party animals

A fun little glimpse at Collin's party with Auntie Lindsay and neighborhood friends. He is still into turtles something fierce & I had a lot of stuff leftover from Aden's beach party last year. Pretty easy way to blow your five year old's mind which of course, is the point.

storytime

Our story is unfolding in Seattle. We are coming up on a year since the big move & some things are coming into view. My friend & neighbor, Rhiannon encouraged me to blog about our goals in moving here. I like to think I am open to feedback, (I practically beg for it!) and then the universe plopped a foster kid in our home for the morning so I am taking the hint.

It all started with the idea of whether or not to send Collin to Kindergarten in the fall. He is nowhere near ready but a lot can happen in 5 months. Anyhow, Rhiannon was taking a tour of the local elementary school and invited me along this morning. We moved throughout the school, built in 1985 & smelling a bit of dirty feet, every square inch displaying the student's artwork. Our kids would be the minority at this school and as I was taking it all in, my heart swelled and rainbows shot all around my insides. This is it! This is why we moved.

It is still difficult for me to put words to but the story guiding us. We are experiencing new cultures, different lifestyles, and most important, more humanity. It is awkward, and scary, and JUST WHAT WE WANTED.

We walked out to our cars, raving about all the promising things going on in that old stinky school and are stopped by an middle-aged man asking if an 8th grade runaway boy could use my phone. The boy, Jacob, had been living on his own and sleeping in Metro buses for almost 2 weeks. The older gentleman was encouraging him to get ahold of his caseworker and get off the streets. Well, Rhiannon and I, both kick into "mom-mode," trying to help him but FAH-REAK-ING OUT inwardly. I ended up taking Jacob home, where Matt was, to figure something out. Matt knew what to do and we got Jacob where he needed to go but no easy "fix" for that situation, obviously.

And while I have a heavy heart about kids, not much older than my firstborn, finding themselves homeless, it was exactly what my boys needed to see. They all had a (much needed) perspective shift this morning. And that is the end game for all of us, I think. To see clearer, to love deeper, to stick in this together.

grandparents

 The boys are seriously blessed with fantastic Grandparents. We celebrated Grandma Ellen's birthday on the last trip to Idaho. The photo above shows what that entailed. She has repeated told me that the wild antics of our boys are actually what she enjoys most. Do you know how great it is to hear that as a mom? SO GREAT.

 Grandpa Ken is the Weapons Master. He crafted shields for the boys on the Saturday afternoon we were in town. Oh, ya, no biggie. He just heads out to the garage for 20 minutes & whips up some childhood dreams come true. Not to mention these were to accompany the tridents the boys had designed & he had ready for them when we arrived.

 Then Grandma Ellen goes and blows our mind with her mad skills with a paintbrush. BAM! Parker's is the lion, Kaleb has the sun, the bear is Aden's, & Collin of course chose Leonardo.

Seriously, SO BLESSED.

insta-awesome

Idaho trip via Instagram + Girl Scout cookies & Robin Eggs = one happy girl.

I'm 5 today!

Simply put; Collin you bring joy to a new level in our home, Happy Birthday, baby boy!

p.s. you need a haircut

oh baby!

Last week we snuck away for a quick visit to Idaho. Some close friends of mine are welcoming lil' people into their lives. I wanted to surprise Andrea at her baby shower for her 1st baby. It worked! She had no idea & was thrilled to see my face at the door.

 Lil' Koenig is one lucky duck, mom is an excellent baker & dad is an amazing chef. Who wouldn't want to live in that house?

 A couple more weeks until Andrea is holding a sweet smelling newborn, can you see her necklace? Ooh, I am just so excited for her!

 Then there is my sassy friend Marcela. I call her Mafia because if you cross her, she will cut you. I found a diva to call friend & now she has a little diva of her own. Meet Paloma Evangeline, the pics just do not do her justice. In fact, I was so elated to meet this little lady, my camera was bouncing all over the place. I have the honor of being Fairy Godmother to Paloma- isn't that just the best? As close to a daughter as I think I'll get.

 Girlfriend has mad style & likes to shop already!

 She even cruised through dinner with good friends, Fawn & Marcela, at my beloved Brick29 Bistro.

My girl time tank needed a filling, February in Seattle can really rub the sparkle out of a girl. This trip reminded me that, even though we celebrate boy a lot at our house, this girl is loved.

working hard or hardly working

Matt's job requires some travel, he was training out of town last week. The boys and I got out every day afterschool. One of the requests was to go to Menchie's frozen yogurt bar.

 They each made their own special mix, filling the bowl to the brim.

 This was mine, I am a big time toppings girl. This place is great for that. Almonds, pretzels, cheesecake, cookie dough- pile it on!

 Squee!!! Look at the decor! Love it.

world's best

We headed to Beecher's Cheese in Pike's Place last weekend. They boast of the world's best Mac n' Cheese & they certainly did not disappoint. The boys & I ate ourselves right into a food coma, which is the only way you should try to navigate the Market, BTW.

jagger

He is kind of my favorite right now.

what we eat

Matt is quite smitten with this spicy Asian condiment. We call it "chi-chi sauce."

Organic Fuji, Braeburn, or Gala apples. Like 12 lbs. a week.

 Homemade tortillas, the boys know how to make these. Thank you, Grandma Ellen!

 Brussel sprouts. (disclaimer, MUST INCLUDE BACON)

 Squash soup. I continue to try to replicate Brick 29's recipe but it is a work in progress. We like ours with heaps of goat cheese.

 Green (or brown) smoothies. Watch this, you'll be convinced.

 Quiche, with gluten free crust. The boys love "man quiche," made with only meat & cheese, no veggies.

Broccoli? Nope, not really but if Collin gets hungry enough he will eat the whole stalk just like a turkey leg.

No-bake energy bites. They don't boost my energy level but they are tasty.

Flourless Chocolate Idiot Cake.

This recipe for pork carnitas is my go-to when people come over & the crockpot makes it so easy.

Just a little glance at the highly sought after dietary habits of the Archie 6. Let me know if you try any of the recipes or serve up any of the same fare at your home.

and that is the weekend

Parker is quite the history buff these days. He has a wonderful online teacher that has sparked his interest. I love eaves-dropping on their "This day in history," lessons. So today he is reading and says to me, "I am so not a fan of Communism." Collin promptly pops around the corner and enthusiastically shouts, "I'm a fan!" I am loving the mix of middle school & pre-school we've got goin on.

Aden is very quiet about schoolwork, then I will find him in tears over something. I checked in on him while he was working on math. "You doing okay there, Ade?" He nodded & smiled. I replied, "You don't need your good ole Ma for nothin'?" He nodded again & smiled. My mouth agape he said, "What? You asked."

Just some tidbits from our day that made me joy filled. I'm terrible at recording them. Either because we are too busy living or I am under the delusion that I will remember. (ya, that's gonna happen)

Also, the pics are testament to a bizarre phenom I'm experiencing. I am calling it reverse nesting. There is no baby coming so I feel the need to organize everything! I gotta do something beside mope around, I guess.