Sppppiiiiiiiinnnn!

(4/6) Happy Birthday, Nanan! After Zumba, I went up and took Nanan out for breakfast. We had a lovely afternoon out and about. Dad & Uncle Jake did their own tour of local distilleries and had a great time. This evening Dad & I went out dinner with Rob & Melissa to celebrate their 10th anniversary. We got to try out their fave sushi restaurant and will have to reciprocate and bring them to ours!


(4/7) Lazy day for the boys and me.  I missed Fuchsia Saturday yesterday, but the sales were still pretty decent today. My hanging baskets are all set for another year.


(4/8) Back to work and school for all of us today. D had an awesome day, earning double his points target. Wowsers! We had a laid-back afternoon, and the boys played at the park and then later we all played Uno Spin.

(4/9) Meeting Tuesday had very few meetings today due to various people being out. Less meetings and a low call volume was a pleasant and welcome treat!  After I came home, I joined J at the park, and C & D battled it out playing Uno Spin again.


(4/10) Day off for me, work for Dad, and school for the boys today. I normally work in the both boys' classes, but D's class had a substitute today, so I was only with him for morning group. We played Uno Spin there too. I may have come home and collapsed in a coma for a few hours between volunteer shifts. C and D both had afternoon appointments today, which I had forgotten about, so we had to scurry to get everyone to the right place. We managed, and even made it on-time. Go us!


(4/11) I had a presentation down in Tacoma today, so got to sleep in before travel, and got home early. Win! I carpooled with a coworker, and it was fun to gab all the way down and back. The boys had school today, and Dad dealt with car maintenance. Yay for having a/c again!


(4/12) Work day for me, day off for Dad, and school for the boys. It was a busy and productive day, and I was more than happy to come home and get ready for a wild and crazy Friday night (read: hold down the couch and have my nose in a book).


(4/13) The color run for the boys' school was today.  It cold and rainy,  but the boys were mostly good sports and went anyway.  I was shocked that D and J didn't want to get very colorful. D was super cold and miserable so we cut the last bit, and headed home to warm up with hot chocolate.  Dad and Rob went out and picked up litter along the Skykomish with his gambler group. Sounds like they had a productive afternoon!

(4/14) Lazy Sunday for the boys and me. We hung out, read books, and video gamed.  I wish they had held the color run this morning because it was beautiful out! By the afternoon though we'd returned to the previous yuck. Dad and I may have sent the boys up early and told them to stay upstairs so we could watch the premiere of Game of Thrones. So good!

(4/15) Work from home day for me, work at work for Dad, and school for the boys. We went out to dinner at Scuttlebutt and all tried fish in some form.  Delicious!


(4/16) Meeting Tuesday!  Busy-busy day at work for me today.  I got home late due to a rousing office-wide breakdown of GoT.

(4/17) Day off for me today, and my usual day to work in the twinsies' classes. I went to group with D, and then helped with an art project making pussy willows paintings to go with the kids' spring poems. I picked D up early today for a doctor's appointment, and we came back to collect J after it was done and school was over. D had a great after school appointment today, and has had a string of really great days. We're super proud of him!


(4/18) Work day for me, day off for Dad, and school for the boys today. Dad was in the neighborhood, so we got to sneak off for lunch together.  That was fun!  The rest of my day was non-stop phone calls, and I was so very glad to be done.


(4/19) Work day for me, day off for Dad, and the kiddos had school. Dad and C snuck out for hair cuts this evening, and the twins and I watched some TV while they were out.


(4/20) We hopped a ferry to the grands' this afternoon. Going this afternoon gave the boys a chance to veg out and video game, and me the opportunity to go to Zumba before we left. It was cold and misty when we boarded, but turned out to be beautiful on the other side of the water! The boys always enjoy cooking with Grandma, and had found a strawberry cheesecake recipe. D and C helped prepare treats, and C got all fancy with graham cracker crust topped with strawberry pie filling topped with grated chocolate.  YUM! We colored five dozen eggs, and tried out tie-dyeing kits, plus a glitter kit.  Tie-dye was a yes; glitter was a no, and was a big mess to boot.  It was really fun and relaxed afternoon!


