Hobbes finds a beetle.

Here is Beetle friend. Hobbes found him in the bathroom, gave him a drink of water (which he survived) had him tickle his finger, picked him up, and sent him home (outside!). He then had to tell Bray about it for 5 minutes on the phone-it was the event of the day!

Little Things.

You always appreciate someone more when you're separated from them for a period of time. This shouldn't be the case, but it is, and there are so many things Bray excels at that I have to work really hard just to do. And the humbling part (at least for me) is that they mostly have to do with taking care of the kids!
Bray is really good at coming up with new and different ways of entertaining our little monkeys-and oftentimes, the games he creates are made out of using little things (sticks, rocks, air). He is always happy to play 100% with them, and I know he enjoys it just as much as they do! One of the things that I've missed the most while he's gone is having him with us at the park. Bray chases the kids all over the playsets, comes up with games for them on the swings, and has sword fights with sticks by the water. Although park days with Mommy are more mellow, I've enjoyed having the kids try to play Daddy's games with me-and we'll just have to come up with some of our own! But we miss you, Daddy!:)

Finger Painting

To keep busy while Daddy's gone, we've been doing lots of projects. The other day we got out the really messy gel-fake-kid-safe-supposed-paint stuff. The kids had a blast, I only had to scrub 4 spots in the carpet, and we made lots of pictures to send to Gege & Bop, Ama & Ampa, Daddy and Archer, Jaike & Oz. (they're on their way!) It was definitely a messy day, but it was a hit! (In fact, they've asked to paint every day since then...but we have to space it out a little!)

dancin kids

I was getting out my fall decor today, and listen to some Mraz, and we all got into a dancing mood...so here they are, jazzin' (or mrazzin'! hehe)out.

Retro Day,

Can you believe it's been a year since we moved here? In all truth, it feels like a lot more than that to me...but then again, so much happens in a year! And to think about the possibilities for next year...well, it gets a bit overwhelming! We knew it was a probability that we would be in Seattle for a 2nd season, so this will be the longest we've lived somewhere come April '10. Crazy, eh? And after that....well, the possibilities are pretty much endless right now. So pray that God opens some clear doors in the coming months-there will be many decisions to be made!

eyebrows

We came into the bathroom the other evening, to find Hobbes doing this. :)

funny boy.

Soo, Bray got to Santa Barbara just fine yesterday, and besides not being able to talk to him (I accidentally left my phone in the van which the girls drove back to Moscow...had to have it mailed back-it is SO weird not having any means of communication except for email!) things have gone fairly well. Madeline has developed some sort of croupy-cough (not swine flu, though) so she is somewhat down for the count, but the kids have been obedient and happy, and the weather is gorgeous!
But, back to the point of this post. This morning, I got the kids ready to go get more medicine for Madeline at Target. As we were loading into the car, 2 Mormon missionaries were going door-to-door at apt. complex. They asked if I was heading out (since it wasn't clear from me putting the kids into the car) and if they could come back later. I told them I was a reformed Christian, and thanked them anyways. They then started to walk to the apt. across the hall from us, and Hobbes got really excited that 'people' were going to his house.
When we got back from the store, as we were driving up, Hobbes yelled, "YAY! People at Hobbes' house! People are going to play with Hobbes!" He ran inside and called, "People!! People we're back! People where are you?" and when he realized no one was inside our apt. (thankfully!) he said, somewhat disappointedly, "No people." And then went to his room and began building an elaborate train track. What a funny dude. Perhaps he needs more friends? :)

Bray is leaving tomorrow....

to go be a part of this! Although I am sad he will be gone, I get to go see the premiere!!! And not to mention, visit my fave California city! Break a leg, babe-we love you!!

Puddle-jumpers.

Its been raining here the past few days (I know, big surprise here in Seattle!) so last night we went for a puddle-jumpin' walk...and the sun even made an appearance as it was going down! The kiddos had a great time, got some energy out, and we enjoyed the lovely fall weather.

RTR!

Alabama had it's first football game on Saturday, and so Bray headed up to the clubhouse to watch it on the flat screen...I went running during the second half, and so the kiddos came up to watch it with Bray. Bray has been getting them psyched up for Bama football by saying "Roll Tide!" and then they all do a boogie-dance. Madeline especially loves this, and will initiate it on her own!

