Cama Beach 2017

This week we went on our annual trip to Cama Beach.  We joined other former camp staff and their families.  It was a smaller group than years past, but no less fun.  Linus loves the immense amount of freedom he enjoys at Cama Beach.  The kids played on the beach, built driftwood forts, and rode bikes.  Linus fell in with a group of slightly older boys and discovered the joy of the Magic: The Gathering.  Each morning Cama Beach hosts different activities -- science investigations, crafts, visiting naturalists.  At night we roasted s'mores, watched the sunset, and sang songs.  Eileen's favorite thing was getting her face painted by some other girls in the group.  I enjoyed reading my book and relaxing.

Fueling up bikes at the gas station.  Sometimes the pumps doubled as a soda fountain shop.

 

I swear she grows more beautiful every day.

Water fight!

Linus was harassing some girls.  He wouldn't listen when told to stop.  Another dad helped Linus experience the natural consequence of being flipped as a result.

I can't believe we forgot to pack wine or beer! Luckily, Dave was able to rectify the situation.  I can't believe I didn't know about Bandit boxed wine! It is so genius.  Each year we get slightly more adept at packing for the trip.  We won't make this mistake again.


The Cama Beach cabins got a nice little make over since last year.  The revised sleeping arrangements worked a lot better.  It also meant Dave and Linus could stay up playing games.

I love the water.  It was a relaxing week. We probably won't make it to Cama Beach next year.  The photos and our warm memories will have to help us make due until we return.

Family, Friends, and the Fourth

    The 4th of July is an interesting holiday.  I don't consider myself overly patriotic.  The current state of affairs in our country makes me uneasy to say the least.  The US democracy has been downgraded from "full democracy" to "flawed democracy."   I've been on a summer reading binge and have finished six books so far.  Among them, I finally read George Orwell's 1984.

    Amid all the unsettling events and turmoil, I can still love my country.  It's a place where I can send my daughter to school, I can tell my children they can love whomever they choose, I access to clean water, indoor plumbing, and electricity.  I am entitled to have my own religious beliefs.  America is an imperfect nation that challenges me to a better version of myself and for that I am grateful.  I can attend a parade, wave a flag, and share the hopes for a better future with those around me.

   This 4th of July I did a lot less planning.  My sister, Beth, and her family flew in from Wisconsin. We had a lovely and all too short visit.  Linus and I went down to Edmonds on the 3rd to try a score spots along the parade route.  We came up short, but were gifted popcorn by the nice theater owner.  As luck would have it, we ran into some other school parents and they invited us to join them.  During the parade, all the moms walked over the a nearby restaurant and enjoyed bloody marys (I had never had one).  We eventually returned to our families and sent the dads off to enjoy a beer because that's the kind of supportive wives we are.  I don't think the kids noticed our absence due to the insane amount of candy and loot they procured.  It was perfect.  

   I used the presence of multiple adults to make interesting food.  While the kids ate hot dogs, I made pesto chicken garlic sliders for the adults.  Dessert was apple dump cakes (crockpot for the win!) with vanilla ice cream.

  It was hard to say goodbye to my sister and her family.  Robin and Gwen are such a cute pair together.  Linus adores Gwen.  Dylan loves his cousins and did not want to leave.  The kids were less than cooperative with getting their picture taken.

           After the Rousseaus left, the kids and I head down to my friend's family beach place.  Katie comes up every 4th to celebrate Italian style.  Pretty much all of her family had left by the time we got there.  Instead we enjoyed sun, high tide, and warm water with just Katie and her husband, her mom, and another friend.  It was a perfect afternoon.  The kids loved being out on the water.  Eileen collected shells.  I learned that Katie makes the.best.margaritas.

Katie taught Eileen how to prepare clams and Linus and Eileen tried them for the first time.  Robin and I abstained.

I think the kids would have stayed forever if I let them.  With the traffic home down from over 4 hours to just 1.5 hrs, we headed back up north.  Long car rides after the 4th of July help to offset the craziness of irregular holiday sleep for kids.

