Josh's first time skiing
Originally uploaded by evelet
Tuesday, March 23, 2010
ski bunny, the movie
Josh's first time skiing
Originally uploaded by evelet
Sunday, March 21, 2010
ski bunny
Josh went skiing for the first time this past weekend. Woo! Hoo! He actually liked it alot! I was surprised. Despite missing his nap to attend the afternoon session, he did really well. He had his ski boots on for about 3.5 hours without once complaining and wanting them off! I guess I was expecting the worst and the day actually turned out really well.
We went to Seattle to visit Jon and Caroline. They said that they were planning to go skiing/riding up at Steven's Pass, so I thought it was a perfect opportunity to get Josh in his first ski school lesson. So, Jon, Caroline, Josh and I went up to Steven's Pass for an afternoon of skiing/riding and Brian and Aves hung out in Seattle for some father-daughter bonding.
As it turned out, Josh's lesson was from 1pm to 3pm - right at Josh's nap time. But we signed him up anyway and decided to give it a shot. He had a short half an hour nap on the drive up to Steven's Pass and we arrived at around 11:30am. It took the next hour and a half to get him all set up and ready to go! Who said that getting kid's into activities wasn't a big production?!
Some of the highlights of our big ski adventure were:
- Josh REFUSED to go skiing without goggles. I guess living in the Pacific Northwest makes us really sensitive to sunlight in the winter since we rarely see it! Anyway, it was a beautiful, sunny day and with the glare on the snow, Josh could barely open his eyes when he was outside without them watering like crazy! So, I had to go to the ski shop and buy him a pair of kidlet goggles.
- I expected owies and complaints when he put on his ski boots, but the equipment guy explained that they were like robot boots and I think that's what made Josh love them. No complaints about the boots - not even once!
- I was worried about the potty thing. Josh is potty trained, but the ski school requires that kids are "completely" potty trained. That means they can go to the washroom completely by themselves. Josh is mostly there, but I wasn't sure if he could go by himself in a public bathroom - especially if the toilet flushes automatically. Josh is deathly afraid of "toilets that flush by themsel-ves". It's the first question he asks anytime we go to a public bathroom. If it flushes by itself, he refuses to sit on it. I made sure that their toilets didn't flush automatically and it turned out that Josh had to go once during the lesson. His instructor, Lindsay, told me that when he came out he said he got some pee on his pants. Ugh. But I guess he wasn't wet enough to stop from skiing again!
- I stayed for the beginning of the lesson to make sure Josh was OK. There were just 2 kids in Josh's class and Lindsay seemed to have them both listening well. I saw her teach them to put on their skis and hold their poles. Then, they went on a small "walkabout" on relatively flat terrain. I overheard them looking for "crocodiles" and stuff. She was really great with them. Josh was shuffling along with his skis in no time!
- I had to leave right after that because I could tell he was getting whiny each time he looked at me. It's so true that our kids are whiniest when they are with us and are usually fine when we're not around! Lindsay said that Josh was a bit cranky at times (like falling down) but she could tell he was pretty tired and it was par for the course with 3-year-olds.
- I only really had an hour and a half of riding that afternoon while Josh was in his lesson. Really though, it was enough! I haven't gone riding in 2 years. Crazy. I've been riding for almost 15 years and it's kind of like riding a bike - you never forget. But your muscles do! I was able to do the runs no problem (we stayed on blues). It was actually quite easy, breezy. Not alot of work involved to just nicely carve a smooth ride down a blue run...then why were my legs freakin' burning when I got to the bottom of the run?! Aargh. I'm SO out of shape!
When I went to pick Josh up at 3pm, they were playing in a snow bank. Fun! Lindsay took us back to the ski school area and she showed me how Josh could walk up the "magic carpet" and then ski a straight line down the slight incline. It was amazing to watch him ski for the first time! I guess I couldn't have missed it since I was filming it and the straight line that he chose to ski was right towards me! I had to move out of the way to avoid him! Hahaha...Anyway, I couldn't include the video in the post because the file was too big, but I posted some photos of him in his kiddie skis. Needless to say, he's been asking to go back skiing already, so I guessing that he enjoyed it quite a bit. Now, I'm not sure if there is enough snow on the local mountains, but I'm hoping that we can go up one more time this year!
