Summer Camp 2015

Whoa nelly, peeps. We just got back from a crazy camping weekend with friends up on the Mountain Loop Highway.

Here are the stats:

-12 adults.
-10 kids (ranging in age from 1 - 4).
-One group campground on the Stillaguamish River in the North Cascades.


Sounds like a recipe for chaotic trip, yes?

Heck yeah.

But in a fantastic, crazy, hilarious way. It was pure, unadulterated chaos. 

I have such fond memories of going camping with my family and friends when I was a little one and am thus determined to recreate this experience for my own children. So we persuaded family friends  to join us on a group camping trip at the end of July.

I was a little bit nervous prior to the trip. We were the common hub amongst all the families; what if not everyone jelled? Six four-year-olds (plus younger siblings) could very well be a recipe for disaster.

What if the bugs were horrible and it rained the entire time?

How many kids were going to fall in the river?

I shouldn’t have worried.

The big kids turned into a roving pack that tumbled through the camp like tasmanian devils.  They laughed, they bounced, they fought, they made up, and then they did it all over again.

And loved it. Wee ones are perfectly suited to grubby camping.

And the adults traded off on kid duties, cooked up group meals, and discussed the finer points of campfire building. 

Another happy little grubber. 

I am a new convert to group meals. Each family was responsible for providing one meal for the trip for the entire crew. You know me, peeps, I’ll do anything I can to get out of cooking three meals a day while on vacation (or at home, for that matter). 

Our camper build-out is 95% complete. We now have shades on the windows, which means I don’t have an audience when using the pot. Yessss.

Emma rolled out of bed the first night, which wasn’t great, but we made a few modifications for Night #2 and she slept like a champ. Which made this mama happy because I didn’t have a kicking, squirming baby that came into my sleeping area in the wee hours of the morning. Definitely a win.

This was our 4th camping trip this summer and I’m finally feeling like we’re getting the hang of it. Baby steps, peeps!

On Saturday, the whole crew did a 4 mile hike, and the kiddos spent most of it running up the trail. Our family did this hike back in March and practically had to drag Ben up the last quarter mile. Not the case this time around. Friends are good for keeping the enthusiasm levels high. Especially for my fiercely competitive son.

I love this picture of K. She’s a glorious little forest nymph. 

Classic four year old boy, right?!

At last, our lake!

The awkwardly named but beautiful Beaver Plant Lake. Still one my most favorite hikes on the Mountain Loop Highway.

Another perk of this camping trip? Having a professional photographer along for the ride!! Bronwen Houck is a fellow mom, friend, and fantastically talented photographer. These photos were all taken by her and you may remember her work from our holiday card last year. That’s her daughter K, down below, striking a pose with Ben and E.

This little baby girl is rocking those shades. Looking good, Em!

A rest break for some wild blueberry picking.

Back at camp the kids hung out and relaxed after the big hike. Two year old C, below, kept everyone entertained as comedian of the group. Emma was enthralled by his antics.

I am now convinced that a hammock is the most import piece of camp gear ever. This thing is like a non-human babysitter. Good for hours of fun.

And then it was time for a little swimming.  Coal Creek campsite has a fantastic water hole. The water was freezing but weirdly bearable after a while. Perhaps we were just numb.

These brave kiddos were totally killing it. Cowabunga!

Everyone was moving slowly on Sunday morning. We had a gradual wake-up, which included copious quantities of hot cocoa and story time. For both the kids and the story-teller (me). 

Emma got milk drunk and fell in the (cold, not lit) fire pit. E is admiring her bravery. Or the fact that the palms of her hands are solidly black from the soot.

I think that Coal Creek might just be my favorite group campground ever. The small stream was perfect for the kids, it was private, there was nearby hiking, and the swimming hole was a nice perk after a sweaty day spent on the trails. 

Love this crazy family of mine. Two days of grubby camping, poor sleep, and way too many smores, yet we’re still having the time of our lives.

The whole gang.

Can’t wait for next year.

xo,

Sonja

PS: By my count, there were at least four accidental river dunkings. :)

Merry Christmas

Happy Holidays, Darlings!


