Spring Break Part Two

We spent the day in Seattle at the Woodland Park Zoo and the Pacific Science Center.  Our cousins went to the Aquarium too, but I was too tired to do one more thing.  I actually didn't take as many pictures as I usually do, but I'll share a few of my favorites.  I took more pictures of our cousins than I did of my own children, but we hardly ever see our cousins. 

We are officially exhausted.  There are still so many things to see and do, but sleep sounds really good right now....

Zoo:

The gang:

Science Center:

My exhausted father slept while the kids played:

Dinner at a Chinese Restaurant sounded so much better than sitting in traffic...

Spring Break Part One

We had a wonderful time on the Olympic Peninsula.  While the rest of the house sleeps, I'll upload a few pictures.  It will be hard to choose...I took over 200 pictures.  I'll upload a few of my favorites and make a video sometime.  

Fun on the Ferry:

 (I forgot to tell our Ward cousins that the name of our ferry was "Puyallup."

  The name of our ferry on the way home was "Spokane.")

Port Townsend/Fort Worden State Park:

Just having fun....

Hoh Rain Forest:

Marymere Falls near Lake Crescent:

Madison Falls:

View from the window of the home we stayed in:

Cape Flattery:  The most northwest point in the lower 48 states...pictures can't capture the beauty here.  Our cousins saw a gray whale, but we missed it.

Sunset over Lake Crescent:

Ready for Spring Break

Several of my family members are making the long journey to join us for a fun spring break vacation in the rain.  They are happy to be leaving the snow.  I told them that it snowed here yesterday...a lot....but then it started raining and the snow melted.  Later in the afternoon, the sun came out.  Weird weather...only in the Northwest can it be snowy, rainy, and sunny all in one day.  I wish the sun was here to stay, but I don't think so.  The forecast looks grim.

We will be traveling to the peninsula.  Hiking in the rain is still more exciting than going to work.  I'll take lots of pictures and report later.

Support Group

All of these children have one thing in common...they were adopted internationally by single moms.  I enjoy getting together with this group.  My girls enjoy playing and I enjoy talking.  

This picture isn't the best.  The kids weren't very happy to be interrupted from their playing and it was hard to gather them up.  There are a couple that aren't visible in the picture, but you get the idea...

Blast from the Past

After dance class today, I ventured into the neighborhood where I lived over 10 years ago.  At the time I was living there, the park across the street was being remodeled.  I donated money to buy a brick for the sidewalk.  I wonder if Joe remembers this.  I wonder if he remembers playing in this park.  I wonder if he remembers his friends whose brick was placed right above his.  I haven't talked to him for at least two years.  When I last talked to him, he was over 6 feet tall and talked about girlfriends.  How fast children grow.  I need to talk to him again.  
I'm so glad to have my girls.  I'm so glad that they are mine and I don't ever have to say goodbye as I did for the children I fostered.  These were my thoughts as I watched them play in the park that I remember from years ago.

Happy St. Patrick's Day! (a little late...)

We celebrated St. Patrick's Day by eating corned beef and cabbage. I didn't think either girl would like it, but Rachel gave it two thumbs up. Erin Joy gave it one thumb down.

I told the girls stories including how to catch a leprechaun. They retold the story for you on the video below.

We also went to the town library where we enjoyed an Irish storyteller and musician. Rachel joined the dancing for one of the songs.  It was a sea shanty and she is part of the anchor.  It is included in the video below.  

The stories and music were fabulous and his accent was great too. My dad would have really enjoyed it. He thinks he's Irish. I think I'm Irish. My girls think they are Irish. We have enough Irish to celebrate St. Patrick's Day...that's all that matters.

Tardy Excuse

We were late for church because Rachel wanted her hair curled. Erin Joy had to have her hair curled too. Funny that they both want curly hair...my hair is curly and I'd like straight hair. Guess we are never happy with what we have. I think my girls are absolutely beautiful with their straight hair, but it was fun to curl their hair. This is the first time Rachel has let me touch her hair in a long time. I'll have to curl her hair more often so she will let me brush the tangles out.

I played with the picture and tried to remove a piece of kid artwork that was hanging behind them. It now looks like a blurry mess. I should have just left it as it was. Rachel noticed that Erin Joy is taller than she is. Yep, that's how it is. They'll both have to learn to deal with that as they grow older. They get very tired of people asking if they are twins.

Pump A Dump

The girls had a great time at a birthday party today. Rachel has been talking about going to "Pump A Dump" all week. I corrected her several times and told her it was "Pump It Up," but she never listens to me. When we drove up and she saw the sign she said, "Mom, it is really called Pump It Up. You told me it was Pump A Dump." I didn't even respond...

Here is a very quick movie showing some of the fun they had:

I Can't Believe My Car Looks Like This

When I bought my car new in 1995, I NEVER let anybody eat in it.  I watched two children every Saturday and when they wanted a snack I seriously pulled the car over and made them have a snack on the side of the road.  I'm not kidding.  Well...things are certainly different now.

It was sunny and warm yesterday.  The perfect day for cleaning the inside of the car.  

Look at all the great treasures under Erin Joy's carseat.   

Here is the floor....sheesh...I can't believe people actually drive around in cars that look like this...how disgusting!
My girls were very helpful.  They washed the car with snow.  Rachel even used her dirty gardening gloves.  She started throwing snowballs at me while I was cleaning the inside of the car.  I just had to throw snowballs back at her.  The car was then full of snow.

Oh well, I just vacuumed up the dirty snow along with all the food, wrappers, toys, and even a straw that was sucked up by my powerful wet/dry vacuum that I got at a garage sale for $1.00.

Here she comes armed with a snowball.....

After helping me clean the car, they played in their "secret" house.  Notice the buds on the trees...I really think spring is finally coming!!

I really miss all the wild bleeding hearts that used to cover the bank before the landslide.  Look what I discovered...a few tenacious bleeding hearts fighting their way through the mud and rock debris!  May they grow and multiply and cover the bank once again...
We still have snow, but the flowers are no longer under snow.  They survived and look pretty good considering what they went through...