Festivals

It was a crazy weekend. Fun, but busy.

Festivals and big events in Wilmington primarily take place in April, May, September, and October. I guess festival planners assume the weather will be bad November through March and that people will be at the beach July through August. They're probably on to something.

There were actually three different kid-friendly events we wanted to attend on Saturday, and we actually made it to two of them. (It occurred to me today that we are slowly moving away from doing one thing a day, if anything, and it having to occur between 9 am and 11 am because after 11 am our entire day is planned up through bedtime. Such freedom!)

We started at a fundraiser for a friend's neighborhood emergency response team. While there, the kids got to climb on fire trucks.

They sold concessions, and Leon looked very serious as he ate his lunch.

Of course Ree had to get her face painted.

The kids were not happy when I told them they had to sit down to eat lollipops - but they did do it. (They weren't going to throw away candy!)

Next stop was Kidapalooza, and the first thing the kids did there was...climb on a fire truck. It's a good thing there were no major fires in town yesterday afternoon.

The biggest reason we went to Kidapalooza was Hello Kitty was supposed to make an appearance. Natalia was VERY, VERY excited to see, "KITTTTTYYYY!!!!" Actually, it's a small miracle that Natalia didn't knock Kitty over when she ran up and hugged her. Natalia can be a little, um, aggressive in one-on-one situations. (Last week she took down a 5-year-old boy on the preschool playground. Sadly, this is not the first time that has happened. On the bright side, we have little concerns about her dating.)

The kids were all very excited to go in a bouncy castle.

Mike busy coloring.

There was a Mary Kay booth giving the kids makeovers (a little wrong, but my girls loved it). Natalia had to stop by for some lip gloss. She may not like most strangers, but she likes strangers with beauty products!

The boys got in a few "games" of cornhole.

Natalia worked on her hula hooping.

After that, it was time to head home for naps. Of course Natalia and the boys fell asleep in the car, and since the boys had slept, they did not nap at home. So then there was no choice but to move on to evening activities! More fun! But more on that later. I am wiped just thinking about the weekend.

Room Tetris Time

Saturday was room rearranging day. Again. Someday we won't have to reshuffle all the rooms every season, and it will just feel odd.

This time we were moving the boys back out to the sunroom, hopefully for the last time. With a little luck, we will get new floors in Ree's room, get bunk beds for the girls, and get Natalia transitioned into the girls' room before it gets cold again so we can permanently move the boys back into their bedroom. Hey, we have six months. There's a chance of that happening...

So this time we went from a big kid sleep room that looked like this on the girl side (yes, it is always that messy)...

....this in the middle...

...and this on the boy side...

...to Ree's room looking like this. It's still messy, but there was major improvement!

On Saturday night when I told Ree it was time to brush her teeth, she told me that she wasn't ready - she wanted to keep cleaning her room. Then she laughed and added, "I bet you've never heard me say THAT before!"

Meanwhile, the boys' new digs are looking like this. My favorite part is definitely Mario on the ceiling.

As usual, the rooms aren't going to get any awards from HGTV, but the kids seem to like 'em, and they aren't bad for one day's work with four kids "helping."

Seattle (Again)

It is Sunday night, and I should be getting ready for the week ahead. But that really doesn't sound like fun. Actually, that sounds horrible. So forgive my self indulgence as I revisit our trek to Seattle. Or feel free to ignore me. (Side note: Why is it that when people read something on the internet that they don't like or don't agree with, they so often take the time to comment to the author and tell them how stupid they are? Why not just ignore it instead of (potentially) increasing the author's advertising revenue with their hatred? I don't get it.)

So without further ado, my Seattle awards (based on photos that I didn't already post when writing to the kids all last week).

Best Bathroom Feature
This was actually in the Atlanta airport, but I was impressed with the built in step stools in the women's bathrooms. Hurray for not squishing kids' stomachs while trying to simultaneously lift them up, work the faucet, get soap, and juggle luggage. I also liked that the Atlanta airport had separate, marked large stalls for handicapped individuals and for baby changing stations.

I was also impressed with the bathroom attendant who greeted me in the Charlotte airport on the way back. That is, until I realized she greeted everyone. Including some of the toilets.

