Although its been said many times, many ways, Merry Christmas

I had never been to Leavenworth.  For those of you who don't know, Leavenworth is a small "Bavarian" town nestled into Central Washington.  It is about a 2 hour drive from where we live.  I had never really had an interest in seeing it.  I could not imagine why someone would think a Bavarian town would work in the middle of Washington state.  I thought it would look cheesy and misplaced.  I was wrong....very wrong.  It is tucked into the base of some of the largest, most ominous looking mountains I have ever seen.  You follow the river in and then you are surrounded by the mountains.  It is perfect.  You have no idea how completely committed to their theme the town is until you see it.  Gas stations, Safeway, every single storefront no matter what it might contain; they all look completely Bavarian.  The people working were dressed in Bavarian fashions as well.  

So why did I decide to go now?  Afterall, I had lived 33 years without seeing it, and thought I was missing nothing.  Well, we had to go to Wenatchee for Cassadie's swim meet (Wenatchee is 30 minutes from Leavenworth).  It happened to be the same weekend as Leavenworth's Christmas Lighting event.  Most of the families from the team were going, and so we thought we might as well go.  Apparently, people come from all over the country and world to see them turn on Christmas lights!  The main street is completely shut down to cars and packed full of people standing shoulder-to-shoulder.  

The lighting event was kicked off with four men playing these strange looking horns.  They sounded much like a french horn, but very loud.  

There was a gazebo in the park with a lady announcing the event, a choir, and an orchestra,  all dressed perfectly in their Bavarian attire.  They sang and played Christmas Carols the entire time we were there.  

They even did a Bavarian countdown to the lighting of the shopfronts.  I couldn't repeat it even if I wanted to, it was very strange, like numbers coupled with strange shouting. 

I mentioned the mountains earlier, if you look at the backgrounds of these pictures you get an idea of just how huge and close they are.  They were really breathtaking.  

You would think with soooo many people crammed into such a small town, there would be problems.  It was actually quite the opposite, people were extremely generous and polite.  I stopped a couple to ask what a roasted chestnut tastes like (yes they were roasted on an open fire) and they gave me one of theirs to taste.  It was interesting, like a fresh walnut in texture, but less flavorful.  I was trying to take a self-portrait of the four of us, and kept cutting off Jarod's head.  I must have taken three when a couple stopped and offered to help.  The man took the best picture.

 

So, it was a great experience, Leavenworth has won me over.  The only thing our experience lacked was snow, that would have made it perfect.  It was definitely cold enough for snow (Jack Frost nipping at your nose).  I would go back...maybe not just for this event though.  I would go if I happened to be in the area again, but I wouldn't take my family all the way up there just for this.  It might be nice to see in the summer.    

Cassadie's First Meet

Cassadie had her first swim meet today and she had a lot of fun.  She swam in two events, the 50m freestyle and the 100m backstroke.  She did really well for her first swim in a meet.  Her coach was very proud of her, as was I.  She was very nervous this morning, but I think I may have been more nervous for her.  She was so nervous, she forgot to put her goggles on for her first event.  They were still on the top of her head when she dove in.  I was almost sick to my stomach watching her because I felt so bad.  Her coach told her he was so proud of her, he said any other 1st timer would have just stopped, but she swam on and won her heat.  I tried to download the video (about 10 different times) with no success.  They are on my facebook and myspace.

She ended up taking 10th out of 23, which I think is great considering all.  She was definitely not swimming her fastest.  

Her backstroke went well.  Her coach told her that her arms looked great but he would have liked her to have kicked her legs for the entire race.  When she watched the video back, she said "yeah, I probably could have kicked harder than that."  She could have been disqualified because apparently she has to finish the race on her back and she flipped to her stomach as she was reaching for the wall, but the judge didn't see it I guess.  

She had a blast, and has another meet in Cheney, November 22-23.  We're looking forward to it.

 

Mmmmm grapes

I love Fall.  I love how the leaves change, how the weather is chilly at night and warm during the day, how you can bundle up on the couch with a blanket and feel all cozy, and how you can be driving along in the Yakima Valley and suddenly smell grapes.  It is the best smell.  It is not the best smell when they are harvesting hops right next to the vineyard and you get a mix of delightful grapes and pungent hops.  I am used to the smell of hops, but it is always shocking when you take in a deep breath expecting to smell grapes and get hops as well.  For those of you who have never smelled hops, it is a bitter smell that overwhelms and lingers.  

