(Little) boys night out

Saturday Ian went with 8 boys and 3 adults to a Sounders game for his friend Wyatt's birthday party. They pretty much partied until 12am.
They went to the game in a limo.


Got their hair painted and ate cotton candy. Thankfully it fully washed out - I was little nervous.



Celebrating the win.



The birthday boy asleep on the way home.

I was nervous letting my 5 year old go without me (actually it was one of those moments when you realize your child is old enough to do something and it changes everything, like I relinquished something that night) but clearly it was worth it. Thanks Reddings for taking care of my kid and for showing him a good time!

On another note - memorable quotes from Ian this week:
Me: Ian what do you want to be for Halloween?
Ian: A snowman, with real snow on me.

Ian: Mom, I need to take my shirt off.
Me: Why?
Ian: I'm burning! I'm going to burn up in 10 seconds.

At least he isn't dramatic.

The Lego Truck

Today we went to the Seattle Center to check out the Lego truck. We weren't sure what to expect but basically it was Lego marketing some new games they have developed. Kind of fun, but not that fun.


Something we didn't expect was that the kids would have more fun watching the glass elevator in the food court than playing the Lego games.

Then we walked over to the fountain and let the kids play for an hour.



This is Ian "not" getting wet for the car ride home.

It was pretty obvious when James was ready to go.

Cinco Cinco Cinco

Last week my sweet Ian turned 5 and this week I am still taking advantage of saying things like - "you need to do (fill in the word) because you are a big 5 year old now". I wonder how long that will last. Things I love about Ian at 5:
He is full of sweetness. He is just an all-around kind, easy child.
He would rather skip dessert and eat a cucumber. He didn't even eat one of his birthday cupcakes.
He is getting so independent - I hardly felt like his mom at the lake this summer - he was so busy having fun and hanging out with his cousins. That part also makes me a little sad.
He is handsome. And he still lets me dress him in whatever I want. Please bless that that last forever.
He pretty much will be friends with anyone he meets.
He refuse to admit to being tired, ever, even if his eyes are closing while he says it.
He makes amazing art work and tapes it to every door in our house. We are lucky that way.

This week we finally got to celebrate with another slip-and-slide party. This year was robot themed. Robot cupcakes.

Robot lollipop holder.

Robots for the kids to decorate.

Some yummy food.

An excited birthday boy.

Lots of crazy slip-and-sliders.





And a few very cute non slip-and-sliders.


Stella modeling the dress I made for her.

A few more action shots.






It seemed like the kids could play on the slip and slide forever, we had to turn off the water to get them to stop. Thank you, again, Grandma Leonard for having and letting us use the most perfect slip-and-slide party house ever! We love you.


And to prolong the party - Marisa drove up from Portland for the party and had a sleepover at our house afterward.


Wouldn't it be awesome if my mom sent me some lake pictures so I could post them?

Chris August

Last weekend my cousin Chris (from Texas) and his band played in Bonney Lake. It was totally bizarre that the show was actually 10 minutes from our house and so so good to see Chris. Family - you can buy his stuff here.

Owasco

It is always hard coming home from a month at the lake - especially this year because the weather was so perfect and for some reason I seemed to appreciate a lot of the little things I sometimes take for granted - like how fun it is to be able to see all the family, and how ideal the house is on the water, surrounded by trees and a creek - it is a little boys dream.

Pictures to come - I didn't get copies before I left...

My Highlights:
Meeting Zoey. Holding Zoey. Seeing what great parents Meg and Paul are.
Relaxing on the beach - it NEVER gets old to me.
Cami's Surprise visit.
Seeing my grandma, aunts, uncles and cousins.
Tubing - for some reason it was extra fun this year.
The Carrington's reception.
Our getaway to Mirbeau - so completely dreamy (thanks Nicki - you are the best!).
Hiking the falls at filmore glen.
Sewing with Ashley and my mom - so much more fun that way.
Bunkle Wank - Ian's nickname for Uncle Hank. I think it will stick.
Seeing my kids enjoy the lake and watching my family love them to death.

Ian's Highlights:
The water trampoline. Throwing people off and doing rolls down the slide.
Swimming literally 8 hours a day - sometimes he only got out for lunch and dinner.
Playing with his cousins - Devon and Connor are so loving and good with him, Ian has no idea that they are both almost twice his age.
Sleepovers and the drive in with aunt Nicki.
Tubing like a mad man - with the big kids and the adults.
Knee boarding for the first time.
Doing projects with Grandpa, especially ones on the tractor - he always asked to stay home with him when we left to run errands..
His birthday party.
Riding on the boat (he had a favorite spot right in the front) and on the waverunner.
Going to the creek with the boys and catching salamanders.
Marshmallow roasting and sparklers after dinners at Grandma Betty's house.
One day James said he wanted to go home and Ian looked at him and said "this is home".

James' highlights:
Swimming in the water (took him a while to get used to it but once he did he loved it).
Goggles.
Playing with Parker - they were so cute and so naughty sometimes.
Playing in the hottub.
Playing at Mickey Park - a brand new playset my parents finished right before we got there.
Driving his cars up and down the deck.
Telling everyone "no" when they asked for kisses. So charming.
The puppies.

Lowlights:
James throwing up on me 4 times on the airplane.
Ian got swimmer's ear.
The frozen cakeballs that I couldn't stop eating.

Thanks mom and dad for another great summer - love you guys!