Great Wolf Lodge

You may remember that just after my diagnosis last year we were treated to an amazing weekend at Great Wolf Lodge by some truly wonderful friends. We decided then that we should come back to celebrate after I beat cancer. We were fortunate enough to find a great deal online, and we thought this was the perfect time to get away, celebrate our victory, and have some quality family time before I head into the coming surgeries. Once again, it was a wonderful, blessed time for our little family.

The kids were super excited to stay in a "Kids Cabin" room; inside the standard hotel room there is a small bedroom designed to look like a log cabin. They thought it was the coolest thing ever!

Abby on her bed...

 Eli on the top bunk...

 Goofing around in the "cabin"

Throughout October, Great Wolf celebrates Halloween by inviting the kids to dress up and go trick-or-treating throughout the lodge. Eli and Abby were really excited to have an early opportunity for wearing their costumes, an - of course - stocking up on candy!

 

 

Being a year older made a huge difference in their ability to enjoy the MagicQuest activities (especially for Abby). Here is Eli standing in front of the dragon we defeated (barely visible on the screen behind him). He earned the title of "Master Magi" and was pretty proud of himself.

In the morning we had a picnic breakfast in the cabin...

 And had some relaxing play time in our room.

Watched a little football...

And then it was time to hit the water park again. Last time I didn't even try to take photos in the water park, so this time I really wanted to capture some of the fun on the slides. I learned, however, that it is almost impossible to get pictures of kids on water slides with poor lighting and a cheap point-and-shoot camera! Oh well, that's what memories are for!

It was a really wonderful time for our little family - we had an absolute blast!

Fall City Farms

We had a fabulous family day at the pumpkin patch today. Our family tradition is to go to Fall City Farms...for their pumpkins as much as for their fresh pressed cider and hot mini-doughnuts! It was a perfect day for the pumpkin patch; slightly rainy which means that we didn't get very wet but also didn't have to fight any crowds. It was awesome!

 The kids loved the pumpkins that were big enough to sit on.

 Since Abby had picked out her own pumpkin on her field trip, Eli got to choose one today.

 We sat on hay bales surrounded by pumpkins to enjoy our fresh pressed cider and hot doughnuts.

 Eli loved the hay maze!

Our little family had a great day together!

Field trip fun

Abby and I had a great time on a field trip to the pumpkin patch with her preschool class. It was the first day this season that really felt like Fall, and we were all so cold! The field trip began with a little intro to the farm and a game of guessing vegetables. Abby had fun raising her hand.

Next came a couple of romps through the hay maze. The kids had such a blast doing this!

 Finally it was time to hunt for the perfect pumpkin! We had fun on the hay ride out to the pumpkin patch.

 My precious, happy girl!

And here it is...Abby's perfect pumpkin!

 I love this mommy/daughter photo, compliments of my friend Kelly and her really nice camera!

 We had to have a class photo of course. Abby's amazing teachers are Mrs. Pat (at the top of the stairs) and Mrs. Beth (at the bottom).

 It was a fantastic field trip and lots of fun!

Salmon Days

We had the most amazing weather for Issaquah's annual Salmon Days festival. Ryan grew up here and he said there's never been a Salmon Days weekend like this. It was cold in the morning but warmed up quickly and thoroughly. It was perfect! We totally indulged in the awesome fair food...

Abby enjoyed her first pony ride...

And Eli totally impressed us with his climbing skills...

He had to wait in line for close to an hour for this climbing wall (which he did with amazing patience), and the handles were just far enough apart that it was a real challenge for him. We were really proud of him for trying it, and impressed that he made it to the top.

Usually we start our Salmon Days celebration with its annual 5k Rotary run and Kids' Dash, but this year the runs were held a week in advance. I ran the 5k with a couple of friends and then did the Kids' Dash with my little man. He did awesome, and the 1k dash counted toward the 25 miles that he's tracking for the Seattle Kids' Marathon (more on that in another post).

Rock stars

Not much needs to be said about this...except that I love these awesome, fun kids!

Ahoy mateys!

So, did you all know that "talk like a pirate day" is a thing? Not only is it a thing, but it's evidently a national thing with it's own website, events, and - of course - lingo! Our kiddos were super excited to find out that Krispy Kreme was getting in on the action and offering a free doughnut to anyone who came in and talked like a pirate. Only instead of stopping there, Krispy Kreme decided to up the ante and offer a free dozen to anyone who showed up in full pirate attire. Eli has an actual pirate costume (thanks to Aunt Essie, Uncle Jer, and cousin Lucas), but Abby had to come up with her own. Once again, a very Abby-esque ensemble! :)

And yes, the eye patch in the middle of the forehead was totally intentional! Love this spunky, funny girl! For days before this the kids were talking about what they would say when we got there. Abby rehearsed to anyone who would listen, "Ahoy there mateys, can I please have some doughnuts?" I can't say that I was surprised, though, when the time came to deliver her line and she was too shy to say anything at all.  

 

 

This awesome guy was totally into the whole thing. The doughnut on the hook was pretty hilarious (and daddy's idea).

I was glad that the free dozen was limited to one per family (the kids were definitely hoping otherwise). And I couldn't help but note the irony on my counter when we got home... 

(In case you can't make out the labels, our doughnuts were surrounded by organic tomatoes, organic bread, and organic peaches!)

Joyful Heart

Abby was so very excited to return to Joyful Heart Preschool this year. It is such a wonderful school with phenomenal teachers and so many great activities. And of course I love that she gets to pray in school and comes home singing songs about the Bible!

 Eli actually took this last photo, and I just love it! Oh, and I would be remiss if I didn't draw attention to Abby's first day of school outfit. Nike sneakers, hot pink leggings, polka dot skirt and "matching" polka dot shirt...very Abby!

 

We just adore this precious girl with all of her engergy, spunk, emotions, expressions, and love! Have a great second year of preschool, Abigail!

Iron Girls

September 9th marked my "official" re-entry into the world of running. I've been running little by little since about a month after I finished radiation, but this was my first actual 5k event since cancer. I thought the Seattle Iron Girl seemed an appropriate race for my big comeback (lol!), especially since this year's event was a fundraiser for Young Survivial Coalition, which is a great organization that supports women under 40 with breast cancer.

I was blessed to be joined by some sweet friends for this 5k; four of the many amazing people who have supported and helped me throughout this battle.

The backs of our shirts say "Fight Like a Girl" - theirs all said "I helped Cheryl..." above that, and mine said "I did..." Thanks for running with me, Brooke, Kate, Melissa, and Christy!

First grade!

I can't believe it, but my not-so-little boy is now in first grade! He has been so excited to go back to school, which is definitely a blessing. He has two good friends from last year in his class, which I think will help my cautious, shy boy adjust to all the newness of first grade.

 

Eli is such a smart, sweet, funny boy who loves to learn, loves his family, and loves to make up games (and rules!).

He adores riding his bike or scooter to school, and we've been so very blessed with weather that has allowed that every day so far! 

 

Have a fantastic first grade year, Eli!