Spring is finally here!!!!


And its time to get outside and play!
The sun is shining, the sky is a brilliant blue, the breeze is still but there is still a cold winter crispness to the air...ahh spring!

This year is already to be proving so different, the boys are older and so much more independant. They really are growing up!

Harry is at an age now where I remember going outside to ride my bike and play with the kids in the street. He's riding his scooter around the block by himself, such a big boy! He is actually really good at it and is starting to do tricks, I'm sure he'll be wanting a skateboard next.



Thomas is happy to stick to his trike, but will usually go for the scooter if Harry is still at school.
Dave is excited to teach them both how to ride a bike this spring/summer, can't wait to go on some family rides together! Bring on the sunshine and playing outside...woo hoo!

International Night at Bryn Mawr Elementary March 09



Harry's Kindergarten class took to the stage to perform the first song of the evening "He's got the whole world" Gosh what a bunch of cuties!
To kick off the International and Diversity theme the school is promoting they invited the families to a night of songs, acting, food and exhibits from all over the world.
The kids where each given a passport to have stamped at each of the continents they visited as they walked around the halls and visited the different displays.


Here are our proud Aussie boys in their Aussie tops, visiting the Australian exhibit. They even had Vegemite, which most people were to scared to try...lol! Notice the band aid on top of Thomas's head, he had an owie and insisted he get a bandaid for it. It was not fun pulling that thing off!

Snow in March...crazy!

It was so pretty though. Falling so lightly and just sticking to the areas that you don't mind. The road and driveways were too wet, so it melted on touching. It stuck around beautifully on the rooftops and tree branches. School was still on and we still got out and about in it!
Here are some pics from the house today....

Here is my toothless boy!

Less Traumatic second time round!

Its seriously hanging on by a thread! Any second and the next tooth is ready to go...
A few days have past since our first "ordeal" with losing a tooth, now just waiting for the next.
We have talked at length about how it will happen again, we have showed Harry pictures and taught him all about teeth! Fingers crossed all this will help in avoiding a repeat of the other night!

Friday afternoon, Harry gets off the school bus, very excited and in a great mood! He flashes a smile at me and straight away I see the toothless gap has grown. In his hand was a tiny little baby tooth. He had been holding on so tightly on the way home, he had an imprint on his palm, it was like he had been bitten by it!
"Look mommy! I lost another one! Will the Tooth Fairy come? Do I get another quarter?" All I could think was, hurray! We didn't have a repeat of the other night. His little toothless smile is so cute and to listen to him talk is precious! I will be getting some video of it sooooon, so check back =)

The Tooth Fairies first visit!

The sound! The blood curdelling scream from the bathroom! Oh my goodness, you would have thought he lost an arm...."Mommy, Mommy my tooth is hurting and its moving!" said Harry.

6pm - The sign of his first wobbly tooth....scarred and not sure what was happening, comes to me in tears, wobbling his tooth furiously with his tongue!

6:01pm - Finding out this is normal for teeth, that it will fall out and an adult tooth will grow in its place. (Scream) And apparently the world is going to end too! Seriously he thought all his teeth were going to fall out and he would never be able to eat again. He wanted me to fix it, take him to the hospital, do something! (Not to mention his other concern, Mommy if my adult teeth come, does that mean I will be an adult and get married and move out? But I don't want to be an adult yet, I'm just a little kid! Hahaha, the things that stem from a wobbly tooth...Oh my!)

6:10pm - What felt like hours of explaining what was going on, not to mention tears and over reacting. Harry started accpeting that loosing teeth is totally normal and he finally calmed down.

6:20pm - After looking at his tooth in the mirror again for the 20th time. Wobbling it with his tongue, playing with it, really who can leave a wobbly tooth alone?
(Scream! Tears!) "Mommy it fell out! It fell out! And I'm bleeding everywhere!" Again, the world was going to end....sigh! This was a hard thing to explain to him, we had no warning he even had a wobbly tooth, I was not prepared. Part of me was finding it hard and emotional that my little boy was growing up, not to mention scarred! The other part of me was finding it a little amussing due to the over reacting to the situation and the comments he was coming out with. I guess as an adult we know whats happening! Its just a wobbly tooth, right!

