the Hoffmans

Princess Cora Turns Two

2012-01-08T21:43:00.000-08:00

Cora was blessed with a three-day celebration in honor of her birthday this year (meaning in 2011). That Friday night we went to the tree lighting in Downtown Greensboro. Because of traffic and a nearly full-to-capacity parking garage (I'm impressed with Chris' car-maneuvering skills), we walked into the park just as the big fake tree was lit. We spent an hour or two wandering Elm Street-- listening to musicians, watching the people, sipping hot chocolate, meeting a Victorian Santa, and reading random tourist markers. Did you know that Greensboro was the site of the "sit-in" at Woolworth's on Feb 1, 1960 and that the store is now an International Civil Rights Museum? Did you know that William Sydney Porter (O'Henry) the short story guy worked at a pharmacy across the street and a few blocks down? Did you know that the Vicks Vapo-Rub formula was also first concocted on Elm Street? We need to go back --in the daylight and when the streets are less crowded-- and do some more exploring.

The next morning Jess met us at the Coliseum for the real highlight of Cora's big weekend-- Disney On Ice. As we found our seats, the skaters were performing the story of The Frog Princess. Ally immediately hid when the music turned dark and the skeleton/ghosts started to skate. (She loves VooDoo doughnuts, but not VooDoo.) In the end, Tiana got here prince, they turned back into humans, and we moved on to the classic and non-terrifying fairytale of Cinderella. And after Cinderella came Rapunzel-- complete with a skating horse, floating lanterns, and a princess flying Cirque-du-Soleil-style over the ice on aerial silks. It was very beautiful, but it also made me quite nervous. We got to see all the Disney princesses (and Minnie Mouse and Daisy) dance with their princes in the grand finale. As with everything else with the Disney name on it, the show was very well done. My one criticism is that a a snack or souvenir should not cost as much as your ticket to see the performance. Since we're cheap and rational, Ally and Cora walked away with only smiles and some great memories. Poor deprived children!

After the show, we stopped at Cook Out for some lunch and then headed home to rest up for the next adventure of the day. We drove out to Winston-Salem to see their Christmas parade. We listened to a ton of marching bands. We saw church floats, boy scouts, cub scouts, girl scouts, dance teams, hula-hoopers, politicians, civic leaders, and unicyclists. We saw school buses, fire trucks, ambulances, and police cars. We also saw a Chick-Fil-A float with dancing cows, a Krispy Kreme car, and a gigantic fiberglass bull that advertised a local restaurant. After Santa's float appeared to mark the end of the parade, we drove to a Mexican restaurant for Cora's Birthday dinner, and then topped ourselves off with some hot Krispy Kreme original glazed doughnuts. Yummy!

Sunday was Cora's actual birthday. We celebrated by going to church and then eating this fabulous cake. Chris made it from an idea Jess saw somewhere. I thought it'd be too hard to do and not worth the effort, but Chris thought otherwise and tackled the challenge 'cause he loves Cora and wanted to try something new. (Secret is, it really wasn't that hard.) The colors were so vivid, and the butter cream icing was delicious. Good job, Daddy!

After Cora blew out the "fireworks" and we finished eating cake, we finally let Cora open her presents.

I still can't believe she's two, although she constantly reminds me. "Mommy, I not a baby anymore. I'm a todd-el-er 'cause I'm two." That's right, my sweet, you are getting so big. Now, could you please stop putting your doll's pacifier in your mouth and pretending you're a baby? You never took one when you were tiny, you really shouldn't start doing it now.

Thanksgiving I and II

2011-12-28T13:12:00.000-08:00

We celebrated Thanksgiving over at Colleen and Kenny's house. Paul and Myra drove down from DC with Nick and Michael. Ally at first didn't believe that Chris actually has a brother, but she adjusted to the idea and had fun getting to know her cousins. The last time they'd seen each other, Ally was about 10 months old.
Grammy, Grampy, Sarah, and Jordan also made the long drive out to the Lungers and provided some of the yummy food.

Nate, Ally, and Cora

Nick and Michael

The Men (with Myra's leg, Sarah subbing in for Jordan, and Maddie)

Confused but very Grateful / The Grub

Siblings minus Terri

Grampy and Grammy with the Lunger/Hoffman/Hoffman grandkids

A few days after Thanksgiving, we were invited to another turkey feast. We drove out to the Albrecht's in Raleigh and to try some of Grandpa Pete's turkey gumbo. Since it was a little on the spicey side, the girls opted for canned spaghetti noodles. I braved the spice by avoiding the sausages and quite enjoyed my bowl. Then we ate some of Jess' Thanksgiving desserts, including a fabulous cranberry crumble.

Zach, Cora, Ally, and Jess

November (but not Thanksgiving)

2011-12-28T11:29:00.000-08:00

While Daddy's been hard at work with his new job, we've been at play-- exploring our new surroundings and enjoying the light-to-no-sweater weather.

Our apartment complex has a small playground we visit sometimes while waiting for the laundry to dry. On other days, we hang out in the exercise room since the TV there has the Disney Channel. Cora can now walk a 0.5 mph pace on the treadmill without falling off the back; Ally can go a little faster, but tends to get distracted by the shows.

The development we live in also has a wonderful community playground with swings and a climbing structure. We meet a group for playdate about once a week. On rainy days (had to readjust to that!) we play at other people's houses from church. The girls are settling in and making friends, although Ally still cries sometimes over the friends she left behind in Washington and then Cora will whine "I miss Braelyn."

A big perk in returning to NC (besides the weather) is having family and longtime friends nearby. We've seen Jess on multiple occasions and are getting to know her precious little nephew a lot better. Cora feels right at home at Aunt Jessie's; she steals her money, she naps in Zach's chair . . .

Ally and Cora still love dressing up as princesses and fairies. Then they twirl and dance around, hoping for their Prince Charmings to show up and take notice.

We got a membership to the Greensboro Children's Museum and have already played there on multiple occasions. They have a "Main Street" with a post office, hospital and nursery, grocery store, TV station, pizza parlor, construction zone, grandma's house, and other areas. They have a plane, a train, and a few automobiles. They also have a camping section, a Curious George exhibit, and a garden out back with chickens. Ally and Cora LOVE having a place just their size where they can run around and pretend all day.

The museum is downtown, right across the street from another favorite place: the library. Ally loves picking out books (especially Fancy Nancy) and usually has one or two of them read by the time we get home. We generally go to a smaller branch every Friday for story and craft time. Ally and Cora are becoming quite the little artists. And I don't have to worry about coming up with ideas, collecting supplies, or cleaning up the mess. The library is becoming one of my favorite places to visit, too.

Chris Had a Birthday, Shout Hooray!

2011-12-23T18:40:00.000-08:00

We arrived in Greensboro on Wednesday night and then drove out to Chris' parents' house in Selma on Thursday night. Friday morning Chris, Kenny, Jordan, and I transfered all our worldly possessions from the trailer to a U-haul. Then the Hoffman clan caravaned to our new apartment to deliver and unload the goods. Unfortunately there was a bad accident on I-40, and traffic was a mess. Sick of being in the car, the girls and I took two detours while hoping things would clear: one to Target in Apex and another to Taunja's house in Durham. We eventually made it to Greensboro, right after all the heavy lifting was accomplished and our help was pulling out of the complex parking lot. (Perfect timing for me.) Thanks guys!

We spent Saturday moving boxes and setting things up. Jess came out to help us unpack and also to make sure Chris' birthday was not overlooked in all the moving activities.

We took him out to eat at a Greek Restaurant, and then Jess accompanied me to 3 different stores in search of Chris' present-- a new TV. On Sunday she baked him a cake, and then I decorated it with M&Ms from the Halloween stash. I made it a little girly, but I couldn't think of what to do for a "guy" cake. Sorry, Honey, but you're probably used to being surrounded by hearts and flowers by now anyway.

Happy Birthday, Daddy! Thank you for all you do for us, for putting up with us, and for making the money to buy PopTarts for us. We love you, and wish you many more years to come.

The last 1476 miles

2011-12-22T20:56:00.000-08:00

After learning as much as we could about Kool-Aid and passenger pigeons, we ate dinner at McDonald's. (I forgot to mention that we had eaten at a regional "meat pocket" chain, Runza, for lunch. We tried to eat at unique places along the way, but MickeyD's won out that night for location and speed.) The next morning we woke up and continued our long journey through Nebraska.

When Daddy was planning our route, he had the brilliant idea to build in a "break" day when we would do only a few hours of driving and have some fun instead. The halfway point in our trip occurred just outside Omaha, so we decided to spend the afternoon playing around in their Children's Museum.

Ally painted a leaf while Cora drew a masterpiece on a very large Magna-Doodle. They had a farm, a grocery store, a firetruck and crawl-through house area, and a room full of balls. The girls watched a presentation on bubbles (did you know they have Esko-skeletons?), climbed on some giant animal slides, and rode the carousel. They weren't too excited to get back in the car, but dinner was a short drive away.

Chris really wanted to eat a steak while we were in Omaha, so he tracked down a local restaurant called Piccolo Pete's that Warren Buffett visits when he's in town. Ally loved the huge disco ball hanging from the ceiling and was a little upset that we didn't get to sit under it. Chris enjoyed his steak, I enjoyed my meat raviolis, and Ally enjoyed her soup and pasta. I don't remember what Cora ate other than Jell-O, but I remember her squirming around until she finally decided to curl up under the table. The food was excellent, and because of the large portions, we had no room for dessert. I hear they have awesome root beer floats. Maybe next time.

We stayed the night in Nebraska City, Nebraska. The next morning we swung by Independence, Missouri to see the temple for the Community of Christ. It is an impressive building that looks just like a giant sea shell. Since we were just outside Kansas City, we stopped at Gates Bar-B-Que for lunch. Chris ordered a delicious smoked meat sandwich, while Ally and I chose to dine on onion rings and homemade potato salad. Then we hopped back in the car and pressed on to St Peters, Missouri, where we discovered the Drury Inn.

We have tried very hard to teach Ally the proper priorities when it comes to choosing a hotel for the night. Besides relative cleanliness and safety, any decent hotel must have the following: free parking, free hot continental breakfast, an indoor pool, and a luggage rack to serve as Sally's (the doll's) bed. Drury Inn has all the aforementioned PLUS a glass elevator, a hot evening snack buffet with drink vouchers (aka free dinner), and plenty of old people with whom to converse. We obviously enjoyed our stay.

After our fill of breakfast, we headed into Saint Louis to see the biggest attraction on our cross-country trip: the Gateway Arch. (I'm tired of trying to remember things and writing them down, so I'll let the pictures do most of the talking now.)

When Chris bought our tickets to the top, he wondered why the guy asked if anyone had problems bending or was claustrophobic. Oh, now I see.

Welcome to your space pod. The door slides open, you step inside and take your seat on a back-lit sci-fi-ish chair. In operation since 1967, the tram hasn't lost a single passenger yet-- or so they say.

After taking in the view from 630 feet, we entered the pod once more for our final descent. Ally and Cora thought it was just like a mini-roller coaster. We arrived safely at the bottom, wandered around the museum, and then continued our pilgrimage east.

We stayed in Louisville, Kentucky that night at a "normal" hotel. We didn't take the time to find the world's largest Slugger, although I'm fairly certain we drove within blocks of it. Chris and Mildred started down the road about 5 am the next morning and arrived at our new apartment around 3 pm. Ally, Cora, and I took our time leaving. We had a good breakfast at the hotel, ate lunch at a Subway in West Virginia, and made it to Greensboro sometime after dark. North Carolina, My Home Sweet Home!

2888 miles in 7 days with 0 vehicular malfunctions and very few child breakdowns. Success.

The first 1412 miles

2011-12-13T11:53:00.001-08:00

When I plugged the location of all our credit card and ATM transactions from Nov 3rd to 10th into google maps, and then added in a few untracked detours, it shows we traveled 2888 miles. Not too shabby for 2 cars, 4 people, 1 tortoise, and a few household odds 'n ends. What surprises me is that we never had a fraud alert show up on any of our cards.

Let's review the trip with the help of some pictures:

First: our vehicles of transportation. We put most our stuff on an ABF trailer so we wouldn't have to worry so much about snowstorms or other unpredictable obstacles. That left us responsible for our two cars and their sparse (but important!) contents. We stopped at an overlook in Oregon to get one last glimpse of the tan-and-brown landscape we'd been living in.

Ally and Cora rode together with me the entire trip. Chris said he would switch at any time, but they did very well. We chatted, sang, listened to music, colored, read books (not me), and watched the scenery go by. Every afternoon they got to watch a movie, courtesy of a kind friend who gave us her portable DVD player with 2 screens. Daddy says Mildred didn't cause any trouble in his car, so it seems everyone had an enjoyable ride.

Here are Cora and Ally at the end of our first day. I took them over to see the Twin Falls, ID temple and let them run around before sequestering them in the hotel room. We ate dinner at Cafe Rio that night. Yum!

We got a good look at the gorge and the bridge outside Twin Falls before getting on the highway the next morning.

(Something else we saw but didn't get picture of: a black bear in Oregon. He looked like he was going to cross the highway in front of my car. He would've made for some very unique roadkill; I'm glad he changed his mind and ran back up the hill.)

We stopped off at Little America in the middle of Wyoming to use the potty and let the children climb on a dinosaur. Cora also stomped around in a tiny snow pile, and Ally and I threw a few snowballs at each other. Thankfully, that was the extent of our wintery-weather encounters. I guess we had just missed one storm, and were a day or two ahead of the next. We spent the night in Rawlins, Wyoming and had dinner in a retro diner.

We stopped in Gothenburg, NE for a few minutes to get gas and see an old Pony Express depot. (Good thing that was not a real horse, 'cause Ally liked hanging on his tail.)

Two hours later we were in Hastings, Nebraska-- the birthplace of Kool-Aid. We went to the Hastings Museum to take our picture with a true-to-life Kool-Aid man and see his footprints, but that section was under renovation and a lot was missing. But, we did get to sample some Kool-Aid, see some premiums/prizes, watch a few old commercials, visit a mock-up of the original store, and pose in some cut-outs. Then we toured around/ hung out in the rest of the museum.

Did you know the museum's founder is buried in the floor on the lower level amongst a collection of old cars? The middle level is full of taxidermy-d wild animals in diorama displays. The upper level had a huge mid-western history exhibit along with an extremely large collection of stuffed birds-- including a few passenger pigeons (I, for years, had mistakenly thought they were called "passenger" pigeons because they were big enough to be ridden on. Chris laughed and kindly corrected me on that after a year of marriage.)

Fall Festivities and Frenzies

2011-12-06T21:16:00.000-08:00

Judging by the dates on my last few postings, it appears I have a lot of blogging to do. (Mom, I know, I still need to post this past summer's trips.) I generally try to be brief (ha! ha!), but rarely ever succeed. I might, however, accomplish my goal this time since all the details of the past two months seem to have vanished from my mind. Maybe they are packed away in an unopened box somewhere; maybe they got lost in the move. Who knows. Hopefully my memory will be jogged a little as I edit and post some of the pictures I have sitting in our Picasa folder.

