Hello! Happy March.
Things have been humming away here in our household. We are ready for the grey soggy clouds to be replaced by gorgeous Spring sunshine but so far there has been exactly zero evidence of changing seasons with the exception of a few brave tulips.
Ben's class created another auction item, based directly off of this example. Print-making with kindergarteners is a LOT of work but we're pretty delighted with the finished product.
We took a field trip downtown the other day and Ben's teacher instructed the kiddies to observe the buildings and structures that make up the Emerald City. Seattlelites will notice the Smith Tower, monorail, Great Wheel, Link Light Rail, the Space Needle, the Ballard Bridge, and several of the cranes that dominate our skyline these days. Drop me a line if you know any high bidders. :)
It's been fun to spend time in Ben's class, getting to know the other kids and observing how his days are structured. Mostly it's made me especially appreciative of his teacher. She has a tough job teaching 24 kids with drastically varying abilities and talents; I'm in awe of her abilities.
For mid-winter break we took a quick trip up to Alaska to visit grandparents. The kids had a blast sledding and ice fishing, despite the fact that it was seriously cold. Grandpa wins the award for best sport... kids get cranky when the fish aren't biting and the wind is whipping across the lake.
Remember how I said that I wasn't going to get new furniture until the kids were off to college? Well, I'm having to eat those words right about now. The couches got to the point where they had collected enough stains that it was embarrassing when company came over.
We did a little makeover. We brought the tv room couch upstairs and got a close-out leather couch from Macy's. We also got a new rug...which is a lot more white than I thought. One glass of spilled red wine is going to be the death of it.
You can also see the paint job on the fireplace. Here is the original version.
Here are a few articles of interest from around the 'net:
Seattle folk: Let's eat here sometime.
Chris loves the band Passenger. And I love this song.
Swedish supermarkets ditch the sticky labels
The Sandy Hook promise.
Sonja