From our family to yours, wishing you peace, health, and happiness in 2015.


Much love,

Sonja and Chris




Photo from the amazingly talented and wonderful Bronwen Houck.

Codger and Cub

Today we held a big joint birthday bash/welcome party for my Mama and Emma. We dubbed it the Codger and Cub fiesta. Here are the invitations we sent out:

I would like to note that my madre was a-ok with the 'codger' label. In fact, she suggested it. Love my mom's sense of humor.

Besides, you only turn 65 once; why not have a big party? Plus, now she qualifies for all those senior citizen discounts.

Miss Emma was her usual laid-back self and was content to be handed 'round. She is one chill baby, so long as she's in someone's arms.

We decided early on that we wanted this to be an easy party: no cooking allowed.  We discovered that PCC has a great selection of deli platters . Order them a few days in advance and they'll be ready for pickup on the day of your event.

The caprese salad skewers were great, as well as a Moroccan sweet potato salad and marinated beef skewers. The Caesar salad was nice, as was the hummus. The other dips were ok, but not ones I'd order again. The portions were huge; we had about 40 people in attendance and plenty of leftovers.

We supplemented the deli trays with fancy cheeses and fruit. Again, easy foods that only require assembly.

And my personal favorite: a salmon fillet from Oregon. I'm pretty sure I ate about half of this!

It wouldn't be a family party without homemade ice cream. Ben had four bowls. Kiddo was in heaven. My uncle, who was on ice cream distributing duty, kept asking him: "Are you sure your mom said it was ok to have another bowl?" and Ben would dutifully run off to go ask me for permission. "She said yes, more ice cream please!". 

Did he really come to ask me? ha. Of course not. Devious little imp.

And last but not least, my dad got to show off his Jack in the Pulpit flower. Is that thing crazy or what?

Our little guest of honor: completely oblivious to the fiesta. But her parents and grandparents sure enjoyed it. Feeling so grateful to have wonderful family friends.

Love you Mama! Happy Birthday.

xo,

Sonja

Weekend Events

My Dears!

How was your weekend?!

If you live in Seattle then you'll know that we were experiencing some crazy hot & humid weather. 

I'm not too familiar with humidity - it's bizarre. And it makes me feel very, very lazy. 

Weed the garden? Nah. I think I'll take a nap on the couch instead.

Bailey does not 'do humid' either. Hot? Yes. Humid? NO. 

He has been excavating dog-sized holes around the yard into which he can plunk his body and leach the cooler temps from the soil. 

Did I tell you he's in the running for "Laziest Dog On The Planet" competition? He's the clear frontrunner.

We have been thinking up all sorts of new ways to beat the heat. All of them involve water, not surprisingly. 

We trucked on over to a local splash park on Thursday with some buddies. It was a little much for Ben. There were lots of zooming big kids and water features that sloshed around unpredictably. I think we'll try out the wading pool next time. 

We had grand plans this weekend to paint our garden shed but the weather threw us for a major loop. Humid heat, combined with thunder and lightening storms, do not a happy painting situation make. Maybe next weekend.

On Saturday we stuck around the city and went for a little jaunt down to Discovery Park.  We liked the variety of terrain and the beach was a huge hit with the bambino. But it was also packed with people. A quiet little weekend ramble it wasn't. 

Hard to beat big sticks and sand, though.

It was so very foggy. You could hear the giant container ships passing just off shore....but couldn't see a thing. A bit eerie.

On Saturday afternoon we went to a company picnic at Emerald Downs.  I will admit that I'm not a huge horse racing fan. 

But the bambino was enthralled.

Whoa, nelly! Come here horsie!

It was a good opportunity to perfect his horse sounds, at the very least.

Sunday morning we headed back to our very favorite St. Ed's State Park. Our little quiet corner on the lake. 

Ben was not exactly thrilled to be stuck in the pack for two days in a row. He has a love/hate relationship with his carrier. Things are slightly better now that he can successfully mine the side pockets for treats and toys. He can also reach Chris' hair. And my dear husband remarked at the end of the hike: "Well, it's definitely time for a hair cut". 

