2011 - Ready or Not

Katie Jane rang in the New Year by learning how to climb in and out of her crib. Wow! I guess she is trying to keep up with Isaac who also started climbing out of his crib at one-and-a-half. Sometimes it is hard to be the mom to kids who are so gifted.

2011 is looking to be a pretty stellar year for me. Yesterday was my first day back to reality after the long break, which, in my case, was rather nice. It was a peaceful day with the three older kids in school. I cleaned the whole house and cooked dinner. It is amazing what a boost of energy can do for productivity.

I love all of my kids' teachers this year. I do. I really love them. This may be the best school year of our lives. It brings tremendous peace of mind for my kids to be so happy at school. One of my kids struggled during the past two school years, so, I am really appreciating this gift.

We are enjoying the many toys and games we were spoiled with at Christmas. Whoever said "money can't buy happiness," had obviously never purchased an iPad. As Ian put it, "It has really brought our family together." I'm not sure if a family gathered around an electronic device staring at it's screen is really considered quality time. But, whatever. Don't judge.

My mom said one of her favorite things about Christmas was watching Katie play with her new doll, feed her baby her bottle, and push her around in the tiny doll stroller. I love that my mom, who has always had a special place in her heart for dolls, finally has a granddaughter who feels the same. And, Sophie shares her passion for pretty collectibles and shopping.

My mother-in-law surprised us with a special treat. She made copies of her life history for everyone. Apparently she has been writing it for over 30 years, and she included memories about her birth and early childhood as recalled by her older sister. It has been amazing to get to know her by reading about her life.

My gym buddy and I finally broke through our glass ceiling of getting to the gym by 5:30. For years, we would arrive by 5:50 a.m., but, we always believed that waking up before 5:30 a.m. was just too much for us. Now, we are finally doing it, and loving it. It has created opportunities for us to attend some 5:30 classes. The instructors always make me work harder than I make myself work.

A new neighbor moved into the house across the street from me about two-years ago. At first, she and her husband were splitting their time between this house and one in Arizona. So, I wasn't exactly sure when they were here and when they were there. Finally, over the summer, we became acquainted and I am really glad we did.

For one thing, you may know that Brian is deathly allergic to dog dander, so, it is questionable whether or not we will ever have a family pet. My kids are getting to the ages where a family pet would be fun for them. And, my boys love dogs. We will definitely never have a dog because we like keeping Brian around.

My neighbor, Patti, who is now my friend, has two lovely dogs. One is a sleek cream and reddish rust colored Siberian Husky named Rusty and the other is a little curly haired Norwich Terrier name Hank. She has really taken the time to train them into well-behaved dogs. And, I think they are charming all on their own.

When we first became acquainted over the summer, my kids became the dog walkers and this has been a real treat to our family. Sometimes we even bring them over to our backyard where the boys play catch with Rusty and scratch his belly. It's like we are dog grandparents - with all of the perks and none of the responsibilities (well, none except scooping up their stink bombs on our walks). We just enjoy them, teach them bad manners and send them home for their real owners to deal with.

Of course, this has kind of petered out since school started and especially since the cold weather came, but, I'm sure it will start back up when the sun comes out again. It is another reason 2011 is looking to be a fabulous year.

While getting to know Patti, I've discovered we both love hiking in our nearby mountains and yoga. It turns out we have a lot of things in common.

Right before Thanksgiving, she invited me to go on a business trip with her. We left the following week and were gone for the first few days in December. She is an event planner and had to go to Seattle, Whidbey Island and a lodge on the Hood River to scope out properties for some upcoming events. In other words, we had to stay in the nicest rooms at some of the nicest hotels in the area and eat the best of their foods so that we could compare and she could make recommendations to her clients. Whew! Tough work. But, somebody has to do it.

We first stayed at the Edgewater in Seattle, which truly is right on the edge of the water. I could have stepped right out of my window and landed in the water. There is a famous picture taken of the Beatles in 1961 where they are fishing through a window of the Edgewater.

I enjoyed the view and the cozy fireplace as well as a bath in the old fashioned claw-foot tub. Ahh, yes, it was truly the life of luxury.

The first day, we toured a convention center and ate a delicious lunch at their restaurant while we interviewed the chef. Then, we walked all over Seattle in the rain. So romantic. I kept looking around thinking, "I can't believe I am in Seattle!" The trip was so sudden that I hardly had time to process that I was going before I was suddenly there.

