Day-4-5

So we planned a 3 night get away just the two of us to Port Angeles.  Parent's have a hard time getting away from their kids. This is our 3rd time away. The first was when the kids were 9 months old and we went to Chicago for our dear friend Cathy's wedding, which was also our 7th wedding anniversary.  We spent time with friends there so it wasn't' really a "just us" trip. Last fall, we went to visit our friend's Tim and Sarah and stayed with them and hung out for a weekend which was our 2nd trip away.  This trip, was going to be JUST US for a few days.  And we were so excited.

Andy found this cabin on Trip Advisor and we rented it for 3 nights. It was so peaceful and serene and most of all quiet! We drove over from Yakima on HWY 12 (White Pass) and it was beautiful.  We had nothing but amazing weather the whole time on the coast, considering how crappy the weather usually is. 

On Tuesday we got up real early and took the ferry from Port Angeles to Victoria, B.C. for the day.  The ferry was different then others I have taken. It wasn't completely open on the front and back for vehicles to drive thru, it had a gift shop and a duty free shop(!) for liquor.  I guess if you are Canadian the liquor is cheaper in the Duty Free area.  What I found to be funny was in the middle of the Strait of Juan de Fuca I had 4G LTE coverage and Andy had zero coverage. 

We got to Victoria and I of course wanted to get my passport stamped. I mean, it's Canada, but it's still a foreign country right? The man was happy to oblige, but made sure to give me a jab about it " You look like the kind of person who would want a stamp from here" . Whatever, and least I don't live here.

The ferry drops you off right downtown. You can see The Empress from the dock as well as Parliament.  We had done some research for lunch and had some time to kill before the place opened so we wandered around downtown.

 The creek the cabin is above

 On the ferry

 Coming into Victoria Harbor

 Parliment

 This rather cool topiary of an Orca and a baby

We found this amazing restaurant, Skinnytato.  It is Polish food, seats 16 people, and the owner was also our server. She was hilarious.  Andy was going to order a cocktail and she told him no, he was going to have a Polish beer instead.  She told me what I was going to get, which worked out well, because I was going to get it anyways.  Andy and I are of the mindset that if this is your recommendation, or your home country food, you know what is best.  And we were not disappointed. Here are some links to reviews from Urban Spoon and Yelp.  The drinks were perfect, the food amazing, and we had the best seat in the house.  

 Andy's lunch. Potato Pancakes and peirogies with a beet salad and potato salad.

 I had pierogies and a Polish sausage.

 Andy had coconut crepes

I had Polish style apple cake

 

 I highly recommend this restaurant if you find yourself in Victoria. Absolutely delish! After lunch we headed to Craigdarroch Castle.  It was built for the Dunsmuir Family, and Robert Dunsmuir was a coal magnate.  I won't go into many details, but it was pretty neat.  It was abonded for 2 years, and was used as a hospital during World War I, a music school, and what would eventually become the University of Victoria. 

 Front of the castle

 4 stories tall, no elevators, but this beautiful and massive staircase.

 See the amazing weather we had!!

 

 Back of the castle

It was a mile walk each way to the castle from downtown. We definitely got in some exercise and burned off our lunch.  It was actually kind of warm out. 

After our walk back to town, we decided to head to the Royal B.C. Museum.  We like to read Trip Advisor for places to see and eat.  This museum is one of the best I have ever seen.  The reviews were amazing.  We only had 2 hours, but could have spent 3! Check out these "landscapes" inside.  It looks like you are really in the frozen tundra. 

There is also an IMAX, and from the I over head a ticket taker say "The Largest IMAX in all of Canada is here!"  I think there might have been an Eh thrown in as well.

For dinner we walked around and found this place: Bard & Bankers The history of the building is what drew us to it, plus the decor inside.  The food was really good. Andy has potato chip crusted Fish and Chips and I had bangers and mash. It was a Scotish pub and all the servers, female and male, wore kilts.  The ladies kilts were a bit shorter (I see london I see france short). 

Found Sully on our way back to the ferry.

It started to rain on the ferry ride back, but the sun was shining the entire time.  I hadn't been to Victoria since I was about 10 and this was Andy's first time to Canada!  Side note: Victoria, or Canada all together, was not what he pictured.  After spending so much time in Europe, he thought the city would be like a European city, and not look like "America".   But we did get to hear LOTS and LOTS of Eh's and other Canadian speech colloquial. 

