Elsie Kathleen's Grand Arrival

This is a little late coming, but here it is. On November 21st I had gone through my day looking at my very full planner and checking off the to-dos. That night I spent two hours visiting teaching and telling my fellow sisters that there was no way the baby was going to come before Thanksgiving. I returned home around nine o'clock and got Ben to bed - this took some time (he's still not the best at going to sleep). We finally got him to sleep and were discussing what late night snack we would have when at about ten thirty I felt a contraction.
By 11:00 I had had four contractions and all were rather irregular, but since Ben came so quickly and I needed to be on antibiotics for four hours, the doctor told me to call and get checked if I felt anything. So we called the hospital and told them we were coming.
Poor Ben got about half an hour of sleep before we woke him up and dragged him outside in the cold to the hospital. Where he had to hang out in triage while they asked all the usual questions.
I still felt that she couldn't be coming- she wasn't supposed to be here until the third of December, but we still called Michael's brother and his wife to come get Ben just in case.
Well, as I am sure you've guessed, I was told that I was to be staying in the hospital and that I needed to get on antibiotic right away. Ben was taken home and went right back to bed, thank goodness and we, shocked as we were, prepared to meet our daughter.
At 1:15 in the morning, that's right, only two hour and forty-five minutes from the first contraction, she was here. With brown hair, blue eyes and seven pounds five ounces to her name, she came out crying and healthy. Apart from the fact that the labor was quite intense, all was well and we enjoyed getting to know our new baby.
Ben, of course, spent his first visit to the hospital exploring the room and driving his trains on the different equipment, but he eventually realized there was a baby and that it was supposed to mean something to him :)
Elsie has been a great addition to our family, even though we are all still getting used to being a family of four.

She's got Friar Tuck hair, it's awesome!

The Evils of Mold and Pregnancy

So there is nothing evil about being pregnant, but finding mold in your home is that much more irritating when you are pregnant and trying to get everything ready for a new baby.
Last Saturday we were moving our room around to make room for a crib and discovered that some things that we had been storing under our bed had mold on them. With further investigation we found it on several items on the bottom of the closet and very little, but still some, in Ben's closet. Thank you Seattle humidity... Needless to say we went out and bought anything we could find that would treat mold and began work. We had to throw several things out and decided it would be best to wash pretty much everything (including carpets). Then we called an inspector who told us that this issue was in its early stages and as long as we watch it there shouldn't be a serious problem (good news).
Our dehumidifier has been running practically 24/7 so this problem will not occur again (I hope). Now that it is all pretty much taken care of I am realizing that am now even further behind in my to dos, but it is nice to know that we have thoroughly cleaned our home. One item off the list!

Rob and Nancy's First Visit

On July 16th my brother Rob entered the United States for the first time in two years and this time he brought his lovely wife Nancy! We had such a great time visiting with them and just being in their company.

While they were here Rob showed Nancy all around Wenatchee and brought her over to Seattle a couple times to visit with friends and family (us). We also enjoyed two fun family reunions and an exhausting camping trip. Hopefully we didn't wear her out and she'll be excited to come back.

Ben loves his Auntie Nancy and hogged all her attention anytime she was around. He would get pretty upset when she had to go and would ask for her randomly. He also had a great time trying to mimic the phrases that Rob would throw at him (some were Chinese) and he actually did a pretty good job :)

Their first meal in the States! They were both pretty tired, but covered it up well and Nancy got her first taste of a "Chinese" salad.

At our cousin's wedding.

The first open house/family reunion.

Of course there had to be some water gun fights :)

Ben having the greatest time with his Auntie.

Playing with Uncle Rob.

When we went camping the kids, Rob and Nancy all went to catch crawdads. They caught ten and we all got to look at the haul before they threw them back. On a side note, Ben really liked to say the word "crawdad".

Saying good-bye at the airport. It was hard to see them go, but they told us they would be coming back next year. Can't wait!

We love you guys!!

Nana's visit and News

Our July was packed with excitement! We had Michael's mom come to town and we had so much fun touring our own area. Apart from our trip to Wenatchee for Ben's birthday we also visited the aquarium where Ben discovered Nemo. As he had never seen Finding Nemo I was rather surprised when he started calling the clown fish Nemo until I realized that there were about two or three other kids around him who obviously had seen Finding Nemo. Besides Nemo his favorite fish was the "back fish" (black fish).

He also really enjoyed the little lookout area on the top floor. He and Nana got to look down and see what we were all up to.

After the aquarium we went to Pike Place Market where the fish fly and there are wonderful treats around every corner. Of course Ben had to test one.