More Wicked!!

Looking up the street at the theater!
Our delicious scallops!
Carolyn, looking 'Wicked.' :)
Kathryn and I-all excited for the show!
The wonderful idea-woman, who came up with this whole plan! Thanks again, Naphtali!

This is what we call the "Crazy-baby-eyes" face.:)
There are no words. Indescribable. Defies gravity. hehe.The poster outside the theater...Cold, blurry, excited, tired and ready to go home. What a fabulous evening!!!

Wickedly wonderful....(sneak peek!)

Guess what my amazing sisters got me for an early birthday present....tickets to see WICKED!!!!
The gals surprised me Thurs. evening, and it was to-date the best Broadway show I have seen!! The girl that played Elphaba was the original Young Cosette on the Les Mis CD, and her voice was fantastic! The show itself....indescribable! I am sure I had a silly grin stuck on my face the entire show-but I didn't care! It was all I could do to not dance and stand up and cheer after each song! Anddd since I get to meet the composer here in a few weeks (for Bray's opera written by Stephen Schwartz) I might even be a bigger geek and bring my WICKED program for him to sign. Soo, thanks gals-best birthday ever!! Love you!

Imaginations.

Lately, Madeline has been really into playing with her animals-and Hobbes, as usual, loves cars, planes, trains and anything mechanical. A few days ago, they decided to combine the 2 worlds and played for several hours with both cars and animals, creating their own natural-mechanical world. It was pretty cute, and I had to interrupt for a moment to get this picture-right after they were back at it!

Little Buddies.

It was such a gorgeous morning, and the kiddos looked so cute, I couldn't resist taking some pics. Love these sweet kiddos! And they play so well together (most of the time...). We are blessed indeed.

Shnoo Family Date

In case some of you don't know, I am now working at a place called "Shnoo Yogurt." It is just a mile or so from our apartment, and serves all-natural nonfat frozen yogurt and Stumptown coffee. I love working there (seeing as I'm back being a barista!) and it's fun to have the kiddos come and get their healthy 'ice-cream.' A few evenings ago we decided to all go and have a family-date night there-the yogurt was delicious as always, and the kids felt so grown-up! What fun!

Tasting everybody's different concoctions.

Love those Wilkins' boys!

http://cardco.blogspot.com/2009/08/frito-bandito-song.html

Go to my brother-in-law Matt's blog to see a classic Wilkins' boys moment-and on our wedding day! I have to say, I love having such a fun, crazy family-thanks Matt for putting this up!

Going home.

Partying in Moscow is hard work!

Coffee with cousins.

Goodbye, Moscow! See you soon!
Having fun in Payless Shoes...mocking runway models who actually wear these hideous purple things. :)
Such a smiley dude!
Yes, can I help you? Look how stinkin' adorable she is!!
Hobbes felt like such a big boy, pushing cousin Asa-he did a great job! And Asa was good, too.:)
Lovin on the cousins.
It's not often that Hobbes finds something so funny, he bursts into outright laughter. When he does, though, I think it is the cutest, funniest thing! When we were out for coffee, Amara kept trying to eat the napkins, and Bray would take them away from her. Although it was a bit frustrating for poor Amara, Hobbes was dying of laughter-so I had to take a picture!

Singing in Spokane!

The singers, doing what they do best!

I believe I posted a few pictures last year of this fundraiser, 'An Evening in Tuscany,' that Bray sang at. He was invited back again this year, and so we were thrilled to go (free dinner/date for me, and a night on the town!) My parents were kind enough to keep the kiddos for the evening, so we stayed a lovely elderly couple's home, and then came to the event. It was a beautiful evening, the music was great, and the food and wine were delicious! What fun!

Bray and I, on one of the lower balconies overlooking the pool-I love this event!
Part of the master bathroom...probably bigger than our entire apartment!This is part of the formal dining room-this house is absolutely fantastic!

The back stairway down to the patio-as you can see, where the dinner was held.
The view is honestly like a painting. You can see all of Spokane, and it is framed by the mountains in the background-gorgeous!

Moms and Martinis!

Happy Birthday, Mom-we love you!
Asa, and his perfect camera-grab-the-face Kodak-moment pose.:)
Don't worry, I didn't drink both of them!
Cute mamas.I think she had a good time!:)