Spring Break 2015

As evident by the title of this week's blog, this week was our spring break.  This means that both Merrick and I were home from preschool and my working mommy guilt made me feel like I needed to make this an extra special week for all of us.  This was even more clear to me on Monday.  I had to take my car into the shop in the morning and then we came home for lunch and Carrigan's nap.  By the afternoon I needed to run an errand and Merrick was upset, demanding that we do something, anything, fun.  In a stroke of mommy brilliance, I told Merrick that if he would agree to go to store happily, I would buy candy while we were there and we would come home and have an Easter egg hunt.  The hunt was a success and saved the day.

After a slow start to the week, however, I decided it was time for some fun.  On Tuesday we went to the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry (OMSI).  The highlights included the ball and vacuum room, the sand area, the water area, flubber, and just spending time with cousins.  Really the only low light was that it was very crowded and combine that with the fact that the rotating exhibit was an elaborate maze and that we were 6 children and 2 adults and you have a situation that is crazy making to say the least.

Over the last several months Merrick has been begging and begging us for roller skates, so when I found out that Wednesday was "preschool skate" at Oaks Amusement Park, I figured it was the perfect opportunity for him to decided if he was really interested in skates after all.  It turned out to be a great intro to skating.  They limited the arena to only preschool age and younger children, they had balls and fun music, a little lesson, a visit from the mascot "Chipper", and, most importantly, they tighten the wheels on the skates to set the kids up for success.  I was able to bring CC onto the rink in her stroller and it turns out that despite lots of falls, Merrick does enjoy skating.

Thursday the weather was beautiful!  We met several friends at a park and played for hours.  These pictures actually came from a different park trip this week,  but help to give a bit of an idea how beautiful things are looking in our neck of the woods these days.

We finished the week with every kid's (or at least my kid's) dream.  We went to Chuck E Cheese and spent the majority of the day playing games, dancing with Chuck E and eating pizza.  Carrigan did not care for Chuck E and so she and I kept a safe distance at all times, but otherwise all had a blast.  The best part of it all was that Chuck E Cheese is about a mile away from Jeremy's work so he was able to join us for pizza and a few games during lunch.

I really don't know it this week could possibly have gone any better.  It was the perfect rest and recharge to hit the rest of the school year strong.  Bring it on.

Deja Vu

I have the distinct feeling that I have said this before, but we are moving...again. This actually marks our 4th move in less than four years.  I have not talked about it up until this point mostly because we were not sure of the timing of things and because talking about it makes it real and I prefer to live in denial about this one.  Denial or not, however, we will start moving in less than two weeks.

If I ignore the fact the we have to do the move itself, I am actually really excited about our new house.  It is not really the house itself that has me the most exited, but the idea that it represents.  This is the first time since we left Arizona, that we will be in our own house, not my parents', not the McClellan's, but ours.  While it does mean Merrick will go to a different school than we had planned, he has friends there and it is still a great school.  It is also a great neighborhood with friends close by and a nice quiet, flat street to play on.

Since we found out we were moving I have had lots of moments of panic and stress but since we decided on our house and have taken steps to move forward on it (we have already signed the lease at this point), I have felt nothing but relief and peace.  I feel like this is the right thing for our family at this time.

Pictures and I am sure lots more details on the move to come.  Until next time...

Pinewood Derby

This year our church decided that in addition to the regular cub scout pinewood derby, they would hold a derby for the whole ward.  Anyone that wanted was able to get a car to design and race.  We decided to get one for our family and it really became a whole family project.  Merrick was in charge of design, Jeremy was in charge of carving, I was in charge of painting, and Carrigan was in charge of being the race time cheerleader.

We went for a Perry the Platypus car (from the cartoon Phineas and Ferb).  We raced in four races and took third in two, second in one, and first in one (all racers had four races).  Even though Perry was not the fastest car, we did win a "metal" for most creative/best use of imagination and we got lots of compliments.

I don't know if this will be the new tradition for our ward or just a one time thing, but Jeremy and I both left saying that that was one of the best church parties we have ever been to.  Hopefully it ends up being the first of many pinewood derbies to come.

Catch You Later, Catching Rays

So Jeremy just said that when we lived in AZ it felt like breaking the Sabbath to go on a bike ride or go to the park on Sunday but here, when we have a day like today, it feels like breaking the Sabbath not to go out and enjoy God's creations so that is all from me today.  I will be out soaking up the 68 degree sunshine with my family...

Backyard Fun

I think that if there are any other mothers out there reading this, they will agree that there nothing better than seeing your children play nicely together.  A few months ago we experienced a shift in our family where Merrick now sees CC as a viable playmate.  Sometimes this means they get into mischief together and often they fight, but on blissful moments they just play.

With the weather staying nice, over the last week they have taken to playing together in the yard.  Mostly they just walk around and explore and Merrick helps CC navigate the stairs and steeper parts of the yard.  Yesterday they were out again, this time with bubbles.

It does my mommy heart good to see my babies playing together out in the sunshine.