Day 241

Today was so much fun. I got to take a metal riveting class from Tracy Stanley at one of the local bead stores. The class was 6 hours long and I came home exhausted, but very thankful to have taken the class. We took 3x3 sheets of copper and brass, textured and antiqued them and then cut them into just shy of 1 inch squares. From those squares, we punched holes, added charms and then attached the charms using 14 gauge copper wire by just barely cutting off a snippet of wire and then riveting the pieces together. Working with metal and wire this way is a good way to vent some frustration as you pound the metal with various types of hammers. Now hopefully, I can finish the piece in a timely manner because I had to borrow tools from a good friend.

Day 240

The Seattle Mariners chose various games each year to give away all sorts of swag. Tonight's swag was the second installment of the Mariners Classic Commercials. Mike took the boys to the last game where they gave away the first installment of the commercials because mom was out of town with her girlfriends.

The game was a lot of fun and the boys did okay. Aaron discovered there are trains at the baseball game and we had to take several trips to go see if any trains were coming by. Andy just ate the entire game, so next time mom has to take even more snacks. The best part, the M's won the game.

Day 239

I am taking a metal jewelry class on Saturday and am in need of some additional tools. Lucky for me, I have a friend who is in the jewelry business and lent me his Rio Grande catalog to look through. Granted, this catalog is from a few years ago, but it has been so nice to peruse through it and make up a wish list.

Day 238

This evening our family had the opportunity to help out orphans in Africa. The Downtown Church is the daughter church of Crossroads Bible Church where Mike and I attend with our boys. Outreach is a big part of who The Downtown Church is considering they are located in downtown Bellevue where there is no place to worship. Tonight one of the ways to reach out was putting together 25,000 meals for orphans in Sierra Leone, Africa.

Mike and I thought it would be a good thing for our boys to experience and to see some friends we haven't seen in a while. Andy was able to help scoop out lentils and rice for a little bit, but we seemed to be at the enthusiastic table full of 10-12 year old girls. After a while of being told to be faster, Andy jumped ship and joined his friends elsewhere. It only took about an hour and a half to fill bags of lentils, rice, chicken protein and spices. Overall, it was a great experience and I hope our boys are able to do this again.

Day 237

This summer, the ladies of the Cornerstone Sunday school class and others have been studying I Thessalonians. As an end of the study craft, Amber, who lead the study, printed out cards with verses about hope, faith and love. I am turning my cards into a wall hanging. The plan is to run ribbon along the back of my cards and come up with a fun way to hang the cards. I think the colors will also look good in my bedroom too.

Day 236

It only took a month, but the sleeping bags from our Cama Beach camping trip have finally been washed, dried and ready to return to their rightful place in the garage and not my basement. I'm just happy I can cross something off my to-do list.

Day 235

Crossroads Bible Church is currently in the midst of repaving and adding new parking spots or as they call them, "ministry squares." Only it seems as if there are quite a number of compact spots and I am one of many non compact family vehicles. The east end of the building parking is complete and the west and back in should be done by October, I believe. All I can say is the new parking will be very nice and much easier to maneuver.

Day 234

Mike got my phone fixed for me!! I'm so happy to be able to see my icons and apps again. It was half of the cost the apple store guy quoted us for them to fix it and my phone comes with a one year warranty for the light from the repair guys. Yeah for my hubby!!

Day 233

This morning we braved the chilly weather and spent some time with our friends at the park. One of my girlfriends has a 7 month old girl who is such a sweet little girl and a trooper for hanging out in her car seat. Aaron was having a snack and went over to see what was in the other stroller. He was being very sweet to her and not screaming like he greets other small people and animals. I hope this sweetness continues when baby number 3 joins our crazy household.

Day 232

So yesterday, the backlight on my phone went out which makes it difficult to see the icons and use my phone. Mike made an appointment at the apple store in Bellevue Square to see what they could do about fixing the backlight. Well, since my the moisture sensors had been triggered, they wouldn't give me the time of day basically. I could purchase a refurbished phone or they could maybe fix it, but overall the customer service was poor and absolutely horrible. Lucky for me, my husband has been doing some looking and made an appointment with a reputable apple repair person in Seattle for Saturday to look at my phone.

Day 231

This evening dad joined us as we made our weekly trek to the Sammamish Farmer's Market. Tonight the fire trucks were there and my boys were super thrilled, especially Aaron, who is in front of Andy and dad trying to get close to the truck. The boys each got to sit in the drivers seat and we learned the trucks start with the push of a button, so we made sure to tell Aaron not to push any buttons.

Day 230

It's really interesting that I ended up getting both of these books at the same time from the library as they both have topics over our food industry. I haven't gotten very far into either one, but there seems to be a correlation between the food industry and our children developing allergies at a more rampant pace than previous generations. I honestly wouldn't have gotten The Unhealthy Truth if it hadn't been for Aaron and his allergies to food. I am learning that some of my choices of various brands have been a positive move for my family.

Day 229

The boys and I were hanging outside on the deck enjoying our summer weather once again. Aaron likes to sit on top of the table and play with his cars. He was lining them up in the order he wanted and if anyone took one out of order, he would scream at you and then place it in the correct spot. It was funny to watch how determined he was.

Day 228

My mom bought me a couple of planted Gerber daisy plants and I had put them outside on my table to get some sun and rain. I also have this little flower picker who just happen to be in the background of the picture. The orange daisies have already been demolished, so we shall see how long it takes the last yellow one to be picked.