Cassadie and Jarod dressed as a witch and a vampire for Halloween this year.  Cassadie decided that this would be her last year to go Trick-or-Treating.  Jarod will never go alone, so we will have to either find someone for him to go with, or this was his last year also. 

We died Jarod's hair black...he loved it.  I also had to draw on some eyebrows since his are nonexistent.  Look at the way he's standing...he felt pretty cool.

Sometimes I think I get a little carried away with Cassadie's costumes and makeup.  It's the only time she actually likes to look like a girl.  Aren't the socks cute...Mom got those for her.

We had lots of fun.  They got too much candy, as usual.  Cassadie just found her bag from last year the other day, and it was still half full.  She doesn't really eat candy, but she hordes it, so she ends up with candy a year later in some bag at the back of her closet.  It happens every Halloween, Easter, and Valentine's Day.  The lesson here is this:  don't get my daughter candy.

A Dalmation Plantation.... or maybe a zoo

We have a lot of animals...3 cats, a dog, a turtle, and a parakeet.  I guess we like animals, although somedays I'm not so sure.

Cassadie has had quite a history with animals.  When she was six and a half we told her we would get her a kitten if she learned to ride a bike.  She likes to be good at things, and she does not like to have her failure be public, so taking off the training wheels was out of the question.  Anyway, she finally did it, and so we got her a cute orange tabby.  She named it Tiffany.  When we figured out that it was actually a boy we mentioned it to her as a hypothetical situation like "what if Tiffany was actually a boy?"  She was devastated at the mere mention of it and so we didn't tell her.  We got him fixed and called him Tiff behind her back.  Alex referred to it affectionately as a "shim".  It got ran over by a car about 2 years later.  About two years ago, we told her that Tiffany was really a boy.  Cassadie was so upset when Tiffany died that we got her another kitten which she named Abby.  Abby really is a girl.  She had kittens and then we got her fixed.  She is one of the fattest cats we have ever seen.  

As you can see, she has a very small head with a huge belly.  Sometimes she lays in a very unladylike position, sprawled on her back on the floor.  It is a funny sight and reminds me of the marshmallow snowmen we made when we were kids.  A fat, round body with toothpicks for arms and legs.  We started calling her Fat Abby which morphed into Flabby and it stuck.  

She has also had two hermit crabs (which have both died) and now she has a parakeet.  She named it Kianda.  We are not sure whether it is a boy or a girl.  She wanted a female, but the girl at the petstore told us it is too young and we won't be able to tell for a while.  So, we watch for a sign, and hopefully it will be a girl.  Otherwise, we'll have male parakeet named Kianda.

Jarod started with a guinea pig named Jeff, named after Ang and Beckie's friend in Jeff McLain(sp?) in Kansas.  Apparently he had quite an impact on Jarod.   Jeff (the guinea pig) was loud, smelly and dirty, so we gave him to a nice unsuspecting little girl and got Jarod a cat.  Jarod named him Jedi.  He is a solid black cat except for a small white spot on his chest and he is the sweetest cat you will ever meet.  He loves Jarod and follows him around the yard when Jarod goes outside. 

About a year and a half ago, we got Jarod a turtle.  She is a red eared slider and he named her Araynia.  She's not exactly a playful pet.  During the summer, he takes her outside and lets her walk around in the grass.  He talks to her when she's swimming in her aquarium or basking on her log and that's about it.  

Our third cat is Sammy, who was one of Abby's kittens.  He is an orange and white tabby.  He is one of the weirdest and sweetest cats.  He is very affectionate and will lay on your body...he doesn't care what part of your body.  

