Too cute not to share

I wasn't there for this at Downtown Disney, but I thought it was awesome. (EDIT: Actually, this was in the game room at our timeshare)

Thanks to Nana for shooting this one.

Things are different here in Florida

I've just come out of a store in a fairly large shopping area, close to a highway, and yet this is what I find on the windshield of my Fathers truck.

In case you can't tell from the photo, it's a frog.  About an inch and a half big.  Looking rather serene on the window.  Or perhaps he's terrified?  Either way, he ain't coming home with me.

Wistful

This shot has better light but Simon's not looking at the camera...  I had only minutes to post before we took off on the second leg of our flight, literally.  We were holding up the oncoming passengers at the pilot's request for me to take his photo.  I guess he thought it was cute.

Look Mom, No Hands!

We're on our way to Tampa and Simon is flying the plane!

A visit to the fire station

Simon and I are visiting back east this week and we've had several wonderful adventures so far.  But today's adventure was pretty special -- we got an exclusive  tour of the fire station!

The firefighters were impressed that he wasn't afraid of the trucks or their lights and sirens.  They  showed him how the ladders worked and even let him ride in the ladder truck as they came back into the station.  Simon said that was his favorite part.

The Pumpkin Liner

A few weekends back, we ventured up to Horseshoe Bend for a special ride on the Pumpkin Liner.


The train trip was lots of fun and we ran into friends who have a daughter, Fiona, that's just a bit older than Simon. As you can tell from this photo, neither Simon nor Fiona were in the mood to have their photo taken that day. Simon did manage to find a pumpkin with dirt on it to play with, so it's all good...

Happy Halloween

If you ask Simon what he's dressing up as, for Halloween, he'll tell you he's a ghost. But in reality he's been an adorable lion, complete with a roar, at least for mom and dad.

Festivities started on Saturday with a trip to the Boise Zoo for a special Halloween event. They had volunteers in costume roaming around to hand out candy and special booths all over the place, all mobbed with kids and parents in costume. Thankfully, Simon was only interested in seeing the animals.


Today, Simon and I carved a pumpkin and later went on the prowl around the neighborhood.



All in all, it was a great Halloween.

I'm not tired.

Someone refused to take a nap in his crib and insisted he wasn't tired. It's a different story in the car.

Tailgating at the Broncos game

We rode our bikes to Simon's first tailgate party this morning. Lots of food and broncos fans! It was all very exciting.

IBG Harvest Festival

On Sunday we went to the harvest festival at the Idaho Botanical Garden.  There was music, scarecrows, and snacks. The highlight for Simon was picking out his own pumpkin. He carried it around for the rest of the day including when he went into the corn maze.

Helicopter & Horses

Simon and I went to Bogus Basin this morning. They were flying the towers for the new ski lift. We got to see the helicopter up close as it flew over us with the parts.

While we were there a couple came by on horseback. It was busy morning  up there today.

Driving to Boise

We made the drive from Seattle to Boise over the last two days. Simon was a trooper throughout. He got to sit on a Harley-Davidson at Hamlet and Co in Pendelton, OR. We also got to see a number of antique colt pistols and some beautiful saddles. I tried on hats but no pictures.

Today we stopped in Baker City and Simon insisted he get to ride in the wagon. We are now in Boise and camped out at the hotel.

Moving Day

Yep, that's right, we're moving again!  And get this?  We're moving back to Boise!  Didn't see that coming, did you.  Me neither.

Simon is being such a good helper.  He's equally worried and excited about everything.  He keeps asking, "Where's my trains?"

Hanging out with Rudi

Rudi came over to play today. We had cupcakes and went to the park. Simon is trying to do everything she does including the rings  and the big kid swings. That didn't work out for us we went on the little kid ones.

Boating

A few weekends ago we were invited to go out my friend Brent's boat on Lake Washington. It was a truly spectacular Seattle Day.

Simon got the drive the boat. Right hand turns only so this probably rules out a NASCAR career.


He also enjoyed sitting in the bow and being silly with Brent.

Cicely or Roslyn?

While Sol, Meera and Zora are visiting, we came to Roslyn, WA to see the town that served as the backdrop for Northern Exposure. The cafe is here, Dr. Fleishman's office is a gift shop and the radio station KBHR is set up in the middle of town.

Driving the bus

We were out for a walk today and stopped to talk to the bus driver. He let Simon sit in the drivers seat, open and close the door and use the microphone.  It was pretty awesome.

From the mouths of babes

Simon's response to the book 'If you give a moose a muffin'. "I got two muffin man's!"

Curses!

I KNEW I shouldn't have blogged about the sunshine... The very next day it wad foggy all day with drizzles.

But we had fun wandering around Pike Place anyway, and then did some downtown shopping the next day before Ken and Juanita left the following day for Alaska.

All in all it was a great trip.

1. 2. 3. Swing!

I forgot to add that summer has finally arrived and the sun was out for our adventures with Ken and Juanita.  It's actually been out for a few days in a row!  We're all excited.

Visiting with family

Uncle Ken and Aunt Juanita are visiting from the Keys, so of course we needed to show them the local marine life by visiting the Seattle Aquarium.

The sun finally came out in Seattle

Of course it got a little cloudy by the time we hit the beach.  But I promise you, the sun actually made an appearance this weekend.

