Washington

We recently spent a long weekend in Washington to visit friends. Marek had a chance to try out the new scooter he got for Christmas, along with his first few rides on the skateboard with Jake. He had the time of his life! We went to a skatepark near my old work and Jake took him on the halfpipe. Marek was just grinning from ear to ear and laughing the whole time. It was so cute to watch him. Afterwards he exclaimed, "When I grow up I want to live in the park!" Of course, I'm hoping this means he only wants to visit the park to skate. LOL. Other highlights of the visit included his temporary obsession with electric blankets. We had just read "Click, Clack, Moo, Cows That Type" by Doreen Cronin. The cows in the book are asking the farmer for an electric blanket. Marek had never heard of one or seen one before, so he immediately thought it was very important for us to get one. After what seemed like a long time spent convincing him that he didn't need one (and I'm pretty convinced they're both uncomfortable and unsafe!), he settled for taking a look at Daddy's heating pad.

Here is the video of him on the halfpipe:

I also, finally, had the chance to visit one of my best friends, Kari, and meet her new baby girl! She is so darling and Kari is just the sweetest mom. I really wish we lived closer to each other.

Nice day for a hike

We went on a hike last weekend when the weather was so gorgeous. Marek was so excited for the hike. He wanted to keep on going and going. Of course, he hasn't figured out the concept yet that at some point you have to turn around and come back - no matter how tired you are! We had a great time. However, on our way back down the hill we came across a family with a very excited big puppy that jumped on top of Marek and knocked him down. This has happened twice to Marek, where an excited big dog has trampled him and left him pinned down and muddy. Luckily no damage was done, but it scared me! The owners were very sweet (and responsible enough) to come up to Marek after disciplining their puppy to discuss what happened, make sure he was okay and talk to him about what the puppy had done. When a dog is in an off-leash area, the owners still need to make sure their dog can handle it. No wonder people grow up afraid of dogs! I'm glad he has good experiences with dogs, including Lily, because otherwise that would be enough to build a fear of dogs in him! He was a little upset, but quickly recovered. Enough excitement for one day!

sunshine in the cold

The weather was phenomenal the past few days (although cold!), so we took advantage of it and spent some time outside.

My canine companion and my adorable boy, taking a rest in the sand.

Heading to the park to run, slide, climb, swing and dig for treasure in the sand.

This fireman is ready for some muddy action - goofy hat and all.

My girl, Lily, enjoying the mud and creek. Next stop - bath....

All smiles!

mama musing

even the days where i feel exhausted to my core, there is:

happiness:: tiny feet, toothy grins, giggling until you make no sound
peace:: unconditional love, soft breaths of a sleeping boy, a hand held, a comforting hug given, cuddles
reflection:: those tiny feet becoming strong and fast and ticklish, wispy blonde curls thickening into wavy brown hair, the first coos errupting into laughter and song and long-winded sentences, the love that grows deeper each moment and how can that be when right now there is already no end to the depths of my love for my precious boy?

our evening

After a really long day at work, this was the perfect way to end the day!

pretty little birdie

I recently opted to buy a new bag from a great local (NW) company Queen Bee Creations. I was eyeing all different designs, but kept coming back to the chirp design.

And then I came home, walked in to my bathroom and noticed that I seem to have a recent love of birds.
It was my birthday this week and Marek gave me the most precious birthday. When I came home from work, the lights were out, the candles were lit on the cake and his smiling face was beaming up at me. He sang "Happy Birthday" to me and gave me a present (a playground ball he thought I'd just love!).

“Making the decision to have a child is momentous. It is to decide forever to have your heart go walking around outside your body.” - Elizabeth Stone

officer marek in training

Marek and Officer Jason
Testing out the patrol car.

Marek was pretty excited to hang out in Jason's patrol car. They tried out the radio, lights and sirens. Well...the sirens were probably not Marek's favorite part, because he ended up clinging a little to me after that point. But he was quite impressed with the computer on board. Now he's regularly talking about his new computer in his police car - Marek often pretends he is an officer at a police department. It was really nice of Jason to share this with Marek!

singing