Sounders, Take Two

Some friends of ours scored some great tickets to a Wednesday night Sounders game with Isidro Metapán. We could hardly pass up the great seats, even though the game would keep the boys up well past their bedtime. We decided to splurge and actually drive to the game, hoping that we'd be able to get the boys home and in bed faster that way. So, the boys picked Jon up from work, ate dinner, and still made it to the stadium an hour before game time. All that time allowed Matthew to practice up on his soccer skills. First in a 3-on-3 scrimmage and then on a dribble and shoot.

In the scrimmage, Matthew employed the hands-in-the-pocket technique to remind himself not to touch the ball.
Proof that every once and a while he did get near the ball,
and not just to watch it go in the goal.
Here's some footage from the dribble and shoot. So, I think he needs a little practice before his soccer season starts in a month.



We also took advantage of our early arrival to snap some pictures of the boys right next to the field.
This one is actually taken right from our seats:
The boys did much better this time around at staying in their seats, maybe because it was past their bedtime? Whatever the reason, I think they still had fun!

Seth is Two!

It's been two years since Seth made his unexpected entrance OR two years since the Bar (that's the way Jon seems to remember it). We celebrated the day with family and with a special guest . . . Cookie Monster!
I must be getting better at cakes, because this one actually wasn't that hard. I got it done in record time and was pretty pleased with the result. Seth loved it!

Seth, with a little tutoring from Matthew, became very adept at opening presents. He loved all the new toys but gave the best reactions for the gum and mac and cheese that he got from Grammy and Grampy.
We are grateful for all the friends and family that helped make his day special. As a parent, it's very gratifying to see your children be loved and adored by others. I'm thankful for those around me who see the wonderous in my children when I'm having a hard time finding it.

For the record, here are some of the things that I adore (and sometimes detest) about my two-year-old Seth:

• I love they way he says "thanks ma" and "do it" (meaning I'll do it myself)
• I love how he loves smoothies (he asks for them every day) and gum, and that he actually chews the gum for a long time and doesn't just swallow it.
• I love that he always wants to sing about Heidi going on a mission ("Heidi, Misch?")
  
• I love how he always asks me to play "If Your Happy and You Know It" in the car by clapping his hands and saying "Appy!"
• I love that he can put on his own pants and shoes.
• I love that he calls Grampy (aka Grampy-monster) Cookie.
• I love how he always wants to talk on the phone, especially with Pa or Grammy.
• I love how he likes to accessorize with hats, necklaces, watches, and beads.
• I love how he sings along to "I Am a Child of God" at bed and nap time.
  
• I love his giggle.
• I love how he tries to tell knock-knock jokes.
• I love how he has the same conversation with Jon every day after he gets home from work: "Bus, Pa?" "Yes, I rode the bus to work." "Backpack, Pa?" "Yes, I took my backpack to work." "Work, Pa?" "Yes, I did my work." "Bus, Pa?" "Yes, I rode the bus home." "Backpack, Pa?" "Yes, I brought my backpack home." "Home, Pa?" "Yes, I'm home."
• I love that he will eat nearly any kind of food that we offer him, especially vegetables.
• I love that what he calls me--mama--and what he calls Matthew--ma ma (with the a sounding the same as it does in Matthew's name)--are almost the same.
  

Northwest Trek

On Grammy and Grampy's last day here, we went down to Northwest Trek. It is a small zoo with a tram ride through a free-roam animal area. We had heard about the park and wanted to go, so it was a must-do when Grammy and Grampy were here.

Matthew wanted his picture with this eagle...if you look closely, you can see it.


On the tram ride, we saw mountain goats, elk, caribou, moose, long-horned sheep, and a number of other animals. Some of the animals were right by the side of the road and we had a really close view of them. The ride seemed like a safe safari type experience and it was a lot of fun. Here are some of our pictures.




They had a few other exhibits that were not on the tram. The boys really like watching this otter swim around.


The otter kept swimming to the corner like he was somehow going to escape by going to the corner. Seth tried to help him get out to no avail.


Despite all the animals and fun activities, Seth's favorite activity of the day was pushing the empty stroller all by himself.


It was a fun place to go and interesting to be so close to free-roaming areas. Unfortunately, it's a 1.5- to 2-hour drive each way, so we won't be making it a frequent stop.

Whidbey Island

Grammy (aka Jon's Mom) came up for a visit for a week and Grampy (aka Jon's Dad, aka Cookie--ask us if you want the details) came out for 1/2 of the week to spend some time with us. One of the days that Grammy was here before Grampy came, we decided to give Grammy her first ever experience driving in a car onto a ferry boat. For those of us in the Seattle area, that's not uncommon at all, so it was fun for Matthew to be a pro at something that Grammy had never done before. He and Seth wanted to go out on the deck to get some pictures:



One of the destinations on Whidbey was this small lighthouse. It wasn't huge, but Matthew has been into lighthouses recently, so we stopped by.


In this one, we could actually go up to the top where the light used to be. There was a very steep spiral staircase going up half way to the top, and then a staircase so steep that it resembled a ladder more than a staircase. It was fun to go up in the top and look out over the water.


Matthew took a spiral notebook that he has been using as his field journal. He wanted to document the lighthouse by drawing it for himself. Grammy helped give him pointers on the different geometries of the lighthouse (sphere on top of the light house, long thin windows, etc).



Sethie even joined in for part of the drawing, although we're not too sure that he was very much help with the drawing.


The lighthouse was next to Fort Casey, an old fort that was meant to protect Puget Sound from foreign invasion. The had a number of guns that fired 10-inch rounds. When Sethie saw them, he said "choo, choo!" since they were long metal cylinders on a turntable.



After that, we went to Deception Pass, a state park in the sound with a lake, a lot of hiking trails, and other interesting things. One of the attractions was huge bridge that connects Whidbey Island with the mainland. Under the bridge, Matthew got his first look at civil engineering.


We thought it would be a good place to take a family pictures, but it looks like the shadows weren't cooperating with us that day.


Even though the lighting for the picture wasn't the greatest, it was hard to argue with such a beautiful day on the coast. It was raining in Seattle for most of the day, and one of the tour guides at the lighthouse told us that they only have 4 days of good weather a year. Even though he was probably exaggerating, we were glad to spend such a beautiful day on the island.