snow - part 1

Most of you already know about the crazy snow storm we've had in the last week. The "arctic blast" came through Portland last weekend and pretty much closed down the town for a few days. We are not used to snow here, and definitely not prepared for over a foot of it. Good thing Grandma Carol made it out before the big storm hit, although you can read here that it was not the easiest journey.

Here are some pictures from the first bit of snow two weekends ago during Grandma Carol's visit. We spent most of our time inside as the girls were not fans of the wind blowing snow in their faces. That and the bout of stomach flu that hit Maryn on Friday, Lucy on Sunday and Chris and I on Monday night. We were so lucky to have Grandma here to take care of us!

Grandma Carol and the girls

Grandma Kathy and Grandpa Doug stopped by for a visit

Grandma had the brilliant idea to bring the snow inside. We had indoor snowball fights and made miniature snowmen.

We decided it would be safer to walk rather than drive to Grandma Kathy and Grandpa Doug's for an early dinner. It was in the teens with the windchill. Brrr!

Maryn enjoyed baking with Grandma - especially licking the beater!

sick and tired, but Christmas-y!

A horrible cold complete with hacking cough and perpetually dripping nose has been making its way through our family, starting with Maryn last week and finally making its way to Lucy in the last couple of days. Actually, it started with my Dad, but I'm not pointing fingers (or tissues). To compound issues, we took Lucy to the doctor for a bad diaper rash and found out she also has an ear infection. Poor baby! She's such a toughie that we had no idea she was hurting. We're all (mostly) on the mend now and it's time for a long overdue blog update!

We are getting into the Christmas spirit here and put up our Christmas tree last night. That is a story unto itself as I happened to buy a stump-less tree without thinking about how in the world I would put a tree with no stump into a tree-stand. A little branch trimming and some poking and prodding got the tree into the stand and it's only a teensy bit crooked. You don't notice, do you?

As we hung our ornaments on the tree I realized that our collection is seriously lacking. I ended up putting some on that would better be left in the box, and others that I had no memory of where, when or why they were procured. And the fun of ornaments is reminiscing about the stories behind them (which we got to do when we helped mom, dad and Amanda trim their tree last week). So this is my plea for ornaments. Anything with a good story or sentimental value would work. Handmade is always good, too. Any takers? I know you guys will come through :)

We've been working on pictures for the Christmas card and I think we're going to have my talented freind Allie take some in her new home studio this week. I was trying for a picture of just the girls today and man is Allie going to have her work cut out for her: these girls won't sit still together for anything! Here's the first attempt:

This is after the chocolate chip bribe:

I quickly realized that chocolate and white dresses do not mix well so these are the final shots with lollipops instead and a dress-less Lucy:


And a funny story to end:

We periodically purge the kid's out-grown toys, usually saying something like "we're going to give these to kids who don't have any toys." This goes over fairly well and the kids forget about it quickly once they get consumed with the toys they still have, or, more likely, making toys out of things that not designated as such ie: mommy's kitchen utensils or books.

As I finished typing this post I looked behind me to notice an abnormally quiet Maryn serenely pulling carefully organized (have I mentioned that I'm slightly OCD) books off the shelf. As I told her to put them back with a slightly annoyed tone to my voice, she retorted "but some people don't HAVE any books!!!" I guess she's getting them ready to donate to the Goodwill. Hmmm. Put me in my place.

And with that I leave to put my bookshelf back in order. OCD, remember?!

The colors of Fall

I realize that the last few posts have been about Fall, but I can't help it. I LOVE FALL! I love the colors, and the smells, and the crispness of the air after it rains. I love the clouds and the gray days that give me permission to cuddle up with a cup of tea and a good book or a knitting project. I love the baking that comes with fall: pumpkin bread, pumpkin scones, gingerbread cake and cookies, cookies of any kind :) I think I gained 10 lbs the first fall I was here because somehow gloomy weather triggers my internal baking barometer.

On my way to pick Chris up from work on Friday I noticed a gorgeous lane of golden-leafed trees lining the street with a carpet of foliage underfoot.
What a perfect backdrop for some fall pictures! I enthusiastically described my plan to Chris. To my surprise he responded with "I was thinking the exact same thing!" So we set out on Saturday afternoon to capture the kids in the fall splendor. My plan was not quite perfect, however, as the rain and quickly waning light made it difficult to capture the perfect picture.

