My husband, the builder

Jason's already finishing the second floor of the kids' tree fort. He and the kids have worked on it nearly every night for weeks and it just keeps getting bigger and better! They've got a ladder to climb up to the second floor with a submarine-style hatch to open and close to get in and out. There are PVC-pipe "guns" they can load with pinecone grenades to shoot down below. Soon, they'll have a cargo net to climb up on the other side to the second floor. I think Jason's recreating his childhood dreams....

Here's a picture of him putting up the railings on the second floor. Notice the predicament he's in. Can you say.....guillotine?

(Okay, I can't figure out why Blogger keeps rotating this pic. If any of you other bloggers know how to fix this will you let me know?)

Haircuts

Okay, I FINALLY got Dallin's hair cut. Wow, what a neglectful mom I am sometimes! Honestly, though, who wants to take 5 kids into the salon and watch them climb all over the waiting room chairs and terrorize the bottles of shampoo and mousse while other patrons look on in horror? That's why it rarely makes it to the top of my priority list.



Anyway, Kyle and Dallin both got new heads! Dallin looks like a new man! He kept looking in the mirror afterwards--he didn't recognize himself! Unfortunately, Kyle's stylist took a bit more off than I wanted. I guess that's the nice thing about hair--it always grows back!

Job Posting: Professional Bike Helmet Putter-Onner

Yesterday I took the kids for a bike ride and as we were leaving I noticed Grant had his helmet on but it wasn't buckled under his chin. I reminded him to fasten his helmet on and he ignored me. I told him again and he said he couldn't do it. I looked at him surprised and asked him why he couldn't put it on. He replied, "Because I just can't do it....I can't get the buckle...." and then with the frustration mounting in his voice, "....I'm not a professional at putting on my bike helmet, Mom!" Wow! I guess we should start taking applications for that position!

Sprinkler weather!

Every time the sun pokes out of the clouds my kids ask if they can play in the sprinkler. It doesn't matter if it's a 40 degree sunny day in the middle of winter--they want to get their swimming suits on and go! Last year--after days of asking to play when it was too cold--I made a guideline that it has to be 80 degrees before it's considered "sprinkler weather." Well, yesterday the Pacific Northwest air finally decided to thaw out and by mid afternoon it was 77 degrees at our house. So, guess what? The kids asked if they could play in the sprinkler! In order to quelch the unceasing whining that would have occurred if I had said "It's not 80 degrees yet!", I dug out the sprinkler, hooked up the hose, and sent them outside. They loved it! Today is supposed to be just as warm and I'm sure they'll be asking me again...

Dinner at Grandma's

We got together with the family at my mom's house this weekend for a late Easter dinner. We ate way too much good food, as usual! My brother and I just can't stop ourselves from being great cooks. We really outdid ourselves this time--I think I gained 5 pounds in one day. It didn't help that Mom made homemade banana ice cream from practically pure cream. YUM!

Here are some cute photos of the kids playing at Grandma's house after dinner.

Easter dresses

Aren't Easter dresses fun? Grandma Richards bought Mariah and Karina matching outfits this year. Don't they look beautiful?

Cannon Beach

We took a family trip this weekend to celebrate our 11th wedding anniversary. Man, has it really been that long? Anyway, we rented a cabin at our favorite Oregon beach, Cannon Beach, and enjoyed a nice getaway together as a family. We had three days of varying weather--you never know what you'll get at the Oregon Coast. The first day was gloriously beautiful and fairly warm so we spent a lot of time outside, playing on the beach and shopping in town. The kids tried to build a sand castle with a moat around it. We were playing in pretty dry sand and they didn't understand why the water kept disappearing every time they tried to fill the moat!

We also visited the site of the shipwrecked Peter Iredale (ran ashore in 1906). As you can see, the remains of the ship are nearly gone. It is fascinating to see!

We discovered Fort Stevens quite by accident. We didn't really know what Fort Stevens was and thought it was just a State Park for camping. Wow, were we wrong! It is a historical military site dating back to pre-Civil War days and was built up and used all the way through WWII. In the earlier years, the fort had cannons that were built on retracting stands so they would raise up above a wall, fire, and then lower back down behind the wall to remain hidden. Cool, huh?