We went to Seattle to visit Jon and Caroline. They said that they were planning to go skiing/riding up at Steven's Pass, so I thought it was a perfect opportunity to get Josh in his first ski school lesson. So, Jon, Caroline, Josh and I went up to Steven's Pass for an afternoon of skiing/riding and Brian and Aves hung out in Seattle for some father-daughter bonding.
As it turned out, Josh's lesson was from 1pm to 3pm - right at Josh's nap time. But we signed him up anyway and decided to give it a shot. He had a short half an hour nap on the drive up to Steven's Pass and we arrived at around 11:30am. It took the next hour and a half to get him all set up and ready to go! Who said that getting kid's into activities wasn't a big production?!
Some of the highlights of our big ski adventure were:
- Josh REFUSED to go skiing without goggles. I guess living in the Pacific Northwest makes us really sensitive to sunlight in the winter since we rarely see it! Anyway, it was a beautiful, sunny day and with the glare on the snow, Josh could barely open his eyes when he was outside without them watering like crazy! So, I had to go to the ski shop and buy him a pair of kidlet goggles.
- I expected owies and complaints when he put on his ski boots, but the equipment guy explained that they were like robot boots and I think that's what made Josh love them. No complaints about the boots - not even once!
- I was worried about the potty thing. Josh is potty trained, but the ski school requires that kids are "completely" potty trained. That means they can go to the washroom completely by themselves. Josh is mostly there, but I wasn't sure if he could go by himself in a public bathroom - especially if the toilet flushes automatically. Josh is deathly afraid of "toilets that flush by themsel-ves". It's the first question he asks anytime we go to a public bathroom. If it flushes by itself, he refuses to sit on it. I made sure that their toilets didn't flush automatically and it turned out that Josh had to go once during the lesson. His instructor, Lindsay, told me that when he came out he said he got some pee on his pants. Ugh. But I guess he wasn't wet enough to stop from skiing again!
- I stayed for the beginning of the lesson to make sure Josh was OK. There were just 2 kids in Josh's class and Lindsay seemed to have them both listening well. I saw her teach them to put on their skis and hold their poles. Then, they went on a small "walkabout" on relatively flat terrain. I overheard them looking for "crocodiles" and stuff. She was really great with them. Josh was shuffling along with his skis in no time!
- I had to leave right after that because I could tell he was getting whiny each time he looked at me. It's so true that our kids are whiniest when they are with us and are usually fine when we're not around! Lindsay said that Josh was a bit cranky at times (like falling down) but she could tell he was pretty tired and it was par for the course with 3-year-olds.
- I only really had an hour and a half of riding that afternoon while Josh was in his lesson. Really though, it was enough! I haven't gone riding in 2 years. Crazy. I've been riding for almost 15 years and it's kind of like riding a bike - you never forget. But your muscles do! I was able to do the runs no problem (we stayed on blues). It was actually quite easy, breezy. Not alot of work involved to just nicely carve a smooth ride down a blue run...then why were my legs freakin' burning when I got to the bottom of the run?! Aargh. I'm SO out of shape!
When I went to pick Josh up at 3pm, they were playing in a snow bank. Fun! Lindsay took us back to the ski school area and she showed me how Josh could walk up the "magic carpet" and then ski a straight line down the slight incline. It was amazing to watch him ski for the first time! I guess I couldn't have missed it since I was filming it and the straight line that he chose to ski was right towards me! I had to move out of the way to avoid him! Hahaha...Anyway, I couldn't include the video in the post because the file was too big, but I posted some photos of him in his kiddie skis. Needless to say, he's been asking to go back skiing already, so I guessing that he enjoyed it quite a bit. Now, I'm not sure if there is enough snow on the local mountains, but I'm hoping that we can go up one more time this year!
Joshie looking cool with Mom's goggles - he was fine as long as he had goggles on!
Checkin' out his gear
Getting used to holding the poles
Look, Mom! I'm skiing!
I see some crocodiles over there!
Josh's apres-ski fangs
Tuesday, March 16, 2010
aves
Josh gave Avery a nickname and it seems to have stuck! He started by calling her "Ave" out of the blue and now we just call her "Aves" (with a long A sound).
Anyway, the last post I did about her was in December. It's March now! So, I thought I would share some happenings on the eve of her 1st birthday. She is just over 11 months - I can't believe I'm going back to work in a month. My first day back is actually her birthday. How sad is that?!
I've been looking forward to going back to work this time around. It has been H-A-R-D staying at home taking care of 2 kids! It truly is twice the work. So, all I've been really thinking about is how nice it will be to have adult conversation and some "me" time.