Our strawberries were sparse this year and disappeared by early September, but we were still harvesting raspberries off our bushes in late October. Here's Cora enjoying the fruits of her labor one Sunday afternoon. I think the red shoes made the outfit.

Ally's "preschool" had another field trip, and siblings were invited to come along. This time it was to the pumpkin patch at the Country Mercantile in Pasco. They went on a hayride, climbed a pyramid, pet some animals, and chose their own little pumpkins.

I was working the Hanford flu clinics again this year, so I missed out on all the fun. While I played fluzie, my friends Jenn and Karen were kind enough to sub in for me and make sure my girls behaved themselves on their little adventure. Jenn took some pictures, so I stole these from her blog.

Jenn made sure the girls got dressed; she even styled Cora's hair. Jenn, however, cannot take credit for Ally's choice of wardrobe. The night before, Ally and I went through her closet to find the perfect outfit. I begrudgingly approved the whole ensemble only because she put so much time and care into making sure each item "matched"-- although her definition was very liberal (same color and/or pattern, but generally not both).

Cora was easy-- orange shirt, farmer overalls, and a fall sweater. When you aren't even two yet, you wear whatever you're mother tells you.

We had a garage sale. It's amazing what you can accrue in a few short years, and how much of it really isn't necessary when you stop to think about it. The sale was a success, as we were able to part with most our furniture and a ton of "extra" items. We also made enough to pay for the gas in our cars for our cross-country adventure. The next morning, while changing Cora's diaper, we discovered a rogue price tag. I'm glad she hadn't accidentally been sold. Five dollars is a great bargain!

We celebrated Halloween with a Chili cook-off at the ward building. Our contribution was shredded cheese, as most of our kitchen was already packed away and our cupboards were quite bare. We won the prize for being "the cheesiest". Afterward, the girls got dressed in their costumes and then headed outside for the Trunk or Treat.

I love Cora's costume. I had actually bought it a few years ago at a consignment store so Ally could wear it, but she refused. I was so excited when Cora tried it on and she refused to take it off. She looked so cute riding her chicken around. Almost everyone smiled and laughed, except one older lady who was way too perplexed to enjoy the visual novelty of the costume. She just couldn't figure out how Cora made the chicken's legs move with such ease without losing her balance and falling off. Ally decided to be Minnie Mouse, but I couldn't get a decent picture of her by herself. She is doing her best pose with her friend Ashlyn on the bottom right.

Ally knew the drill and had fun collecting her candy. Cora enjoyed the walk since she got to eat three lollipops along the way. Her only aversion to the whole "free candy" concept was having to tolerate other people's costumes. We've always known that she's a bit paranoid of larger-than-life creatures. Apparently she's completely petrified of giant Lego men; they bring her to tears.

November 1st was my last day as a fluzie. It was also the day we loaded all our worldly possessions on the truck. Thankfully we had plenty of guys from church show up to help. The official "start" time was 6 pm; our first helper arrived at 5:50 pm. Ally and Cora went and played with the neighbor boys. I frantically boxed up some loose items. Chris directed traffic and helped load. By 7:30 it was all stacked very compactly into 11 linear feet of semi-truck space. I was very impressed. (This pic is from when we started transferring our load over to the Uhaul in NC. It proves that everything did make it and that --somehow-- nothing fell.)

November 2nd was cleaning day. Again we had plenty of help, but this time it was the women's turn. Chris kept Cora and Ally occupied away from the house while the girls from church and I made everything shimmer and shine. Our friends Nick and Thad showed up with their tools and messed around outside, blowing leaves off the trees and making the front yard all pretty. Then our Realtor Jessica came over and we signed all the papers to put our house up on the market. (Which reminds me-- Anyone want to buy a house in Richland?) We had dinner over at the Jones and then spent one last night in our shell of a home.

November 3rd we packed up our air mattresses, swept the floor, locked the door one last time, and headed out on out 2700+ mile roadtrip (which I will blog about in a separate post).

We couldn't have accomplished any of this without our army of volunteers (unless we had forked over some big bucks for professionals), so we are extremely grateful. You guys saved what was left of my sanity, and made moving a less-overwhelming task. Thank you, thank you, thank you!

Tappin' Away

2011-11-23T08:18:00.001-08:00

I bought Ally some tap shoes (size 8.5) awhile back, and now they finally fit her. She loves them. Watch the whole thing so you can see her impressive, high-leaping finale.

Cora gave a stirring rendition of this same dance right after. It would really make you laugh, but I can't post that one. We are in the middle of "froggy-potty training", so she was performing her little heart out-- in the nude.

Portland: The Farewell Tour

2011-10-16T16:50:00.000-07:00

We took a little trip a few weekends ago in order to celebrate my birthday. Cora, Ally, and I drove out to Portland on a Thursday. That night we ate dinner at IKEA (Ally's choice) and wandered around the store. We went swimming in the hotel pool and then tucked ourselves into bed. The next morning we took a ride on the MAX train and spent the day at the zoo. I had Ally and Cora wear their new backpacks (thanks Jess!) stuffed with their jackets 'cause they're just so gosh darn cute. It became an easy way of identifying my girls and keeping track of their every move; people smiled and pointed whenever they saw them wander past.

Because I didn't bring the stroller and didn't want to carry any children, we took our time wandering around. We skipped some animals, but Ally insisted on seeing her new favorite-- the bats. We also saw the beavers, polar bears, orangutans, penguins, zebras, giraffes, elephants, and eagles. The girls climbed on some sculptures and even shared their drinks with a bronze squirrel. Ally almost spent as much time reading the signs as she did watching the animals. I knew she was able to read some, but I was amazed at how many unfamiliar, long words she was able to decipher. How do you know if an elephant is about to give birth? Ally read all about it.

Both Ally and Cora passed out on the 40 minute MAX ride back. I had to wake Ally up to get her off the train. She walked off under her own power, but then she laid down in the center island after we crossed one direction of traffic. She perked up enough to walk the rest of the way across the street once I promised dinner at Red Robin. She got mac and cheese AND a balloon, so she was a happy camper. We then crashed in our beds at the hotel. Chris finally joined us around 11:30 that night once his plane landed.

On Saturday we had breakfast at the hotel with Ally's new friends who served on the USS Rotanin back in WWII. (About 12 men and their wives were having a reunion. One of the men had been at Pearl Harbor when it was bombed. One of the wives had been an acrobat in the circus and had almost danced with Gene Kelly.) Then Chris drove us down to OMSI (the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry) for the day. We saw a planetarium show, and Ally enjoyed watching the man play connect-the-dots with the stars. We also wandered through the various rooms and exhibits.

We pretended to go into space, shot water bottle rockets in the air, made some stop-animation movies, experienced an "earthquake" in a shaking house, played on the computers, built sailboats, dried our hands, solved some brain-teaser puzzles, saw some fetuses in various developmental stages, avoided the skeletons, and road a few elevators. We also played in the ball and tube area, where Cora spent most her time trying to clean up the balls that were flying everywhere.

We ended the day in the children's room. They had a craft section where kids could work on projects and play with flubber. They also had a grocery store with all sorts of food, a miniature forest where you could be a squirrel and gather nuts (and hibernate, too), building blocks and plastic construction pieces, a puppet stage, a mini ball pit, and a large sand area.
We had a hard time pulling Ally away from that sand box, but we had to leave OMSI and head to our next destination: VooDoo Donuts. We opted for the larger location since it was closer and quicker then going to the downtown original one as before. Their shop was crowded (we arrived just after someone's wedding ceremony, so they were in the midst of their reception) but we got our donuts within 5 minutes. And we didn't have to wait in line in the rain for an hour. Cora's a VooDoo addict. Here she is freaking out 'cause we told her she had to wait until after our Indian dinner to eat her Fruit Loop-covered donut:

On Sunday we made a quick trip to the Grotto of Our Sorrowful Mother. It's an outdoor catholic sanctuary with gardens and sculptures surrounding the area. It is beautiful with a towering stone rock surrounded by lush green trees. I wanted to see it because of the name.
On the drive home we stopped at Multnomah Falls. Chris and Cora went as far as the bridge; Ally wanted to hike a little further up the path, so I went with her. We had to run the quarter mile back to the bottom when she decided she needed a potty "really bad". (Yes, we were faster than her pee.)

While on the bridge, Ally insisted I take a video of her dancing, so here it is. I took this about 15 minutes before we had to sprint for the bathroom. As I watch it now, I can't help but see great similarities between these "spontaneous" dance moves and her usual pee-pee dance.

Now, some of you may ask why this was the "Farewell Tour". Well, in case you haven't heard yet, we are moving back to NC soon. Which also means I'll probably be an official North Carolina resident again before I even finish blogging about our last vacation there. Oh well.

September Synopsis

2011-10-09T21:57:00.000-07:00

We attended our one and only Dust Devils game for the season. We left early 'cause Ally refused to sit still, we were tired, and they were playing horribly. I think Chris is still trying to figure out how they let one guy basically walk from third base to score a run. Short season minor league baseball just isn't the same as watching the Durham Bulls or the Phillies play.

At the beginning of September, Cora started screaming bloody murder whenever we'd put her in the crib at night. This intense fear/hatred of the crib and/or going to sleep seemed to come out of nowhere. On the third night of hour-long crying spells, I decided to try a new sleeping arrangement. I pulled out Ally's princess couch and tucked Cora into her new "bed". Ally was super-excited to have Cora sleep in her room. She told me she was happy to not be by herself anymore (because she had been having nightmares), and that Cora could stay as long as she'd like. Ally even talked to Cora that first night to calm her down, and then sang songs to her until she fell asleep.
I was a little concerned that Cora would wake up in the middle of the night and wander. That hasn't been an issue; she stays put 'cause she has unlimited, unsupervised, instant access to the bookshelf. What can I say, the girl loves books. Ally's nightmares have diminished, and Cora again goes happily to bed each night, so the girls are now sharing a room. And I supposed we'll eventually get Cora a real bed.

Chris, Ally, Cora, and I went to the park for a music festival. We saw some Chinese dances, some Scottish dances, and a few local bands. We also got to share a bubble gum snow cone and play outside. Ally and Cora both wanted to wear their Eagles clothing. Chris says that's a sign of good parenting.

Ally started attending a preschool co-op that my friend Jenn hooked me into. Some women that she knows were starting a group up, and we were invited to join them. Ally is very excited to go, although she keeps referring to it as "pretend school" or "not real school" when people ask if she goes to preschool. Class is only once a week for 2 hours, and we rotate houses and who's teaching. She's had fun being with Ashlyn and getting to know the four other kids. I think her favorite part has been figuring out what to bring for Show-And-Tell.
The first day I dropped her off and came home with Cora, it was eerily quiet. I mean, Cora was talking plenty-- constantly asking "Where's Ally?" and giving me a play-by-play of what we were doing --but I'm used to constantly hearing Ally's voice, too. I think it's been nice so far for them to have a little separation and for Cora and I to have some one-on-one time, although I know Cora would rather be at preschool with her big sis.
Two weeks ago we took a preschool trip out to the country, aka Benton City. Little siblings got to tag along, so Cora was thrilled. We saw some steer and some horses, some grapes and some apples, and some fake giraffes too. The concord grapes get picked and then processed by Welch's, which would explain why the air all around the fields smelled like their grape jelly. Cora took to heart the owner's invitation to "pick as many as you'd like"; she stood in the same spot for 10 minutes and shoved those grapes in her mouth while Ally ran up and down the aisles of the vineyard. Ally loved harvesting her dozen apples from the trees and putting them in her bag; Cora chose one off the ground and spent the remainder of the trip contently eating it to the core.

The last weekend in September, we took a trip out to Portland to celebrate my birthday. But I'm going to save the blogging of that adventure for later since the weekend spilled into October. And, truthfully, I think I should go to bed.

Oh, to be Young Again

2011-09-27T22:27:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday to me.

Happy Birthday to me.

Happy Birthday Dear me,

Happy Birthday to me.

I wish I were a little bit younger,
as in 30 or 28 years younger,
or even 4 years younger and celebrating at Myrtle Beach again,
but not 22 years younger.
I can do without repeating those awkward years.

EC 2011: The Car Seat Shuffle? Just Dance!

2011-09-25T21:29:00.000-07:00

July 20, 2011

As a parent, I've learned that something as simple as leaving the house to run an errand is a bit more complicated with children. Even on the best of days, there's never such a thing as just running out the door. When you are traveling out-of-state, using other people's cars, shuffling carseats in the 110 degree heat only to realize you only brought one of two locking clips to properly secure said carseats into the 1980s vehicle. . . Well, you begin to wonder if it's even worth trying to leave the house that day.

On Wednesday, we had the chance to spend some time with Jess' baby nephew Zach. He is adorable, and my girls loved having a smaller child to pay attention to. However, having three children in our possession required three backseat spaces in the car, and Jess' only had two. So we figured we'd do a car swap. Simple enough, right? After I unsuccessfully tried to shuffle and re-secure carseats for an hour, Jess' sister Tammy came to our rescue and signed on as our second chauffeur for the day. Problem solved!

We first stopped off at Foster's Market to pick up some yummy sandwiches for lunch. Then we drove over to Grandma Nancy's work (Jess' mom's) and invaded their staff room. I'm glad we got to spend a little more time with her-- and help show off her new grandson too. While at her office, my girls provided the entertainment. Ally danced around and told stories. Cora asked to go to the potty, and proceeded to sing and chat while she pooped. I'm sure the people in the waiting room could hear everything, and they were probably rolling on the floor with laughter on the other side of the door.

After lunch, Tammy graciously volunteered to be our babysitter so Jess and I could do a little shopping. We dropped her and the three children off at Jess' and ran out the door. And, sans children, we were able to leave quickly and without any complications. Imagine that!

Jess accompanied us to Taunja's for dinner that night. We had shrimp, and also pasta with cream sauce and bacon. Yummy! T has always known how to treat me right. You can never go wrong with those ingredients. It was fun to catch up some, but we didn't have enough time for all the in-depth conversations we could've had.

We spent part of the time chatting, and part of the time discovering the joys of "Just Dance" on the Wii. Taunja turned it on, handed Ally a remote, and the fierce competition began. T won in a landslide, although Ally says it was the other way around since she spent the whole event believing their status bars were switched. Somewhere in the middle of the dancing Brittany came home, so we got to visit with her, too. We cooled down with some Italian water ice, T got a head massage, we quickly perused a book about smashed fairies, and then it was time to leave my beloved T again. Don't worry Taunja, we promise to be back. Ally's been practicing her moves for a rematch. . .

I Should Have Seen the Writing on the Wall

2011-09-19T15:36:00.000-07:00

We've known for awhile that Cora is a budding artist and, therefore, we have a rule that she is not to be left unsupervised with pens, pencils, crayons and other writing implements. Last month Cora left this masterpiece at the top of our stairs when I wasn't paying attention to her. I wasn't happy, but she's not even two, and it could've been a lot worse.

Five days ago Chris went to a conference and brought home some cool pens, the kind where you push a button and they magically transforms into something bigger. Thinking of them as a "new toy" --and forgetting there real purpose-- we handed them off to Ally and Cora, who happily ran away to play. Later that evening I found myself spending 40 minutes scrubbing scribbles out of the butterfly sheets and the name ALLY off her green gymboree shirt. (As always, Cora's belly was tattooed with pen marks, but she washes clean with little effort.) Last night I finally noticed that Ally had also written everyone's name on their respective bedroom door "so we'd all know where we are supposed to sleep".

