Weekend Getaway

Last weekend was BJ's annual out of town state softball tournament.  So we packed up the troops and headed west over the mountains to the Lacey/Olympia area.  A quick family getaway was just what we needed as we haven't done much of anything since Audri was born. :)  The trip was great.... the kids did awesome despite some LONG days and we managed to mix in some fun with the softball (not that softball's not fun, just more so for BJ than us)!  Here are some highlights/pics from our trip...

Friday afternoon we packed up the car, picked up the kids and headed out.  We timed it just right as Audri had just eaten and was due for a little catnap.  I felt like we literally packed half our house.  It's amazing how much crap traveling with a baby requires.

It was a beautiful day to drive over the passes.  I felt like I could have taken a million pictures.  Snoqualmie was stunning.

After a stop in North Bend for dinner, we were back on the road for the last stretch of the trip.  And, I think we would have been fine other than we hit traffic and little sis just couldn't take the car seat any longer.  So... I spent the last 1/2 hour of the trip holding her hand.

But, we made it and after unloading all our crap we immediately got the kids ready for bed as it was almost 9pm.  And can I just say, sister rocked her first hotel stay.  She slept all night even after sleeping more than normal from the car trip.  I guess when you go into the weekend with low expectations it is easy to exceed them.  Jackson's first hotel trip was a nightmare so I was prepared to stay up all night.  Not this girl...

Saturday morning, we were up and at em early, as in 8am early!  BJ's team had the early game so we were up, fed and dressed at the crack of dawn.  And in true west side fashion, it was really foggy.  So foggy that it was hard to see the outfield from the bleachers.  We think we saw BJ out there!

Audri decided she'd take a little morning nap which was fine by me.  Made for a really easy first game!



In usual Skanger fashion, they lost their first game of the day (seems to happen every year) so we had a long break before their next game at 3pm.  So where did we go... Cabela's of course!

It was our first time in a Cabela's store and man it was awesome.  It was essentially a zoo, just with dead, stuffed animals.  Although they did have some living animals in the aquarium in the middle of the store.  Jackson had a ball, especially because they had an escalator (another one of his favorite things).

After we hung out at Cabela's for a while, we found a Red Robin for lunch.  And since we were on a trip, we let Jackson order a chocolate milkshake.  He sucked it down fast. :)

Post lunch, we headed back to our hotel room to hang out and rest.  My favorite part about rest time, waking up after dosing off for a couple of minutes to find Jackson playing with his toys on the floor telling me "shhh, quiet... Daddy is sleeping."  Sure enough, I look over and BJ is passed out on Jackson's bed. So much for Jackson taking a nap! 

The kids and I made it to the next game but by the end, the heat was getting to Audri.  So, we dropped BJ off at the other complex and headed back to the hotel.  We all enjoyed the AC.  Heat in the west side is nothing like heat over here.  85 degrees felt like 100!

After we cooled off and heard from BJ that they were still playing, we headed back to the fields later that evening.  The bleachers were shaded by then which was so nice to not worry about the sun.

It was past this little girl's bed time.

BJ's team ended up losing out late that night which left Sunday wide open.  So we got up, ate breakfast and headed to the pool (BJ had promised Jackson they could go swimming). Side note that cracks me up... on the way to the pool, Jackson told us the carpet in the hallway was camouflaged. :)



After the pool, we loaded up the car and headed up north to the Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium.

It was a first for all of us and I have to say it was a pretty cool.  We always seem to pick the hottest days to go to the zoo... even at 10am it was warm. But we trekked around for an hour and a half and checked out the animals.  Jackson's favorite... the sharks! 

He also thought the elephants were pretty funny.  One of the elephants was flapping its ears quite loudly.

We let Jackson pick something out in the gift shop.  His choice... a green and yellow snake.  And man is he proud of it!

After the zoo, it was off to North Bend for lunch and some quick shopping.  And when I say quick, I mean quick.  I barely had five minutes in the GAP outlet picking out clothes for Audri before she started having a meltdown.  It was nap time and we needed to get back in the car and head home.

All in all, it was a great weekend.  Jackson did awesome, Audri was a trooper and we squeezed in some much needed family time!

Heat Wave

We had another triple digit weekend so we tried our hardest to stay cool.  That of course, involved water.  BJ had state softball tourny #1 and while we made it to the early game each day, it was too hot to stay at the fields any longer.  So... we played in the back yard.

And little A hung out in the shade which I'm pretty sure was still 85+ degrees.  She did ok for a while although we had to call it a day when her cheeks started to turn pink.  I bribed Jackson with a frozen yogurt date so he would want to come inside. :)

Bucky

You are probably wondering why on earth this blog title is called Bucky.  Well, we learned recently that Bucky is Jackson's invisible friend.  It took us a while to realize “who” Bucky was exactly but now that we have it figured out, it all makes sense.  Bucky seems to appear randomly and almost always when Jackson gets in trouble.  Just today when I was picking up the kids from Deanne’s, she told me about how Audri was playing on the play mat and Jackson was by her side goofing around.  All of the sudden Audri started to cry and Deanne looks down and she has a bite mark on her arm.  When I asked Jackson about it in the car he told me he didn’t bite baby sis, it was Bucky.  So both he and Bucky were in trouble today.

