Just the Princesses

It's just the girls tonight.

But not just any girls.  The royal girls.  The Princesses.

Some things you need to know about princesses...sometimes they go barefoot.

They also wear very large earrings.  Long necklaces are a must.

Princesses often purse their lips.

They are also known to be quite serious at times, as if the weight of the world were on their shoulders.

I think it's just the earrings, actually.

They are demure, and thoughtful.

(Just like her mother!)

It is important to remember that princesses are very bouncy.

And as for these two princesses...

they love one another very much.

(Since these girls are princesses, then I must be the queen.  Of nonsense, I'm sure.)

Back in Seattle Again...

Can you believe it snowed on the way back down the mountain?

We left the cabin midmorning on Saturday and headed back to Laurie's house in order to take charge of her girls momentarily (until we hit the road again), so that her husband could catch a flight.  Confusing?  It wasn't too chaotic!

She dropped her three older daughters off with a friend and then the remaining women involved in this madcap weekend drove to the city of Seattle. 

Seattle makes me think of Frasier and Niles, Daphne and Marty.  Did you watch that show?  That group of characters is one of the funniest ever put together.   That was a good show.

Well.  We drove into town and were greeted by the famous Space Needle.  For some reason I was enamored of this building.  Building?  I believe that it is a building.  We didn't go up in it (it's a little pricey) but I took more than enough pictures of it.  Maybe I enjoyed photographing this towering observation point because it was actually still.  A little break from taking pictures of monkeys supercharged with M&M's and Skittles moving targets. 

We even managed to get a picture of ourselves in front of the Needle.  I set the camera up on one of the girl's purses.  My guess is that several people may have wondered what on earth we were doing smiling at the bag sitting on the ground. 

Here is the Space Needle, towering above us as we headed to the monorail.

Oh!  Here is the Space Needle still towering above us as we head to the monorail.

I couldn't help myself.  Sorry.

There were other cool things to see while we were there...a lovely area where someone (or several someones) was playing some funky music while folks hung out on a pretty day...

Cool architecture...

It was a colorful place...

with a lot of bustling and busyness.  But in a fun way, probably since I wasn't the one who was particularly bustling or busy.

Our next destination was the Public Market; several people told me that we just had to go there.  We sure did, but not before we hit the Gap.  Ha!  We hit a great sale, and continued one of our great traditions-purchasing a matching shirt for ourselves that commemorates our time together.

Then it was down the street and around the corner...

And not only did we find the Public Market, but we found the Sanitary Public Market!  They must have known I was coming!

A couple of people told me before I left that we must go see the famous fish flingers at Pike Place.  I had a hard time leaving the sanitary area and moving to the fish-flinging area.

There was the famous Monkfish...which I am so thankful did not snap at me.  I might have peed.

These guys throw the fish.  The customer asks for the fish they want, and one of the fishmongers sends the stinking thing flying through the air.  They sing while they do this, chanting and yelling the order back and forth...

I wish I had more and better pictures of this, because it was fun to watch.  They really seemed to enjoy what they were doing, and they enjoyed entertaining the crowd, too.

Speaking of entertaining...

We decided that who needs roller coasters when you have a tilting monorail?  Or something like that. 

Maybe you had to be there.  It was seriously funny at the time.

Who needs Frasier when you have friends like these?!  That's what I say!

Our day had to wind down at some point, and so we headed back to Laurie's once again, for dinner, brownies, and a movie. 

We had such a full day, from our morning at the cabin, to a beautiful drive back down the mountain, to a sunny day playing in the city, to a perfect ending on the way home...

All these good things were gifts for me.  Treasures for me to store up in my heart.  I missed these girls before we had even parted ways.  They mean the world to me and I am already looking forward to the next time we get together.