Until this episode, Ally was never tempted to write on anything but paper (never even tried to write in a book) and would freak out if she accidentally made even the slightest mark on the table. I've been rather lucky thus far with the natural non-destructiveness of my children. I love Ally's blossoming enthusiasm for writing and spelling, but I hope she's done labeling things in the house with pen. Mr. Clean's Magic Eraser shouldn't be my best friend.

Here Come the Brides

2011-09-12T19:45:00.000-07:00

Two of Chris' coworkers got married on Saturday, and not to each other. The girls were invited to come with us to both events, so we had a very busy day of wedding-hopping.

One of my tasks that morning was to perform a marriage in our living room. Ally put on her wedding gown and then helped Cora dress for her part as the unwitting groom. Daddy didn't like my impromptu rendition of "Pomp and Circumstance" (I know, wrong event), so he quickly found the more-appropriate "Here Comes the Bride" on the computer. The two lovebirds were married in a short ceremony, honeymooned in the kitchen, and then were on their way. . .

The first real ceremony (Lynn and Ralph) was in front of the Clover Island Lighthouse; it lasted 6 minutes. We went to the hotel for appetizers at their reception before driving into town for the second wedding. That service (Laura and Grant) was at the catholic church. Cora was getting too chatty and forgetting how to whisper, so I took her out just after the bride walked down the aisle. I almost got her to sleep in those 45 minutes; she woke up when she heard everyone cheer at the end of the ceremony. Then we loaded into the car and raced back to Clover Island. (Cora had a seven minute nap in her carseat.) We made it to the original reception just in time to scrape together a few Hawaiian dinner plates from the buffet chaffing dishes. Then the girls danced and danced and danced. We let them eat cake, too. Ally was in heaven, and Cora was following right along with her.

At one point, Ally told Lynn (bride #1) she was pretending it was HER wedding day. I wonder if that's why I caught her kissing the groom's grandson Bubba during a slow dance. . .

August Adventures, Part III

2011-09-04T19:32:00.000-07:00

Ally got her third haircut ever, and this was the first one that wasn't just a trim. As Ally explained when she asked me to take her, "I need my hair to be cut so it won't keep getting in the way when I wipe my butt." I couldn't really argue with that statement, so her hair is now 3 inches shorter and lacking some curl. Cora still hasn't had a haircut yet, but she wanted her picture taken too.

We rode the bus out to the county fair at the end of the month. Cora was very apprehensive about being around so many animals. The first animal building we explored was filled with guinea pigs, rabbits, chickens, geese, and turkeys. She didn't want to walk down the aisles of cages at first, but she eventually gained enough courage to pet four bunny rabbits. That proved to be her most favorite part.

The other barns seemed to be too noisy and overwhelming for Cora with all the larger animals and their Moos, Baaas, and La-La-Las. For one brief second though, Cora forgot her fears and reached out to pet a cow. She quickly regretted that decision.

Ally told me she knew which pigs were boys and which were girls. Thinking she had seen an anatomical difference in the animals similar to humans, I asked how she figured out their respective genders. I was expecting a response like the little boy on Kindergarten Cop who said, "Boys have a penis, girls have a vagina." What I got was: "The boy pigs only have one earring, but the girls have two." Well, I guess that works for a 4-year-old, although the logic isn't so accurate.
Ally loved seeing the animals and walking through the other exhibits. She got a temporary tattoo, learned about seeds, collected stickers, picked up her traditional KGH punch balloon, looked at photographs, critiqued the home-grow veggies, and listened to a 4-H presentation on show-horse abuse entitled "The Price of Beauty".

We had a hard time deciding what to eat for dinner. We must not crave greasy, fatty, batter-dipped, fair foods like we used to, or at least we're better at controlling ourselves. We finally settled on a lemonade and an elephant ear for a snack. I'm glad we only ordered one ear, 'cause the four of us were barely able to finish it together. We ended our fair excursion with a private bus ride back to Richland and then dinner at a Mexican restaurant.

August Adventures, Part II

2011-09-03T01:13:00.000-07:00

We went camping again this year at Teancum Timbers as a church activity. We got to the site and set up our tent just as the potluck dinner was starting. I brought an experimental recipe I found on Allrecipes.com: rice, cool whip, and canned mixed fruit. Everyone ate it-- and Cora loved it-- but I still think it was a flop.

Ally and Cora had fun dancing and playing with the other children while Chris and I sat around, chatted with other adults, and enjoyed watching our offspring be silly. Here's Ally doing the Macarena and shaking her hips.

After marshmallows and s'mores, the kids jump-roped until their respective parents forced them to bed. Our girls didn't have much of a problem falling asleep, but Cora was awake by 5:00 am. I tried my best to keep her quiet and occupied until we could feasibly venture outside without waking up the entire camp. Cora and I spent 2+ hours brushing teeth, taking pictures inside the tent, and practicing the art of whispering. Ally slept like a log until after 8:30 am when breakfast was already being devoured.

After breakfast, the children returned to playing in the field and jumping rope while the adults cleaned and packed up. In two days time Ally made quite a bit of progress, although she does need to work on jumping straight up to stay in place. No one could've guessed that jump rope would be the weekend's hottest commodity. Even Cora gave it a try when she wasn't busy scarfing down Red Vines.

The following weekend we escaped to Idaho for a visit to our closest amusement park, Silverwood. The girls and I went on the carousel a few times while Daddy stashed our stuff in the waterpark. Cora was petrified of the Garfield and Odie costumed characters that were stationed right outside the ride's entrance. Even as we turned around and around and around, she kept a watchful eye on the big dog to make sure he wasn't coming for her. "That doggy leave Cora alone. That doggy not get Cora."
Next we took a lame, hour-long train ride on which we were "robbed". We didn't remember it being so cheesy and bad a few years ago. After that ordeal, we made our way over to the kiddie rides. Ally says here favorite were the helicopters; she also enjoyed the airplanes and the mini-ferris wheel, as did Cora. They are good riding buddies. Ally almost rode the Tiny Toot, a kid's roller coaster, but changed her mind at the last moment. (She made it to sitting in the seat, so that's an accomplishment for her.) Contrast that with Cora, who rode next to me with her hands and arms held high in the air as the train made its way up and down the track. Afterward Ally would ask Cora if she was a "tiny little toot."

Ally and Daddy drove the antique cars and then conquered the Thunder Canyon rapids while Cora took a nap in the shade. Once the rapids completely soaked their clothes, we changed into swimsuits and splashed around the Boulder Beach waterpark for a little bit. We ended our amusement the way it began, with a few more spins around on the carousel. (And Cora was still on the lookout for that terrifying dog and the fat cat.)

Instead of driving home, we spent the night at my Aunt Kathy's house in Spokane. (We arrived after disappointingly not being able to eat dinner at a Jimmy Johns that wasn't quite open for business.) My cousin Christina and her daughter Delaney were visiting from Virginia, so we hung out with them on Saturday before heading off to the Grand Coulee-- which I already blogged a few posts back.

I threw in a picture of Ally with my cousin Rob's son Ethan here; it was taken on a different trip, but they are so cute together and I can't resist.

August Adventures, Part I

2011-09-01T23:26:00.000-07:00

We attended Richland's Night Out Against Crime at the beginning of the month. It was held in one of the local parks on a fairly hot night. (Thus the rosy-colored cheeks.) We skipped the free hotdogs, but took advantage of the bounce houses, the face painting, and the public service vehicles.
Ally seemed right at home in the back of the patrol car, but Cora preferred to be the one driving it.

We saw a water rescue boat, an ambulance, two fire trucks, a mobile command unit, and a SWAT tank.

After talking to the paramedic and impersonating the firemen and the SWAT guy, Ally stood in line to control the bomb-diffusing robot for a few seconds.

That next weekend, we ventured out to Fort Walla Walla for the day. We had heard there was a lot of interesting stuff on the site, but we were left wondering where they stashed it all. Maybe we should've saved our trip for an interpretation weekend when people walk around all dressed up nice and fancy in clothes from the late 1800s/early 1900s. I learned that "old" and "interesting" really are relative terms. When we walked into the old schoolhouse, Chris made the comment "I've lived in houses older than this building." I was expecting an actual fort, or a recreation thereof, or at least a plaque describing the fort/outpost as it had been. Instead, they had an eclectic collection of "old" buildings from various decades that were relocated to a grassy area. I guess we are just a family of east coast history snobs.

I am not saying it was a wasted trip. We did find a few interesting and/or amusing things to keep us smiling as we wandered through the buildings and museum.

Inside the train depot I learned how to defend myself against tough hoboes. I am now prepared if I ever encounter one.

Inside the schoolhouse we found a picture of Walla Walla High's male cheerleaders from 1926. Such hunks!

Inside the museum Chris discovered that this flag, which flew over the fort at the turn of the century, was given to the newspaper boy when it was retired.

I learned that Washington State license plates have always been made by the convicts. I thought that was just a story about the "big house". Speaking of which . . . When Cora and I got sent to the slammer, she diligently tried to chew us out. Then when Ally ended up in jail with me, Cora attempted to eat through those bars too.

Cora enjoyed peering in the doorway of the playhouse that was built in 1900. She also liked picking the crab apples off the ground and swinging on the playset at the end of the day. She did not appreciate all the life-sized animal replicas that were found around every corner in the farming section. I'm sure this 33-mule harvesting set-up was her worst nightmare.

We also saw a covered wagon, antique cars, old farm equipment, a teepee, dresses from the 1920s, military uniforms, beaded cloth made by the local tribes, and a flytrap that could hold gallons of flies. Think about that one. Yuck!

I learned that, when Clark once traded a sword for a horse, 5 translators and 9 different languages (or something ridiculous like that) were required to make the statements understood.

Ever wonder what some of those weird Pacific Northwest names mean? Here's a little translation lesson while you look at my kids hitching a ride to nowhere.

EC 2011: Orange County Randomness

2011-08-24T22:20:00.000-07:00

July 19, 2011

After another lazy morning, we ventured onto Franklin Street in Chapel Hill. My good friend Taunja walked over on her lunch break and joined us at the Mediterranean Deli. Then we went shopping for sandals in Carrboro (success!), and stopped at another store long enough for Jess to buy Ally a fairy book and for Cora to have a major rolling-on-the-floor-tantrum.
In the evening Jess shopped at Old Navy while the girls and I made some new friends. Ally bonded with the mannequins so much that she started calling them her "new family" and demanded a photo shoot. Cora ignored the people and focused on riding the dog.

Our last stop for the day was at Maple View Farms. I ordered an orange chocolate milkshake, Jess ordered a chocolate something-or-other milkshake, and Ally had a cookie dough ice cream scoop; Cora helped herself to whichever was closest to her mouth at any given moment. While we were rocking back and forth on the front porch and savoring our treats, Brittany (T's sister) magically appeared. It was fun to see her, catch up just a little, and to inform her that she was indeed on a double date. Ally and Cora had their picture taken next to the little cow again, and then they giggled and chased after bubbles on the front lawn as the sun went down.

EC 2011: That's What She Said (at the zoo)

2011-08-23T23:57:00.000-07:00

July 16-18, 2011

On Saturday, night we hung out at the Lunger house. We ate pizza and then watched another firework show in their driveway. This one featured a glowing-eyed, fire-breathing dragon and a firetruck; both were smaller than real life. Paul and Norma were nice enough to drive Chris to the airport on Sunday morning so the girls and I could sleep in. Thus started the next phase of our adventure-- trying to have fun without Daddy for 2 weeks. Although we wish he could've continued vacationing with us, I think we managed alright without him.

We tried going to church in the afternoon, but Cora was way too chatty and loud so we left the services early. Grampy used all his lung power to blow up the kiddie pool for Ally and Cora to enjoy in the 105 degree (plus humidity) heat. In the evening, Grampy and Grandma Hoffman drove us into Raleigh and handed us over to my friend Jess for a few days. We visited with the Albrechts for a short while and then headed off to Carrboro.

We slept in on Monday. We were tired, feeling kind of lazy, and not in any hurry to spend all day in the record-setting heat. We drove to Ashboro in the afternoon and spent a few hours exploring Africa.

We rode the zebra-striped tram to the top of the hill and worked our way back to the parking lot. Along the way we rode on the carousel (twice), found a pressed penny machine, and watched the girls make "cylinders" on the air vents. Oh, and we also visited some of the animals.
We saw lemurs, white alligators, baby baboons, an elephant from a great distance, various birds, zebras, and giraffes. We also visited the flamingos, where a sign was posted: "The flamingos are in breeding season. During this time, please remain quiet as they are easily disturbed." After receiving a brief explanation about the meaning of breeding season, Ally stated, "I think it probably takes them all day to make a new flamingo." That was funny, but quite disturbing too.

Ally insisted that I take her picture with this sculpture and plaque. I didn't realize it until just now, but she had inadvertently stumbled upon an ode to "The Office".

Rest in peace, Michael G. Scott.

Star Performers

2011-08-22T12:37:00.000-07:00

Every Sunday as we leave church, our girls stand in the grass and wait for me to announce, "Introducing your next American Idol, Miss Ally Hoffman and her little sister Cora." Then they run up to the light pole and sing their audition songs for whomever happens to be walking by.

Cora's favorites include "Sing Sing Sing", "I am a Child of God", and "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star."

Ally usually performs "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star" or a variation of "If I Listen with my Heart". Yesterday she tried out a new composition that went something like this: "My heart helps me to live. My heart helps me to breathe. My heart is so special, it helps me not to freeze. . ."

I critique their performances, and I generally tell them they can continue on in the competition. Cora was so excited yesterday that she jumped down from their makeshift stage, ran down the sidewalk, and yelled,
"I'm going to Hollywood!"

11,975,521 Cubic Yards of Concrete

2011-08-22T10:28:00.000-07:00

The view above: Lake Roosevelt and the mile-long dam

Pretending to be construction workers back in the 1930's

The Grand Coulee Dam

EC 2011: Beach Bums and Royalty

2011-08-16T09:32:00.000-07:00

July 10-16, 2011

Ally loved going in the water-- something she's generally not allowed to do on the west coast since it's so cold. She had fun holding hands and jumping over waves, playing "spank bottom" by pointing her rear end toward the ocean and waiting to be slapped by the water, hanging around Uncle Jordan's neck for 2 hours in the deep, sitting in the sand at the water's edge as the waves came in and out, and helping Aunt Sarah overcome her fear of sharks, fish, and unidentifiable floaty things.

Cora's beach experience was quite different. She sat at the water's edge only a few times, visibly shaking for most of it. She very clearly stated, "I not like that water, Daddy." Well, okay then! She loves splashing and floating in the bathtub, but the ocean and its waves were too overwhelming for her. Cora chose to spend her time looking cute, pocketing every seashell she could get her hands on, and trying to bury Daddy with shovelfuls of sand.
Every evening, some part of the Hoffman clan went for a walk on the beach. The children busied themselves with collecting shells while the grown-ups monitored the skies for illegal fireworks and rockets that were being launched straight at them. (One night a huge shell casing landed 5 feet from Ally and me; another night something whizzed by Nate and Kenny's head.) We also experienced some fireworks inside the house-- thanks Jim and Kenny! That was the same night as the thunder and lightning out over the ocean. Not a huge storm, but beautiful.
On Monday evening, we drove into Myrtle Beach to see the giant ferris wheel. We also played around in the arcade, used the restroom at the Gay Dolphin, and ate ice cream on the boardwalk.

