With two kids in two teams, we are spending a lot of time at the ball field. It’s very fun, but it’s shocking how much time out of the week it impacts. I find myself behind in all sorts of things! But we have a wonderful time doing it, and Jim and I are both sad anytime we have to miss a game for work.

There are a few moms around that take awesome photos at the games and then post them on Facebook right after, so I haven’t been very good about taking photos myself. But I did grab one of the two together in their uniforms the other day.

Jim and I were both able to attend his presentation as well, because his awesome teacher scheduled it for exactly when we asked. It was so fun to watch.

It was so fun to have amazing weather for our friend Katie’s birthday request: skiing with us. We couldn’t be happier about her birthday wish!

The other good news is that I skied – only 29 days after my knee debridement! It was painless to get up (which was NOT the case last summer), and I definitely felt pressure on both knees crossing the wakes, but it was so much better than before that I am already grateful.

The kids enjoyed the sunshine too and all said they wished they had dry suits so they could be skiing. Cute.

JT and Brady have had matching life vests for as long as I can remember. When Brady got a new vest this spring, we got a picture and we had to go get the same one. So now they’re matching again. 🙂

I had planned to do one fun thing each day with the kids over Spring Break… and also get some yard work done.

Monday: Haley had a playdate with friends from school, so JT and I worked on his Personal Passion for Learning project for school. He chose circuits for his topic. He has to interview an expert, so he interviewed Grandpa Keene. We recorded the interview on speaker phone so JT could listen to it again and write his notes on the second listen.

As a reward for all of his hard work on this project, and to help with his presentation, we bought a Makey Makey board. It connects to a computer through USB and then it’s your job to complete the electric path to make things happen in a variety of apps available online. JT made banana bongos, a game where you jump with your feet to make the man jump a hurdle, and a keyboard for Haley. We had so much fun!

 

On Tuesday, we went to the Port Orchard library and got our library cards! I’m not sure why that took eight months… probably because I was waiting for JT to be off school to do it. There is a lovely walking path that leads to a playground and this beach right across from the library, so we did that too. The kids found some shells to bring home, of course.

On Wednesday, my new Instant Pot came! Okay, that’s not a fun thing for the kids. More on that later.

On Wednesday, I launched my online Thirty-one party, which closed at the highest sales ever for my friend’s entire team. So that was fun. Okay, that’s not a fun thing for the kids either.

On Wednesday, we loaded up our bikes and tried out Cushman Trail, a beautifully maintained 6.2 mile trail in Gig Harbor.

On Thursday, it got hot! We spent the morning a little bit lazy (yay) in our pajamas, learning more about circuits with a water piano, parallel and series circuits, and conductors/insulators.

 

The kids also got to play outside with friends and we made popsicles, thanks to our Zoku pop maker.

On Friday, the kids were very unimpressed about coming shopping with me. But they got to bring their wallets and pick out something at Target, so that cheered them up. JT bought this huge stuffed dog. Haley suggested naming it Spotless, which I think is brilliant.

Saturday, we completed yard work phase 1B. I shoveled 2.5 yards of gravel and 3 yards of bark. It was awesome to finish and enjoy how it looks. Then we went down the street to our neighbor’s house for a backyard bbq/bonfire/birthday party.

 

 
It was sure hard to go back to work on Monday for me after three weeks off. It was especially hard for Haley, who got used to having me home all day with her and has missed me very, very much ever since. I’m thankful for a fun break with great weather and good memories!

We actually finished up the previous week’s yard work at the end of spring break. We had Ali’s help cutting back these crazy bushes and rhododendrons, and then we laid new bark. All week long, I worked a couple of hours a day digging out the old bark, weeds, and gunks, and moving flagstone so we’d have a new walkway around the side of the house where it got very muddy last winter. Then we added crushed rock to the walkways on the side of the house and in the back yard, and planted “evergreen, flowering, shallow rooted, partial sun, perennials” in the egg-shaped septic tank identifier in the back yard.

Bordering our driveway

Around the side of the house – mud pit turned to gravel walkway

Driveway to the stop, trimmed and barked

This is my favorite one comparison photo. Such a cleaner space!

