Night Out with Daddy

Last Friday I went to a girls' night party at a friend's house. It was a lot of fun to socialize, watch a chick flick, and eat junk food. It made me realize I need to do stuff like that more. Jim watched the kids for the night, and it turns out, they had a lot of fun too! They partied it up at a Halloween store. Tralee loved it and played dress up to her little heart's content. Hunter, on the other hand, was FREAKED most of the time. At one point Jim said they passed a scandalous costume portraying a curvaceous woman wearing a not-so-modest outfit. Tralee ran up to the costume, pointed at the chesty lady, and shouted, "Look Daddy! Boobies!" At least she knows her anatomy. Jim said he laughed while escorting her to a more kid friendly area. Here are some pics from their spooky night.

I pretty much love Tralee as a pirate! Aunt Joni, her shoes are mis-matched, just for you!

Good times!

Question Among Ramblings

How come sometimes I feel so on-the-ball as far as housekeeping, child rearing, working out, blogging, and crafting go, and other times I'm so blah? I'm in a blah phase right now. There are loads of brilliant ideas rumbling around in my head, but instead of act on them, I spend my day only scratching the surface. I'm now behind on all areas of my life.

What do you do to motivate yourself?

I'm really not a go getter. I'm more of a flight of fancy kind of person. I want to be more of a go getter. I'm also easily overwhelmed. I'm an all or nothing kind of gal. I feel if I can't accomplish everything I want to, or don't see immediate results, then I shouldn't even try. I know this is a crap way to think, but that's just how my brain is wired. I know I just need to dive right back into my life, and stop waiting for inspiration to strike. Once I get going, I'm fine. It's just starting back into the grind that's problematic.

I also need to set goals, makes lists, and follow through. I haven't been doing this lately, and it really helps me attain a more go getter kind of attitude. Not that the flight of fancy thing isn't fun too, but you tend to see more blah days than seize the day days when you live on a whim. So, I'm gonna make a list and stick to it. I also think a schedule of sorts will benefit us. Nothing too strict, but a guideline for how our days should go. We're pretty laid back in this household (thanks to my flight of fancy-ness), and I know my kids need a schedule. We had one for a little while, and then. . . well, you know how it goes. . . unless you're a go getter kind of person who ALWAYS sticks to your schedule NO MATTER WHAT!!!!! If you're that kind of person, I'm envious, and I also feel the need to say to you, "take a chill pill!!"

There is one pretty great idea that keeps swirling around the old noggin, and I'm pretty excited about it. Once I get back to being the Leslie I want to be instead of the Leslie that's kind of a blob right now, I'll post all about it. Jim even thinks it's a GREAT idea, and it's hard to get his seal of approval on my flights of fancy. Also, he knows I don't follow through alot, so it's hard to get him excited about things I come up with, but this idea even has him smiling!!

Tschuss!

Our Weekend at the Waterfall

We had our "weekend" this last Wednesday, since Jim had to work the previous Saturday. We spent the day hiking to our favorite little waterfall, eating lunch there, and fishing. I'm tired, and there's really not much more to say, so enjoy the photos. . .

Can you see the lizard?

We stopped on the hike to do a little fishin'

Tralee caught a fish! It was a little guy, but still!

We had to stop for some snacks. There was a nice family there that shared their cookies with us. They were yummy!

Tralee is quite the rock climber!!

Hunter fell in the water, so we let him walk around in his diaper after that.

I just like Hunter's face in the picture below. . .even if it is a bit blurry.

Again. . . check out Hunter's face! The fish Jim caught is cool too.

I love the picture below. They sat like this fishing for quite some time. Talk about a heart-melter!

Love the next picture! Tralee and her Daddy love each other so much.

Hunter got his first fishing lesson.

There's Jim and Hunter heading back to the car.

When we got home Tralee wanted to ride her scooter, so we took a ride around the neighborhood.

I KNOW we had fun on Wednesday, cause as we were leaving our little hike I asked Jim, "How long do you think we were there, like an hour?" Jim replied, "Uh. . .try like three hours!" I guess time really does fly when you're having fun!