On Wednesday, we drove down to Broadway at the Beach to hitch a ride on the old Pavilion Carousel. Out of all the unique, hand-sculpted and hand-painted animals on this merry-go-round, Ally wanted to ride the pony. Cora rode the frog, which allowed her to chase the zebra. For the rest of the trip Cora would repeat, "Froggy go up and down, Zebra go up and down, Cora go up and down." Although it was deathly hot, we braved being outside for just a little longer so Ally could procure more souvenir smashed pennies for her growing collection. Then we met up with the Lunger clan over at Medieval Times for dinner and a show.

Daddy bought Ally a rose, and Nate got a sword. With our crowns in place, we were ready to cheer on our knight (Go Blue!) and eat some grub. We were curious how Cora would do since she has a recently-discovered fear of live horses; she thankfully did okay. The whole thing was pretty gimmicky (and the princess' voice was over-dramatic and extremely irritating), but it did have some highlights.

The show started with some swordplay in the middle of the arena. With all the clanking and grunting and people being "wounded", Ally turned to me with a concerned look and asked, "Are we going to see someone get cut in half?" When they released the live falcon to swoop through the air (just after serving everyone the main course of half a large roasted chicken), Ally told me, "I'm pretty sure that's a hummingbird." We saw a horse stand on its hind legs and another one dance. After our blue knight won the jousting competition, he kissed a a red carnation and then tossed it up to Ally.

On Thursday we had to visit Barefoot Landing to update our family portrait. Again, it was deathly hot, so we opted to return to the air-conditioned paradise of our house. Ally and Daddy briefly ventured back out to fly their kite on the beach. Later that evening, Chris and most the other guys went down to Molly Darcy's for their second night of karaoke. . . I mean playing foosball. The kids had a dance party in the driveway with Grandma and the aunts, but Ally spent most of the time making milkshakes in the pretend kitchen instead of shaking it on the concrete.

Sometime during the week, Ally wrote the entire lower and uppercase alphabet in the sand. On Friday afternoon, we made a sand volcano and decorated it with shells; when the top collapsed, we named it Mount St Helens. Also on Friday, we took a family walk down the beach. On our way back, the clouds were rolling in and so was the cold rain. Daddy and Cora were smart and made a beeline to the house. Ally and I stayed behind and took one last swim (and cold shower) in the ocean. That girl just wanted to spend every moment she could rolling around in the waves.

On Saturday, we finished cleaning the house and had a pancake breakfast. While everyone else headed out of town, we stopped at Jungle Lagoon for some mini-golf. Ally and Daddy took on the two course while Cora meandered about and I took pictures. We saw a cave with a waterfall, lots of animals, and real fig trees.

I guess that covers our time at Myrtle Beach with the Hoffmans.

The weather was great, the beaches were sandy and uncrowded, and the water was a perfect temperature. What more could you ask for? Being able to fall asleep to the sounds of the waves AND the glow of a full moon over the ocean as heard/seen from our bed every night? Yep, we experienced that too.

EC 2011: Bright Eyes for Grampy

2011-08-16T09:29:00.000-07:00

EC 2011: Hoffman Family Photos

2011-08-12T11:54:00.000-07:00

Here's a close-up of Baby Madison since her face is always hidden. Sorry we missed you Paul, Nick, and Michael!

EC 2011: A Rocky Start to Our Sandy Bliss

2011-08-12T08:01:00.001-07:00

July 9, 2011

The Myrtle Beach portion of our vacation started off with a bang. There's rarely a dull moment when you're chillin' with the Hoffman Clan, but you don't necessarily expect to hear such fun comments as:

*"I can't get the door open. Wait, now it won't close. Now it won't open. Hey, now we're stuck in here."
*"If there's a fire, just throw a chair through the window."
*"Where are the rest of the chairs? Oh, they're piled in the corner, broken."
*"People are going to see Jim's hairy butt through those broken blinds."
*"Why are those wires sticking out of the wall like that?"
*"I'll be a grown-up for Cora to make sure she doesn't chew on them. We don't want her to get electrocuted."
*"I'm scared of being murdered downstairs."

My favorite, however, came from Chris: "When the health inspector comes, if he says it's stachybotrys . . . . I'm out of here."

Since there were enough people fretting about the situation already, the girls and I did our best to keep Grandma calm. We tried to stay out of the way and enjoy the one good thing about the house-- the view from the back porch. After three hours of near-panic attacks, meltdowns, and negotiations (go Paul!) with Elliott Realty, we had a refreshing re-start to vacation at our new home for the week: The SandLapper.

Chris took charge of ordering up some pizzas to feed the hungry crowd. I listened to the waves and stared out the window (from my bed!) while all the kids jumped around me. Colleen and Sarah passed out the T-shirts and shell-collecting bags, and the kids decorated their buckets. Lorra and her family arrived with Troy, and then we all hit the beach.

EC 2011: Drive Me Crazy with a Southern Accent

2011-08-12T07:03:00.000-07:00

July 8, 2011

We slept in Friday morning while Grandma and Grampy went to work. We hung out with the Lungers (Chris' sister Colleen and family) in the afternoon and did our best to drive them crazy.

Nate was pretty good about letting Ally drive Cora around the yard, although at one point he did carjack them while they were parked at the swing set. Cora loved the ride so much that she kept climbing right in and then would patiently wait for a driver. She has also learned to go down (and up!) the slide without much fear.

We went to a barbeque place in Wilson for dinner. Chris' Dad was infatuated with the waiter 'cause he looked like Scott McCreery. When the kid asked for my order I had to laugh and say, "Can you say that again s.l.o.w.l.y? His accent was adorable, but my brain just couldn't process the southern-ness of his words. I've lived away from North Carlina for too long.

That night we returned to the Lunger's house where Kenny and Jordan set off some fireworks in the driveway.

East Coast 2011: High-Flying Antics

2011-08-12T07:00:00.000-07:00

July 7, 2011

Our marathon East Coast Vacation got off to a very early start. We had to pull the children out of bed for our 5:25 am departure. Although excited for vacation, Ally kept trying to curl up on her pillow and go back to sleep. Cora was walking down the hall like a drunk woman, giggling and running into the walls. My friend Sarah was kind enough to drop us off at the airport (at least we were leaving from Pasco) and we were on our way!

Our first flight was perfect. The girls were awake, more-coherent, and very happy by the time we took off. As with every flight, Ally verbally reviewed all the safety precautions-- including differences in evacuation procedures for "crashing into the mountains" versus water landings; Mommy's oxygen mask goes on first, then I help Ally, then we can both help Cora; where our closest exits are; how to slide down the big inflatable slide; buckling up the life jacket and/or using the cushion as a fun flotation device. . .

We had a short layover in Salt Lake City-- not long enough to do anything but run into an old friend, Mike Nicholas, and try to play catch-up with him during a 3 minute conversation. (I sure wish Amanda and the kids had been with him.) Then we hopped on our separate planes.

Fifteen minutes into our next flight, the girls cuddled with Piggy and Pooh, and then fell asleep on each other. After their long naps, Ally entertained herself by writing her letters and numbers in a dollar store workbook and by reading Dr Seuss books. Cora entertained herself by stealing Ally's pencils and eating snacks. Cora also asked to poop on the potty. She peed, but I'd call that a success at 30,000 feet. Chris entertained himself by reading and resting. He seemed to enjoy the flight-- except at the end when a lady stuck her rear-end in his face and he got a whiff of something nasty. Since our next layover was in Memphis, we had barbeque for lunch. It was only so-so.

Our flight from Memphis to Raleigh was more of the same: sodas and pretzels and snacks, magna-doodle and workbooks and crayons. Cora went potty again. (Yes! She's catching on.) Five minutes later, she was asking to do it again. (No! She just thinks it's a game.) I told I wouldn't take her back; someone else was in the bathroom. When the lady came our of the bathroom and walked by us, Cora pointed and said, "She poop on potty. My turn now."

We arrived in Raleigh around 5:30 pm and met Kenny and Paul in the elevator (after they had been joy-riding on the escalators while waiting for us). My friend Jess also showed up at baggage claim to give/receive some much needed hugs. The girl couldn't wait another week to see us (and I felt the same way). We loaded into Kenny's truck, stopped at Chic-Fil-A for dinner, and experienced a big thunderstorm rolling in. Welcome back to NC!

A Dozen Pearly Whites

2011-08-07T22:21:00.001-07:00

Cora hit a milestone this past week. She finally has a symmetrical pairing of teeth in her mouth. Granted, her hold-out-of-a-lower-left incisor has not reached its full height yet, but it has poked all the way through!

You may be asking yourself why this is such a big deal. Well, it's not. I just need an excuse to write down this huge difference in my girls' tooth experiences (and also celebrate Cora's lack of Jack-O-Lanternness before it returns in 5 years with the losing of baby teeth).

Ally's baby teeth arrived in predictable pairs with very little complaining or fan-fair. Cora's have all shown up sporadically and in random order after months of uncomfortable teething and irritation. I mean, what kind of child grows a one-year molar before acquiring any usable pairing of front teeth? (Her fourth tooth, on the bottom, remained short and very crooked for quite some time. Her second tooth, on the top, made up for this by growing comically long.) I'm impressed she was able to eat so well. I never bothered to record the dates of each tooth, but above is their order of appearance.

The after-Christmas Party

2011-08-05T23:50:00.000-07:00

***This is another "throwback" blog. Blogs about our recent marathon vacation should be coming soon, but you all know by now how that goes. I just couldn't blog about our visit with Jess in NC before blogging about her visit with us in WA-- albeit 7 months ago.***

Jan 7-17, 2011

Ten hours after all our Christmas visitors left, Cora took her first steps.
Six days later, our friend Jess arrived for some post-holiday fun.
Here is what I remember:

We took Jess to Leavenworth, WA. That's the small town outside of Wenatchee that decided to turn itself into a touristy Bavarian getaway in order to survive. We drove through George, Washington on our way-- nothing much there other than a gas station, a water tower, and this bust of George.

We stayed at the same hotel as our previous visit so we could watch the old man stand precariously on the railing and play his long alphorn while we ate breakfast. We swam in the indoor pool, pretended to take a sleigh ride in the lobby, window-shopped around town, ate a German dinner, saw some snowflakes, and took in all the Christmas decorations.

We're always looking for interesting things to do in the Tri-Cities. One afternoon we followed this van to the TRAC for the gun show. Not something any of us needs to do again anytime soon. It was advertised as an antique show as well, but the majority of it was guns and related paraphernalia. Bullets, rifles, stun guns, tasers, pepper spray, or bear mace anyone?

This pic of Ally was by far my favorite part:

We took the girls to the park one afternoon. I'm pretty sure this was Cora's first time going down a slide. Ally was a great big sister and stayed right next to Cora, holding her hand the whole way.

We took Jess to see the Christmas lights at the local landscaping office one night. We sat in the car listening to music, while the lights flickered and danced to the songs.

Jess took me to the eye doctor so I could finally get some new glasses and contacts. The frames (and lenses) I had been wearing were over ten years old; my newest pair broke back in 2008 when Ally pulled them off my face in the middle of church just before we moved to WA. I'd been wearing my "back-ups" ever since. (Why does it take me so long to get anything done?)

I was able to finish Cora's baby quilt. Jess and I had picked out the fabrics, cut the squares, and decided on a pattern during one of her previous visits. I guess it's fitting that she got to see it through to the end; I just wish it hadn't taken me (us) over a year to complete.

We also started on my apron, which I later finished in March. It's an adult-sized lap apron, but Ally likes to wear it around her chest when her own belly protector is dirty. (Can you see Cora in the background, happily rearranging the contents of our recycling bins?)

Well, I believe that covers all the time we spent together, except for all the chatting and the solving of all our problems, too.

We tried to get Jess to live in our basement and be our nanny, but she ultimately chose to hop back on the plane and return to NC.

Bubbling with Delight

2011-08-01T22:52:00.000-07:00

Home

2011-07-05T00:30:00.000-07:00

July 22, 2010

Jess took us to the airport and sent us home to Chris.

Here's the top of Mount Rainier from the plane.
Forty minutes later we landed and our adventure was over.

Into the Woods and Finding Our Marbles

2011-07-05T00:15:00.000-07:00

July 18-21, 2010

The last leg of our great East Coast Adventure was spent with my pseudo-sister Jessica. Grandma and Grandpa Hoffman drove us out to her parents' house in Raleigh and kissed us good-bye. I remember hanging out with her family and eating dinner there; Ally remembers watching "The Little Mermaid" with Jess' sister, but I'm not so sure it was on this trip. (See what happens when you wait a year to write stuff down?) I am sure that we eventually made it over to Jess' townhouse south of Chapel Hill and that Ally had multiple breakdowns and tantrums over the following few days. I think it was a combination of being on the move for 3 weeks and being a typical(?) 3-year-old.
We walked down Franklin Street and had lunch at a Mediterranean Cafe, after waiting half an hour for the parking lot employee to finish tinkering with the broken pay station. We drove by the UNC Hospitals buildings where I used to work, and we took some pictures of the LDS Institute chapel where Chris and I first met and used to go to church. We also visited Jess' mom at the birth center and showed off Ally and Cora to her coworkers.
One time Jess stayed inside and studied statistics with Cora while Ally and I took a little nature walk down Jess' road. We took lots of pictures, and we collected sticks and stones and pine cones. (We also gathered the 4-piece remains of a picked-apart butterfly, then scotch taped it back together for Jess. I'm positive that morbid piece of artistic expression is still hanging on her fridge.)

Ally is an insect magnet. She saw 3 live butterflies, got 15 mosquito bites, and ended up hosting a tick on her upper thigh for a few hours. When we discovered the tick, Jess and I had to do some emergency "surgery". At first Ally was very afraid we were going to take her whole leg off as we got her into position to remove the tick with a pair of tweezers. Her eventual bravery was rewarded with a soda and a trip to Maple View Farm for some ice cream.
Our last day in NC was spent at the Marbles Museum in downtown Raleigh. Cora laughed and giggled and enjoyed being carried around while Ally hopped from activity to activity. She hula-hooped, drove a truck, gardened and bought groceries, played princess dress-up, sawed some wood, raced a small car, ate lunch with some hockey players, did a few science experiments, counted big money, and tried her hand at cheerleading. Don't believe me? Click to zoom in on the pics and don't forget to watch the video. I'm still wondering who taught her all those excellent moves. . .

Hoffman Horseplay

2011-07-04T22:30:00.000-07:00

July 16-18, 2010

We said good-bye to Taunja and Brittany, then we drove back to Selma so we could spend one final weekend with Grandma and Grandpa Hoffman. I was hoping to eat more of Paul's peanut butter balls, but Sarah had finished them all off by then.
The girls enjoyed hanging out with Grandpa and Grandma, eating popsicles on the back porch while the thunderstorms rolled in, and playing with cousin Nate-Nate's toys. It was so nice of him to share like that.