I was able to think a lot, too, while I was gone from home.  I thought a great deal, and talked a lot, about how things have gone these last months and even couple of years.  It hasn't always been good...there have been some low points amidst the joyful moments and the memories that have been made for our family.  Ami (above, not holding the baby, not holding her face) said how much she was enjoying this time in her life, the ages of her kids (they are about the same as mine); she spoke of how she appreciated so much that the kids still wanted to be with them (her and her husband), they enjoyed being together as a family and hadn't reached that age where they'd rather be off by themselves or at the mall with friends instead.  They like to snuggle.  All of these things reminded me that the same thing is true in our house.  Our kids want to be with us.  They love to love on us.  They still want us to read to them, to go to ball games together, to go on family trips.  They need for me to be present.  These things might seem like no-brainers (I am a no-brainer, you know), but it was a good wake-up call for me to look at our life from a distance and see the good and the needs-improvement.  I'm so thankful for these ladies, their listening ears, their loving hearts, their encouraging words.  And also their jokes, and their laughter.  Did I mention that already?

Now I am home and feeling rejuvenated and energized for the tasks that lie before me.  And now it is time to share with you one final thing!  While I was gallavanting around Washington, whether in Bavarian villages or big cities, and having a very good time with some of my closest friends, I was also on the lookout for something to bring back with me to pass along to one of you, just for fun.  I wanted to bring back something that was representative of my time there...and this is what I ended up with...

Moon Valley Organics handmade soaps, lotion bar, and lip treat (it's more than a balm!).  It seems especially appropriate since this trip was such a soothing, rejuvenating time for me.  I hope that whoever wins these items enjoys them, finds them soothing and fun.  They're pretty, too.  And they smell lovelavenderly.

To enter to win I would love to hear your stories!  Tell me about your favorite vacation, or trip with some friends.  You can tell me where you went and what you did.  You can tell me why so-and-so is your favorite person to be with.  You can tell me why you love going to the beach, the mountains, or SeaWorld the best.  You type and click, and you're entered!  The contest (if that's the right word) will end on Friday evening at 9 pm CST. I'll randomly pick a winner and announce it soon thereafter!  I'm nervous.  I've never done this before!

Thanks for joining me as I walk down memory lane, even so soon after my trip.  I hope that you get to be with a good friend, have a good laugh, and eat a brownie really soon!

**Thanks for participating, everyone!  I'll announce the winner of the giveaway Saturday morning.  Even though time's up for entering, if you want to leave a story I'd still love to hear it!

We Interrupt The Regularly Scheduled Programming...

for a very important announcement!

There is someone with a birthday today! 

I'll give you a hint.

He's (oh, there is an extra hint!) bald.

You might have a guess now, but maybe that wasn't a good enough clue.

Here is another one.

He wears a boat for a size thirteen shoe.

Now do you have a good guess?

Okay, here is another one.

He is the father of all of my children.

Now I'm sure you know of whom I speak!

He is a wonderful dad...

a beach bum at heart...

up for an adventure...

spontaneous kisser (hence the laughter in the picture)...

by my side for important things...

and I think he's kind of cute, too.

Today I thank God for his life, and for our marriage and family.  I'm looking forward to this year with him, and many more.  Happy Birthday, Mike.  I love you.

Spaetzle, Lederhosen, and Squirrel Underpants

After a night of laughing our fool heads off (and a little bit of sharing and crying, too, as it goes with really close friends) we got up and took our time getting ready in order to take in some of the sights of the area. 

We drove to a little town called Leavenworth, where many years ago folks set about to save a dying town by turning it into a small Bavarian village in the middle of the state of Washington.  Apparently, it worked, and we joined many other tourists in order to sample a bit of German culture without the major jetlag.

Of course there were the shops, some of which were filled with trinkets and lovely things that conjure up images from The Sound of Music (yes I know that's Austria, but it's close, isn't it?).  (There was also plenty of stuff that was made in China and could be found in any souvenir shop in any tourist attraction anywhere-very generic.)

And there was food.  I ordered a beef roll for lunch, thinking it would be some kind of beef on a roll.  But...it was indeed a beef roll, filled with pickles, carrots, and bacon.  There were also red cabbage and Spaetzle.

I can't say that it was my favorite thing I ever ate...but it was an experience.  Right?  It was all quite tangy.

