Eastern Oregon in a nutshell

I got hit by a deer. My kids have a ton of cousins and it's wonderful. My in-laws are the best! All you can see is land - no people, houses, cars or street lights. Just land. Animals were everywhere. Two new puppies, five new kitties, grandmas chickens, porcupines, barn owls, coyotes and deer everyday. Tractor rides with grandpa and uncle Just. I was a picture takin' fool. The food was wonderful, as always. Horseback rides. Four wheelers. Rope swings. No Internet or cell service. FAMILY.

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Great Wolf Lodge - Celebrating S-man

Sterling turned five this summer! Five has been good to us. He has grown A LOT. Not in just height (he is a tall boy) but in communication, boundaries, patience, responsibilities, etc. This tenacious and energetic boy has brought us a lot of joy and has ultimately taught us more about God's unfailing love. Because of Sterling I have a better understanding of the Lord's love for me as his own child. I will always be grateful that he is who God entrusted to us. He gave me the title mom. We love you Sterling! 

To celebrate our S-man, we went to Great Wolf Lodge. It was our first time there and I must say that I highly recommend it! Though it's a pricey one night stay, we decided the money we would spend to throw a party would be pretty equal. It was nice to be low key and have a memorable family trip. Capri was only 2 1/2 months old so the thought of throwing a party was a little haunting. The boys had so much fun and still talk about the hotel room and the water slides. 

If you are going to go to Great Wolf Lodge here are my tips:

1. Check in time to the hotel is around 3 or 4 but you can check in by 11 am for your water park passes and use the water park! We were there by 10 (we were a little excited) but the lobby had fun activities like hula hooping contest, coloring, bubbles, etc. We were in our bathing suits and in the park right at 11. The front desk called my cell phone to let me know our room was ready by 2 - score! 

2. Take food. There is a couple of restaurants available but of course expensive...and greasy :) There is a fridge and microwave in every room so we took popcorn, sandwiches and some other snacks.

3. There is a Starbucks in the hotel. Nice.

4. There is a really cool arcade so take your quarters! We let each kid take a bag of quarters from their piggy banks at home. When they ran out....they ran out. 

5. Check out the next day is around noon but you can continue to use the water park till 10 pm on checkout day. We had an extra bracelet so we invited my mom down to come and swim with us till dinner time!

6. It is REALLY warm inside the water park area. Capri and I were sweating. I think they keep the temps around 80 something degrees.

7. They have all the life preservers you could imagine. You don't need to take your own.

8. If your kids are under five, one night is plenty! When our kids are older and can do the water stuff more on their own we will probably go for two nights. Our littles were worn out after two days of water play.

What surprised me most about this trip was Boone's lack of fear of the water. He kind of freaked me out! He went down water slides on his own like it was no big deal. He would stand in line with teen aged kids waiting patiently until it was his turn. He would sit on the slide and look up at the life guard until he/she would say go. A life guard would have to pull him out at the bottom. Oh my. He thought it was awesome.

Bathing suits on and ready to go!

Here is Boone coming down the slide. He somehow would get turned head down every time. He would run to Justin and I for a hug or thumbs up.

This is one of the big slides that Sterling was tall enough to go on! Boone and I waited patiently for their exit on the tube! Sterling's face says it all!

"I did it mom!"

Lobby coloring

Keeping up with the big kids...

We can't wait to go again! Happy Birthday big guy! Pin It

5 months

Our little lady is 5 months old. This summer went by so incredibly quick. We just got back from a ten day trip to E.Oregon and Sterling started Kindergarten this morning. I am trying to grasp onto each day as it's own but that seems hard lately. This summer was a blur due to adding a family member. Lots of transitions and new routines. Baby days are so sweet and so hard. Broken sleep, diaper changes, naps to keep up on, another mouth to feed, etc. What day is it again?! I often write a blog post in my head or think of something fun to share but by the time I actually sit down to write and upload some pictures it has all slipped my mind. So, once again, this blog is made up mainly of pictures and little words. This is life right now. :)

Capri is SWEET. She coos and has the softest voice. When she is upset she screams at a pitch that is unreachable for most people. She rolls over. She has eaten some solids and thinks all food is awesome. She wears 6 month clothing and size 3 diapers. No teeth and no signs of crawling - both fine by me. At her last doctors apt she was 75% in height, weight and head size. She lights up when Justin comes home and doesn't break a smile if her brothers are interacting with her. She is LOVED!

I shall be back soon with our trip and a re-cap of the summer...plus Capri's nursery...it's about time I finish that, right?!

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Garage Sales

This last weekend was our town wide garage sale. It's one of my favorite events in Steilacoom. It competes with the annual Apple Squeeze and the firework show the night of the 4th. I would guess there are close to 75 garage sales (give or take) happening all on the same day at the same time in a few miles span. A little overwhelming and so darn addicting but all together FUN. I recommend going with your friends. Two years in a row I have gone with Alissa and Rebekah (and last year Mary-Hayden - we missed you!) and we have a blast loading our vehicle and sharing our treasures with one another. Here are some of my treasures from this year:

This was my biggest purchase: $5 sailboat

An awesome three drawer Drexler nightstand that just needs a middle nob: $3

Glass milk based lamp with mustard hide lampshade: $2

Little girl clothes: $2.50 (red sweats are Lucky Brand...so cute)

 A few other trinkets (big blue frame, glass ware, 70's mustard pump): $4

 Old Tolkien books: $0.50

 Brand new Clinique make up bags: all for $1

 Total = $18

Pretty sure I would have bought the nightstand itself for 18 bucks. Score!

 ...can't wait to show you where some of these new treasures reside!



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