September Busy

September is almost gone and it's gone really fast.....  This week we may be getting that turn in the air that signals Autumn.  This is my favorite season since we've been back in the NW and this part of Washington,  though more desert landscape than lush tree covered hills,  doesn't disappoint with crisp cool mornings and evenings with sunny dry days.  The Farmer's Market is also full of apples.  The past three years I've come to count on a beautiful October so lots to look forward to.  Right now it's been warm and we have dirty air from the Eastern Oregon and Wenatchee fires.  Yick. 
Between the two cameras these pic uploaded out of order but my readers are smart and I'm feelin' lazy so here's what we've been up to in no particular order! 

We put the boys in soccer!  It's been a great experience for the boys and they're mostly enjoying it.  Before each game they announce the teams and the kids are supposed to run through a parent tunnel.  We participated the first game but our boys want no part of it.  NO PART AT ALL. 

This is the last year of preschool!  They love their teachers this year,  "They're funny." 

A little team work here. 

They're getting so big.  No babies here!

Aaron's still loves to use his pellet smoker.  Here he his with Tommy and Opie the brisket hound. 

Daddy left us for five days to go to Boston for a proteomics conference....  I desperately wanted to tag along with him but it didn't work out this year.  When I uploaded pictures I found this on the camera..... 

Aaron jumped seats and sat close enough to see and hear the coach get thrown out.  He sat close enough to be seen on TV when a left handed batter was up. 

On Aaron's birthday weekend we took a last minute nearly spontaneous (in our house that means you scour the Internet for hotel deals) overnight trip to Spokane.  Thanks to my facebook friends we had a wonderful and kid friendly dinner at The Spaghetti Factory (we were close otherwise it would have been Tomato Street) and the kids loved this carousel.

Who told Rachel it was a funny face shot?  Who told Ben it wasn't? 

We rode the sky tram over Spokane Falls and with this crew it was anticlimactic.  Oh well, when you're a tourist for the day...

2nd go on the carousel. 

Bedded down for the night.  It was the last weekend for the hotel's outdoor pool and water slide to be open.

Rachel bedded down for the night. 

Anniversary Trip in the Sticks

Aaron and I celebrated our 11th Anniversary on August 4th.  We took a two day trip that Aaron planned to Washington's Methow Valley.  There's many parts of Eastern Washington that I haven't been to so it was lot of fun just to go somewhere new.  It was also very relaxing as we didn't take the kids! We stayed in a wonderful little lodge that had a very good restaurant and a private lake surrounded by cabins.  This area is popular with mountain bikers and cross country skiers.  We just relaxed,  ate two wonderful dinners,  wine tasted, biked (it's been a long time for me,  unless circles in the driveway with the kids count),  and enjoyed the scenery.  The only caveat was the lack of phone service,  a bit tedious for this mommy but everything went fine!

The crew all ready to go stay at Grandma's.  They're a lot to take on,  thanks Grandma and Grandpa

Our room at the Freestone Inn,  complete with a porch and Adirondack chairs.  We watched a meteor shower!

View from the lake trail.

More views,  here on the left is my new vacation home....  maybe someday!

My ill fitting helmet and my rent a wreck bike.  It rode okay but was a bit squeaky. 

This guy had to move off the trail for us.

The Mazama gas station/coffee bar, clothing store and pay phone (remember those?)

We walked around Winthrop which has a western style main street and a lot of statues like this moderately cheesy guy.  I kept thinking how much the kids would like this.

The town of Twisp had this little gem of a gourmet pizza place.  

The First Installment of Summer.....

U-Pick Fruit.  The Yakima Valley is a foodie's dream in the summertime.  Lots of produce,  cheap!  This is the first year we attempted to go cherry picking. 

Sparklers on the 4th!

Grandpa Howard visiting and proving himself useful with Tommy's yard projects.

Cherry picking at a friend's orchard as part of a MOPS activity.  I picked a lot of cherries and the kids did a lot of playing in the farmhouse's yard.

Rachel helping Tom on the zipline.

Bill's Berry Farm.  We went their first weekend open for blueberries.  We wanted to go again but it got hot.  Too hot for these suburban folks.

Dad at the firework stand.  We were there forever! 

Preschool's Out For Summer

The boys finished preschool this year and are getting so smart and so big!  They finished their two day a week class with a spring program at night with the whole preschool.   Next year they will go three mornings a week and then they graduate and on to Kindergarten!  I've taken a picture of them  a the beginning and end of each year they've gone, always in front of our front door.   Here they are in order smallest to biggest,  oldest to most recent!

Fall 2010

Spring 2011

Fall 2011

Spring 2012 Rachel doesn't to to preschool yet but insisted on being in the picture.

Success With a Vacation of Firsts and No Dirty Looks on the Plane!

It wasn't the boys first plane trip.  The summer before they turned one they flew to both sets of grandparents homes, one house hunting trip and one move to Washington and they remember none of it.  Recently we went to Southern California and took a big vacation:  five nights at a resort and an airplane ride, rental car, Sea World,  sandy beach and at least 50 swims in the pool.   We had a great time and the kids did wonderfully in a room all together.  Rachel is still in a crib so I was pleasantly surprised with how well she did on a pull out bed in the same room with the boys.  I didn't take a ton of pictures but here's the highlights.

Good things planes are noisy when in flight.  She sang and talked to her doll the entire time!

Enjoying the in flight magazine.

Tom and Ben thinking about life in the California Sun.

Rachel playing

Snacks at the Shamu Show

Running from the breaking waves was their favorite game.

She's telling me about the Sea Turtle in there.