6:30 - Finally calming him down I was able to explain to him that there is a perk to all this.
The Tooth Fairy....Whooo Hoooo! Everything was going to be alright...lol! And for the first time I saw his new toothless smile. All tears ceased! He asks if the Tooth Fairy will bring him a power ranger? I said the tooth fairy brings money. Oh now I've done it I thought, he'll expect $20 or something. "Will she bring me a quater?" Harry said. "Sure, she can bring you a quater, you lucky boy!" Yay, a cheap tooth fairy...ahhhh!

We wrote the tooth fairy a letter and thanked her for coming to visit! I can not wait to see the look on his face in the moring when he sees the shiny quater left under his pillow...ah the inocence of believing!

Leavenworth.....Snow CHRISTMAS and so Bavarian!



A mini family getaway is always a good thing! Especially when you have had sick kids and weeks of being house bound.
Lets get out of here! Pack the bags, dig out the snow gear and we're off on a Rule Family road trip to the quaint alpine village of Leavenworth.



Located 3hrs drive from Seattle, up high in the Cascade Mts. Is a gorgeous little town where it feels like its Christmas all year, liederhoussen are preferred and the sound of Oom Papa music is heard everywhere you go! Dave was thrilled to have some "Swine hocks" and some yummy Germain Beer.



Sure its a little on the kitch side and a total tourist trap, but gosh its fun! You could really convince yourself that you are somewhere high in the Alps or even better, that its still Christmas!



We stayed right in town at our timeshare. The whole place was covered in snow which made for great tobogganing!



It was a wonderful relaxing time with no agenda. Just to play in the snow, sleep in, read and play with the kids...ahh! Can't wait to do this again!

Lights Camera Action.....
Harry's Spotlight week at school!

This took place a few weeks ago and now that I am typing about it, I may have already posted a blog, but here are some photos of the special week.
Each week, Teacher Wilson chooses a student to focus on. This is a great opportunity for the class to really get to know the focus kid, ask questions, share stories, be the class helper for the week...Not to mention feel very special!

It came at the most perfect timing, we had just returned to the states from our Aussie trip...
Here are some pics from the day:

Here is Harry introducing me to the class and answering questions the kids had about our family. I think he really liked standing up the front, having the power to chose what child got to ask a question next, pointing to them saying its your turn, or saying to another they had to wait...ha! I was his show and tell for the day, he introduced me to the class as his mommy "isn't she beautiful" Oh Harry you are a total charmer...very sweet! I talked to the kids about Australia, showed them some pictures and read "Possum Magic" it was so much fun and for a moment I really missed teaching...but that moment passed! 24 kids, I don't know how teacher Wilson does it?

The yummy cupcakes Harry and I made for his class as a special treat...

I'm so proud of my big school boy, he is adapting to school so well and is growing in leaps and bounds....keep it up Harry!

Harry's Art Gallery.....

When Thursday comes around, I prepare myself for the weeks worth of school work, drawings and craft that so proudly comes home.
Harry is always so excited to rip open his bag and scatter his work from wall to wall, screaming "mommy, look at this one I did!" "Look mommy I got a star for this one!" The joy and pride is beautiful and he has a real sense of accomplishment from his art works.

What do you do with so many special pieces of work? There is so much time and effort and pride in each one! I can't bare to throw them away, so Harry helped me come up with a solution...


That weeks work would be posted on to "Harry's Art Gallery" wall, just for his art!
After a week, we will then place them in envelopes and send them off to the grandparents, who better to appreciate it! (OK, any Grandparents reading this, I have yet to send them, they are getting quite full so I will be sending them soon)
Hope you enjoy your original, one of a kind art works!

February...the month of Lock Down!

When illness keeps you house bound.
I could have posted a photo of a sick snotty kid, but felt this one was way cuter!

Poor little Thomas has been sick with a persistent cold that will just not go away! He is now on antibiotics and is starting to feel and look a little better. Its been just on 2 weeks since he went to school last and has missed the last of his winter swimming lessons.

Being house bound with a sick bub has been difficult and quite isolating. The sun has been shinning and the park has been calling. We have really missed our friends lately and look forward to getting back out again.