Day 3: Father's Day

So the kids slept until almost 8:30 which meant Andy got to sleep in. The kid's slept in our room which is usually a nightmare because they make such weird noises when they sleep. You are probably going to think my mom is crazy.

After hosting the rehearsal dinner at their house on Friday, having a wedding and reception on Saturday, she decided to throw a Father's Day Brunch on Sunday!!  It was so great to have my Aunt Judi (mom's sister) her husband, Uncle Randy, their three kids: Ben and his wife Adrianne, and their two kiddo's Ava who was  flower girl and Wyatt, Sarah and her husband Kris and their two kids Dominic who was a ring bearer and baby Helena, and Rachel was there with her son Tyson. And Stacy's parents, Russ and Jerri, her sister Jaime, plus our family of 4 and then my parents of course and Adam and Stacy.

We all put our suits on to get in the pool which was freeeeeezing!!  My dad said the heater was on, but it was not warm. Verona was having a great time jumping into my arms and Trent was loving just being swung up and down by Andy.

After we said our good bye's to my Aunt and Uncle and cousin's we put the kids down for nap, and Andy and I went out to a late lunch to celebrate. We don't have a Red Robin in Chico. The nearest one is almost an hour away.  We love Red Robin.  I have never had a bad meal there since I was a kid.  Maybe because it's a Washington original chain? ; )  I did splurge and get this Blue Moon Cocktail. It was ok. The "cup" it came in was cooler and Andy convinced me it was a souvenier cup so I took it home.  Oops.

I now keep the cup in the freezer and put all my cocktails in it. I am a little dorky.

For dinner, we kept it small.  Just Stacy's parents and sister, and then my parents, Adam of course, and the 4 of us.  It was nice and relaxing. 

For gifts I of course had been stalking Pinterest.  I finally found the cutest gift for Andy.  A quart size Mason jar filled with Reece's Pieces and a little tag that said "Daddy, we love you to pieces!"  Andy was also spoiled with a new golf shirt (it's for work, he doesn't golf) from me and a certificate for a float from a spa in town. from the twinadoes.  Pretty sure Andy had a great day and we love him for all that he does for not just us as a family, but for the great good of the health of people as a health inspector.

Day 2: Going to the Chapel

My brother stayed his last night ever at my parents house. And of course he was still sleeping when I got up.  But in his defense, I had a hair appointment at 7am.  Brutal. Although, because Yakima is more north then Chico, in the summer the sun is up earlier so the sunrise was at like 5:18 or something. 

Anyways, I was excited to get out of the house and get pampered for a few hours. My appointment was at Stacy and Adam's house, but it was Stacy, her parents and her sister staying there.  It was nice to spend time with my new sister to be that morning.  I was also excited to get my makeup done.  I didn't even have someone do my makeup for my own wedding. I am what one would call a "low maintenance" woman.  It was awesome. Much thanks to Stacy's mom for treating all of us to have our make up done.  After I was all done it was time to head home and see what hell had taken over.  The twins were getting their bath thank goodness and Adam was relaxed.  We spent the rest of the morning just hanging out. Asking Adam if he was nervous, reminding him to eat lunch, etc.  Adam had given all of the groomsmen a flask with a monogram of their initials on it. Andy didnt' own a flask at all.  He promptly filled it with vodka and put it in his coat pocket to make sure Adam stayed calm.  ; )

Trent all dressed up playing in my parents basement.


After we ate lunch and all got dressed we headed to the church for pictures.  Adam and Stacy wrote personal vows, and had this great set up. It was them, their parents, and Stacy's grandmother all in the chapel and they said their personal vows to each other in there so that way they could have the traditional vows said in the church where everyone would be present. I thought it was a sweet idea.

So we went outside for few pictures and of course the kids were not down with that. Here are a couple.

 

This may have been the best of the bunch.  The one above you can see Trent has his Buzz Lightyear with him.