For my birthday, I asked for a day of yard work from my family. The kids were shocked. “…for your birthday?!” But yes, I have been so excited to get going on our outdoor projects. As Haley aptly remarked, “We moved into the inside, but now we need to move into the outside.”

Birthday yard work party – all of the front weeded!

Then this weekend, the real fun started. Jim took Friday off and worked on this mess. He pressure washed and dug out and moved the fire pit and a bush and a stone bench and some pots… and then Saturday we finished it off with pea gravel and had our inaugural fire. Hooray!

My dad’s friend Dave graciously, amazingly, spent a day at our house with his backhoe. We have really been looking forward to tearing out the kidney bean-shaped island of trees and bark in the middle of our otherwise decent sized backyard. So bright and early Saturday morning, the fun began.

Jim limbed trees while Dave took over 20 yards of dirt out of our yard! Good thing we have a greenbelt we can move dirt into.

By lunch time, we were ready to spread bark. I had finished planting bulbs and spreading weed preventer granules, and my niece Ali had finished trimming all the front hedges. I was in charge of bark delivery. I’m glad we live five minutes from the landscaping place!

By the end of Saturday, our backyard became a lot different (before view on bottom). 

And I had spent all week (2-3 hours a day, every day, thank you Lord for beautiful weather) slowly tearing out ornamental grass and moving flagstone, so Saturday it was finished!

Jim helped tame this section… we’re going to concrete the rocky area under the barbecue. 

I moved the heather from this hill to another location and the kids moved two wheelbarrows full of rocks, and then Dave and his backhoe took care of the rest. Viola! Ready for grass and a southern-facing location for my garden box (maybe a larger garden? stay tuned…).

Hey look – now I can see my house from my own backyard! We had friends over for dinner on Saturday evening, and it was so nice to try out the new fire pit location and enjoy more sunshine in a bigger space.

This morning as the sun was coming up, I noticed how much brighter the backyard felt. Oh yes, it’s because those bushes and trees weren’t blocking it from hitting the yard. Hooray!

Jim also dug out the front left corner (barely visible here) because it was too far gone to be simply weeded. We left the three azaleas but edged the lawn and spread fresh bark over the entire front, plus planted new flowering evergreen annuals closer to the house. Jim also dug out an old tree stump that had decomposed and left a little lump in the yard. Now it’s flat and weed-free, and we can plant grass to fill it in.

To top it all off, Jim installed a new light fixture in the reading room. It is a formal dining room, but we’re not using it that way and I didn’t like the chandelier anyway. Now we have a modern light that better matches our style, and you don’t have to duck when you walk in the room. Very cool!

Why only Phase 1, you ask? Because this weekend we will finish the bark (the driveway to the shop) and spread gravel over all the walkways that Jim removed the old rock from. Then Phase 3 will begin once the backyard is level and the branches are gone, because then we need to expand the existing sprinkler system and bring in top soil, seed, and peat moss. Finally, once it’s been warm for awhile this summer, I’ll stain the fence. It’s going to be awesome when it’s done!

I turned 36 last month! It started on Saturday with a day of yard work, which is what I asked for. We have so many projects outside we’d like to get done, and I’ll post about that separately. Then on Easter, we had a birthday dessert at my parents’ house. My mom made this carrot cake cheesecake cake. It was amazing. Look at all that frosting! Jim and I may or may not have eaten this last huge piece together while the kids were at school one morning.

I opened some gifts from family and this hand lettered card by Ali.

On the actual day, I had physical therapy first thing. Then Haley and I went over to Main & Vine to discover what is now my favorite grocery store! I went to get sushi for lunch, a birthday tradition, and loved the whole experience. I ended up doing my grocery shopping there later in the week!

Next we went to Costco and bought some new plants for the yard, weed preventer, and more supplies based on our freshly weeded flower beds from the weekend before.

We just had to try the frozen yogurt shop near Costco before picking JT up from the bus!

It was half days last week for parent conferences, so we were all home together for lunch. I had sushi and I made the kids each try a California roll, which is mostly fish-free (imitation crab should not count as seafood). Haley managed to finish and JT gagged through half before I let him give up. We’ll try again next year.