You talkin ta me!?!

Much like his decision to walk, where we knew Simon could walk but he wouldn't do it until he was ready, Simon has finally decided to talk.

We spent months counting words and the tally of known words was impressive, but rarely would he string any together. Until recently. And now he's talking in three to six word sentences and making his preferences KNOWN.

His favorite phrases right now are, "I don't like xxxxxx" and "I want some xxxxxx too." Here's a typical conversation from earlier today:

Mama: Simon, it's time for lunch.
Simon: I don't like lunch.
Mama: OK, would you like to have a snack??
Simon: I don't like snack.
Mama: Would you like some ham and cheese?
Simon: I don't like ham cheese.
Mama: How about some pretzels and humus?
Simon: I don't like pretzels. No humus. Ummmmm, no lunch.
Mama: Would you like some milk?
Simon: I don't like milk.
Mama: OK, well I'm going to have some lunch anyway.
Simon: (yelling) I WANT SOME LUNCH TOO.

And that's the abbreviated version. GAH! I love that he's talking but man he's driving me crazy!

PS. For the Grandparents out there.... he HAS had a haircut. We'll post new photos soon.

Big Horn Sheep

On Friday we drove from Fairmont Hot Springs to Kelowna. Along the way we saw beaver lodges, bald eagles, glaciers and sheep. These are pictures from my phone we have better ones on the camera.

Sandpoint, ID

We are driving north to Canada on vacation. We spent the night in Sandpoint since its about half way. This morning we had breakfast, went to the farmers market where Simon made a friend. Then we went to the beach and played at the playground. They have a fabulous park on the water.

We are in the car headed north again now.

Playing at the park

Another beautiful day in Seattle. The sun came out and the temps are in the low 60s.  This is our 2nd trip to the park today. This morning we played with diggers and now he wants the see saw and slides.

Last day on the snow?

While Simon and Joanie are enjoying the sun in Florida the weather in Seattle is about the same as it has been since October. Mid 50s and overcast. We've had so much snow in the mountains (which of course means rain in the Puget Sound) that Crystal Mountain's ski area is still getting snow and still open.



I went up with friends yesterday. It was still pretty cold at the summit, there were flurries up there and freezing rain at the base. The snow itself was a bit lumpy, I took more falls in one day than I did most of the season. The actual highlight for me was using the 'My Tracks' app on my phone to plot my runs and upload it to Google Maps.

View Crystal Mountain 5/22/2011 in a larger map
The straight lines are lifts. It's pretty cool to see where you went and how fast. My max speed for the day was 31.3 mph. The conditions were really tough so I am interested to see how fast I can bomb down a run on a nice groomed day next year.

This was probably my last day on the snow this season, though we may sneak up again in June just to say we did it. I made it out 10 days this season which isn't too bad all things considered.

Kickin' Back in FLA

We've been having a grand time visiting Nana and Gramps at their new home in Florida. To date, we've seen the second-to-last-ever space shuttle launch (the Endeavour), battled love bugs at Cocoa Beach, visited cousin Jacob (and of course his parents Dan and Meg), went to another beach on Tampa Bay, had dinner in the historic Columbia restaurant, visited the Florida Aquarium AND spent time in the pool. Whew. No wonder I need to kick back and relax at dinner...

Soccer in Seattle

Taking advantage of my lack of family responsibilites I am at a major league soccer game with my friend Brian. However there is a serious amount of rain falling on this balmy 45 degree night. I am in gore-tex head to toe. Other people at the game didn't plan ahead. They look really wet and really cold.

I'm off to Florida!

Can't you tell?

Sunny Day in Seattle

The sun finally came out in Seattle. We had a gorgeous sunny morning out. We went to breakfast then hit the Ballard Locks to watch the boats go up and down.

In addition to the boats the trains cross over this ancient railroad bridge. Very exciting indeed.


After leaving the locks we went to Golden Gardens park to admire the view of the Olympic Mountains. Simon insisted on getting out of car and walking along the beach. There were holes along the path and he couldn't help jumping in.


Of course it rained the next day . . .

One of the things I miss

So what do you see here, a shark? A plane? Maybe it's a shark plane!

If you live in the world of Richard Scarry books, as Simon does, shark plane is the correct answer. And thank goodness he likes it, because I'm still learning how to draw just a shark, or just a plane.

Anyway, today is the one year anniversary of my brother's passing. Sounds strange doesn't it? I can't even easily type death, let alone say it aloud. And yet it happened.

As I was drawing this sad shark plane today, it hit me that one of the things I miss most about John was his God-given talent for sketching. He could use the golf pencil and giving envelopes found in the pew of our church, and sketch a perfect likeness of someone in the row ahead of us.

I can create graphics and computer illustrations with the best of them, but actual illustration (without hours of effort), that was always John's thing. And he's no longer here to share that with me, or to teach Simon. And that hurts more than anything.

Rest In Peace John. We miss you.

PS. I'm not posting this for sympathy OR to make my parents cry. Please Mom and Dad, don't cry. I just didn't want the day to pass without acknowledging what I'm thinking.

Helping Sweep

Simon helped Dad sweep the back deck. At first we did it together but then he insisted on doing it himself... imagine that.