(4/21) Happy Easter! The boys were up early and had hunted all the eggs in record time.  We feasted on spicy (deviled) eggs, candy, and cheesecake, as you do. D, Grandma, and I took a quick walk to the beach to find some more shells.  Today wasn't nearly as nice weather-wise, so we were all bundled up. Once back at the house, we lounged around and video-gamed until it was time to pack up.  When we got back to the car, we discovered it was dead.  Initially I thought it was just the fob, but after watching a YouTube video on how to get into the car (you have to disassemble the door handle!), I figured out what was really wrong.  I'm not sure what happened. All the doors were shut, and all the dome lights appeared to be off.  UGH!  Dad to the rescue!  He came and jumped our car, and then we went on home. D was over the top about how this was the WORST EASTER EVER.  I know, dude, it certainly wasn't what I had planned to do today! The evening was great, and we had leftover Easter dinner plus some spicy eggs on the side.


(4/22) Work from home today for me, work at work for Dad, and school for the boys. Today was pretty routine, but it's nice to not have any activities to rush off to after work. The boys played with slime and on screens, and did homework like usual.

(4/23) Ah, Meeting Tuesday. It was full of meetings, but was productive too. I pretty much came in, said hi, and then it was homework/YouTube/bedtime. The normal evening rush.


(4/24) Day off for me, and my day to work in the twins' classrooms. We did science in D's class, and the students got to choose what would cement their tiles together best: sand, soil, or clay. Dad took the day off to get his gambler all licensed and road-worthy. And Nanan popped over for a bit while the kiddos were at school. I returned to the school in the afternoon to help J's class with math. I intercepted notes (they're in first grade!!!), and endeavored to keep everyone on track. D had an appointment this afternoon, and he's doing so awesome, we'll be backing off all the appointments come summertime!

(4/25) Work day for me and school for the boys.  Dad had the day off today and went to the nursery for a replacement fruit tree for out back.  

Spring Flowers

(3/16) I went to Zumba this morning ~ first morning I was able to walk there in a t-shirt!  C'mon spring! Dad and I grabbed the pupper afterward and went to Woodinville to continue working our way through our wine passports. They didn't mark them since we purchased though, so now we have to go back. Oh darn? We went to the home closer of the Silvertips tonight, and had fun watching the corgis race. C had a friend with him, and they gabbed the entire time.


(3/17) Happy St. Paddy's!  The leprechauns left some treats for the boys this morning. I went up and grabbed the teenager, and then we went all the way back down to Seattle for Comic-Con.  We had a lot of fun as usual, but what was not so fun was feeling a little queasy after having lunch there.  We wandered some more, and then decided to head home.  S chatted with an artist at the con whose style she really liked, and got a book which was the inspiration for an upcoming HBO series.  Dad got up super early this morning to get a Paddy's Day dinner in the crock pot before he left, and we had a delicious shepherd's pie together before I had to take S home.


(3/18) Work from home day for me, work at work for Dad, and school for the boys. Today was gorgeous! The boys and I took the doggos to the beach this evening. I told the kids no swimming yet, but there were a couple of kids out swimming in the Sound while we were there.  BRRRR! It was only around 65° for a high today. The doggos, of course, had a blast and came home sandy and exhausted.


(3/19) Meeting Tuesday went smoothly today. We had to present in Bellevue, and I was done with that, and home right in time for another meeting! At least that one was online. This last day of winter clocked in at 83° according to my dashboard on the way home. There are still big piles of snow in places too. The boys played down at the park tonight, and then came home for screens and homework.


(3/20) Happy spring! It was another gorgeous day. I worked in the kiddos' classrooms today.  D had a great day, and said yesterday was "pretty much the best day of his life!" because he got a perfect score on his points checklist. It'll be hard to beat that.

(3/21) Work day for me, day off for Dad, and school for the kiddos.  Dad had fun at Home Depot planning our spring planting. The boys had a great day from the sounds of things. I had a bunch of meetings, which included a trip to the Smith Tower for a reception.  I've never been, and it was quite the experience!  We scored a sunny day, and could see for miles.