Needless to say I have tried to make the most of my "quarantine" time, spending most days out in the garden while Thomas is asleep, enjoying the sunshine!

I am just glad to see my little man on the mend!

Here are the photo's mom!

Harry is learning to read....

Last week at school, Harry's kindergarten class started a new reading program. Its one that is carried over from the classroom to the home. Its been really fun helping Harry every night with his reading homework.

"The Wet Dog" I could recite the whole thing to you...lol! The first night was like pulling teeth and was painful for both of us. He did not want to listen, let alone look at the book. He was more interested in anything else....agh whats a mom to do? After taking him to bed, I actually cried thinking, I don't know what I am doing here? How do I get a 6yr old to listen and focus when they really are not interested? Is he ever going to read?
This is going to be an uphill battle I thought, but.....

By the second night, after some coaxing, bribing and positive encouragement Harry decided he would really try and read the words. After 10 mins he was reading the first two pages and recognized all the sight words...woo hoo! It was all I could do to not jump on his bed with joy!

Friday came around and it was the day to hand all the homework in (he answered a question every night which I had to sign off on!) He was so excited about completeing the questions, we got through the first week! He earned his reward from the book basket that I had put together for him (OK so its bribery, but its paying off!) He chose a spiderman coloring page and I could tell he was proud of himself for getting to Friday with everything completed "Mom I can read!"

We had a wonderful week of reading and learning. It was a battle and not easy for Harry, but he did not give up and by the end of the week he was able to read the entire book...sigh!
What a great mommy moment, I'm so proud of my little guy!

Here is a new favorite website of ours, great in helping kids learn letters, phonics and reading. Not to mention, independence and accomplishment!

http://www.starfall.com/

Tonight at Karate...
Even though he was a little tired and not really wanting to go, he came home happy and excited to tell me of all the cool things he did tonight. They even stayed a little longer to watch the next class practice, which is the black belt class!

Harry is here in his Karate class with Master Chung. He's loving the moves he is learning, we'll have to take some video of it soon....its super cute! Especially the sounds they make....Hiya!

The school here is really focused on teaching the kids discipline, focus, confidence, concentration and respect. Its great for really helping a certain distracted 6yr old learn how to listen and follow direction from someone other than his parents. Tonight they sent home a chart that we need to fill out everyday with Harry and it is all to do with his listening and concentration at home....Love it!!!

Second Week of our Aussie Trip:
Christmas in the Hunter Valley
with Grandma & Grandpa

A short 30min drive from Wangi Wangi and we arrived in the beautiful wine district of News South Whales...The Hunter Valley.
This is where we were to spend the next week out at Dave's moms B&B in one of her cottages, nestled in the vines on Kelman vineyard.

http://www.huntervalleycooperage.com/accommodation/lumberjack.php


Here's a map.....

We had a wonderful week, catching up with family, relaxing at the cottage, exploring the Hunter Valley and the vinyards in a classic convertible car, wine tasting, chocolate tasting....and lots more!

Dave, Grandma and the boys went swimming every morning at the local pool. Which they loved, they even had swimming lessons for a few days.
We had barbies (BBQ's) out on the deck most nights under the stars, joined by the company of a colony of bats, which Harry found to be very entertaining.
Mom and I spent some more time painting, playing cards and reading home magazines! I even managed to finish a novel while staying here!

We had lots of visitors, Steve came to stay for a night, it was so great catching up with the new daddy! Hayden came and stayed with us for a few nights, which was wonderful. Mom came out to visit a few times, which was so nice to just, chat and paint.

While Hayden was with us We all went out to the Hunter Valley zoo together and got to hangout with some local animals....
The boys loved chasing the baby peacocks around, it was hilarious watching them scatter at the sight of one of my boys, the mom peacock would screech back at the boys to say stay away from my babies, it scarred them and they came running to me...a little ironic!
They had a wonderful opportunity to pat a koala and a wombat and feed the kangaroos and wallaby. We saw emus and ostriches in full run across the fields and loved hearing the cockatoos talking...hello, hello! Harry was amazed that birds could talk.
Another wonderful highlight of this part of our stay was the beautiful Hunter Valley Garden Christmas lights. It was so nice to walk around out doors at Christmas, looking at the lights in the heat! Not having to rug up in scarves and coats. The lights were so magical and it was quite the adventure walking through the huge grounds. We bumped into Santa so the kids had to say hi, and give hugs. Dave whispered into Santa's ear the boys names, Santa said "hello Harrison" well that was it. Harry was jumping up and down with pure excitement and a beaming smile..."Santa knows my name!!!" A totally priceless moment. Santa then went on to say be good to your brother and listen to your mom and dad. What a great Santa!

