Great Wolf Lodge, Grand Mound WA

Jeff, Ethan, and I just returned from an overnight trip to the Great Wolf Lodge and boy did we have fun. We arrived at around 1:30 and the line at the lobby was pretty long. They do a good job of moving people along though and we were checked into our room in about ten minutes. Luckily our room was ready so we went right to it and changed into our swimsuits.

This is definitely a place for families. In the main lobby area there were tons of kids running around waving their magic wands to activate certain areas. This was a game that you could purchase that took you around the whole resort. We opted out of this one though since Ethan was a little to young to participate. When we got into the water park it was a huge area. Ethan headed straight for the wave pool and loved going in the innertube with Jeff into the choppy water. He also got a kick out of pushing the innertubes into the large water fountains and under the waterfall umbrella. They had a really large fort type area where a huge bucket at the top would drop water on to the people below about every ten minutes or so. In this fort was a ton of water guns and buckets that you could activate to drop on unsuspecting victims below. They also had a few water slides in this area as well. Unfortunately Ethan was to young to go on those slides but Jeff and I took a couple of turns down them. The toddler area was closed on the first day we were there so we spent the majority of the time in the wave pool, the fort, and the activity pool that had basketball hoops. After swimming for a good three hours or so we went and explored the arcade where Ethan got to play some games and win tickets. After the arcade we headed to dinner and ate at one of the restaurants that was similar to a Red Robin instead of the buffet restaurant. Once dinner was complete Ethan wanted to go in the water again so we went back in and then all headed to bed. Ethan was so exhausted from swimming he didn't wake up at all through the night which is unusual for him in a new place. I guess he had a ton of fun.

The next day we woke up and went to the breakfast buffet. They have a ton of items for kids to choose from so this was a good option for Ethan. Then after swimming we went to the lobby clocktower where they were having a animatronics show. Ethan loved watching this and sat down right in the front. At the end of the show there was even snow falling all throughout the lobby. After the show we went back to the waterpark and this time the toddler area was open. Ethan loved the jet ski's in this section that sprayed water and had a water gun to spray at other kids. They had two water slides that he loved going down as well. It was hard to get him out of the water and head back on the road. My one suggestion to anyone that is thinking about going here is to go during the week. The weekends have a lot more kids in the waterpark. We went on a Sunday through Monday and Monday was definitely a lot less crowded. We will definitely be back here again in the future.

(Water fort)

(Wave pool)

(Toddler pool)

(Ethan in the wave pool)

(How come this keeps moving)

(Heading out to the waves)

Christmas Photo's...

I finally had some time to upload a couple of our Christmas pictures from opening presents Christmas morning. As you can see, Ethan must have been a very good boy.

(Christmas Eve after Santa arrived)

(New Elmo phone and dad's candy)

(Chef Ethan cooking us breakfast)

(I didn't know that kids got excited about wooden food but I guess they do)

Merry Christmas!

Yes, I know that I am a day late but with the hussle and bustle of yesterday I did not have time to make an update. I hope that everyone had a very Merry Christmas. I know that we had a great Christmas and Ethan made out like a bandit from Santa and the grandparents. This year was the first year that he actually opened the presents and paid attention to what was inside instead of just the boxes and wrapping paper. The only problem is that everything he got he wanted to open immediately and with all of that tape and fasteners that toys now have it took a very long time.

For Christmas dinner I made a ham and we had my dad, Jackie, and her children and grandchild over. We had a great time and no one left hungry.

I still have to upload my photo's from the big day and promise to do that in a few days when things settle down but here is a picture of Ethan on his new bicycle that Santa brought. He is still getting used to it since it is a new bike but he seems to like it. Enjoy!

Santa Train in Snoqualmie

Last year we rode on the Santa Train in the freezing cold and had such a great time that we decided to do it again. It is starting to turn into a Christmas tradition for our family.

This year the weather was a little more cooperating and Ethan was a lot more intoseeing Santa and riding the train. He was a little anxious at the beginning but as soon as the train started to move he was all smiles. The train leaves from the North Bend Depot and takes you on a twenty minute train ride to their depot in the town of Snoqualmie. Once there, you exit the train to go and see Santa. After Santa you go into one of the old train cars for hot chocolate and fresh baked cookies. Ethan really enjoyed seeing Santa this year and asked for candy, trains, and cars. He really enjoyed the fresh baked cookies too and looking at all of the trains. Plus, after seeing Santa you get to take home a little wooden train that you can build and paint.