Most Eco Friendly City
I knew I was going to love Seattle's tree hugging. I didn't realize how much until I stepped off the plane, and even the airport trash bins had more spaces for recycling than actual trash.

Fast food restaurants and mall food courts were even better. They threw in some good, old-fashioned composting. (And not a styrofoam container to be found.)

Then there were all the Prius cabs, the double buses that were electric hybrids, the fact that almost all the food served everywhere (including at my conference) was local...swoon.

Most Puzzling
I found the EMP to be confusing. In a great way, but confusing none-the-less. From the outside, it is all bright and colorful. The staff working the front desk are all appropriately tattooed and pierced. But then you head of the exhibits, and they switch to real museum mode. Dark, indirect lighting. No flash photography. Written captions on the wall. Except the first thing we saw in the indirect lighting was Dave Grohl's drums, circa 1993.

And the dark signs said things like this.

Actually, now that I think about it, I could write a lot more about EMP. (Another side note: Kurt Cobain came up with the cover design for Nevermind after watching a special on water births.)

Best View of People in Paper Gowns
The view from our hotel room. There were many people in paper gowns to be seen. They probably thought they had the best view of people in their pajamas.

Most Random Places for Green Space
I was impressed at Seattle's ability to cram in fairly substantial green spaces every few blocks throughout downtown. Plus I noticed quite a few buildings sporting rooftop gardens. But I have to say, I was most impressed when I spotted trees growing across and moss hanging down from an overpass. (See if you can spot it!)

 
There is so much more I wish to ramble about, but it is waaaay past my bedtime. But at least I am feeling relaxed. Now maybe I am ready to tackle another week. Maybe.

Seattle, Day 3

Hey guys!

There is lots to share from today, but I also had lots of work to do tonight and I don't have a lot of time to write before I go to bed. So here are just a few pictures, and I promise to show you lots more when I get home.

Dad did a ton of walking again today. He saw some blue trees.

It's hard to see in the picture, but there are tons of buses here, and many are double buses (two buses put together!) that run partly off electricity instead of just gas.

Dad also toured a brewery and got to see how beer was made.

They really like recycling and taking care of the Earth in Seattle. There are always three trashcans at malls and fast food restaurants. There is one for trash, one for recycling, and one for composting. They even put pictures on the outside so you know what to put inside.

Tonight Dad and I went to see the Chihuly Museum. Dale Chihuly is an artist that makes sculptures out of blown glass. There were sculptures inside, in a glasshouse (green house), and outside. Here are a few pics of some of the things we loved seeing.

Seattle, Part II

Hi Guys!

(Yes, this is also for the kids.)

I hope you guys had a fun day. Here are a few pictures from our day.

The downtown library is really big. And crazy looking!

Dad took a long walk today. A really, really long walk. He saw lots of cool things like this fountain.

And this statue of a man feeding seagulls.

And a giant ferris wheel that goes out over Puget Sound.

Here's another picture of Puget Sound.

After I got done with work, Dad and I walked around and went out to dinner. During our walk we saw the downtown Target (it was three stories tall).

We also saw the very first Starbucks. (And, no, Jewel. They didn't have cupcake pops.)

We tried to go to Pike's Place Market, but it was closed.

We did get to see a wall covered in gum.

The gum up close.

We ate dinner at the Crab Pot.

And now we need to go to bed. Love you guys!

Seattle

The kids are allowed to get up at 7:00, and by 7:06 this morning Leon had finished sending me an email. I guess he made use of my email address! So please forgive the randomness. This post is for Jewel, Leon, Mike, and Natalia.

We rode on two planes. One from Wilmington to Atlanta, and one from Atlanta to Seattle. The plane to Seattle was really big on the outside...

...and on the inside.

There were TVs on the backs of each of the seats. Dad watched a little bit of bowling and golf, but mostly we just watched the GPS.

They also told us information about where we were. It was REALLY, REALLY cold outside the plane, and we were REALLY, REALLY high up.

It the Atlanta airport they had vending machines. One was an ice cream machine. (Don't worry, we didn't get any.)

In Seattle, we rode on the monorail.

We saw the Space Needle,

and then we went to a museum. It had a tower of 700 instruments,

video games,

 ...and the biggest TV you've ever seen.

I love you guys! We had a fun day. I hope you had a great day too!