Puerto Vallarta 2023

In celebration of Grandpapa Steve's seventieth birthday, he treated the kids and grandkids to a week in a Puerto Vallarta villa.

The outrageous cost of airfare around Presidents' Day prompted us to extend the vacation. Leaving on Wednesday was so much cheaper than leaving on Saturday that adding three days to the trip ended up being the same cost. Therefore, we began our holiday with three nights at the Hyatt Ziva, an all-inclusive resort. The location, pools, and beach were wonderful. We loved the way the space was laid out and enjoyed the secluded nature of the beach. There were some terrible meals as well as some lovely ones. The kids ordered Shirley Temples on demand and hit the buffet for mac and cheese regularly. We didn't participate in most of the resort-organized activities, but I encouraged Ty to join a football competition when they offered up a spa gift card to the winner. He was victorious, and I very much enjoyed a quiet morning using the prize. Hazel was beyond adorable painting the sunset with her easel on the beach in a white dress. Much to the devastation of my photographer heart, I was ill-equipped and didn't get any photos.

We've stayed in hotels locally, but our tropical vacations thus far have always been to houses or condos, so I was excited to see what we thought of being at a resort with the kids. It was a perfect addition to a week at the villa, but we concluded we wouldn't go back to Mexico solely for that.

From the Hyatt, we made the two-mile journey down the road to Casa Milagro for a dreamy seven days with Grammy, Grandpapa, Chris, Kari, and the girls. The villa came with a staff of four: Pepe, Vincent, Tony, and Marta. They were incredibly kind and went above and beyond to make sure we were well cared for. Vincent made our meals and Pepe served them with freshly mixed drinks. Tony raked the sand for us, put out chairs and umbrellas, and brought a cooler of drinks to the beach around noon. Marta kept the inside sparkling clean. There were seven bedrooms and each couple had a beautiful balcony view. What made the villa work so well was the way it was laid out. The beach, pool patio, and house were all so close together that everyone could be doing their own thing. When kids needed a break inside, nobody had to sit with them, and we could all come and go from the beach as we pleased.

Between the six kids (as well as Chris and Kari), there were a fair share of ailments including, but not limited to, fevers, vomiting, burns, ear infections, rashes, dog scratches, jellyfish stings, sunburns, scrapes, and sand flea bites.

Highlights were family time, touring downtown Puerto Vallarta, playing card games, playlists on the beach, boogie boarding, beach walks, ice cream at the beach bar, selfies with anyone who fell asleep, and free-flowing pitchers of piña coladas and margaritas.

Also, nature.

We saw whales breaching, Venus, Jupiter, multiple phases of the moon, stingrays, a manta ray, iguanas, and pelicans. The sunrises and sunsets were magnificent, and I gained a new appreciation for twilight.

Being in a foreign country where they didn't know the language was an impactful experience for the kids. Now that we have current passports and a renewed appreciation for how valuable it is to be outside your home country, I'm hoping this is just the beginning of their international travels.

I am incredibly grateful for the bond the cousins share and family that loves spending time together. Thank you, Grandpapa, for a week filled with core memories that we'll cherish for a lifetime.

Holidays 2022

Illness had a profound effect on our 2022 holiday season, but there was plenty of merriment sandwiched between plagues.

To start, all five of us went down with flu A the week of Thanksgiving. We had to cancel our trip to the Cove, and it was the worst illness our family has collectively experienced. I was the last to fall ill, so I hit Costco and stocked up on provisions before I joined the rest of them laid up on the couch. This excursion supplied the fixings for Owen and me to cook a full Thanksgiving meal that nobody ate. There were high fevers and extreme fatigue—the kids so lethargic that they didn't fight all week. We watched TV in excess while dirty tissues and dishes piled up around us. Ty developed an ear infection on Thanksgiving and Owen a few days later. Oof.

Post-flu we had a packed two weeks. Owen had a sleepover party, Wes celebrated his birthday at Ocean 5, my mom stayed with us, Ty and I attended my work Christmas party, I hosted a favorite things party, we did Santa brunch at the club, and went to snowflake lane in Bellevue with the Hights. Hazel got her ears pierced and had a gymnastics performance.

Then I spiked another fever and tested positive for COVID.

So it was back to quarantine. But this time the kids had their normal energy level, making the week very reminiscent of March 2020. The COVID symptoms were mild in comparison to the flu, except for the exhaustion, which was overwhelming and persisted beyond a week. Somehow nobody else in the family ended up testing positive, so we only had to cancel half of our Christmas plans.

We hosted Ty's family here Friday, tried out a new church on Christmas Eve, had Christmas morning magic at home, and met the Hights in Suncadia late on Christmas Day. We rescheduled our celebration with my family for January.

Suncadia was amazing, and getting away after spending so much of the winter stuck inside with various viruses was life-giving. We swam in the heated outdoor pool, went sledding, and had a blast ice skating. There was dreamy snow and quality time with our dearest friends.