Later the cannons were replaced with more modern guns that could fire up to 15 miles out! Did you know during WWII a Japanese submarine shelled the coastline at Fort Stevens? Under much controversy, we never fired back, even though we knew the coordinates of the sub and would have bombed it out of the water. Some say we never fired to preserve the secret location of the Fort--others say the commanding officer wimped out. Interesting stuff!



Anyway, we explored the whole area, which took us over a day. We climbed all over everything and even scared each other by hiding around dark corners. It was really fun and very informative. I will admit, being a native Oregonian, I felt a bit guilty not knowing this particular history of my state. Sometimes we travel far to "exotic" places to see the sites and yet we never learn about what is in our own backyard!


Sunday was Easter, and the Easter Bunny found us at the beach! Good thing--the kids were worried about that. We even had to call Grandma and make sure she left a note at the house to tell the Easter Bunny where we were! The weather had turned very wet by Sunday--good thing it was time to go home!

Farewell, my Maytag!

Aaahhh. My poor, little, not-so-old washing machine. If only I could sing your praises and say you did your duty well. But if you had, you would still be sitting in my laundry room washing away. Your life was so short-lived--only three and a half years. Alas, it was not meant to be! How I'll miss your super-squeaky agitation cycle and your occasional metal-grinding, gear stripping shrieks. And what will I do with all the money I'll save because I don't have to fix you every six months? Away to the scrap metal yard you go. May you be melted down and built into a new washer much like my new front-loader that is as quiet as a whisper and, hopefully, more reliable!

PS - I dare say the stocky, little old man in the Maytag commercials who has no work is now likely haggard and overworked because of the CRAPPY machines Maytag built a few years ago and which I bought! Who ever heard of a washer only lasting three years? May I never see another washer repair bill again!

April Fools!

Okay, so I hardly ever do anything for April Fools Day--actually, never. I just always forget! But this year, Mariah really got into it. I think she got several ideas from her friends at school and so she tried them out on us. First (and this is a clever one), she switched my day planner from 2009 to 2008. So, as I was talking on the phone and trying to schedule something, I couldn't figure out why it wasn't looking right! Silly girl!

Next, she hid my computer mouse. Then, I went to use the bathroom and she had put saran wrap on the toilet seat! Luckily, I had sharp enough eyes to see it first before I made a mess!

After that, she stuffed wadded up newspapers into Dallin's pillow and even this morning we found more newsapapers in his shoes! Who know what we'll find next? She's getting much too sneaky!

Superhero: Kyle-ee-oh Smile-ee-oh

And now for our fifth and final superhero highlight--Kyle-ee-oh. This superhero came into the world with a BANG--as a superhero should! The doctor (nor the anesthesiologist!) didn't even make it to the blessed event and the attending nurse barely had time to put on her second glove before Kyle-ee-oh was experiencing his first breath! Since his grand entrance into the world three years ago2, he has used his superhero smile to smile his way into our hearts.

Alias: Kyle-ee-oh on the co-Smile-ee-oh

We call him Smile-ee-oh because he has SMILE POWER! Almost every time someone talks to Kyle, he smiles and quietly replies. He is always smiling--when he climbs into Mom and Dad's bed in the morning, when he's riding in the car, when he's taking a bath--everywhere he goes he is smiling away! Smiling is a great strength. A superhero always needs a cool head and a positive outlook!

The ultimate key to Smile-ee-oh's super powers is his stealth. He chooses to fly under the radar and not be seen nor heard. He quietly goes about his business (whether it be good or bad) and then walks away smiling! Do you see the potential of these two super powers? When you come across someone smiling, calm, and quiet, you don't suspect them of any wrongdoing, do you? Ah--the power of quiet happiness!

Kyle-ee-oh is also very organized by nature. When he was very young and learning his colors, he would sit and organize the piles of crayons we have into rows by color. Now he's on to building blocks and puzzles. Ask him to organize your stack of shoes by the door or the books on a shelf, and he'll have it done in no time!



Kyle-ee-oh Smile-ee-oh has come to us with very unique superhero skills that we enjoy very much. I ask him often if he is special and he says, "Yeth." Then one day I asked him how he got to be so special and he said, "Becauth I love you!" Yes, and I think that makes me special too!