Well, I think a couple of weeks ago, I started to realize what I was giving up. Ugh. I have bonded so well with the 2 kids this past year. It's been a struggle, but I look at the kids in the end and I feel so close to them. Whoever said that motherhood was a roller coaster ride, well, they must have been a mother, because it's the biggest roller coaster ride that I've ever been on. I've never felt so much love, happiness, guilt, anger and complete sadness about anything. So, I'm sure I'll be a bit of a basket case for the next few weeks - bear with me...
Now, onto Aves! Since December, she's gone from scooching to full fledged crawling. She's big into crawling and not really interested in walking yet. She will pull herself up to standing, but doesn't really have interest in cruising yet. This is all a new thing for me since Josh didn't really crawl for very long. Aves has mastered the art of crawling. I don't know if she learned this from Nikita, but she has discovered that if she wants to bring a toy with her, she can put it in her mouth and crawl around. And she does love to pull herself up on things. Namely me. Between her wanting to be held by me and Josh wanting to get in her way from getting held by me, I feel like a jungle gym most days!
She started to sign "milk" to us last month. We thought it was so cool. Then we realized when we signed "more" she would sign "milk" and when we signed "all done" she would sigh "milk". And when she was saying goodbye, she would sign "milk". Hahaha...oh well. I think when she figures out how to do something, she just wants to do it over and over again.
Talking is coming along too. If I say "all done", I swear she says something that sounds very much the same. When I say bye-bye, she'll say "ba ba". I'm just amazed at all the sounds she makes and how much she understands and can communicate already. She is definitely going to be talker! On second thought, I remember Josh barely ever talked through the baby and toddler years and I thought he was going to be the strong, silent type. At almost 3.5 years, I can't get him to shut up most times!
Yesterday, Aves started to shake her head "no". Too funny. We have a kid's CD called Dog Train and there is a song on it that has the lyrics "No, no, no, I don't wanna, I don't wanna...". When I sing the song to her, she shakes her head and when we laugh, she laughs back.
She has 5 teeth now and they are chompers! I think, unfortunately, that she is going to be blessed with her mom's 2 front horse teeth! But it doesn't seem to matter. She is just the cutest little thing ever and her smile is infectious.
Here are a couple of pics over the past 3 months. I'll be posting more on her birthday so I'm only posting a few really good ones right now...
Anyway, the last post I did about her was in December. It's March now! So, I thought I would share some happenings on the eve of her 1st birthday. She is just over 11 months - I can't believe I'm going back to work in a month. My first day back is actually her birthday. How sad is that?!
I've been looking forward to going back to work this time around. It has been H-A-R-D staying at home taking care of 2 kids! It truly is twice the work. So, all I've been really thinking about is how nice it will be to have adult conversation and some "me" time.
Well, I think a couple of weeks ago, I started to realize what I was giving up. Ugh. I have bonded so well with the 2 kids this past year. It's been a struggle, but I look at the kids in the end and I feel so close to them. Whoever said that motherhood was a roller coaster ride, well, they must have been a mother, because it's the biggest roller coaster ride that I've ever been on. I've never felt so much love, happiness, guilt, anger and complete sadness about anything. So, I'm sure I'll be a bit of a basket case for the next few weeks - bear with me...
Now, onto Aves! Since December, she's gone from scooching to full fledged crawling. She's big into crawling and not really interested in walking yet. She will pull herself up to standing, but doesn't really have interest in cruising yet. This is all a new thing for me since Josh didn't really crawl for very long. Aves has mastered the art of crawling. I don't know if she learned this from Nikita, but she has discovered that if she wants to bring a toy with her, she can put it in her mouth and crawl around. And she does love to pull herself up on things. Namely me. Between her wanting to be held by me and Josh wanting to get in her way from getting held by me, I feel like a jungle gym most days!
She started to sign "milk" to us last month. We thought it was so cool. Then we realized when we signed "more" she would sign "milk" and when we signed "all done" she would sigh "milk". And when she was saying goodbye, she would sign "milk". Hahaha...oh well. I think when she figures out how to do something, she just wants to do it over and over again.
Talking is coming along too. If I say "all done", I swear she says something that sounds very much the same. When I say bye-bye, she'll say "ba ba". I'm just amazed at all the sounds she makes and how much she understands and can communicate already. She is definitely going to be talker! On second thought, I remember Josh barely ever talked through the baby and toddler years and I thought he was going to be the strong, silent type. At almost 3.5 years, I can't get him to shut up most times!