We also visited Whidbey Island and Ben and Nana got their first ferry ride. We went to Fort Casey and saw some lovely large guns as well as a beautiful lighthouse. Then is was off toward Deception Pass and the ocean. It is such a pretty place and one we will have to visit again when Michael can come with us. 

It was also Ben's first time seeing the ocean.

But quite possibly the favorite part of the trip... for Ben, was seeing Thomas (the tank engine). We decided to splurge and take him for a ride on a life-size Thomas. Although at first he wasn't too sure what to think (or maybe he was just so overwhelmed by excitement he didn't know how to show it) he was sad when it was time to leave.

One of our favorite parts of her visit was the day she took this picture of Ben.

We loved having Nana visit us here in Seattle and hope she will come back soon! 

Ben is Two!

Ben turned two-years-old last Friday and had quite a day! We headed over to Wenatchee the night before so we could celebrate with the family. Nana was in town from Texas so she and Auntie Katherine got to come with us. Our first stop for his day of fun was Jeepers It's Bagels. Although his lack of sleep caused some irritability, he very much enjoyed drawing trains on the chalkboard and eating his raspberry bagel.

After a nice breakfast Ben got to hang out at the house while we prepared his party and waited for the guests to arrive (the Quincy cousins and Auntie Ali). It was a bit cool outside, but that didn't stop the kids from playing with bubbles, water, balls, etc.
Ben's dinner consisted mostly of watermelon and then it was time for cake and presents!

Of course the wonderful clothes he received were tossed quickly aside and he ended up getting distracted with each toy. His cousins helped to "persuade" him to open the rest of his presents and then they helped him play with them. He played for several more hours with his new toys and said goodbye to Chad, Valentina and the kids and then it was time to rest with Daddy.

All in all a very successful second birthday!

So this is Life

Again it has been a long time since the last post. I am really not good at this blogging thing, but am hoping to get much better in a hurry :)
Over the past few months both Ben and I have gotten haircuts. Both were dramatic, but in different ways. Let's just say that Ben was not to happy once the scissors got close to his ears.

Apart from our change in appearance we have also changed our renters status to home owners. Long story short. Our landlord told us that they were putting their condo on the market and within a few days it was on Zillow and we were on Zillow looking at listings (apparently now is the time to buy here). After only a few days of looking at homes and even making an offer on one we decided to buy the condo from our landlords. It was just too crazy out there in the real estate world. We are very happy with our decision and have already begun to make a few minor improvements.

Ben will be two in less than three weeks and we are already getting excited for his big day. His Nana will be here to help us celebrate and we will be heading over to Wenatchee to cut the cake.
The amount of talking and physical feats he has accomplished over the past few months never ceases to amaze me. He can get around the park toys without too much difficulty now and looks like a pro on the big slide. Not to mention he is finally giving his mother a break and taking pleasure in the swings from time to time.
His vocabulary has grown so much and every day he is adding to it! It is amazing how fast those little minds pick up things. It is great to be able to have a conversation with him (a very short/limited one, mind you) and actually understand what he is talking about. Right now his favorite topics are bubbles, food, and trains (Percy especially).
Life is going well for us. Michael is still enjoying his job and is about to start on a new project for his company. I am busy trying to keep up with Ben and deciding what I want to accomplish most with my limited free time.

An Update

It's the end of another year, time for another attempt at a family photo

We have now been in Kirkland for six months! Michael is enjoying his job and Ben is growing like a weed and learning new things every minute. We are loving being close to family and being in a more stable situation.

Our big boy

Ben just started going nursery on the thirteenth and we were so worried that he'd fuss and we'd have to stay with him, but so far he has done just fine. Michael goes to check on him from time to time and I get the reports from him and the nursery leaders. Apparently Ben spends most of his time walking around, but at least this week he sat during the lesson. Strangely enough he isn't very interested in the snacks they provide: Goldfish, dried cherries, bananas (all things he loves).
Michael is in the middle of his project with Microsoft and really seems to enjoy the people that he's working with and the schedule he keeps. There are days when he can work from home, which means we get to have lunch together. With the flexibility they give him he is able to miss the morning and evening traffic and we get to see him more often.

As for myself I am still trying to find a schedule and hobbies that I can handle while taking on an eighteen month old tornado. Right now I am working on a family photo album, that was supposed to be a Christmas gift for my family, but will more than likely end up being a Valentine's or even early Easter gift. It has been a lot of fun looking through all the pictures though. Apart from this very large project I spend most of my "me time" sleeping or watching television (ugh), but I have plans to change that.
Here are just a few pictures from late 2012:

Daddy and Ben playing basketball.

My favorite disgruntled Ben face