Photo of the Week - Happy Holidays!

Ma'alahi Decor

Merry Christmas from the Ma'alahi Family!  We are spending Christmas (and the following week) at T's family's condo in Black Butte Oregon. 

As a side note... how hard is it to travel with kids?!? 

It was not easy (AT.ALL) to fit a family of four (including two babies), all our clothes, Christmas tree, 80 pound labrador (and kennel), said labrador's food, Christmas gifts, skis (there is no snow here…), infant jumper, pack n' play, K's tent (which is very compact), and food into our car (and Thule cargo rooftop bin).  It took me four days to pack and repack everything so that it fit just right.  

M with Santa

Lighted Boat Parade

We love all (well... mostly all) the quirkiness that comes along with living in a small town.  We have lived on San Juan Island since 2007 and have come to embrace local community events and celebrations.  

This is the first year that we have attended the lighted boat parade.  I saw few signs posted around town about the event so I expected there would be substantial participation by at least a few of the many hundreds of boaters in our community. 

There were FIVE hearty boaters that participated in our island's grand parade.  

I have to give it to them.  It was cold, dark, and a little windy.  We didn't consider participating... thought never crossed my mind.  Taking our boat out IN.THE.DARK. with two small kids.  NO.THANKS.

The five boats circled the area out in front of the aquarium dock twice.  A good hundred people were watching.  On the first pass, the Sheriff boat dropped Santa Claus off, on the dock.  Santa was welcomed with Christmas carols and screaming children.  Totally cute to hear (we were not on the main dock). 

Parade Participant (you could hear a portable generator running as they motored by)

The parade definitely got me into a nautical holiday mood.  I put a few strings of white lights on the stern of Ma'alahi and hung some adorable (and totally cool!) sailcloth stockings we received as a gift.  Photos to follow.

I am hoping to come up with some more creative holiday ideas for next year.  My understanding is that lighting a sailboat is much easier than it looks.  My main concern is with lights getting tangled around things in a wind storm.... we will see (but not this year). 

Photo of the Week - Lime Kiln Park -

 

I constantly remind myself to take a deep breath, look around, and take in the beauty of our where we live.

First Trip to the Zoo.

Sorry about the intermittent posting.  It is THAT time of year.

Over Thanksgiving weekend (Black Friday) T treated the kiddos and I to a day at the Woodland Park Zoo (in Seattle).  It was so much fun to see K connect the dots when she saw the first few animals.

We read a lot of books about animals ("Polar Bear Polar Bear... what do you hear" is permanently imprinted in my brain).  Up until this visit, K's experience with wild animals was all two dimensional.

When we entered the monkey exhibit, we saw a larger monkey that was near the glass.  We got up close to the glass...  K saw the monkey reach for some broccoli and stick it in his mouth.  K FREAKED.OUT. clearly because the MONKEY.MOVED.  Seeing her make the connection that all the animals we have been reading about ARE.ALIVE. was so much fun.

Otter and fish exhibit.

The meerkats and giraffes (all the moms, including myself were telling their kids "Look, it is Sofie!") were a big hit as well. 

Life size komodo dragon

I hope to continue to nurture our children's interest in nature, wildlife, and the environment as they get older.  It is never too early to start. 

Photo of the Week - Good Morning! -

Clearly willing to let me sleep in...

This little critter can be so cute in the morning.  I typically bring M to bed when he wakes up for a feeding anytime after 5AM - I am usually able to get one to two hours of additional sleep ((PRICELESS)).

I can only dream of the day when he will sleep ALL.THE.WAY. through the night.  For now, he is a 22 pound baby that refuses solids. 

Infant Life Jackets Continued... Black Friday Steal!

M is six months old and getting SO.BIG.  He currently weighs in at 22 lbs (only 2 pounds less than his Big Sis K).  I had had just about enough of his Stearns jacket (see Infant Life Jackets): 

M laying down in the Stearns

M sitting up in the Stearns vest - AHHHH!!!

I promised myself that I would invest in a Salus life vest once M reached 20lbs.

Right after Thanksgiving, we were strolling by the marine supply store and, out of the corner of my eye, I saw a sign - "30% of EVERYTHING in the store" - we jumped on the offer and got vest for about $50. 

Look at all the neck room!

Handsome and happy in his new Salus jacket.

M laying down in the Salus vest.

So far, so good - totally worth the investment!  The Salus Nimbus is clearly well made and more comfortable to wear than any vests I have tried with the kiddos.  For additional information, you can visit the Salus website at www.salusmarine.com