Yesterday, Aves started to shake her head "no". Too funny. We have a kid's CD called Dog Train and there is a song on it that has the lyrics "No, no, no, I don't wanna, I don't wanna...". When I sing the song to her, she shakes her head and when we laugh, she laughs back.
She has 5 teeth now and they are chompers! I think, unfortunately, that she is going to be blessed with her mom's 2 front horse teeth! But it doesn't seem to matter. She is just the cutest little thing ever and her smile is infectious.
Here are a couple of pics over the past 3 months. I'll be posting more on her birthday so I'm only posting a few really good ones right now...
My family
No words necessary
Gorgeous smile!
Mommy, what are you doing to my itty bitty hair?!
Go Canada Go!
Thursday, March 11, 2010
go canada go!
OK, I'm still trying to sort through my TONS of photos from our Olympic experience. It was, in a word, a blast! The energy and patriotism here was infectious. We went downtown a couple of times just to see what the hype was all about and we found that we wanted to keep going downtown to be a part of it!
It's hard to describe - I think you just had to be part of it. Some have said it was like celebrating Canada Day everyday for 2 weeks. I was born and raised in Canada and have never celebrated a Canada Day like that! The closest thing I can remember where we celebrated like that was being on Yonge Street when the Blue Jays won the World Series for the first time in 1992.
So, I'll have to post my Olympic diary another time, but for now, here are the cutest kids EVER! They're so cute, I'm surprised that Avery didn't make the Jumbotron when we took her with us to the Germany vs. Belarus hockey game dressed like that!
It's hard to describe - I think you just had to be part of it. Some have said it was like celebrating Canada Day everyday for 2 weeks. I was born and raised in Canada and have never celebrated a Canada Day like that! The closest thing I can remember where we celebrated like that was being on Yonge Street when the Blue Jays won the World Series for the first time in 1992.
So, I'll have to post my Olympic diary another time, but for now, here are the cutest kids EVER! They're so cute, I'm surprised that Avery didn't make the Jumbotron when we took her with us to the Germany vs. Belarus hockey game dressed like that!
Sunday, February 14, 2010
practice makes perfect
Liezel and I made it to the first Olympic figure skating practice session yesterday at Pacific Coliseum. It was cool to be there but it made me sad that I don't have tix to any of the real figure skating events. I checked online today, but the cheapest tix I could find were $225 each for the men's short program and they were obstructed seats in the nosebleeds (at an original price of $50). I think I'll just watch it on TV for that price!
Anyway, we decided to drive to the event for 2 reasons: 1) the session started at 7:00am and I couldn't even comtemplate taking public transportation that early; and, 2) we didn't really know how to get there by bus!
Well, it turned out to be fine. That area is Liezel's old 'hood and we knew where to park. Also, because it wasn't an actual "event", it wasn't that busy. The only problem with our free parking was that it was close to the venue, but once you take into account the limited access into the building, we had to do a bit more walking than expected to get inside the building.
Once inside, I was surprised that the session was sold out. When we got there at 8:15am (yeah, we couldn't even get there on time without the bus!), the place was half empty (it seemed like there were more volunteers than spectators!). Later in the morning, it got pretty full, but it was by no means a full house. It's sort of sad that it was considered sold out and not full because I know there were many people who would have gone if they could have gotten tix.
The session went from 7:00am to 1:00pm and it was a pair's practice followed by a men's practice. Even though we got there late, I think we saw most of the pairs. Since it was a practice, it is not mandatory for the skaters to show, but most of them did. By 1:00pm, they asked us to leave, but the practice didn't end until 2:00pm. So, I think maybe Yevgeny Plushenko was in one of the last practice groups (if he even showed) because we didn't see him.
We managed to see all the medal contenders for the pairs and most of the them for the men. Yes, we saw Dube and Davison as well as Patrick Chan. Most of them ran through their long programs, but did not execute jumps during the program. They practiced those outside of the programs. It was fun to watch and made me miss being on the ice. Practices and competition are 2 different things.
Next weekend, we have tix to another practice session. This time, it's ice dance and women. I can't wait!
Anyway, we decided to drive to the event for 2 reasons: 1) the session started at 7:00am and I couldn't even comtemplate taking public transportation that early; and, 2) we didn't really know how to get there by bus!