Before we left the Hoffman house, we took pictures of Cora and Ally on Norma's wooden rocking horse. She says she rode on it when she was a little girl (which makes it very, very, very, very old!) and that her grandmother is the one who painted it. It's a neat piece of family history.

el Cuatro de Julio 2011

2011-07-04T14:56:00.000-07:00

Now for something a little more recent:

Chris put on a mini fireworks display yesterday afternoon for us. Then he did an encore presentation for Ally around 9:30pm when it was finally dark outside. He lit a bull whip, two egg-laying hens, some killer bees, and a standing stick that shoots off purple fire. We also messed around with some sparklers. Cora and Ally didn't like the loud popping sounds, but they did enjoy watching the sparks fly.

This morning we dressed in our red, white, and blues and drove out to Pasco for the Fourth of July Parade. We found out that Cora has a fear of horses. She whined "horse, horse!" and cuddled tightly on Chris when they marched by, and there were a lot of them in this parade. Ally enjoyed collecting the candy that was thrown, and she did a very good job staying safe by following Daddy's instruction to not cross the white line in the street. At one point she was running for a piece of candy and stopped dead in her tracks when her toes hit the line. She left the just-out-of-reach candy on the ground and walked away. Way to be obedient!

We didn't see any remarkable mullets this year, but we did spot a girl in a dance troupe who was sporting a comically large pink tutu. We also never saw my paleta man, so no arroz con leche popsicles for me. Sad, but I still enjoyed the parade.

T and B's Bed and Breakfast

2011-07-03T16:09:00.000-07:00

July 14-16, 2010

We left my parent's house and drove back down to NC in our speedy red rental car. We stopped at the temple visitor's center in Washington, DC for a quick potty break. Since the girls enjoyed being out of the car so much, we stayed for a movie, ate our lunch/snacks, and got our picture taken with the statue of Jesus.

When we arrived at Taunja's, she tied a fancy apron on Ally and then the two of them got to work cooking and baking. I held Cora, chatted with T, and did my best to not stick my fingers in the pots. She made us a delicious upscale version of cut-up hotdogs in mac and cheese. I was in heaven. Chris is an awesome cook too, but only Taunja caters to my cheesy-creamy-fatty cravings. I still think she should move out here and be my personal chef; I ate so well (and so much!) when we lived together.

Ally enjoyed all the attention Brittany bestowed upon her when she was around. They sang, messed around on the computer, and talked and giggled. Here's Ally trying to explain "Hide and Go Seek" to a very patient B.

When Taunja wasn't at work, she was hanging with us and playing hostess. One evening we got to see Celsi and meet her new-to-me husband. I had a lot of fun catching up with them and reminiscing about when I was living the single life in Durham/Chapel Hill.

Cora loved taking naps on Auntie T while Taunja sang to Ally.

We were only able to spend a few days with T and B, but Ally remembers it well. She still talks about the Princess Bubble Bath and sleeping on the mattress on Taunja's bedroom floor. We also still giggle about her comment "Now we're just like a big happy family!" when we were all piled into T's bed one night. In my book, T has always been family.

Easter Resurrected

2011-07-02T23:00:00.000-07:00

We had a playdate in the park along the Columbia River a few days before Easter. Every time I walked away from the picnic table to help Ally or Cora on the playset, a seagull would swoop down and try to steal our lunch. One time he actually was successful and picked up our grocery bag full of food. He flew about 20 feet before gravity forced him to land. Then I swooped in and stole it back. A bird should not be able to fly while holding something 5 times its weight in its beak.

After lunch we moved to another area and fed the geese (and the gulls were fed, too). Thankfully my friend Jenn is smart and had us sit on the picnic table. Those geese were quite aggressive! Everyone had fun throwing the old crusty bread at their new feathered friends, although most of Cora's bread went into her own mouth.

We dyed and decorated eggs the day before Easter. Here are the girls getting all creative in their jammies.

Easter morning, Chris made us a sweet bread (not "sweetbreads" a.k.a. calf brains) shaped like eggs in a basket. We ate that breakfast while looking for treasures in our real Easter baskets. The best part of Daddy's basket were his truffles. My favorite items were the masks. Ally did a great job of practicing self-control, eating a little of this and a little of that at a time. Cora, well, we discovered that she's a sugar maniac. She quickly learned how to say "chocolate", bite and/or suck her way through any kind of wrapper, and climb counters.
The Easter Bunny broke into the house while we were away at church. He left 6 eggs in Ally's room and 6 eggs in Cora's room so they wouldn't have to compete for the sweets. Ally finished her egg hunt in under a minute, while Cora took a bit longer. Once she realized her eggs were more than just great maracas, she had to sit down and have herself a little snack after each discovery. The girl never stops eating!

And then, for Easter dinner, we had homemade Thai food. That's when I dropped the camera and broke it, so we don't have a picture of the dozen crab rangoon I ate. But they were delicious!

A Year Ago

2011-07-02T22:05:00.001-07:00

This time last year, we were in the midst of our great East Coast Adventure, which included a few days at Myrtle Beach. Remember back when they were this young?
Thinking about these two cuties on the beach reminded me that I never finished blogging the final week of our adventure. My apologizes to the following fine and fabulous people. I'm hoping to correct that oversight in the next few days (we all know what my track record is) and preserve the memories of our time spent together. Can we please make some new memories really soon?

Hi Ho! Cherry-O

2011-06-30T22:30:00.000-07:00

There was a kind Sandy who didn't live in a shoe.

He had so many cherries, he didn't know what to do.

We offered to give some of them a new home. Wouldn't you?

Ally wore a homemade (not by me) polyester house-dress and her sparkling Sunday shoes on our picking adventure.
Not my top choice for an outfit, but it wasn't a fashion competition. Right?

Cora loved eating the fruits of her labor. She downed every cherry she picked-- pit, stem, and all. I wonder how many cherries we will be harvesting from her belly next season. . .

Oh, and Cora was deathly afraid of the little neighbor dog, Professor Kibbles.

What do you do with 15 pounds of cherries?

Eat some, and can the rest for later!

Random pictures of Sandy's flowers. I wish I had a green thumb.

Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious Animal Sounds

2011-06-22T19:16:00.000-07:00

These Are a Few of Her Favorite Things

2011-06-06T23:54:00.000-07:00

1) A new helmet. She sleeps with it in her crib at night. She wears it a good portion of each day. Safety first! You never know when you'll wish you would've been protecting your noggin-- even on the toilet. (Thank you, Seattle Children's Hospital, for such a wonderful gift.)

2) Little piggy flannel jammies. It's gotten hot here (maybe I should turn the AC on), but she keeps picking them out of her drawer at bedtime. She has 12 pairs of PJs to choose from, so these flying pigs must be her favorite.

3) A sippy cup of chocolate milk. Her favorite drink. A girl's got to stay hydrated at all times.

4) Pooh Bear. Her favorite thing to cuddle on besides me. Who doesn't love Pooh? And his name is quite inspiring when you're taking care of business.

5) A froggy potty. Her new favorite game is to sit, pee, dump her output in the big potty, and repeat. (I'm just there to supervise and cheer.) She'll purposely squeeze out 15-30 mls at a time to keep the game going and going and going. . . She'll also say "poop it out", grunt and strain, and occasionally get some results. She then stands at the toilet, waves, and says "bye-bye poopy" as it flushes away.

The Big 0-4

2011-06-06T23:49:00.000-07:00

Do you remember the beginning of April?
Ally's transition from being a "Big 3" to an official "Little 4" started with a breakfast of scrambled eggs, Mickey pancakes, and the obligatory glass of chocolate milk. Then we all got dressed and went over to the mall. The girls spent 2 hours making new friends in the play area and had a Dairy Queen lunch (corn dogs and french fries) in the food court, before Ally's big photo shoot at Sears. Ally was sure to tell everyone she saw that it was her birthday. When we got home, Cora and I tried to keep Ally happy by playing games and reading books until Daddy got home from work.

Ally chose the Emerald of Siam for her birthday dinner. (If you're keeping track of our special meals, that means Greek for me, Polish/VooDoo/Indian for Chris, Indian for Cora, and Thai for Ally.) Daddy's fondness for culinary experimentation and diversity seems to have made an impact. Ally and I shared a plate of non-spicy something-or-other. I took a picture, but forgot the name. We also ate some yummy appetizers which inspired our Easter crab rangoons.

After dinner we opened presents and had some dessert. Ally had requested another castle cake but after struggling so much with it last year, I wanted to do something simpler. I thought Cinderella would be easy, but not when I didn't bother to measure her long, long legs before starting. Or when I didn't have as much batter as I had thought. Or when half the cake stuck in the pans and/or crumbled, decreasing the achievable height as well. I thought about cutting the princess' lower half off to make her fit properly, but opted to have her ballet toes sticking out of the skirt to avoid any trauma to the birthday child. At least I know the frosting was yummy. If you look closely, you'll see that Cora was trying to help herself to some sweetness while Ally was posing for the picture. That girl just can't control herself around sugar.
Thank you for all the gifts and attention paid to Ally on her big day!

When the weekend came, we finished Ally's celebration with a family mini-golf adventure. Ally and Cora each have unique ways of golfing. Here are a few videos to give you an idea of their individual techniques and how pretty much each hole was played.

At least Ally learned to hold the club like a putter instead of like a cane.

I'm pretty sure Cora was practicing for the upcoming Easter Egg Hunt.

Easter Teaser

2011-05-19T22:04:00.000-07:00

*A more thought-out post about Easter will be coming soon. I just feel extremely guilty leaving "Christmas" as my most recent post, although I've been skipping all over the place the last few months.*

I broke my camera while taking a picture of our Easter lunch (yummy Thai peanut noodles and fried crab rangoon), so I never did get a good picture of Ally and Cora together in their Easter dresses. And by "Easter" dresses I mean the outfits they each chose to wear. Ally's dress was originally meant for play and not for church, but she designated it her Easter dress 2 weeks in advance and there was no switching it out for the flashy new dress I was sure she would've picked.

Here's a video of them hopping around like bunnies.

PS: I really hope my brother Mark appreciates my playful anagram.

Was December Really 5 Months Ago?

2011-05-19T21:48:00.000-07:00

The details of Christmas have become quite fuzzy. (Darn that aging brain of mine!) If you're interested in a different perspective (or fresher recounting) of our Christmastime fun, you should check out my sister-in-law Erin's blog. Unlike me, she posted her memories within a month of the actual holiday.

We ended up with a bunch of interesting faces and no stellar poses when we tried to get a cute picture for our card. My favorite "can't-use-that-shot-either" was the one where Ally's throwing up gang signs. We also ended up with a CTR ("Choose the Right") ornament that Cora stole from the tree. (She's already not making very good choices.) I'm pretty sure it's still down in our basement somewhere 'cause we could never remember to take it back to church with us on Sundays.

The day before Christmas, my brother Mark and his family drove out from Seattle. They brought their three children and my parents (who had flown out from PA) along with them. Ally excitedly anticipated their arrival. The whole week beforehand she'd remind me that "4 plus 5 plus 2 equals 11 people" and "six adults and five children equals 11 people." Good thing Daddy bought us such a big house!

The kids reenacted the Christmas story. Ally quickly volunteered to be Mary since she's so good at popping out babies. Chris read the story from Luke chapter 2 while a very-pregnant Ally rode into Bethlehem on donkey Mark's back. Bryce was the ever-diligent Joseph, making sure she didn't fall off. Aubree played an angel, and Cora crawled around on the floor like a lamb.

Here's some never-before-seen footage of Jesus' birth.

Ally and Cora in their jammies on Christmas morning:
Most of us slept in Christmas morning. When they did wake up, I had the kids wait behind a baby gate so they could all run out into the living room for presents together. Santa and his elves left a huge stash of goodies on our fireplace and under the tree, so we must have been playing host to some well-behaved children.

Some pictures of everyone enjoying themselves:

Chris requested that he be able to make our Christmas meal. He also requested a liberal budget. The man wanted to try out a recipe for prime rib. I would've been crazy to stop him. To compliment his chosen entrée he baked mushroom and wild rice stuffing, and he whipped up my holiday favorite-- his crock pot yams. I made the rolls, but the best thing on the table was the meat. I doubt he'll do it again anytime soon, but it was a definite success. I'm thinking he should open a restaurant if this whole epidemiologist thing doesn't work out.

We did other things during that week, but I can't quite remember what. I know we saw the dancing Christmas light display at a local landscape business, played lots of games, and let the children run wild.

In No Particular Order

2011-05-18T08:07:00.000-07:00

I have 4 or 5 months worth of memories to catch up on, so get ready to experience a lot of blogging flashbacks over the next few posts. (At least you'll get to see some cute pics of the girls and how much they've been growing recently.)

It's always a circus around here. I really don't think our life is all that complex, but I never seem to be able to get anything done. And things rarely go as planned.

We had a flood in our basement the end of April. Thankfully we were home and saw the inch and a half of water within 10 minutes. Thankfully it was clean and not sewage. Thankfully we have insurance. Although our basement walls and carpet are still in construction mode, I'm grateful we didn't lose anything. Somehow most of our stuff was either elevated off the floor, in plastic bins, or moved out of harms way before the water could touch it.

Chris did find my boy Cabbage Patch Preemie face down in the lake that was our laundry room. To add insult to the situation, he was wearing a Minnie Mouse dress. I thought he was a goner, but I placed him in the wind tunnel created by one of 14 high-powered ServPro fans and he dried out quite nicely. I'm sure we'll have to pay for therapy some day.

Note to self: Make sure the garden hose is disconnected from the outside faucet next winter so this little pipe doesn't freeze. At least I got to spend some quality time with ActionMan again. I'm glad he was nice and didn't scold me for not listening to him.

Then yesterday Mr. Appliance dropped by to take a look at our refrigerator. (I just realized, it sounds like I've had to call upon the Superhero Squad-- cheaper than the Justice League-- to solve a lot of problems recently.) The fridge has decided to join the chaos by not following recommended temperature guidelines for adequate food safety. Mr. Appliance will be returning on Thursday to replace the evaporator fan motor. Until then, most our "cold" food is vacationing with different friends while we eat the basics out of two chest coolers on my kitchen floor.

At least we're alive and not suffering from encephalitis or anything like that. (We love you Kenny and are glad you're getting better!)

How Do You Say/Spell That?

2011-05-18T08:06:00.000-07:00

We drove out to Pendleton, Oregon in April to see what we could see. Our first order of business was to have a yummy picnic lunch on the sidewalk at the rest stop.

Then we moved on to the Museum at Tamástslikt Cultural Institute, which is next to the Wild Horse Casino. If you're unsure of how to say or spell Tamástslikt, don't feel bad. It's a Native American word, and apparently the people that run the center have the same issue.

The museum sits on Umatilla Indian Reservation and portrays the history of all the various tribes in the area. They have some neat life-sized dioramas, teepees and a gathering tent, photographs, videos, and a multimedia campfire presentation that scared Ally.

They were also hosting a traveling exhibit from OMSI on aging. Ally had fun seeing how wrinkly Mommy and Daddy are going to look in another 20 years.

