Holidays 2008

Despite multiple changes in holiday visitors and travel plans, we had a really good Christmas this year! Last week a good portion of Oregon was hit with an unusual amount of snow and ice...except where we live. We had a week of snow prior to that, so I definitely had my fix of snow fun. But it made for an interesting time trying to figure out Christmas plans! First my sister was going to drive with her five children and husband for the week from California. Weather changed that plan. Then we were going to head to Washington state to visit friends and relatives. Weather changed that. Then we finally got reservations on the train to spend Christmas in Washington state...but weather changed that. Our train was canceled and we were rebooked on a late Christmas-day train. So we had a beautiful, quiet Christmas at home with Grandma, then headed north for a few days with more friends and relatives. Here are some highlights:

my new favorite blog

I recently discovered the Greater Good Science Center's Half Full parenting blog and just loved this recent video blog post:

I'm sending it out to all of my friends with children because they are so important!

Merry Christmas!

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Ginger-tastic

I'm not sure what we'll do with ourselves once the Christmas season is over. Our days have been packed with decorating, Christmas crafts, baking, shopping, singing carols and driving to see holiday lights. Tonight we were in the construction business - that of building a gingerbread house. It was really fun - and in Marek's words, "gingertastic!"

hurray for snow

We had a mixture of snow, ice & plain cold weather all week. Marek's school was closed 3 of 5 days due to weather and he had a blast!

Friday morning was absolutely beautiful. We woke up to a new blanket of snow and the sun shining down upon us. The downside of the cycle of winter storms, however, is that my sister, brother-in-law and their family will be stuck down south for the holiday. We were so excited to have them up here and will miss them during Christmas. But their safety is, of course, more important! Sending along thoughts of warm, safe, and pleasant travel to everyone this coming week!

my little man

Marek insisted on wearing a tie to school today. As you can see, he was still proud of it when I picked him up. It could use straightening, but he was so happy to wear his grownup shirt. That's my cutie. He told me the other day, "Today I fell down 4 times because I'm 4 years old!"

The Tree

This year we headed to a local Boy Scout tree lot to pick out our Christmas tree. After spending one year with an artificial tree, we're never going that route again if we can help it! Nothing beats the wonderful smell of a fresh Christmas tree. Marek was very excited for the tree this year! I let him pick it out and he did a fantastic job.

Walking with Grandma to help her choose her tree.

4th Birthday Party

It was my little boy's fourth birthday a few weeks ago. He celebrated with eight of his little friends from play group and preschool with a snowman birthday party. I made a snowman cake (see below), chocolate snowflake cupcakes, we did a snowman craft and everyone played a lot. Marek had such a good time. It was a really great day!

Snowman Cake - yum!Three of Marek's buddies explore the fire truck play structure."I can't believe it!" he says. It's his own copy of The Cat in the Hat.

Another friend busy building in the workshop. She is so adorable.

Constructing snowmen.

Singing "Happy Birthday" and anticipating blowing out four candles!
A happy ending for everyone. One of Marek's preschool friends with his blue balloon.

Sunny Smile

Marek at Titlow Beach in Tacoma.

adorable questions

I haven't been as good at posting regularly due to colds hitting our household, Thanksgiving and preparing for Marek's birthday celebration this weekend. I only have time for a quick post right now, but I wanted to share a cute moment between Marek and his Grandma. He's been very interested in the fact that he's turning 4 soon and the other day he asked Grandma, "Before I was a number, was I a letter?" I love it!

Spoiled?!

Reunited with the table and toys.

I suppose it really sinks in that your child is being spoiled when it's not just you spoiling him, but the people at the local toy store, too! I took Marek to our favorite toy store last week. Not only do they have the best selection of toys, but they let kids play there too! It always bothers me when a toy store isn't kid-friendly. It doesn't make sense! If you're in the business of toys, it should be a given that you like and understand children...which means you know that they'll occassionally want to pick up and test out some of the great toys you are selling. I've been to too many toy stores where the staff follow you around like you're about to break everything if you even look too closely at something! But anyway, back to my favorite store that we love...We've been there so often - and he's so sensitive to change - that he immediately noticed that a large play table with his favorite Noah's Ark boat on it was mysteriously missing. I tried distracting him with other things to look at, but Grandma, who was with us, mentioned to one of the owners that Marek had noticed the table moved. The owner immediately had her staff move the table back for him! She said, "Marek - what would we do without you? You keep us on our toes!" It was really sweet of them. I guess the "you can't always get everything you want" lesson will have to wait until another time...:)

Happy Home

Every Fall I start feeling super domestic. It's probably the holidays or the weather. I really enjoy the cozy time of Fall and focusing on what truly motivates us and connects us together - family. There are numerous blogs that I stop by somewhat regularly and others once in a blue moon. Many of these blogs are written by friends or past friends, but others are written by people I've never met and never will. I am always inspired by the beautiful photography, stories and creative work that many of these people share. It inspires me!

Marek's recent collage from preschool. He was so proud of this and it was so meaningful to him.

I feel very lucky to have been blessed with a little boy that in addition to his love for trains, trucks, fire engines, building with blocks, playing with balls, and his all-around boyness, also enjoys helping me cook and bake and do art and crafts. I love my little boy!!!