Poor sis

And on this particular day, Bucky was outside playing with sidewalk chalk with us.  He and Jackson were tracing their feet and making pictures for Grandma Pat to see.  At least this time Bucky was behaving himself!

Three Months

Audri girl... it's so hard to believe you are already three months old.  It seriously feels like just yesterday I was checking into the hospital so anxious to meet you.  You are truly a miracle and there is not a day that goes by that I don't think about how lucky I am to be your Mommy.

Unfortunately, this week marked the end of my maternity leave which meant I had to go back to work.  I feel very fortunate that I have enough leave to go back part-time for a while because I had major stress about leaving you.  Over the last couple of weeks, you've had major stranger anxiety and are very picky about who holds you (and you scream when you don't know who is holding you).  I'm so happy to say though that you rocked your first week at Deanne's.  You cried the first two days I dropped you off but other than that, were a happy girl that ate and slept well.  Whew!  It was a huge relief to me and I hope that it becomes smooth sailing as I ease back into work.

Not only do you have stranger anxiety, you are also a very sensitive baby.  Your don't like loud noises as you startle very easily and I've noticed lately that it is heightened when you are tired.  One loud noise can make you go from being happy and playing to crying very quickly - which isn't good when brother is always VERY loud.  When you are in your element though you are generally a very happy baby.

Your latest obsession is your hands and you love to stare at them and eat them.  You are also talking a lot especially right after you eat.  Jackson loves talking to you during this time and always makes sure to point out when you smile at him. :) 

Just like your brother, you don't like being on your tummy.  In fact, I was trying to get a picture of you on your tummy today and you kept rolling to your back. I finally had to give up because I wasn't quick enough.  I wonder if this means you'll be a late crawler just like him.

Your old man hair is still going strong and I'm wondering if you will grow some on top soon.  It seems like you are starting to but I don't know if I'm just imagining it or if there is really more up there than before.  And what you do have in back is starting to fall out.  I changed your crib sheet yesterday and there was hair on it where you sleep. 

Speaking of sleep, you are rockin in that department.  Jackson spoiled me with sleeping through the night at eight weeks but you followed that right up at eleven.  You were sleeping a solid twelve hours but this last heat spell has kind of broken that up since I can't swaddle you as well.  Lately, you've been on a 7:30 to 5:30 streak but I can't complain because at 5:30, you usually take your binkie and sleep another hour at least.  I'm SO grateful for this as it makes my life as a working Mom so much easier.         

We are so thankful to have you in our lives baby girl.  Sometimes it's hard to even comprehend how much joy you bring us.... we love you so much!

Obsessed

To say Jackson has an obsession with the garbage truck I feel is an understatement.  This kid lives and breathes anything to do with garbage.  There is not a day that goes by that we don't talk about our garbage day and him helping put out our garbage. And when he plays with any truck (fire truck, dump truck, etc), it somehow turns into a garbage truck picking up the garbage.  We've even had to discipline him because he won't sleep the night before our garbage day because he is so excited.  A couple weeks ago, the night before our garbage pickup, I heard something at 11pm.  BJ sat up in bed and looked out into the hallway and our spare bedroom door was open and guess who was looking out the window waiting to see the garbage truck?!  Yep, he's that obsessed.  We made him go back to bed and he was still up at 5:45am waiting to see the truck.  Even though it doesn't usually come until 7:00am, he'll wait and stare out the window without moving or making a peep.  It's pretty incredible if you ask me.  Not sure how long the garbage truck will be so "cool" but right now he's pretty obsessed.

 

     

A Special Visit

We didn't have anything planned this morning so we decided to visit BJ's parents in their orchard.  It was a great idea... not only because we got to see them but there were a wealth of things to entertain Jackson.  He got to go on a four wheeler ride, drive the tractor with Papa and eat some yummy cherries.  And the best part... it obviously took a lot out of him.  He ate a huge lunch when we got home and now has been sleeping for over two hours. :)

 The lighting on this pic is horrible but I love it so much I'm posting it anyway :)

 Sister hung out in the shade

Solo Sleepover

Last weekend, Jackson had his first big boy, solo sleepover in Chelan with G&G Terry.  Mom was brave enough to take him home with her which left me with a rather quiet house (BJ was gone at a softball tournament).  In fact, five minutes after he was gone, there might have been some tears because I already missed him.  Pathetic, I know... it's just not the same at home without him.

The first text I received from Mom... "So far... we swam with frog, played lots with water table, baseball, and now inside with chess set!! Very busy!! So far, real good!!" and then the second text message "Heading out to Lakeview for dinner!!"  Lakeview was followed by a go kart ride at Rally Alley and boat watching on the lake.  Obviously, Jackson was a little spoiled by G&G and needless to say the sleepover was a success.  :)