Our Last Adventure in Oregon

We ate our last meal in Seaside at the Pig N' Pancake again. I ordered sour dough pancakes. Delish!! After breakfast, we walked to the beach and played again. We let the water chase us, we drew in the sand, Hunter chased birdies, and right before we left, Jim jumped in the ocean. The water was SO COLD, but Jim said he couldn't leave without jumping in. I got a video of it on Jim's phone, and if I can figure out how to put it on the computer, I'll post it eventually.

Below is a picture Tralee drew in the sand. When I asked her who it was she said, "Charlie Brown." Tralee and I like to read the Sunday comics together, and her favorite one is Charlie Brown. Can't you totally see it in her drawing? I think this has to be one of my favorites!

Of course I drew this cheesy message in the sand. I mean, you gotta do this when you're at a beach, right?

Tralee was being a doggy in the water. Silly girl.

My two favorite guys pictured below.

Tralee shouting at something. I just thought the silhouette looked cool.

And lastly, the kid-os and myself saying goodbye to the Oregon coast.

Our vacation was too much fun. We decided this is definitely one that needs to be repeated!

The drive home was fine. We stopped alot, but I guess that's normal when you're traveling with two wee ones. At one point after dark, Hunter was tired and screaming, and the only thing that would get him to stop was me reaching back and letting him hold onto my arm. It was sweet, but my arm kept falling asleep. Plus, I was trying to drive too (Jim and I were in separate vehicles). When I moved my arm, he cried until he was holding onto it again. Then, it really got crazy when Tralee said, "I want to hold Mommy's hand too!" I didn't have any other hand to give her! So she started crying, and I felt bad because Hunter was hogging me, and I try to be fair with my kids. So, I let Tralee hold my hand for a minute, which made Hunter cry again. I finally explained to Tralee that Hunter was smaller and wanted to hold Mommy's hand until he fell asleep, could he please do that? She reluctantly agreed, and as soon as Hunty drifted off, I held Tralee's hand for a bit until she was satisfied. Then I said, "Kay, it's Mommy's turn to have her hand back." Phew!!! It was nice to have both hands on the steering wheel again.

We made it home alive, and it was so nice to walk into a nice clean house. Don't worry though, it didn't stay clean for very long. I think it was scattered with toys again the very next morning and pretty much back to normal!

It's good to be home, but I also can't wait for our next adventure!!!

Day Two in Seaside -- Adventure Number. . . I can't remember

We woke up day two in Seaside to a rainy, cloudy, windy mess of a morning. Not a problem for us adventurers! We could take on anything! After eating breakfast at a place called Pig n' Pancake (yummmers in my tummers!) we ventured on over to the Seaside Aquarium. It was right down the the sidewalk from our hotel. Yippee!

The favorite activity at the Aquarium for us was feeding the seals. I read up on them and found out they were all born into captivity. The seals we fed were actually fifth generation, and each one of them had a very different personality. The one pictured below liked to flap its flipper and bark until you threw it a piece of stinky fish. Other seals splashed you, some twirled, and some just sat there and waited for another seal to miss the catch so it could steal it away.

The aquarium wasn't fancy by any means, but it was still a fun way to kill an hour and escape the rain. Tralee's favorite tank contained a small octopus. She kept going back to watch it suck rocks up its tentacles. We also enjoyed touching sea cucumbers, urchins, coral, and starfish in the hands-on exhibits. Hunter mostly splashed the water, and didn't really touch anything.

As luck would have it, the rain didn't stop by the time we were done at the aquarium, so we decided to take a little drive out to Cannon Beach to explore the tide pools by the big rocks. We thought maybe the rain would let up by the time we go there. WRONG!! I think it picked up. And I'm definitely not going to win mother of the year! I totally forgot Tralee's little jacket at the hotel. The only thing we could find in the car for her was one of Jim's t-shirts to wrap her up in while we explored. She survived, but I still felt bad.

Cannon Beach was definitely adventurous! I could hardly see through my glasses as the rain kept speckling them. By the time we got to the big rocks, we were all pretty wet, but not drenched. We got there just in time too! The tide was coming in, so we were only able to explore for a bit. Jim even found a starfish!! Maybe starfish are pretty common there, but I thought it was cool. I worried though when the water was up to my knees as each wave came in. The tide pools were deeper in some areas, and I didn't want to fall in; especially since I was wearing Hunter in the baby sling, and my balance wasn't the greatest, AND I couldn't see well. Sooo. . . we only stayed about fifteen minutes before heading back up to the car.