The ceremony was beautiful.  Trent walked down the aisle with Andy holding him and Verona made it down while holding onto Tyson's hand.  We were relieved.  I had put 2 backpacks (one on each of our sides) under the front pew that held snacks, books, toys, etc.  Some how they both got lured away to my cousins with promises of cookies. I was so relaxed and able to enjoy watching my brother get married.  I held it together pretty well, until they came down during the sign of peace and gave hugs. At this point they were married and just giving my brother the biggest hug and telling him how proud I was put me over the edge. THEN having my NEW SISTER give me a hug and finally being able to say, my sister, sent me down the trail of tears. I was so happy  For the processional, Andy and I were the last ones to walk up the aisle for the wedding party.  I asked him if he knew where the kids were and he looked at me and said, I though you knew.   HA HA HA!!  Luckily they were at the end of the main aisle waiting for us. 

After leaving the church, we headed out to the reception. They didn't have a nap,and Verona through an EPIC tantrum because we wouldn't give her any bubbles, after she had already DRANK some bubbles. Toddlers are so unreasonable.

The reception was awesome.  Stacy had one of her teach friends and her daughter set up in a room with a tv, couches, and play area where we could leave the kids. And we did. We picked them up when the dancing started and boy do our kids LOVE to dance.

The kids were still going strong at 9:15. Waaay past their bedtime. We got them in the van and headed back to my parents. And were shocked when they DIDN'T fall asleep in the car ride home.  They finally fell asleep around 9:45 almost 10 and slept until 8:30 the next morning.  We had such a great time with all my family celebrating the wedding of Adam and Stacy. 

Day 1: Day Tripper

We had made this plan to be up and on the road by 2:00 a.m.  Yeh.  We were up and on the road by 1:50 a.m.  Verona fell asleep around 2:40 and slept until 5:35 or so. Trent stayed awake, but was quite until 4:30-4:55.  Then they were up for the rest of the trip.  We stopped in La Pine, Or for breakfast and then kept on our way. I didn't drive one single mile the way up.  I packed the entire van the day before, organized all the snacks, toys, diapers, etc.  I am a master traveler. I even had a sheet of paper that listed each rest area along HWY 97 in Oregon and what milepost it was.  After breakfast, it was lots of Sesame Street and Curious George to keep them happy. We stopped at the Maryhill State Park across the river from Biggs Junction to just let them run around.  We arrive in Yakima at 12:15 p.m.  I think that's pretty good, with 2 stops, and one of those a meal with kids at 6:45 a.m. 

We were exhausted though.  As soon as we got to my parents, Andy had to to with Adam and the rest of the groomsmen and pick up their tuxes.  Then it was time for all of us to get dressed and cleaned up to head to the rehearsal. 

Oh boy. The rehearsal was scary for us.  The kids were running every where, wouldn't' listen, etc. A pure nightmare. We couldn't rely on my parents to watch them during the ceremony because DUH, my brother was the one getting married.  So I talked with some of my cousins and just hoped they would be able to corral them during the ceremony.  Andy and I were able to get Verona to walk down the aisle with her 2nd cousin so that was a success. 

The rehearsal dinner was at my parent's house in their back yard. It was beautiful. Tents, nice table and chairs, table clothes, cloth napkins, (can you tell we don't' get out much?) and rose petals in the pool.  It was all catered and it was delicious.  It was  tiny bit stressful since there was no pool cover on and the kids are fearless and like to run and explore EVERYTHING.  Typical 2 year olds. After we put them down for bed we were able to enjoy seeing family.

If you can believe it, I didn't take any pictures of our drive up at all.   Here is a pic from the rehearsal of Verona walking down with Tyson her cousin, and one of the other flower girls.

Sorry for the "straight to the point" writing on this day. It's been a LOOOOONG day here with rain and cloudy and windy weather and it has taken my energy and spunk out of me.  I promise to make all the other days better. ; )

Science with Syd

The title is just a pre-cursor to what happens when I try and talk "science" with my Microbiology and Molecular Biology educated husband. 

Setup; At a restaurant, I had been drinking, we are discussing how when men get older and have kids they tend to have daughters because I *think* it's due to increase of estrogen in their body.

Me: So really, as a man get's older he has more X's then O's in terms of sperm so he will have more daughers.

Andy: O's??

Me: Yes, O's!!  X's are girl sperm and O's are boy sperm.Like that Duggar family, he has crap ton of daughters now that he is older.

Andy: I think you mean. Y not O.

Me: Oh.  That's what I meant

Andy: Science with Syd!  *Clink glasses to celebrate my smartness*

So I have LOTS to write, but will have to break it down into days.  So here is the breakdown.

