Choo-Choos

One of Matthew's new words is "choo-choo," especially since he got his train set for Christmas. Since we were headed out to run errands and explore the Snoqualmie/North Bend area, we decided to take advantage of the sunny weather and walk through the trains outside of the train museum. Overall, I'm not sure that Matthew made the connection between the cartoon trains that we watch on YouTube or the toy trains that he has at home. Nonetheless, we had a great time exploring the outside of a few trains before going shopping.

While in Snoqualmie, we also enjoyed a great lunch at the Snoqualmie Brewery. We're not quite sure what they put in the peanut butter and jelly sandwich, but this is the first time ever that Matthew ate a whole sandwich in a single sitting! It was quite the sight! (Note that we had to make a wardrobe change after lunch due to the messy nature of the delicious sandwich...)

After our shopping excursion, we pushed the limits and stopped by the North Bend Bar & Grill for dinner. Not one of our finest moments as diners, to say the least! Just after being seated in the restaurant, Matthew began playing with one of the menus -- launching it into the only glass on the table with a lid, tipping it over, and sending a river of water onto our table. (The other two water glasses, sans lids, stayed upright -- that takes some talent!) There was so much water that the staff had to bring over rags and a mop to soak it up! Not the worst thing to happen, but it was one of the first times that we felt like "that" family with the noisy kid who threw his toys in the walkway and was generally not happy to be there. I'm sure that we've got many more dining experiences like this ahead of us.... sigh.

Overall, we had a great time together exploring, shopping, and generally enjoying ourselves. So glad that we get to make these memories -- both fun and not so fun.

Clean Slate: Pondering the New Year

As we've rounded the corner into 2014, I've been thinking about what I want to do with the New Year. What changes do I want to make? What things to I want to keep the same? How to I want to approach the blank canvas of the next 365 days? How will I make the most of this 'clean slate' that we've come upon?

While we were driving to meet with friends on New Year's Day, I joked with Lennie that Matthew's goals were pretty clear:

1. Widen his vocabulary -- soaking in all of the new words, sounds, and communication skills that lay before him -- and help us to better get to know his personality, wants, and needs.
2. Widen his food palette -- experience new foods and tastes, and broaden the list of 'acceptable' foods that we can put on the menu in a regular rotation. (This mom can only make so many chicken nugget dinners without feeling guilty!) 

My goals don't seem as cut-and-dried. I'm still pondering what I want to do with this clean slate, but the old standards are echoing in my brain: 

1. Move more; get more active, get out and about, see more of the beautiful area that we live in!
2. Drink more water. Water's good for you, so why not be mindful of what I take in and how hydrated I am? Added bonus: this is the first step to making better nutritional choices, etc.

We'll see what comes of this "clean slate" that's before us in 2014. So far, I have a feeling that this is going to be a great year, full of potential and exciting opportunities. 

What are your plans for your "clean slate" in 2014?

Go Huskies!

The Huskies are playing tonight in the "2013 Fight Hunger Bowl" against BYU. We're excited to root our team on, and the whole family is decked out in our Husky gear:

Go Dawgs!

Christmas 2013

Merry Christmas from our household to yours! We've had a busy holiday season, enjoying time with family and some quiet time as "just" the three of us. The holidays have taken on a new energy as we experience the wonder and delight of Christmas with a young child.

It strikes me how confusing it must be to see the world transformed with Christmas lights and decorations virtually over night. For example, we put up our Christmas decor -- including our tree -- while Matthew was down for his nap. As he walked out groggily from his nap, he got a look on his face like "why is there a tree where my toys should be?" But then the confusion turned into wonder as he pondered what was under the tree:

If I get on my tippy-toes, will I be able to reach that package?

This is so pretty and colorful, I wonder why it's here!?

To celebrate Christmas, the family got dressed up and went to Christmas Eve services together. This is one of my favorite parts of Christmas, taking the time to sing carols and praise God. There is just something about slowing down and remembering why we celebrate.

Looking dapper for church! 

"Why yes, I AM pretty cute!"

"C'mon Grammy & Papa, let's go to the church service!"

Christmas Day was relaxed at our house. At first Matthew wasn't sure about the cheerily wrapped boxes. But once he understood how to open a present, he had a great time!