Well, it turned out to be fine. That area is Liezel's old 'hood and we knew where to park. Also, because it wasn't an actual "event", it wasn't that busy. The only problem with our free parking was that it was close to the venue, but once you take into account the limited access into the building, we had to do a bit more walking than expected to get inside the building.
Once inside, I was surprised that the session was sold out. When we got there at 8:15am (yeah, we couldn't even get there on time without the bus!), the place was half empty (it seemed like there were more volunteers than spectators!). Later in the morning, it got pretty full, but it was by no means a full house. It's sort of sad that it was considered sold out and not full because I know there were many people who would have gone if they could have gotten tix.
The session went from 7:00am to 1:00pm and it was a pair's practice followed by a men's practice. Even though we got there late, I think we saw most of the pairs. Since it was a practice, it is not mandatory for the skaters to show, but most of them did. By 1:00pm, they asked us to leave, but the practice didn't end until 2:00pm. So, I think maybe Yevgeny Plushenko was in one of the last practice groups (if he even showed) because we didn't see him.
We managed to see all the medal contenders for the pairs and most of the them for the men. Yes, we saw Dube and Davison as well as Patrick Chan. Most of them ran through their long programs, but did not execute jumps during the program. They practiced those outside of the programs. It was fun to watch and made me miss being on the ice. Practices and competition are 2 different things.
Next weekend, we have tix to another practice session. This time, it's ice dance and women. I can't wait!
It was an early morning for the 2 of us to be out of the house!
Welcome/Bienvenue!
Pacific Coliseum looks great!
The Russian pair - Kavaguti and Smirnov
Dube and Davison run through their long program
Catching Patrick Chan mid-jump
Wise words from the coach
Spins are hard to catch a good picture!
Evan Lysacek mid-jump...
...and running through his long program
Practice makes perfect
It was fun being there!
Tuesday, February 9, 2010
Olympic fever
I'm sure that every Vancouverite with a blog has posted about the Olympics. I've only done one post, but even though I haven't posted much about it doesn't mean that I'm not excited! We're 3 days from the opening ceremonies and I can't wait!
This past Sunday, we went downtown for a friend's birthday dinner. The Olympic celebration has definitely started here! Excitement was in the air and you could really feel that something big was happening. We felt like tourists in our own city!
We live outside of Vancouver proper, but not by much. We're still pretty close. Since we have no Olympic venues in our community, we haven't seen very much change or hype. But today, the torch relay came through our community. It was a beautiful day and thousands of people came out. I guess being on maternity leave has that benefit of being able to go out and celebrate on a Tuesday morning! Erin and I made our way over with just the babies in tow.
When the Olympic torch came through Toronto on it's way to Calgary in 1988, I remember being there. Suzy Higgins was a torchbearer and I went with her sister, Nicole, to watch her. Even that was exciting and the torch was "just passing through"!
I'm excited to be part of this. We hear on the news about the protesters and I've heard many people in the past few months bitch and complain about how "inconveniencing" it is going to be. I just hope all the complainers went out of town because I, for one, don't want them around.
We are hosting the world in 3 days. How amazing is that?!
This past Sunday, we went downtown for a friend's birthday dinner. The Olympic celebration has definitely started here! Excitement was in the air and you could really feel that something big was happening. We felt like tourists in our own city!
We live outside of Vancouver proper, but not by much. We're still pretty close. Since we have no Olympic venues in our community, we haven't seen very much change or hype. But today, the torch relay came through our community. It was a beautiful day and thousands of people came out. I guess being on maternity leave has that benefit of being able to go out and celebrate on a Tuesday morning! Erin and I made our way over with just the babies in tow.
When the Olympic torch came through Toronto on it's way to Calgary in 1988, I remember being there. Suzy Higgins was a torchbearer and I went with her sister, Nicole, to watch her. Even that was exciting and the torch was "just passing through"!
I'm excited to be part of this. We hear on the news about the protesters and I've heard many people in the past few months bitch and complain about how "inconveniencing" it is going to be. I just hope all the complainers went out of town because I, for one, don't want them around.
We are hosting the world in 3 days. How amazing is that?!
Checking out the festivities on Granville Street
The Canadian flag at the corner of Georgia and Howe
Georgia and Burrard
Getting the crowd hyped as we wait for the torch to arrive
Go Canada Go!
Charlotte wants to get in on the action
Taking a break to watch the torch come in
I have no idea who the guy was carrying the torch, but I bet he feels proud!