Day 1-Drive, Rehearsal
Day 2- Wedding and Reception
Day 3-Father's Day
Day 4-7 Get away
Day 8-11-Home and Drive

It may take me a bit of time. My goal is one breakdown per day.  We got home yesterday afternoon and our AC was broken. Uncool. Luckily  the weather here has been rainy(!) and cloudy.  Not like 2 weeks ago when it was 111. 

Tidbit

This is going to be short.  I won't be able to write anything for at least a week and a half.  So here are some quotes from the kiddos's  to tide you over.

Verona likes board books, but not for reasons you may think.

*I walk into their room at the end of nap and find little white balls bits on the floor

Me: Verona Marie! What did you do?
V:I ate a book.
M: Which book?
V: The Mickey Book
M: Why did you do that?
V: Cause I wanted to.
M: You didn't eat mickey, you ate Run dog run
V: Oh. Ok, I eat Run dog run

Later in the day...
V:Mama, I chewed a book, it was yummy.

Sigh. This girl.  She ONLY eats board books at nap time and bed. Needless to say we don't allow her to take board books to bed anymore. Why can't she eat the boring books?

Trenton: Mama, why you big?
Me:Becuase I eat all my breakfast.
T: Oh, I want pie.
M: Fat Chance.

V:Daddy has heiny, mama has heiny, Trenton has heiny, doggie has heiny
M: Do you have a heiny?
V: I have pretty heiny.

Since they were little I always said Heiny not bottom, or butt, or whatever. It stuck.

They have their own "catch phrases" now as well. Verona likes to say that EVERYTHING is yummy or good or she needs it.

V: What you doin mom?
M: I am making cereal
V: Oh that good, I need cereal
M: You have yougurt and waffles
V: Oh I love waffles, yummy

Trenton: Bye Bye Mama
M: Can you say good night?
T:No, bye bye Mama



Some times it's just the sass in their voice that cracks us up.  Have a good few weeks!

Silver Dollar Fair!

I just love fairs!  Growing up it was the Central Washington State Fair.  When I was in Camp Fire we would enter in stuff.  I entered in canned peaches, strawberry jam, a pillow I had made, and who knows what else.  It felt good to make something, enter it in to be judged, and then go to the fair to try and find your entry.  One year I won a Best in Show for my canned peaches.  I peaked at 9 years old.  When I first moved to Chico, Andy would tell me all about the Silver Dollar Fair.  I couldn't wait.  Going to see the animals, school art projects, canned jellies, flowers, etc. Fairs are so down home and fun.  The fair in Chico is quite a bit smaller than the CWSF, but it is just as awesome.  We have taken the kids every year since they were born.

Their first fair!
 

As you can see Trenton had the most adorable forehead ever.  We call that his "not impressed" face.

2nd Fair!

They went on rides, touched bunnies and even had a friend come too!

This year was the best and worst.  They wanted to run around everywhere! They rode the carousel, touched more bunnies,  knew all the animals and their sounds, ate corndogs, chocolate covered frozen bananas, and put up with us.  Andy and I love to tour the "only on tv" building. You know the one; slap chop, kitchen gadgets, and other silly stuff that is sold. Although we did have some AMAZING Bloody Mary mix, too bad it was $19.95 a bottle! We got to the fair when it opened at 11 and left at 2. To put that in perspective, lunch is 11:30 and nap is noon.  We decided to just push our luck and run them ragged. It worked.  The frozen banana before we left was perfect. It was cold enough that the just sucked on it until they could bite into it and it kept them busy.  Next year when they are 3, I know they will have even more fun.  

 We like the "down home" part of the quilts and art by local students. 

They sure enjoyed the aniamls. Especially the baby animals.

Mmm, corn dogs.

 Cheapest ride. It was a quarter!

 Frozen Bananas!

 So there is a building that has floral arrangements and table settings that are judged.  Last year's theme was sports. This year: Laundry??  That Tablescape (As Aunt Sandy Lee would say) won Best in Show. I mean, what the hell? Camping plates, a bandana and a checkered camping table cloth? I've seen better tablescapes at Pier 1!

Trent and Verona on the carousel. And those machines you put a quarter into for a quick foot "massage" was a hit. They loved it. Next year that will be our go to ride.