Day 227

As each day begins, I feel just a bit better, but once again, spent some serious time with the couch. This morning, Mike was playing Memory with Andy and Aaron and I enjoyed watching them play together.

Day 226

Day two of being sick, so in order for Mike to go back to work, Grandma came to the rescue. She came and picked up the boys and I to take over to her house so she could take care of us. I finally started to feel a little better this evening and while Barb was trying to change Aaron's diaper, he escaped and began climbing on top of grandpa. I just happen to have my iPhone in my hand and was able to snap a picture of my little escape artist. Luckily, grandma was able to get Aaron diapered before any kind of accident could occur.

Day 225

Today has not been a pleasant day for me, so I thought I would post something nicer. I'm not sure if I'm sick or it's pregnancy related, but I'm pretty much down for the count. Here's hoping tomorrow is so much.

I took this picture when we were on Orcas Island back in May. There was a lilac bush starting to bloom and I had taken a few pictures of it.

Day 224

I thought I would post about my favorite shoes. The catch: these shoes are for my boys and I wish I could have a pair or two myself. See Kai Run designs the cutest shoes for little ones and I'm in love. Back in June, I bought a few pairs for Aaron for the next couple of sizes and now the fall designs are out and I'm trying to justify possibly purchasing a couple more for Aaron too. Of course, one of the best things about having another baby is the fact that I can maybe get some of the Smaller shoes this time for the little one.

Yes, I do have a few pairs of them as well :) I have almost every size except for a size 9. Andy and Aaron both had the same blue sandals, but the size 9 did not survive for Aaron to have a turn. It was fun to pull out all the shoes out of the boxes and line them up.

Day 223

A few days ago, I took a little test to see if we would be expanding out little family. Tonight we plan on telling the family that yes, baby number 3 will be coming next spring.

Day 222

This evening, the preschool board had an emergency meeting to discuss matters for the upcoming school year and I spent most of my day finalizing the year end audit. It's been

a great pleasure to serve on the board this last year and I look forward to serving this upcoming year as well.

Day 221

This afternoon, Mike went over to help out some friends remove some items out of a house that is going to be demolished this week and rebuilt. One of the items our friends were getting is a newer dishwasher and they offered their dishwasher to us. We took them up on their offer because they knew we were in need of a new one. It is a few years old, but it is also a high end one, so we hope to have a few years of use out of it, too.

Day 220

I was hoping that Mike and I could take the family to do some sight seeing of Seattle while they are here. We have been side-lined by sick children and late nights, but today we made it to the Ballard Lockes. We got to watch a few boats come in from Puget Sound and transfer to the ship canal and see a few salmon go through the fish ladder. It was a fun afternoon out, only our weather isn't cooperating. It is August, where's the sun?

Day 219

Since Nana and Papa drove, they brought the boy's birthday gift with them and today, Papa put it together. At various times throughout the build, both Andy and Aaron were helping Papa put the helicopter together. It is such a fun toy, they boys can drive the helicopter, spin the rooters and teeter totter.

Day 218

This is what happens when you don't get much sleep and you attempt to make coffee in the morning. Yup people, I put the coffee beans in the filter before they made their trip through the grinder. I think a nap is in order today.

Day 217

My cousin, Melissa was very fortunate to be able to fly over from Japan to Seattle during the time my parents and her mom are visiting. Since she flew over in a military plane, she found a commercial flight run via the military back to Kadena, but the catch was she had to be at the airport at 11 pm tonight for roll call. We ended up spending a couple of hours hanging out at the airport tonight and I snapped this photo with my iPhone of my mom and aunt sitting next to Melissa's luggage. In the end, she was not able to get on the flight, so that just means a few extra days with us.

Day 216

One of the things my dad wanted to do this trip was to go to the San Juan Islands and go on an excursion to see the orca whales. We loaded up the crew and drove to Anacortes to catch the ferry over to Friday Harbor. After walking around Friday Harbor, we had lunch at the waterfront and then boarded the whale watching boat. It was to be about a 3 hour tour. The whales had been spotted around Vancouver Island, so we headed over there. Unfortunately, since it took a while to find out where the whales were, we only had a few minutes before we had to head back to Friday Harbor. It was a long day, but everyone had a great time.

Day 215

As I was looking over my pictures from today, I thought I would use this one. It was taken after dinner and we were enjoying the nice weather out on the deck. Aaron had just had his bath and I was going to pass him off to Mike to get him dressed. My boys are just so thrilled that Nana and Papa are here to see them.

Day 214

I am getting the privilege of having my mom, dad, aunt and cousin visiting for a few days. After church this morning, the whole crew went out to lunch at Red Robin. Lucky for me, my mom still loves me even after I knocked her water glass on her.

Day 213

Redmond Town Centre is one of the local shopping malls that happens to be an outdoor mall. It's a great place to visit when it's nice outside, but Christmas shopping isn't quite that much fun when it's 40 degrees and raining. A couple of years ago, the property management installed a musical garden for the kids to play and learn about different sounds in nature. There is a water feature that is currently in full swing this summer and all three boys had a blast splashing in the little river. It wasn't until we got home and I was looking through the pictures that I noticed the corn dog and hot dog little boys. The third little guy is my cousin's little boy who is a month younger than Aaron. They are in town visiting since his grandma is coming up with my guy's nana and papa.