Play Dates

  I'm sure I'm allergic, but does it get prettier than pink trees?!

 "Ben your so far away..."

 "much better"

the wild ones : the peaceful ones

 This park was so much fun.  It's a couple blocks away from Jen's house and has the cutest little farm park next door.  There's bamboo forts, gardens, tractors, and lots of room to run.

I have been at this whole stay at home mom thing for about 3 months now. For some reason it seems longer and I think it's because everyday is something new. That's my favorite part about moving to new cities every few years. And Washington has brought me outdoors. Which seems funny to most because it's cold and rainy here. (However we have had about 6 days of sunshine in a row- and it has been ammazzzing!) But... it's really because I'm not stuck indoors 40+ hours a week and well it's just to gorgeous here to stay inside. The air is so clean, I can finally breathe. I know I haven't been here long enough for things to bloom yet, but my allergies have been non-exisitant here so far, which I can't tell you how amazing that is for me.

I think I can honestly say that I have never been to more parks in all my life than I have in the 3 months I've lived here. Kirkland is full of them. Almost every neighborhood has one. We are in walking distance to 2 'fun parks' as Rhone calls them. And because we are on one income, the money to do other things just isn't there. And well, if you give Rhone a place to run and explore he is a very happy boy. One of my biggest concerns with staying home with the kids and not having them in day care, was the worry about them not getting social interaction with other kids. So I looked into mommy groups, but they just didn't seem right for us starting out. I registered Rhone is several parks and rec classes which he loves but it just wasn't enough. I took them to the park, and Rhone would find any kid and latch onto them. He loves playing with other people, the problem is they didn't always want to play with him. You know how hard it is to see your kid try to play hide and seek with bigger kids, and when he runs and hides, nobody looks for him. It can break your heart. I also wrote about how his aggressiveness and eagerness can scare most kids here. 

So about a month ago, we were at Juanita beach park which is so beautiful and Rhone's favorite because it's a beach which means he can throw rocks and play in the sand.  About a month ago we meet Jen and her son Levi.  (Rhone went to go steal his tractor and Levi got mad) it was a match made in heaven. haha.  Well for the next hour or so, these two little boys played so well together so well.  They are so much alike its scary.  They both are pretty big for their age, their personalities are  extremely similar and they both kinda get what they give.  And instead of Rhone dominating he gets put in his place a little more with Levi.  Sometimes with two aggressive personalities, it can get a little heated between them, but I can tell Rhone is taking it all in and learning how to play, share, and obey more so than before.  They really do love each others company.  Rhone talks about him all day, and asks if he can play with him.  And every time we do meet up, Levi runs to him and gives him a big hug and says "I missed you Rhone".  So cute right ?!  

Jen also has a 12 month old boy named Ben, who also equally shares many qualities that Lachlyn does.  He is timid, a lover boy, and so cute.  Such a cute little couple. hehe.  Jen owns and teaches yoga and her husband is a firefighter.  I could go on forever about them, such a great family.  As a bonus, are parenting styles are pretty similar and it's nice to share with someone who understands my kids and can relate to so many different situations as a mom. 

Getting excited for warmer sunnier days like this one and enjoying time spent with friends.

 

A letter to baby

  

Oh Lachlyn... can't believe your almost 10 months old.  You achieve something new everyday, and you also are stuck in a rut with night time sleeping.  You are pretty consistent with a midnight & 5 am scream fest.  But come 7:00, your smile is contagious and you somehow make me forget why I feel so tired.  You love crawling into chairs and then crying when you get stuck.  Opening every cabinet and flipping through each page of any book you can find is your favorite activity.  You love to dance to any music, but especially to mommy singing.  Your favorite toy right now is the kazoo.  

You are really good at faking me out and getting your brother in trouble.  You have this new face you make with your little puckered lips that makes me think your eating something, but really it's just a weird face.  For some reason the nickname that has stuck with you is 'baby'.  Rhone calls you 'baby sister' and your dad and I just call you 'baby'.  Which seems so boring and unoriginal but you love it, and so do we.  You love to crawl into the bathroom after your brother and grab his pee stream which freaks him out so much he ends up peeing all over place.  Your favorite thing to say is 'mom mom' which I love, but when said continuously can easily turn into me wondering why I didn't teach you 'da da' first. 

Your skin is still perfect and as pale as could be.  Your eyes are still crystal blue, and your eyelashes go on for days.  Your hair is getting more ginger each day just like your daddy's.  Every single tiny thing about you is pretty amazing and I thank God each and every day for you.  