The boys had a ride in a small kids ferriswheel. That went on and on and on. Had to be the longest ride ever. We then realised that it had broken down and would not stop. A very scarry moment for all parents watching. The opperator started to grab the kids out as they came around. There were my two little guys right up the top, baning on the side...let me out! Finally they were able to figure it out and get all the kids out safely...I was ready to become hysterical! Thank god it was over!

During our stay in the Hunter Valley, the weather was perfect. Sunny and Hot with a little breaze that made you want to sit outside under a tree and soak it all in. I love this pic, it shows the beautiful sun beams...

We celebrated Christmas with Dave's Moms family while here. This was also our first chance to meet our new gorgeous nephew, Tyler and sweetie pie niece, Keeley. Lots of snuggles were had that day. Great Grandpa Leask was also there and it was so good to be with family. Grandma put on a beautiful traditional Christmas lunch, Turkey and Ham with all the trimmings....yum! We then finished the day with a movie down in the theater.
What a wonderful day, thanks Mum for all the great memories of Christmas and our stay out at the Hunter!

Unfortunately our cammera was playing up through this part of our trip, if anyone has pics from Chrissy day, or any other parts of our Hunter Valley stay we would love to see them and I would love to add them to the blog...thanks =)

Swimming success!
Not a great pic, but shows the pool I guess! Even zoomed in, Harry is behind the teacher and Thomas is under the water....lol!

The boys loved their first swimming lesson. For a group lesson environment, they really did have more like private lessons. Very small classes, in fact Harry was the only one in his class and Thomas's class had 3 instructors with 4 kids. What a great opportunity for them to get some great one on one time in the water!

As soon as he met his teacher, Harry could not wait! Splash and he jumped in the water!
Thomas on the other hand was not as ready to make a splash! After 5mins of coaxing him in the water, we ended up having to leave him in the hands of the wonderful instructors and walk away.

Dave and I walked up to the mezzanine level to watch with the rest of the parents. Oh, are we doing the right thing? Is he not as ready as we thought? As we came to the stairs, we could hear his laughter from the stairwell....yay!
As soon as we took a peek to see how Thomas was going, we realized he was having a ball! He was in the water and loving it!
Harry was floating on his back with assistance and doing a great job at what he was asked. He was really trying to do his best...so proud of him!

What a great start to their swimming lessons here at home, we hope it continues to go this smoothly!
The boys are taking classes at the local High School - Hazen and we highly recommend it!

Swimming Lessons.....brrrr!

We have signed the boys up to continue their swimming lessons here in Seattle. They started having lessons when we were back in Aus...where it is hot and sunny!
But honestly, here its a little hard to get excited about swimming when it's so cold and wet out. Luckily the pool is heated to a beautiful warm temp and its indoors (with no windows, we don't need to see how miserable it is outside!)
The boys start tonight, fingers crossed it all goes well.

First Week of our Aussie Trip:
Christmas at Wangi Wangi
with Nana & Granddad

First of all, for my USA friends and maybe most of my Australian friends too...Wangi Wangi, where in the world is Wangi Wangi? If you fly into Sydney, drive 2.5hrs north and you reach Wangi Wangi. Its located on Lake Maquarie about 30mins before you get to Newcastle. OK so I am bad at directions but hopefully that will give you a little idea where we stayed and where my parents live.

Oh a map......even better! (Its the point in the middle of the lake)

The noise of cicada's, the bite from a mozzie, the annoyance of blowies, thongs on feet, cozies on the boys and a VB in hand on a hot humid Aussie summer day....it feels good to be back!
We stayed at my parents for a week and it felt like a beach vacation, it was wonderfully relaxing. Dave and I stayed out in my mums art studio which made it feel even more like a holiday. While the kids stayed in the house with Nana and Granddad....brilliant! A whole week of not waking up to the kids, got to love grandparents. We really didn't do much this week, except hangout around Wangi, catch up with family, play cards late into the night and eat lots of well loved Aussie food!