One day I was laying on Alex relaxing.  Sammy just jumped on my back and made himself comfortable.  He didn't move until I made him.  (Sorry about the red-eye, I know I look creepy, just don't look)

Our dog is Sabrina.  Alex and I have had her since our first year of marriage.  She is a rottweiler/shepherd mix and is about 12 years old now.  She has arthritis and incontinence problems.  Her arthritis means we have to allow her to come in the house during the winter, but her incontinence makes that impossible.  We have her on medication for her incontinence and it has gotten better.  Today I took her to the groomers so she can start coming inside.  We have had some down right chilly nights.  When I went outside to find her, I called and called for her, but she wasn't coming.  Dad helped me by whistling for her, but still no Sabrina.  I was starting to worry, and then I saw her head peak up from some weeds on the north side of the house.  She was so cold that she wouldn't even get up when we called her.  Anyway, she's at the groomers now, and she will be able to come in the house and sleep on a nice warm bed when she gets back.  

So, the kids and I are in the full swing of school. They have completed a month and are both doing very well. They are both getting good grades as of the progress reports that were sent home this past week. Cassadie is loving swim team and has recently learned how to swim the Butterfly stroke. This is a very difficult stroke and she was super excited when she finally got it.  Below I've added a video of her swimming for those of you who would like to see it.  This is from the end of September.  After she saw the video, she noticed she was lifting her head out of the water when she breathes and has since fixed the problem. 

Cassadie is in the third lane from the back swimming freestyle.  The girl in the lane just closer, is swimming breast stroke.

Jarod started at the Intermediate School (4th - 6th) this year and enjoys the fact that he no longer goes to the "PeeWee" school. I think he feels more grown up.  

At work, we just finished Homecoming week. This means crazy dress up days for the students, girls playing football, boys playing volleyball, and decorated halls. I spent an entire Saturday helping the Sophomore class decorate our Commons. It is hard work and it always surprises me how they really step up and get it done.

I teach a class at the private university that's about 15 miles away. It is the university where I went to get my Bachelor's and Teaching Certificate. I teach two nights a week, an hour and fifteen minute class. Overall, it is pretty easy money, and I feel like I'm giving something back. Anyway, one evening it had been raining a little (as it kind of drizzles here rather than really rains), and there was the most beautiful double rainbow. My pictures do not really do justice, I know it's hard to see the second one. Believe me, it was gorgeous!

Cassadie had a sleepover to celebrate her birthday. We had five 12 year old girls running around our house friday night and saturday morning. They had a blast doing makeovers, playing games, and watching movies.  I know, can you believe she's 12?  

These next two pictures are of Cassadie after one of her friends did her makeover.  The first picture is an upclose of just her face before the hair was done.  I was impressed, it was actually tasteful!

You know what?

I recently discovered that my daughter Cassadie is a great swimmer. I knew she could swim well because she's been swimming with my mom since she was about 4 years old, but I had no idea how much her skills had developed. She is fast! Angela and Beckie can attest to her speed and strength since she beat them both racing across a pool when we visited them during labor day weekend. We were all very much surprised and watched as her head began to swell with pride. She raced Alex and he beat her (thank goodness), but he was quite winded when he finished. Anyway, inspired by the summer Olympics, I went about finding a swim team she could join. We found one in Yakima, and I sent an email to the to coach. He responded to my email and told me to bring her to a practice so we could see if she liked it and he could see her swim. She did great, she loved it, he was great, and her freestyle stroke looked just like the rest of them when the hour was over. I masked my excitement, but really I was exstatic! He told me what I already knew which was that she could be really good if she works hard. He said she's strong and learns fast. Apparently at one point she told him this was the hardest practice she had ever been to. She was exhausted, but she had a blast!

We went to Costco on our way home so I could pick up some new chairs (which are super cute and go great with my wall color). While I was in the check out, Cassadie went to get herself a piece of pizza - she LOVES Costco pizza. I headed out to the car with my chairs and thought Cassadie saw me and would follow when she got her pizza. The cart pusher helped me get them in the back of my Jeep after removing the boxes (this is the only way they would fit). This is when I realized that Cassadie had never come out of the store. I left him to pick up the debrit and headed back to the store to find her. She was waiting by the door, but apparently had been pacing back and forth to the food counter for the 10 or so minutes it had taken us to get the chairs in my Jeep. She was very upset and thought that I had left her. She said that at one point she had thought about asking someone to use a phone and call my cell phone. I told her that was a great idea and next time she should just walk up to the person who checks your receipt and say "Hey, you know what? I'm not sure where my mom is, is there a phone I could use?" She chuckled at this and said "You adults and your "you know what"!" She proceeded to explain that her teacher had used the phrase when she was telling them how to tell their neighbor to be quiet during an assembly. She had said something like "You know what? Maybe you should be quiet." I told her adults use the "you know what" phrase to make it sound more casual. We told this to story to Alex and Jarod when we got home. Jarod did not agree with my assessment of the use of the "you know what" phrase. He thought adults use it more like "You Know What! I'm gonna spank you!" We all had a good laugh.