We all had a great time and managed to stay warm this time. On our way back on the train Ethan even said bye Santa which was very cute. They do have train events in the summer months as well, and I think we will be looking into that.

Holiday Fun.

This past weekend Jeff decided it was time to put up our Christmas lights. He has gotten it down to a science now and is able to put them up in about two hours. I think he did it in record time this year. This was an extremely cold day as well so he had to put the lights with the roof being a sheet of ice. Luckily no injuries happened.

Also, while Jeff was at the Seahawks game my dad came down for a visit and helped Ethan with decorating a gingerbread house. Decorating was not in the cards for Ethan this day. Instead he was the candy gobbler and ate many of the gumdrops and jelly beans. He was bouncing off of the walls that evening.

Seattle Half Marathon

Yesterday I finished the Seattle 1/2 marathon with my friend Cris. It was a really long course and we were both exhausted by the end of it but we finished it. We did walk it since both of us are not runners but it was still a long ways to go and there were plenty of hills to tackle. My legs are still sore today from the race. We even saw a guy running bare foot through the entire marathon which is crazy to me.

And while I was participating in the Marathon Jeff and Ethan went to Rubies for breakfast and Jeff took this picture of Ethan putting on his glasses. So cute!

Oh Christmas Tree!

Since it was the day after Thanksgiving and we had nothing better to do we decided to get into the Christmas spirit and go and pick out our Christmas tree. Jeff is a stickler about the looks of the tree and is likes to look for the perfect one that is the perfect size as well. We decided to do things a little differently this year and instead of having the tree by the fireplace moved it over near our stairs instead. We found one really quickly, actually Ethan picked it out by falling into it so it was a keeper and we've already decorated it.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving everyone! I hope that you had a great time enjoying turkey and all of the fixings. I know that we did and we have plenty of leftovers to last us quite a while. Of course Ethan did not try any of the Thanksgiving morsels but I guess that is what you get when you have a picky eater on your hands. He did enjoy the dinner rolls and pumpkin pie.

Big Boy Beds...

A few days ago while Ethan was taking a "nap" I heard a loud thud through the baby monitor and ran up to check it out. Sure enough he was out of his crib and on the floor. Of course he gave me a heart attack but it was inevitable since my son is a little dare devil.

That evening we ran out to Toy's 'R Us and picked up a new big boy bed. Jeff wanted to get Ethan the actual bed shaped like a car but unfortunately it came with too many additional parts that had to be purchased seperately so we went with one that matched his room decor. We did pick up new Cars bedding though. ;)

Yesterday while Ethan was at daycare we worked away and getting his room ready. This required lot's of additional babyproofing as well as completely emptying out the closet since he was now able to go in there. I also replaced the wall trim that he had ripped down when he was younger.

When he saw his room and especially his new bed he was so excited. He loved that it was Cars themed and did not want to get out of his new bed. When it was actually time to go to bed Jeff and I were both worried that he would not stay in it and would be playing in his room the whole night. Lucky for us once he got in it he didn't want to leave.

Great Wolf Lodge, Grand Mound Washington

This upcoming weekend Jeff, Ethan, and I are heading to Great Wolf Lodge in Ground Mound Washington for a small one night mini-vacation. I have heard their commercials on television and always wanted to check it out and thought that it was about time.


They are a destination hotel geared towards kids with a huge indoor water park, kid themed restaurants, storytelling time, and games. In their water park they even have a toddler water park section and everyone that knows Ethan knows how much he loves playing in the water. I will be sure to post pictures as soon as we return on Monday and tell you about our adventure.

 *Updated: Unfortunately we were unable to go to the Great Wolf Lodge since two of our family members were ill. Such a bummer but we will be instead going later next month.

Driving North.

This past weekend while Jeff was at the Seahawk's game Ethan and I decided to go and visit my dad up north in Bellingham. We had arrived around lunch time and we all headed to Win's Drive-In for some burgers and fries. We also indulged in a fresh banana shake as well. It was fun to take Ethan there since that is a place that I worked at in High School and it has not really changed too much.

After lunch we stopped at Lake Padden so Ethan could work off his shake on the playground. We were only able to stay a few minutes since the weather turned pretty chilly. We had a great day hanging with my dad or as Ethan calls him Pe-pah.

