Icy Rainier Mornings

For Christmas we spent a peaceful eight days at home in Rainier. It didn't snow but it got cold. Several nights we had freezing fog that coated everything in a layer of ice and thick frost, it was quite beautiful. The other mornings it was crisp and clear with impossibly blue skies.

These are a few of my favorite shots. Some are from the clear cut behind our house and the others are from Silver Lake. The first shot is from Christmas morning out at the top of our drive looking through the trees at the cold fog in the valley below- definitely my favorite shot.

A Very Busy Day!

Ah, the not-so-gentle madness of the Christmas season. One day you're stuffing cranberries and turkey in your mouth, the next BAM! it's straight into the madness. Throw in a life divided between two houses, a full-time job and the closing weeks of a semester and you just get a whole new wrinkle, and that wrinkle is probably right smack between your eyeballs and born in a permanent scowl.

But, despite the pressure to achieve gift giving perfection and get Christmas cards in the mail sometime before Valentine's day, I love the holidays. I especially love the "idea" of the holidays; you know envisioning the holiday meal, the kids expressions when they see their gifts on Christmas, thinking about spending time making more memories. And as the kids get older I think of more and more things I want to be able to do with them. Today was one of those opportunities.

I remember my mom taking my sister and I to the Nutcracker when we were little. I just remember being enchanted by the ballerinas. Somehow I forgot how hard it is understand a ballet, even the Nutcracker, when you're four.

Kathryn, dressed in her Christmas finery, was so excited for the ballet to begin. Then it did. She sat quietly for about 20 minutes, then leaned over and put her head on my arm. I brushed her hair with my hand and kissed her head. She looked sweetly up and me and said, "when are they going to start talking?" Ah, there it was that one little detail that I completely forgot to discuss with her.

Then there was the lack of anything except nuts and macaroons at intermission, Kathryn is convinced she doesn't like coconut or cashews. That led into the temper tantrum just as the lights dimmed the first time to signal us back to our seats. Let us just say that won't be a cherished holiday memory and leave it at that.

We ended up making it almost through the whole thing, but Kathryn was convinced she would die of starvation and I was convinced I was going to die at the hands of the people surrounding us.

But, somehow it was all worth it. When I tucked her in tonight I asked her if she enjoyed it a little bit and she said it was the best thing ever. It really was worth it!

We also crammed in the kids Christmas party up at the Air Station. It was really fun this year, both kids really enjoyed themselves and I really do love seeing Santa come in on the helicopter. Our final feat was walking up to the truck parade with our good friends, Sarah and Doug and family; I LOVE the truckers parade. No really, I LOVE IT. There is something just so darned cool about all the fire trucks and dump trucks and log trucks and every other truck imaginable completely decked out in christmas lights. Kathryn was going nuts yelling Merry Christmas to everyone and David ran himself ragged trying to shepherd her around.

It was a crazy, crazy day. But, I loved it. And I hope you enjoy the pictures of our memory making.

He's been slated!

After what seems like a few dozen years of stress, Jon found out this morning that he got his number one pick and is headed to the USCGC Healy. The Healy is an ice breaker home ported in Seattle. So, while we still haven't figured out the logistics of the move and the timing of all of it, we know that we're going to be doing a GEO tour. That just means that the kids and I will be living in Rainier and Jon will be up in Seattle during the week and home on the weekends- except when he's up hobnobbing with walruses and whales, that is!

So, the details are pretty limited at this point, but stay tuned and I'll keep you all posted. It's pretty exciting for all of us, especially Jon who is really excited to get started on this next adventure.

Home from Thanksgiving...at Home!

Well, no pictures to share, you'll have to settle for mental images this time! But, we made it back from our whirl-wind trip to Rainier via a quick birthday/Thanksgiving dinner at Grandma Mary's house. We worked out backsides off up in Rainier cutting and stacking wood and got some brush burned off...we felt very farmer-like and terribly productive. The house was in great shape and didn't show any ill-effects of some of the really nasty weather it's sat through in the last few weeks. There were a few branches down, but nothing that was out of the ordinary.

