Ben is SIXTEEN

Whether you call him Ben or BenBen or NinjaSnuggleBunny or Minion3, this child is 16 years old and well on the road to driving (ha, pun intended). It seemed only fitting to add some gummies to make walking through the balloons more exciting.

Due to the complications of (my) cold-of-the-month and an upcoming trip to NYC (Michael and Ben), he was forced to eat chocolate cream pie on the 26th and 30th. 

Ben loves gummies, chocolate, McDonald's, and ice cream. He enjoys calculus, cello, swimming, and Forza. We're excited to see how this year goes for him.

Audition at WWU

Michael was accepted at WWU (not a big surprise, but WOOHOO), but the School of Music requires an audition. Despite the drive, we weren't too disappointed to head up to Bellingham for the day. He sounded amazing. Sadly, proud parents were not allowed in the room, but we were there when was warming up and we eavesdropped during the audition. 

February on FB

I get the strangest sense of deja vu from the news these days. It's taking me back to the unit on 1930s Nazi Germany in my World History classes.

It is surreal having more than one person competing for the role of the Antichrist

I feel like Isaac probably needs to join a support group for kids with with mean parents. I imagine a meeting going like this:

Isaac: Hi! I am Isaac.

All: Hi Isaac!

Isaac: My mom is so mean! After she got me up and made sure I got out of bed, made my bento box lunch, made me pancakes for breakfast, got all my vitamins and medications ready, tried to keep me on task, and washed the dishes, she REFUSED to put my lunch in my backpack CLAIMING I had enough time if I hadn't messed around. CLEARLY 45 minutes is NOT enough time to get dressed, eat breakfast, take my meds, brush my teeth AND put my own lunch in my backpack. She is SO MEAN!

I don't want to brag or anything but I turned in a job application today and got the rejection email 38 minutes later - that's a PR!

If you don't follow Heather Cox Richardson on Facebook, you should.

I really enjoy looking at my FB Memories everyday. As I look at my past posts, I notice some themes from when my boys were younger:

1. My kid(s) is(are) so cute!

2. I am exhausted.

3. Why are we sick all the time?

Good times. Good times.

Come hear Michael play in...

Isaac fought the dodgeball and the dodgeball won

Swim and Swim Banquet

I have waited until the end of swim season to do a post about it as each meet is interesting in the moment, but I imagine multiple posts for those who were not there is less fascinating. Below are some pictures from the various swim meets and the team banquet at the end. Most of the swim pictures were taken by a parent of another kid on the team. This parent has more skills and a better camera. 

Vs Steilacoom

Vs Lincoln

Vs River Ridge

Christmas Eve practice

Swim practice

Vs Gig Harbor

Swim (event unknown)

Senior Night

Swim Banquet

And the end, both boys lettered in swim (Ben got a letter, Michael a certificate for lettering again). Michael now has the jifty freestyle (fifty freestyle in jeans) school record. They both had a great time; they both had some obstacles to overcome. Ben was sick twice and Michael had walking pneumonia for a time. I love that they have had this shared experience and am so thankful that Michael bullied encouraged Ben to join the team last year.

Isaac vs the Dodgeball

It's been a while since one of the boys has broken a bone. But when Isaac came home complaining of pain in his pinkie finger after trying to catch a ball thrown by the best dodgeball player at Y Care, I had a sneaking suspicion. When various parts of his finger and side of his hand started looking like modern art, I was even more suspicious. Erring on the side of caution (something I did not do last time), I took him to Urgent Care for an x-ray. They were very good there, but apparently did not have splints for smaller hands (do kids not go there??) and the tech kept commenting on how little Isaac is while bending a larger splint down to his size. Now, Isaac is small for his age, but in the realm of elementary age children, he is not the littlest. 

We got the call that afternoon that he did have a fracture and had earned a referral to Mary Bridge pediatric orthopedics. They also have a pediatric Urgent Care in the area and will now be our go-to for Isaac.

We thought he'd get a cast, but instead he is sporting a fancy brace. Isaac was disappointed because he wanted to pick the color of the cast. When he asked the ortho about picking the color of the brace, the ortho told him he could pick any color he wanted...as long as he wanted black. So, black it is, but upon hearing about how difficult it is to shower with a case, Isaac has decided this is a good deal after all. 

Three weeks of no running, jumping, and having to keep his feet on the ground (AKA torture) and he will get to take this off and return to his previously scheduled physical antics.

Cello Solo and Ensemble

What do you get when you combine months of practicing and fear of performing in public and excellent sound and a great tutor and a complicated piece and a FOUR day migraine? 

Unfortunately, but perhaps not shockingly, a performance that does not show case one's actual ability.

We're proud of Ben for working so hard for this moment and then being open to learning from it and pushing through the disappointment. Can't wait to see what he does next year.

Snowshoeing at Mt St Helens

Rachel got me a guided snowshoeing adventure at our favorite local volcano. I made the arguably questionable decision to drive the Clarity up the mountain. The little-hybrid-that-could did really quite well until I considerately pulled over to let a truck pass me on the snow covered road and was then quite stuck. Luckily, my destination was a popular location for snowmobilers and another truck came by in a bit that was able to help me out. Lesson learned.

The forecast called for cloudy skies and 2-3 inches of snow which may or may not have contributed to half of the group cancelling. By the time we set off there were 4 guides and 3 attendees. By the time we finished, it was just me and 3 guides. Not a bad ratio from my perspective. 

We started from the warming hut which I promise was not covered to the eaves with snow as this picture makes it appear.

It did snow almost all day but the 2-3 inches was in addition to an already decent amount.

We stopped for lunch at a lake pond plake where I learned that my favorite energy bar freezes in really cold weather. Less a bar than a rock. Stuffing it into the pocket of my bottom layer of pants warmed it up to won't-chip-my-teeth temperature. 

With food in our bellies and toes that were starting to get cold, we headed up over a boulder field that was significantly easier to climb covered in snow than in the summer.

The last leg of the trail was all downhill on a ski trail. It was the easiest section which, I assume, is why I biffed it and slammed by face and knees onto the packed snow. Graceful as always! It was a lovely day and a learning adventure.