A Weekend of Labor

I love unions.  They are awesome, they are amazing, and I am grateful for everything they have done to ensure the rights and safety of workers.  I stand with the teachers of Seattle in their quest to improve public education for both students and workers.  In celebration of unionized labor and the extra long weekend, Linus and I headed to Portland.  We labored.

My sister and her family are moving to Wisconsin in a few weeks.  There are a few domains in which I can honestly say I excel.  These included, but are not limited to, organizing, planning, moving, cleaning, and being a work horse.  Because I love my sister and brother-in-law, I offered to lend my talents to their cross-country relocation.  My sister was a good student, and dutifully did as I told her to prepare for my arrival.  I promised I would try to be gentle.

After a full day of teaching 2nd grade, staying up late to go to the Seahawks game the night before, and a long drive to Oregon, Linus and I collapsed asleep in Portland.  We used Saturday to play tourist.  We shopped Powell's books, rode the tram, and had fun at the Saturday Market.

After a long nap, I dove into the packing, cleaning, and purging process.  Over the course of the next 48 hours, I deep cleaned and packed up the kitchen, dining room, playroom, tv room, and kids' bedroom.  Chris stayed busy hauling things to the dump and Goodwill, and working in the garage.  Beth worked on packing away and organizing the stuff that I couldn't help with easily.  Sunday afternoon Chris and I packed away all the toys while Beth took the boys to the arcade and Gwen slept.

The tram is pretty fun except for the part where it lurches and it feels like you are going to lose your lunch.

The Saturday Market is a little gritty, but that didn't keep us from having fun.  I let Linus get his face painted.  He wanted lots of blood.  We had to compromise. 

I love seeing the love between Beth and Gwen.  So much adoration.

Gwen was having trouble choosing an outfit.  I finally grabbed this striped shirt and asked her if she wanted to be a burglar.  She nodded a satisfied yes.  The hat really adds a certain Portland 1990s  vibe. 

Gwen thought we stacked all the boxes in order to serve as her personal playground.

Helping the Rousseaus was backbreaking work, but I left feeling like I had made a huge dent in the long list of things to do in order to move. I'm glad I was able to help.  While I was gone, Dave stayed with Eileen and Robin.  They had a grand time from what I could tell.  He took them to both the Evergreen State Fair and the zoo.

Robin loved the merry go round and cried when the ride ended.  Luckily, he got another chance the next day at the zoo.

Robin was not please that he was too short to ride in the car with Eileen.

Linus was a big help down in Portland.  He and I both really enjoyed the one on one time.  By the end of the weekend I was missing my babies.  I believe they missed me too.  I made sure to give Eileen an extra thorough bedtime routine with lots of reading and songs.  Today Robin and I had a lovely coffee and walk around Greenlake date.  He has had lots of hugs and kisses for me.


My body is sore after so much hard work, cleaning and lifting. I'm excited for the Rousseaus to come stay with us for a few days and sneak in a little more quality time with my niece and nephew before they move far away.

Thank you labor unions for everything you do, but especially for the long weekend every September.