4th of july!

WE had a nice mellow Fourth. We spent the morning working in the garden, stopped in Issaquah for a festival, shopped for dinner items, then it was firework time! Just my parents and my sisters were here and we all had a yummy dinner outside, which the boys just think is the coolest thing ever. I promised Bright that we would do fireworks in the dark AFTER Asher had already gone to bed, and then he could sleep with me in my bed. On the 3rd, he asked me : "Is tomorrow the firework and snuggle in your bed day?" so sweet. I got some really cute pictures thanks to my personal photographer (a.k.a Coco). I think the best part was experiencing the fireworks through bright. It was the first time fireworks and the 4th made sense to him. he kept saying "YAAAAAAAY!" after each firework. we did tons of sparklers, stobe lights, a ground hog,smoke bombs and some bees. Bright loved the groundhog and the sparklers the best. Then when we went to bed he said, "I just don't want this day to be not here." of course I loved the nice snuggle too.

At the 4th festival in issaquah it was not really much of a 4th celebration as much as a train station/frontier life thingy for kids. The kids checked in and got a passport which was stamped at each activity station. There was a butter making station, dress up, train logging, shingle making, mining, and laundry station.
bright did all the stations and got his little passport stamped. The best station was when we got to ride a push cart on the railroad track. bright took it very seriously. he had a great time. Just me and him, asher was with grandma!

buter making



SNAKES!!!



"YAAAAAAAY! YAY FOR THE NORTHWEST!!!" not sure why he said it, but he wanted us to know!


Us with sparklers, I love this pic!


Some cool shots taken by coco.




This picture sums up the night. A great photo of what "home" feels like to me. The moon was particularly amazing. The sparklers were VERY sparkly.

Remlinger Photos take 2!

Here's Asher in the process of squealing with joy.



I made it into one.



This was a bike track, and the bikes were so adjustable that I could ride one, and bright could also ride it. I just followed him on his, just in case he got stuck, as the bike was just a touch too big. he was able to do the entire course all on his own! I had to get him unstuck from another rider who had crashed but beside that, he did awesome! the track had up down, corners, hills and a bridge. bright loved it and wanted to go again. next time we go I think I will ride with him! it looked like fun.



Here we are on the old timey car ride (that's what it was called, I dont normally say "old timey') Asher did NOT want me touching him. I kept trying to steady him on the seat and make sure he wasn't going to fall, but he wanted to drive that car alone! he would pry my fingers off and protest. here he is "driving" and reveling in the process. he kept exclaiming "oooohhh!" kinda in a Poppa Jim sort of way.



Asher and I were sitting in the back seat, behind the "Real" driver. I think bright actually thought that he was crontrolling the car on it's course. it was of course on a track and moving really slowly, but we encouraged him saying "quick, turn right!" and he would pay close attention. sweetie...


Here we all are on the train. look how content brighton is. I managed to get in another shot!


The tiny but fun roller coaster, it was the last thing we did and bright really liked it. he wasn't scared a bit, or so it seemed.


We always miss max when he's deployed. even when he's just at work for the day. But this was truely a day that he was missed wholeheartedly. There are times when I resent the Air Force for taking him away and for missing out on brights experiences like this day at Remlinger. We really miss you honey, and are praying that you are safe and doing well at work today. I hope I have taken too many photos so you feel as if you were there with us. I love you!

Last week we took the boys to Remlinger farms. They have TONS of things to do for kids ages 4+. Lots of goats, rabbits, chickens, peacocks, and turkeys in various areas of the park for kids to harass. There were rides perfect for bright's age; a small roller coaster, a train that goes around the park, a track with pedal bikes to ride on, and even a hay maze. There's lots more to do but I won't bore ya. check out their website and definately take your kids if you can, the puppet show is worth the drive alone. It was the perfect day to take the boys, sunny but not blazing hot about 73 and gorgeous. The first thing we did was let bright ride on the canoe ride. he liked it. It was his initiation into amusement rides. I think it was the perfect one to ease him into as he is VERY wary of things of that nature.
here he is still unsure, but 100% willing to hop in alone.


and here he is having so much fun in his " 'lil boat"!



"The train's comin', mama"


in this photo you can see we're on the train, but we're looking at the old timey car ride in the background as well as the little farm type buildings that house the turkeys and peacocks. Asher LOVED the old timey car ride.