The rest of the day was spent swimming in our hotel's indoor pool that had ocean views (ooooo and ahhhhh), relaxing in our hotel room while Hunter napped, and walking along the streets of Seaside. One highlight was when we went to the arcade. They had these Deal or No Deal ticket games. I let Tralee play, pick the box, and pick all the numbers. She chose number 11 (my lucky number!). Each time she got an offer from the banker I told Tralee to hit, "NO DEAL!" Well, it was down to the final two boxes. One of them would have the most tickets you could get (200) and the other box had the second to the least amount of tickets you could get (two). We waited with anticipation to see if Tralee chose the right box. Wouldn't you know it, SHE DID! Wahoo!!! 200 tickets poured out of the machine, and other people around us cheered for our lucky little girl. I'm not sure Tralee cared though, she just wanted to go play something else. She WAS pretty stoked when she saw all the treats 200 tickets could get her, and even shared some with the rest of the family!

We ate dinner at a nice steak and seafood joint. Jim ordered ahi tuna -- rare!! It was SOOOO good! I was bound and determined to order razor clams on this vacation. I saw them on a Food Network show once, and always wanted to try them. Unfortunately, I struck out with my meal choice. I could hardly bite into the razor clams they were so chewy (I'm talking leather like!), and they were soaked in grease from being pan fried! EW! I'm not sure if it was the way they were prepared, or if ALL razor clams are like that, but I was bummed out. At least my sweet potato was all right. Any one have experience with razor clams? Did I just get a sucky batch, or are they always yucky? I'm wondering if I should give them another try at a different place if I get the chance, or just steer clear.

Anywho. . . we ended our evening purchasing some fudge at an ice cream parlor for dessert, and walking back to the hotel. Once back at the hotel, the wee ones found their way to dreamland pretty quick. Which meant Jim and I were able to spend the rest of the evening having uninterrupted conversations and snuggling without the kids jumping on us. It was lovely!!

My next blog post will be the LAST one. Well, the last one of our Oregon vacation anyways.

Next Adventure in Seaside, Oregon

We played on the beach for a nice long time the first afternoon we were in Seaside. When we were beached out, we hit up the hotel room for a little R+R time (read: nap time) before dinner. Jim and I decided that sushi was in order for the first meal of our coastline vaca, so we hit up a little sushi joint along the main drag of Seaside. It was prima cool to walk there from our hotel room. The bambinos also enjoyed the stroll, and added bonus, it wore them right out. Actually, it wore us out too chasing after them. Did you know that those little one and three-year-old legs are fast? It seems they get even faster when they're about to walk right into the street. Gee willikers!

We made it to the sushi place right before the dinnertime rush. Our meal was delish. We had the waitress order for us. One, because she knows what's best and two, we wanted to hurry things along. It's not easy for a one-year-old and three-year-old to sit still. James (yes, sometimes I call him that) was also smart enough to suggest an early dinner to beat the crowds. Therefore, our squirly kids' antics wouldn't be a nuisance to as many as they would at peak eating hour. Our plan worked well. We appetized on some edamame, which the kids actually enjoyed as well. I can't remember which rolls we ate, but they were GOOOOOOOD and so pretty!!! The kids split a tempura chicken meal that came with sweet potatoes among other veggies. Dinner was so fun!

We left the restaurant and explored the streets of Seaside. We stopped and played at a big arcade. Tralee rode a carousel. We window shopped, ate some donuts at a little donut shop for dessert (I told Jim, "we went from eating some of the healthiest food on the planet to eating the crappiest food on the planet all in the same night!). What else? Oh, we walked along some boardwalks with a river flowing beneath it. Tralee wanted to feed the fishies her leftover chicken, so we did. Hunter threw rocks in the water and got his head stuck. He came unstuck pretty easily. The evening was just lovely as we spent it doing whatever our little hearts desired. Before we knew it, the sky blanketed the sun as it sunk beneath its cloudy covers, and we found our way back to the hotel in the dusk.

We made it safely to room 403, where the babes drifted off to dreamland in no time at all, and Jim and I stayed up talking in bed while holdings hands under the covers, watching Man Woman Wild on the boob-tube, and snacking on the salt water taffy we picked up earlier in the evening. Our evening ended with making plans for our next day of adventures.