SARCASM!

My daughter Cassadie is very literal. She does not get sarcasm....ever. Jarod, on the other hand, gets it and uses it....often. Remember, Cassadie is almost 12 and Jarod is 9, their ages make this even more funny. This morning, we were getting ready to leave and Jarod said something absolutely dripping with sarcasm, he then turns to Cassadie and says (very loudly) "SARCASM!" She very calmly and honestly replies "thanks Jarod". She meant it. We have discussed the use of a sarcasm sign we would hold up each time we used sarcasm. It has never happend, but Cassadie often mentions it, and wishes for it.

Although Cassadie is older, and slightly taller, Jarod is outgrowing her. He grew an inch in 3 months, and he is becoming stronger than her, although he doesn't always realize it. Today, Cassadie was trying to put the wheels in her Heelys. (For those of you who don't know, they are tennis shoes with a wheel in each heel. The wheel can be removed and a cover goes in its place.) She had been trying for several minutes when Jarod sits down next to her and asks, "can I help?" He takes the shoes and has the covers out in a matter of seconds. (by the way, it was huge that Cassadie actually let him help...she's a bit hard headed) She says "oh, thanks Jarod, you're the best". He walked away beeming. It was very cute.

We discovered last week that the difference in womens and mens shoes starts at size 6. We had bought Cassadie a size 7 and Jarod a size 6.5. Jarod's shoes are significantly bigger than Cassadie's, which led us to examine their feet and found that Jarod's have gotten bigger over the last few months. When we bought their Heelys for Christmas they are both size 6 and actually the same size. My questions: is there a chasm between a size 6 and 6.5 in mens shoes? why is there such a difference between mens and womens shoes sizes? who decided it should be that way?

110 degree heat and no sunscreen makes for a really nice sunburn

We took the kids to Silverwood Theme Park this last weekend. For those of you who don't know, it is a theme park in northern Idaho. It has a huge water park and the other half is the usual stuff (roller coasters, etc.). We had a great time, the kids had a blast. It opened at 11 am and closed at 10 pm, so we got there and spent the first half of the day in the water park.

We put sunscreen on, but we only had the spray stuff and found that it is really unreliable. Alex's chest and back are kinda striped - he didn't want me to include a pic so you'll just have to imagine it. He didn't think to put any sunscreen on his legs or feet, so they are a lovely shade of purple. The picture doesn't really do justice to the color.

At one point, we stood in a line for a ride for over half an hour. The ride was called Thunder Canyon. You and 7 other people climb into a giant sized inner tube and seatbelt yourself into a seat. You ride down man made raging rapids - and of course, you get wet. We watched people coming out, drenched and contemplated leaving the line several times. We stuck it out, and didn't regret it, even though we ended up soaked ourselves. Jarod got the worst of it, but he was a trooper. We played until the park closed, and sleepily drove about 15 miles down the road to a cute little campsite for the night.


The campgroud is set on a beautiful mountain lake with a great little inlet for swimming. The kids had a good time swimming in the lake and chasing a pair of ducks.
These last two pictures were taken the next day, after Silverwood. You can tell that the kids' sunscreen worked. Their faces were a little pink. My sunburn was patchy - the places we missed when we sprayed on the sunscreen.

10 days in a tiny trailer

So, I just got back from spending 10 days in a tiny trailer counting money for about 15 hours a day. This may sound glorious, but by the time you've counted your 50th bundle of bills, you are very unaffected by it. It really just becomes paper to you. I was working with my sister, Angela, and the company she works for. Angela, our other sister Beckie, and the other employees were the only people I saw for those 10 days, (except for the hundreds of people I sold parking tickets to). Most of the employees were under the age of 20 and so I felt right at home. I found myself wanting to tell them to watch their language, out of habit. We had one incident where a goat got loose and the kids had to try and catch it. I think that was one of the funniest things I have ever seen. I really enjoyed the people, and the job was kinda fun most days. Most of all, I really enjoyed spending time with Ang. I love her, and am sometimes in awe of the things she can do. One of the boys said "I don't know how you know how to do all of that" referring to a complicated spreadsheet I was working with. I replied that Angela had trained me, and that I didn't know how she knew how to do all of this. She had created this system of complicated spreadsheets to keep track of everything, they all made perfect sense to me, but I cannot fathom coming up with them.