Majegoria

Recently I was informed by my brother that my sister-in-law was in Croatia. He said this as if it was as normal as heading to the grocery store for them. If you know my brother, you'd understand why I quickly regarded his comment as nonsense. Of course, I thought, she wasn't in Croatia. She was probably at work, or shopping, cooking, or doing just about anything but heading to Croatia. My brother has always been the kind to pull your leg or exaggerate. He is so good at this - no matter what he says you'll believe it. I think his real calling was in sales. Of course, as a sibling, I've also been the victim of this - believing incredible stories, sharing them with others, then realizing I'd been played the fool! But it's always in good fun. When he was first dating my sister-in-law, she used to call my mom and ask, "Kevin says , is that true?" We share the same sense of humor for the most part, so it's always been kind of fun to hear his stories. But, back to Croatia...it was actually true! Who would have ever guessed? She went with her church on a trip to Majegoria. She shared some photos of her trip here. I haven't heard the details of her trip yet, but at least now we have photographic proof that my brother wasn't pulling our legs this time.

baby toes

My son's birthday is about a month away and he seems determined to not turn four! He tells me that he wants to stay three - or sometimes he even wants to be 1 or 2 again. He looked up at a photo in my home the other day and asked his grandma how old he was in it. When she replied, "1 year old," he said, "I want to be that old!" He did this last year, too, as he was about to turn 3. I have to admit that there are times I miss little baby toes and little baby fingers to kiss and cuddle. My sister recently mentioned how she wants to pick up every baby she sees. I know the feeling! I really love Marek at this age, but there's something to be said for that precious time when children are so tiny.

I still remember vividly being pushed along in the hospital wheelchair, in the middle of the night after giving birth to Marek. I'm holding my tightly swaddled newborn gently and protectively on my lap as a nurse pushes me along. We were on our way from the birthing room to my new room post-delivery. The nurse said, "Oh I just love that smell of a newborn. They only smell that way just after they're born - it's such a sweet baby smell!" And she was right. You never forget that smell or that moment, ever. There are only a few moments in life that I'd like to wrap myself around and bottle them up forever to experience over and over again. That is one of them.

Halloween '08

Marek had a few days off from preschool last week, so we were able to attend storytime again at the library. Luckily, we also ran into one of Marek's friends there and they had a great time climbing trees outside the library.

Halloween was a great deal of fun this year! Actually, several things occurred that I never thought would happen:

1. Marek wore a costume! This may not seem like a big deal, but my boy has never wanted to dress up as anything. This year he started talking about being a pumpkin...then a fireman...then a witch! I had the fireman costume all ready for him on Halloween. But he insisted on doing something different. We stopped by the store early in the day on Halloween and he found this inexpensive knight costume and was very excited about it. He wore it all evening, too!

2. He participated in trick-or-treating! Again, this may not seem monumental...but Marek is kind of a shy boy and last year the other costumes and noise turned him off of the idea. Our town does this wonderful trick-or-treat event every year. All of the businesses downtown participate in a trick-or-treat event during the afternoon on Halloween. It's such a cute sight to see all of the children decked out in costume parading through the town. We also attended a children's Halloween party where he got to play a few games. We ended the evening with a short trick-or-treat visit to a few of our close neighbors. It's so different from when I was growing up. There used to be groups after groups of children parading down the sidewalk and up to each front door. Parents driving by slowly in the minivans to make sure everyone was safe. Now, it's few and far between that you see children out in the neighborhood. I like the other options that there are for children now, but I also miss the old days of trick-or-treating.

Reflection for the Day

I read this quote on Beliefnet and wanted to share:

An attitude of gratitude creates blessings.
-Sir John Templeton

I was just reflecting on things I miss about the midwest, but I love living in the Pacific Northwest. I remember how much I missed sights like the photo above when I was there. Even if I don't head to the Oregon coast as much as I'd like, I love knowing it is so close!

Pumpkin Patch #2

We capitalized on the gorgeous weather this weekend and headed to another pumpkin patch! This one had a small haystack maze, apple and corn launchers, corn and water play stations, a tractor ride to the pumpkin patch, and a large corn maze (which we didn't do). Marek really liked the water pump. The goal was to race little rubber duckies, but he was fascinated with just pumping the water! We picked up a larger pumpkin and can't wait to carve it for Halloween! I miss living in the midwest this time of year. I remember when I was in graduate school in Bloomington and we'd go on weekend drives to see the lush colors and farmland. I loved it!

We're excited about Halloween coming this Friday! Marek changed his mind about being a pumpkin for Halloween. Now he wants to be a fireman. It's a good thing I didn't start sewing his costume yet!

Pumpkin Patch with the Maple Room

Marek's preschool class took a trip to the pumpkin patch on Friday. We all rode on the tractor out to the pumpkin patch to pick pumpkins. Marek initially picked a medium-sized pumpkin, but quickly exchanged it for a very small one that he could carry all by himself. After the tractor ride, the kids all had snacks of homemade donuts, apple cider and a chance to climb on the haystacks. It was a very fun morning! Shy little Marek wouldn't pose with his class for a class picture, but I did snap a few photos from the morning.

On top of the haystack, all covered with kids...

At the hay summit.

The climb begins...

It was a beautiful day. This photo doesn't do it justice at all!

Tractor ride

Smallest pumpkin!

Getting ready to head out on the tractor.
Still a little tired in the morning!