Olympia Trip and The Polar Express

So, one of my favorite Christmas stories is the Polar Express.  I've always heard that people will take their kids to places to ride a train and experience the story in person.  I got on line and discovered they had one at Mt. Rainier.  Of course I HAD to get us tickets.  I also thought that since we would be in the area, we could just spend the whole weekend in Olympia.  Jake and I really liked the town when we interviewed there over a year ago.  We also told the kids that we would take them to explore it for themselves.  I booked us a hotel by the waterfront and we had a BLAST!

For the first time, Jake and I booked 2 rooms.  One for us and one for the kids to share.  They ended up being across the hall from us.  We ate at a few places I had discovered on my previous trip.  I even took them to my FAVORITE toy store.  Jake told Allie she might sleep better at night if she had a GIANT OCTOPUS.  So she got Ollie.  Owen even got a harmonica.

The evening we did the Polar Express was EPIC.  They had actors dressed as the main characters.  We had a cookie and cup of hot chocolate.  Santa even walked around greeting everyone and giving them a silver bell (just like the book).

I'm so glad my family indulged me and went on this adventure with me.  One of my favorite Christmas memories.

It's starting to look a lot like...

We are very excited for this year's Christmas.  My mom and sister are living in Spokane.  We are so thrilled, we even got them stockings!  My mom actually sent a large rubber maid tote with gifts for us, with Jen's stuff when she moved here not knowing she herself would be here too.  So on top of those, she has been busy buying other gifts.  This Christmas is going to be a BIG one!

Jesus Christ Superstar

 As a fun treat, we all went to see the musical Jesus Christ Superstar.  Jake and I had seen it back when we first started dating in the mid 90's.  But when we mentioned it, both kids were excited to see it.  So I got us tickets and we went.  Our seats were really good.  The cast was AMAZING!  Even Allie posted about how much she loved it.  This was definitely a high light this year.

Sac Volleyball Season 2019

Allie was on the middle school 7th grade JV volleyball team.  They let anyone who wants to play be on the team, so the skills were varied from group to group.  Allie's group of 7 were GOOD!!!  They only lost the first set they played.  That's the entire season!!!  She had a ton of fun and even made a few good friends.  Club Volleyball will be starting in January, but the intensity is much more.  So I'm grateful she had this season to just have fun!

Club Volleyball 2019-20

Allie loves volleyball.  She endures the activity with passion that I can't explain in words.  The entire time she is on the court, there is a smile on her face.  So when club volleyball tryouts came, we had to go for it.  There were 2 teams she seemed interested in, Club South Volleyball and Rivals Volleyball.  She was a part of the Club South Volleyball Juniors last year, but this year she would be trying out for their club league.  I'll be honest, I NEVER fit in with the parents of this club.  But I went and watched my daughter enjoy the time.  So I was interested in the other team, even though they had practices 20 minutes away.

Her first tryouts were 8-10 for Club South.  There were over 25 girls trying out for the 8-10 spots.  She had fun, but she wasn't sure about the coach.

Her next tryout was 11-1 for Rivals.  There were about 20 girls trying out for maybe 2 teams.  She had fun, AND liked the coaches.

I know she was tired and hungry by the time the second one started, but she gave it her ALL!  Before the tryout was over the coaches walked around pulling each girl out of the scrimmage game (one on one) to talk about what they thought.  I quietly sat there watching them pull most of the girls for this chat.  I said a prayer and next thing I knew, they were talking to Allie.

She came running over to me with a HUGE smile and a piece of paper.  They wanted her to be a part of the 14U teams.  I couldn't be more proud of her.  We signed and returned the paper right then.  The best part is this league is more my speed and costs less than the other teams.  Bring on the Club Volleyball Season 2019-20!!!

Morton's Halloween Party 2019

This is definitely become our new tradition.  We all dressed up in costumes and attended the Morton's party again this year.  We had Vincent Vega (Pulp Fiction), Woodland Witch, Bob Ross and his "happy little tree".  There has already been discussion as to what we will be wearing next year.  Good Times!

New Fence

This is a perfect picture of our backyard.  The leaves have started to fall (even after the snow day), the sky is blue, sun is shinning and our new fence is DONE!!!

