Pinewood Derby

Last Sunday was Pinewood Derby for the boys. Clifford's car was a skateboard and Kristjan's was some type of speed racer car. Sadly, both the cars came in last in their dens each time they raced. Both boys were very upset, so Pete had to have a chat with each of them. They didn't really want to participate in the building of their cars, therefore Pete and I didn't put much effort in either. Maybe next year this will help them to want to be more involved (those darn life lessons....)

Boys with their cars

Clifford's car racing

Kristjan's car racing

Happy Birthday Clifford!

Two weekends ago we celebrated Clifford's 9th birthday!

Friday I took in Minecraft cupcakes for him to share with his class. Minecraft party supplies are basically non-existent at the moment, so I did some searching on Pinterest for ideas. I found a site where I could print cupcake wrappers and toppers. Clifford's teacher emailed me later that afternoon to tell me the cupcakes were a hit with the class :)

On Saturday, Clifford had a group of his friends over for a sleepover. In the past, we've typically just let one friend sleepover, not 5!! So I was a bit stressed on how this was going to turn out. I was amazed. This group of boys were fantastic! We turned on the Kinect for them to play games. Lots of pizza and junk food was set out buffet-style. There was one boy who after having just one soda (which WERE caffeine free) was just talking up a storm. I asked him "Do your parents let you drink pop, like for fun special occasions?" His reply, "Nope". Ah, time to cut that kid off lol. We did the whole cake 'n ice cream and present thing before I took all the boys swimming by myself (Pete couldn't come because of his eyes). They spent at least a good hour swimming before they asked to come home. They played some video games until one of the boys needed to go home, then we settled them down in the living room to watch a movie. Pete and I went to bed by 10 pm. Not sure what time the boys went to sleep, though they were up shortly past 7 am. We filled them up with sugary cereal and cartoons. One boy said to Pete, "I didn't know there's blood in cartoons?!" Pete responded "Only the good ones", to which the boy kept repeating to himself "Only the good cartoons have blood". Oh boy, you're mom is gonna love us lol. By 10 am, all boys were picked up. The party was a success!

Oragami Minecraft for the cake. Very time consuming and tiring, especially
since I waited until 10 pm to put them together. 

The party decor. There isn't any Minecraft decor out in stores yet,
so I had to get creative and crafty. Both boys loved it!

Party Time! Boys munching on food and playing Kinect

The cake!!

A rare moment of silence as they gobble cake and watch a movie.

Every kids favorite time...PRESENTS!! Every single gift was a Lego set!

Bed Time!! 

Watching cartoons!

Monday was Clifford's actual birthday. There wasn't any school due to the holiday, so we spent the day relaxing and keeping it low-key. We did a special birthday dinner of smoked ribs and had an ice cream cake for dessert (both his choice). Then it was the moment he'd been waiting for...our birthday gift to him. Back Story: so for about a week Clifford was just soooo sure he was going to get a bb gun or air soft gun from us. He just knew it. Which was true. He's wanted one for years and with us moving to a house, the timing was right. Fred Meyer had one on clearance after the holidays, so we picked one up. BUT with Clifford so adamant about getting this gun, Pete and I decided to play a little joke on him. We picked up a handful of Dollar Tree toys and wrapped it up as his gift. When he opened the gift, you could tell with his body language that he was greatly disappointed. But we were so proud of him because he kept up a smile and great attitude, all while Pete and I are busting at the seams on this joke. I let him think this is his reality for a few minutes before pulling out his real gift. He was ECSTATIC!!

His gift from Mama & Papa (he's wearing a new Scout hat from them as well)

Mmmmmm....

Clifford's approval!

Birthday Boy!

Happy 9th Birthday!!

Make A Wish!!!

SUPER EXCITED for his gift!!

Downsizing

Sunday we went up to the Hyundai dealership in Everett to look at refinancing our Expedition. Instead, we traded it in and came home with a brand new car!! I wasn't really happy about this. I realize all the perks of this new car (the gas mileage, the warranty, that new car smell), but we're losing a LOT of space. Plus, I just don't like having to deal with learning how to drive a new car (you know, getting the feel down for how the car drives or the gas/brake pedals, the process of familiarizing the feel of the cruise control or radio w/o taking your eyes off the road). Not to mention, I'm now low to the ground with everyone else. Yes, I had a big ego to go along with our big car. Now I can't see as well when backing up or pulling out of a driveway. So much to get use to...BUT I did finally take it out for a drive the other day. My favorite feature?? The bluetooth compatibility. I can answer my phone or make a call just by pushing a button on my steering wheel! And the voice command feature is awesome! Yesterday I called Pete at work for minor reasons JUST so I could tell my car to "call Peter". AWESOME!! In time, I'm sure I'll learn to love this new car. But the first chance we get to purchase another car (which is something we already desperately need), it'll be another SUV-type car.

