Valentine's Day

Here are just a few snapshots of Valentine's Day at our house. It's amazing how much we celebrate things these days, especially with two little excited people at our house.

Cookies decorated by chefs Samuel and Maya

Pretty pink frosting and M&Ms

Roses from Aaron . . . so pretty!

Red jell-o jigglers to go with our homemade pizza

Festive napkins add that final touch!

Parker turns ONE!

February 7 was Parker's first birthday. It's hard to believe it's been a whole year since he was born. We celebrated his special day with a birthday party on Saturday, February 5. Both sets of his grandparents were in attendance plus our family.

Focused

Parker chose the spool for "long life" when given the choice.

Cute family.

Cousins.

Sweet boy.

Time for cake.

Playing at our house the next day.

Laughing.

Adorable.

Inside and Outside

In the beautiful Pacific Northwest, we enjoy being outdoors ALL year long. A few weeks ago, Aaron took Maya and Sam on a lovely hike up toward the mountains. Maya walked 5 miles on her own.

Later they came home and enjoyed hot cocoa with their mama. What a cozy February day!

Stopping for a rest while hiking.

Lunchtime!

Cocoa mix is in--now for the hot water!

Hooray for a fun NW day.

Adventures in Colorado

Sam and I spent a few fun days in Colorado in January. One of the highlights of our trip was spending some time with the Dolenc family. If you read our blog regularly, you've seen their faces during our trip to the Oregon coast a year and a half ago. Sam and Marin were just babies then . . . now they are both busy 2-year olds (closing in on 3). 

We had a great time together.

Marin was Sam's special buddy.

All three kids played together well. Who's missing? Maya.

Lucie missed her buddy Maya. Next time!

The happy mamas.

Ice skating on the pond in the Dolencs' backyard.

Holiday Happenings

I am sorry to report that I was not the best photographer during this holiday season. It was a busy couple of weeks, filled with the joys of celebration and family. But here are a few snapshots of the first half of our holiday with the Eklund family in Everett. Pictures from the Idaho Russells will follow shortly.

Sam, Maya and Parker show off their matching snowman pajamas on Christmas Eve.

Marmie and Bapa surrounded by their three grandchildren.

Nathan and Annemarie. 35 and 32 years of age (and 9 months of CD recording), and we still like each other.

And here is our family on Christmas day in front of the tree at my parents' house.

Merry Christmas everyone. I hope your house was as energetic and celebratory as ours.

Simple things

We have had a very wonderful end to November and start to December here at our house. In the midst of a busy season, we've dug in and tried to make simple, sweet memories together. Wearing a newly sewn nightgown, having a snowball fight, going to a tree farm to hunt for a Christmas tree, and decorating the house together have filled our quieter moments. In this season of Advent, of waiting for Christmas to come, we are finding joy together doing simple things.

Maya wearing her new nightgown made by Marmie. Notice that Baba has a matching nightgown too!

A Thanksgiving snowball fight. From left: Aaron, Sam, Grandpa Russell, Maya, Annemarie and Aunt Chrisy.

Maya sledding down the hill in our front yard.

Maya and Sam's Thanksgiving "snow turkey."

Picking out our Christmas tree.

The kids at the Christmas tree farm with Bapa and Marmie.

Posing in front of our decorated tree. Maya and Sam hold their favorite ornaments.

Reading in Bed

A week or so ago, I woke up to the sound of cute little voices down the hall. When I finally dragged myself out of bed to go investigate, I found both my children snuggled in Maya's bed reading a book. Maya was reading as many words as she could and Sam was pointing out interesting things in the pictures.

I always love my children, but at that moment there was so much mama goodness bubbling up from inside of me that I thought I would burst.

Maya reading Richard Scarry to Sam.

Two fantastically wonderful kids. What mama would ask for more?

Pumpkin Farm

Today we visited Biringer Pumpkin Farm. It's a place I've been going to for many years with my family (probably almost 35 years, to be honest). It was a cloudy day, but we hearty northwesterners braved the drizzle for some outdoor harvest fun.

Here are my parents, lovingly called "Bapa" and "Marmie," with Maya and Sam.

Maya and Sam loved all the fun things to do and see at the farm. One of Sam's favorite things is a tractor, so the two goofs posed in front of this one, all smiles.

Amy, Colby, and Parker joined us this year. Last year, all three of them came as well, only Parker was still growing in his mama's belly. It was wonderful to have his adorable face in our pictures this year.

Here is a picture of the four of us. I loved this spot because I think the texture of the wood's grain behind us is especially interesting. It's a rare moment when our whole family is in one picture (since I'm the one normally behind the camera). We loved this time together today.

Sam found a REAL tractor to drive (although as you can tell, it's not actually moving) which totally made his day.

I took this shot myself while riding the wagon out to the pumpkin patch. I love that Sam has deep blue eyes while Maya's are a chocolate brown. I don't think I could even tell you which color I prefer--both are so beautiful to me.

Here, my sweet kindergarten girl pauses to flash me her million-dollar smile.

The kids each take their time picking out the perfect pumpkin.

And at the end of the morning, Marmie and Bapa pose with their three grandchildren to commemorate this day. We have a picture of my siblings and me with my grandparents in almost the exact same spot at Biringer Farm (probably 20 years ago). I love this shot best because of its imperfection--it tells a story of that moment.

One of the biggest blessings about living back in the Pacific Northwest is the chance to spend time with my family on a regular basis. Mornings like this one, where we gathered for a few hours to enjoy this beautiful and festive setting, remind me what a gift it is to live close to people you love. If somehow we could pick up the Russell family and move them to Everett, our hearts would be teeming with the love of family.

Happy Fall, everyone. Happy season of falling leaves, pumpkins, apple cider, spice cake (I have the best recipe), and time together with the rain falling outside.

Maya's First Day of Kindergarten

Today was Maya's first day of kindergarten. This morning, our family plus my parents, my sister, and my nephew accompanied Maya on the one-mile walk to Whittier Elementary. She was wearing one of her new "uniform" outfits, and she seemed very excited.

Upon arrival at Whittier, Maya got a little sad and scared, so her tears were central to our parting, but when we returned to pick her up at 11:15 today, she was all smiles. She LOVED kindergarten.

A cute pre-kindergarten smile.

And here you can see her cute plaid jumper and white-collared shirt.

Maya walked alongside Marmie and held her hand for much of the trip.

Here are Marmie and Bapa with their grandchildren.

Wedding Weekend

We spent this past weekend in the mountains of California at Aaron's cousin Crystal's wedding. Maya was the flower girl and I sang in the ceremony. It was a lovely, if brief, trip filled with wonderful celebrations and time to be with family.

Here is Maya with Crystal, the bride.

Maya ADORES her Aunt Chrisy.

The four of us at the wedding.

A rare shot of me and my girl (normally I'm the photographer)