It was a challenge with the two dogs and not being able to just let them out back.  We had to train them to walk out with us and do their business, then walk right back inside.  Thankfully, we were only without a fence for less than 2 weeks.

It looks AMAZING!!!  And this property is slowly becoming more and more like us.

Standing Lunch Date...with my mom

My mom lives in Spokane.  It has been over 20 years since she and I have lived in the same town.  So the picture above not only documents one VERY GOOD sandwich, but the first (of many) Tuesday lunches with my mom.  I tend to be rather busy with my own activities, not counting kids stuff.  But Tuesday's at noon seem to always be open.  So I filled it with a standing lunch date with my mom.  We will explore places I've tried and places I haven't.  Not only was my stomach full after this meal, but my heart as well.

NO MORE HOT TUB!

These are the before and after pics of a project that I decided to pull the trigger on. I discovered that maintaining a hot tub isn't something I'm cut out for. Especially for the little amount we used it. So after asking all the family members, I called someone to come and take it away. Our plan is to turn it into a nice seating area with fire pit maybe next year. In the mean time, we are getting a new privacy fence that will help the yard look nice. I will keep you all updated on the project.

Family Photos 2019

One thing I do miss from Kansas, was our family photographer.  He took our family pics every year. Last year we didn't get around to having them taken due to moving. But this year I asked a mom of Allie's classmates if she would. They came out GREAT! We chose to have them taken at Manito Park, since that is one of the key places we love. We thought by wearing all black the colors from all the flowers and greenery would stand out.  Little did we know it would snow the next day, so the foliage didn't exactly cooperate with us. But we love the pics anyway!

SNOW DAY...In October?!?!

This was the view at 6 am on October 9, 2019.  We had heard there was a chance of snow, but assumed it wouldn't stick...or cause so many issues.  As the sun began to rise, we saw what happens when heavy snow falls onto trees that have not lost their leaves yet!  Lots of branches had fallen and we even lost a tree. Then the notifications came that school was canceled due to power lines down and lots of people without power. Thankfully, we didn't lose our power once. But we did have some cleaning up to do over the next few days.

Another blessing was how quickly the city responded to help. By lunch time they had come down our street and collected not only the fallen branches, but removed our split tree. My mom didn't have any power, so the kids and I took her to lunch and shopping.  This "snow day" was definitely a memorable day!

Ferris Arts and Crafts Fair

Allie and I checked out the annual Ferris High School fundraiser. Even though it is Owen's high school rival, we had to see what it offered. They had SO many cool booths. Allie got some cool art and tea leaves (caramel apple flavored). She and I each got necklaces with interchangeable magnet pendants. I also picked up some information from a booth about hosting a foreign exchange student. This is something Jake and I have talked about before, but we might be at a place where we can take that leap of faith. Stay tuned!

Green Bluff Apple Picking 2019

We traveled to Green Bluff for some apple picking and pumpkin getting. Allie wore her "cape".  It's a part of her Halloween costume, but she's been wearing it often. Everyone picked a couple apples, we didn't want to get too many. Owen found the perfect HUGE pumpkin for our front yard. We even got an assortment of gourds for the dining table.

Fall Studies 2019

It's that time of the year again.  It's hard to believe we have been here a full year.  At this time last year, I was starting a fall book study and I had registered for a monthly mom group.  This fall I am not only doing a book study, I'm co-leading the small group with the woman who was my small group leader last fall.  I am also doing a book study with the Side By Side group I started in January with and as of today I have joined their leaders group for planning future studies.  I am also doing BSF (Bible Study Fellowship) and studying the book of Acts.  On top of all that, I still signed up to be a part of the monthly moms group.

I know it sounds like a lot, but I am loving ALL OF IT!  I am learning not only from the studies but from the women in my different groups.  This is going to be an AMAZING year!

Tap into the creativity

Since moving to Spokane, we have become members of Yoga Shala.  This place is perfect for us.  They offer a wide variety of yoga style classes and often will have workshops/events that peek our curiosity.  Well, last Sunday was no different.  Jake and Allie attended the above workshop.  They both said they enjoyed it.  Below are the pics from the Nature Mandala portion.

Allie's creation

Jake's creation

Allie having FUN!

One of the group designs

The BIG group design