On our way home we took a 10 minute self-guided tour of Pendelton. We didn't find anything of interest except a small downtown area and the wool mill. Not much to talk about, although I think we'll try to go back in September for the Pendleton Round-Up.

Palouse Falls

2011-05-16T07:48:00.001-07:00

This Saturday we took a drive out to Palouse Falls. I'll be breaking from my traditional blogging style by posting a lot of pictures with just a little commentary. But, rest assured, it really is me posting this.

We hiked up the hill to an overlook shelter and got a better view of the whole landscape.

We ate our picnic lunch in a slight drizzle of rain.

"Hey, let's go hike up there to get an even closer look."

A very important message.

Ally started to bawl when we yelled at her for not wanting to hold our hands and trying to run. I thought she was crying because she didn't want to die. (We DID tell her she might fall off the cliff and die and be gone from us forever and then Cora wouldn't have a big sister anymore.) Turns out she was MOST upset about getting into trouble and potentially losing a book for not listening.

Beautiful views without any fences + elevated, uneven, and rocky path = one awe-inspired but very nervous mother.

On the way home we experienced the rolling hills of Eastern Washington, with the brown and green fields. This picture doesn't quite do it justice. I think this was in the little town of Prescott.

Mother's Day

2011-05-08T18:37:00.000-07:00

Ally had her church singing debut today. She and all the other Primary children stood up front for a special musical number dedicated to the mothers in the congregation. She performed a solo encore for me by the light post in the parking lot after church, and then she gladly sang it once more when we got home so I could record it. Enjoy!

Little Artist

2011-05-06T12:17:00.000-07:00

I left Cora downstairs for a few minutes this morning. I knew better than to leave her alone, so I made sure Ally was there to supervise. When they came upstairs, Cora was holding two open pens and grinning. Then she showed me her belly. Apparently Ally is a very "hands on" supervisor, 'cause she had a Cora masterpiece on her belly, too.

I'm glad no walls, furniture, toys, or clothing were harmed in this act of artistic expression. And I'm glad my children are washable.

You've Had a Birthday Shout Hooray!

2011-04-15T14:59:00.000-07:00

So, as usual, it's time for a little back-blogging. Cora turned one back in December. (You know, before Christmas, and New Years, and Valentine's, and Ally's gymnastics debut, and Ally's birthday . . .) Since she couldn't tell us what she wanted to do for her big celebration, we let Ally translate Cora's babbling for us. That's how we ended up playing at Chuck E Cheese for the evening. Two of our little friends and their mom met us there to join in the fun. Cora enjoyed riding in the cars, crawling from toy to toy, and watching the other girls as they spent their tokens. She also made a lot of phone calls while Ally enjoyed skeeball and other games with Daddy.

As they giggled and played, our girls worked up a voracious appetite. I'm not a fan of paying for cardboard pizza (Sorry, Chuck E), so we asked Ally to help Cora choose a good restaurant for her birthday dinner. Her pick? Indian. (Who takes their one-year-old to an Indian restaurant for their birthday?) So, we went down the street to the Indian restaurant and had ourselves a really fine tasting meal that-- ironically-- looked a lot like pureed baby food.

Here's a pic of Ally drinking our shared Mango Lassi. The glass was about as big as Ally's head, but Cora still managed to down at least half of it. Good thing she had reached the legal drinking age for raw honey. (Now that I think about it, we celebrated her birthday one day early, but don't let the MD know. Shhh!)

I made Cora a Pooh Bear cake, and we let her have first dibs at destroying it. She started out by daintily caressing his cheek, but she eventually dug her way into the frosting and the chocolate on his nose. I'd say the cake was a success, although we didn't get around to eating much of it. And Cora enjoyed ripping into her presents, too. So, happy belated-blog birthday wishes, Cora! (Like she's really aware of it anyway.) We love you!

Move Over, Shawn Johnson and Nastia Liukin

2011-04-02T12:03:00.000-07:00

Wikipedia defines gymnastics as "an activity involving performance of exercises requiring physical strength, flexibility, agility, coordination, balance, and grace." Yeah, maybe we'll eventually get there.

This has been Ally's favorite part of class. Not sure what they're supposed to learn from this exercise, but Ally learned that maybe-- just maybe-- she might try riding a roller coaster in the future. I sure wish I was still small enough to take a ride in that car.

Cora's Bananas

2011-03-22T14:19:00.000-07:00

This was Cora's lunch today. She ate one banana, then asked for another one. She was so cute I decided to video it. Not wanting hoard the cuteness, Cora and I came downstairs to post it on the blog before it gets lost among all the other stuff I haven't shared and becomes obsolete. (I think I need to get back to blogging.)

Cora finished eating the second banana while watching the camera replay of the "baby" devouring the "nana". She's such a little monkey.

A Day Late and A Pound Short

2011-03-18T08:42:00.000-07:00

We hope your yesterday was full of Irish happiness and greenery. We didn't find a pot of gold at the end of a rainbow, but at least we didn't lose our little leprechauns. Enjoy the pics.

My Tiny Counter

2011-03-03T15:01:00.000-08:00

I'll admit this video is probably not worth your time unless you're a grandparent, an avid fan of all things Ally, or just plain bored. I've posted this mainly because Ally asked me to, but also to preserve another piece of her self-taught childhood. She figured out the whole pattern to counting on her own, so she just keeps going and going and going. . . I can't decide which part I like better: Her "concentrating" eyebrows in the first few frames of the video or her "searching" eyes when she gets into the higher numbers.

The Apple of My Eye

2011-02-24T21:25:00.000-08:00

As Ally was foraging for food in the fridge, Cora shimmied inside too and decided to help herself to something scrumptious. Usually she'll grab a yogurt or a drink, but she was a little more adventurous today. She grabbed an apple and went to town on it. Since her teeth aren't coming in very fast, I wasn't sure how successful she'd be at devouring her chosen snack. What Cora lacks in dentition she makes up in brute jaw strength.

She ate half the apple--skin and all--before moving on to animal crackers and cheese. This is why I get concerned every time she tries to take a bite out of my toes (or shoulder, or cheek, or arm. . .) Eventually I'll need to chart the order in which her teeth have appeared, 'cause it's been very random. Today I looked in her mouth and found her 1-year molar popping through on the upper right.

Fairies for Grandma

2011-01-29T17:22:00.000-08:00

Happiness (with a side of pumpkin)

2011-01-26T09:41:00.000-08:00

Is she ever going to have a useful set of teeth?

Chris' Birthday

2011-01-21T15:43:00.000-08:00

Sorry I am continually blogging things out of order. But, at least it's finally getting done so my girls will have some documentation of their lives. And, Chris and I will have some way of triggering our memories when we are old and suffering from Alzheimer's.

The second weekend in November found us in Portland to celebrate Chris' thirty-something-eth birthday. There are some things we'd like to remember about that trip, and a lot we'd like to forget. I'm also sure there's a lot that we've already forgotten about that we would've liked to still remember. . .

We left our camera in the hotel on our first day of the adventure, but I know we took the MAX rail (public transit) through Portland and out to the zoo. Cora would Ohh and Ahhh with her mouth (and eyes) wide open every time we saw a new animal. Ally enjoyed the monkeys, and had an especially fun time watching the orangutans. After a few minutes, the largest male walked right up to Ally and sat himself down in front of her with his back against the glass. He totally blocked her view of the enclosure, but also made her giggle very loudly. We checked in on the baby elephant, saw some hippos walking around on land, and got Ally another pressed penny for her collection. That evening, while riding the metro back to the hotel, Ally pitched an awful fit about that penny-- which proved to be the first of many breakdowns/tantrums/screaming episodes for the trip. Then she fell asleep until it was time to get off the train. We may or may not have gone to IKEA that night to shop and eat Swedish food.

Day 2 found us parking at the mall and catching free transportation to the downtown area. "Free" always seems to come with a price. We found an ice rink in the middle of the mall, and Ally was in heaven (Chris was not). We watched a group performance of Alice in Wonderland, followed by some solo skating by a blond Michael Jackson, a mini-jedi knight, a chimney sweep, and a bunch of princesses. (Definitely not on Chris' list of how to celebrate a birthday.) After an hour of watching, followed by an hour of fighting with our firstborn about leaving, we made it to the MAX and headed out to city center.

First stop was the Saturday Market. I'd first like to point out that it's actually open on Saturdays and Sundays. Within the past year, the market moved to a larger location in a park next to the river. I found it strange that the food booths are now set up directly in front of the Municipal Sewage Pumping Plant. We wandered around the booths to see all the eclectic things for sale-- clothing, carved wood, bracelets, incense burners, crafts, jellies, photographs, chestnuts roasted on an open fire . . . And with close to 20 different ethnic food options for lunch, it was Chris' turn to be in heaven. We settled on Polish sausage and a pierogi plate.
Then we walked a few blocks up the road to experience the next item on Chris' birthday list: Voodoo Doughnuts. This is a famous Portland business we'd seen featured on the Food Network a few times, so Chris wanted to give it a try. We recognized the line to get into the place well before we actually found the shop itself. We stood outside in the rain for 45 minutes before it was our turn to enter and order, but I'd say that sacrifice was worth the melt-in-your-mouth taste that is voodoo. Ally and Cora must have sensed they were in for a special treat, 'cause they were quite well behaved as we stood there on the street. After entering and procuring our pink box full of sweet goodness, we still had to walk back to the MAX and through the mall in order to retrieve our car. We were a walking, smiling advertisement for Voodoo-- and at that point we'd only seen and smelled the donuts. We couldn't wait to get back to the hotel and indulge our tastebuds.
At the center of the picture is the Memphis Mafia, the largest donut I've ever seen. It was bigger than Cora's head, and she's got a decent sized noggin. Then, left to right: a toasted coconut cake donut, a Bacon Maple bar, a Raspberry Romeo, a Miami Vice Berry, a Butterfingering. All of them exceeded our expectations. Ally loved them so much that she didn't even realize there's a skeleton on the box, and she's deathly afraid of skeletons or anything that vaguely resembles them. Needless to say, we didn't make Chris a birthday cake this year. After celebrating with Voodoo, you really don't need anything else.

Day 3 found us driving back home. We stopped off at Multnomah Falls to stretch our legs and take a few pictures. Ally and I climbed up to the bridge while Daddy and Cora stayed behind in the mist below. Last time we'd gone I was pregnant and barely made it to the bottom of the falls, so walking the 7 minutes to the bridge halfway up was a novelty (and extremely easy). Maybe next time we will all walk the full mile to the top.

Once There Was a Snowman

2011-01-21T11:17:00.000-08:00

Two pictures from our second (and last?) snowfall of the season, the one that messed with everyone's Thanksgiving plans because of snowed-in mountain passes. Five days later, the snowplows came down our street to remove an inch or 2 of slush and to finally spread some salt on the ice beneath. It was so cold that Mr. Snowman stayed in pristine condition for 2 weeks, except for a broken celery arm.

November Odds-and-Ends

2011-01-07T14:31:00.000-08:00

By looking through my collection of pictures, I can tell we did a lot of stuff in November. I have already blogged some of it, but here's the remainder of the rundown (minus Chris' V.D.):

The beginning of November, before the snow and freezing temperatures hit, we enjoyed very mild weather and some beautiful leaves. Although we still can't say we like to rake them, this year was more fun 'cause we had some "help" from Ally and two little neighbor girls. They jumped in the piles, threw leaves at each other, ran screaming through the yard. . . and occasionally tossed some leaves into the bags, too. Cora enjoyed all the commotion from the comfort and safety of her carseat.

A week or two before Chris' birthday, Ally and I let him open this mysterious package. We had purchased it in early October, thinking it'd be a Christmas present, but we just couldn't wait any longer to give it to him. I was a little short on wrapping paper, so I pieced two kinds together and then told Ally she could decorate the blue part. Too bad I wasn't paying attention when she delved into our sticker collection and used all my mint-condition, out-of-production Dutch Wonderland stickers. So much for saving them for posterity. Watch the video to see all of Chris' wishes and dreams come true. . .

My brother Mark and his family moved from Florida to Seattle in November. They were welcomed to the Pacific Northwest with some major snowstorms that blanketed Washington and the surrounding states. Definitely not the best time to experience the Cascade Mountain passes, so our plans of getting together for Thanksgiving were thwarted. We went with plan B, as did everyone else around here. We hosted a Thanksgiving lunch/dinner and played games with our good neighbors the Barringtons (who couldn't make it to Montana) and the Merrills (who couldn't make it to Idaho). Sometimes friends can be family, too.

Chris and Ally started making cookies in November and stashed them in the freezer until Christmas came. Then we pulled them out and gave them away to some local friends and neighbors. (If you didn't get any, maybe you should think about moving a tad bit closer to us for next year.) In the tradition of Grandma and Grandpa Hoffman, they made all sorts of cookies. The unlikely favorite turned out to be the pfeffernusse, with the magic peanut butter middle cookies coming in a close second. Ally wants to make sure I mention that her favorite were the candy cane cookies.

For quite awhile, our smart Ally thought that molasses was made from bunnies. I wonder what would've ever given her such an idea?

If You Give a Cora a Toothbrush. . .

2011-01-05T15:02:00.000-08:00

A day or two after Christmas, Cora's very first tooth poked through for its long-anticipated grand entrance. (This picture is of her tooth as it exists today. She now has another one just barely appearing next to it, and a large lump in her upper gums above that. I'd say she's 100% in the throws of teething now. Poor child.) Santa was perceptive and had placed a toothbrush and toothpaste in Cora's stocking, and she was very excited to try them out.

Of course, I didn't remember she had a tooth to clean until the evening of New Years Day. So, on January 1st 2011 at 9:35 pm, I snapped this picture of Ally with Cora brushing her teeth for the first time, and then Cora took four steps forward. She'd taken one or two steps on occasion over the last few months, but never enough to qualify as walking. She's preferred to walk on her knees or just crawl. Ally and I got very excited and tried to coerce her into doing it again for the camera. After a few failed attempts, we did end up capturing video of her mobility skills. Of course, not wanting to be normal, Cora chose to walk sideways for her first visually-documented walking adventure. We've known that she was capable of walking for quite some time, and now we have the proof. Happy New Year, Cora! You're days of being carried around are numbered!

If I'd known the key to getting Cora to walk was as simple as distracting her with the joys of tooth-brushing, I would've given her a toothbrush long ago. Thank you, Santa, for providing her with such a fabulous gift.

A Christmas Wish

2010-12-21T16:36:00.000-08:00

All I want for Christmas (besides Cora to have at least 2 front teeth) is a little elf to magically update our blog while I'm all snug in my bed with visions of sugarplums dancing in my head. Probably won't happen, so I hope to find the time to do it myself really soon. Until then, here's a pic of our kids with a jolly old soul we found at the local craft fair . . .

May all your wishes and dreams come true.

Feliz Navidad!

Documenting October

2010-11-28T15:42:00.000-08:00

We harvested a lot of yellow squash, zucchini, and tomatoes from our garden. In spite of chronic neglect, our garden also produced acorn squash, bunches of Romaine lettuce, and four large heads of broccoli this year. Our green beans, cantaloupe, and watermelon never made an appearance; but we again had rogue, giant sunflowers sprouting up near our grapevines. Speaking of towering plant life: Did you know that the broccoli plant, if left unattended after the head is harvested, will grow into a 6-foot-tall bush? Not that I'm admitting to ever having had 4 broccoli bushes on our property or anything . . .