It was so hard to leave this morning. It is my home and I'm so very happy there! It seems like each time we go it gets harder for all of us to leave. We'll be headed back for Christmas and it is going to be so special to spend our first Christmas morning in our new home. I just really can't wait.

But, let's not forget about Thanksgiving! We had a great dinner with Grandma Mary and a few family members- including our beautiful niece, Maya, who flew up from Santa Barbara. (We swapped kids for a night and sent David to Grandma's a day early, and kept Maya for a night. Definitely one of the highlights of the holiday!)

I think that even though it is a late thought...it's a very genuine one, I want to remind my friends how much you mean to me. You all inspire me and keep me sane, and most of all when it feels like I'm really missing being close to a big happy family, you welcome me with open arms. Even if I couldn't be with you for the holidays, or heck even if I haven't seen you in years (you know who you are!), I love each of you and thank you for your presence in my, and my families, life.

Happy Thanksgiving (a little late).

Never mind...

It didn't happen today. Maybe tomorrow we'll get the call.

Ugh.

It's almost 11:30 at night....

the night before we "think" the detailer is going to call. I'm a mess. I know where the kids and I are going, but have no idea where Jon is headed for his next job. This has been the hardest transfer season we've ever gone in to, it's just loaded with pitfalls.

So, hopefully tomorrow night I'll be posting an update that we know. And hopefully the detailer has smiled on Jon once again....

I need to be thankful for the wait to be over.

Birthday trip to the Mountains!

So, for my birthday this year I wanted to get out of town and up to the mountains for a day with my family. We planned a trip up to Grouse Mountain to do some preliminary scouting for our annual Christmas tree hunt (it's going to be December 5th for our fellow caravaners who haven't gotten the date, yet). So, after hearty breakfast of eggs, sausage and grits (my favorite, and Jon's least favorite....so obviously he loves me to make them for me, thanks baby!) we loaded the dogs, the kids, a nice cheese and salami snack picnic, and a few guns into the truck and hit the trail out of town.

It was a beautiful day to be up in the mountains; crisp and clear. We hit a bit of snow and ice and the kids loved that. We found an amazing spot about a mile hike in off the main road (Forest Rd 1) that had a huge out cropping of some sort of green rock and some really cool gnarly pine trees. And we found an amazingly straight sided little canyon- there's a picture of Pup climbing out in the pictures I posted.

Here are some pictures- enjoy!

Veteran's Day and Military Spouse Residency Relief Act Day!

To all of our veterans, thank you for serving. To all of my fellow female veterans; Ladies, we have paved the way for the military women of today and tomorrow to be the strong and successful people that they know they can be. They can serve with equality, with respect and with pride.

And for all of the military spouses out in e-land! Today's the day we've waited for! The President signed the Military Spouses Residency Relief Act finally giving us the right to have a home!

David....

Poor guys is sick AGAIN! He had a soccer game yesterday which was played in a soaking rain, not fun when it's only about 55 degrees out. He kind of waffled through his halloween festivities last night and by today he's down again with a 102.5 fever. Poor kid just can't catch a break this fall. So, another day out of school and hopefully he'll feel better by Tuesday!

Here's my little sicky, doesn't he look pitiful? Get well David!

Halloween 2009! Boo! or should I say "BZZZZZZZZ"?!

Happy first day of November to everyone! I hope you all had a really fun Halloween. We had a fun week, let's face it Halloween lasts forever when you have kids; there are the parties and the treats and the costumes and the whole trick-or-treating bit...it's not just a day, it's a whole season!