I got to take both girls to ballet while JT played at home with a neighbor. Here we are making silly faces. It’s hard to be serious in all this glorious sunshine!

It was Souper Supper night, but also my real birthday, so my mom said I could pick what we had for dinner. I chose Taco Bar, and so Jeff, Gena, Ali, the kids, and my mom and dad and I all had a yummy dinner together.

The kids had fun finding their Easter baskets at the dining room table Easter morning. They had already gotten a HUGE Easter box from Grandma & Grandpa Keene on Friday, then later on
Sunday they got gifts at the end of an Easter egg treasure hunt (clues and all) from Grandpa & Grandma Cole. Haley said, “It’s like Christmas again!” So Jim and I realized next year we may ask everyone to scale back. 🙂 Anyway. From us, they got books and colored pens and one clothing item each that they needed for baseball.

Then we had a cinnamon roll breakfast, complete with cheesy eggs and sausage.

We got all dressed up for church and enjoyed seeing our children look adorable.

After church, we painted Easter eggs. I would not recommend this painting process. It takes so long to dry that you’re tired of the project by the time they’re ready to paint the other side. Next year we will dip.

We got a new family game called Suspend and it is really fun. I love games that are challenging for everyone but not so hard that the kids can’t play. You balance the sticks all together, basically, and the first play method is a “work together” game, so we did that one first. Haley is already hoping to play competitively next time. No shock there.

Then the kids broke out their treasure hunt gifts and spent the next hour very focused on arts and crafts.

We walked across to my parents’ house around 3:30 for a 4 PM dinner. I thought Jim looked pretty cute headed over in his nice clothes and work boots, with a tray of hot food!

Easter 2016 was a success!

SKSLL kicked off tonight with its opening ceremonies. It was a gorgeous day to watch, and we had a fun time seeing our kids in their uniforms for the first time this season. Haley was excited beyond belief, and even JT declared she looked “really cute.”

First event of the season photo

Opening ceremonies

T-Ball this year

Sawyer and JT are on the same Minor Prep team

I had arthoscopic knee debridement on Friday. It’s not a guaranteed fix for the 18 months of knee pain I’ve had, but after six months of physical therapy that wouldn’t progress past the mechanical sticking point of frayed cartilage, I was willing to give it a try. I had trauma to my knees 15-20 years ago (so they say) and I’m missing a whole “pothole” of cartilage from under my knee cap. I had two different surgeons explain to me that it’s like a paint chip from a wall, that gets brushed every time I bend my knee. Eventually, the paint chip gets bigger and flakes more off onto the floor. Except the paint chip is a pothole under my knee cap, causing “irreparable, significant damage.” I had bruising in my patella from the impact, and it hurt to do anything, including sleep and wear skinny jeans. Ugh.

The odds of a surgery fixing this problem are not 100% by a stretch, because I will always be missing that cartilage. But at least the edges of the pothole will be clean and smooth, and the “paint chip” will stop flaking off everytime I bend my knee. I’m hoping to be able to ski, bike, and even run without significant pain (all three of which brought me to tears over the summer). In the meantime, swimming is a great outlet and I’m thankful for a beautiful YMCA pool so close to home. 

After throwing up because they PUT AN IV IN MY WRIST, I was ready to go.

Friday: on the couch

See the problem here? Cool photos from inside my right knee.

All clean! Except you can see the little half-moon shadow where there should be cartilage, and there just isn’t.

 

Jim and JT did errands on Saturday and came home with a new hitting helmet and a backpack to keep it in. 

The kids and I worked on their flashlight kits that I brought home from E2.

Sunday, Jim ran a half-marathon with a friend and the whole family went to an Easter egg hunt in the neighborhood, hosted by someone I’ve known most of my life (think over 30 years).

Monday, Jim had to go into work for awhile in the evening and baseball was rained out, so the kids and I made an easy dinner and watched the first half of Free Willy. Today was our first “real” day back in action, with Jim at work and a regular schedule. I got to take off my wrap this morning – hooray!

Haley and I worked on some projects today. She sewed a pillow and measured lots of things around the house.