One afternoon Ally, Cora, and I decided to visit the pumpkin patch with our friends. We drove out to Pasco, only to find that the patch wasn't open on weekdays. We reverted to Plan B (a trip to the public library), which turned into an unplanned opportunity to tour the local fire station with a homeschooling group. When we arrived at the fire station at the appointed time, all the doors were locked and no one was there the meet us. We all walked up the hill and played running games for half an hour while the angry parent who had coordinated the trip made multiple phone calls and a lot of grumbling noises. After awhile, an off-duty fireman showed up, and it was discovered that the missing firemen were all out fighting fires at two separate locations. Imagine that, they were doing their jobs! (Can you tell I was annoyed with the angry parent? I was grateful she and her group let us tag along, but very annoyed with her attitude and assumptions of the firemen's disregard of her time.)
When a few of the firemen returned from their call, they gave us a short tour of the station and showed us the firefighting equipment on their smaller truck. Ally got to see how quickly a firefighter can get dressed into all his gear, and she now knows how strange a fireman looks and sounds while wearing an oxygen mask. After we left the garage, they turned the siren on, and it was VERY loud.

A few days later, on a Saturday, the girls and I took Daddy out to Pasco to visit the open pumpkin patch. Besides your typical patch full of pumpkins and a giant corn maze, they also had a hay bail maze, a bounce house, a blow-up obstacle course, a giant slide, potato guns (that we didn't use) and big and little hay pyramids. On our way out, Ally decided to attempt the giant slide with me; she quickly regretted that decision and cried/screamed all the way down. (I don't have a good picture of that.)

Before beginning our search for our own Great Pumpkin, Ally and I whizzed around the patch on an animal train. Our creature of choice was a spotted cow with a sheep's head, mainly because it was up front. Ally's friends were more adventurous and sat in the back, with hopes of greater whiplash. The train moved a lot slower than in years past, which Ally was quite grateful for. We had a fun ride and saw lots of potentially "perfect" pumpkins.

After our trip in the mutant cow, we all boarded a flatbed trailer and returned to the patch. Daddy found his great pumpkin, Ally found her white pumpkin, and I found a bunch of cool-looking gourds. And Cora, as always, had fun because she was being carried everywhere.

We took our pumpkins home, and a week or two later they were decorated for Halloween. Which I've already blogged a few posts back. Yeah! Now to tackle November.

Looks Like Winter

2010-11-22T13:12:00.000-08:00

When I got up this morning and looked out our kitchen window, this is what I saw.

When Ally got up this morning, I had her look out our front window. This is what she saw. Then she said, "Looks like winter is finally here." I think she's right.

After 45 minutes of preparations, the girls and I were dressed and ready to go have some fun outside with the first snowfall of the season.

This was Cora's reaction after touching the cold, wet white stuff for the very first time.

This was Ally's reaction after tripping by the tree and face-planting in the snow. Surprisingly, she stood herself right back up, licked the snow off her face, and started laughing. I'm glad she's learning how to cope.

While I snuggled with Cora,
Ally had fun tromping around making circles and squares with her bootprints. She also made a snow angel (her imaginary friend Anna had taught her how) and threw handfuls of snow at us.

After about an hour of playtime, we went back inside. Then it started to lightly snow again. Our walkway and the streets are now covered with another inch of wintery goodness, perfect for a snowman or a snowball fight once Daddy gets home.

Daddy's Announcement

2010-11-17T22:34:00.000-08:00

More details to follow. . .

What a Girl Wants

2010-11-17T16:20:00.000-08:00

Somebody got into her big sister's Halloween stash and helped herself to something mighty blue and tasty too. Although I'm not happy with her mischievous little feat, I am happy it gave me a chance to record just how mad Cora can get when she can't have what she wants.

PS- I just showed Cora this post. She's now sitting on my lap, giggling at the baby's little antics, and repeatedly hitting her hand on the desk (her signal for I like that, please do it again).

A Halloween Pictorial

2010-11-06T10:41:00.001-07:00

Ally decorated a pumpkin. She started with her name (in characteristic right-to-left fashion) and then added about 50 other stickers to it. Per tradition, Daddy carved a pumpkin with some supervisory help of our little manager who insisted on a not-so-scary face this year. For 2 months now, Ally has been having what she calls "skeleton dreams". The only way to make them stop is to sleep with her eyes open, so that's what she does. We can't wait for the princess dreams to return.

We took the girls trunk-or-treating in the church parking lot on Saturday night. Cora went as Pooh Bear dressed as a Honey Bee, holding her best friend mini-Pooh. Fairy princess Ally was escorted from car to car by her SWAT boyfriend Devon. (An A-list celebrity cannot leave the house on such an important night without the proper protection.) They collected lots of candy, 2 sets of princess playing cards, and some fresh-picked Fuji apples. Cora dreamed away most of the event in the comfort and luxury of our car.

Daddy eventually turned back into Daddy, but Ally remains a fairy princess. And we intend to continue living happily ever after. . .

Two Bits of Wisdom

2010-10-16T10:09:00.001-07:00

They may
look like
candy corn,
but these
little morsels
aren't to be eaten.

They are
for eating.

Congrats on being so brave,
Daddy!

Remember September?

2010-10-14T01:59:00.000-07:00

The last few times we've gone and done something, I've gone and done forgot to bring the camera. (I chalk it up to old age.) So here's a brief rundown of the past month and a half or so. It's hard for me to remember what we did without time-stamped photos to remind me, so we'll see how many details show up.

We went to the Benton-Franklin County Fair at the end of August. The girls had a lot of fun. Ally and I got to pet a 6-day-old calf. A little boy also invited Ally to pet his chicken (Daddy likes to say it was an adult male chicken), but she declined that opportunity. The girl has her standards. Ally still talks about the sheared sheep that were wearing the spandex t-shirts. Cora wasn't quite sure what to make of all the large animals with their strange noises and smells, but she seemed to enjoy being carried everywhere. The most anticipated part of our excursion was probably the cotton candy. Ally frequently reminded us that we couldn't leave the fair without some. We had a private bus ride back to the car, and then the children and I chowed down on the fluffy blue goodness. Here's a picture full of post-consumption sweetness.

Also in August, we went to a very-minor league baseball game with Chris' work. We saw our Tri-Cities Dust Devils take on the Boise Hawks (not as fun as the Everett AquaSox). I don't remember who won, but I do remember that Ally got freaked out by Dusty the mascot. She trembled in fear and hid behind Chris when we had to walk past him on our way out of the park.

The first weekend in September, we camped at Rimrock Lake with some friends. Because of the higher elevation (near White's Pass) it was a little chilly, but we snuggled under plenty of layers and a big wool blanket to keep warm. Cora and Ally love camping. It's a change of scenery AND they both get to sleep next to Mommy and Daddy all night long.

The girls (minus Cora) went down to the lake with the Dads and threw rocks into the water. They were supposed to just stand on the shore, but somehow each girl managed to "accidentally" fall in and get wet. They had fun playing chase with Lobo the dog and looking for bottlecap treasures at the campsite. We also had a fire, cooked out, and roasted marshmallows for smores. Ally was a helpful friend and tried to give Ashlyn a boost as she attempted to climb the trees.

Cora turned 9 months old in September. She weighed in at 16 pounds, 8.5 ounces; height of 27 inches. She started crawling a week later, so we had to invest in a baby gate at the top of the stairs. I stalled in purchasing one 'cause I didn't want to take away Ally's independence in running about the house. Apparently I neglected to factor in the independence of Ally's imaginary friends. Once the gate was installed, I had to stop what I was doing and open it each time Anna, Sally, or Ha-juana came over. That lasted a few days until Ally decided it would be quicker for her to just imaginarily reach down and pull her friends over the gate. Self-sufficiency was restored.

We went to the HPM picnic for Chris' work. I don't remember much except that I forgot the camera and there was a blow-up bounce house/obstacle course that Ally liked. Some bigger kids were kind enough to help her over the wall and they were careful enough to not squash her, so she had fun. I guess I also remember NOT winning the Wii in the raffle. We walked away empty-handed but with full bellies.

Chris went to Albuquerque, NM for a conference. He tried to tell me what it was all about, but the name went on forever and so I kind of tuned him out. Here's a picture he took out his hotel window.The last night he was gone, Ally got sick and spent the night throwing up on me. (She's only been sick with the pukes 3 times in her life, but I've always been the receiver.) We went through 2 sets of sheets, 3 sets of jammies, 4 blankets, and 5 towels. Fun times for me (and Ally too)! I was so glad when Daddy came home. He wasn't so glad when Ally passed the sickness onto both him and me. It was a memorable weekend.

And that brings us to my birthday at the end of September, but I've already blogged that. I still need to find time to revisit the second half of July, and then I'm all caught up!

Bargain Basement Treasures

2010-10-04T23:04:00.000-07:00

(Yes, I realize I'm skipping around again. Yes, I realize I'm now over 2 months behind on the blogging of our East Coast Trip.)

July 11-13, 2010

Part of the fun in coming home to Pennsylvania is the chance to explore my mother's basement. I think we've all gone "shopping" in it at one time or another to stock and/or restock our various apartments and houses. It's like a personalized Goodwill, but better since almost everything is free for the taking. The Home Shopping Club at its finest! Since I live so far away now, I limited my take-home stash to some more 80's-era Tupperware cups, a pile of clothing my mother had preselected for Ally and Cora, and a large box of books. But that doesn't mean we didn't make use of all the other cool finds.

From the toy department: puzzles, a multitude of Legos, and bins of food sets (complete with a McDonald's kitchen and Happy Meals). I remember when Amy and I would play with these toys in the hallway between our bedrooms. I even found the menu and fake checks I had made using PrintShop and the first version of WordPerfect.

From the costume department: pioneer dresses, pirate outfits, ballerina skirts, Mickey Mouse gloves, fake spiders, and wigs for all occasions. I don't know who wears the hairdo best-- Little orphan Ally or China doll Cora?

From the preserved-for-posterity department:

an old blanket and a crib cover my grandmother made for my mom when she was tiny, and

a double wedding ring quilt my grandmother had also made before my mom was even born (that makes it REALLY, really old!). These intricate works of art put Ally's animal quilt and Cora's yet-to-be-finished Pooh Bear quilt to shame. Maybe someday I'll finally get to her skill level and do her proud.

From the childhood keepsakes department: a bound copy of the award-winning Young Authors essays at Charles H. Russell Elementary School. I happened to be snooping through Eric's bin (with the help of his wife) when we found this last treasure. I won't share Eric's prized piece entitled "Ask First", but here's my amazingly insightful "What I Want to Be". It's short and well worth reading, even if only for the last three lines. Chris is one lucky man to have tamed such a progressively-minded woman!

From the "thank you" department of my PA memories:

Thank you, Erin, for letting me steal the above picture of Ally.

Thank you, Amy, for dedicating a good chunk of your vacation to digitizing our family's picture slides. I guess I'll forgive you for being a slacker and only getting half of my childhood transfered. When's your next vacation?

Thank you, Chris, for putting together a slide show when know one else was willing to choose which memories would make the production cut.

Thank you, little cousins, for running around with Ally and keeping Cora entertained.

Thank you, Mom and Dad, for not charging us for the Bed and Breakfast.

Thank you, siblings, siblings-in-law, Dad, and Tyson, for staying up late and Banging the night away.

Happy Birthday to Me

2010-09-29T22:43:00.000-07:00

We dined at Apollo, a Greek restaurant. . .
where the food is authentic but the chefs and owner are Mexican.

We then ate a made-from-scratch princess birthday cake. . .

that lacked any pillars but was coated in yummy white chocolate cream cheese frosting and decorated with tiny stars and M&Ms.

Happy Birthday to Me, Indeed!

Backtracking to Myrtle

2010-09-14T07:34:00.000-07:00

June 27-29, 2010

After our very short visit to Pinehurst, we went south of the border for a two night stay in Myrtle Beach. Our little family got there on Sunday, and our friend Jess drove down on Monday to join us. That's the only way we happen to have this family beach picture.
Unlike the previous trips we've made there, we actually spent a decent amount of time on the beach itself. We were on the sand in the mornings and late afternoons. And we did more than just stroll around looking for seashells. Thanks to Special Agent Oso (he's a unique stuffed bear who's on a special assignment to help a kid somewhere), Ally was all excited to build sandcastles with Daddy. She also finally conquered her fear of having water splashed in her face and therefore loved walking into the waves with Mommy and Daddy. She would laugh and giggle and hang on tight as the water pushed her around. Even when the ocean stole her shoe and tried to eat it, she was happy.

Cora put her feet in the water and wet sand once, but she didn't seem to appreciate the experience. Her tiny feet also went Godzilla on Daddy's sandcastle stacks; that was a little more up her alley. Cora spent a lot of her time getting ready to go out in the sun, and then watching her big sister play from the comfort and shade of someone else's lap.

Other notable memories include walking along the new boardwalk, a visit to the Gay Dolphin, Daddy's NOT winning the baseball game in the arcade, and being harassed by a fudge-selling man (who probably loves the name of the afore-mentioned gift shop). We skipped the seafood buffets and instead opted for Chinese take-out, Jimmy Johns, and Cheeseburger in Paradise. And some ice cream. The following video adequately defines Cora's favorite 5 minutes of our Myrtle Beach excursion.

This is a funny picture of Ally being a pirate. What makes it even funnier is that Ally doesn't like pirates. Ally is helping me write this part, and she says (while trying hard to squint one eye closed) to make sure I put "AAAAAAaaarrrrrrgggggghhhhh!"

She's Got the Moves

2010-09-14T05:55:00.000-07:00

She can sit.

She can stand.

She can do the splits.

She can crawl!

Moore County? Moore Quaint.

2010-09-08T01:05:00.000-07:00

June 26-27 2010

The first Saturday afternoon of our vacation, we took a little break from our Johnston County relatives and traveled to Moore County. We needed to check in on a few people and see if things around Pinehurst have changed at all since we've been gone. I wish we could've spent time with more of our friends (and more time with the few people we saw). If you're reading this and we missed you, maybe we'll be able to catch you the next time around. We visited Uncle Mike and tried to make it easier for him to find our blog again. We also surprised my favorite Saralou, and she was gracious enough to let us invade and chat for a little while. Then it was on to a visit and impromptu dinner with the Carlisle Family (thanks for taking us in and feeding us, Paige!), followed by giggles and conversation with the Smiths. I should've taken more pictures of the fabulous people we saw, but I didn't. These are two that Brady took of the girls. I guess their modeling skills were just too irresistible for him to pass up.

We spent the night in the backwoods off Niagara-Carthage Road. Thanks to the more-senior Smiths for letting us stay with their dogs and their magical chickens. It seems one of those hens has an uncanny ability to lay specialty eggs designed with the golfing crowd in mind.

