Thursday, August 23, 2012

tiny posts

sorry for all the little posts, but you have to live =) I want to share and celebrate the girls, and quilting if I ever get back to it.  I now have three quilts ready to bind thanks to my wonderful aunt and her long arm machine.  Two for Seattle Children's and one that is on R's bed, not yet bound but oh well.

This morning I had to get the girls to daycare since I started later (6:45 instead of 4:30am) and daycare was open.  When I woke H up (R was already getting dressed) the very first words out of her mouth were "H sleeping.  Shhhhh" (in her cute toddler accent).  Poor sweetie. 

R is really pushing the limits this week.  She cannot ride her bike (to the neighbors driveways on either side of our house) nor go play with the neighbors tomorrow.  That's what happens when you don't help mommy with the chores and you don't listen. She is going to be a tough one come teen years!!!

Monday, August 20, 2012

note to self

This is a little on the preachy side, so don’t feel like you have to read. I just wanted to share and remember.


This weekend I went to the Washington Auction of Wines (WOW). It raises money for Seattle Childrens and the Washington Wine Education program at WSU. (Did you know that Washington is now one of the top wine producing states? We are going to knock CA off the charts!) We had a winemaker at our table, and drank his wines with out meal. He was odd, but what winemaker isn’t? I was there to balance the table out, there was one person who my folks wanted at their table, but they were a singleton so they bought me a ticket so I was another singleton. Wonderful experience.

Anyways, I am always so thankful I have not needed Seattle Childrens various services for my children. But more profoundly, my dads’ parents were my babysitters that night. How amazing is it that my girls get to spend time with my dads’ folks (at their own home, playing in their back yard, reading books on their couches…the same house and couch and yard my dad grew up with.)

On the way to their house, R wanted to list all the people she loves:
Grandma
Grandpa
Uncle B
Aunt K
(the rest are actually greats)
Aunt T
Uncle N
God
Aunt MA
Aunt J
Pop-Pop
Nana (“who is in Heaven but I can still love her”)
The Other Uncle B
Aunt K
All the other people I have not met yet but are my family.

How wonderful that they get to spend time with MY aunts and uncles and grandparents (Nana and Pop-Pop are my moms folks, Nana passed away 2 ½ years ago, but we talk about her. H is so much a mix of the two of them it’s amazing.) How wonderful that both girls know them, has memories and special times, and they both know they are loved back.  H can list them off too, but usually when prompted, not spontaniously.

Tuesday, August 14, 2012

Two wonderful days

Last Thursday was National Neighborhood Night Out (or maybe not national, but I think it is.) The girls and I participated. We went to City Hall to meet and greet the local police. I thought it would be into a room, la-te-da shake hands, touch a car, look at a badge, get a coloring book, take a picture, and back home. I didn't plan to be there for long. OH NEXT TIME I WILL KNOW! We were there for almost 3 hours and still didn't do everything.




When we got there they were just getting going, we got to climb into a police car, see a clown act, tie die t-shirts, climb into a garbage truck. By the time we did all that the county's search and rescue teams were they’re pulling out rafts and rescue gear for the kids to climb on, touch, try to wear. As the girls were climbing all over one of the rafts, SWAT pulled up in TWO trucks. The girls got to climb all over those too, and they got to see one of the bomb deactivating robots in action and got to control one of the robots that goes in and scopes things out. They each got a turn! There were two local high school cheer squads that did little shows, their mascots and Smokey the Bear got into three legged races with the sheriff, the police chief, and the fire chief. Smokey won. I think he and the fire chief have been practicing. As that was finishing up a county helicopter flew RIGHT OVER US! and landed at the bottom of the hill and all the kids were invited to climb all over it. This was the third stop for the helicopter but you'd think it was the first with how wonderful those men were. The girls also got fingerprinted; they did get those coloring books (copy write 1991, so the same ones I grew up on!) I got AFIS kits for both the girls, hot dogs, sno cones, and hula hoop lessons from the clowns. All.... wait for it.....for free!!! And there were only like 50 kids, so 75-80 people plus all the officers. AWESOME! We are doing that one again next year!



Today was less structured. We were at a local outdoor air mall (why do they build those around Seattle?) where I left a book at the Starbucks I had a meeting at earlier today. We got coffee, and as we were leaving I saw a fire engine parked in the middle of the mall (the road runs through it) without lights on. Odd I thought. Then I looked around and made the girls follow me. Eventually they saw it. Four firemen were in the middle of a spay fountain (that doesn’t pool but recycles) splashing around with the kids who were playing there. I let the girls join in even though they were not in swimsuits like the other kids. How could I not? In the end the men were SOAKED, the kids were thrilled, moms were taking pics and video on their phones (yeah I am not that cool!) and my girls were happy. The firemen drove off and honked their horn, the kids cheered, they all got hats signed by the firemen, we had fun.



Even more wonderful, on the way to the car, soaking and happy, R said "Mommy, thank you for letting us play. It was so much fun." I said "you are welcome, sweetie." H said "Thankum Mommy." I said "Welcome, sweetie." and a lady walking next to us said "Wow, What wonderful manners." Yup, sometimes I am doing a good job.



testing testing....yup still here!

ahh summer, how I love you. We've been rather cool for the most part here in the Pacific Northwest. Only a few 2-3 day long tastes of summer. Just when I put the sweaters back in the closet, pull out the shorts (or skirts since I don’t like my legs in shorts) I have to pull them back out.... one...at. a...time, hopeful that I will put them right back. The good thing is R is now 6, and we have a neighbor girl who is 8, and HER brother is like 11. The two girls play together a lot, and the boy keeps a good eye on them without playing with them much. I let her ride her bike to that neighbor’s driveway and to the other neighbor’s driveway too. BIG privilege, which also means she sometimes, looses privileges for a day, or an afternoon.




School starts in about 2 weeks for r and 3 or 4 for H. WAHOOO. I mean, so sad, I lose time with my girls.... yeah, that's what I mean.



I had a practice interview for Assistant Store Manager (ASM) and she gave me some great feedback, some encouragement, some tools to use to learn more, and wants to work with me on refining my presentation. I have the passion and the knowledge, but if I can incorporate more "starbuckese" into my conversations I'll stick out in a crowd better. All for that!



Monday I saw a new dentist (new since move.... I loved my old one, but I think I like this one so far. I didn't cry, and that's HUGE for me. I had a VERY bad experience when I was younger and dread and hate the dentist like none other.) Tomorrow I am having a root canal done. The tooth that my last dentist said 40% chance it would be fine, and 60% we'd have to go back in and do the root canal...well, 60% here I am. That's tomorrow at a specialist, then Thurs I am going into my guy again and we are going to go over my x-rays, figure out which teeth to take care of first (what’s bothering me, what's bad, and then the rest), how to get me to my $2000 insurance limit before my insurance year runs out, etc. and then get to work!! I am in pain on three teeth; one is the one getting the root canal. I am glad to get this worked on, but I am anxious.



I ran head first into a quilting wall. I told Katie (HI KATIE!) about it on her last post, I ran out of bobbin thread and just have not been able to get motivated. I was 1/2 way though a seam too.... odd.



anyways, that’s all for now!