That was my 5 second glimpse of the torch!
Besides seeing it briefly on-stage!
Wednesday, February 3, 2010
vacation
Sorry my posts are so long these days, but it seems that they come few and far between, so I figure I better make it worthwhile when I actually post something!
Yes, the last post was about our impromptu vacation last week and this post is less about our misadventures and more about the great family time we had! We did a little visiting with Jon and Caroline in Seattle; a little visiting with the Sugi clan in Albany; and, we even managed a mini-vacation on our vacation to visit Shabana and Brent in New York City!
We are SO lucky to have family and friends that open their houses to the 4 of us. At three, Josh is not so gear-intensive anymore (we just have to make sure we have some new toys for the plane ride!), but Avery still requires us to pack a punch. I guess I should say that I wouldn't feel like I had all the stuff I needed for her if I didn't bring everything including the kitchen sink! And really, because of my sister's resourcefulness and great friends (!) we didn't have to pack as much as we needed!
Just as an aside: keep in mind when you are travelling by air these days that airlines are now starting to charge for check-in baggage. I thought we were getting a screaming deal flying from Seattle to Albany, but once you tack on the US$140 to get our bags there and back, it doesn't seem like such a great deal anymore! And that was for a mere 3 suitcases for the 4 of us!
So, anyway, I have to mention how thankful we are to everyone for hosting all of our (my) dysfunction. You guys all really made our trip so much easier than I was making it!
I have a whole stack of pictures at the end of this post, so instead of going into great verbal detail about our trip, I'll leave you with some of my reflections:
* Travelling with 2 kids is TWICE as hard as travelling with 1 kid.
* Take time to be tourist in your own surroundings. We don't live in Seattle, but we visit Jon and Caroline often. We don't do many of the touristy things, but when we do, it's always fun.
* When you need to get somewhere in a timely fashion, listen to your gut and not the guy telling you about a shortcut.
* My sister is truly a super-mom. Her typical day involves getting up early to get her 4 kids to school. Then, she works for a few hours (at home as a medical transcriptionist) in the morning until her littlest gets home from kindergarten. She entertains the little one and gets chores done until her second kid gets home from elementary school. At this time, there is usual one (if not more) extra child that comes with her own kid because my sister does after-school care in addition to the medical transcription job. She makes sure the 3 or more kids are fed, happy, doing homework for an hour or so until the last 2 kids get home from middle school. This is when the real fun begins! On any given day, it is now a balancing act getting the kids to dance, tennis, piano, tae-kwon-do lessons, matches, tests and everything else you could throw your child into to insure they grow up to be well-rounded, responsible individuals! Oh yeah: AND she needs to find time to cook and get food on the table so when her famished family gets home, they can eat. I KNOW all you moms out there are impressed. Believe me, I am too!
* Adirondack-country is beautiful. And it's only a couple of hours to get to NYC by train. How convenient is that?!
* When you are on vacation with kids, check to make sure the activities you are doing are kid-friendly. For example, did you know that you cannot tour the Boeing plant in Everett, WA if your child is under four feet tall or if you have a baby that needs to be carried? Also, you cannot take a tour of the UN with a child who is 5 years old or under. This includes babies that are carried in a baby carrier and will sleep the entire time. There are no exceptions.
* I would lose all my baby weight if I lived in NYC. Walking is the best way to get around - it's so great!
* My girlfriend, Shabana, doesn't realize it, but she is a GREAT tour guide for NYC. All the little facts she knows about the city as she shows you the sights are fascinating!
* Vancouver is not a huge city but it's not a small town either. I feel like a small-towner when I visit NYC.
* Next time Bri and I visit NYC, I hope we can leave BOTH kids with my sister in Albany and really see the city! (hint! hint!)
Yes, the last post was about our impromptu vacation last week and this post is less about our misadventures and more about the great family time we had! We did a little visiting with Jon and Caroline in Seattle; a little visiting with the Sugi clan in Albany; and, we even managed a mini-vacation on our vacation to visit Shabana and Brent in New York City!
We are SO lucky to have family and friends that open their houses to the 4 of us. At three, Josh is not so gear-intensive anymore (we just have to make sure we have some new toys for the plane ride!), but Avery still requires us to pack a punch. I guess I should say that I wouldn't feel like I had all the stuff I needed for her if I didn't bring everything including the kitchen sink! And really, because of my sister's resourcefulness and great friends (!) we didn't have to pack as much as we needed!