Yesterday afternoon we spent a lovely few hours at the home of a new acquaintance that was filled with art and antiques. Ben, still on his equine high from the day before, made a beeline straight for the rocking horse. 

And last but not least, we also celebrated our six year wedding anniversary yesterday. I would love to say that we went out for a fancy dinner and a show. But that didn't happen. We put the baby to bed and vegged on the couch. Such is life, my dears. 

On our first wedding anniversary, Chris planned a trip to Las Vegas that included a few events (the highlight was this one, by far), a museum tour, and jaunts around the famous casinos. 

The second year we went out to a posh restaurant for dinner. 

And the third and fourth years? 

Eh not much. Clearly it's a downward spiral! [I jest, I jest]

Last year (No. 5) we finally got our act together and took a trip up to the San Juan Islands. Only ten months after our actual anniversary. 

A little slow, but definitely worth the wait. 

I told Chris we could designate our upcoming camping trip to Mt St Helens as our 'official 6th year' anniversary adventure....until I realized that it had already been anointed his 'official 31st birthday present'.

Back to the drawing board. 

xxoo, 

Sonja 

Weekend Activities

I hope you had a great weekend, Lovelies. Ours was fairly relaxed - mostly we're trying to soak up as much of this seattle sun as possible. 

Here are a few photos from the past week. 

We've been doing a lot of park time. Ben discovered the merry-go-round. Everything else ceased to be interesting. 

We went over to visit my grandma and grandpa and took advantage of the sunny weather to conduct the visit out-of-doors. Yay for avoiding the old-people-smell!  Ben decided that he was going swim in the fountain. 

Even if it meant scaling a small hedge to get there. 

Success.

These boys take their hearing protection very seriously. 

On Saturday morning we headed down to the UW Waterfront Activities Center and rented a canoe ($11/hour. Cheaper if you're a student). I used to do this with my family when I was just a wee little tyke. 

Ben had a blast. Not surprising, given that his new favorite word is 'water'. Except that he can't say 'w's and it sounds like 'hotter'. 

Tip: parking is plentiful and free after noon on Saturdays and all day on Sundays. So much fun to paddle around the lily pads and under the bridges on Foster Island.

Next time we'll bring a picnic and do a bit of swimming.

On Saturday night Chris hung out with the bambino and I headed down to the stadium with my sister-in-law Megan to watch a Sounders soccer game. I should have snagged some ear protection as it was so very, very loud. But also so much fun. 

We had a true soccer fan in our midst and he was able to keep us informed on player details and the proper lyrics to the various chants/songs. Who knew there was so much soccer-related intrigue?! And: I am incapable of clapping along, in time, with a stadium full of 20,000 people. Hopeless, I tell you.

On Sunday morning we slept in until 7 am (!) and then headed out to Lord Hills Regional Park for a nice morning jaunt. We saw three other people. Maybe. It's never busy. The baby did a little walking and then was content to ride in the backpack and munch on beef jerky for the rest of the hike.

On Sunday evening our (awesome, amazing, sweet) SIL Megan came over to the house and watched Ben for the night so Chris and I could chow down on Indian food in the University District. I'm still full. 

Then we grabbed a pint of ice cream and sat on the beach at Magnusun Park. What a fabulous end to the day. 

We don't have any grand plans for this week. Mostly we're trying to stay cool. 

Ben accomplishes this by falling into various bodies of water:

And eating popsicles. 

Me too. I've had three today. 

In other news, I just put on my bee suit and sprayed the hell out of this yellow jacket nest on our roof. We want to paint and they have not been receptive to our prepping activities. 

I had to work up my courage to get up there and destroy the nest, even in full protective gear. My cheek still stings from where they got me last week when I accidentally discovered their lair.  I dug out the area with a shovel (hordes of angry wasps exploded up into the air) and then sprayed them down with a plant-based spray from my Uncle Bill. 

update: I just went up again and gave them another dose. I'll keep you updated on their 'progress'.  

Stay cool, peeps. 

xxoo, 

Sonja