BOO???

Before moving to WA we came out on a house-hunting trip. We looked at tons of houses before deciding on the place we now call home. Back then, there was only one house that was occupied; the rest of the neighborhood consisted of homes in various stages of construction and empty lots.

After moving in, we endured a couple of years of noisy mornings, strangers up and down the street, and nails on the street. But little by little, lot after lot, houses started popping up on what was once a pile of dirt and rocks. Lights came one, people waved, and homes were made.

People from all four corners of the country came together in a little neighborhood on Olympia's west side.

Five years later only a couple of homes remain empty. I love our neighborhood. We are surrounded by good people here. Not all of us are friends, but we're all neighborly.

During the summer months, at any given time, there are kids on the street. They vary in age and gender. And just like their parents, not all of them are friends, but there's always room for one more body to join the shenanigans at hand.

Last year someone started BOOing folks during the month of October. Basically a treat is left at the home of a neighbor along with some instructions. You tape your BOO sign on your door and BOO two other people that don't have one on theirs. The kids get a kick out of it.

On Monday I got home to a cool metal cat and a tin full of candy. I set out the next day to get goodies. Today when J got home from school he asked me why we got BOOed again. Well, I have no idea! As I drove through the neighborhood I noticed that many of the houses have multiple signs on their doors.

BOO to not following directions? No way...YAY to our cool rebel neighbors.

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

Tea-rrific!

The Birthday Girl was up early and asked to listen to

Call Me Maybe on YouTube.

Then it was off to school where a celebration ensued: Oreo Cookies with strawberry filling.

Because no birthday would be complete without a trip to the mall, that's where we went. 

We tried on Ugg Boots 

and hats. 

We had lunch and headed home.

The night before, Daddy asked here where she wanted to go for her birthday dinner. 

Because we were heading to Tacoma anyway, he suggested Buffalo Wild Wings, among other things.

Because she's her daddy's girl, she chose BWW without hesitation.

Because no birthday would be complete without a second trip to the mall,

and because she's her mommy's girl, we went to Nordstrom.

We bought her birthday present ~ some boots.

(She's weird that way...always has been....Toys or Fashion??? Fashion, of course!)

Because I love to take a family picture at every birthday,

and because there was nobody to take it, we took our own:

It's awful quality. And I'm convinced we are all more attractive than the picture shows.

Once at home, there really was somebody more attractive waiting for her:

She's been eyeing this cake every time we go to Safeway.

She was a happy girl.

And a tired one too.

As we speak she is snug in her bed; another birthday under her belt.

Partying can be exhausting, especially when you started five days ago.

Her party was last Saturday. 

All of my attempts at having it at the pumpkin patch were dismissed during the summer when I was ready to book the place.

She wanted a home party.We consulted with Daddy who swore off another after her princess one last year. 

I suggested a small tea party with a few friends. He complied. She was thrilled.

And the preparations began.

We decided early on it would be a Girls-Only event.

It was so much fun....both the planning and the day itself.

We had finger sandwiches and veggies; a story, a game, a photo booth, a candy bar,

and, of course, tea!

The moms had a nice afternoon relaxing and chatting.

It was quiet. Way more quiet than I'm used to at a party.

And then the boys came home. 

I can't believe our little girl is four!

Bribes

That right there was my Facebook status update tonight. It proved to be popular with many likes and a few I love yous.

I felt a little guilty at first, which is probably why I posted it. But as it turns out, Momma knows best. He had some homework to finish up that I knew would become a fight after running three miles. Not to mention the time. Sure enough...it took him a little over an hour to get his thoughts in place and onto paper.

He was adamant about going to practice. I love his work ethic, especially since he's been going nonstop since 7:45 this morning, but something had to give today.The deal was that if he skipped cross country and finished his homework by 7:30, I'd take him out for ice cream. We shook on it and he finished with about 20 minutes to spare.

Okay. Okay...I wasn't really in the mood to drag us out to one of the coldest parks in Olympia and wait for an hour while he ran. But those are just semantics.

Dennis has been gone all week and I'm tired! As we speak, the kids are fast asleep, the homework is done, and their tummies are full -- of the yumminess that is an Oreo McFlurry.

Like I said, Semantics!

Lucky

Lucky. It's a word I've heard thrown around quite a bit lately.

On Saturday, J told us he was SO lucky because just that week on Thursday he had gone to his friend's birthday party. On Friday he went to a picnic where he got to play with a bunch of his friends, and that evening he was going to our neighborhood's block party.

Last week was M's first week of school and J's first full week. It was also the first week for fall sports. We were busy! So busy, in fact,  that M decided to get a nap in before making her soccer debut.

LUCKY!

The picnic that I speak of was the annual HAP picnic. I'm a co-chair this year and had the opportunity to introduce myself to the Kindergarten parents at Curriculum night earlier in the week. In my push to get parents to volunteer, I spoke of the feeling of community that we have at Hansen. I told them how on M's first day of school she was greeted by several of the staff there, of how I feel that they are always safe behind those walls. I love the HAP program. I love that the kids travel together through the years. It's a great fit for somebody like J who is socially-challenged. It presents the opportunity for him to build great friendships without much of an effort on his part. I feel very LUCKY to have gotten in, and I feel lucky that  M got into the preschool program there.

Saturday was our first annual neighborhood block party. There was a great turnout. The adults ate and drank while the kids ran around and planned for a talent show. As we were wrapping things up some of the other neighbors and I were talking about how awesome our neighborhood is and how LUCKY we were to have stumbled upon it. 

As it turns out, the next day my mom ended up in the hospital. She had a sinus infection that went haywire; her blood pressure went sky high, her potassium and sodium levels low, and five days later she's still there.

I don't always feel lucky when these things happen. I stress about not being able to be there with her; get angry over the shabby phone lines that won't go through to her room; annoyed at the nurses that don't seem to be doing much. But, she's lucky to have family and friends there that never let her down. They call and visit and keep her stocked with the things she needs.

 I'm LUCKY to have the best mom in the world still here.

And I'm lucky to have my two beautiful kids....

They keep me busy when I need it most. They keep my body moving, my mind occupied, and my heart full of love.

Sleepover 101

 1. Ask parents if you can have a sleepover with your sibling.

2. Move one mattress to the adjacent room, which just so happens to be brother's.

3. Pull his mattress down.

4. Chat, giggle, laugh.

 5. Repeat #4. Over and over until "lights out."

Hooray for Sleepovers!