"Here Dad, a gift for you!"

"Do you need some help with that, Papa?"

"Yeah, but Papa, what about THIS package?"

"Here Grammy, this is how you do it!"

New toys are FUN!

My hope for you this holiday season is that you experienced joy and wonder, and that you are richly blessed in 2014!

Santa Photo 2013

We took Matthew today for his second visit with Santa. Last year's visit went pretty well, with Matthew tugging at Santa's beard and then smiling for the camera.

This year was a little bit of a different story. What you don't see in our Santa photo is the back story -- the skilled photographer caught Matthew just before he started crying because he wanted to be with Daddy (and not this jolly stranger):

Santa recovered (unfortunately after the crying stint and the photo was taken), offering Matthew a candy cane before we left. Matthew got a huge smile on his face and was excited to carry his gift around proudly. He cried again as we tried to put his mittens on, to Lennie smartly tucked the candy cane into his mitten, and he was a happy camper for the rest of the day (despite not knowing what a candy cane is, mind you!).

I'm working on getting Matthew to say "Ho! Ho! Ho!" but we'll see if that comes to fruition this Christmas season. In the meantime, the Christmas spirit is in the air at our house:

2013 Family Photo Session

One of the things that we're not very good at is taking photos to mark our family's time together and our growth and changes over time. I think that this is a trait that has been passed down from my family, as we didn't take the time to get professional family photos taken very often, and we'd go on vacation and take maybe one or two photos over the week. We were busy experiencing life and forgot to document our experiences.

I'm trying to get better at documenting our time, and the advent of cell phone cameras has certainly assisted my efforts. Alas, we recently went and had family photos taken. Twice in ~20 months is not bad, right? :) Here are a few favorites from our quick family photo session:

Words

Every child develops at their own rate, and Matthew is no different. For many months, he's been somewhat verbal, saying words like "Mama," "Dada," or "ball," but not necessarily consistently associating them with people or objects. As a typical mother, I worried that my son wouldn't turn the corner and become even more verbal. Most parents that I've talked to told me that their children seemed to flip a switch and suddenly started using more and more words each day and breaking through a communication barrier.

Well, Matthew flipped that switch recently. Literally over night, he went from having a few words to mirroring every word and sound that people made around him. It has been so much fun to watch him learn and grow, and to have him be able to communicate with us about his wants and needs!

Halloween 2013

Today Matthew experienced trick-or-treating for the first time. He dressed up in his Mickey Mouse costume -- perfect for the crisp, damp Fall day. After celebrating the holiday at daycare, we took him to enjoy the festivities downtown. Once again, the streets were packed, but we had a great time stopping by favorite shops, getting Matthew's photo taken at a local photography studio, and visiting the town's children's events.

We then headed home and trick-or-treated at a few of our neighbor's houses. While Matthew didn't necessarily know what was going on, he certainly made the neighbors smile as he knocked on doors and tried to invite himself in to their homes! Towards the end of the night, Matthew even helped hand out candy to other trick-or-treaters. What a fun way to mark the holiday!

Cruising around town in style!

Trick or Treat Miss Shelly! (Isn't this the part where you give me something?)

Enough pictures Mom! Let's go!

Hey! You forgot this candy!

We hope that you had a great Halloween too!

Pumpkin Carving

Tonight we carved our pumpkins in preparation for Halloween. This was the first year that Matthew was able to participate, and he certainly enjoyed working with the pumpkin "guts."

The finished products:

We're all set for Halloween -- bring on the trick-or-treating fun!

Frolicking in the Pumpkin Fields

Yesterday was a beautiful, sunny Saturday in the Seattle area. We decided to make an impromptu trip to the pumpkin patch since you never know when you're going to get another clear, sunny day in this area!

At first, Matthew wasn't really interested in the pumpkins; sometimes he was more interested in his sunglasses....

Eventually he helped us pick out some great pumpkins though:

After walking through the pumpkin patch, we enjoyed some time around the farm, taking a hay ride and climbing on the tractor. What a great way to spend the day as a family!

I love Fall in the Seattle area -- we are so blessed to be able to frolic on the farm and be surrounded by blue skies and green pastures!