Wednesday, January 23, 2008

Family Time

We had an especially great three-day Martin Luther King Day weekend. We did tons of stuff as a family and I had two great afternoons of one-on-one time with Audrey. We didn't take a camera anywhere, though, so no photos with this post.

Saturday morning we went to the Burke Museum at the University of Washington. Even though I went to college at the UW and walked by the museum every day for a couple of years and have lived near it for decades I had never been inside. Audrey's preschool class went there for a field trip a couple of weeks ago and she really wanted to go back. Audrey mostly just wanted to run laps around the exhibit space, but I was OK with following her. She especially likes the volcano you can walk through and the rhino "fossil" (a cavity formed by a rhino that was encased in lava and then decomposed away) that kids can crawl into. Once she got tired of doing laps, we all gathered in the lobby where there were handmade plush dinosaur parts (tails, claws, "combs") that we could strap on. The girls weren't into it at first but warmed up to it and we spent a long time there.

On Sunday Carol took the girls to the grocery store, which has a playroom for kids. They love it, and Carol gets to shop unmolested. Then when Charlotte went down for a nap in the afternoon I took Audrey out for an adventure. It was relatively cold out (about 40 degrees) but the sun was out and made it feel warmer at our house. I threw some jackets in the backpack and Audrey and I hiked down to the Whale Tail Playground (near Alki Beach) through Schmitz Park.

The playground is at the opposite end of a soccer field from Alki Elementary School. Just as we emerged from the woods into the field, another girl about Audrey's age was unwinding the string to start flying her Winnie the Pooh kite with her parents. Audrey was fascinated and watched for a long time. The she approached the girl and I went over and stood by the parents. The two girls were having a quiet conversation standing about five feet from each other. We parents commented to each other that we wished we could hear what they were saying.

Apparently their negotiations were successful. Soon Audrey was running along beside her new friend Margot as Margot flew her kite (it was perfect kite wind). And soon after that Margot was letting Audrey have turns. It was the first time Audrey has ever flown a kite and she was thrilled. We did that for about 20 minutes or so. Audrey was getting a little possessive, so I suggested that she and I head to the playground. Audrey was surprisingly amenable.

Not too long after we got to the playground Margot and her mother appeared. Audrey played with Margot for about an hour while we parents shivered and watched. Then Audrey and I headed for the local coffee shop and got hot chocolate and a cookie and then caught the bus back up the hill to our house.

When we got home Charlotte was up from her nap. We packed up and headed to the YMCA for our weekly family swim. As soon as Audrey's water wings were on she jumped right into the pool and had a great time for an hour. She swims really well with the "floaties". Charlotte splashed around the side of the pool for half an hour, then finally let Carol hold her and walk around in the pool. She even let Carol dip her head in the water so she could blow bubbles.

Monday was a similar pattern. In the morning Carol took the girls to a West Seattle Moms gathering at a coffee shop that has toys for kids. Then when Charlotte went down for a nap Audrey and I headed to the Pacific Science Center for the annual model train show. Audrey loved the model trains, although she has a pretty short attention span and constantly wants to run to the next thing. The nice thing about being with her one-on-one is that she can do whatever she wants and I can just follow along. She got to color a wooden train whistle to bring home and control a model train for a while. The highlight for her was riding in the caboose of a little wheeled train a guy was driving around the plaza. It had about 6 cars each of which could hold 4 kids. She also made a friend in the kids play area inside (a favorite rainy day destination for us) and played there for about 45 minutes while I tried to stay awake on a comfortable bench. I didn't think it would go over well with Carol or the authorities if I lost Audrey by falling asleep while supposedly watching her.

Carol read somewhere that the infamous "terrible twos" is really a couple of peaks at age 2 1/2 and 3 1/2 where kids are stretching their boundaries and testing yours. That seems to be true, because Audrey is clearly emerging from that phase and at the moment she is a really pleasant, cooperative, agreeable person to be around. Bedtime is a joy. She calmly snuggles into our arms while we read her bedtime stories and goes to sleep with no resistance (and sleeps all night again - yipee!). I feel fortunate to have a really close relationship with her. I must say that even at her "worst" Audrey was an angel compared to some stories we've heard.

Of course, Charlotte is just entering the 2 1/2 year old phase. Charlotte has already made it clear she has a much stronger stubborn streak than Audrey ever had. She also has a strong preference for Mom if she's around. I'll do in a pinch, but if Carol is around Charlotte is a pure Momma's girl. Charlotte is saying more words all the time. She doesn't speak many real sentences yet, but she's communicating enough that her frustration level is slightly better.

