had a working oven after a month! I was so excited I even put on my apron, and baked lasagna and breadsticks.

Blueberries Yum Yum

A few weeks ago we drove to North Bend to pick blueberries. The day started off overcast. We couldn't even see the top of the big mountain in the back.

We got right to work picking with our good friends the Smiths.

Nathan enjoyed picking and eating but soon learned it was even easier to eat from Mom's bucket.

Yes, we see that blueberry in there.

Megan and Emily looking so cute among the blueberry bushes.

Holly got tired of picking so she started picking wildflowers and made this cute bundle.
The best part was all three of the little kids fell asleep on the drive home they were so tired out.

I got home with 5 pounds of bluesberries and then had to figure out what to do with them. Of course we ate them as snacks for a few days, tried blueberry pancakes (which the kids promply said tasted too blueberrish), and then I froze the rest of them for baking once I get a new oven. It comes this week, I am so excited.

Today I am thankful that

*Nathan is taking a long nap today (they have only been 1 hour long all summer long)

*Melissa thinks she is my little buddy since the other girls are at school all day

*Our house smells sweet thanks to a new plugin that switches between two scents.

*Scott's parents are flying out to visit us later in the month :)