Snow Days!!

Catching snowflakes...




Otis might end up getting three weeks of Christmas vacation from school this year. No school so far this week with a storm on the way for tomorrow! Yesterday we went and had studded snow tires put on the car, which is all wheel drive, so we can get around fairly easily. That is a big relief. Now the sun is shining and the sky is bright blue. Gorgeous!!

Christmas Lights

The kids have been having so much fun with all the holidays this year. Sofia is still asking to go trick or treating. She doesn't realize that Christmas is next week. Probably she doesn't remember Christmas from last year. Otis really enjoys putting the lights up with his dad. He looks forward to it. Both the kids stuck with decorating the tree until it was done. I have been enjoying them so much and all their excitement.

A Familiar Scene

ingenuity

The top invention, consisting of a plastic playdough press part and a paintbrush, has been the reigning gun (blaster) of choice for more than a month. I can't get the paintbrush out. We don't have any guns in the house but I admire the inventiveness so much that I've let it stick around.

The second is Sofia's new toothbrush that sticks to the counter. (And other surfaces when she needs to make a statement.)

November At the Ocean

Otis with Grandma Kitty.

ON the spur of the moment the kids and I decided to go to the beach with Grandma Kitty. The weather was gorgeous at the beach, and so warm that we didn't need our jackets. We had fun chasing the waves and building roads and cities in the sand.

Then The Great Dog Ambush: Sofia was looking so cute and sweet following this dog down the beach. We did not know that she had sand gripped tightly in each fist and the intent to sand bomb the dog as soon as it's owner stopped to let Sofia "pet" it. It took me and the dogs owner by such surprise that Sofia was able to nail the dogs sweater with both fists.

Favorite headgear, etc.

Otis' surgery went really well last week. He is healing very quickly and went back to school on Tuesday. Today we had a vigourous sword battle and he won. Viola.

"I decorating my room, mom."

Tonight before putting Sofia to bed I cleaned her room. After bedtime, I went out to water the plants. When I came back in to check on her, I found that she had been very industrious. Note the variety in the lines: flowers in vases, full water glasses, books, pajama bottoms (she changed into a skirt you'll note), etc.

Vacation Photos

Here are some of the photos from our time at the cabin in the woods next to the river.

First Steps To Becoming A Doctor

Otis has been practicing putting together this skeleton puzzle that he received from Gma and Gpa Voelker. It could be the first step in his medical career. "First I'm going to get my kidney fixed, and then I'm going to become a doctor." September 11th is the big day for the kidney surgery, if not sooner. So far the pain has gone away and not recurred and as long as that continues, he'll get a week of Kindergarten in before he has to miss a week of school. We went school clothes shopping yesterday and much fun was had by all. Otis has a distinct sense of style as well as what matches and what doesn't. He does very well at it. Sofia has been enjoying the book "Fancy Nancy" and when she tried on her new shirt with sparkly cats on it and brightly flowered pants, she sighed happily and said "It's fancy."

Back Early

We returned home from vacation early last night, after spending Saturday night in the emergency room with Otis. He was sick, caused by whatever is going on with his kidney and the urologist who will be checking him out wanted to see him today. He is on anti-nausea medicine to keep him from throwing up and anti-inflammatory to keep down the swelling in his kidney (and lessen the pain!) I'm pretty worried about him and hope they actually see us today. I don't want to do a third emergency room visit! He had been scheduled for testing in September since he hasn't had any serious symptoms since the CT scan but that has changed.

Summer

Aahhh. We love summer in our household. Bright sunny days. Swimming. Fresh fruit and vegetables. Grilling and eating dinner on the patio. In August we'll go to Hood River for the Gravenstein Apple Festival. Yippee!! The only downside to summer right about now is that it's on the wane. Happily, autumn holds it's own pleasures. I have been informed today of this years Halloween costume picks. Otis would like to be Tron with glow-in-the dark stripes. Sofia will be Nausicaa. She would love a glider to go with the blue knee-high boots and white tights, but we won't be able to fit it in her room. Patrick tells me that the official Tron costumes used reflective tape. That sounds easier than glow in the dark material, but will it disappoint? Hmmm, I'll have to experiment. Since we're on the topic of summer waning, kindergarten is one month away. Deep breath. Deep breath. I could have sworn I was just giving birth to that boy. Now he's picking out his own clothes (hence the camo) and practicing to save the world. Time goes so fast!