We toured the Renaissance which has a lovely view of the city from the 28th floor. Then, we toured the Hyatt and it's new-age little sister - Hyatt at Olive 8. The Olive 8 seemed like the perfect fit for the Seattle conference, so we celebrated with first class orderves and fancy drinks.

Then we walked to a gourmet popcorn shop for a special treat, and past Pike's Market, just a few blocks from the Edgewater. Back at the hotel, the chef had prepared an elegant meal for us. I can't remember everything now, but, I know there were clams cooked in their shells, a lamb dish and pumpkin creme brulee. We were seated on couches near a floor to ceiling window overlooking the water while we polished it all off. It was the perfect ending to the perfect day.

The next day, we took the ferry over to Langley on Whidbey Island. It was a calming trip and the island was incredible. Our suites at Langley Inn had an entire wall of windows overlooking the water. There was even a picture window by the jetted tub. I had another fireplace - this one burned wood and I loved to hear the crackle and pop as the embers glowed. We tried out a restaurant on the very quaint old-fashioned Main Street and browsed through delightfully unique shops including the chocolate shop. The owner lives on a farm outside of town where she grows "chocolate" flowers. She harvests the flowers to create chocolate lotions, soaps, jams, candles and all sorts of other products.

That night, there was a potluck dinner for the locals who run the shops on Main Street in the restaurant at the Inn where we were staying. We decided to mingle with the people of Langley - who turned out to be some of the most successful yet down to earth people I've ever met. I think it was their positive energy that made the town of Langley extra special.

We were treated to a steam room at the spa later that night, and in the morning, we enjoyed a peaceful breakfast in the dining room. So. Much. Wonderful. Food.

Then, we were off to Skamania Lodge on the Hood River. We actually took a plane down to Portland where a tour guide picked us up and drove us just back over the Washington state line. Here is a picture of us checking out the amazing waterfalls in the area on our way to the lodge:

Skamania Lodge was located in one of the most beautiful areas I have ever visited. It was pretty hard for any place to compete with the quaint, relaxed atmosphere we had fallen so hard for at Langley, but, Skamania held it's ground.

Patti had an enormous suite and I had a smaller adjoining suite with a breathtaking view (really, the next morning, I spent a good hour just staring out the window) and a fireplace. No jetted tub with a view, but, still a really great room.

We were tired from all of the traveling, so, we agreed to meet at the gym for an energizing workout. It turns out evening workouts are fabulous! I always do mine in the mornings since evenings are so crazy busy. Then, we spent some time in the hot tub and the sauna. Wow! I was really living it up on this trip.

We had one more amazing dinner, and, the best part about eating out with Patti is that we both like the same foods AND we both like to split everything so that we can try even more things on the menu. It was a perfect fit.

Then I came back home to my four kiddies who I missed. Brian had cleaned the house while I was gone which was wonderful since Ian got baptized the very next day. I can't believe the E-Man is already eight. He was nervous about going under the water, but he did just fine. And, he isn't usually a limelight hound, but, he was very excited for the big family gathering in his honor.

In other exciting news - while I was on the trip I got a phone call from Sophie telling me that her class had picked her painting to be sent to an art contest at Dinosaur Park and she won! It was a district wide contest and she took first place out of all the 4th graders. Her prize was a $100 gift card to Wal-Mart. I am so proud of my little artist!

I tried to talk practicality to Sophie about the gift card -- I offered to buy it from her so she could buy the American Girl Doll (Felicity) that she has been dying to own for months now. When she made it clear she wanted to spend it at Wal-Mart, I encouraged her to buy a new scooter since her old one is broken and she and her brothers like to ride scooters almost every day.

Instead it was all spent on a pillow pet, pokemon cards, erasers, more stuffed animals and the like. But, she was very happy. And, what kid doesn't have a dream to win a $100 shopping spree that they can spend on any random thing they want?

Sophie and Ian just finished up their first Jr. Jazz basketball season. The games were really exciting to watch. Especially since they are still at that age where someone would occasionally try to make a basket for the opposing team. My peacemaker Ian was able to dig deep and pull out the aggression on the court. It was fun to watch him change as the season progressed. And, Sophie's team made it to the playoffs and took second place in their division.

That feels like an awful lot of bragging, and, maybe that is why I stopped blogging for awhile - it feels so egocentric. But, those are the highlights of the last couple months. Life is good.