Beckie and I went to see The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants. I had really been wanting to see it, and was glad to have someone to go with. About 10 minutes into the movie, a group of 13-14 year old girls came in and sat down in the front row. They had obviously never been taught movie watching etiquette, although very much old enough. They proceeded to talk, drop things, crawl across the floor and mess with the curtain just below the movie screen, throughout the entire movie. Their mothers should be scolded for allowing them out without proper supervision!!!! Even though the girls were somewhat distracting, the movie was great.

Beckie and I often get told that we look alot alike, except for the hair color. We have even been mistaken for one another on several occasions. People will say, "Oh, I thought Christi died her hair!" We can see a resemblance, but have never thought we look that much alike. We have similar taste in fashion and find ourselves buying the same clothes which only adds to the problem. The night we went to the movie, we were dressed in dark jeans, brown flipflops, and our shirts were of similar color. We laughed at ourselves as we rode the elevator down from her apartment. To make matters worse, we ordered the exact same thing for dinner. The little guy who took our orders at Carls Jr. must have thought we were crazy. I think Beckie is an amazing woman. She is beautiful, smart, and she is one of the most caring people I know.

I often wish we didn't live 3 hours away, so I could spend more time with my two amazing sisters.

here i am

I have been thinking about creating a blog for some time now, but am completely intimidated by the thought. I know that I cannot write as eloquently as my sisters Ang and Beckie, and my life is nowhere near as exciting as Jessica's. So, maybe no one will read it, or it just won't be very interesting, but I feel I just have to jump in with both feet. So here I am.

For those of you who don't know me, I am a High School Math teacher. I leave work on most days wondering how I got so lucky. I love math, I love teenagers, and I think that I am pretty good at what I do (I don't think that I am arrogant). I don't take for granted the fact that I am affecting the lives of 150+ impressionable teenagers every day. I know that my interaction with them will influence decisions they make for the rest of their lives...a responsiblity I don't take lightly. One of my previous students recently told me that she is going to become a Math teacher because of me. She told me that she loved being in my classroom, and that she would come hang out even when she didn't have math to do. This is why I do what I do. God has given me a gift. I hope that I can be a beacon to the kids I teach, and that they will see something in me that makes them want to know more.

Today, I finished the second summer of my Masters' program. I have one, six-week, summer left and then I will have a Masters in Teaching Mathematics. I have come to enjoy the people who I have spent 8 hours a day, 4 days a week, for the last 6 weeks with. I think when you spend that much time with someone, you form a bond that others don't really get. It may be like that saying "there are safety in numbers". Anyway, I will miss my friends, since I probably won't see them again until next summer.

My kids, Cassadie and Jarod are 11 and 9 respectively. I was told recently that they "look old", meaning they look older than they are. This is probably due to the fact that they are both very tall for their ages. Most of the time they act very grown up...to the point that I think I forget how young they really are. They are growing up way too fast. I enjoy spending time with them. We love watching TV together, shows like American Gladiators and Man vs Wild. Cassadie is going to be a knock-out. She is beautiful and confident, sometimes too confident, although I would rather she be too confident than unsure of herself. She knows who she is and what she wants. I love that about her. Jarod is strong and kind. He has a great sense of humor, and most of the time blows me away with it. Cassadie and I had a discussion the other day about what a great catch he will be and completely embarrassed him. It was great. They are both soooo smart, way smarter than me, and sometimes too smart for their own good. I love them.

My husband, Alex, is the tall, dark, and handsome man of my dreams. He is smart, warm-hearted, and loyal. He is good to me, and I thank God for him. We are complete opposites in so many ways, which has made married life interesting. I am a planner, he is spontaneous; I am extroverted, he is introverted; ... I can go on.

So, this is me, take me or leave me.