Merry Christmas from Palm Springs!

The most wonderful time of the year

Happy Holidays with a side of fa la la la la!

Halloween and ch-ch-ch-changes

CJ and his cousin North in full costume:

It's hard to believe that Halloween is already over and it's November!

Fall has gone well but quickly. We had a great Halloween with trick-or-treating and the Clarks in town. Camden was a skeleton although he expressed disappointment that he wasn't SCARY enough. We'll try again next year. Note to self: more blood.

In other news, I've accepted a job at amazon and will be going back to work full-time on Nov 30th . At the same time, Jay is planning to cut back his hours to spend more time with CJ and pursue some painting.

Bella's new trick

And then he was a first grader

No clinging to mom in tearful sadness this year. On the first day of school as a FIRST grader, CJ wakes up to his own alarm clock and gets himself ready (with just a bit of prodding). When his carpool arrives he announces, "Go inside, mom," and gives me a shove for emphasis. "I don't NEED you."

I'd cry if I weren't so delighted.

sweet sweet summer

This morning CJ and I rode our bikes to meet some friends at a local donut shop then back to Greenlake for a swim in the lake. This summer I have been pinching myself that we live a skip-hop-jump from the park and lake.

The weather's heating up again but I WILL NOT COMPLAIN because summer is zooooming by... every day I check my calendar and can't help but notice how the weeks are ticking by... only three weeks till school kicks up again! We have so enjoyed not having to keep a regular schedule and spending our days outside... I don't want it to end. But it will end... and so I am determined to enjoy the lazy warmth of summer while it's here.

Maureen, Steve, and Baby North have been living with us while they wait to close on their house. CJ loves having a baby in the house (and does remarkably well with him!) I like it too especially since when he cries I just stay smugly in my sweet bed. Maybe babies aren't so bad after all.

We've enjoyed a couple of wonderful camping trips... at Deception Pass and Scenic Beach.

A couple of weeks ago we enjoyed a fun adults-only weekend on Gato Verde, a 42' catamaran that we chartered with the B-burns to sail around the San Juan islands. From that trip I learned that boats are cool and also my in-laws are CUHRAZY! (but I already knew that.) Jay learned that we need to buy a boat so I'm eagerly waiting for him to start making the big bucks.

The whole familllllly

Dad and baby North. I just love their expressions.

Cousins. Aren't they CUTE?!?!

The whole famdamily...

I'm sure Bella just LOVES this...

CJ turns 6!

CJ turned six on Friday! His school has a very special... and drawn out... birthday celebration. Part of this involves reenacting each year of life whilst going around the table.

Here's CJ's impression of himself at 1...

And here's how he acted at 3.

I got all weepy at the children's singing of "happy birthday, happy birthday, we love youuuu".

It's moving, ok?!

Thursday night the teachers had all the kids at school for a sleepover. Yes they're crazy and that's why we love them. CJ was sooo excited and he even slept a couple of hours!

Friday he couldn't wait to open his presents...

Friday afternoon Grandpa & Nana showed up and it's a good thing because Saturday in the wee hours of the morning I woke up vomiting. Yuck.

Saturday CJ frolicked with some of his pals at the local pool while Jay took deep breaths and was reminded how helpful his wife can be. Fortunately he had Maureen and mom to help him out! I was totally bummed to miss the party.

And just like that, school is over... CJ is six... and summer has officially begun.

Disney World

We've had a great run here in Orlando. The weather's been perfect in the high 80's and the theme parks have been fun... and not too crowded! We're gritting our teeth for a return home to rain...

Here are a few highlights...

CJ takes on Jedi training at Hollywood Studios, and fights Darth Vader.

 

(Spoiler alert: he wins)

Magic Kingdom really is magical...

CJ has had a great time in the pool

Everest is awesome! (and that's Jay in the blue shirt in the front...)

T-ball

CJ played in his first tee-ball game last night.  It was a beautiful evening and the kids had a blast. 

CJ tells the story of his tooth

Probably because I'm the mom, I think this video of CJ telling the story of getting tooth "wiggled" out is adorable!  (If you're reading this in an email, you'll have to click through to see the video)

"sun"

see that stuff in the background?  That's BLUE SKIES.  Something we haven't seen in a loooong time, and which (turns out) comes with something called "sun."  

Whatever it is, I like it.