Just as an aside: keep in mind when you are travelling by air these days that airlines are now starting to charge for check-in baggage. I thought we were getting a screaming deal flying from Seattle to Albany, but once you tack on the US$140 to get our bags there and back, it doesn't seem like such a great deal anymore! And that was for a mere 3 suitcases for the 4 of us!
So, anyway, I have to mention how thankful we are to everyone for hosting all of our (my) dysfunction. You guys all really made our trip so much easier than I was making it!
I have a whole stack of pictures at the end of this post, so instead of going into great verbal detail about our trip, I'll leave you with some of my reflections:
* Travelling with 2 kids is TWICE as hard as travelling with 1 kid.
* Take time to be tourist in your own surroundings. We don't live in Seattle, but we visit Jon and Caroline often. We don't do many of the touristy things, but when we do, it's always fun.
* When you need to get somewhere in a timely fashion, listen to your gut and not the guy telling you about a shortcut.
* My sister is truly a super-mom. Her typical day involves getting up early to get her 4 kids to school. Then, she works for a few hours (at home as a medical transcriptionist) in the morning until her littlest gets home from kindergarten. She entertains the little one and gets chores done until her second kid gets home from elementary school. At this time, there is usual one (if not more) extra child that comes with her own kid because my sister does after-school care in addition to the medical transcription job. She makes sure the 3 or more kids are fed, happy, doing homework for an hour or so until the last 2 kids get home from middle school. This is when the real fun begins! On any given day, it is now a balancing act getting the kids to dance, tennis, piano, tae-kwon-do lessons, matches, tests and everything else you could throw your child into to insure they grow up to be well-rounded, responsible individuals! Oh yeah: AND she needs to find time to cook and get food on the table so when her famished family gets home, they can eat. I KNOW all you moms out there are impressed. Believe me, I am too!
* Adirondack-country is beautiful. And it's only a couple of hours to get to NYC by train. How convenient is that?!
* When you are on vacation with kids, check to make sure the activities you are doing are kid-friendly. For example, did you know that you cannot tour the Boeing plant in Everett, WA if your child is under four feet tall or if you have a baby that needs to be carried? Also, you cannot take a tour of the UN with a child who is 5 years old or under. This includes babies that are carried in a baby carrier and will sleep the entire time. There are no exceptions.
* I would lose all my baby weight if I lived in NYC. Walking is the best way to get around - it's so great!
* My girlfriend, Shabana, doesn't realize it, but she is a GREAT tour guide for NYC. All the little facts she knows about the city as she shows you the sights are fascinating!
* Vancouver is not a huge city but it's not a small town either. I feel like a small-towner when I visit NYC.
* Next time Bri and I visit NYC, I hope we can leave BOTH kids with my sister in Albany and really see the city! (hint! hint!)
Space Needle in Seattle at dusk
Josh loved to look at the Space Needle from the ground and loved watching the elevator go up, but the actual going up and being up top took some getting used to!
Avery didn't care too much either way - just as long as she was being carried!
We're actually on vacation!
Beautiful view looking out west from the top of the Space Needle
Taking time for some rides at the base of the Space Needle
The little hill in the Sugi's backyard. Cass was a seasoned pro, but Josh, not very experienced with snow, needed a hand with the incline
He managed to pick up this part pretty quick on his own!
And he loved the ride down!
Cass and Tess wanted to do some face painting. Josh takes it to a whole new level!
Cass as a "tiger"
Arriving at Penn Station - in front of Madison Square Gardens
Wall Street - in front of the NYSE
Grabbing the bull by the...
Brian's impression of Vance Munson
Ground Zero today
Brian was relieved when he discovered he didn't have to do without it for a week!
New Amsterdam, Manhattan, New York
Statues amidst building restoration
One of the few times you actually see Avery in NYC!
Brian in Times Square (the New Year's ball is on top of the building with Yahoo)
Target wishes the atheletes luck in Vancouver!
ALL of us took turns with the Avery-carrying
The lights on Broadway
The red steps of TKTS in Times Square
The ice rink at Rockefeller Center
Yet another break to feed Avery
The sign that best describes our trip!
Posing outside the City Grill with Omar the famous dog (?!)
A photo with Brent, Shabana's new hubby!
Avery in her bed at Shabana's
Yes, it IS a dog bed, but it's a tempurpedic bed!
The flag from the UN embassy in Iraq
Posing for a shot outside the UN despite the rain
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)