Here are some of our favorite Wangi memories:

The boys enjoying Fairy bread or as we now call it "Nana bread" Bread with butter and sprinkled with hundreds and thousands....yummo! Traditional Aussie kids party food. This photo was taken out on the side veranda (covered patio) even when it rained we sat out here and played cards, it was usually too hot to be indoors and the coolness of the rain was quite welcoming, not to mention familiar to these Seattlites!

The sandpit that Granddad built just for the boys stay....thanks dad, they still talk about it!

The local pub which has a children's playground in the beer garden....gotta love Aussie kid friendly pubs! We did and we made the most of that.

Hayden's Christmas present to everyone this year was a yummy dinner out at a beautiful restaurant on the lake called Brown Sugar. What a fun family get together and oh so fancy!

We spent a "early" Christmas day together as we were going to be in Tassie for the real Christmas day. Kids won't know the difference and I really think more the better...hehe!
We had pressies, Family which included all of my immediate family, Gwanny, Auntie Kath and Fiona from Canberra and Uncle Rob and Jo from Syd.
Fresh local prawns, mums potato salad, yummy leg of ham and lots and lots of sides....mmmm
And the good old traditional Christmas desert...Trifle! What a memorable Christmas day, one which my mom had been planning for along time, thanks mom!

I also picked up a paintbrush while I was there, something I really hadn't done since high school. Mum had her painting group on Thursday so I tagged along and all I can say is, I am hooked! I have since completed 5 paintings and loving it.

Wonderful time had by all!

While we were gone....It snowed & snowed!

Here is a pic that our neighbors took of our house during the crazy snow storm!

Thanks Carrie and Jason for being such wonderful neighbors and capturing this for us while we were gone.

Its hard to believe there is a road under all that snow, looks so pretty and oh so fun!

Not another Diet!

Hell yeah another diet and I am totally pumped and motivated! Especially just after watching the biggest loser on TV, I am so not going down that track!
I have just signed up for an online group that Michele suggested and is doing too...called the Self Diet Club. Its always fun to lose weight with friends...wish us luck =)

http://www.selfdietclub.com/dt/selfindex.asp

I thought about posting my starting weight here to help keep track of my progress. Yeah right, I don't think so.

Here's to a healthy life and to working off all the Aussie foods recently consumed, meat pies, sausage rolls, smiths chips, tim tams oh and the list goes on....

3am and still awake!!!

...............I hate jet lag Grrrr!

Gwanny & her great grand kids

One of the biggest highlights of our trip to Australia is our first stop, which is always a visit to my Grandmas! Love my Grandma and I LOVE seeing my boys with her (her only Great Grand kids). Grandma is my moms mom and is who I want to grow up to be!

You may read the title and think its a spelling mistake, Gwanny? Don't you mean Granny?....Its what my boys love calling her, its like their special name for just her and its a lot easier than saying Great Granny Gwen. So its Gwanny for short! Love it!!!

How to get a Six year old to eat Broccoli!

"Mom I hate that green stuff!"

Its always a battle to get the boys to eat their greens, especially Broccoli.




Is it bad for a parent to lie to their child by playing on their strong belief that one day they will grow up to be a power ranger? Or to exploit the fact that your child is obsessed with all things Power Rangers and is easily swayed by any suggestion of PR?
Anyway, what ever works...right?

"Harry, Power Rangers eat Broccoli! This is called Power Ranger Broccoli and its what makes them strong. Eat one and lets see if you grow big muscles?"

Well need I say more...hahaha! Gobble Gobble Gobble!
"Mommy do you see my muscles yet?"

Shock! Do I try it again and push my luck or be content that at least he has eaten one little tree of broccoli. OK, it went better than expected lets try it again....

"Harry, I see your muscle in that arm, but what about the other arm? Eat another piece of Broccoli so your other arm can grow strong too. Your so lucky to have muscles"

With out blinking he says (mind you pushing his bowl in my direction)
"Well, here mommy you have the rest of my broccoli so you can grow muscles too!"
Thought it was too good to be true....LOL!