A New Pair of Eyes

Last Friday Peter went in for Lasik eye surgery!! This has been something he's wanted done for years and the time was finally right! He went in last Monday for a consultation appointment to see if he was a candidate for the surgery, and walked away with a surgery appointment that Friday. When surgery day finally came, he was so nervous. Each time a person walked out into the waiting room, he asked that person how surgery went, what it felt like and if they could see (others ended up doing the same to him lol). The longest part of the entire thing was just sitting in the waiting room. After what felt like a long wait, Peter was called back. I was able to join him and watch the procedure. It was CRAZY! It's so amazing how advance technology has come and what can be done. They put Pete in a reclining chair (think of the dentist) and swivel him under a microscope next to the laser machine. Above the machine was a tv where I could watch what was being done to his eye.One eye at a time is done. They put a device on his eye to keep his eye propped open (think of the movie A Clockwork Orange), and they insert some sort of tube-looking thing into his tear duct. Then some sort of suction device is put on  before they cut his eye. And here is where I start to squirm. A flap of his eye is literally folded over. The doctor swabs his eyeball dry (looks like clear gelatin!). Then basically they laser his eye!! I was trying to look very close to see if I could see anything. The best way to describe what I saw was steam or air quickly coming off his eye. I'm guessing this is the burning of eye material (???). This part of the procedure lasted only 15 seconds!! Then on to the next eye and repeat. When it was all done, the doctor sat him up and examined his eyes one last time before saying he was good to go. And we were on our way home!! Peter said his vision was slightly blurred but yet he could see so much better than before when he'd take his glasses off. He was as giddy as a schoolkid. It's been about 5 days now since the surgery and he's doing great. He has three sets of different eye drops he needs to take, can't touch/rub his eyes whatsoever, and has to wear goggles when he sleeps (or any other time where "danger" is present, such as when the boys are rough housing with toy swords or at Clifford's basketball games). This next coming Monday I take Pete back for a two week post-op appt to make sure he's healing properly. All in all, it'll be 6 months before he's healed. According to Pete this is one of the best decisions he's ever made. Definitely money well worth spent :)

Last pic of Peter wearing glasses!

We made it to the SECOND waiting room!!

Someone's excited!!

Pete anxiously pacing the floor

Done with surgery!

Pete resting his eyes

How he has to sleep  :)

Happy New Year!!

Happy 2014!! Here's what we've been up to so far....

Rang in the new year with friends! We spent New Years Eve with some friends from school and their kids. Pete and I shared a New Years kiss before I went downstairs to kiss the boys, who were already passed out asleep.

Pete and I before heading out

How I found the boys at midnight.
I had been told that at one point
Kristjan was found asleep in the toy box!!

Took a trip to Meadowdale Beach. The sun was shinning, so we thought we'd take advantage of it. Sheeba kept us entertained by digging holes. 

We went out to dinner to participate in Pack 59's Terrific Tuesday Fundrai$er at Red Onion Burger!

 

Took Kristjan for his yearly checkup with the Allergist. It had been a few years since his last skin test, so he ended up getting his back poked. Turns out Macadamia and Hazelnut tested low on his skin, so we decided to go for an oral challenge. Later the following week Kristjan and I went in so he could challenge Macadamia. After 3 1/2 hours, the doc confirmed the nut was safe to introduce in his diet. As for Hazelnut (AND Brazil Nut now), we can home test him rather than go back to the office since those results on the skin test were much smaller than Macadamia. Woo-Hoo!! 

Pete attended the Watch D.O.G.S. Dads and Donuts with the boys at their school. I had to have the boys up and ready to go with Pete at 7am. From what I heard, the event was a success and all three of them had fun. 

Sheeba turned 3!! Well, we don't exactly know when her actually doggy birthday is, but when we got her at the end of June we were told she was 2 1/2. So Pete and I decided to just say her birthday is in January. She's adapted quite well into our little family. We enjoy having her!

And finally, the Bears toured the MLT Police Department for scouts one evening. They got to see the inside of real jail cell, a police car, and have their fingerprints taken.