New Name...

With our Seattle days coming to a close we will be choosing a new name for our blog. Life in Seattle just isn't fitting anymore. So to have a little fun, I thought I would take input on what the new name should be. You can submit your ideas by leaving them as a comment. You can also submit as many different titles as you wish. Depending on the number of entries, Mike and I will choose the top runners and place a poll for people to vote on the final name. So, have at it!

Picnics and Corndogs

With Mike being home and the weather being as beautiful as it has been we have been spending a lot of time outside. The other day, Samuel had a picnic lunch on the front lawn with daddy!

I also introduced the boys to corndogs a couple of weekends ago. They loved them. Samuel was so excited that there was "a hot dog hiding in there!" Both boys ate the whole thing! Liam loved it so much he wanted to chew on the stick when he was done! Great fun!

Wading Pool Fun

With summer in full force we have been spending a lot of time at the wading pool. It is a short 10 minute walk from our place. We generally walk down and spend an hour or so wearing the kids out before we head back home for naps. Here are a few pictures from our past couple of visits.

The Countdown Begins

Since the majority of you all know, I will make it short and sweet.

We are moving back to Michigan, Coldwater to be exact.

Mike is currently in his last class and finishing up his remaining papers. I am closing out my time at work and the house is starting to get packed up. We will departing Seattle on the 5th of August and making a two week journey back across the country with key stops at Glacier National Park, Minneapolis and St. Louis.
It is amazing to think that our three years here is Seattle is over. I am still amazed how this place has grown on me and how sad I am to let it all go. Although we feel we need to be in Michigan near family it does not make the saying goodbye any easier. We have both grown to love the city, the culture and the diversity it holds and the friends that we have made here. These people have been through three of our toughest years with us. They have watched us grown as individuals, a couple and parents. They have struggled with us and held us up when we could no longer stand on our own. They have truly become our family here and saying goodbye will be one of the hardest things I have ever done. I am really scared to do so.
So why are we going? We still ask ourselves this often. If it were just Mike and I we probably wouldn't, but as parents we feel it is a sacrifice we have to make for the boys. We want then to know their family, grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins. And yet we know that this is the only life they have ever known. We will not only being saying goodbye but helping them to do so also. Another tough job ahead.
Although there is light at the end of the 3,000 mile tunnel I am sure there will be many times that we feel in the dark, cold and alone. I am sure there will be many tears as we drive away from the mountains we love and as we struggle to embrace all the change. There will be culture shock as we move back to the Midwest and small town living. We will reacclimate to a place that we left three years ago. We will return to this familiar place yet are such different people we are unsure of what that will mean. We anticipate the difficulty of navigating life and remaining true to the beliefs that have become so clear to us in our time here.
Mike said it well recently. It is like being on a really good weekend retreat. You come back so full of life and energy so excited to tell everyone all about the experience. Then you just can't explain it. They don't understand the impact it has been. They just don't get it because they were not there doing it with you. It is like that, only it has been a three year retreat.
And that feels big.

Me Too, Woody!

Buzz and Woody. Good Buddies!
Game time. Checkers!
"Me too, Woody!"
"No, only two."
Buzz and Woody. Good Buddies!
Playtime. Seesaw!
"Me, too Woody!"
"No, only two."
Poor Jessie.
"Hey Jessie." "Want to play?"
"Yay!" Play ball.
Big swing. Big hit.
"Run Buzz!" "Run Jessie!"
Going. Going. Got it!
Good play! Good buddies!

Old, New, Red, Blue

Old truck. New car.
Red truck. Blue car.
Shiny and bright.
Dull and brown.
Day on the highway.
Night in the town. Dirty car.
Clean car.
Nice car. Mean car.
Drive fast, fast, fast.
Drive nice and slow.
Cars ride high. Cars ride low.
Tires are big. Tires are small.
Piles of tires. Short and tall.
Wheels rolling on the ground. Cars and trucks drive all around.
Beep. Beep.

An Afternoon at the Park

A couple weeks ago we took a little walk over the Green Lake to feed the ducks. Although all the signs are posted requesting people not to feed them, what mom could resist the giggles and smiles of a two year old thrilled to do so. So...we did! Oh well!

Samuel loved it. I have not heard him laugh quite so hard in awhile. He kept getting very nervous as the ducks would come close to him. From the friendliness of the ducks you could tell we were not the only people that broke the rules. Several ducks came right up to Samuel and were attempting to take the bread right out of his hands. He would end up just throwing the entire piece at their heads. It was great!

We went through a lot of bread in a very little amount of time. The ducks were full and Samuel was thrilled. On our way home we stopped off in a grassy area so the boys could run around and play a bit (Honestly I just wanted to take some pictures, but don't tell). So we played before heading home for naps.

Sometimes they pretend they like each other a bit.

Watching Samuel run circles around us.

Peek a boo!

"Look Mom! A stick!"

The Art of Stick Picking
"Liam, this is how you do it!"

"Wow Samuel, I never would have guessed!"

The perfect stick.

"Mom, are you done with that camera yet?"

"Here are my teeth! They make me fussy!"

Brothers!

Rites of Passage

Recently Samuel experienced two very significant rites of passage.

I. Overcoming a Fear

While camping, we were able to stay at a spot on the river. We knew Samuel would spend hours playing in the river and throwing rocks into the water. Shortly after arriving, Mike and Samuel discovered that someone had begun to build a small rock bridge over a portion of the water. They decided to work on it and finish it so they could cross the little stream. Samuel collected big rocks and together they completed the bridge.

Once the bridge was completed you had to cross it. Well, Samuel made it about half way and started to panic. Although Mike was right behind him he wanted to either go back or have daddy carry him. Mike asked him to take a deep breath and look how far he already was. He then explained that he could do it and that daddy would be there. After a bit of persuading Samuel agreed to try and keep going. He made it all the way across and when he got to the other side, exclaimed "I did it!" A very proud moment for mommy and daddy.



II. Peeing Outside

Also while camping, Samuel made the step into boyhood where peeing outside becomes ok. After going back and forth from the nasty outhouse several times, Mike taught Samuel how to pee in the grass. He thought it was hilarious. He caught on rather quickly and amazingly had to go to the bathroom every few minutes. Every once in awhile we would look over and catch a glimpse.

Oh...the joy of watching boys grow up!

Camping

A few weeks ago we went on our first camping trip of the summer. We headed up to our favorite campground, Gold Basin, off of Mt. Loop Highway. We found a great spot on the river that had a ton of grass for Liam to play in and a beach area to keep Samuel occupied. Jon and Annie joined us for the day on Saturday. We had a great time just hanging out, taking a short hike and enjoying some delicious passion pockets! Although we froze the first night and got rained on the second we had a great time.

Daddy and Liam hanging out by the river.

Thumb wars...

A break along our hike.

The whole gang...

Grant and Jon having some heart to hearts.

Bailey even joined in on the fun.

Parks

One of the things we love doing is going to the park. I think we would be there everyday if we didn't have anything else to do and if the weather would cooperate. I am not sure when we did what but here are a few pictures of our last several trips.

Still Alive

Yes, we are all still alive.
I know I have been pretty horrible about the updates and promise to have some shortly. I was prepared to list all the horrible excuses as to why, but am just a bit rushed with Samuel yelling because the tv is broken and Liam hanging on my hip squawking because I didn't pick him up yet, so the excuses will have to wait. Anyway, updates to come shortly...Stay tuned!