From sunshine to snow!

A real tan in December.....nice
The weather in Aus was just beautiful, we had rain for a few days but even then it was still warm and T-shirt weather. A real Australian summer complete with thunderstorms, hail and hot humid weather.

The kids had a ball playing outside most days, running around with bare feet enjoying the fresh air and sunshine. Playing in the sandpit that Granddad built for them. Wearing summer clothes that had only been used a few times in Seattle due to the seemingly short summer last year. Gosh it was good to be out doors!

Seattle on the other hand was experiencing the worst snow storm in 10years, just our luck to miss a white Christmas! 15inches in one day...yikes! We had friends snowed in for days, the airport was closed and no one was going anywhere. It would have been a sight to see (I think our neighbors snapped some shots of our house, will post when we get them...thanks C & J)

This pic was taken just up the street from us

It was pretty extreme going from 31/92 deg in Sydney to 3/38 deg in Seattle....brrrr!
On arriving home, we discovered that we had no running water. It turns out with the extreme cold our water pipes burst while we were gone. Thanks to our neighbor who called the Fire department to turn off the water we avoided a huge water bill not to mention a flooded yard!

The snow can still be seen in places around the place, it must have been one amazing snow storm.

Our Aussie Adventure....

Sun Christmas Family Fun Times

I was really hoping to blog our trip while in Aus but getting to the internet proved to be tricky. If we were not near a computer we were busy catching up with family and friends, what a busy time!

The trip was off to a great start, bags packed and on our way to the airport, on time and all! On checking in we were upgraded to premium economy....wooo hooo! This is a new class between economy and business. Finally a flight were Dave and his legs would fit....ha! The flight was better than expected, the boys slept and the movies were all ones I had not yet seen.

We arrived in Sydney to a humid hot day. The sun was shining and there was a firmilar warmth that I had not felt in years. It was good to be home!

From the moment we touched down to the time we took off, every moment was spent with family and friends.
First stop Grandmas, we always head straight there from the airport to say hi. Then it was on to my parents were we stayed for the first week in Wangi Wangi located on beautiful Lake Maquaire. Here we got to take a break and relax with my family. During this time we also celebrated our 9th Wedding aniversary.
Next we were off to the Hunter Valley and stayed in the Kelman vineyards. Where Dave's mom has a beautiful B&B and a rustic log cabin. Again a wonderful time of catching up with family.

Then we were off to Tasmainia were we stayed with Dave's dad and stepmom in their beautifully restored bank in the middle of Hobart, this is where we were for Christmas and the best way to describe it was magical!

After a short stay in Tassi we were back on the plane for Sydney. We next stayed with Pete and Caz Dave's brother and sister in-law. But before we knew it we were packing our bags ready to head home to Seattle. Seriously, blink and it was all over.

Millions of memories made in a time that flew by way to quickly.
This was a Christmas holiday never to forget!

I know this is a very brief summary of what we were up too, I will be blogging some of the stories from our trip over the next few days, check back soon!

Happy New Year!
First New years resolution.....get back to blogging

So I know its totally cliche to welcome the new year in and talk about your resolutions and plans for the year to come. But I am so excited about the year ahead and what I want to do, I just had to get them down.
Starting with getting back to daily blogging. So much has happened since my last blog that I will dedicate January to catching everyone up on our Aussie holiday and Chrissy celebrations.
Here are some of the things we are looking forward too this year...

• To stay in better touch with family and friends.
  

• This year Dave and I are going to learn French together in preparation for our trip to France (Hopefully for our 10th wedding anniversary which is also this year!)

• I want to learn to cook fancy gourmet foods and will be enrolling in a cooking class at the local Tech. Looking forward to more entertaining with friends.
  

• To keep the house clean and organized while teaching the boys this valuable life skill too.

• To weekly teach my boys a life virtue and help them to be well rounded.

• To focus on my friends and strengthen the wonderful friendships I am already blessed to have.
  

• And of cause there is the good old weight loss resolution, of cause I will be making some lifestyle changes here and look forward to learning how to cook healthier. I'm even seriously considering to attempt a half marathon this year...time to get in shape!