(Ride-on Toy at Lake Padden Playground)

(With Pe-pah at the slide)

(Ride-on toy at Lake Padden Playground)

Crafts and Cards.

I had recently did some alterations to our computer room to include a craft corner on one side of the room. I wanted to have a nook where I could do small art projects, create cards and jewelry, and just be creative. Plus, it is also a place to start practicing my mandolin and guitar.

I had some free time a few weeks ago while Ethan was napping to put my creativity to good use. In a period of about an hour I was able to make several cards.

(Wall of cards)

In the upcoming winter=icky weather months I plan on making more and more things. Possibly even some Christmas goodies as well.

Haircuts and Stuff...

We have not been up to too much since our last post, mostly we have been watching the crazy weather we have been having in the Seattle area. For the past three days or so we have experienced thunder storms that shook the house, lightening that lit up the house, hail, tons of rain, and a bunch of wind. Thankfully the trees in the back of our house stood their ground and none toppled over. The leaves however is another story. From the looks of it the wind was blowing perfectly to get all of our neighbors maple leaves directly into our yard. Luckily I had raked leaves last weekend otherwise we would have had an overload of leaves. I figure once the rain and wind stops I will be out there again and maybe Ethan can help me this time by jumping in leave piles.

Ethan's hair had been getting pretty long and so Jeff took him to get his haircut at Brat Pack in Redmond on Thursday. If I do say so myself, his new haircut is very handsome.

(Ethan's serious pose with cute haircut)

(Showing off his teeth)

On a side note, I bought my first pair of Ugg boots today and absolutely love them. I needed a really good winter/snow boot and they are perfect. They have fringe, ties, and everything. LOVE them!

Happy Halloween!

Ethan had a great Halloween and now has a cookie jar full of candy. I think it will take him another year to go through it since he doesn't seem to like it but I guess that is a good thing. On Halloween-eve my work has a Halloween fair of sorts where they decorate the inside of our building and employees hand out candy. They also had several booths where kids could play games and enter to win prizes.

Then today we had our final swim lesson until next year followed by a trip to Bellevue Square to go trick-or-treating. I have never seen the mall that crowded before but it was fun to see all of the costumes. We made it to several stores before they ran out of candy because of all of the kids there. Afterwards we came back home and I took Ethan to a few of the houses in our neighborhood before we made it back in time to hand out candy at our house. We've already had 6 trick-or-treaters so far which is pretty good since its only 7. Hopefully some more come because we have a lot more to hand out.

As a reminder, remember to set your clocks back tonight for daylight savings time.

(trick-or-treating at Bellevue Square Mall)

(Ethan's pumpkin)

(Mom and Courtney and Jeff's pumpkins they graciously left us)

(Decorated entry way at work)

(Ethan's ghost he made at one of the booths at my work event)

Pumpkin Pickin!

Today we hopped in the car with my mom and headed out to meet up with our friends Jeff and Courtney and Wendy, Dennis, and Aitana for some pumpkin picking fun. We all met up at Stockard Farms in Snohomish and ventured into the muddy pumpkin patch. Luckily we all wore boots because the mud was plentiful. After pumpkin picking we came home and carved our finds and Courtney made a batch of her fabulous pumpkin seeds. I also made a homemade beef stew to warm us up after we got home that everyone seemed to enjoy.

Craft Projects.

Since we have done a bunch of decluttering in our house my old desk was getting less use since it was in our computer room in a corner filled with computer items. I decided to bring it out of its hibernation and move it into our now plenty of room space in order to create a craft corner. I already had a storage cart filled with lots of random craft items that I wanted to put to good use but could never get to.

After work Ethan and I ventured to Target to pick up some additional supplies to make home made cards. I cannot wait to start on my many projects and see what kind of neat ideas that I can come up with. I am sure that many of you will be recieving my home made goodies in the future.

(My new craft corner.)

Fun at the playground.

While Jeff was at the Seahawk's game today Ethan and I went on a bike ride and then took a long walk to the Elementary School close by. It took us a while to make our way there but once we arrived all Ethan wanted to do was slide. We had a few slide race competitions and he won almost every time. Then he decided that he no longer wanted to go sitting up. Instead it was way to much fun to go down on your stomach.

New Doors!

We got three new doors installed today. A new front door, a new back door, and a new interior garage door. Jeff was freezing cold for a few hours while they were installed but they were worth the wait. The front door makes a huge difference lightening up our entryway.

(new front door)

(new back door)

(entry way)