So, obviously when you are in mini-Bavaria you must do as the Germans do...these two were raising their beer mugs, minus the beer, offering a toast and a,"Cheers," and since I am a supernerd I wanted to take a picture of everything...

and because of my stellar photography skills I captured many a special moment...

as they humored me and clinked their glasses over and over and over...

until I finally got it!

Yes, we are dorks.  But only in a certain sense.

We look normal enough.

But you should not allow yourself to be fooled.

And this little one?  We hardly knew she was there!  She was content just to hang around and be cute as a button.  She was such a doll. 

Mostly, we had fun being together and enjoying one another and our little outing...

the just plain funny... 

the backdrop for all of our shenanigans...

the bear wearing Lederhosen...

the find of the day (yes, they are squirrel underpants)...

After laughing more than normal 35-ish year olds should in public, eating large custard-filled desserts, and flitting in and out of quaint shops, we left Leavenworth and headed back to our lovely cabin in the mountains for the night.

And these are the wonderful women who made the food that we ate.

I helped out so much.  I diced a very fine onion and took a lot of pictures.

I tried to get a picture of us before we left.  The wind made us freeze our booties off.  Well, I wish it had made us freeze our booties off...I think we all would have appreciated that.  It was pretty cold, though!  I didn't know it would be quite that chilly. 

One of the last things we saw there was a bald eagle soaring back and forth outside of our cabin.

It was a lovely sight...what freedom.

We were granted this treasure of a time, to have a break from, well, I'm having trouble finding the right words...Everyone knows that being a mom is fulfilling, satisfying, and demanding.  Working is fulfilling, satisfying, and demanding.  We wouldn't give up our roles for anything.  Yet, to be able to get together and talk, watch movies, have chocolate whenever we want, and laugh and laugh and laugh...was so refreshing.

We had to head back to Laurie's house for the remainder of the weekend, and for more adventures...so if you can stand it, stay tuned!  And don't forget...I brought a little something back to share.  So, you'll have to join me tomorrow to see what it is and have a chance to win it!

Getting Started

It somehow managed to get very late tonight, and quickly!  I so want to tell you about my trip, and there is something extra and fun that I want to share with you, too (read:  a giveaway!). 

Alas, the dishes are wanting to be done and the laundry is yelling at me because it smells bad, the floors are crummy crumb-y and I didn't even eat a real dinner yet. 

Although I did remember that my brownie from Laurie's house was still in my purse, so I got it out.  Bad news:  It tasted a little bit like plastic baggie.  Good news:  I don't care and I ate it anyway.

Since I have some pressing matters to take care of (like ironing Christian's pants for tomorrow, oh ha ha hee) I'll give a brief introduction to my adventure, a pictorial travel guide, if you will.

The first leg of my trip was short, just to Houston.  But the second part was soooo long, and I forgot to bring a book or anything to do.  I sat and twiddled my thumbs for about four hours.  I thought of doing a post that went something like this:  A brunette walked into an airport.  You thought it was just blondes! 

And then I would have continued with all of the ridiculous stories just from my airport/airplane experiences that even amazed me at the level of stupidity.  From checking in and checking my bag, to switching planes and momentarily losing my license...there seems to be no end to my personal supply of goofiness.

Instead I will show you some of my favorite images from my flight, because I ended up buying a book, reading, and taking pictures the rest of the trip.

Sorry this is so scatteredy.  I told you it was late.

I flew to Oakland and saw the Golden Gate Bridge and Alcatraz.  How exciting!

It was, of course, from the plane.  But what an awesome view!

The scenery I was able to take in while flying up the West Coast was amazing...absolutely breathtaking.  I felt like a kid in a candy store, or a little girl watching the ballet for the first time.

The sky...unbelievable.

The mountains...endless.

I took many pictures and fortunately the person sitting next to me got it...she didn't think I was too weird.  In fact, she wanted me to email her my photos. 

We neared Seattle and I had my eyes peeled for Mt. Rainier, but I hear this giant of a mountain is quite elusive.  I was not fortunate enough to lay my eyes on that particular beauty, but seeing the city was good enough, especially knowing that my sweet friends were waiting to pick me up and carry me off with them on a grand escapade.

The fun was just beginning! 

Tune in tomorrow for more.  This is where we ended up...