Asher getting to ride the big (stationary) tractor.


GOATS! Asher just adored these guys. he was squealing with joy each time he touched one.


Ok I am having trouble with blogger now, so I will upload remaining photos after I go to the gym. Maybe things will have settled down by then!

"grasshopper" the frog.

Yes, that's the name that was chosen. I am pretty sure that Bright picked the name "grasshopper" since the frog hops and is green like grass. I am pretty sure because that's what he told me, he was VERY specific. Bright has been keeping him busy in a jar for a few days and we picked up some crickets to feed him and make him happy. I took some cute pictures of the boys playing with it. they had fun chasing it around the kitchen at my parents house and watching it very patiently as it hunted the crickets which kept drowning in the tiny drop of water in the bottom of the jar. And, every frog knows you don't eat dead crickets.

He wants him to climb on the "bridge".



isn't it so cool?! check out the texture!



this photo is blurry because I can't control the excitement that is vibrating out of asher! he was practically bouncing all over and I think I took about 5 pictures with just a green streak and a caucasian streak across the frame, this one you can at least tell what is in the photo and see asher's expression! priceless.

last week's photos

Last week we had A few hot days and mostly Cool rainy days. It was Lyda's birthday, then Toby's birthday, then my dad's, then father's day! whew!
here's the boys looking xtra sunny with their beautiful blue eyes.




Here's Asher being a cutie in his pirate Jammies. He looks so old to me in this picture.



Snugglin' with grampa.



Happy Birthday Grampa!!



Cutie pie Asher in the rocker at LaLa's house.



Asher's new hiding spot.



It started raining so hard that a stream of rainfall flowed down the street and into the yard! the kids thought it was really cool, gus and bright were having a laugh about something.



Happy birthday TOBY!



This German Chocolate cake from Whole Foods was AMAZING! so so so good. very coconutty. Asher just had to try some!

Father's Day!

IT's father's Day here in the states, but for Max it's already June 22nd. The day AFTER father's day. It makes me feel dense, and lame for not remembering that he's a day ahead especially when I spoke to him yesterday and didn't mention it. and I always feel totally small when I realize I need to remember to be better about those things(sending packages, emails, good phone convo topics) while he's deployed. He's such a great daddy to our boys and I can't wait to see him in action as we continue to add to our family. He's been an excellent provider, taking care of us financially and is so good at handling it that I feel 200% secure with his decisions in that area. He spends time with the boys and knows just what his little dudes love, and knows just how to make them laugh. WE miss you honey! We can't wait to snuggle up with you when we are all in our cozy home together again.



What a daddy!

some photos for max

Max was deployed on june 1st. The boys and I trekked over to WA to hang out while he's gone. We have been having a marvelous time. The boys especially. Max asked for some pictures of our adventures so here are a few, since it takes so long to upload, we'll see how many I actually get op here! Here's Asher sitting on the river bank. it was hot ('bout 95) and we went down to the VERY icey cold river to cool down. no one swam but we took turns daring eachother to sit in the shallow water. it was freezing! Asher enjoyed getting muddy and Bright liked throwing rocks. this picture shows a bit of the beautiful river landscape we got to enjoy. here's the squinter:



Poppa Jim and Bright found a HUGE moth that was Brown and pink. really pretty and pretty weird. bright tried to pick it up so it flew to the nasturtiums in front of the gordon's house (they are famous for those nasturtiums (no evidence of flowers in these pic however)!



here's the cutie pie:


We got some chickens to keep at my parents while I am here, we want some yummy home grown eggs and all that so we looked up on craigslist and found some laying hens that were ready. this chicken farmer in Orting had all sorts of animals wondering around his farm. We found a horse in the barn and asher was in love! he kept kissing it and wanting to hug it and pet it. here he is petting it at about 90 miles an hour as you can tell by his blurry hand in the photo.


We picked out a few chickens but our favorite is this little teen girl, a buff colored Orpington. she's just the sweetest and our most favorite of the bunch. she's at home right in the middle of the boys being crazy, which is amazing, and she's so snuggly. She won't struggle to get free of your arms at all. she seems to just cuddle up and fall asleep, happy to be held for hours on end. here she is at the boys construction site.


Asher wants to hold her so bad.


this last one is of bright pulliing asher in the "train" he says he's the big strong engine. sweetie.