It's been a great week.

From the Mouths of Babes in June

Eileen:  I don't care about getting dirty.  I care about living.

Me:  You are not wearing flip flops and socks.
Linus:  They're flocks.

Me:  You smell like bbq, dirt, and sweat.
Robin:  You smell like cigarettes!  (I most certainly did not!)


For field day, Eileen's school family was brown.  She rocked my Camp Hamilton beaver shirt.  Eileen was not excited for the school year to end.

Sleepy boys.  It is nice when they choose to sleep.

Leavenworth

One of my favorite things to get at auctions are getaways.  I live for the special getaway, the one you didn't plan and feels like you got a steal.  It gives you permission to take a little mini-vacation.  This year at the school auction we purchased a one night stay in Leavenworth.  I delayed opening the envelop that had all the details and was surprised to discover that our night away was at the end of June and it was already half way through June.  Whoops!

With some quick planning and hustling, Dave and I managed to sneak away.  With only one night, you can't do a whole lot in the surrounding area (by that I mean really take advantage of all the outdoor opportunities).  We stayed at the Blackbird Lodge (right across from the hospital and in the center of everything).  Dave and I walked along the waterfront while waiting for our room to be ready.  Once we checked into our room, Dave and I decided to taste our way through Leavenworth.

We didn't really have a plan.  We just start by our hotel and started walking.  There are so many wineries represented, a plethora of tasting rooms.  Our favorites (of the ones we visited) were Swakane Winery Tasting Room and Plains Cellars.  Swakane had the most amazing Glutwein (a mulled wine).  Both of these tasting rooms win points for ambiance, lovely staff, and friendly patrons.  We weren't the only moms and dads out away from the kids.  I would have liked to have visited a few more but time and a desire to drink responsibly got in the way.  We purchased two bottles on our trek.  Dave and I had a great time enjoying all the fun and food of Leavenworth.

Dave and I embarked on an adventure before heading back home.  We went white water rafting on the Wenatchee.  I have always wanted to do this but things like pregnancy, kids, and life seemed to get in the way.

We lucked out with our boat and guide.  We were with a really nice family with two teens boys and two of their teammates, visiting for a soccer tournament.  Our guide has been a river guide for 11 years.  When you are doing something considered at least mildly dangerous, you want to feel like you are in safe hands.  

Heading out and relatively dry.

We took on several class III rapids.

We got very wet and had an awesome time.

To my relief, I experienced zero motion sickness.  I found the whole experience exhilarating.   We used Osprey Rafting Company and I would definitely recommend them.  We saw a different rafting company lose a person and then another boat in our group went to rescue him.  The other rafting company seemed to have multiple issues along the way.  Our trip ended with a bbq and smores in a private area.

It might have only been a little over 24 hours, but it was so refreshing.  I love my husband.  Quick getaways like this are just small reminders of how much we truly enjoy each other's company.  I look forward to our next adventure, whatever it may be.

It's a Father's Day kind of day

Today we celebrated? acknowledged? honored? this guy.

What do you call doing a whole lot of nothing?  Really, we just gave the guy what he wanted.

Dave wanted the following:
1. sleep in?  Check.  Robin came into our room before 5 am. I dragged myself out of bed.
2. large iced chai and a Trader Joe's breakfast blend granola package?  Check.
3. Go for a run?  Check.
4. Work in his shop? Check.
5.  Time to just veg and relax?  Check.
6.  Pizza and beer?  Check.

I kept the kids away from Dave this morning until well past 8 am (this is a feat) before bringing him presents and his requested breakfast.  Linus made him a card decorated like one of the shirts Dave likes to wear.  Eileen had selected a set of Pokemon bowls for Dave.  I got him a smartphone projector (he was pleasantly surprised).  Dave is incredibly hard to shop for so I feel like this was a major win.