This is the first year that I haven't made any part of David's costume, so that was kind of a sad moment for me when I realized that. But, he wore the cloak that I made for him last year and added a store-bought gory mask to transform into a grim reaper....sadly I have no pictures of him, he was elusive yesterday and today he is sick...so you'll have to wait for the scary views of our little reaper. But, I've got a funny David/Halloween story to share: he trick-or-treats with his friends Gabe and Ethan, it's kind of become a tradition as he's done it the last three years, well this year the three boys came to the door and Gabe and Ethan are looking their goulish best, but David is just looking like my handsome man in a big grey cloak. So, of course, I asked why he wasn't wearing his mask and he complains that he can't see through it, it's too dark and it's making his glasses fog up. So, I said something about understanding and I wish them luck on the rest of their trip through the neighborhood. As they are heading out of the yard, Ethan turns around and says, "You know Mrs. Placido, my mask makes everything too dark too, but you don't hear me belly-aching about it." I about died. I can only imagine the grief those three give each other! But, mask or not, he filled half a pillow case (he's totally not into carrying the cute little pumpkin treat bag he's carried since he was a tot :( ) So, his candy buy-back netted him $25 bucks! Not bad for a nights work.

Okay, so Kathryn, the one who still like's mom's costumes! She was a bumble bee and boy was she cute! I got off easy this year because I was able to purchase tights and shirt from Lands End and just had to make the skirt. The wings and antennae came from a "Naughty Bumble Bee" costume I picked up at a grown-ups halloween shop! But, they are just plain old wings and antennae so they worked great! And I turned over the black thigh highs and clingy striped dress to a guy I work with who is a cross dressing nun (for charity of course!)

So, here is my little bumble bee! Look out she's a real honey! (Sorry, all my cerebral energy goes into my school work, so my puns are a bit lame.)

Happy Birthday Mom- I love you!

You're an amazing woman who has done so much to inspire me. I cherish my memories of you and I miss you every minute. Thanks for being my mom and for being such an incredible woman,

I love you-

Lainy

PS- You've got to let me know how the chocolate covered baklava is! It looked sinful :)

Pumpkin patch!

So, we went down to Fortuna to the pumpkin patch and corn maze at River Bar Farms earlier today and, as always, had a blast! We went with our friends, the Kabers, and we raced them through the corn maze- of course we totally dominated! (Competitive much?) And we picked out a bunch of squash for cooking and the kids and I each picked out a pumpkin. We wrapped our adventure with lunch at Shamus T. Bones in Carlotta- YUM!

Stroke, stroke....

As some of you know, Jon has been up in Oregon wrapping up some loose ends on another merchant mariners credential, I *think* it was for his AB....but don't quote me on that! At any rate, this class was for the Lifeboatman qualification.

So, this morning, Jon called me this morning to tell me that he passed his test and that he was getting ready to go take his practical. I have to admit I had no idea there was a practical involved...so I had to ask. It seems that they put eight guys into a life boat; give 6 of them oars, one is the coxswain (hence the title of the post), and I'm assuming that the other one is on the tiller but don't quote me on that. So, the practical grades the coxswains ability on being able to guide his oarsmen through different tasks like being able to get away from the dock, pick up a man over board and the such. It sounded pretty interesting, but to be honest it sounded like something that I couldn't imagine anybody getting tested on! Who knew?

I'm sure that by the last time I talked to him tonight he was really tired of me singing/saying in my best Billy Squire voice "stoke, stroke". And of course I had to ask if they gave him a drum to beat on. It's a good thing he puts up with me!

Regardless of the kind of surprising practical exam- which he passed with flying colors by the way- Congratulations Jon! I'm proud of you.

Stroke!

Update: Nope, it isn't

It's Strep....with a side of scarlet fever! I knew this wasn't right! Ha, mommy vindication.

So, the poor guy is on antibiotics and is officially not going to school or soccer tomorrow, and I'm not going to let him play in the game on Saturday, either...I think the rest time will be appreciated.

Thanks for all the well-wishes. He's doing pretty well, just not doing much. Lots of movie watching and napping.

Is it?

David is sick again, going on day three of a bad sore throat, head ache, fever and upset stomach. Poor guy. So, I'm home with him and Kathryn is at school; I'm trying to keep them as far away from each other as humanly possible. I'm not sure what it is that has latched on to him but obviously the mind automatically goes to the flu....