I always feel like a weekend is a waste if I don't accomplish something. Usually it's some list of chores. But this weekend I went to bed Monday night feeling a great sense of accomplishment for all the great time I got to spend with my family, and especially tons of quality time with Audrey. I'm a lucky man to have these three wonderful girls in my life.

Saturday, January 12, 2008

Year End Vacation 2007


One of the best features of my new job is that I get ample vacation right off the bat. It was past time for a visit to Carol's parents in Tucson, so we planned a Christmas visit there with a sub-trip for a few days to Palm Desert, CA for my parents' 50th anniversary party.

On Christmas Eve we flew from Seattle to Phoenix, where Carol's father Dennis retrieved us. If you've never done it, Christmas Eve is a great day to travel. No lines whatsoever at the airport.

We had a wonderful mellow Christmas with Dennis and Mary Jane. I woke up at 5am for some reason, but the girls slept until 6:30 and we started with presents at 7. I fell asleep on the sofa during the second half of the opening and slept for an hour and a half. But I woke up in time for hot cinnamon rolls (a Christmas tradition Carol and I have).

On the 27th we drove from Tucson to Palm Desert. We left after breakfast and drove all day, arriving about 5pm. We took a slightly longer route because I had never seen the Salton Sea. The girls were a little restless but did very well. The longest they had ever been in a car before this was 4 hours. Toward the end of the trip, we thought we'd stop and stretch our legs at a town on the Salton Sea called Bombay Beach. We imagined getting something to drink there and maybe there would be a real beach. No such luck. The town was kinda creepy. Like a ghost town that isn't quite dead yet but very close. But I got some great photos of Audrey.

In Palm Desert it was barely warm enough to get in the pool. Audrey spent an hour or two in the pool every day. At first she used floating toys, but later in the trip we bought her some water wings. She loved them. It was very hard to get her out of the pool, even though she was hypothermic.

A favorite place to go in Palm Desert is The Living Desert, which is a desert zoo. We saw great exhibits of ostriches and giraffes and warthogs. The Living Desert also has a permanent model train "world" that is fascinating. It covers an acre! The girls love it.

Our plan was to drive back to Tuscon after breakfast on the 30th. But after the party on the 29th Charlotte had a little stomach trouble on the way back to our lodgings. Carol joked that we should just drive back to Tucson through the night. We didn't do that, but it made us realize we could drive back the next night. That worked much better. We had another day relaxing with my parents and sister and left at 5pm. By 7pm the girls were asleep. Carol and I had a peaceful remaining 4 1/2 hours to Tucson, arriving at 11:30.

Back in Tucson the weather was warming up into the mid-60s. I rented a bike for four days and had great rides. Tucson was having unusual winds, so I got some good workouts riding into headwinds for 20 miles. 3 of my 4 rides I did in the right order so that I had a tailwind on the way home. The other ride was on New Years Day when I joined GABA for a ride out to Saguaro National Park (West). We had very strong headwinds on the return trip. So strong that at times I was in the easiest gear (on a triple crank) and barely maintaining forward momentum. It was still fun. It was great to come home in better shape instead of not having ridden for two weeks.

Audrey swam for an hour or two every day back in Tucson. On the last day she even agreed to try it without her water wings. She loved that even more and felt a great sense of accomplishment. I had a lot of fun playing in the pool with Audrey and other kids who were there.

On January 4th we flew home. We are always stressed out that we are going to be the parents on the plane with the kid who screams all the way. But the girls did well (thanks to lollipops, Chips Ahoy and Disney DVDs) and we had a pleasant journey.

The vacation was very relaxing. We learned that Charlotte gets homesick. Some days she would moan "Home" several times. When we walked in the door of our house Charlotte let out a joyful whoop.

Doug & Kay Methot 50th Anniversary

On December 28th my parents celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary. They threw a party for 100 guests that was held near their winter home in Palm Desert, California.

My father is adopted and discovered his birth family in 1998. Two brothers and a sister attended along with one's children and all their children. It was great to meet all my new my cousins. Unfortunately, the brother and sister my dad grew up with (Ed and Charlotte) were unable to attend as was the (now very elderly) priest who married them.

My parents had a brief ceremony to renew their vows attended by my mother's original maid of honor, Ardetta. They are neighbors in Palm Desert.

My sisters and I met the quarterback from the football team at my dad's alma mater (Michigan Tech). We never knew our dad played football in college as an offensive lineman!

The party, like the marriage, was a big success. My sisters and I had a wonderful time meeting so many of our parents' friends at one time.