As the season comes to a close, I am grateful for—and more aware of—our ongoing health and am treasuring the memories from another year ripe with goodness.

Halloween 2022

Much to my delight, Owen was insistent that we choose a family costume this Halloween. We landed on Woodland Creatures; two bats, an Owl, a Deer, and a Bear. We had friends over to celebrate the Saturday before and hit the hood to trick-or-treat Halloween night. 

8-Year-Old Love Letter

My sweet Wessy bug, 

It's great to be eight! You have a remarkable memory and we call upon it often when details from the past are required. You continue to excel academically and it was recommended that you test for the highly capable program. Daddy and I laugh when you turn your #tooeasy addition homework into multiplication. You are an exceptionally lucky kid and always seem to win games/raffles. You hit the jackpot on ticket games every time and chance typically lands on your side. You've recently started learning football statistics and the names/cities of the NFL teams. You love watching the Seahawks play and have strong feelings about Russel Wilson's time with the Broncos. 

Your favorite meal remains chicken and rice, but mostly rice. When you find a new food that you enjoy there is a lot of enthusiasm. You love doing legos and playing school. You like to write stories and make them into books. My recent favorite was one about owls where you used as many owl puns as you could think of, including Owl-bucks for coffee and Owl-cohol for the grown-ups. You played a season of soccer this fall, loved the games, never wanted to attend practice. You are taking piano lessons and have a natural affinity for music. You loved basketball last year but got upset when you learned that I'd signed you up again (though I'm pretty sure you consented to registering). We'll see how the season shakes out. You're a strong swimmer and made strides skiing this season. You love to make people laugh. 

You've had unfortunate luck with the friends you've made at school the past few years. After kindergarten one of your closet friends moved states and the other moved schools. The same thing happened in first grade. I was a bit nervous for you going into second but you've established a new crew and blossomed socially. Your first grade teacher described you as quiet, while your second grade teacher mentioned you're chatty to the point of getting off task. At recess you alternative between playing football with the fourth graders and hanging out with your classmates. 

Eight is an emotional time and you have lots of big feelings. Sharing how you feel is difficult for you, storming off to your room and pouting are plentiful. You and Hazel love playing together. You spend lots of time with Owen and Christopher, even though you get thrown around more often than either of us would like. 

At some point Owen moved from the bunk bed you two shared to sleeping in his old room. It became clear that you guys needed space from each other at bedtime. After a few days you started sleeping on the floor in Owen's new room, which persisted for months. You both enjoy the control of having your own rooms but crave the security of having each other nearby. We finally moved a second bed into Owen's room and you guys are content. Every night you ask me what you should think about to help you get to sleep and if I can check on you before I go to bed. 

Year seven was ripe with learning and adventure. You light up my life and are such an important part of our family. I love you deeply and treasure every year we get to spend together. I am so proud of you and ever grateful that you're mine. I love you with all that I have and all that I am. 

Happy Birthday, my sweet boy. 

xoxo,

Your Loving Mama 

10-Year-Old Love Letter

My sweet Owen,

Today marks an entire decade since the chaotic scene of your birth in our Ballard bungalow. The postpartum euphoria and hot tears of joy that flowed that winter morning feel like they were both yesterday and a lifetime ago. At 10-years-old you are industrious, independent, and sweet. You are confident and know what's important to you. You are a hard worker and obsessed with lacrosse. You have a great group of friends and have learned the joys of sleepover parties. You love playing football at recess but have no desire to play on a team. Fourth grade has been amazing for you academically and motivated you to read independently. You are fiercely loyal to family and share my desire to build community. 

Your moods have stabilized. We're all entitled to tough days but there seems to be less volatility in your feelings. We've identified that jealousy or excitement over an upcoming activity is usually the culprit if you're having a hard time. You are in tune with your emotions and developing more self-awareness. Family is always at the top of your priority list and you recently vocalized that you'd like to go to church more. You initiate hugs and kisses at the bus stop in front of your friends and bedtime snuggles are a highlight of your days. 

You are secure in who you are and what's important to you. All your friends play baseball and when I asked if you felt sad that you didn't participate in the same sport you emphatically replied, "I play lacrosse." I love that for you so much. As a fourth grader, you are picking up too cool-for-school vibes. You're not interested in participating in pajama day with the kindergarten/second graders. At home you still find time to play make-believe, most recently choreographing a circus routine on my bed and making dinner in your "restaurant." You have one foot still firmly planted in childhood while the other is wholeheartedly middle age. 

You have matured enough that you enjoy playing board games without a hyper-focus on winning. You played another season of soccer this fall and took piano lessons on and off. Your favorite meal is spaghetti. You get realllllyyyy excited about starting a new project and come in hot. Finishing them doesn't carry the same enthusiasm. 

My sweet firstborn. Loving and learning with you for the past decade has been a sacred gift. You are a kind and confident 10-year-old that loves big and I couldn't be more proud of you. I love you with all that I have and all that I am. 

xoxo,

Your loving mama