Remlinger

Richard's favorite place on earth is Disneyland.  It is where he is truly happiest.  Well, we didn't go to Disneyland the day before his birthday, but we did go to Remlingers family fun farm-- a kind of amusement park for tots that is 1/10th the price of Disneyland.  All the rides or amusements and activities are made for kids our kid's age.  There is no height requirement for anything and there are really only about 10 rides in the whole park.  And if seeing your kids having a good time makes you blissfully happy (like it does Richard and I), then it is the perfect place for parents too.

 

Highlights include rollercoasters

and flying pumpkins

and a hayloft you could jump in

numerous times

and ponies to ride-- like Coconut and Blackberry.

and orbiting corn

and a real train

We consider Remlinger good preparation for Disneyland, which we plan to do next winter again.  Anna still balked on a couple of rides here, but we told her that if she didn't get a little braver, that we were bagging Disneyland completely.  Yes, we are those kind of parents!  And Anna ended up loving all the rides she went on--- especially the roller coaster, which was the longest wait (at 10 minutes) and the biggest victory.

discovery park-- our last big hike of the summer

I have done some great hikes this summer with the kids.   I have a great friend who comes up with a family hiking schedule each summer-- some new places and some old favorites.  And she saved the best for last!

My favorite place in Seattle-- my happy place, my healing spot, my sunshine therapy is Discovery park.  It has everything-- bluffs, sand dunes, lighthouses, trails, the smell of salt water, and long stretches of beach.

So of course any good summer of mine would include a few trips here.  At low tide it is especially delightful because you can explore all sorts of great creatures and the mud and sand feel especially soft and squishy!

who needs pools when you have a billion, gazillion gallon pool kind of in your backyard.

and a perfect sunny day with your favorite little man (those are my feet by the way.  Benjamin's feet are big, but they are not that big!)

going to this place always makes me really happy.  No matter what else is going on in my life, Discovery park makes everything brighter

Ranier

I love to explore during the summer.  I like to feel like I am sucking all of the marrow out of life and carpe diem and other dead poets society type stuff.  I like it when "the days are just packed!" (Calvin and Hobbes)

But saturdays are special days.  They are not just the day to prepare for Sunday, they are the day for special family outings to locations that don't fall within a 10 mile radius.  Locations like Mount Rainier, which on a clear day you can see from any good vantage point in Seattle.  We wanted to go up close.

Richard and I are also not campers.  Not  because we haven't tried, its because we haven't tried well.  We have one 4 man tent, a few sleeping bags, no mattresses, and probably 2 freeze dried meals from 2007.  So when we have camped its been dirty, uncomfortable, no-sleep camping.  Add a couple of kids and its dirty, uncomfortable, no sleep camping with screaming in the background.  So we go on day trips and then come home to our beds!

We had only been to Mount Rainier once before in May when everything was closed and still snowy and we had a great time.  But this time we went in August at the peak of its season when the beauty of the mountains was only matched by the amount of foot and vehicle traffic.

Even though it took us a good 2 1/2 hours to get there and someone was really grumpy and hungry and impatient (okay it was me), the view at the top was astounding and totally worth all the tourists and slow travel.  It was like every beautiful calendar picture you have ever seen.

We saw deer and marmots along the way

And at the top we got to see a real glacier up close.  It was awesome to be out and about on such a hot day and playing with snow.

Anna got to have a snowball fight with her dad and ask the question "do you want to build a snowman" and have the answer be a resounding "yes!"

I couldn't get over the fields of wildflowers blooming near the top.  The area where we hiked was called "paradise" (I'm glad we decided against the "devil's armpit" hike...)

These are my happiest moments-- hiking with my family in a beautiful place with a PBJ in my backpack. Pure bliss.

I always enjoy seeing Richard with the kids.  He is such a good father.  In defiance of every sitcom on families I have ever seen, Richard prefers to spend time with wife and kids.

I love the picture below because Richard and Benjamin have exactly the same gait.  Benjamin is so much his father's son.  I wouldn't want it any other way.

I think what I love the most about these saturday outings with our kids is that we are making memories and traditions for them.  They will remember saturdays not for saturday morning t.v., but for hikes and beach days and museums and parks and picnics as a family.

See you next year Rainier!  love you lots!

the spook of the iron horse

The coolest hike that we did all summer was definitely the Spook of the Iron Horse!  It is a 2 mile long train tunnel that is both very cold and very dark.  It took us about 20 minutes to coerce Anna into entering the tunnel and that was after much hyperventilating on the part of both Anna and Richard.  But we got her inside and helped her see the adventure of walking where trains once railed.  Because of the depth of darkness, it is absolutely necessary to carry flashlights and headlamps.  Many of the trail goers were on bikes, which created a really cool train-like effect when the bikes would approach from the opposite direction-- with the light from their headlamps speedily filling up the tunnel like an oncoming train.

coming out the other side, the view was gorgeous.  And the air was 25 degrees warmer.

If I can have my family, a hike, and a picnic outside-- I am a truly a woman in her own personal heaven.

All Richard needs are his kids and seeing an open blue sky.  He is from Colorado!

I think maybe Benjamin is running away from the Spook.  He has gotten pretty fast.  On the way back, he refused to ride in the stroller we brought. He kept saying "I have to run!"

More profound words have never been said! If I was into tattoos-- that is what I would have tattooed.

It was a memorable day, a memorable hike.  I was glad that Richard came with us though.  I had a chance to do this hike on another day with some of the other moms I know and their kids, and I anticipated (quite wisely I might add) that Anna would "spook" once I got her up there and that after driving 45 minutes we would be stuck at the trail head with the both of us crying.  It took two parents to get that kid to face her fears.

and that is why you always leave a note...

Our two July birthdays. Happy birthday Benj and Anna

I just wanted to do a quick post on the kid's birthday this year.  I really like to throw birthday parties.  I don't go overboard, but I do like to do a few crafty things that are mostly my own invention and usually only involve the manipulation of the few stacks of colored paper that make up the whole of our craft supply.

This year, Anna asked for a Hello Kitty Mermaid Under the Sea birthday party.  I think she just really liked her birthday party last year (Ariel under the sea) and wanted much of the same but with Hello Kitty slapped on a few things.  Works for me!  Except that I transformed it into more of a beach party (sorry Mermaid Hello Kitty-- hope you can breathe).

 We gave leis to the party guests, made fruity smoothies for them with umbrellas, had a candy hunt (life savers, salt water taffys, and Hersheys treasures), and danced to music with beach towels and beach balls.  As you can see with the video below, our Anna has got THE MOVES!  She is an animal on the dance floor!

 I think making the cake is my favorite part.  I  like keeping it home-made in appearance.  It can't be too pretty :)

WE also had a cake walk with the prize being a bag of Meow Mix if you landed on a Hello Kitty plate.

Benjamin's birthday was just a big BBQ bash disguised as a Very Hungry Caterpillar party.  His birthday is July 3, so we just have a pre-4th of July BBQ and call it a birthday party.

These birthdays are my only outlet for artistic creativity, so I had fun.

WE set out all the food that is mentioned in the book "The Very Hungry Caterpillar" which lends itself perfectly to a outdoor picnic style party.  The little signs were created by my neighbor for her son's birthday party.  I have no problem borrowing on someone else's genius!

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Benjamin spent the whole day of his birthday around vehicles.  He is boy through and through!

And this is potentially the cutest video ever.  Prepare yourself for the Benjamin shuffle when he gets really excited!