MVI 6523 from Lynn Fletcher on Vimeo.

*on a side note: my parents informed me that the reason my dad called me 'Scooter' was because I scooted as well... like mother like daughter - makes me so proud - hehe

Random pics this week

 

Can't believe this girl is 3 months shy of 1 year old!

Sunday at aunt Kendra's in Gig Harbor.

Crabs, sea stars, rocks, and lunch in town makes for a great trip to the Puget Sound.

Good morning you two

 Long day at the park ugh...

Rhone playing with his new best friend Levi

Just taking a stroll at St. Edwards

My favorite thifted purchase this month

Love

Favorites

So I thought I would do a series of Pinterest favorites each week.  

Picking just 1 pin in 5 of my favorite categories to share with you all. 

DIY & Crafts:

Source: thehuntedinterior.blogspot.ca via Lynn on Pinterest

Hair & Beauty:

Source: glamour.com via Lynn on Pinterest

Holidays & Events:

Source: obviouslysweet.com via Lynn on Pinterest

Kids:

Source: etsy.com via Lynn on Pinterest

Women's Fashion:

Source: refinedstyle.tumblr.com via Lynn on Pinterest

Lachlyns Crawl

** Best seen with sound**

Booty Scoot from Lynn Fletcher on Vimeo.

Lachlyn has taken her time with this whole crawling thing.  Ever since she was a baby, she has not liked being on her stomach.  She rolled over pretty early on because of this.  So when she mastered the sit she pretty much insisted on it all the time.  I believe this is what prompted her own version of crawling.  It's not the conventional way to get around, it's not even practical or efficient but she took a liking to it.  I actually think it's quite funny to be honest. I was worried after reading about how important the crawl is to a child's growth and decided to talk about it with her Dr.  She said that lots of children find their own ways of crawling and it will not affect her development.  And she also said that now that she can move about on her own, she may not ever crawl on her hands and knees.  This eased my mind and so I've embraced this silly girls way and wanted to share this video I made of her 'booty scoot'. 

On a side note... I'm trying out this whole Adobe Elements program to see if we want to purchase it, which is why it has a silly banner on it.  But hopefully down the road I will be able to learn and experiment with making our own home videos to enjoy for years to come.

A new month brings new changes

This girl.  She melts my heart.  Ginger hair, blue eyes, and that pasty Washington skin.  Give her a little sass, a drama queen attitude, and snugly soul and were in for a fun ride with her.  She is growing up so fast.  She is still tiny and seems so light compared to Rhone, but she is learning and growing more than her age.  She loves to watch and I can tell she is taking in everything she sees.  

She isn't crawling yet per-say, she has chosen a way less affective, but way funnier way to get a round the house.  Her Dr. has reassured me that this is normal and that she may never do a formal crawl before she walks.  Coming soon... her scoot.  

Speaking of kids growing up... Rhone is doing so well this week.  He surprises me every day.  I've made quite a few changes around here, and one of them is getting Rhone to help me with things around the house.  For one, it helps him stay out of trouble, and it lets me get stuff done while keeping him entertained.  His favorite thing right now is washing dishes.  I fill the sink with bubbles and put a few dishes in there and he can spend 30mins there. Another happy mama moment is seeing him express his feeling more and more.  The other day I saw him get so frustrated because I took a toy away because he was hitting his sister with it.  And instead of his usual attempt to hit me out of frustration or push her, he said "I'm so frustrated Mom!".  I was so proud.  We talked about why and how he can resolve this frustration and it was over.  No crying, no hitting, no scolding. I have high hopes for this next year of getting through the two and into the threes.

In other news:  We finally got a new computer!!! I can't tell you how exciting this is for me.  I have been using a small laptop we bought 6 years ago.  With our tax refund, we used a little to splurge this year and get a incredible fast and blah blah blah desktop computer.  Another perk for me is Photoshop Elements 11 came with this new computer. Yay. Now instead of using about 3-4 programs to do certain things, I can just use 1 and once I master it, I will be able to save so much time with my photos.  And if that wasn't enough I also got a new lens for my camera.  The 50mm!! And let me tell you, it is everything and more that I was hoping for.  I have wanted this before Lachlyn was born and so you can image the excitement I had when it came in the mail last week.  My new goal for the month of March is to take a class via internet to help teach me to use this new lens and help me finally learn basic photography skills.