Hopefully he gets over it soon.

Update: It's Wednesday night and the poor kid is still fighting a fever between 101 and 102 even with motrin and tylenol on board. He's got a "horrible" headache, which has me worried more than anything else- if only the damned pediatrician would just call me back! Ack!

At this point no school or soccer tomorrow...and I'll be shocked if he is up and around by Friday!

Booya!

Whoot whoot! Got that danged mid-term grade back and patting myself on the back for my 98%! Please pardon me while I step away from the computer to do some happy dancing!

(Thank you...you may now return to your regularly scheduled programming!)

Attack of the mini-van driving soccer mom!

If only I'd known I'd someday succumb to this overdone cliche of suburban life, I would have kept the subaru! Okay, not really. But, it is kind of interesting having the kids both involved in soccer this fall. It makes the family schedule a complete nightmare, but hey! it gives us something to do! (As my dad would say, "it keeps you out of trouble.")

David's team is smoking hot, they absolutely wipe the field with their opponents and have even been the subject of an email to coaches about working with their team to not run up the score! (Somedays being a coach has it's perks! LOL)

Kathryn's team is my team and well let's just say that on most days the goals they score are in the correct net. We have the stereotypical little-kid soccer personas represented; the flower picker, the crier (that would be Kathryn), the kid who won't leave her clothes on, the kid who lays in the goal, the kid who swings from the goal, the kid who can't control their zeal for the game and will kick the ball in whatever direction she is facing at the moment- but she does it with style! But, it's a great little gang of girls and we have a ton of fun. So, I guess that's all that matters. (please, tell me that's all that matters!)

So...without further commentary from me, here are the soccer playing Placido children! Ta Da!

An Open Letter to my Future Daughter in Law

Dear Daughter in Law-

Welcome to the family we are all so happy to have you join us. I particularly am thrilled to know that my dear son remembered to zip his zipper often enough to actually attract a mate.

There are a few things I would like to apologize for right off the bat. (I am a firm believer in preemptive strikes when necessary). First, I considered having David sitting backwards on the potty at about ten, just until he quit missing so much, but decided that would be awkward at school. Aiming at cheerios was also dismissed as a viable option...although you may want to consider that. I've never really figured out how a child who can knock the petals off a rose bush at a good 5 feet can't manage to hit a pretty good sized target and manages more times then not to hit the seat, and on really off days, hit the bathtub as well.

Second, make sure that you shop regularly for socks. He wears his outside without shoes, I have no explanation. But, grass and mud are usually wiped off really well with one good lap over the wool rug in the living room.

Third, do you like a top sheet? Well, I hope not. They usually end up covering the dog. But, don't worry, if he ever makes the bed, I'm sure he'll remember to pick it up off the dog's bed to put back onto his.

And finally, no there's nothing wrong with him, we asked the doctor when he was 10, I guess some people just really do need to spend that much time in the bathroom.

Sincerely, (tag you're it)

-Elaine

Why?

Did I feel the urge to make Jon a pan of oatmeal butterscotch bars?! It's like TORTURE! I've already eaten two and I'm so weak! I may not be able to keep myself away from the any longer! Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!

If I could eat them all before the family gets home, maybe they'll never know!

He needs to go to Rainier tomorrow WITH the damed evil butterscotch bars just to save me from them!

Home Sweet Home!

In April we bought a house in Rainier, Oregon. We love it and can't wait to make it our permanent home. It's a 99 year old (updated) farmhouse, on 10 acres, 4 bedrooms, 3 baths and just everything I've ever dreamed of. Here's a few shots to get you acquainted.

Uh....gee that's kind of embarrassing!

So...it's been awhile. I'm a busy person. I forgot my password. My dog ate my homework. I was on vacation.

You get the general idea, right? It's been awhile, okay a LONG while, and I have absolutely NO good excuse. So, shoot me. Then get over and read along and see what kind of craziness we've gotten into now!

Oh, and I've missed you, too.