I took the kids to the Farmer's Market and window shopping at Third Place Books while Dave went for a run.   The weather was not awesome--muggy and cloudy.  This, combined with the fact that Robin started wearing underwear this week, made me feel less than adventurous.  The kids and I played, cleaned house, and read books.  After the mandatory rest period, I admit I let the kids have copious amounts of screen time.  The silence was glorious.  I read a book.  For dinner we went to MOD pizza. Apparently, they celebrate dads with a buy 1, get 1 free.  That was a fun surprise.  Linus was annoyed that I bought Dave a beer while all he got was water.

After dinner I let Dave just relax on the couch while I took kids to the park.  We played on the playground and rode bikes.  Then it was baths and beds.  All 3 were in bed by 8 pm.

Other than the pre-dawn wake up, this is the kind of Father's Day I could get behind.  Dave's an awesome dad and husband.  I don't have much to complain about.  The kids would agree -- best dad ever.  Linus even picked out a card that said so, so it must be true.

Aaaannnd Done.

Yesterday was the last day of school. The year went by quickly.  In some ways it ended as quickly and unexpectedly as it began.  The first thing I did upon coming home was feed the kids and then take a long nap.  Today I took Linus to a doctor appointment, got my favorite donut (nutty french toast at Mighty-O), paid $100 for three kid haircuts, read my book, and took a nap.  I'm exhausted.

The thing about teaching is that it's often about survival mode.  Your body and mind hold it together as long as they can before they sputter and give out completely.  Too bad Robin didn't get the memo and continues to wake before 6 am.

I've spent a lot of time reflecting about my return to the classroom.  I had a truly great group of kids, an awesome teaching partner, and a supportive administration. Teachers are a kindred spirit.  It feels so good to be back among my people.  I missed continual adult contact.  I missed feeling like I was something more than "mom."  I missed using that part of my brain.  My return to the classroom made me feel capable and competent (most of the time).  Dave enjoyed not carrying all the financial burden.  I also liked feeling like all the money I spent on a Masters degree was not going to waste.

The kids liked hanging out in my classroom before and after school.  Robin especially developed a bond with a couple of boys in my class.  The mornings were full of business with students coming in early for help or to just have a place to get stuff done.  It was often chaos.  By the end of the year, Robin knew exactly which classrooms to go to for candy.  He could be seen or heard running down the halls, often with open arms, ready for hugs.

I don't know if Dave truly appreciated how hard it was to actually get any work done with the kids underfoot.  A student one time marveled at my balancing act as I helped her with test corrections while corralling Robin on my lap.

The kids frequently captured our mornings and afternoons together on my phone.

Probably the most unexpected effect of going back to the classroom was the impact on my faith.  It's hard to not think about your beliefs when you are teaching religion every day.  It was eye opening to view the religion lessons through an adult lens.  Religion class gave me more opportunities to teach mindfulness and address the social emotional aspects of adolescence.  My biggest goal was to make students see the Catholic faith as something alive and bigger than themselves.  I wanted them to go beyond answering every question with "have faith, clean up the earth, and pray more."  I tried to help them see the connection between the Old Testament, the words of the prophets, and the reality of the world we live in today.  It was pretty big stuff sometimes.  I got a thank you letter from a student yesterday that mentioned how she liked that I brought real life into religion.  That made my day.

There were a lot of ups and downs this year.  It's not easy being both a teacher and parent in the same school.  Really it's just not easy being a teacher.  Luckily, this year the good outweighed the bad and you can't always say that about teaching.

In my office right now I have a pile of textbooks and lesson plans waiting to be turned into IB units.  Eileen is sitting next to me, calming down from a massive freak out after seeing a spider.  Toys are spread throughout the house.  Robin is in serious potty training (aka I'm running laundry 24-7).  Linus is in a precarious balancing act of being awesome and being amazingly frustrating.  I'm already missing my 6th graders a little bit.  Out the teaching frying pan and into the mom fire.

I'm excited for warm summer days, adventure, and lots of good books.  Curriculum planning can wait just a little bit.  Right now I'm excited for Dave to get home so I can relax with a good book and maybe binge a little Netflix.  It's June and I've got the whole summer ahead of me.