The Seattle Science Center

Yesterday Sam and I hung out at the Science Center with some of our friends. We had a good time and thanks to Quinn, it was also free!

Grayson, (don't let the frown fool you, he did have fun) Sam and Bella.

Sam checking out the anemones. This kid has NO fear.Talise and Grayson. He would touch the creatures and then squeal with excitement. It was so funny.

The butterfly garden is the best part of the center. The kids were very careful to watch their step and kept trying to get the butterflies to land on them.

Tyler loved it so much he went through the garden twice. He kept telling everyone "Don't stomp! Be careful."

Super Sam

This is what happens to little boys when you put them in Mr. Incredible undies.

They turn super.

Muscles.

Flying.

"To infinity and beyond!"

What does 2012 hold?

2012 is off to a good start.

The last 4 weeks have been better than our entire 2011. I mean, hello? Income! I realize that money doesn't buy happiness, but it does buy some freakin' sweet things! I know that a new vacuum and classy bed sheets don't sound like much, but after a year of holding ourselves away from anything not a necessity, they seem pretty, pretty, pretty amazing.

Life just feels so much more do-able in buttery sheets. It's a nice change.

Recently we have been talking a lot about the things we hope to do this year. It's very new and exciting.

Vacation? Hopefully! I am seriously open to anything WARM. Hawaii. Cruise to the Caribbean. Disneyland. Or all of the above. Probably not possible, but I dream big, yo!

Baby? Oh man, oh man we all want a baby so bad! It's just that the 3 of us have very different ideas of how the baby will come to be. Matt's thinking I give birth to it, I'm thinking I'll adopt one and Sam is thinking that he's happy wrapping up a stuffed animal and feeding it a pretend bottle for an hour. Which is adorable!

Home improvements?We have come to the realization that we are stuck in this house for a while (thank you economy) so we have a few plans up our sleeves to improve it. We want a deck, a few more windows, update the interior style, better lighting and a nicer yard. When I'm not traveling the world, I plan on being at home a lot so we better make it sweeeeet! 

Hey, remember that new years resolution I made "to save money"?

Yeah, that goal is not coming off very strong is it? I'll work on that....

...after I get everything I want ;)

Bowling with the babes

Sam and I went on an adventure today to the bowling alley with our friends Sarah, Eli and Grace.
The boys started out very excited. Sam could hardly stand the wait.

It started off good. Sam and Eli were able to get their heavy balls down the lane, although very slowly. They enjoyed throwing and rolling the balls down the lane and taking turns. Sam really loved cheering for everyone.

Eli even managed to get a strike. We were pretty excited!

But all too soon the weight of the balls took effect on tiny arms and they were getting stuck mid-lane. Then we started running into other lanes and pushing buttons on the computer. Fingers were smashed between balls and backs were injured by slippery floors.

2 moms lost pathetically against 3 crazy kiddos.

Lesson learned, wait until kids are at least 4 before you take them bowling.

A bit about the boy

(I know I have already posted this pic, but I just can't find the energy to take a new one.)

What Sam is up to these days:

He is very into the movie The Iron Giant.
He can count to 10 forwards and backwards.
He is able to identify all the letters in his name.
He eats anything and everything but is really loving soup right now.
He puts himself to bed at nap and nighttime.
He loves to sign.
He picks out his own clothes and shoes in the morning.
He sings a lot.
His best friends are Eli, Bella and Katelyn.
He loves to have his picture taken.
He picks up his toys and puts away his dishes when he is done with them.
He loves to read books.
He pouts by silently laying on the floor with his eyes closed.
His favorite shows are Super Why, Dora and Mickey Mouse Clubhouse.
He gives great hugs and kisses.
He is terrified of the wolf in The 3 Little Pigs story.
His speech is improving dramatically.
He loves to brush his teeth.
He can eat with chopsticks.
His favorite animal is still a giraffe.
He loves to pretend.
He still uses a binkie at night.
He smiles more than any other kid I know.

17" of snow & still accumulating

Remember how I was all snowed out 4 days ago? Yeah, well, it continues to snow and its getting colder and colder. We have also had a few power outages that have really sent me over the edge of frustration.

Pretty much, I can't wait for the summer :)

However, I am making the best of this winter storm by spending time with the boys and getting outside to play. We had a fun day with friends when they invited us to join them at their parents' house for a day of "sledding in the llama pasture".

Yes, you read that correctly.

The hill was perfect for the activity, but the cold and snowy weather made it hard to enjoy the ride. Sam was done after 2 trips down the hill.

So we hiked back up to the house and enjoyed a lunch while the Daddys built a huge igloo for all of the Littles to play in.

That was all Sam needed to have a little fun.

At one point, me and the other moms looked out the window to see the guys using saws and 2X4's to build this masterpiece. I guess a man's got to do what a man's got to do when it comes to constructing the perfect igloo :)

It was big enough to stand in, had a door and a window and was about 20 degrees warmer inside.

Matty was so proud that after about an hour of being home he asked, "Have you put pictures up of my igloo yet?"

Snow Overload

Or would that be "Snow-verload?

Either way, it snowed a lot here in the past 2 days.
Luckily we have been able to get out and enjoy it.

It started Saturday night. We managed to get out and play in it a little before it got dark.