We gave the girls a very quick tour of town. We swung by our rental apartment, our house on Fox Run Rd, Moore Regional Hospital where Ally popped out (pictured at left), the post office and the rest of the village, Pinehurst #2, the fitness center, Chris' office, my office, the Hospice House site (still not built), and the hospital construction. Oh, and you can't forget a trip around the traffic circle! The only thing that seems to have changed is the quaintness factor: Moore County seems so tiny, sheltered, and woodsy now. There doesn't seem to be much to it, other than trees and golfing and the hospital. I remember when my nephew Tyson came to visit us and thought we lived in the forest. Now that we've been in the Tri-Cities for a few years, I can see where he was coming from with that assessment of our old home.

We attended church at the Pinehurst ward on Sunday, and then had a delicious lunch with my sweet Margaret and her family. After chatting with them for awhile-- and letting Ally jump in the bounce house-- it was time for us to say good-bye and drive to our next location: Myrtle Beach, SC.

My Daddy is my Favorite Pal

2010-09-07T23:18:00.000-07:00

I'm so glad when Daddy comes home,
Glad as I can be.
I clap my hands and shout for joy

And say "Dada" sweetly.

East Coast Trip: In the Beginning

2010-09-02T17:31:00.000-07:00

As I sit myself down at this here computer to finish blogging about our East Coast Adventures, I am faced with a glaring realization that this has taken me entirely too long. Some of the pictures I am now posting are over two months old. And, since they are mostly pictures of the kiddos, that passage of time is all the more obvious. Sorry. At this point, I think this entry will serve more as a travel log/journal for our family and less as a "hey, this is what we've been up to" for the rest of y'all.

So, back to the beginning of our adventure. . .
We got up at 4:30 am on Thursday, June 24th to catch the early flight out of Pasco, WA. We made it to Denver, CO and then Charlotte, NC. We almost died getting off of the plane in Charlotte because the humidity was so stifling. (After 2.5 years in the dry desert, we've become real wimps.) After a slight delay, we took our last plane ride and landed in Raleigh. The time was around 8 pm, the temperature was around 85 degrees. (What's up with that?) It was a full day of travel, and I'm thankful for having children that like being out and about. They loved flying, and Ally couldn't get enough of the moving walkways at the airports.

Grampy Hoffman and Jordan were kind enough to retrieve us from RDU and take us home. Grandma, Grampy, Sarah, Jordan, Colleen, Kenny, and Nate were so excited to meet Cora for the first time. I guess most of them were probably excited to see Ally again, too.

Since Normie has a job and couldn't get away, we were forced to hang out with househubby Paul during the days. One afternoon he let Chris and I try out his speedy wheels. Vroom Vroom Vroom!

Aunt Sarah, Uncle Jordan, Aunt Colleen, and Nate also came over a lot to keep us entertained. Look how excited Ally was at the chance to "fix" Jordan with Nate's tools.

We had Chic-Fil-A for lunch one day. We had southern pulled pork plates for dinner one night. (That's the only night we saw Kenny. He had some lame excuse about having to protect the people of Clayton the rest of the time we were visiting.) We bought some new shirts at the Pottery Outlets, and we made the mandatory pilgrimage to J.R.'s. So that pretty much covers everything there is to see and do while in Smithfield/Selma-- except maybe buying drugs at the Brotherhood Market.

We hung out with Grandma in the evenings. She and Chris went through a few boxes of old family photos and stuff Chris' grandparents had kept. It was an interesting, but very dusty, look back in time. Fun fact: Grandpa Charlie (Norma's dad) was too short and skinny to go off to war, so he served the country by monitoring the Erie skies for enemy aircraft. Norma still has his letter telling him to report for a physical (the one he failed), his plane spotter's guide and patch, newspaper articles, some ration stamp books, postcards from the war, and other unique things.

I spent most of my time sneaking off to eat Paul's peanut butter balls. Ally spent most of her time playing with Nate. He seemed very happy to have a girl cousin to play with, although she did tend to boss him around a bit. They didn't get into too much trouble-- the worst they did was overturn the pack-n-play and use it as a cage-- but had a lot of fun running around together. And they got to go swimming.

Here is Cora's first encounter with a pool. She screamed and tried to get out at first, probably because the water is way colder than in the bathtub. Then she settled down and had a grand old time with the help of her hilarious cousin. Why can't Nate live closer?

Stay tuned for the next installment:
Moore County, NC and Myrtle Beach, SC

A Break From Vacation

2010-08-23T22:21:00.000-07:00

I know, I know. I haven't finished blogging about our major vacation, and I'm already moving on to something else. I figured anyone reading won't mind this little digression as long as it's for good reason. I feel the need to post a few details from our lives while they're still current.

We had a ward campout this weekend at a place called Teancum Timbers. It's out in the wilderness of southeastern Washington, past a small town called Dayton. I'll have to admit this was Cora's first camping experience. We've been such slackers. I don't know why we haven't had time this summer to go sooner. Cora is usually pleasant and happy in the mornings (as long as she's fed right away) and the Saturday morning of camp was no exception. Here she is enjoying her Kix cereal in the tent.

The girls had a blast. Cora, like Ally, loved sleeping in a tent and experiencing the great outdoors. It also doesn't hurt that everyone we know from church just adores them both. Ally had plenty of friends with which to socialize, and Cora had plenty of people giving her attention. We camped right next to Ally's friend Devon. Although Cora woke up earlier than Ally, and chatted and cooed for 30 minutes straight, it wasn't until Devon awoke and said something in a whispered voice that Ally had a problem with the noise. She opened her eyes, dramatically rolled them, and grumpily declared, "Devon, your talking woke me up!" Then she threw the covers over her head and pouted, pretending to fall back to sleep. Needless to say, Devon and Ally have a love-hate relationship. Which is quite amusing at times since they often pretend they're married. Last time Ally was pregnant and Devon proudly told me he's the dad. Then Ally popped the baby out and Devon was carefully carrying their imaginary "new edition" around in his arms.

So Cora is 2 weeks shy of 9 months. At this stage of the game, Ally was already walking around with no falls. Looking back, that seems so surreal and utterly impossible. We wonder what Cora's problem is. (Just kidding.) Every day that goes by, it seems that Cora gets closer to skipping over the whole crawling thing as well. She'll get in position, rock back and forth on all fours, giggle, and then flatten out and pull (or roll) herself to wherever she'd like to be. She loves to stand and dance, has been cruising the couch, and will stand unsupported for 3-5 seconds before squatting down. I know one of these days she's just going to take off running.
Not that we're in the habit of comparing our children, but I need to report that Cora is ahead of Ally in one category-- She's already pooped on the potty 3 times! Amazing, I know. (I should take a video of that.) Ally cheered Cora on each time, and then she ate the treats on her behalf since Cora's too tiny to be consuming Smarties. And she doesn't have any teeth. (Ally had at least four by this age.)

Ally still loves princesses and American Idol-- and we play them constantly. Except when we take a break to play her other favorite imagination game. In Ally's own words, "It's the one where you are the big sister, and Cora's the little brother Ian, and I already have a baby Cora (played by a doll), and I'm pregnant with three babies in my belly (Chase, Ella, and another Cora) and I sometimes feel sick so you have to take care of me." We play that game for hours: going to the grocery store in our mini-van (the couch) and looking for 4-seater shopping carts to hold us all, visiting the doctor, feeding the babies, getting into trouble for not listening to mommy, making dinner for Daddy . . . She comes up with some very in-depth scenarios.

Here is Ally auditioning for American Idol with one of her princess songs. (Note to self: Make sure my children are freshly bathed and comb their hair before bringing out the camera.)

One last story to share. Ally has a lot of imaginary friends. Her first was Ana, followed by Ha-juana and Sally. They occasionally die, but they also occasionally give birth to each other, so they never disappear altogether. They have a house in Mexico (I think that's where they're from), but most recently they've been living in Washington DC and are thinking of buying a house in Spokane. I don't know. I usually just nod my head and go along with it unless her "friends" are being a bad influence (which, amazingly, does happen). After she made this birthday card for Ana, she showed it to me. "See, I put Ana's name on it right here: A-S-S". [Ally sometimes writes and/or recites her letters from right to left (does she think she's Jewish?), and that's how they're placed on the page.] I tried to tell her it should be A-N-A, but she kept arguing and loudly respelling Ana her way saying, "See, it's for my friend A-S-S!" I hope this little spelling mistake disappears as she continues her reading lessons.

The Taking of the Capitol

2010-08-20T13:58:00.000-07:00

July 9-10, 2010

A random fact for you: Lancaster, PA was the capitol of the colonies for one day (September 27th 1777). How'd I know that? It says so on the monument in the middle of the city. Wikipedia also told me. So, after my family did some exploring around Lancaster, we set our sights on our nation's current capitol. Although we spent 2 days in D.C., I have very few pictures to account for our time there. Here's the only one I have that proves Cora actually came along. (When a baby spends her days leisurely strapped to her Momma's chest, she tends not to appear in any of the pictures.)

We stayed at a great hotel just outside Arlington. We walked to the Rosslyn Metro Station and, in 10 minutes time, we were at the mall area with all the Smithsonians. Except on Saturday-- when we accidentally took a 45 minute walking tour of the streets paralleling the mall area. Thankfully the kids didn't seem to notice or complain as we walked and walked and walked in the rain. Most of us saw it as a fortuitous opportunity to chat and spend time together as we wandered.

We visited the American History Museum, where Ally and Ella got to help unfurl and refold a replica flag of the one flown over Fort McHenry (Star Spangled Banner). We went to the Natural History Museum to see all the stuffed animals, insects, and precious gems. We also visited the Air and Space Museum, where we had a close encounter of the celebrity kind.

We also visited the National Archives. Ally got to see the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, and the Bill of Rights after having a small tantrum in the middle of the exhibit hall. She may be an American with rights and liberties, but she still has to listen to her Mommy. That's the best way to pursue happiness.

We saw (from afar) the White House, the Capitol Building, and the Jefferson Memorial. We had lunch at the Old Post Office, where Ally went up the glass elevator with her cousins to see views of the city. We walked past the Washington Monument to reach the World War II Memorial. Ally, Cora, and I stayed there and listened to a military band while Eric's family and my Mom continued on to the Lincoln Memorial. Someone's legs (mine) we're just too tired to go any further, and Ally refused to carry me.

Livin' in an Amish Paradise

2010-08-20T12:18:00.000-07:00

Our family made a trip out to Shady Maple Smorgasbord one afternoon to gorge ourselves on their massive buffet. I remember the days when my brothers would have competitions to see who could wolf down the most plates. The food tasted so good while they were consuming it, but they'd always walk away from lunch so full and uncomfortable. And it's a 40 minute car ride to get back home.

One time Mark wasn't feeling so well as we were loading into the car, so Eric pretended to take a paper cup out of his pretend shirt pocket and said, "If you have to spew, spew in this." Does anyone else remember that movie quote?

It was so hilarious at the time, the moment has stuck with me. I laughed so hard that I almost puked on the pavement. (Sorry, that story really doesn't have anything to do with this post.) There weren't any eating competitions this time, but we all enjoy the local food and left pleasantly full. I finished my meal off with a whoopie pie and a glass of birch beer. Oh, the memories. . .
Ally and Cora quickly succumbed to sleep on the drive back home. I didn't think they'd eaten enough to fall into a post-consumption stupor, but I was grateful for the chance to explore the countryside. My Mom and I took a little detour on some back roads and re-found a few covered bridges. Chris and I enjoy taking pictures of scenery but since having kids, that luxury has gone by the wayside. This was a rare opportunity to photograph my surrounding in peace.

"Corn.
Corn. Corn Corn.
Corn Corn Corn Corn.
Corn Corn Corn. Corn Corn.
Corn Corn. Corn. Corn Corn Corn. Corn Corn Corn Corn. Corn Corn . ."

When we were younger, that's what Mark used to say while we traveled down the road. He'd start in with his repetitive statements whenever he saw some growing-- and it grows everywhere. Such torture! And then I'd get yelled at for telling him to stop. Such added torture! I dreaded corn-growing season.

The Great D W

2010-08-17T23:49:00.000-07:00

July 7, 2010

My family is not very big on traditions except when it comes to two simple letters of the alphabet -- D and W. Doug and Diane Winters had 5 children: Eric Douglas Winters,
Karen Diane Winters,
Mark Daniel Winters,
Kevin Dennis Winters, and
Amy Denise Winters.
When we were younger and lived in Broomall, we'd make a yearly pilgrimage to the Dutch Wonderland amusement park. Little did we know, the Winters clan would eventually move to Lancaster County, where we proceeded to devote considerable amounts of our teenage summers working for minimum wage as employees of DW. (I started out at $4.10/hour and ended at $5.25/hour-- and I ended as a ticketbooth supervisor.) Oh, and even our mother worked some end-of-summer shifts for a few seasons. If we had convinced Dad to retire early and join us, I'm sure we would've become official DW royalty. So a Winters Family Reunion just wouldn't have been complete without a trip to our second home. We older kids had fun reminiscing while our little munchkins had fun playing. Too bad Kevin, Katie, and Chris had already packed up and left town.

Here we all are, taking up the last car of the train. I was thankful to be a passenger instead of the engineer. Driving the train was fun at times, but I remember how much heat that engine exudes on a regular summer day. And we chose to go to DW on a record-breaking, sweltering hot day. Erin and I found a little reprieve from the heat in the Mother's Nursing Station, but I swear the air conditioner only brought the temperature down to 88 degrees. (Oddly enough, that "Station" used to be my old Info Booth. I was feeding Cora in the building where I lived for 2 summers while I rented out strollers, paged overhead for lost children, sold ponchos, and made Bubba Bear announcements).

I wish I had taken more pictures of the day. Ally enjoyed being in a place that caters to kids and loved running around with her cousins. She says her favorite rides were "the one that goes straight out" (the monorail), the Choo-Choo Charlie hand-propelled trains, and the Turnpike car. I know she had a great time in the kiddie splash section of the new water park. We also saw a dive show and met the DW Princess. We tried to milk Bossie the Cow, but her supply seemed to be udderly dried up. Thinking back, that was almost always the case. Some things never change.
My favorite quote of the day came when Ally followed Amy and me onto the spaceship ride. I knew she wouldn't like it, but she begged nicely and wouldn't be persuaded otherwise. She confidently buckled herself into her seat and was all excited for the ride to start-- until the doors closed in preparation for take-off. In the darkness, Ally had a death grip on my arm and very matter-of-factly stated, "I shouldn't have come in here." The movie started and the ride began to move. Ally agreed to close her eyes and cuddle on my arm until it was all over. She didn't scream, she didn't even cry; she just held on very tightly and shook. I spent our simulated flight quietly consoling her and trying my best not to laugh. When it was over and the doors reopened, I carried her tired body out in my arms. She gave me a big hug, followed by a big kiss and then said, "I don't need to ride that one again." I agreed, as the experience had made me a little seasick.

Even when scared, Ally is still such a trooper. She usually pulls through just fine by closing her eyes and cuddling. (That's how she survived the Pirates of the Caribbean ride, too.) I know she's only 3, but I hope Ally has learned some valuable lessons from her spaceship misadventure:

Mommy will do her best to protect you.
Mommy can't always save you from your choices, but she'll stand by you and comfort you.
Mommy's always right. Believe her.
You really should've listened to Mommy in the first place. . .