I really like how they came out, anyway, blur and all. The kids had so much fun running and kicking their way through the leaves, even in the cold drizzle. We finished up with a trip to Coldstone (okay, I still use bribes to get pictures!). We hope you, too, are enjoying the magic of fall!

A royal Halloween

Happy Halloween!

Fall fun

Three

She's officially three! This has been a year of great growth for the bear: going from crib to bed, getting rid of diapers and pacifiers, growing into her role as big sister and becoming a bit more of the Maryn she'll eventually be. A Maryn who loves to sing and dance, jump and run, explore and discover, deconstruct in order to rebuild and rearrange. A Maryn difficult to pin down for pictures :) Thank you, doodle, for the joy you bring to my life and for the wonderful moments yet to come.!

What three-year-old photo shoot would be complete without the potty dance? :)

Lucy Walks! And Dances!

Here are some videos of Lucy - the one of her walking was taken today. She took her first steps last week and seems to be getting the hang of it:



This one of her dancing is from a month or so ago. I'm so glad I got this when I did because she hasn't done this dance since. I love it! We were at my parent's house watching a Brian Doerksen (worship music) video. It really looks like she's worshiping with her hand in the air:



And this picture was taken in May or June but I just came across it in my archives and thought it was so funny - as all parents learn: When silence falls, trouble is never far behind!


I hope everyone has a great week!

Cannon Beach

First off, thank you all for your comments on Maryn's difficult time at ballet. It means so much to be surrounded by supportive family and friends...this parenting thing is too difficult and too important to do alone!

After a good night's rest Maryn was back to her perky self and we were ready for a little spur-of-the-moment adventure. Grandma Kathy's work day ended sooner than anticipated so we decided to make an afternoon trip to the beach. It was overcast as we left and we drove with no expectations for what the weather would be like when we got there. My kids love being outdoors and would be happy to play in the freezing cold so long as they could be outside, so I knew they'd have a great time no matter what the weather held.

All our concerns were for naught when it turned out to be the perfect beach day! Sometimes being impulsive pays off! The fog lifted soon after we arrived and the kids played happily without sweatshirts in the cool ocean breeze. We stopped for ice cream on our way home - the perfect way to cap off a beautiful afternoon at the beach! I hope we can get at least one more beach day in before winter hits full-force.

I LOVE this picture my mom took of me and the girls...especially Maryn's cheesy smile and Lucy's impatient face :)

I deliberatly dressed the girls in matching outfits hoping to get some cute shots of the two of them...they were far more interested in the sand than my camera.

Proof that no matter how much I argue to the contrary, I most definitely throw like a girl :)

Maryn takes Ballet

This week has marked the start of "school" for us. Although Maryn is not yet in pre-school. We had our first CBS (Community Bible Study) class on Wednesday. We are studying 1st and 2nd Corinthians this year and I am really looking forward to it. Maryn is in the young 3's class, or the "green" class. They really do a great job of providing a structured class for the little ones and Maryn learned a lot last year despite our many absences for Lucy's recovery. I hope we can be more consistent with our attendance and work on the Bible stories and memory verses more this year.

In addition to CBS and weekly trips to storytime at the library Maryn will be taking ballet this Fall. She had her first class yesterday. When I asked her what classes or activities she wanted to do this year "ballet" and "art" were the ones she kept repeating. So I signed her up for a class through parks and rec. She has been in love with ballet ever since watching the ballerinas at OBT exposed a few weeks ago and has been wearing her tutu regularly while toting her ballerina doll wherever she goes.

Nerves got the better of her when we actually arrived at the class and while she participated for the first part, the second the teacher tried to interact with her she went running to grandma's lap and remained there for the rest of the class.
I often have a hard time knowing how to deal with this aspect of Maryn's personality - the shy, reserved side where she refuses to interact with anyone new and slinks to my side unwilling to participate. Part of me wants to push her out there, mostly out of embarassment or self-consciousness that my kid is the poorly-adjusted one. But I'm realizing more and more that it's just part of who she is and if I force her agianst her will she'll just be more unwilling to try the next time. I think it will be better next week when parents are not allowed to stay in the room and she'll feel less "watched." It also helps that there were two other girls with the same personality type. I wish I had captured the scene when the teacher had all of the girls fall down and only Maryn and her two shy buddies were standing . I can see them becoming fast friends as the class goes on - if they can overcome their shyness long enough to talk to each other :)

I love how you can tell she's studying the other girls.

Lucy loved watching the girls dance. She wanted so badly to go join them!

A tired ballerina