Sam enjoyed his first snowball fight against our roommate Kelly. The kid can throw. I'm pretty sure he never missed a target, including my face.
Mommy and Sam in our snow covered neighborhood. We love where we live. Although, after being pent up for two days I am kind of regretting living on a big hill....
Little Man ate A TON of snow. At one point he was laying face down licking it off of the ground.
Sam was so happy to be out in the snow. He didn't complain once about the cold which is great considering we were not prepared for the weather. (You can't tell, but he's wearing sweatpants and tennis shoes.)

Our neighborhood is full of kids and fun parents. When it snows everyone comes out and plays together. It's so great. Erica and Katelyn came out and visited us while the snow fell.

Yup, he's eating snow again.

Kelly and Sam built a big snowman together but we didn't have the tools to make eyes and a nose. Sam enjoyed rolling the snow anyway :)

Sunday morning we woke up to more snow and cancelled church. I got Sam ready for the day and let him go play outside. He was more excited than I have ever seen him.

Even the dogs were hyped up about the new snowfall.

Happy boy :)

The chickens were very hesitant about the white stuff. After I de-iced their water and gave them new food, I tired to coax them out with some Cheerios's.

Only Doris was willing to try out the snow. Even though it was up to her chest, she managed to wander around the yard a little. All 3 chickens did enjoy eating the snow though.

When we could hear the neighborhood kids coming out to play, we headed into the cul de sac to join them.

Sam got to experience his first sledding ride! Although we don't have any kid safe hills near our house, he loved being pulled around by the adults.

Sam and Grayson.

Sam may have been a little distraught when the big kids knocked down the big snowman that the dad's had built. He quickly got over it.Snowball fights were happening all over the neighborhood. The dad's even built a snow bunker/igloo to use.

Even Brimley got to spend the afternoon out with us. He played with all of the neighborhood dogs while we socialized with humans.

Update #2 - Bathroom Mirror

What you need:

Floor boards - Size and color up to you. I chose to use a wider cut since my mirror was so big.
Liquid Nails - Look for the one that says "Mirror" on it.
Gun - for Liquid Nails and Caulking
Caulk
Painters tape
Paint

Before.

(Tips before you start: Get out of work clothes. Hubby luckily didn't ruin any of his nice digs, but I got paint and caulk on my shirt and pants before the project was through. Good thing I wore scrubs! Don't worry fans, I didn't mess up my Beatles shirt.)

Steps we used to frame our mirror:

1. Measure mirror and cut floor boards at 45 degrees. My Home Depot has a "Cut it Yourself" station with a miter saw and board.

2. Line back of frame (start with the bottom piece) and place onto mirror using tape to hold it in place. Board may be a little warped so do your best to tape it as close to the mirror as possible. Wait about 15-20 minutes for glue to set.

3. Place side pieces gluing the backs and the corners of boards so that it attaches to the mirror and the bottom board. Tape in place.

4. Wait about 20 minutes for glue to set and then finish gluing the frame together by adding the top piece. Tape in place.

5. Let glue set for at least 1 hour. Check often if boards have shifted or become unglued. Use tape to fix any issues.

6. Caulk corners and cracks between mirror. Let dry.

7. Let glue and caulk set and dry. We waited over night before removing the tape.

8. Remove tape and paint frame. The paint I chose was an indoor/outdoor paint to keep it from peeling or cracking in the humidity of the bathroom.

9. Admire!!

After

A winter trip to the zoo

It was VERY cold out, but we knew that the crowds would be minimal when we were able to park right next to the entrance.

Sam got to sign to this Siamang. He asked him if he wanted cookies and then told him that he loved him. The animal just stared back at him. But Sam was pretty excited to get a picture with the monkey anyway.

Sam has started counting a lot of things. He tried counting the fish, but got frustrated when they started to swim around. He can actually count backwards better than forwards. Not sure what that means...

This bear had me cracking up. So much personality.

It was COLD. So of course the penguins were more active than any of the other animals. But, we saw a lot of cool things despite the low temps. We heard the lion roar, we go to pet goats, witness a porcupine fight and even saw a gorilla eat her regurgitated food (over and over again). Mmmm...
All in all it was a really fun adventure. Luckily the gift shop had some gloves so that we could keep warm on this blustery day!

Sam, all bundled up in the "big boat."

Just wondering, do you know anyone that goes to the zoo as much as we do?

I'm thinking we should probably get a yearly pass...

Shadow Boxes

I get complimented on our wedding shadow boxes a lot so I thought I would do a little DIY. These are super simple. The hardest part is finding an image that works for the background.

These glass door shadow boxes were found at a local craft store and are 8.5"X11" and 1.5" deep. I believe they were each about $15.

If using a boutonniere in your shadow box, dry it upside down for at least 30 days. This will give it a good "fresh" look.

After you have picked out the perfect picture (hopefully your photographer got a good shot of your neck and his chest) crop and cut the image to fit the back of your shadow box. The original picture that I used was a much bigger pic but I cropped it down so that the jewelry and boutonniere were closer to the same size.

If you are using your wedding necklace, puncture 2 holes near the neck and lace through the jewelry. Clip in the back and tape in place if needs be.
Now glue or pin the image in place and put jewelry and boutonniere in the desired location. I also added the earring that I wore by just poking it through the paper.

I pinned my husbands flowers to the shadow box, but I'm sure a glue gun would also do the job. I also included little print outs that give our wedding date. I used some hot glue behind those to make them stand out a little from the image.

Now, close the shadow box door and hang! Again, we get comments on these all the time. They are a great way to display pieces from your big day!

(Other wedding ideas: Cake cutting knife with image of cake in the back, dried flowers glued onto image of bouquet, bracelet placed around picture of your arm, etc.)