(3/22) Work day for me, day off for Dad, regular day for C, and early release for the twins. Got all that? My boss took my office to lunch as a treat. It was fun to sit and chat with everyone, and have our Friday happy hour a little earlier. We've had very bad car karma lately. I got in an accident on my way home last Friday, and today a neighbor forgot to set their parking brake, and their car rolled into one of ours. Uggghh!


(3/23) I headed to Zumba while Dad got started cleaning the garage. Do we know how to party or what?! When I got home, I finished getting together our donation pile, and now we can actually pull our tent camper out when it's time. Dad ran our donations in, and I got to work on clearing our flower beds out front. I planted some seeds and cleared all the dead leaves. It's shaping up nicely! I had to run J in to the doctor's this evening. He went from "Mom, my eye hurts" to a rip-roaring case of pink eye just a few hours later. Fun times. He should hopefully be good in 24hrs.


(3/24) The boys and I bummed around home today, and kept our germs to ourselves.  The kids video gamed a lot, and I used the quiet time to read.  Sarah and I got out for some time in the sunshine, which was lovely.  Dad ended up working a 12-hour shift, covering for someone.  It'll shake out later this week, when he needs to leave early... but ugh. Loooong day.


(3/25) Work from home day for me, brief school for the twins, regular school for C, and work for Dad today.  The twins had their conferences this afternoon.  J's teacher raved about how much progress he has made this year, and will be recognizing him in an upcoming Life Long Learners assembly. 💓 D is making steady progress at his own pace. He absorbs information like a sponge, so while he may learn differently, he's still on track, and making gains. So huzzah for that!


(3/26) Work day for Dad and me and school for the boys. The twins have early release all week, and Dad picked them up and took them to the book fair.  They have been really wanting the next in the series of Super Rabbit Boy, and they picked up that plus a few other treasures. I had a training in Seattle, which went well, and was even able to sneak in a coffee with my coworker afterward.


(3/27) Day off for me, work for Dad, and school for the boys. Because the twins had an early release today, I took the morning off volunteering in their classes, and got lots of stuff done.  I returned the rental car, and picked up our car, which was damaged in an accident two weeks ago.  J was particularly thrilled.  It was the Day of Giving at Jersey Mike's, so we picked up subs for dinner on the way home from D's appointment tonight. Yum!


(3/28) Dad had the day off today, the boys had school, and I worked.  I got to head out a little early after a presentation in Seattle, which put me home a little earlier than normal.  That rarely happens!  The boys played screens, and then some more at the park, and we had a quiet evening in.

(3/29) Work day for me, and day off for Dad. Dad and Rob went junkyarding, and he found a truck that came home with him. Boys and cars. SMH.


(3/30) I went walking with Sarah this morning and after we got back, the fam split into two groups and headed to museums. Dad and C went with Rob and some friends down to the LeMay Museum, and the twins and I hit the children's museum, followed by a picnic at the park. We went for a sushi dinner once we'd all returned. Dad and C went to a playoff hockey game tonight where the Tips won 9-1! On to round two!


(3/31) The boys and I had a lazy Sunday. They played lots of screens, and I lounged around and read my book.  Nanan came over this afternoon and stayed for dinner.  It was nice to see her and to visit!

(4/1) The kiddos are off on Spring Break this week. I am super busy with work right now, so we decided on a staycation. I worked from home today, and was pretty much glued to my computer.  The boys had a fun day playing lots of screens. They were totally thrilled to go play at the park this afternoon.  Can't you tell?


(4/2) Busy day at work for me. The boys had a great time at home playing screens today, and never want break to end. C went to a friend's house this evening. It'll be strange not having him for a few days.


(4/3) Day "off" for me and the boys today. I still ended up doing a bunch of work stuff, but managed to sleep late first. D sent me a text that said, "I want food," so I eventually got up and obliged. But I so needed that sleep! Sarah and I caught a walk this afternoon, and the boys and I went to the park this evening after D's appointment.

(4/4) Work day for me, and day off for Dad and the boys. Dad went junkyarding again, and it sounds like the boys had a good time at home. We played Uno Spin tonight, which is a fun twist on an old favorite.

(4/5) Work day for me, and the boys had the day off.  We had another fun game night tonight. Despite the smiles below, our games get intense!