A Spidey Birthday

Max turned 4 yesterday.  Four years old!!!  You know how I usually lament about the lightening-speed passing of time, taking my newborn babies and transforming them into real, mini-people.  I'll spare you most of my sentimental speech, but, seriously, this was, like, yesterday-

So, Lover Boy has been counting down the days to his birthday.  Asking everyday, "Is it my birfday tomorrow?"  "How many fing'gas until my birfday?"  "Mom, will you tell me when it is my birfday?"

The day had finally arrived, and our house was transformed with Spiderman décor.

Aunt Merry brought over a masterpiece of a cake

Max's three best buds came over (plus their siblings), and we celebrated my baby.  My teeny, tiny baby, who became completely bashful while we sang Happy Birthday to him.

It was a celebration worthy of a web-slinging super hero!  Happy Birthday, Bubs!

Wednesday- a Book, a Brand, and a Boy

I'm still sick, still taking it easy, still milking the Ask daddy, kids, because mama is sick for as long as I can.

 

I just finished a really great book. Really, really great.  It is Bloom, and it is written by Kelle Hampton, the author of the blog Enjoying the Small Things.  It is about what happens when life does not go as planned, and it is about overcoming expectations, accepting change and differences, and ultimately "blooming".  It is also about the great power of friends, which Kelle calls "The Net"- friends who can catch you when you fall and keep you afloat.  I finished the book feeling so grateful for my own net- y'all know who you are :) 

So, unrelated...  I found a pair of boots for Lucy at Old Navy for $4.97.  You'd better believe that I bought them-  a great deal always makes me feel giddy!  She loves them, and she has been wearing them everyday since they became hers. 

Yesterday after school, she tells me that her friend Elaina has the exact same boots as her!  They match!  So exciting!  But then she says, "Except, mom, that Elaina's boots have a rectangle on the back that says 'UGG'.  I wish my boots had that rectangle.  Why don't my boots say 'UGG', mom?  What is the difference?"  Um, approximately $114.98.  That is the difference. 

I explained to Lucy that her boots are from Old Navy, so they are a bit different, and she seemed to accept that answer.  But, oh boy, am I in trouble.  Sure, I prefer to have that rectangle on the back of my boots, so why shouldn't Lucy?  Because she is six!  That's why!

 

And finally, why sit on the sofa and watch cartoons when you can do this?  Silly Bubs.

Monday Love Letters

I have fallen ill on this chilly, overcast Monday, and I am totally taking advantage of a sick day.  I am in sweat pants, curled up in a blanket, watching Max play with his toys, and playing on my computer.  My goal for the day is to watch the Katy Perry movie.  It is good to have goals, right?

 

I devoured a bowl (okay, two bowls) of my favorite cereal for breakfast, and it inspired me to dedicate Monday blog posts to love letters to inanimate objects.  Or maybe even animate objects.  Who knows- this could really go any direction.  So, without further ado...

 

 

 

Dear Peanut Butter Crunch,

I love you, and I will always love you. And I don't feel guilty about loving you. 

The reason why I often leave you behind at Fred Meyer's  is because your box is small and your price is high.  It isn't your fault.

I don't want you to feel bad, like you don't fit into my organic milk world.  Yes, you contain a lot of sugar, but so what? Who cares?  Sometimes in life we have to treat ourselves to something special and nostalgic and delicious, and that is what you are to me.   

Thank you for having a bigger box and a lower price at Target.

Love always,

Annie

 

Dear Jack LaLanne Power Juicer,

I love you. 

We have only recently jumped on the juicing bandwagon, and you are giving us quite a ride.  You are fun and easy to operate, and the juice that we make together is delicious, except for when I use radishes or jicama.  Or too much grapefruit and too little orange.  Yuck. 

I referred to you as a toy- "adult toy" was what I actually said, but then corrected myself when I realized how terribly scandalous "adult toy" sounds- but you are more than a toy; you are now a kitchen staple.  Welcome!

Much love,

Annie

 

 

Dear Mariners,

I love you do.  I really do.  I've always felt that the Oakland A's fill that baseball shaped hole in my heart, but I've come to realize that you are my team.  You need me.  You need everyone that you can get, because, let's be honest, you stink. 

I'll support you this year, and I'll cheer for you, and I'll hope and pray that you get hits.

With love,

Annie

 

PS- Felix can throw as many perfect games as he wants, but he will never replace Dennis Eckersley or Barry Zito in my heart.

 

 

Spring Break Surftides

School breaks overwhelm me.  Heck, being a mom overwhelms me.  The school-days routine helps make the weekdays manageable. 

September through June- manageable. 

July, August and various holidays- mama freak-out. 

Rather than celebrate those days on the calendar that declare No School, as I did when I was a student myself, I take a deep breath and let out an exhausted sigh and wonder If I can't send the kids to school, what the heck are we going to do all day? 

Just short of having a panic attack at the thought of trying to simultaneously entertain Teenage Joe and The Littles (gosh, that sounds like a bad band, or a bad cartoon) for a full week, I made a plan: Road trip to somewhere new.

Devon had long ago requested a couple of extra days off at my polite request to HELP ME!! keep the kids busy during spring break, so together as a family, in a Griswold vacation fashion, we hit the road, destination Oregon Coast.

Our first night was spent in Eugene, visiting Molly and Aaron, and working in some "hairapy" from my sister/stylist.  Love that girl!

 

Though it was great fun hanging out in Eugene, the kids were very anxious to get to our hotel in Lincoln City.  I insisted that we do a bit of tourism, so our first stop on the coast was the Sea Lion Caves in Florence, OR, "World's Largest Sea Cave".

It was pretty cold and windy up on the cliff.  We made our way down to an elevator that took us down 208 feet to the cave.

And there they are- about 200 sea lions.  The cave was huge, and there were more sea lions than I could even manage to fit into a photograph.  Max and Lucy were a bit scared, and Joe thought it smelled bad.  We looked around for a short while and then said, "Welp, cross it off the list.  We've now seen the world's largest sea cave!"

Next stop- Surftides Lincoln City.  This hotel is right on the beach, has an indoor pool and hot tub, and the cutest décor, like, right out of Pinterest.  We quickly made it our home.

The sea was calling to me...  The beach makes me very happy.  It makes my kids happy too, until one of them falls into the water (Lucy) and one of them has very cold feet (Max).

I could totally handle living on the beach.  Having the ocean as my view... and ordering pizza delivery and watching a Mariners game in pajamas.  Ah yes!

Day Two- look who else loves the beach!

We took a break for lunch and outlet shopping, but then we were back for more...



Joe went in the ocean!  Brrrrrrr!

 

Okay, okay, enough pictures of the lovely beach. 

But, really, it was such a great getaway, and, for the most part, we all got along!  For the most part.  In fact, Lucy even shared that she wishes that we lived in a hotel, so that we could all sleep in the same room, beside each other, forever.  Awww!  At the same time, I was feeling very grateful that we don't live in a hotel.... 

 

One more tourist stop on the way home.  The Tillamook Cheese Factory.  A little peek into the factory, a little lunch in the cafe, and some Tillamook ice cream that felt really special until I remembered that we can buy Tillamook ice cream at any store.  Oh well.  When in Tillamook, eat the cheese and ice cream! 

 

 

Spring break is almost over and school is almost back in session, and I think it is safe to say that I survived without a panic attack and that we successfully entertained Teenage Joe and The Littles.  We made some family memories and have a zillion beach pictures to savor those memories...  I am high-fiving myself!