April 2019

April was a great month.  We moved Allen's mom, Andrea to Port Orchard (about 20 minutes from us), were able to visit with our BFF's, Michelle & Dan, celebrated Easter and had many Easter egg hunts and attended the Tulip Festival in Mount Vernon.  Here our the pictures from our adventures.

Up at o'dark thirty to catch a flight to California

Flew from Seattle to Los Angeles, took a Lyft to Agoura Hills (this is one hour-without traffic in the wrong direction), picked up an RV, drove to Tustin to check-in with Allen's mom and pack her stuff. We then drove to our friends Michelle and Dan's house to have dinner and spend the night.

Having fun

Jessica and Michelle

Outside our RV.  On our way to pick up Andrea

Allen drove all 20+ hours to get us from CA to Washington. We stopped for four hours at midnight to catch a little sleep.  Here we are in the loft area.  Cold and not comfy:)

We checked Andrea into the nursing facility, drove to Seattle and returned the RV then drove to the ferry to go home.  Here we are in the car on the ferry. We were too tired to get out of the car.

My mom and sister watched the kids for us. Here is a picture they sent us of the kids

Alexis loves to sit with her Daddy

Lining up his cars

Penelope missed Allen while we were gone

 This picture made the entire trip to move Andrea worth it.  Love this smile.  It is so nice to have her close to us.

 Easter pictures

Craft time
 

Coloring Easter eggs. This is the first time we colored eggs. 

Dancing

The kids love to take off their clothes and dance around singing "naked baby"  Cole wanted me to take a picture

 
Twice a year I participate in Just Between Friends.  It is a huge consignment sale of kids clothes, shoes etc.  Danielle is helping me tag all of my items to sell.
 
Easter egg hunt at workout

After our workout Easter egg hunt we took a group picture with the Easter bunny.  We are on the left in the middle.

 
On our way to the Easter egg hunt at church

It was an indoor hunt and they hid the eggs under tons of balloons.  Here is Cole with his eggs

 I think Alexis got more than the 20 she was supposed to find:)

 Alexis petting a real bunny

 Crafts

Easter bunny at church

 Easter morning. Their was some eggs hidden outside their bedroom door. Alexis was showing us the eggs she found.

 Found her basket

 On our way to church

Nana and Penelope

Only picture I took with Allen on Easter:)

Cole in his happy place...the dirt

The kids are going to take soccer lessons this summer.  I got them shin guards and cleats.  They are so small.

We were at a birthday party and their was this patch of flowers that was perfect to take pictures. Cole totally photo-bombed this picture.

On our way to the Tulip Festival

There are no words...just breathtaking.  Tulips in all directions.

 We left Mount Vernon and drove toward Whidbey Island (where Allen was stationed in the Navy). We stopped at Deception Pass.  He used to mountain bike here 20+ years ago. So beautiful.

On our way to the ferry we drove by the base and his house he rented while in Oak Harbor

 We didn't realize we needed a reservation for the ferry:( So we had a two hour wait.  There was a cute restaurant on the water and we had a great dinner. They had crayons and coloring books for the kids.

 The kids did not take a nap and were a bit overtired so we stayed in the car on the ferry.  They managed to have some fun.

 We traded in my Dodge Durango for a Kia a few months ago--to save on gas. We couldn't figure out how to fit the double stroller in the trunk.  I finally did it:)

 Just playing in the dirt

Practicing for T-Ball

March 2019

March was a great month. Allen and I got away for a few days to celebrate our 15 year wedding anniversary. We had never left the kids.  My sister and mom watched them for us. It was a great get-away.

Here are some of our activities in March.

 Alexis and Allen taking selfies

 Just relaxing on the couch

 Chips and salsa with Aunt Danielle

 Group hug

 Cole riding his bike on our driveway

 What mess?

 Alexis being her usual self:)

 On the ferry ride to Seattle.  We met with a specialist at Seattle Children's hospital for Alexis's shoulder (her left shoulder is higher than her right). When it was first diagnosed as a baby we were told she would need surgery when she was around four. The specialist said she looked great and did not suggest surgery. We are so happy

 Seattle skyline

 Alexis was great with the doctors

 Relaxing in our bed

 Fun night out with our neighbors to see The Lords of 52nd Street (original members of Billy Joel's band). They were awesome

 Enjoying some brownie mix

 Our anniversary trip to Mount Rainier. 

 Waterfall

 The cabin we rented

 There was a hammock in the loft

 Awesome wood burning fireplace with unlimited firewood

 Little sitting area and bed. Do you see the foot rests? They are bears.

 We tried the outdoor hot tub one afternoon

 View from the hot tub.  It was so beautiful

 Alexis and Cole had a lot of fun with Aunt Danielle and Nana exploring parks while we were away

 Alexis and Penelope dressed as princesses

 I can see them in 12 years sitting in the same position

 Cole coming down after his nap.  Such a handsome princess;)

 Cole playing with Allen's truck he had as a kid

 Having fun at the beach

 Another beautiful day

 Having fun with Aunt Danielle at the park

 Down at our beach collecting rocks

 Danielle and I took the kids to Seattle to see the Cherry Blossoms at Washington University

 Allen has been working long hours downstairs. Cole helping dad work