We are excitedly preparing for our annual getaway with our family on Patrick's side. We'll be staying at a beautiful vacation home in southwestern oregon right by a state park and about 30 minutes from the ocean. The description sounds so relaxing, the peaceful sounds of the river and the trees, the wildlife all around. And then again, it's 50 yards away from a river. This should be highly relaxing except for our 2 year old dare-devil who leaps into the pool without a blink and moves lightning fast when on a mission. She will be buckled into her lifejacket at all times. I'm searching for a pink vest to help inspire cooperation. There will be six adults and one of her, so the odds are in our favor. This is our fifth annual getaway and they are always fun. The kids come away glowing and we all enjoy the amazing food and good family times. Otis wanted us to keep the house we rented last year, right on the ocean. He thought it was Grandma and Grandpa's new house. This year's house has a sleeping loft with a ladder made from a tree, guaranteed to be a hit. My next entry will have the full report. Summer Vacation!!! Woohooo!!!!

Freedom!!!

July 4th

It's summer time!! Otis is now five years old. He had two fun parties and just reveled in all the attention and celebration. He was so excited on the day of his birthday waiting for his party guests to arrive. He bounced off the walls all morning.

We enjoyed our 4th of July celebration over at Patrick's parents house. Delicious smoked ribs, fireworks, games...fun times. The kids got to stay up very late and both enjoyed it immensely. On the way home Sofia was talking to herself in the back seat and said "I'm so happy."

Patrick and I have decided to train together to walk a half marathon this fall. I want to run a full marathon in October 2009, and this will be a good step towards building up body tone and getting back into exercise. After the half-marathon, next will be training to run a 5K over the winter, maybe the Jingle Bell run in Seattle and then a more competitive run in March. I'm looking forward to getting back into good shape and am recruiting friends and family to run the Nike Women's Marathon with me next fall in San Francisco.

Up this week: Jury Duty call for me, Patrick mixing up some yummy drinks on his new espresso machine, Otis playing with lots of toys, Sofia enjoying Grandma Kitty's swimming pool. A trip to the ocean is in order as well. We're only just over an hour away and the kids love playing in the sand and running through the water.

June with the Beans

Well, here we all are, doing our thing. Lucy is about 12 years old now, and she sleeps much of the time. The doorbell transforms her into a whirling barking ball of energy, still. Superdog. Sofia Louisa (as she prefers to be called) jumps into everything with equal amounts of enthusiasm. Dancing, swinging, and eating are some of her favorite activities. Otis is four feet tall and full of laughs. He practices his jedi moves regularly and is looking forward to kindergarten this fall. Tootsie Roll, aka Princess Ming, has been cozying up to Patrick a lot lately, maybe because he's had to have his feet up. He is recovering from severe plantar fasciitis, which has been pretty painful, but is responding well to rest, icing, and elevation. In his spare time, he is doing lots of programming, building various computer/electronic systems for our house, planning a compost bin (for me!) and teaching the kids how to throw the frisbee. I am enjoying working at home (not for profit). I miss the profit part but it is so worth it to be able to go on trips with the kids, play, cook as much as I want, and maintain our garden and flowers. Mostly, I love how happy the kids are and how much fun we have.

June so far: We have our first strawberry almost ripe. Yay!! My biggest challenge of the moment is keeping the food budget on track with the grocery prices growing at such an alarming rate. I wanted to buy most of my produce at the farmers market this month, but was foiled by an unexpected turn of events and then relieved that it didn't work out because my groceries cost so much at the store. Can't wait until our garden starts producing!! We are looking forward to spending time with all the grandparents in the upcoming weeks. Grandma Kitty is going to spend the night on Saturday, Grandpa Dan is stopping by to say hi, and Grandma Ruth and Grandpa Martin are going to have a treasure hunt for the kids on Sunday. As Otis says, "DoubleLUCKY!!"